Weekly Story: The Mitteler Rebbe Part #3

Rabbi Sholom DovBer Avtzon

As this coming Wednesday, Tes Kislev,  is the birthday and Yahrzeit of the Mitteler Rebbe, I am posting the 3rd part in a series on his life. This story occurred with the author of Sippurim Noraim himself.

As always, your feedback and comments are greatly appreciated.

After I was in Lubavitch for a year and half, learning in the Beis Midrash, the Rebbe called me in and instructed me to go home.

I said to the Rebbe, whenever I think about my life in that town, I tremble with fear. Almost all of the townspeople are staunch opponents to the ways and teachings of Chassidus. Therefore, I am fearful that my father-in-law won’t allow me to live in his house. Instead, he will chase me out of the house, as in his eyes I am like a follower of the cursed Shabtai Tzvi. Especially as the townspeople will speak to him and convince him to send me away, as they are fearful that I might influence their own children to also follow in the ways of Chassidim. To them this is an abomination. 

When the Rebbe heard these words, the color of his face turned to resemble the flame of a fire. He then said to me, “Don’t be concerned about this at all. Go home in peace, your father-in-law will warmly welcome you with a smile, and will express himself with many signs of endearment.

Your father-in-law is an honest person, and an extremely proper individual, in addition to being truthful and wise.  The Rebbe added, even though your father-in-law will suffer greatly from the townspeople as they are upset that he is not chasing you away, nevertheless he will show you with the same closeness and friendship as before. 

When I heard these words from his holy mouth, I was astounded. As these words were pure prophecy. My father-in-law lived eighty versts away from Lubavitch and he was never in the proximity of the Rebbe, and I don’t believe that the Rebbe was told about him. Yet I just heard the Rebbe describing his personality exactly as it was, down to the smallest detail. 

The Rebbe noticed that I was still standing, and he repeated those words again, “The truth is, your father-in-law is an honest person, and an exemplary truthful individual, he will recognize the truth and won’t be upset with you at all, rather he will shower upon you his friendship, just as before.”

The Rebbe’s words revived my spirit, and I made my way home. When I arrived, my father-in-law greeted me with a warm Sholom Aleichem, and showed me warmth and friendship. He conducted himself with me in every detail, exactly as the Rebbe stated he would.

This wonderful relationship continued even after he was being harassed by the townspeople and he suffered greatly from the leaders of the community, because he is not driving me out of his house. They stated that according to Halachah, one is not allowed to keep in his house a stumbling block that could negatively affect all of the town’s inhabitants.

They are fearful that I might influence some of their children to also begin to follow in  the ways of Chassidus, which to them is completely weird, and it is compared to an insect that has the ability to ruin an entire container of oil.

When he didn’t listen to these leaders, the Rov of the community pleaded with him to chase me away. However, even his words didn’t cause my father-in-law to change his opinion. In fact he showered upon me more and more acts of kindness. 

The Rov then said, your conduct is completely surprising to us, to the point that we are flabbergasted by it. We all recognize you as a truly righteous and proper person; so how is it possible that you don’t fulfill the commandment of the Torah that one should get rid of the bad from his midst.

My father-in-law answered him, “The truth is that I don’t have the ability to decide which great tzaddik is correct. I myself cannot become a chossid, as then I am making a statement that the scholars and leaders of the chassidim are correct.

Yet at the same time I can’t chase my son-in-law from my house, as then I am stating that I recognize that the true scholar and our teacher, the goan of Vilna is correct.

While the truth is, who am I to voice my opinion and decide between these great “mountains” – tzaddikim. Do I come close to their knowledge and fear of Hashem. Therefore, I follow the guideline of our sages, sit and don’t involve yourself in it –shev v’al taaseh.

I then realized that the words of the Rebbe are exact and completely true, and it is the same response one would receive if he was able to ask his question to the Urim V’Tumim – the breastplate on the Kohen Gadols chest. 

A Taste of Chassidus

Maamar Lihuvin Inyan Rosh Chodesh V’Erev Rosh Chodesh  5714

On Erev Rosh Chodesh the moon is not seen at all, then on Rosh Chodesh a very small part is revealed. From then on until the 15th of the month it steadily becomes bigger, and after the 15th it becomes smaller until it totally disappears on the following Erev Rosh Chodesh. 

In this maamar, the Rebbe focuses mainly on two points, while explaining numerous other concepts. 

A. When is something revealed and when isn’t it revealed?

B. Just like Rosh Hashanah is not called Tichilas Hashanah – the beginning of the year, rather it is called Rosh Hashanah – the head of  the year, as it encompasses and gives sustenance to the entire year, and Rosh Chodesh is the head of all the days of the month, why isn’t Shabbos called Rosh Hashuvuah – the head of the days of the week, as all the days of the week are blessed from Shabbos?

[Author’s note: this concept is based upon the strength of the head of a person. All of the persons functions and abilities are dependent upon the persons’ head.]

We will now focus on the first main concept of what do we call light and darkness as well as what is truly light or dark.

A person is contemplating and thinking about a specific concept or thought. [Until he comprehends it properly, he may express himself that I am in the dark, meaning it is unclear to me. After focusing on it for a lengthy time, and he comes to a conclusion and everything is clear to him, he night say, Now everything is clear. He then goes and relates or reveals his thoughts to others. That is accomplished through his speech (or writings).

To the listeners, his speech is what clarified the concept to them and to them that is called light – brightness. However, the speech is only a miniscule amount of his thought process of how he came to this conclusion, that this is the proper explanation and not another explanations Yet they are not privy to all of his thoughts, and they are in the dark  (unaware) of them. So to them the power of speech which is lower than the power of thought is what they consider light. 

But to the speaker himself it is the opposite, his thought process is what clarified and illuminated  it, and that is considered the light, while his speech concealed most of that and to him that is darkness.

Or another example, it is impossible for us humans to see the essence of the sun, rather the only thing we see are its rays. So we consider the rays light while the essence of the sun, is considered dark. But in reality, the rays are only a miniscule offshoot of the sun and compared to the brightness of the sun they are nothing.

This is what Chassidus explains that the essence of an item is unable to be revealed, the only thing that can be revealed is its glory (a much lower aspect of it).

Therefore, even though the supernal world of B’riah is higher than the supernal world of Yetzirah, nevertheless we say in davening in the morning, Yotzer Ohr U’boreh Choshech – the supernal world of yetzirah, is light, while the world above it is darkness. Although there is much more revelation of G-dliness in B’riah, however that is above our capacity, to contain and/or comprehend so we call it darkness. Being that Yetzirah has a smaller revelation of G-dliness we are able to relate to it, so therefore we call it light.

 So now we understand the fluctuation of how much of the sun the moon is able to see or accept. On Erev Rosh Chodesh, the moon is at its closest proximity to the sun, so therefore the power of the sun is such that the moon is not seen, it goes dark. However, on Rosh Chodesh and the subsequent days as it becomes more and more distanced from the sun, its visibility becomes more and more. But after the 15th of the month, it begins coming closer and closer to the sun its size slowly diminishes.

In avodah (one’s service to Hashem), these concepts cause different reactions. When one feels that they are distanced from Hashem, that evokes a tremendous love and desire to come closer to Hashem.  [Author’s note: As Chassidus explains this is why a baal Teshuva, often fulfills a mitzva with greater vigor than one who was always observant.] However, the closer and nearer a person is to Hashem, their reaction is one of fear and self-nullification, as they realize that compared to Hashem I am nothing and completely insignificant.

This can be seen by a student who is listening to what his teacher is teaching. Throughout the entire lecture the student is concentrating on understanding what his teacher is giving over to him, his mind isn’t thinking about other thoughts, even if they are related to the concept being taught. However, after the teacher leaves, then while reviewing the teaching, the student would think for himself if he has any questions on it from other thinks that he has already learned. No longer is his mind nullified, as he is not in close proximity (or he is now distancedfrom) the teacher.

Nevertheless, while the higher level is beyond us, the lower level comes from it. In Chassidic terminology this is called seder hishtalshules.

However, when it comes to Shabbos, although the accomplishments of the preceding week are elevated on Shabbos and the coming week receives its power from Shabbos, there is an unique aspect to Shabbos that shows that Shabbos is higher than this connection (of the higher level lowering itself down to the lower level). On each and every Sunday we say Today is the first day, (and every Monday we proclaim it is the second day etc.). 

We say this even though there have been over twenty-five thousand Sundays (and Mondays etc) since the creation of the world. So, Shabbos has an aspect that is higher than the world and that is why our accomplishments throughout the week are elevated on Shabbos, as Shabbos transcends the world.

Therefore, since shabbos transcends and is above of the mundane world we refer or call every Sunday the first day of the week, as it is coming after Shabbos that is much higher than the week. Therefore, Shabbos is not referred to as the head of the week, as it is much higher than just encompassing the days of the week.

Rabbi Avtzon is a veteran mechanech and the author of numerous books on the Rebbeim and their chassidim. He can be contacted at avtzonbooks@gmail.com