QUESTION:
How should we view tzaddikim if they aren’t talmidei chachamim (Torah scholars)? Sometimes I see people who can daven for many hours straight, and their faces shine with kedushah, but they are not a Talmid Chochom. (1) May one go to such a person for advice or to get a berachah from him? Or is it better to go only to tzaddikim who are also Talmidei Chachomim?
ANSWER:
There are three pillars that hold up the world (Torah, avodah and chessed) and each person can connect to any of these pillars depending on what his shoresh neshamah (soul root) is. That is why we can find people who put a lot of effort into their tefillah even though they are not that gifted in their Torah learning. We are allowed to go to such people for a berachah. If such a person has Ruach HaKodesh, we may also ask him for advice, but if he does not have Ruach HaKodesh then it is better to go to a Talmid Chochom whose thinking is yashar (Torah aligned) and clean from the influences of the world.
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