The Ribnitzer Rebbe’s
Tikkun Chatzos Gartel
“breite gartel” (wide fabric sash) worn by the holy Ribnitzer Rebbe!
The Admor Rabbi Chaim Zanvil Abramowitz of Ribnitz, wore this gartel, every night during his nocturnal recitation of Tikkun Chatzos.
The Admor’s gabbai who served him faithfully for close to two decades inscribed in a written testimony:
“I, the undersigned, hereby affirm that the gartel displayed in this photo was used by the Admor of Ribnitz zy”a for a long period of time when reciting Tikkun Chatzos at night. It is known that the [Admor] performed Tikkun Chatzos every night for several hours while he sat, wrapped in sackcloth and dust.”
Dimensions: 3.4 meters long, 6.5 centimeters wide. Good condition.
The Segulah of a Tzaddik’s Gartel
The Degel Machaneh Efraim (Parshas Vayishlach) recounted that his grandfather, the Baal Shem Tov, once crossed a river by laying his Gartel on the river waters and walking across it even without reciting any heavenly names!
Rabbi Nachman of Breslov in Sefer Hamiddos writes that a Gartel of a Tzaddik is a segulah to atone for wicked thoughts (see Zevachim 88b, which discusses that the Kohein Gadol’s avnet atoned for iniquitous thoughts).
The Admor Rabbi Meir of Premishlan explained that it is customary to tie the gartel of a tzaddik around the waist during auspicious moments, such as when a chosson stands beneath his chuppah, because the belt of a tzaddik is a segulah for banishing unwanted and impure thoughts.
Rabbi Chaim Zanvil Abramowitz of Ribnitz (1897-1995)
The beloved Ribnitzer Rebbe, was born in Botosani, Romania. Orphaned as a child, he was raised by the Admor Harav Avraham Mattisyahu of Shtefanesht who treated him as an only son. He eventually settled in Ribnitz, which lies in present-day Moldova.
The Rebbe conducted himself in a holy manner even during his youth, immersing in frozen rivers and risking his life repeatedly to perform circumcisions and Shchita under the brutal Communist regime. He miraculously survived the Nazi occupation, and it was during this era that he acquired a reputation as a miracle worker, with countless stories attesting to his holy powers.
In 1972, the Ribnitzer Rebbe finally emigrated from Russia, journeying first to Eretz Yisrael but eventually settling in New York where his reputation as a tzaddik and miracle worker spread far and wide. Countless Jews flocked to his door from around the world seeking his holy blessings and salvations, and many attested that they sensed the Divine spirit hovering upon him. He passed away in 1996 and was laid to rest in Monsey, NY; thousands pilgrimage to his tomb to pray and seek salvation until this very day.
The Chasam Sofer inscribed in Toras Moshe, Parshas Toldos: “…It appears from Yerushalmi Moed Katan [regarding the staff of Rabbi Meir] that a person’s garments are affected by the sanctity of the one who wore it [previously], and the one who wears it after him shall benefit from the same good and beneficial spirit that rested upon him…” With these words, the Chasam Sofer cites his spiritual master the Baal Hafla’ah who inscribed the following in Panim Yafos (Parshas Lech Lecha):
“Sanctity rests upon the belongings of tzaddikim.”
