Dear Alumni Sheyichyu!
Sholom U’Brocho!
Heartfelt wishes to haTomim Sholom Dov Ber ben Miriam for a complete and immediate refuah shleima, he should immediately complete any shlichus he needs to do in the place where he currently is, and be able to leave from there, even before Shabbos besimcha ubetov levov!
Mazeltov to Yitzchok Lutsky on the occasion of his engagement. Mazeltov to Mendy Labkowski on the occasion of his engagement. Mazeltov to Mendel Botnick on the occasion of his engagement. May they use out the period of yokor mikol yokor to its’ utmost! Mazeltov to Rabbi and Mrs. Aryeh Lavner on the birth of their daughter. Mazel tov to Rabbi and Mrs. Schneur Munitz on the birth of their daughter. Mazeltov to Rabbi and Mrs. Yoel Lipszyc on the birth of their daughter. Mazeltov to Rabbi and Mrs. Aryeh Leib Laufer on the birth of their son. Mazeltov to Rabbi and Mrs. Zushe Rivkin on the birth of their son. Mazeltov to Rabbi and Mrs. Hirschel Gurary on the birth and bris of their son. May they bring them up lTOveCHuMAA”T mitoch harchovo, and to be true chayolim/os! (If anyone is aware of any mazeltov’s that I omitted please let me know).
Thank you as always for the feedback, it is much appreciated.
The following story and answer are printed in the sefer “Psakim”, a collection of answers of the Rebbe that was recently printed:
A man once went into a shul, seeking a tzaddik. He approached one of the members of the shul, and asked whether there was any tzaddik present, or whether he knew of one from amongst the mispalelim in the shul. The man who was questioned, for some reason, didn’t take kindly to the inquiry, and treated the questioner to a severe tongue-lashing. The questioner was surprised and confused by this treatment, and (what does a Jew do when surprised and confused?) he wrote to the Rebbe to ask if there is any message he is meant to take out of that person’s reaction. The Rebbe replied the following:
(משמעות) גדולה – שאין לחפש צדיק ביהודי, שניכיאם לחפש "צדיק"הבנפש ושהרי)השביעוהו גם) מלשון(שובעת הא",("צדיק ולגלות ובהנוגע." לפועל
(On the question of the writer, whether there is significance to the incident, the Rebbe wrote) “Very great (significance). Namely, that you are not meant to seek a tzaddik in the person of someone else, rather your efforts should be directed at discovering the tzaddik that is within you yourself (because you were, after all, made to swear, which is also a satiation;-an empowerment–to be a tzaddik), and to reveal it in a practical, tangible manner”.
This story is remarkable, in my humble opinion, in many ways. First of all, look (in this and in so many of the answers found there) at the infinite patience that the Rebbe had for so many nudniks. I mean, here is a guy who had a run-in in shul with someone else. Happens at least 20 times a day. In each shul, in every city. Moreover, this guy was behaving a bit unconventionally, asking bizar requests (as we say: being a magnet...), and he basically invited the reaction that he got. Does the Lubavitcher Rebbe himself, who is running the whole world (in whichever way one chooses to understand that), have nothing better to do with his time and his kochos than to personally soothe this guy? Couldn’t the Rebbe just refer him to the Rabbi of the shul (he should be the one responsible for what goes on in his own turf), his local mashpia, or–better yet–his local doctor?!
[The Rebbe was once being driven to the ohel, and the car was stopped at a red light. Someone approached the car and knocked on the window. The window was lowered, and the person said to the Rebbe “I am a tzaddik, and my brochos become fulfilled (I have some meshulochim who tell me that, by the way...), and therefore the Rebbe should give me some of the names that he is bringing to the ohel, and I will daven for them”. The Rebbe replied: “Refuah shleimah. Azkir al hatziyon”!]
And if the Rebbe already felt the need to respond to this guy, wouldn’t it be enough to say: “Take a chill, don’t take it to heart. That guy that you approached was probably in a bad mood, he probably didn’t have enough sugar in his coffee (or maybe he even missed his coffee altogether that day) and he was being rude and insensitive and grouchy, and you just can’t take it to heart” (which is what I would assume to have been the case).
But no, the Rebbe finds a profound message, a very important lesson in avodas Hashem, in the behavior of the, well, the grouch (either that or he was too much of a kano’i to mind his manners)!! A lesson that we can all take the heart, today, and every day!
One of the ideas in this may be the idea of this week’s Parsha: This week, we are reading two Parshiyos about the Mishkan. The Mishkan served the most important role in the world–the purpose of the entire creation–the ושכנתי בתוכם–the bringing about the ultimate goal of transforming the world into a dira lo Yisborach.
One can think, when dealing with such a monumental task, what possible significance can we attach to the specifics, to the details? But Parshas Pikudei,-the Parsha in which the Mishkan was actually put together, in which everything finally came together to the point that וכבוד ה' מלא את המשכן,-the presence of the shechina was so intense there that even Moshe could not handle it–is called Pikudei. Pikudei means counting. It means focusing on, and attaching significance to, every single detail. Every prat, every part of the whole has its own inherent importance, in addition to their collective importance in forming the Mishkan (see further (beshinui k’taas) Likutei Sichos chelek 21 at length). And in counting, not one particle, not even the seemingly most minor one, can be left out.
This seems to be a central idea in the Rebbe’s Torah and in the Rebbe’s life: It’s not enough that in a general sense I am a Mishkan,-I am a chassidishe bochur or a chassishe yungerman, my overall identity and image reflects the fact that I am someone committed to serving the Eibishter. There needs to also be the “pikudei haMishkan”, I need to be able to see and show as well how the specific details of my life are not separate but a part of my overall preoccupation with revealing Elokus in the world and in my life.
The seemingly most minor and insignificant aspect of my life needs to express and portray what my general life is all about, and cannot be isolated. In every encounter, every incident, every anecdote and every experience should be reflected the same idea and ideal that is reflected in my overall existence.
So, for the Rebbe, no event is discounted or disregarded. A confrontation between a clueless quester and a disgruntled davener is not an unimportant distraction from everyone else’s devotions, but an important part of the journey;-another crucial lesson in avodas Hashem.
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But another point we can take out of the story. We are now in the days leading up to Yud Aleph Nissan, this Shabbos will be mevorchim the month of Nissan;-the month of the yom huledes of the Rebbe. [Similarly, this week will be Chof zayin Adar, a day that marks the beginning of a helem ve hester that continued until today, and when we all spend more time considering what we can and need to do about it].
It is a time when every chosid–any many Jews who don’t officially carry that label–is “looking for the tzaddik”. Everyone is looking for a fitting description that expresses the greatness of the Rebbe, his impact and his influence. Everyone would like to have a better sense and appreciation of what the Rebbe means to the world, to chassidim and to each and every one of us.
But the Rebbe says to us (rather sharply): “You are looking for the tzaddik, for the Rebbe, you have to look for the tzaddik within yourself”!
I say: “Who am I? A nothing, a nobody, an unimportant detail! We’re talking about the Rebbe here, and I am just an insignificant speck of humanity, born on the shores of insanity”. But the Rebbe says: “Not so”! Pikudei HaMishkan,-every detail has its’ inherent importance. It is impossible to try to look at the big picture, as big as it may be, while ignoring any of the details. It is unacceptable to underestimate the importance of each of us revealing our internal tzaddik.
The Rebbe says to us (perhaps): You are seeking the tzaddik, the Rebbe? The way for you to have a true appreciation for the Rebbe, is by working on yourself, by revealing the tzaddik within, the way you (and me) are living your own life according to what you learned from the Rebbe!
And, presumably, that is the only way to be truly connected with the Rebbe. When we reveal our inner tzaddik, then we are tuning in with the Moshe that is within us (legabei Moshe shebechol echod milso zutresohi), the part that connects with the yechidah haklolis, that is truly a keli for it.
As we read the two Parshiyos of vaYakhel and Pikudei, let us renew our focus on the dual aspects of our shlichus;-on the general and collective mishkan, the collective mission of transforming the entire world to G-dliness, as well as the individual part that each and every one of us have in this. With both together we will strengthen ourselves–חזק חזק ונתחזק–in not being overwhelmed by the last minute obstacles, and in...
