Rabbi Elimelech Gutfreund shares rare stories of Rabbi Chaim Mordechai of Nadvorna ZY"A, whom he ...

3:04 - By the merit of our teacher and master, shlita, I am supposed to tell about the tzaddik of the generation. I think that to speak about such a tzaddik of the generation, it takes a tzaddik of the generation to speak about him - not me. But with the permission of our Rebbe - I was asked, and I am commanded and I do. It is hard to believe that in this generation, that, all in all, 50 years ago, he was with us, and his conduct, the stories told about him, are truly like those about the Baal Shem Tov. And so his son, Rabbi Yaakov Yissachar, testified, and said, 'By my father they saw stories such as were by the Baal Shem.'

3:49 I will bring a few stories; after all, stories of tzaddikim are the 'work of the Chariot', and it is very fitting for bringing in a Torah scroll, when each one [unclear] for the Shechinah, when he takes the Torah upon himself. It is very fitting, and it is truly close to his hilula. Since we spoke of the hilula, I will just mention what happened. The last time he left the house and they took him to the hospital, he asked to kiss all the mezuzos.

4:21 He said, 'This does not frighten me; I am passing from room to room.' That is what he said. And then he [unclear], and it was ten days until the day of his passing. At the passing itself there were many students and chassidim there, of course, also the son who succeeded him, and the whole time his eyes were closed. Right before his soul departed, he opened his eyes, there in the hospital - the room was very crowded, there were dozens of people - and he turned his eyes, he passed them over the whole crowd, as if parting from them; he closed his eyes, and his soul departed.

5:02 That is how it was. One of the famous things about him was 'giving out children.' What is called 'giving out children'? People who had not merited [unclear] would come to him, even with the most complicated things, the hardest, the most... something that is not logical, he said, 'I promise,' and so it was - he truly gave them out.

5:29 It was a distribution, you could say. [unclear], so we see: he could wake from sleep after he rested, a rest at noon, in the afternoon, or just so, in the middle, he would wake up and say, 'I just received three children - to whom shall I give them?' So they told him: so-and-so, so-and-so. I know three people who, at that moment, received [unclear] Jerusalem even; he called him from Bnei Brak, promised him, And once there was a story with one of the great Admorim, very famous in the Jewish world.

6:09 I don't want to mention his name, but one of his chassidim traveled to Haifa by train, and he sat there with a friend of his, and the Rebbe, [unclear] Chaim, was there, and he said to him, 'You have no children - come, go over to the Rebbe of Nadvorna; he is famous that whoever asks him for a child receives at once; come, maybe you will succeed.' He says to me, 'It cannot be.

6:40 Our Rebbe said: when hair grows from here, I will have children.' He said, 'What do you care? [unclear]' 'For he is [unclear].' He persuaded him; he went over to him. He said to him, 'With Hashem's help, next year - a son.' He said to him, 'But the Rebbe should know: I am a chassid of a certain Admor.' He told me, 'When hair grows here on me...' He said to him, 'But I am telling you that there is.'

7:06 So it was. The next year he was remembered with a son. Then he came to his Rebbe and told him this; he wanted to give him sandek, of course, it is no question at all - this is the child he gave. His holy spirit, too, was beyond understanding; it was - you could not move around near him, because everyone was transparent to him.

7:35 Many people simply fled - fled, left him, because they could not bear this revelation, that he read everyone and knew everything. You could not hide anything from him. To such an extent, even in fine details: there was once, for example, a [unclear] chassid, many [unclear] chassidim used to come to the [unclear] of Shabbos. He came in once - one who used to come a lot - and the Rebbe calls him and says to him, 'Were you at the mikveh today?'

8:08 He says to him, 'Yes.' 'You were at the mikveh?' 'Yes.' 'Give me your hand.' 'You see the hand - but you [unclear] before chatzos, isn't that right?' To such an extent, he could even see whether it was before chatzos or after chatzos. Total fine details. Total things; that is, one of the chassidim who left him - it was that he came, really, on Friday night and the Rebbe says to him, 'I am telling you that he is right.

8:51 [unclear]?' They asked him afterwards, 'What?' He says, 'I [unclear] a bit during the zemiros when we were at home, and [unclear] said to me: Why are you [unclear]? This is the children's education; one must [unclear] zemiros - and also [unclear], that it is actually more [unclear]. I [unclear]; I told him, the Rebbe is starting, I'm going. And as soon as I came in, the Rebbe said to me, [unclear], you are right.' It was very hard to be near him; he simply saw, saw.

9:23 He had a son-in-law, the Admor of [unclear]; he was also in [unclear], after that Jerusalem. One of his chassidim, [unclear] in [unclear] - a son was born to him. But his father-in-law lived next to the Rebbe, [unclear]. So, as things naturally go, the new mother came home to her parents after the birth. And he was a neighbor of the Rebbe, Reb Chaim, so he wanted to honor the Rebbe, Reb Chaim, with being sandek.

9:56 And so it was; the son-in-law agreed - if the father-in-law wants, he honors him. At the bris, of course, the son-in-law of the Admor also came, the Rav of [unclear], who was And he thought to himself at the bris: 'Seemingly you were supposed to honor with sandek - as if he prays with me; but with Hashem's help we have very few [unclear]; we give your name for one reason.

10:30 for the son, so there I will already take the sandek [unclear].' As he was thinking this, he [unclear] to him and says to him, '[unclear].' It was really, really [unclear] - everything; with everything there were also such things, 'wonders,' as they call it. Once there was, at the house, of children of the neighborhood, And some mother with a child - [unclear] went into the hand and [unclear] on the other side.

11:11 He said that they saw a thorn by the mother, and he came to the Rebbe with the mother, and she was crying. The Rebbe - if he [unclear] you, where are you, what will be? He said, 'Give me the hand.' Yes, he says, 'for whoever did not go to the mikveh today does not [unclear].' Once more he [unclear] - goes to the mikveh first. They showed it, and he did it, they saw nothing.

11:39 We saw the person; we said, 'Do you see this hand?' this is how it looked, after the person [unclear] the story of that time. Yaakov himself told me that this was truly in his youth. The wonder was that all these things - sometimes they say some I don't know, old man, and yes, it's already this, and he has - he was twenty, twenty-something; with him it was the same thing, this conduct.

12:11 With him it was all salvations and wonders. One of the things: there was a father who lived - their house was the house of a Jew who was not a great tzaddik, [unclear]. There were two daughters who would [unclear] and sing. And the houses were very close together there in those little towns, and [unclear] bad.

12:36 He asked to let this Jew know that it disturbs him in prayer and [unclear]. That one [unclear]; he sent to him again. That one already answered with a sort of chutzpah: 'What, shall I take away my daughters' enjoyment [unclear]?' He sent word that if they did not stop, he would take away their voice.

13:05 And so it was: these daughters lost their voices. You could not come afterwards to ask him; it was already [unclear]. There was a story there too - this was also still in his youth. I asked [unclear]. Seemingly Reb Chaim was at the age of 24-25, I think that's right.

13:31 That's it, all in all, that's how it was. There was another story there: in that place it was forbidden to trade in [unclear] or something, And there was a Jew who was very close to the Rebbe, and he traded in it, and the police caught him in the market. As soon as he saw the police, he fled to the Rebbe's house, and the police ran after him.

14:03 He went in to the Rebbe, and the Rebbe was in the middle of learning. 'But Rebbe, they are chasing after me, [unclear]' - the police [unclear] - and he goes on learning. Within a minute the police come in: 'Caught, caught! What is [unclear]? Some Jew who came in here, from here.' They did not catch him - they just don't see, they simply don't see.

14:31 They got annoyed; they left. It was astonishing. I don't want to hold you up for long, but such were the stories; it was [unclear] with him, and so, I am not talking about the prayers and the learning, and he had already finished the Shas, and the wedding, at 16, at 17. One can imagine the greatness of this conduct. It is hard [unclear] that in our generation there was one like this, Children, as I spoke about: someone came in during Chanukah.

15:07 Rabbi [unclear], I said, 'Look at my menorah - how many candles are there? That is how many children there will be.' [unclear] the doctor, and no - he said, 'I don't even need to pray; in my youth I did not pray at all' - a Jew who used to visit there, [unclear] loves [unclear], I don't know why.

15:34 [unclear], I don't know why. Perhaps he said it; I don't know why [unclear] loves [unclear]. He said, 'In my youth, whatever I said, so it was. Today I want to pray for it a little.' To such an extent: there is a story that Rabbi Itamar was ill five years before he passed away, very ill, [unclear].

16:03 One of the sons came to visit him, and then he says to the son, and Itamar, he says, 'But Father said that I [unclear].' He went out. They said this; [unclear] said afterwards, 'What was the conversation with you?' He told me, 'I have very - I have [unclear] with my son, [unclear] of five years, when I am already about to [unclear].'

16:34 He told me, 'No - [unclear].' Five years ago [unclear]. And I said to him [unclear] a few minutes, and there was a young man - I heard this from an eyewitness just now, I made a point of hearing it and [unclear] the details; I was with this Jew, in [unclear].

17:24 Now [unclear], but I went to hear it from him again, the story - and I [unclear] this story for decades. A young man from the yeshiva was called up to the Torah on Shabbos, and then he says to him, 'What - [unclear] going up to the Torah without tzitzis?' I said, 'I have tzitzis.' They told him, 'Check.' He [unclear] the tzitzis [unclear]. Anyway, that's how it was. There was a Jew here, not a chassid; he would come to the tish, he would sit on the side and learn.

17:58 The custom was that the Rebbe would [unclear], and he would [unclear] all his [unclear], and when he [unclear] to him, I said to go - not a chassid, not his chassid; it was not right at all. he saw himself, as it were, The Rebbe went on [unclear], and meanwhile he fled home.

18:28 He came back to sit [unclear], as if he had said nothing. The Rebbe continues [unclear]; he says, 'Oh, now you will [unclear].' You could not hide anything from him. He said, 'Whatever will be, [unclear].' Something, something.

18:54 Indescribable. [unclear], next week, In the generation that the Torah of [unclear], the sign of [unclear], There is much more to say; perhaps at another opportunity. he wants to have it heard here, That's it, so that's it, so that's it, There was a Jew - let me finish this - it is entirely connected to this week's parashah.

19:48 There was a Jew, let's begin like this: a Jew passed away just now, a few days ago, [unclear]. He passed away just now. He was for a time an attendant; he was walking with the Admor in the street, I don't know how, he came from the opposite direction, a very old Jew, went over to this attendant; he said to him, 'Who is this? Who is this?'

20:15 He [unclear] to him, 'The Rebbe [unclear].' 'He is really [unclear].' He said to him, 'No, this is already a great-grandson.' He really looks like him, like two drops, like two drops. Surely the tzaddikim said about [unclear] Yosef the tzaddik. So I [unclear] whether he resembled him.