The Power of Tefillah at Kivrei Tzadikim

The Mahari"l writes that when a person prays at the kever of a tzadik, since it is a place of holiness and spiritual purity, the tefillot there are more readily accepted. The Mateh Ephraim adds that even a Kohen, who is not permitted to approach the kever, can still connect to that holiness by standing at a distance from where he can see it and pray from there. Tefillah is always powerful, but there are times and places where it has an added strength. The day of the yahrzeit of a tzadik at his kever is especially מסוגל for tefillah. The Midrash says in Parashat Vezot HaBerachah that if we had known the burial place of Moshe Rabbeinu, we would have prevented the destruction of the first Bet HaMikdash through our tefillot there. The Ben Ish Chai explains that when a person goes to a kever of a tzadik, there are two proper ways to pray. He can ask Hashem to help him in the merit of the tzadik, or he can ask that the neshama of the tzadik should pray to Hashem on his behalf. But the tefillah is always directed only to Hashem, because He alone has the power to fulfill our requests. The tzadik is not the source of the yeshuah—he is a מליץ יושר , an advocate. Throughout the generations, people have received incredible yeshuot through their tefillot at kivrei tzadikim. But the foundation of it all is still tefillah—pouring out one's heart to Hashem. I heard a remarkable story from Rabbi Heller, told to his mother by the daughter of the man it happened to. Her father fought in the Yom Kippur War, and at one point it seemed certain that he would not survive. At that moment, he made a neder to Hashem that if his life would be spared, he would move his family to the north of Israel and build up a place of Torah and mitzvot. Miraculously, he survived. After the war, he realized how difficult that commitment would be and went to his rabbi to perform hatarat nedarim. The rabbi told him that perhaps it was in the merit of that very neder that Hashem had saved him, and it would not be proper to undo it. The man accepted this and moved his family—his wife and three daughters—to the north. They settled in an abandoned home on Moshav Meron, high above the kever of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. Life there was extremely simple. They bought a cow and lived off its milk, trading it for eggs and other necessities. The man would go often to the kever of Rabbi Shimon and pour out his heart in tefillah. In those days, few people came, and he would spend long periods there alone, feeling a deep connection as he spoke to Hashem in that holy place. One day, his wife became very ill with typhus, and he brought her to a hospital in Tiveria. She remained there for months. The man faced a painful challenge—he wanted to be with his wife, but he also had daughters at home. Travel was extremely difficult, yet every day he made the journey back and forth to be there for both. The hospital staff was amazed at his devotion. One morning, after sending his daughters to school, he went to a phone booth to call the hospital. He sensed something was wrong. The doctor came on the line and told him the truth—his wife was in her final moments. There was no point in rushing, he said, because he would not make it in time. The man hung up the phone and burst into tears. He walked up the road and saw the kever of Rabbi Shimon. He stopped and cried out, "Please, Rabbi Shimon, pray to Hashem to save my wife." He begged and then said, "If there is a harsh decree on our family, please ask Hashem to take our cow instead." With that, he ran to catch transportation to the hospital, but on the way someone stopped him and told him that his cow had just died. The man was elated. When he got to the hospital, the doctor hugged him and said, "It's a miracle—your wife is alive." He then told him something astonishing. At the time of the phone call, his wife had already passed—there was no pulse. They were about to cover her with a sheet, but the nurse said they should wait until he arrived. A couple of minutes later, they heard her coughing, and then she called out for a cup of water. This is a modern-day story of techiyat hametim in the merit of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. Tefillah is always wondrous and at Kivrei Tzadikim, it's even better.