Rabbi Shalom Dovber Schneersohn of Lubavitch, the fifth Rebbe in the Chabad dynasty, was born to his parents, Rabbi Shmuel Schneersohn, the Rebbe Moharash and Rebbetzin Rivkah, on the 20th of Cheshvan 5621 (1860). At his brit milah, his grandfather, the Tzemach Tzedek, gave him the acronym RaShab. After his father's passing, he accepted the mantle of leadership partially, and after 11 years, fully, initially in Lubavitch and in his later years in Rostov. He established the Tomchei Temimim Yeshivah in Lubavitch and the Torat Emet Yeshivah, first in Hebron and later in Jerusalem. He passed away on the 2nd of Nissan 5680 (1920) and was buried in Rostov. His only son, the Rebbe Rayatz, succeeded him. The Rashab is known for the length and depth of his Chasidic discourses and was called 'the Rambam of Chasidut'. Among his well-known works: Hemshech Ayin Beis, Hemshech Samech Vov, Kuntres HaAvodah, Kuntres U'Maayan, and Kuntres Etz HaChaim.
The Rebbe Rayatz related: Once, the Chasid Reb Munya Moniszohn visited my holy father. They spoke about several simple people, whom my holy father praised greatly. Reb Munya was very surprised that my holy father praised them so much and asked: "Why do you make such a big deal out of them?!" My holy father answered: "They have virtues." "I don't see them," Reb Munya responded.
Reb Munya was a great diamond merchant, and my holy father asked him if he had brought his package of diamonds with him. "Yes, I brought it with me,” Reb Munya replied, “but now when the sun is shining, it's not the right time to look at the diamonds." Later, Reb Munya opened his package of diamonds and spread them out in another room, pointing to one stone that was absolutely wondrous. My holy father said to him: "I don't see anything special in this stone." "One needs to be an expert," Reb Munya replied.
My holy father responded and said: "A Jew is absolutely wondrous, but one needs to be an expert."
When the respected chasid Reb Mendel Futerfas o.b.m. taught the discourse “Ish Yehudi” from Sefer HaMa’amarim 5701 (1941), he shared the following story: Once, Achad Ha'am, who was recognized as an apikores (apostate), came to the holy Rebbe Rashab, and they conversed about matters of the Enlightenment movement, which was popular at that time. When Achad Ha'am left the Rebbe's room and was asked what he thought of the Rebbe, he replied: “He knows the ways of the world and purposefully rebels against it.” Then he added, “the teachings of Chasidut have delayed the Enlightenment movement by fifty years.” When this was related to the Rebbe, he said: “Not just for fifty years, but until the coming of Mashiach.” In response to the chasidim's question about what he thought of Achad Ha'am, the Rebbe answered: “Even if he were to see Moses splitting the sea before his eyes, it would not affect him.”
Achad Ha'am, one of the leaders of secular Zionism and the founder of cultural Zionism, was married to Rivkah Schneerson, a great-granddaughter of the Tzemach Tzedek, the third Lubavitcher Rebbe as well as the granddaughter of Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak of Avritch. This explains his visit to the Rebbe Rashab, as a family relative, but further sharpens the profound difference between the two in their worldviews— they truly were two opposites.
Each honored the other with a dubious compliment, which the recipient found flattering and the giver disdained. Interestingly, Achad Ha'am's statement that Chasidut delayed the Enlightenment by fifty years aligns well with the Rashab's words: fifty years constitute a Jubilee—a Jubilee at the end of which all of reality is elevated, lands return to their owners, and slaves are freed. Achad Ha'am (at least openly) did not believe in Mashiach and formulated his words as referring to time. But in the inner dimension, this was precisely the Rashab's words, that Chasidut delayed the Enlightenment until the coming of Mashiach.
The Rashab's words about Achad Ha'am, that he would not be impressed even by the splitting of the Red Sea, reflect the reserved response to negative matters known in Yiddish as ohn hispa’alus that characterized him. Ohn hispa’alus is a distinctly Chabad trait. Achad Ha’am’s life path also stemmed from genuine concern for the fate of the Jewish people. But when one believes in Mashiach, and in his words to the Ba’al Shem Tov that Mashiach will come "when your wellsprings spread outward," the mode of action is entirely different.
All this connects well to the first story above. The comparison of a Jew to a diamond is found in many places in Chasidut. One of these is a saying of Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Bohr, a disciple of the Maggid of Mezritch. He interprets the verse "And all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings" as follows: Every Jew, like a diamond, has a special light. What determines whether this light will be seen, and its full beauty appreciated? It is "their dwellings," the place where the diamond is set. A diamond set in gold will reveal more beauty and grace than an identical diamond set in silver; a diamond set in silver will shine more than one framed in copper; and so on and on. In our story too, it is revealed that the beautiful qualities of Jews always exist. It is only the framework in which they are set that might mislead or even spoil their purpose in life.
It is important to know that even diamonds at their best are not entirely identical to one another. Each has its unique quality, and the setting that suits it best expresses its beauty more than any other. This is beautifully reflected in another verse from the same Torah portion: "And the dwelling of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was thirty years and four hundred years." "The dwelling of the children of Israel," refers to the setting that befits them, is "thirty years and four hundred years." What is the significance of this number?
430 is the value of “psyche.” It also equals four expressions that reflect the different souls of Jews. The first is “the tzaddik the foundation of the world.” The second is “a scholar of books.” The third is “a joyful chasid.” And the fourth is “a simple Jew.” Each of these types of soul or psyche dwells in one of the four spiritual Worlds, from Emanation to Action. The tzaddik dwells in the World of Emanation, the world of nullification to Godliness. The scholar who knows books lies in the intellectual world of Creation. The joyful chasid’s soul is in the World of formation, the world of emotions. Finally, the simple Jew reveals Godliness below, in the physical world of Action.
Numerical equality also reveals a concealed equality in essence. In this case, the lesson is that every type of Jew, from the highest tzaddikim to the simplest is equally beloved by God and performs his special function of making a "dwelling in the lower realms." This is the effect of dwelling in Egypt, each in their own dwelling. Thus, it becomes clear that all the Children of Israel—even those who live their lives within the constraints of the world—have a wondrous Divine light.
