Letter 50 נ'

Peace and blessing and all good forever — to my beloved dear friend, my dear and mighty companion — our Master R' Noton, may he live — and his dear wife Mrs. Sarah Gittel, may she live.

After warmly greeting you with great love — I hereby inform you of my welfare, thanks to G‑d, blessed be He. Would that I might merit to rejoice together with you in Eretz Yisrael. Amen, so may it be His will. First — I ask greatly: please have compassion on me and write immediately of your good welfare — and of all the fellowship. And especially: of R.A.B.Tz., and R' Yaakov, and R' Yisrael Dov, may they live — and of Jerusalem the Holy City, and all the news. And of the welfare of the study hall. And of the welfare of Yechiel, may he live. And whether R' Leibel, may he live, has already come. And whether Yaakov Zev received the package with R. A.'s [R' Avraham's] writings — with me — with my clothing — that I sent him a long time ago — nearly a year ago. And I received no word. And I have great suffering that I received no word from all of you.

And now I ask greatly of you — please, my dear beloved brother, the companion of my soul and heart — as you are brothers and my companions, truly beloved to me as my soul — "many waters cannot quench the love," etc.: Please have compassion and pity and mercy on me — for my body and soul and spirit and neshamah and heart. For the sake of Heaven! For the sake of Heaven! And take counsel — speak with R' Dovid Shtefir — that he send me a formal request in my name — with a change [בשינוי — meaning: in a different name or formulation, to work around Soviet bureaucratic limitations]. And when I receive a reply that he is willing and working on this — then I will make myself a passport to travel to the Holy Land.

[Yiddish:] "My dear brothers — have compassion! And send me a formal request as quickly as possible — literally save me from death. My heart yearns to come. It will be a great goodness for you — in this world and the World to Come. It will not cause you pain — explicitly — save me from the torrent of many mighty waters." And also: please speak a great deal with R' Dovid — and arouse R' Yaakov Zev, may he live, to take upon himself the effort for this — for you are my brothers and my companions, truly beloved to me as my soul and heart. "Many waters cannot extinguish the love," etc. Therefore, my brothers and companions — have compassion and pity on me — and do whatever you do — save me as quickly as possible. For truly my soul depends on this. And may the longing be — that I can hold on until when I will come, even if you already send. For even one day is hard for me to endure. What shall I say, what shall I speak? May you merit this mitzvah — for a great hidden treasure. Please speak a great deal with R' Dovid — and with R' Yaakov Zev — and exert yourselves on this with true self-sacrifice. And you shall know: this is a matter of saving a life — literally. And in this merit — G‑d, blessed be He, will help you with all goodness. And I always pray for you at the holy Tzion. And you pray for me at all the holy places — and especially at the Tzion of the Foundation of the World, the Rashbi, of blessed memory. And speak with R' Alter Ben Tzion, may he live. From me — your friend: Shmuel the Breslover. And I ask of you once more: the matter shall be kept entirely confidential — for perhaps it will cause harm, G‑d forbid. And the letter I wrote to my wife — deliver it to Yechiel and Yaakov Zev — and if they understand that it should be given to her — let them give it. And I greet R' Shlomo Veksler, may he live. Presumably you received my letter from Parashas Shemos — please fulfill it — save a Jewish soul. Have compassion, pity, and mercy on me — with all your strength and with all your heart — with true self-sacrifice — to save me from the torrent of mighty waters. And the longing is certainly a great one — for each one individually. G‑d knows — and you understand enough. I am asking once more — please have compassion and pity and mercy on me — and exert yourselves immediately — to speak and work on this — and write to me a reply: are you ready for this? Then immediately I will make myself a passport, etc. Please do this — and in this merit G‑d, blessed be He, will help you with all goodness. And I always pray for you at the holy Tzion. And pray for me at all the holy places — that I merit to come quickly with complete salvation. Amen, so may it be His will. And I ask of you: R' Noton, may he live — and his wife — since the matter must be kept confidential — perhaps it will cause harm, G‑d forbid. And the letter I wrote to my wife — deliver it to Yechiel and Yaakov Zev. And if they understand that it should be given to her — let them give it. And I send greetings to R' Shlomo Veksler. And know: that you will certainly not regret this, G‑d forbid. From me — your friend: Shmuel the Breslover.