Dear Alumni Sheyichyu!
Sholom U’Brocho!
Mazel Tov to Isaac Kleinman on the occasion of his engagement. May he use out the special period of Yokor Mikol yokor to its’ utmost! Mazel Tov to Eitan Goldberg on the occasion of his chasuna and sheva brochos (in TO!). May the new home be set up al yesodei hatorah vehamitzvos, and be a keli for all brochos! Mazel Tov to Rabbi & Mrs, Itchie Grossbaum on the birth of their son, may they bring him up lTO veCHuMAA”T mitoch harchovo, and to be a true chayol! (If anyone is aware of any mazel tov’s that I omitted please let me know).
Thank you as always for the feedback, it is much appreciated.
R’ Pesach Molostovsker was one of the prominent Chassidim of the Alter Rebbe. He was known to have a deep understanding of chassidus, and was a very big oived. He also was a great baal menagen, who composed various chassidishen niggunim.
[It is related that he once complained to the Alter Rebbe that he has taivos. There was an apple on the table, and the Alter Rebbe said to him: “Declare now that you don’t like the apple”. But he replied: “I do like the apple”. This was repeated 2 or 3 times, until he finally said: Indeed, I don’t like the apple”. From then on, for the remainder of his life, he was repulsed and nauseated at the sight of an apple.
It is also related about him: Over the course of the year, he would have various questions in Chassidus, that he planned to ask the Rebbe when he would have a yechidus. However, when the time came that he visited the Rebbe, as soon as he walked through the door, all of his questions were cleared. This was explained, because all questions stem from kelipah, and upon entering the room of the Rebbe, they disappeared].
The following story about him is related in Reshimos Dvorim (Chitrik): R’ Pesach was a tall and well-built man, and was physically strong. Once, he noticed some goyim who were chasing after some Jewish girls. R’ Pesach immediately confronted them and chased them away. Knowing that they would return shortly with their cohorts, and that he was no match for a group of thugs, R’ Pesach himself then ran off, and hid in a courtyard amongst some barrels.
Sure enough, shortly thereafter the thugs returned with their friends, and began searching for the insolent Jew. They searched amongst the barrels, banging on them with their swords. They did not find R’ Pesach, but in the course of their search, one of them smashed the barrel under which R’ Pesach was hiding, severely injuring him.
When R’ Pesach was subsequently at yechidus by the Alter Rebbe, he complained of terrible head pains, that resulted from his injuries. The Alter Rebbe held the head of R’ Pesach in his holy hands, and the pains disappeared immediately. But, years later, after the histalkus of the Alter Rebbe, the pain returned, and it was so excruciating, that R”P began crying out in agony. He went into the Mitteler Rebbe for yechidus, and the Mitteler Rebbe took his head in his hands, and the pain once again departed.
After the histalkus of the Mitteler Rebbe, the pain returned again. R’ Pesach went to the Tzemach Tzedek, who also grasped R’P’s head, and once again the pain immediately subsided.
[I vaguely recall hearing/reading a similar story– but am not certain about the details–about a chosid (the Rashbatz?) who went to the Tzemach Tzedek complaining about head pains. The Tzemach Tzedek instructed him to wash his head in hot water, after which the pain departed. After the histalkus of the Tzemach Tzedek it returned, and he went to the Rebbe Maharash, who instructed him to wash his head with cold water, which again cured him of the pain. After the histalkus of the Rebbe Maharash the pain again returned. The chosid went to the Rebbe Rashab, told him the whole story, and asked him what to do. “If that is the case”, replied the Rebbe, “then you should mix hot water with cold water, which the chosid did, and was once again cured–further details will be appreciated].
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Rashi, in this week’s parsha, tells an interesting, though perplexing story: When Esav was on the way to Yaakov, he encountered groups of Malochim, who began to hit Esav. “Leave him alone”, they said to them, “he’s a son of Yitzchok.” But the Malochim instructed each other: “Keep on beating him!” “Wait, let him be”, they cried out, “he’s a grandson of Avrohom.” But this, too, did not provide him with relief. “Stop it”, they exclaimed, “he’s a brother of Yaakov.” “If so”, responded the Malochim, “then he’s one of ours!” and they let him be.
True, the objective of the angels was to instill in Esav a fear of starting up specifically with Yaakov. Yet, it must be assumed that, being malochim, their charade must have been inherently true. Which raises the question: What’s wrong with being a son of Yitzchok, and a grandson of Avrohom? Why aren’t they impressive enough yichus to subdue the malochim? Why, in actual fact, does only his relation with Yaakov give him the status of “one of ours”, despite his being a direct descendant of the Avos ha’olam?!
The answer is elementary; as great as Avrohom was, as important as Yitzchok was, once the generation of Yaakov had begun, once Yaakov had assumed the mantle of Rebbe, of Nosi (Roshei Teivos Nesi’uso shel Yaakov Ovinu), the only path to be “one of ours” is through being connected with Yaakov. One can find inspiration and guidance in the teachings of Avrohom, and one can be following the spiritual path initiated by Yitzchok, but if he is not connected with the current nosi, then he has nothing.
The Alter Rebbe’s brocho certainly had the power to cure R’ Pesach Molostovsker until the end of his days; unquestionably the words of the Alter Rebbe endure until the end of time. But, once there is a new Rebbe, the chosid must receive his brocho, his hashpo’oh in all areas, from that Rebbe.
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We can understand that if someone will come today and say: ‘I’m a chosid of the Alter Rebbe. I learn so much from the writings and teachings of the Alter Rebbe, and through them I maintain my connection with the Eibishter’, he is on the wrong track! Not only is he missing certain details, everything that was added and taught by the Rebbeim who were the successors of the Alter Rebbe, but he is missing everything!
For, while in the generation of the Alter Rebbe, all that was needed to be a proper chosid–a proper Jew–was to be connected to the Alter Rebbe, in the subsequent generations, if someone is not mekushar, not connected with the current Rebbe, then he is not connected with the Alter Rebbe either.
Chazal tell us: “Dor dor v’dorshov”, in every generation the Eibishter places the tzaddik through whom all of the hashpo’ois for the generation must come. The only way for any ruchniyus or gashmiyus to have validity is through their connection with the nosi hador.
[During the nesius of the Mitteler Rebbe, when questions in halacha were sent to him, he would give them to the Tzemach Tzedek to answer. The Tzemach Tzedek would write a Teshuva, and then bring it to the Mitteler Rebbe for approval. After the Mitteler Rebbe gave his approval, the teshuva would then be sent out. However, the Mitteler Rebbe never took issue with any of the teshuvos of the Tzemach Tzedek.
Once, an urgent query arrived, and the Mitteler Rebbe was not available. The Tzemach Tzedek decided that, in light of the fact that the Mitteler Rebbe always approved of his Teshuvos, and being that an immediate response was required, he would send out the Teshuva this once before showing it to the Mitteler Rebbe. When he later told the MR about, he asked the Tzemach Tzedek what he had answered in the Teshuva, and then showed him that it was contrary to an explicit tosefos.
The Tzemach Tzedek was very upset about this, so the Mitteler Rebbe said to him: “Don’t feel bad, in the meantime you are not a Rebbe!”
Even the Torah learning of the Tzemach Tzedek, with all of his phenomenal genius, had to be connected to the Mitteler Rebbe, who was then the Rebbe].
The same is true in each individual generation as well. Someone may say: ‘I relate very well with the teachings of the Rebbe from the Yud’s and Chof’s, I Koch zich in the sichos and maamorim of those years, and demand from myself all of their hora’ois. When it comes to the later years, I just don’t know how to eat it’
[In the early years of the Rebbe’s nesius there was a prominent member of Agudas Chabad of Eretz Yisroel who was in yechidus. This person struggled with many of the Rebbe’s directives (especially in the area of hafotza), that seemed to him to be so different from the style that he was accustomed to with the Frierdige Rebbe etc.
During the course of the yechidus, the Rebbe said to him: “Ir farshteit nisht? Ich farshtei oich nisht, ober azoi azoi iz der inyan!” (You don’t understand? I don’t either understand, but this is the way it has to be!)]
However, this too is unacceptable. In order to be a chosid of the Rebbe, we need to be a chosid of the Rebbe today, to Koch zich in, and dedicate ourselves to the current directives. More than anything else, what the Rebbe demands from us now is an “extremist” involvement in inyonei Moshiach. Everything that we do, all of our lives have to revolve around this point.
Someone can say: ‘I’ll work on my avodah, on my haskalah, on my lomdus, those are all important and vital aspects of a chosid’s life. So I’m missing this one detail of Moshiach, I’m not perfect.’ At least let me focus on those other areas.
But that is wrong! That is like saying ‘I’m a grandson of Avrohom, I’m a son of Yitzchok. So I’m missing the one detail of being affiliated with Yaakov. But as great as Yaakov may be, Avrohom and Yitzchok must count for something as well, right? Wrong! The only way to be mishelonu, the only way to be a “one of ours”, is to be connected to Yaakov, to be into the things that the Rebbe identified as the particular mission of our time. Only then does our connection with Avrohom and Yitzchok have value.
On Yud Tes Kislev, Rosh Hashono for Chassidus, is a time for us to renew and refresh our chassidishkeit, by strengthening our commitment to limud hachassidus ve darkei hachassidus and strengthening our connection to the Rebbe. It is a time for us to reveal that we are “one of ours”;-that we belong to Yaakov.
It is high time, as well, for the Eibishter to send the malochim to give Esav a proper beating. Let Esav-the gashmiyus olam hazeh and the nefesh habehamis–recognize that there can be no existence in the world on its own, everything must be subservient to Yaakov. And this recognition will be the fitting preparation for “Ve’olu moishi’im behar tzion lishpoit es har esav”,-when all the world will recognize and acknowledge the “Vehoyso l’Havaya haMelucha!”
L’chaim! L’SHONOH TOIVOH B’LIMUD HACHASSIDUS UB’DARKEI HACHASSIDUS TIKOSEIVU VESEICHOSEIMU, ul’mismach geulah l’geulah, may this chag hageulah be the harbinger of geulah protis for each and everyone of us bechol hameitarech bGUR, and of the Geulah klolis, geulah hoamitis vehashleimah with the hisgalus of Moshiach Tzidkeinu TUMYM!!!
Rabbi Akiva Wagner
