תחת אשר לא עבדת את ה’ אלקיך בשמחה ובטוב לבב מרב כל (כי תבא כח:מז)

A chassid once traveled to spend Yom Tov with Reb Duvid Moshe of Tchorkov zt”l. This chassid was facing a harsh judgment, with a difficult sentence looming over him. While the rest of the chassidim gathered in the Beis Medrash after Yom Tov, dancing in joy and uplifted spirit, this chassid remained behind in the Rebbe’s room, hoping to poel a yeshua from his dire situation.

The Tchorkover Rebbe noticed and asked him, “Why aren’t you joining in the dancing?”

He then shared a story from the Baal Shem Tov zt”l, to highlight the immense power of simcha:

“One Motzei Yom Kippur, following the intense avodah of the holy day, the Baal Shem Tov wished to recite Kiddush Levana, as is customary. But the moon was hidden, and the Baal Shem Tov became deeply pained that he couldn’t fulfill the mitzvah that night. He began to daven and perform various spiritual acts, persistently asking his chassidim whether the moon had appeared.

His chassidim, unaware of the depth of the Baal Shem Tov’s yearning, were still spiritually uplifted from Yom Kippur. Their hearts overflowed with joy, and they broke out into song and dance. The dancing soon spilled out into the streets and eventually made its way into the Baal Shem Tov’s room.

They called out, “Rebbe, come dance with us!”

The Baal Shem Tov rose and joined their circle of joyous dancing. And in the midst of that heartfelt celebration, someone came in and announced: “The moon has appeared!” Everyone rushed outside to recite Kiddush Levana.

The Baal Shem Tov then proclaimed: ‘What I could not achieve through my avodah, the chassidim accomplished through the power of simcha!’

The Tchorkover Rebbe concluded: “A Yid must trust in Hashem and rejoice in the simcha of a mitzvah. Even in times of harsh decrees, it is through simcha that one can be zocheh to a yeshua.”