(3) and Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob and declare to the children of Israel:
(1) When the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha had set out from Gilgal. (2) Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here, for the LORD has sent me on to Bethel.” “As the LORD lives and as you live,” said Elisha, “I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. (3) Disciples of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that the LORD will take your master away from you today?” He replied, “I know it, too; be silent.” (4) Then Elijah said to him, “Elisha, stay here, for the LORD has sent me on to Jericho.” “As the LORD lives and as you live,” said Elisha, “I will not leave you.” So they went on to Jericho. (5) The disciples of the prophets who were at Jericho came over to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that the LORD will take your master away from you today?” He replied, “I know it, too; be silent.” (6) Elijah said to him, “Stay here, for the LORD has sent me on to the Jordan.” “As the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you,” he said, and the two of them went on. (7) Fifty men of the disciples of the prophets followed and stood by at a distance from them as the two of them stopped at the Jordan. (8) Thereupon Elijah took his mantle and, rolling it up, he struck the water; it divided to the right and left, so that the two of them crossed over on dry land. (9) As they were crossing, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?” Elisha answered, “Let a double portion of your spirit pass on to me.” (10) “You have asked a difficult thing,” he said. “If you see me as I am being taken from you, this will be granted to you; if not, it will not.” (11) As they kept on walking and talking, a fiery chariot with fiery horses suddenly appeared and separated one from the other; and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. (12) Elisha saw it, and he cried out, “Oh, father, father! Israel’s chariots and horsemen!” When he could no longer see him, he grasped his garments and rent them in two.
(ג) וְעוֹד זֹאת הַבְּחִינָה הָיְתָה לְמֹשֶׁה, כִּי כָל מַה שֶּׁעָלָה לְמַעֲלָה יוֹתֵר עֶלְיוֹנָה, מָצָא שָׁם אֱלֹקִים, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב (שמות י"ט): וּמֹשֶׁה עָלָה אֶל הָאֱלֹֹקִים. כִּי בְּגַשְׁמִיּוּת אָנוּ רוֹאִים, שֶׁיֵּשׁ אָדָם שֶׁהוּא לְמַטָּה בְּדַחֲקוּת, אֲזַי הוּא עוֹבֵד הַשֵּׁם וּמַכִּיר אוֹתוֹ, וּכְשֶׁהוּא נִתְעַלֶּה לְמַעְלָה, שֶׁנִּתְעַשֵּׁר, אֲזַי הוּא שׁוֹכֵחַ בְּהַקָּדוֹשׁ־בָּרוּךְ־הוּא.
(3) In addition, Moshe had another quality. No matter how high the level to which he ascended, he found God there, as it is written, “And Moshe went up to the Lord” (Exodus 19:3). We see in the physical world that a person who is down-and-out serves God and acknowledges Him, but when he moves up, becoming affluent, he then forgets about God.
Letter of Baal Shem Tov, trans. Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, Chasidic Masters p12
On Rosh Hashanah of the year 5507 I performed, by means of oath, an elevation of soul [to the higher spiritual realms], as known to you, and saw wondrous things I had never seen before. That which I saw and learned there is impossible to convey in words, even face to face. I saw innumerable souls, both living and dead…fleeting back and forth, going from one universe to another…
When I returned to the lower Garden of Eden [one of the levels of the abode of departed souls], I saw innumerable souls, both living and dead, some whom I knew and others whom I did not. They were fleeting back and forth, going from one universe to another through the Column2 that is known to those who delve in mysteries. Their state of joy was so great that lips cannot express it, and the physical ear is too gross to hear it.
There were also many wicked people who had repented; their sins were forgiven, since this was a special time of grace. Even to my eyes it was wondrous how many were accepted as penitents, many of whom you know. There was great joy among them too, and they also ascended in the above mentioned manner.
All of them beseeched and petitioned me unceasingly: "Because of the glory of your Torah, G‑d granted you greater understanding to perceive and know these things. Ascend with us, so that you can be our help and support." I ascended from level to level until I entered the chamber of the Mashiach…
Because of the great joy that I saw among them, I decided to ascend with them. Due to the great danger involved in ascending to the supernal universes, I asked my master [Achiya the Shilonite3] to come with me, as I had never before ascended to such a high level. I ascended from level to level until I entered the chamber of the Mashiach,4 where the Mashiach learns Torah with all the sages and tzadikim and also with the Seven Shepherds5
I saw great joy there, but I did not know the reason for it. At first I thought that the reason for this joy was because I had passed away from the physical world, heaven forbid. Later, they told me that my time had not yet come to die, since they have great pleasure on high when I bring about Unifications through the holy Torah down below. To this very day, I do not know the reason for that joy.
I asked the Mashiach: "When will the Master come?", and he answered: "By this you shall know:
In the time when your teaching will become public and revealed in the world, and your wellsprings will burst forth to the farthest extremes, that which I have taught you and you have comprehended, and they also shall be able to perform unifications and elevations as you, and then all of the kelipot will cease to exist, and there shall be a time of good will and salvation."