סז

For thus it was with every story: the beginning of the telling of every story was through someone having spoken before him about some matter — and through that he received an awakening from below to tell that particular story. Because there was some connection and link between the matter that was told before him and the holy story that he was meant to reveal — according to his awesome perception. And likewise with most of the Torah teachings — there was something of this nature: that generally he revealed Torah along the lines of the conversation that the world had spoken with him. And all of this is impossible to picture except for one who was standing with him at that time and had a mind in his head to observe this — he would have seen the wonders of Hashem and His awesome deeds with each Torah and each conversation that he revealed. And in particular with the stories that he revealed — and in particular with the greatest and most awesome story of all of them — which is the last story: that of the Seven Beggars. And something of this will be explained below in its place [§§42–43].

In that winter of 5570 mentioned above he said several Torah teachings and also told several great and awesome stories — namely: the story mentioned above of the Two Sons Who Were Exchanged [Story 11], and the Story of the Baal Tefillah [Master of Prayer] [Story 12], and the Story of the Seven Beggars [Story 13]. All of them he told in that winter until Pesach. And after Pesach he left here for Uman to pass away there — as explained elsewhere [Chayay Moharan §185]. And he spoke with me about this in Uman and said: "In the past winter I said much Torah and stories in Breslov." And he was filled with deep longing and yearning [misga'agea] — that now in Uman he was unable to speak and reveal as much. And all that passed in that year — which was the last year of his holy life — it is impossible to tell even what flickered in our minds. And behold: from the day the cough illness reached him — which was more than three years before his passing — he said immediately that he was compelled to pass away through this. And he immediately began to speak of his passing. And there are very many conversations and accounts about this. But many of them I did not merit to hear personally from his holy mouth — for at the beginning, when the illness reached him, I was not with him — for I was then in Mohilov. And he zichrono livracha was struck by the cough illness on the road when returning from the journey to Navoritch and Zaslov. And he said immediately that he was compelled to pass away. And they informed me in Mohilov. And certainly it was very bitter to me — and it seemed to me as though the world was overturned and destroyed, Heaven forbid. And afterward close to after Rosh Hashana 5568 he traveled to Lemberg as mentioned. And then the word spread in the world that he had passed away in Lemberg. And afterward it became known that this was false — only that he had become very weak there. And he returned home in the summer of 5568 in the parasha of Balak. And he sat here afterward all that summer and all of year 5569 and the year 5570 — until after Pesach. And after Pesach he went out from here to Uman. And there is very much to tell — and what Hashem places in my mind I will tell a little of the great amount.