A Wondrous Story: The Closed Note That Revealed the Secret of the Delayed Shidduch

A young woman who was experiencing delays in shidduchim (marriage matches) sent a note to Rabbi Berland shlit"a. While the note was still closed in his hand, the Rav revealed the exact reason for the delay and guided her on how to merit her salvation.

One of the prominent students of Morinu HaRav Eliezer Berland shlit"a related a wondrous story, in which Divine Providence is clearly revealed. As the Rav shlit"a always says, even within an orphaned generation and a doubled and redoubled darkness, we can merit to see Hashem eye to eye. The story before us illustrates this in an awesome and moving way, testifying to the revealed Ruach HaKodesh (Divine Inspiration) of the tzaddik.

The Folded Note Opposite the Site of the Holy Temple

The incident occurred about ten years ago. At that time, the wife of this student had not yet merited to find her match, and the wait for a shidduch (marriage match) was long. In her distress, she decided to write a note to the Rav shlit"a and ask for his blessing. She sent the note through her brother, who gave it to his chavrusa (study partner), in order for him to pass it directly into the holy hands of the Rav.

In those days, there was a special two-week period during which Morinu HaRav shlit"a came to pray regularly at the holy yeshiva in the Old City of Jerusalem, right opposite the site of the Holy Temple. The friend approached the Rav and handed him the note. The Rav shlit"a took the note, and while it was still folded and closed within his holy hands, without opening it or reading a single word, he immediately turned to the young man.

"Tell his sister to ask forgiveness from so-and-so, and afterward she will merit to find her shidduch," the Rav shlit"a said with absolute certainty.

The Secret of the Grievance and the Salvation

The exact words of the Rav revealed an entire hidden story. It turns out that this young woman had cared for a disabled woman who was unable to walk on her own legs for a long period of time. She merited to fulfill this important mitzvah with wonderful mesirus nefesh (self-sacrifice). However, for a certain reason, the caregiving was stopped. The disabled woman was deeply pained by this, but the young woman was completely unaware that this had caused her so much anguish.

Now, the tzaddik informed her explicitly that her shidduch was being delayed and the opening of her mazal (fortune) depended on that disabled woman forgiving her with a whole heart. The young woman, who was filled with immense awe and emotion in the face of the clear Ruach HaKodesh of the tzaddik, did not waste a moment. She immediately went to the disabled woman, appeased her, and asked for her forgiveness.

And indeed, immediately after the hakpadah (grievance) was removed, the longed-for salvation arrived, and she merited to build a faithful home in Israel. This incident reminds us once again of how far the eyes of the tzaddik can see, and how he sees the root of our souls and guides us toward complete tikkun (rectification).

From Issue 80 — Parashas Vayikra
From the series "A Tzaddik Rules in the Fear of God" — "Shapir Amar Nachmani" publications