Questions tagged [story-identification]
Please add as much detail as possible when you ask for the source of a story you heard – this will improve the quality of the question, and make it easier for people to answer the question.
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who is Rabbi Menashe Klein referring to (a "religious" psychologist who wrote a forbidden book)?
Rabbi Menashe Klein in Sefer Bais Rahel on page 144 when discussing the dangers of psychologists (marriage counselors) says:
וכבר נשמע על אחד מהם שכינה עצמו רב ודתי וחרדי מאד מאד, שכתב כביכול ספר [...
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Rabbi Akiva seeing Bar Kochba sleeping on his back?
I once saw it in some sefer that Rabbi Akiva saw Bar Kochba sleeping on his back (not on his side) and then he knew that he wasn't Mashiach. Does anyone know where this is written? I'm pretty sure its ...
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The Mekor Baruch's intructions of making gold from copper
Rav Epstein in his Mekor Baruch 3:19:6 brings a story about him and a maggid. The maggid was looking for a certain sefer which instructs one how to make gold from copper. The Mekor Baruch (who had the ...
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Source for a Talmudic story of three caskets
In the Merchant of Venice, suitors attempting to win Portia's hand must choose from 3 caskets (of gold, silver and lead). Those who chose wrong must leave immediately and never marry anyone. One who ...
- 37.8k
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Source of a story about Rav Salanter and limited time to learn Torah
Is there an authentic source for the below story?
The story is told of a man who asked Rabbi Yisroel Salanter a question. "Rebbi, I have only 15 minutes a day to learn Torah. What should I study?" ...
user17319
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Source for a Chassidic story
I recall this story about a rebbe who is given a Sefer by some Malach. Or maybe he wrote it himself, I don't remember. He tells his chassidim that if any of them copy it, they will be sent to gehinom. ...
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The cow of the Tzadik from Strelisk
When I was young, I read the following story / parable:
Every evening, the Tzadik of Strelisk comes home after the evening prayer and feeds his cow. Every evening in the same hour.
One evening,...
- 1,334
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Source for story about origins of Chayei Adam
I recently heard a story that when the Vilna Gaon found out that the Alter Rebbe made his own Shulchan Aruch (Shulchan Aruch HaRav), he told his relative (through marriage) Rav Avraham Danzig to write ...
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Seeking source for story of someone who communicates from the next world about concepts not understood in this world
There is a story of 2 great Rabbis who made a pact between themselves that whoever died first would come back in a dream and tell the other one why certain bad things happened in the world. But when ...
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Chofetz Chaim Story
Asking for someone else:
In the Artscroll "Pirkei Avos Treasury" they bring a story on the mishnah "All Israel has a share in Olam Haba." Someone asked the Chofetz Chaim if all ...
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R. Meir and Reish Lakish on Gan Eden and Gehinnom
I remember reading humble statements by both R. Meir and Reish Lakish, saying about themselves that they would probably need to go through Gehinnom to some degree, because of unknown sins and ...
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Story about a soldier promising to go to yeshiva
I remember hearing a story about Shlomo Zalman Auerbach with a soldier who had a near death experience and promised Hashem that if he was saved he would go to yeshivah, but since he waited a couple of ...
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What is the source of this story?
What is the source of this story found in many non-traditional machzorim?
Late one Yom Kippur afternoon in Berdichev, Rabbi Levi Yitzhaq went up and argued with God that his people deserved to be ...
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Source for a story about mistakenly thinking Mashiach was here
What is the story in the Gemara or Ein Ya'akov about the guy who ran into the streets when he thought the Mashiach was here, but really it was a wedding ceremony?
I can't find it anywhere.
The Rosh ...
- 1,252
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Source for anecdote with Moses Montefiore and Charity
I have heard an anecdote told of Moses Montefiore explaining that his 'worth' was only what he gave to charity. This story is quoted in many places (ex. 1, 2, 3) to underscore the value of charity. I ...
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Story on tefillah
My grandfather told me a chassidic story about three Rabbis. The story goes as follows:
There once was a Rabbi who would go to his neareast forest to pray to G-d. When he went into the forest, he ...
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Is there a source for this story of the seven brothers?
This is part of the story:
"There were once seven brothers, the sons of one woman, in the city of Tzippori. They were wealthy, but one day they went to a certain city in the land of India. They ...
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Story with the maharam schick
I'm looking for where a certain story with the maharam Schick is printed.
It goes as follows : the ruler of the maharam Schicks area wished to see a Jewish wedding and ordered that one take place in ...
- 1,145
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Landlord special tzedakah for renter?
ArtScroll's Tzedakah Treasury (p.200) quotes a story from "Rosh Golas Ariel" saying that the Imrei Emes told a landlord to pay his poor tenant's rent rather than have the community help pay ...
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Why were you not Moses?’ They’ll ask me, ‘Why were you not Zusya?
The story and final quote “Before his death, Rabbi Zusya said, ‘In the coming world, they will not ask me: Why were you not Moses?’ They will ask me: ‘Why were you not Zusya?’ ” is often ascribed to &...
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Where is this quote from?
This is consistent with the dictum that a person should earn a living by “the labor of [his] hands,” rather than accepting a scholar’s stipend.
It is from Chabad.org (here) but where did it find the ...
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Oft-Repeated Rabbi and East to West Distance Story, what's the source?
There are countless references to this story, often in the context of teshuvah:
There once was a rabbi who said to his students: “we are as far from where God wants us to be as East is from West”? And ...
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Story of the "marching" version of the song Kel Adon
I recall once hearing that a chassidic rebbe composed a marching-style tune for the Shabbat piyut Kel Adon. This was the closest thing I could find to the tune. I found very few references to it ...
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Story identification: Rabbeinu Tam argues with Moshe Rabbeinu
In this answer, a strange and rather fascinating story is quoted from the Seder Hadoros:
Seder Hadoros (year 4930) brings the story of an argument between
Rabeynu Tam and other Rishonim regarding ...
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Story of Megaddalela, rabbi tells man to marry woman of ill-repute
I once read a story in the Talmud about a woman of ill-repute named Megaddalela, whom a rabbi told a man to marry. I used it for a research project and can no longer find the original source. And I do ...
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Deceased individuals appearing after death
Inspired by this answer:
Are there any documented stories of deceased people appearing after death to live people? [I am not looking for stories where someone dead appeared in a dream]
The Gemara in ...
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Story source: rabbi sweeping streets, take pride in your work?
I once heard a story that when a European gadol first came to America he had to take a job as a street sweeper and "nobody ever swept the streets as well as he did." The message of the story ...
- 1,538
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Source for Rav Shach story (bentsching from a book from age 100)
In Torah Tidbits, issue 1372, Rabbi Shalom Rosner wrote, in part:
When Rav Shach turned 100, he told his students that he was going to accept upon himself a new resolution. The students were ...
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Bais Yosef's magid/angel tricked him?
I heard (in a few dvar Torahs, though I can't find them now) that the Bais Yosef had recorded that his magid (the angel that taught him) had tricked him, and something like "from this we know that ...
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