The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON PRAYER
R’ Pinchas said: “G-d is prayer”.
-A renaissance of piety: the teachings of Hasidism and the shifting paradigm, in Wrapped in a Holy Flame: Teachings and Tales of the Hasidic Masters, by Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, p. 9 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON PRAYER
“The people imagine that they pray before G-d. But this is not so. For prayer itself is the essence of divinity”.
–The Martin Buber Reader: Essential Writings, edited by Asher D. Biemann, p. 69. Reproduced with permission of Palgrave Macmillan (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON FAITH
Reb Refoel of Bershid said that for someone whose faith is not as strong as it should be, his faith does not work to his benefit. He offered a suggestion on how to get around this problem: you should have faith that, even though your faith is not strong enough, G-d will assist you as if you were someone with strong faith.
–Sefer Likutim Yekarim, by Aryeh Leib Schochet, p. 155, translation by A.G., personal communication, 10?14?2009 (A)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON FAITH
“In the city of Ostrow one Shavuos three prominent tzaddikim—the city’s rav, the town’s maggid, and the renowned tzaddik R’ Pinchas’l of Koritz, all talmidim of the eminent Baal Shem Tov—were deliberating the inyan [matter] of spreading grass on the ground on this holiday. Their interpretations varied one from the other, the Gemara concurring with none satisfactorily. R’ Pinchas’l, aware of the greatness of the ailing R’ Hirsch who lived in a rundown hovel on the outskirts of Ostrow, suggested they visit the impoverished old man to wish him a good Yom Tov and perchance he would offer some illuminating insights. After all, R’ Pinchas’l had once heard his rebbe, the great chassidic master himself, declare that it was the zechus [merit] of R’ Hirsch that protected the town from various adversities.
“The tzaddikim found R’ Hirsch sitting on his bed engrossed in the Shulchan Aruch. He asked them to be seated on the only other furnishing in the bare room—a broken bench that leaned against a wall for support. R’ Hirsch, in response to their quandary, expounded on a narration in the Gemara: R’ Ada had once decided to leave his home and family in order to spend his time learning in a yeshiva. To his wife’s voiced concern regarding their children’s welfare and how she would go about feeding them in his absence, R’ Ada proffered simply ‘Mi shelimu kurmei b’agmah?—Has all the grass in the field dispersed?’ R’ Hirsch intoned, ‘Now what kind of an answer is that? And yet his wife was appeased. Did he mean to infer that she take her hungry children out to the field and feed them grass, like the animals? Animals, lacking the intelligence to seek parnassa [livelihood], are entirely dependent on their Creator’s benevolence. Had man not deemed to act against G-d’s directive and eat from the eitz hadaas [Tree of Knowledge], he too would have basked in the bounteousness of his Creator without sweat or headache. But since he thought himself to be smart enough to be his own boss, he now scrambles for a living by constant exertion. Nonetheless, he who harbors true faith in G-d, believing wholeheartedly that Hashem is the “nosein lechem lechol bassar” [the giver of bread to all flesh] is granted ease of parnassa … with the compassion He confers upon the animal that is totally reliant on His chesed [kindness]. By referring to the grass in the field, R’ Ada essentially assured his wife that with ultimate faith in Hashem, they would never go hungry’”
–“To Believe Is to Achieve,” at Kosher.com (C)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON FAITH
“Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz taught that a holy spark falls and burns inside a Ger. It compels him to complete his Geirus and actually does not give him any choice in this matter. Only after his Geirus is the Ger given free choice”.
–Imrei Pinchas HaShalem, Shaar Toras Adam (A, B), cited in “Question & Answer With Yirmeyahu — Burning Within,” at A Simple Jew (C)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON FAITH
“[G-d banished man from the Garden of Eden.] He drove away the man, and stationed the cherubim at the east of Eden, and the fiery ever-turning sword, to guard the way to the Tree of Life (Genesis 3:24). R’ Pinchas said: ‘The fiery ever-turning sword has a universal meaning for all of us. It represents the obstacles and temptations we encounter in our attempt at achieving closeness to G-d. G-d is the Tree of Life and there are many deterrents that block our path to him’”.
–Imrei Pinchas HaShalem, Bereshit 8 (A, B), cited in The Great Chasidic Masters, by Avraham Y. Finkel, p. 35 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON FAITH
R’ Pinchas taught: “You must be wholehearted with the Eternal your G-d” (Deuteronomy 18:13). From the Torah and all of the Prophets there are only two commandments that must be performed ‘with the Eternal your G-d.’ In terms of ‘wholeheartedness’ the text only says, ‘You must be wholehearted with the Eternal your G-d.’ Similarly, regarding the value of humility, the prophet says, ‘Walk humbly with your G-d.’ The reason is that in both of these commandments one can easily fool others; one can pretend to be pure while his heart is filled with cunning and wicked schemes. Similarly it is taught that humility can be faked. … [therefore] wholeheartedness and humility must be performed with G-d, who examines our hearts for health or pride [and cannot be fooled]”.
–Itturei Torah, edited by A.Y. Greenberg, vol. 6, p. 122c, cited in “Ah, the Life of a King,” by Gary Pokras (C)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON FAITH
A disciple, tormented by wavering faith and unable to study, came to see R’ Pinchas. The rebbe responded that, as a young man, he, too, had wrestled with questions and doubts. “About man and his fate, creation and its meaning. I was struggling with so many dark forces that I could not advance; I was wallowing in doubt, locked in despair. I tried study, prayer, meditation. Penitence, silence, solitude. In vain. My doubts remained doubts, my questions remained threats. Impossible to proceed, to project myself into the future. I simply could not go on.” Then, one day, when the Baal Shem Tov was visiting his town, R’ Pinchas was led by curiosity to attend the gathering. “I was convinced that he was seeing me and no one else. … The intensity of his gaze overwhelmed me, and I felt less alone. And strangely, I was able to go home, open the Talmud, and plunge into my studies once more. You see, … the questions remained questions. But I was able to go on”
–Four Hasidic Masters and Their Struggle against Melancholy, by Elie Wiesel, pp. 1-3. Copyright © 1978 by Elie Wiesel. Reprinted with permission of Georges Borchardt, Inc., on behalf of Elirion Associates (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON FAITH
R’ Raphael said that he had asked his master, R’ Pinchas, how to strengthen his faith and trust in G-d, and he replied: “Only the young require such advice. A mature Jew has had sufficient experience to trust in G-d’s constant watchfulness over him”
–Midrash Pinhas, p. 41 (A), cited in The Hasidic Anthology: Tales and Teachings of the Hasidim, by Louis I. Newman, pp. 278-279. Reprinted with permission of Ann Newman (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON SELF-NEGATION
“According to R. Pinhas there is no substitute for absolute humility, hence miracles are never the outcome of concerted effort, as in the case of the effort of the Maggid during prayer. Miracles and changes in nature cannot be attained by means of contemplative prayer and the deliberate stripping away of the physical during prayer, but arise only from the annihilation of the ego. … At the base of R. Pinhas’ passive attitude … is his great sensitivity to the potential for spiritual self-deception, and his recognition that every spiritual and religious effort includes the dangerous pitfall of pride that contradicts all possibility for life within the Ayin [nought]. R. Pinhas connects the world of Ayin with the transformations that arise from direct Divine intervention in the world. What is novel in his writings is his emphasis on the importance of not knowing, on the removal of self-consciousness, that is, pride. … Annihilation of the ego is a state of spiritual torpor and folly … But just as the secret of renewal in nature resides in sleep and awakening, thus the more foolish a man is in his own eyes, the more he is spiritually and physically renewed. These ideas should be understood in the light of R. Pinhas’ extremely passive doctrine concerning spiritual techniques. Spiritual wonder and real renewal are recognizable in their being a gift from above and what is really given to man is his self-contraction”.
–New models of the sacred leader at the beginning of Hasidism, by Ron Margolin, in Saints and Role Models in Judaism and Christianity, edited by Joshua Schwartz and Marcel Poorthuis, pp. 388-389 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON SELF-NEGATION
R’ Pinchas said: “Great miracles can be performed for a man who truly considers himslf nothing [ayin]. For our Father Abraham, when he went to do battle with kings (Genesis 14), did not rely upon miracles. Rather, he went with sword and buckler, for he was on the level of ayin, and the Holy One performed miracles for him and took rocks [hardened soil] which He cast upon them, and so he conquered them. Therefore, it is stated of Nahum Ish Gam-zu that he took of the dust of Father Abraham (Ta’anit 21a), i.e., the quality of ayin which is symbolized by dust, for dust represents the most inferior level [of humility]. Therefore was that miracle performed for him. A man who is on the level of ayin is worthy of having the Shekhinah rest upon him. For of the Holy One we know that the whole world is full of His glory (Isaiah 6:3); therefore, when man considers himself to be ‘something,’ G-d is not within him”.
–Midrash Pinhas, p. 27b, no. 38 (A), cited in The Religious Thought of Hasidism: Text and Commentary, by Norman Lamm, pp. 444-445 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON SELF-NEGATION
R’ Raphael said: “He who wishes truly to live should also wish to be more insignificant than anyone else”.
–Midrash Pinhas, p. 42 (A), cited in The Hasidic Anthology: Tales and Teachings of the Hasidim, by Louis I. Newman, p. 189. Reprinted with permission of Ann Newman (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON SELF-NEGATION
R’ Pinchas said: “The divine is most present when I myself am most absent”
-Freedomlaw, by R.J. Tavel (C)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON THE IMMANENCE OF G-D
“In all thy ways acknowledge Him” (Proverbs 3:6). “The following remark is attributed to Rabbi Pinhas of Koretz: ‘How then is it possible to know G-d in all ways? It is, because when G-d gave the Torah, the whole world was filled with the Torah. Thus there is nothing which did not contain Torah, and this is the meaning of the verse. Whoever says that the Torah is one thing and the profane sphere another is a heretic’” .
Martin Buber’s interpretation of Hasidism, by Gershom G. Scholem, in The Jewish Expression, edited by Judah Goldin, p. 407 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON THE IMMANENCE OF G-D
R’ Pinchas said: “What is G-d? The totality of souls. Whatever exists in the whole can also be found in the part. So in any one soul, all souls are contained” .
Midrash Pinhas (A), cited in Wrapped in a Holy Flame: Teachings and Tales of the Hasidic Masters, by Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, p. 49 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON THE IMMANENCE OF G-D
R’ Pinchas said: “A man must go within G-d”.
Likutei Shoshanim, Tshernovitz, 1857, p. 14 (A), cited in New models of the sacred leader at the beginning of Hasidism, by Ron Margolin, in Saints and Role Models in Judaism and Christianity, edited by Joshua Schwartz and Marcel Poorthuis, p. 388 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON THE IMMANENCE OF G-D
R’ Pinchas said: “‘If a man fulfills the commandments of the Torah, such as the commandment of the phylacteries, and says the formula prescribed by the Kabbalists, namely, “In the name of all Israel [I am doing this]” then he lifts up the whole universe to its “root” above, for the world is really G-d Himself, like the locust whose clothing is part of its own self [i.e. its own wings garb its body]. Therefore, he annihilates [by his action] the [outward] existence of the whole universe. And if we see that in spite of all this the world is still there, it is because the vital energy of G-d is always active and the world is incessantly renewed.’ In contrast, then, to classical Kabbalistic theurgy, where mitzvot transform the G-dhead’s inner state, for Hasidism, mitzvot transform the worshipper’s field of vision”
Midrash Pinhas, 1872, 9b, 60 (A), cited in Devekut, or communion with G-d, by Gershom Scholem, in Essential Papers on Hasidism: Origins to Present, edited by Gershon David Hundert, p. 296 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON THE IMMANENCE OF G-D
“Rebbe R’ Pinchas spoke of the physical reality of millions of parallel worlds, long before it meant anything in physics or math. There is a word from him where he says that he believes with full faith that there are worlds that are now at every stage of creation, including some where the Maamad Har Sinai (Reception of the Torah) is happening right now”.
Per Yosher Dovor, personal communication, 5/20/2008
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON THE IMMANENCE OF G-D
R’ Pinchas said: “[At the time of creation the light of G-d flowed from the sphere of the spiritual down to the physical world through a series of vessels or emanations.] But the vessels proved unable to contain the Divine Light. They broke. This primordial catastrophe is called shevirat hakeilim, the Breaking of the Vessels. You can better understand it with an analogy. Think of a man who is deeply troubled and depressed. Suddenly he receives an exhilarating piece of good news. His troubles are over. Instead of jumping for joy, the man will break down crying. The “bright light” of the good news was too much for him. Similarly, shevirat hakeilim means that the vessels broke because they could not encompass the brilliant splendor of the luminescent Divine Light”.
Imrei Pinchas HaShalem, Bereshit 9 (A, B), cited in The Great Chasidic Masters, by Avraham Y. Finkel, p. 35 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
The Teachings of Rebbe Pinchas of Koretz and His Disciple, Rebbe Raphael of Bershad
ON THE IMMANENCE OF G-D
R’ Pinchas said: “‘The whole earth is full of His glory’ (Isaiah 6:3). His glory [kevodo] should be understood in the sense of ‘His garment,’ i.e., that G-d is enclothed, so to speak, in the corporeal. Hence, the whole earth is full of his glory implies [that G-d fills] all corporeality. Thus ‘G-d’s glory’ refers to His clothing [i.e., ‘just as the body fills a garment, so G-d indwells in the world’]”
Likkutei Yekarim, p. 17c, cited in Sefer ha-Besht, Bereshit, no. 15, in The Religious Thought of Hasidism: Text and Commentary, by Norman Lamm, p. 26 (B)
SOURCE: Two Tzaddiks
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