# Fires of Israel - Part 32
אשי ישראל
Source: https://ajew.org/reader/fires-of-israel/1/32 ## Segment 1
ה'קלויז'
R' Yisroel lies in Tiberius, in the cemetery (“field”), over there is a tombstone, the only tombstone in the field which states: “Rabbi Yisroel Breslover,” engraved in the tombstone… by no one is there written another name other than the Jewish name which he was given – just how he was called by name in his life, that is what is written on the tombstone. ## Segment 2
ה'קלויז' ראיתי בימי מוהרנ"ת (חלק א' מאות ק"ז ולהלן, איך שרבי נתן ראה שכל שנה ושנה שחלפה אחר הסתלקותו של רבינו, נתרבו הציבור יותר. מקודם היה להם מקום להתפלל, בעיר נבנה שמה איזה בית הכנסת חדשה, וכשהגיעו על ראש השנה ביקשו שיתפללו בזה הביהכ"נ, והתפללו שמה כמה שנים. ובכל שנה נעשו יותר נפשות, ולא יכלו ליכנס להביהכ"נ, והוצרכו לשכור. על כל פנים, נעשה בכל פעם יותר, ככל שנתגברו הרדיפות - כן נתרבה, כמו שכתוב; 'ובני ישראל פרו וישרצו וירבו ויעצמו במאוד מאוד', ככל מה שרדפו יותר... נפש אחד שנתקרב - זה יותר מכל העולם, מאלפים, מאלפים. איש אחד שנתקרב לרבינו היה יותר - היה חידוש בעולם, היה כזה... ורבינו הקדוש לקח את הנפשות שלו, נפשות כאלו, נפשות כאלו שעמדו נגד כל העולם! הבעל תפילה, הם היו כמה אנשים, 'הם' היו העולם!... שמעתי מכמה מאנ"ש - רבי נפתלי (כהן, רבי שלמה (וקסלר, רבי נתן בייטלמאכר - - בשנת תקצ"ה הלא היה המחלוקת הגדולה, שקמו חלילה וחס להשמיד להרוג ולאבד. היה בשנת תקצ"ה, ונמשך ככה עד תקצ"ח, זאת אומרת שלוש שנים. בשנת תקצ"ב ראה רבי נתן איך שבכל שנה נתרבה הציבור יותר, ואין מקום להתפלל, אז שכרו בכל פעם איזה מקום גדול. והיה איזה עשיר, והעניק להם מקום גדול, והעמיד להם שולחנות עם מים. על-כל-פנים, רבי נתן ראה שנעשים 'נע ונד' - בראש השנה, אזי נתן לו הקב"ה רצון בלב, רצון חזק שיבנה בית כנסת! נו, לרבי נתן לא היה כסף, והיה רחוק מאוד להשיג כל-כך כסף, לקנות מקום ולבנות בית כנסת - איך לוקחים את זה?! היה כמה עשירים, אבל העשירים; קודם כל - צריך להם זכייה לזה, והשנית - זה עולה הרבה כסף, נו אם העשיר נותן נדבה הגונה זה טוב, אבל שיתן חלק מהרכוש שלו?! על-כל-פנים, רבי נתן התחזק בזה, וזכה וקנה מקום, והתחיל לבנות, וריבונו של עולם סיבב כאלה נסים - למעלה מן הטבע! כשקנה את המקום והתחיל לבנות, והעמיד את העמודים, אז נעשה רעש - - זה היה בתקצ"ד, התחיל בצ"ב צ"ג צ"ד, ובצ"ה התחיל כזה מין מחלוקת, בצ"ה כבר עמד הבית-הכנסת. ובאותן השנים שנבנה הביהכ"נ היה אצל המתנגדים כאלה... היה כזה נסים. כי המתנגדים רצו לרגום את רבי נתן! מה - הוא רוצה לעשות דבר כזה?! ראש השנה על איזה ציון?! לבוא על ציון?! ההתנגדות שעל ברסלב! - - - * - - - איי איי איי. אני רואה את הימי מוהרנ"ת - משמע כבר יש את ה'ימי מוהרנ"ת', כבר יש את ה'ליקוטי תפילות', אבל אם לא מסתכלים - זה כלום, חושבים שזה איזה סיפורים, מה זה מוכרח לי?! סיפור?! כשמעיינים בימי מוהרנ"ת, יכולים לעבור על זה כמו סיפור; היה בית כנסת, היה צר, זה סיפור! - לא!! זה מה שנעשה בעניני רבינו, זה ענין אחר לגמרי! הקב"ה ריחם עלינו ונתן לרבינו כזה תלמיד 'רבי נתן', כל התלמידים - אבל כזה רבי נתן, זה עולה על כולם, עולה על כולם! * * *
- - “Rabbi Yisroel Breslover son of Rabbi Yehuda Halevi” his father's name was Rabbi Yehuda, he was a Levite, “9 Cheshvon (5)679 (-Tuesday, October 15, 1918)” - that is what is written on the tombstone, there have already been changes done there, HY helped that they find it, it is written on the tombstone, “Rabbi Yisroel Breslover,” one sees this with the eyes…. ## Segment 3 In his life he was called, “Rabbi Yisroel Breslover,” and on his tombstone it is written, “Rabbi Yisroel Breslover”… not any praise, just the name and the date of the yartzeit (-anniversary of death). ## Segment 4 R' Alter Krementzuger o.b.m. ## Segment 5 At the beginning of my drawing close to R' Yisroel'n, the whole world was on fire, I thought that there was only I and R' Yisroel. There was a Jew, a Breslover chusid, who drew close to Rebbe'n when he was thirteen years old, bar mitzvah, he was called, “R' Alter Krementzuger” (-R' Zev Alter Karshisky o.b.m. - he merited to attend to disciples of Rabbi Nussun), from Krementzug. I already told over about him - - everyone has something which he is more given over to, and this R' Alter Krementzuger, he was in “chatzoas ” unique in the generation, a one in the generation (“chad bidura”)! He didn't miss any chatzos in his life! A person makes a bris (-circumcision), or he makes a “tinu'im” (-wedding contract and accompanying ceremony), or he makes a wedding, there are times which he can not get up for chatzos, and by him this did not happen! So it was all his years. And when I knew (“recognized”) him, he was already an old Jew of ninety years, and maybe even more, he was an extremely old man. ## Segment 6 Today there are already roads, back then there still weren't made, and to traverse to Rabbi Shimon'en (Bar Yochai in Meron) – there was a mountain. Today there is already – even if it is a bit of a mountain, but they made a road, one can descend, one can ascend. Back then it was stones, such high stones, and he would descend, he sat (-lived) in an old age home, and Rabbi Shimon's synagogue was below – the tzion (-holy tomb). He would descend from the old age home, he had a key, and he would descend for chatzos [Today there is already a mikvah there in the courtyard, but back then the mikvah was in the old age home]. He would go down for chatzos to Rabbi Shimon'en inside the synagogue, he would say chatzos (-the special prayers designated to be said anytime after midnight till daybreak). Whether he prayed there (-the morning prayers) or whether he prayed back in the old age home – I don't know, but he would spend his time - - he didn't go back to sleep! ## Segment 7 His body and his face, one could see that he was far from eating, from drinking, from the pleasures of this world. ## Segment 8 [About chatzos-midnight, and continuing to speak where he left off] ## Segment 9 There is a melody of chatzos, I can not reproduce it – it resonated from (him- R' Yisroel Karduner) with such a type of fire, which I have no place here, I have no part - - so all his avoada (-devotions) was like that – fire. A wonder, a wonder! ## Segment 10 There is a tradition (for) a melody of chatzos, a sweet melody, and he had epes (-somehow) such a type of sweetness in (his) voice, that is was such (-an amazing thing), it cried out in (his) voice all his hardships - - when I heard him praying, and similarly his chatzos – his nusach (-version, tune, style) was, the melody of chatzos was entirely claims (-arguments/pleas) to Hashem Yisburach! (*See Words of Rabbi Nachman 268 which points out opportunities in the set prayers of midnight, to scream out to HY, for they very much arouse the heart, and Rabbi Nachman repeated them in their melody, very beautifully with great depth etc.). He asked questions – there are verses, where it is written (Jeremiah 14:19), “Why do You strike us and we have no healing...” and there in that paragraph there are more things. This expression was to Hashem Yisburach as if one is asking Him - - a type of hisbodidus, like one speaks to Hashem Yisburach and takes counsel with Him. ## Segment 11 (*Likutay Moharan, volume 2, Torah 101, “He said that through the recital of Tikun Chatzos it is possible to express one's words, everything that is in his heart, just like through hisbodidus, because mistama (-in all probability) one doesn't say it on the past, and the main recital of chatzos goes on what is happening now with the person, and when he says chatzos in this aspect, it is possible to find everything that is in (“with”) his heart from the context of the recital of chatzos etc..). ## Segment 12 He would sing with a melody – the holy Rebbe said that a melody can uplift a person very much, it imbues in a person - - a melody has enormous power. Just, we don't listen, the holy Rebbe ordered that one should enliven himself with a melody – if the mind is muddled (“dark”), sing a song, but not sleepy, but a song! ## Segment 13 (*Words of Rabbi Nachman, article 75, “One should be very diligent to pray with joy and to accustom himself that the (-his) prayer should be in a joyous melody.” ## Segment 14 And article 273, “It is good for a person to accustom himself to enliven himself at every occasion by means of any melody, to bring joy to his soul and to bind himself to Hashem Yisburach through this...”) ## Segment 15 (When) I heard him, I thought, “Nu, good, but how can a person like myself merit to this?!”…. ## Segment 16 Yeah, I could have merited to this, it is contingent only on how prepared one is to be strong, not to listen to the world, just the Rebbe'n (*). There are two opposites; This world with the Rebbe'n!… ## Segment 17 (*Life of Our Leader Rabbi Nachman, article 320, “He said, whoever listens to me and fulfills everything that I command, certainly he will be a big tzaddik, be what may, and the main thing is to entirely rescind (“throw away”) one's own intellect, just as he says, fulfill everything as he said etc..” Article 354, “That if they were drawn close to me and fulfilling my words, there isn't any level in the world that I wouldn't bring them to that level etc..”) ## Segment 18 The “Chaizoo dihaye alma ” - this conceals. I saw by him that he cleansed the body like one cleanses a pelt! Cleansed it out of all the bodily desires and bad traits! (*). And how is it cleaned out? With prayer, and with tears, and with heart, and with fire! Oy vay - - ## Segment 19 (*Life of Our Leader Rabbi Nachman, article 234, “Also he said already that it is necessary to cleanse the body of bodily desires like leather is tanned and transformed, that is what is necessary, for the body to be completely cleansed and processed from bodily desires, to the extent that one can mamash (-actually) turn it over and see that it is completely free of all bodily desires and bad traits etc..) ## Segment 20 [Returns to the matter of the Petek – letter from Rabbainu Hakadosh o.b.m.]