צד

There has come here from our city — from Breslov — one by the name of Reb Abba — and the wife of Reb Chaim Krish knows him — and he is a proper man who loved me like a brother — and used to send me money here every year. And he at first sat in Yerushalayim — but he specifically wanted to sit together with me. And in the end — what did Hashem Yisbarach Who sits in the heights and watches over those below do? — He fell ill in the city of Jaffa, may it be established, with the fever — and was detained there three weeks — and a doctor gave him his remedies — and he recovered. And he traveled by sea to Haifa — and from Haifa he traveled on a donkey to here. And he is a man who has a large hernia — and because of his riding on the donkey — every limb was jolted — and the hernia greatly worsened — and his entire body fell ill. And he came here in this miserable condition. And for six weeks he has been confined to bed — and his legs swelled greatly. And he asked of me — since he has a prescription for mastic — to anoint his legs — and in Jaffa they anointed his legs with it and they rested from their swelling — and here it is not available. To ask of his acquaintance in Tzfas — may it be established — for the sake of a great mitzvah.

Therefore I ask of you my friend and my beloved — do this for the sake of the mitzvah and for my sake — to go with the prescription to Reb Aharon Yosef, may his candle shine — and to ask of him also for the sake of the mitzvah — that he give him this mastic. And if possible he has also some other ointment that is good for swelling — let him give that too. And pay him whatever the cost — and formally present it to my account — and send it quickly — on the second carriage — for this is a matter of life-saving urgency — for it is impossible for him to be without it — and he fears lest it crush and force itself, G-d forbid, into the abdomen [למעך לבטן — "to crush into the abdomen" — me'ach — to crush, to press, to mash; the medical fear of a strangulated hernia: the hernia contents being crushed and forced back into the abdominal cavity — an extremely dangerous, life-threatening condition requiring immediate intervention]. And send it — and give to the donkey-driver — and here he will pay him his fee — whatever you write to give him. And write a letter — how much the mastic cost together with the carriage fee — from the letter I am sending you now — and I will collect here. And also send the prescription back to me enclosed in the letter. And you will fulfill in this what Rabbainu ז"ל said in the Torah Chosam b'soch chosam — that the body must serve the soul through commandments of deed. And write to me also whether you received the letter I sent to you through your co-parent-in-law Reb Chaim Yehoshua, may his candle shine. And the letter with the prescription — seal them with a wrapper.

And from my health — blessed be G-d, blessed be G-d — little by little my limbs are being strengthened. And G-d willing when we meet together — I will tell you what this man Reb Abba did for me now — and you will be astounded. And strengthen yourself as well [ותח' עצמך ג"כ — "and strengthen yourself as well" — abbreviation of v'titchazek atzmecha — from chazak — to be strong, to strengthen; an active strengthening and fortifying of oneself, not merely guarding]. And in the open — it is impossible to write [ועל פני השדה א"א לכתוב — "and publicly / in the open it is impossible to write" — the idiomatic meaning: there are things that cannot be written openly in a letter; they must be spoken in person; al pnei ha'sadeh — "on the face of the field" — the exposed, open, public surface; what is written in a letter is exposed to anyone who reads it]. Therefore do in this as if for my own sake — only may Hashem Yisbarach guard us from all illnesses — and particularly from this illness — may the Merciful One protect us.

And greetings of peace to your dear co-parent-in-law, our beloved, Reb Shmuel, may his candle shine — and to your dear brother, our beloved, the wondrous and exceptional, the veteran Chassid — the honor of the name of his Torah — Morainu v'Rabbainu Sender, may his candle shine — together with peace upon his son the groom, the wise one, the complete one — the honor of our teacher Reb Avraham Eliezer, may his candle shine — with strong love — such that great waters cannot extinguish the love — for we are bound to the tree which has three roots. Words of one who truly loves you in truth and in wholeness, Nussun from Breslov

Written Wednesday, Parshas Shemos, 5641, from Teverya. An urgent request for mastic ointment for a gravely ill Breslover. The writer's health slowly improving. What cannot be written in the open.

Letter 92 | צב (Tzaddik-Beis) 📜 Translator's Summary — Letter 92