Groping in the Light

This morning we read: "Lo seva'aru eish b'chol moshvoseichem b'yom haShabbas. You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath (Vayikra 35:3)." And so, the following mai'sah of Reb Nachum of Chernobyl.

Reb Nachum was a guest of the father of Reb Moshe of Savran for shabbos. It was the custom of the household to light a long candle before sunset so that if anyone wanted to learn before daybreak he could do so by light. A little after midnight, those in the house were awoken by a noise. They got out of their beds to see Reb Nachum groping as if it were pitch dark. Afraid that he was going to hurt himself, they asked if there was any trouble. He asked why the overnight candle had not been lit. Those around him were astonished, but later found out that the candle had gone out at some point, and had been re-lit by the non-Jewish maid. And since the candle had been lit on shabbos the tzaddik was not able to see its light.