How Baba Sali Saved My Life

At a year and a half old, I fell from a second-floor window. An ambulance took me to the hospital, and there, according to what my parents told me over the years, I slipped into a coma for more than a week. At some point, the doctors pulled my parents aside and told them that maybe only prayers could help. It wasn't clear if I would live, and even if I did, what the severity of the injury and the damage would be for the rest of my life.

My grandmother, Rebbetzin Miriam Abuchatzeira of blessed memory, the wife of the Admor Rabbi Yitzhak Abuchatzeira (_Baba Chaki_) of blessed memory, told my weeping mother that the merits of our ancestors would stand by us. She traveled to Netivot, to her brother-in-law's house, the elder brother of her late husband, Rabbi Israel Abuchatzeira (_Baba Sali_) of blessed memory, to pray for me.

Baba Sali took a bowl of water and blessed it at length. He asked my grandmother, his sister-in-law, to apply the water to me at the hospital bed where I lay. When Grandma arrived with the water at the hospital, the doctors didn't know what she wanted and started asking questions. But she brushed them off, approached my bed, and began applying the water to my frail body.

What happened next might sound incredible, but everyone around me swore this is how it happened: At that moment, I got up and began running down the department corridor. A few weeks later, my parents took me to Baba Sali in Netivot to thank him for the miracle that had taken place thanks to him. He sat me on his knees and blessed me. A few months later, he passed away, and although I don't remember anything from that series of events, to this day I feel that his blessing watches over me.

This week, 29 years ago (4th of Shvat), Baba Sali passed away. His figure is one of the most important and influential in the history of the Jewish people. As every year, tens of thousands of people have come to the gravesite to honor the memory of one of the greatest rabbis and kabbalists of Moroccan Jewry, and the State of Israel at large.

In the dozens of books written about him since his death, hundreds and possibly thousands of miracle stories have been associated with him. Today, when cynicism surrounds us and belief in righteous people is diminishing, these stories seem like legends to many. Some suggest that perhaps the power of thought caused the miracle, not the rabbi’s blessing. But for all those many whom the rabbi saved, the crowd he blessed, the answer is unequivocal: Baba Sali was a righteous, honest man who sought only one thing—to sanctify the name of Hashem publicly and to advance Torah knowledge.

It is likely that to the gathering in Netivot, all the politicians seeking our vote in the elections will come. They will consider the gathering an excellent base for election propaganda and will talk about the righteous man whom most of them never met. But it would be an injustice if this is how we remember him. Because Baba Sali never sought out politicians, never pursued businessmen—he asked for nothing but Torah study. And today, when there are so many who present themselves as rabbis, we should appreciate and honor his figure even more.

From Baba Sali, we must primarily learn which "rabbis" not to approach for blessings, because, as taught in our family, that’s not how righteous people behave: Don’t go to rabbis who first cater to businessmen and heavy donors, forgetting the ordinary Jew. Don’t go to rabbis who appear in business gossip columns. Don’t go to rabbis who predefine the amount of donation you need to give to receive their blessing. Don’t go to rabbis who are busy all day with receptions and fundraising, and don't do the most basic thing a rabbi should do: study Torah. Don't go to rabbis who do not guard their eyes. Don't go to rabbis who flaunt their wealth. Don't go to rabbis who frighten and curse, as this is not the Torah way.

And don't go to rabbis from whose faces holiness does not radiate. And if you don't know what I mean, then you probably haven't met the right rabbi yet. Ask for a blessing from a rabbi, even for good advice. But do not make yourself a rabbi who will dictate to you beyond what is said in the Shulchan Aruch how to live and act in every detail. That is not a rabbi, but a cult leader.

Baba Sali was different from most of the rabbis we hear about today in the media. And that is why tens of thousands of people in Israel and around the world still mourn his passing and honor his memory. Especially today, when dozens of bearded men present themselves as "kabbalists" and "miracle workers," who are nothing but charlatans spreading hate and fear - it's important to remember that a rabbi should bring us closer, love us, bless us, and protect us. May the merit of Baba Sali continue to stand by us and pray for us from above.