When Expertise Reveals the Truth

by Dovid Zaklikowski for Hasidic Archives

Manish Monosson, one of the great disciples of the Rebbe Maharash, Rabbi Shmuel of Lubavitch, would regularly visit the Chassidic court in Lubavitch. During one of his private audiences, the Rebbe told the wealthy diamond dealer that a certain person possessed an exalted soul.

Outwardly, the man appeared simple, and Manish could not understand what the Rebbe saw in him. “Why is he any different from another person?” he asked the Rebbe. Rabbi Shmuel did not respond.

Often, when Monosson came to Lubavitch, he would present the Rebbe with a box of precious stones. On one occasion, the Rebbe asked if they could examine the stones together. As he opened the box, Manish pointed to one particular gem and said, “This one is worth a great deal of money.” The Rebbe looked at it with puzzlement and remarked, “It looks like all the rest.”

The dealer explained, “You need to be an expert to truly understand.”

The Rebbe then looked at him and said, “If one must be an expert to discern between stones, how much more so when it comes to souls.”

The message was clear: you never know who the person across from you may truly be.

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