Jewish Tales of Mystic Joy

Yitzhak Buxbaum is a maggid, a traditional Jewish storyteller and teacher, who specializes in mysticism, spirituality, and Hasidic tales. He is the author of nine books including Jewish Spiritual Practices, Storytelling and Spirituality in Judaism, and An Open Heart: The Mystic Path of Loving People. Yitzhak teaches at The New School University and resides in New York City.

• S'micha as a Maggid. Acknowledgments. Note to the Reader. Introduction. Mystic Joy. Mystical and Joyful Hasidism. The Relationship Between Mysticism and Joy. Tracing Joy to Its Source. Joy in His Place. Joy Above and Below. Loving Joy and Hating Sadness. God Is with Us. Joy and Judaism. About the Tales. The Tales. Rabbi YisraelBaal Shem Tov. The Baal Shem Tov's Parable of the Fiddler. The Baal Shem Tov Dances with the Spiritual Torah. Heikel the Water Carrier. The Parable of the Sweeper. His Disciples Dance on the New Moon. With Joy and with Sadness. The Joy of Jewishness. Inheriting a Treasure. A Jew Lives Here! A Real Jew. The Bach's Partner in Heaven. Even the Least Devotion Is Precious. The Joy of Sabbaths and Holidays. The Parable of the King's Letter. The Two Thrones. Sabbath like the Chernovitzer. Hasidic Snowmen. A Hasid Persecuted for His Joy. Simhat Torah Joy on Yom Kippur. Rejoicing at Your Brother's Simha. The Baal Shem Tov About Joy on Tu BeShvat. The Dance of Tu BeShvat. How Joy and Love Can Conquer Hate. Rebbe David of Dinov Celebrates Purim. A Prison Seder. Dancing with Your Archenemy. Portraits in the Ecstasy of Joy. Rebbe Levi Yitzhak of Berditchev. The Stained Tallis. Rebbe Shlomo of Zevill. Ecstasy from Te.llin. The Rebbe's Holy Dancing. Rabbi Yaakov Filmer. It's Good! Rabbi Yaakov Arye of Radzimin. Thou Shalt Not Steal. An Unforgettable Dance. The Hidden Light. Flashes of Godliness. The Effect of Viewing a Holy Face. The Holy Clock. How to Be Joyful. The Baal Shem Tov Learns Love of God from a Shepherd. Rebbe Zusya Never Af.icted. Rebbe Zusya About Joy and Anger. Dancing into Gehinnom. The Shirt of a Happy Man. Somersaulting for the Holy Flock of Lambs. Somersaulting for the Glory of God. Dancing into Jerusalem. Dancing in Ecstasy. Watching the Grandfather Dance. The Revelation in Dancing. The Dance of Parting. The Dance of Holy Friendship. Dancing with God. Lost in a World of Delight. Forgetfulness. No One Noticed. Ravished. Living with the Times. Eating in Ecstasy. Rabbi Yaakov Koppel Dances Before the Table. A Holy Meal in a Sukkah in Tiberias. Happiness Even While Suffering. The Old Man Coughing. Poverty and Bliss. The Rebbe of Azarov's White Beard. The World of Pure Joy. Revived by a Song. Joy and Ecstasy Remove Suffering. From My Naked Flesh I Would See God! Reb Arele's Sukkot. Joy Saves from Death. Only Joy, for There Is No Bad, No Trouble, No Sadness, No Death. An Ecstatic Passing. Joy Until the Final Moment of Life. The Joy of Humor. The Joy of a Wedding. Telling Jokes for the Sake of God. The Secret of Dying. The Dancing Bear. The Power of Joy. Progress and Priorities. More Important Than Ecstasy. In the Subway. The Joy of a Holy Brother. Notes. Glossary. The Author.