There are even certain Torah laws connected to expressing and stimulating joy, and special practices which demonstrate appropriate aspects of joy for each of the holidays.
Even though joy is the general mood of these holidays, the essence of one of the holidays, Sukkos, is joy itself. In the special holiday prayers, Sukkos is called z’man simchaseinu (the time of our joy). In the times of the Holy Temple (Beis HaMikdash) in Jerusalem, there was so much singing, dancing and rejoicing during the holiday of Sukkos and the intermediate nights of Simchas Beis HaSho’evah, that if a person did not experience that joy it was considered as if he never experienced real joy in his life.
Clearly, then, joy has always been part of the Torah and an important aspect of the Jewish way of life. What the Baal Shem Tov revealed was that his times necessitated an increased emphasis and focus on this particular area of Torah practice in greater measure than before.
Song
Another heightened aspect of chassidic life is serving G-d through song. Song is so intrinsic to the chassidic way of life that someone well-versed in chassidic melodies can actually hear a particular melody and identify from which chassidic group it originated.
Critics of Chassidism called the use of song as a vehicle for inspiration a waste of time, claiming that inspiration can only be stimulated through learning Torah.
But the idea of serving G-d through song is hardly new. After the Jews were miraculously saved at the Splitting of the Sea, the first thing the Torah records is the Song of Moses and the Song of his sister Miriam in praise of G-d.
One of the main services performed in the Beis HaMikdash by the Levites was praising G-d through song. Regardless of whether they sang or played instruments, an integral part of their holy service there was to fill the Holy Temple with music.
Often attributed to an innovation of Chassidism, song has always played a role in Jewish practice. The Baal Shem Tov merely recognized the need to bring this aspect of Torah life to the forefront.
Prayer
An emphasis on deep and heartfelt prayer is another practice that characterizes the chassidic movement.
The Talmud discusses certain individuals from early Talmudic times who would spend up to nine hours a day on prayer. For each of the three daily prayers, they would prepare an hour before prayer, spend an hour on the actual prayer, and then take an hour to absorb and internalize what they gained from each experience, totaling nine hours of daily prayer.
Even though these people lived approximately 1,800 years before the chassidic movement, they were called chassidim, so when the Baal Shem Tov instituted a revival of lengthy prayer, his adherents also became referred to as chassidim.
When the time came for Reb Schneur Zalman of Liadi, the great Torah genius and future first Rebbe of Chabad, to decide where to further his studies, he considered two opportunities. Of the two Torah centers in the world at that time, one emphasized Torah study and one emphasized prayer. In Vilna, whose central figure was the Vilna Gaon, Reb Schneur Zalman would be in the court of one of the greatest Torah masters of all time. In the city of Mezritch, he would focus on the service of prayer under the great chassidic master, the Maggid of Mezritch.
In weighing his choice, he reasoned, “I have already had a lot of training in how to study Torah, but not a lot of training in how to pray.” And so he chose Mezritch. In this defining moment, the chassidic movement gained its most central figure.
The emphasis on lengthy and heartfelt prayer was not an innovation of the chassidic movement. On the contrary, praying at length was a practice that took on great importance at various times throughout Jewish history. If there was an innovation, it was that the Baal Shem Tov recognized that extra focus on the service of prayer was a necessary ingredient in the overall service of all the Jews in our times — regardless of Torah scholarship and level of observance — and not just the practice of an elite few.
Jewish Mysticism
The mystical teachings of the Torah — the Zohar, the writings of the AriZal, and other Kabbalistic texts — are an authentic and essential part of the Torah. Many people were confused and disturbed when the Baal Shem Tov began teaching these secrets of Torah to the masses. Some questioned the legitimacy of the Kabbalah and mystical teachings in general, and some, recognizing their authenticity, objected to making them accessible to simple people.
Regarding their legitimacy, a bit of background is in order. Kabbalah and the teachings of Jewish mysticism are referred to as nistar. Nistar means “hidden,” and these teachings are considered the hidden dimensions of Torah. The revealed part of the Torah is called nigleh which means “revealed.”
A very great scholar known as the Chasam Sofer once said, “When a person argues b’nigleh against nistar, this is an indication that b’nistar he argues against nigleh,” meaning, that when a person openly (b’nigleh) denies the teachings of the hidden part of Torah (nistar), it’s an indication that in secret (in his heart — b’nistar), he also denies the teachings of the revealed part of Torah (nigleh), because the hidden and the revealed parts of Torah are all one.
The mystical teachings of Torah were always studied by the greatest Torah scholars and sages throughout Jewish history, but even among this elite group, there were only a select few in each generation who had access to this wisdom. In later times, revealing the hidden secrets of the Torah (i.e., Kabbalah) to the public — in this case, to a much broader group of Torah scholars — came about two hundred years before the Baal Shem Tov through the AriZal, when he declared, “It is a mitzvah to reveal [the wisdom of the Kabbalah].”
With his holy vision, the Baal Shem Tov recognized the need to take this a step further and make these mystical teachings available to the masses.
Going Beyond the Letter of the Law
One last example of a basic principle in chassidic life is the idea of going “beyond the letter of the law” in Torah study and mitzvah observance.
Every practicing Jew follows halachah — the things required of a Jew according to Torah law. A person, though, can go beyond the call of duty, doing more than what is required. The Talmud calls such a person a chassid, and because the chassidic movement adopts going beyond the letter of the law as a way of life, this is another reason why its adherents are called chassidim.
In a well-known story, a certain chassid once related how he himself became a chassid as a result of experiencing this practice of going beyond the letter of the law. He was a Rabbi in a small shtetl and was totally disassociated with everything outside of the shtetl, including the raging conflict between the chassidic movement and its opponents.
At that point, the conflict was so intense that the opponents of Chassidism arranged to have the Alter Rebbe, the first Rebbe of Chabad, accused of high treason and arrested by the Russian government. Through this arrest they hoped he would be executed, G-d forbid, and this would take care of the chassidic movement once and for all.
After serving 53 days in jail, he was eventually freed, but during his jail term, several of his followers were also arrested. When two of these chassidim, the great chassidic scholars Reb Meir Raphaels and Reb Boruch Mordechai of Babroisk, were en route to jail, they were scheduled to pass through the shtetl in which the Rabbi in this story lived.
Several of the residents came to him and said, “The head of the community told us that two chassidim would soon be passing through this town and when they do, we should all stand at the corner where their carriage stops and throw rocks at them. As our Rabbi, we are asking you if we have permission to do that.” Needless to say, the Rabbi was shocked.
“Throwing stones at other Jews?! Why?”
“Because we were told that they are apikorsim (nonbelievers),” they answered.
“Really?!” he said. “Explain this to me. Do they not put on tefillin?”
“No,” they said. “They put on two pairs of tefillin.”
“Well then tell me, do they eat chometz on Pesach?”
“No!” they replied. “They don’t even let the matzah get wet. They suspect that if the matzah were to get wet, there might be a small chance that the dough would become chometz.”
“So, do they not wear tzitzis?”
“No! They wear tzitzis that hang down to the ground!”
“Well, then, they don’t daven? They don’t pray?”
“Actually, they spend hours a day in prayer.”
This went on and on. Finally the Rabbi said to them, “These are very peculiar nonbelievers indeed. You tell me that not only do they perform all the mitzvos, but they do more than is required. I have to see this for myself!”
The Rabbi went down to the square and saw these two chassidim with his own eyes, explaining later, “Looking at their faces, I saw such a brilliance and such a spiritual shine, I knew it was impossible for these people not to be G-dly, spiritual people. I began to do some research, and once I began to understand what Chassidism was all about, I was so impressed that I myself became a chassid.”
To this day, chassidim are known throughout the world as “ultra” Orthodox Jews, a reference to their going beyond the letter of the law. But this aspect of chassidic life is also nothing new. Throughout Jewish history, there was always a select group of people who expressed their love for G-d with a heightened observance of the mitzvos. The Baal Shem Tov merely emphasized this mode of practice in Jewish life and brought it to the masses.
Reviving the Soul of Judaism
What was the Baal Shem Tov’s goal in bringing the chassidic movement to the Jewish public at large? Did he simply encourage the observance of a random collection of practices or was there some common thread connecting them all that contributed to an overall vision?
To preface, a well-known analogy is given to describe the nature of the Baal Shem Tov’s mission and what it was meant to accomplish. It begins with the scenario of a person who has just fainted. One of the ways to revive him is by calling him by his own name. So, too, the Jews in the times of the Baal Shem Tov were in a spiritual faint, and G-d called us with our name, “[the people of] Yisrael.” How did He do that? By sending us Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, in order to wake us up to spiritual consciousness.
Now the person who has fainted has lost consciousness, but his body is very much alive. In the analogue, the body represents the body of Torah (the study and practice of the revealed teachings of the Torah) which was very much alive in those days, while the loss of consciousness, the faint, represents the state of the soul, the spirituality, in Torah observance. The Baal Shem Tov’s mission revolved around maintaining a functioning body while reviving a weakened and depressed soul.
In all physical forms of life, there is a body and a soul. In a human being, for example, there are certain things that reinforce and strengthen the body, like food, sleep and exercise. There are other kinds of activities — like developing a positive attitude, refining one’s emotions, softening one’s ego, and giving of oneself to others — that strengthen and reinforce the soul; the inner dimensions of a person.
For all the various activities, there are different kinds of masters. For strengthening the body there are professionals such as doctors, nutritionists and exercise coaches whose specialty is to work with the mechanics of the body. There are other people, like teachers and counselors, whose specialty is to help strengthen the inner dimensions of a person such as developing healthy emotional traits and refining one’s character.
The same pattern operates within Judaism. There is a body of Judaism which consists of the physical, technical aspects of the Jewish way of life, such as what we are obligated to do and what we are prohibited from doing, along with the obligation to gain general knowledge in Torah.
Then there is the soul, or life-force, of Judaism that nurtures and strengthens Jewish practice from within. The soul of Judaism is revealed by emphasizing its emotional aspects such as our love and awe of G-d, developing our inner, G-dly qualities, and strengthening our faith and belief in Him. The common thread tying all the different aspects of chassidic life together is their integral role in strengthening the soul of Judaism.
Each of the following elements (mentioned previously) assists a person in accessing the soul of Judaism by developing and strengthening his inner qualities and emotions:
- Prayer. While Torah study is connected to the mind (body), prayer is connected to the heart (soul). We learn this from the Talmud, which states: “What is the source in the Torah for the commandment to pray? The verse [in the Shema]: ‘You should serve G-d with all your heart’ — that is prayer.” The way to develop a stronger emotional bond with G-d is by meditating on G-d’s greatness and our relationship with Him during prayer, and this in turn stimulates our awe and love for Him.
- Song. In the realm of holiness, there are songs that stimulate joy, songs that stimulate love for G-d, and songs that express the soul’s yearning to be close to G-d. Regardless, all the songs are geared towards one thing — to stimulate the emotions and help us connect to G-d with our hearts.
- Joy. Joy lifts our spirits and “opens the channel” to allow our feelings and our love for G-d to develop and flourish. Achieving this enables us to connect to G-d on the deepest levels. The opposite of joy, on the other hand, is not neutral. It makes us feel depressed or stagnant, and causes us to feel separate from G-d.
- Jewish Mysticism. The difference between the revealed part of Torah and the mystical part of Torah is that the former deals with the technical aspects — the “do’s and don’ts” — of Jewish life, while the latter deals with understanding G-d and His universe: how He created the physical and spiritual worlds, the spiritual purpose behind the mitzvos, and the spirituality of the soul. By studying the mystical part of Torah, we gain a better understanding of our relationship with G-d and His great kindnesses to us, and this strengthens and reinforces our belief in, and our love and awe for Him.
- Going Beyond the Letter of the Law. Why would anyone want to go beyond the letter of the law? Aren’t there enough rules to follow in Judaism? Are people just trying to make themselves miserable?
The answer to these questions is very simple. If a person observes the laws of Torah just to fill an obligation, then he or she will do exactly what’s required and stop there. But if a person serves G-d out of strong feelings of love for Him, then one doesn’t make calculations. On the contrary, a person will be driven to do as much as possible — more than what is required — for G-d.
We see a parallel in the physical realm in the relationship between a husband and wife. Suppose a husband and wife have respect, but no real feelings of love, for each other. The husband will do everything he is responsible to do and the wife will do everything she is responsible to do but neither will go beyond their obligations. On the other hand, two people in a relationship that is full of love will go way beyond what is required of them. In such a case, one’s satisfaction and joy in the relationship will be dependent on doing more and more for the other.
The same is true with our relationship to G-d. If a person has a passionate fire burning within him towards G-d, he will strive to do more and more to get closer to Him. Rather than feeling burdened by his obligations to G-d, doing more than what is required will only increase his pleasure and sense of satisfaction.
So to revitalize the spirit of Judaism, the Baal Shem Tov sought to develop and strengthen its soul, and that is why he taught and emphasized those areas of Jewish practice that have the ability to accomplish that.
The Rebbe-Chassid Relationship. Now we are in a better position to address the questions people raise regarding the concept of a Rebbe.
Some people may ask, “I can understand showing respect to a tzaddik, a Rebbe, but aren’t people getting a little out of hand? The level of admiration people give him is what you would give to G-d, not to a person of flesh and blood.”
The response to this, once again, is that the chassidic way of life introduced nothing new to Judaism. As with the other elements of Chassidism, the Baal Shem Tov recognized that reviving the intrinsic connection of the Jewish people with a Rebbe would not only heighten their awareness and consciousness of G-d’s presence in the world and deepen their emotional connection to Him, it would hurtle them toward the realization of their destiny — the redemption of the Jewish nation with Moshiach.
The origin of the whole concept of a Rebbe and where it is found in Torah will be explained in more detail in the next chapter.
