Happy with His Lot
I learned invaluable lessons from the wonderful lifestyle of my teacher, Rabbi Chaim Shmuel Lopian, zt”l. I witnessed how he was satisfied with the barest necessities, while living with great joy.
It is difficult to believe that in our generation, there are still people who subsist in such simplicity. Rabbi Chaim Shmuel had a few rickety chairs around an old table. A few cups and saucers rounded out the sum total of his household furnishings. But his family was happy with their lot. This was in fulfillment of the pasuk in Mishlei (17:1), “Better a dry piece of bread with peace in it…”
- The Rav’s children are blessed by the Gaon and Tzaddik, Rabbi Chaim Shmuel Lopian, zt”l
I once observed my mentor suffering terribly from headaches and leg pains. I asked how he felt, and he replied that he was merely suffering the infirmities of old age.
“Why doesn’t the Rav take anything for the pain?” I inquired.
“Involvement in Torah is my best pain reliever,” he replied, in all sincerity. “When I am engrossed in Torah study and endeavor to understand a sugya, all of my aches simply disappear.” He said this with tranquility on his face.
How did Rabbi Chaim Shmuel merit such greatness in Torah? It was because he did not seek earthly pleasures. He was satisfied with the minimum necessities of life.
