Magical Moments of Mesorah VIII - Rav Yisrael Salanter and the Alter of Novardok

When he [Reb Yosef Yozel] was a merchant he visited at times the town of Mamel, where Rav Yisrael Salanter was living at the time...On one afternoon, when Reb Yosef Yozel was hurrying in the streets of Mamel in his business dealings, from one place to another, hurriedly and in haste, Reb Yisrael suddenly stopped him and asked him:

 'Why are you running so much?' 

Reb Yosef Yozel answered him: 'I have a milestone around my neck, as I have to feed a large family of eleven; a wife and daughter, with a widow and seven of her children.'

 Rav Yisrael explained to him that even with all of his responsibilities he needed to set his primary time for Torah study.

 After some time, Reb Yosef Yozel visited Rav Yisrael in his house as per his request. On their third meeting Rav Yisrael invited him to a lecture in Mesilas Yisharim, which he was giving in the main synagogue in Mamel. Reb Yosef Yozel accepted the invitation and attended the lecture thirteen times. On the thirteen lecture Rav Yisrael's words had such an impact on Reb Yosef Yozel, to the extent that he felt an inner earthquake trembling within himself. He left the lecture stunned and shaking. On the way home he gathered some bundles of ware and he began planning a way to free himself from business and to devote himself to Torah and Yirah.