[2] His father, Rabbi Yitzhak of Drohobych [he], initially opposed the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov, but later became a fan of his and sent Yechiel to study with him.
[7] In the final years of his life, Yechiel gained wealth and said that it expanded his mind to serve God.
[9] Years later, Rabbi Nathan Neta Donner [he] published a collection of his sayings called "Many Waters" (מים רבים).
Hasidic tradition states that at the time of his death, the Baal Shem Tov asked his disciples to sing the melody, and at the end promised that every person who joined in the song would feel a feeling of repentance at any time and that he would join in singing in his soul and arouse a great mercy on him before God.
In 2013, a CD titled "Many Mercies" (רחמים רבים) was released, with ten melodies on the track being attributed by tradition to Yechiel.
The beginning of the dynasty is attributed to Rabbi Yitzchak Hayut (1538 – 1610), whose family supposedly descends from Rashi and King David.