Weekly Story: Beis Nissan, The Rebbe Rashab

by Rabbi Sholom DovBer Avtzon

Being that this coming Wednesday is Beis Nissan, the (104th) Yahrzeit of the Rebbe Rashab, I decided to post a few points of the Rebbe Rashab’s life, that became clearer to me, while I was doing research on the biography of his son, the Frierdiker Rebbe.

However, the message from these stories is not exclusively pertaining to the Rebbe Rashab, but it illuminates on all of our Rebbei’im. While they all teach and publicize Chassidus Chabad, their focus is not only for their community and chassidim but it is equally applicable to the entire Jewish nation.

So, in essence this is also a concept to focus on as we prepare for Yud Aleph Nissan.

As always, your feedback is always appreciated.

In 5550 (1890) Rabbi Yitzchok Elchonon Spector of Kovno, one of the Rabbonim of Russia who was extremely active in communal affairs, stood up to Baron Ginsberg demands of introducing Russian language and subjects into the chadorim system throughout Russia. The Baron retaliated not only against him, but to all religious Jews, and he did everything in his ability to cut off the money that was given to support the chadorim and yeshivos.

Being that he was extremely influential because of his enormous wealth, his efforts bore negative effects and the Yeshivos who were already in a difficult situation, were now dealing with a dire deficit.

The Rebbe Rashab then undertook to cover 80% of the shortfall of all Yeshivos in Russia, no matter if they were chassidish or Litvish, even though that hindered the expansion of his own activities. That year and many other times during the remaining thirty years of the Rebbe Rashab’s nesius, there was no money for the personal expenses of Beis HaRav, or his own yeshiva that he established seven years later. However, that did not hinder his continuous activity of helping the non-Lubavitch yeshivos.

Similarly, when the Rebbe Rashab successfully petitioned the Czarist government to exempt rabbonim, shochtim, mohelim (i.e. religious functionaries) from the draft and was granted three hundred exemptions to be distributed, the majority of the beneficiaries of these exemptions were not his chassidim, even though they served in one of the qualifying positions. In fact, one of the conditions that the Rebbe Rashab gave to the governmental officials was that it only applies to rabbonim of communities, and he wrote specifically that he is not allowed to use it for his only son.

The vast majority of exemptions were given to rabbonim from other chassidic groups or even non-chassidim. The philosophy and approach of the Rebbe Rashab (and all of our Rebbei’im) was that Lubavitch works for the Jewish people, and anything that is important to the strengthening of Judaism, is important to Lubavitch.

In essence this is what the word Rebbe means: Many believe that a Rebbe is a different word for a grand Rabbi, who guides hundreds or perhaps thousands of other Rabbis. However, in truth it has a much deeper meaning; as in Loshon Hakodesh Rebbe is made up of the following three letters; Reish, Beis and Yud,

These three letters are the acronym of the words Rosh Bnei Yisroel, the head of the Jewish nation. Just as the head (brain) of every living thing, encompasses and nutures every part of that living thing, so too the head of the nation, not only leads the nation, but more importantly is deeply connected to every member of the nation.

That is why the Rebbe Rashab treated yeshivos and other causes of different segments of the Jewish nation with the same vigor as his own institutions; because he is not only our leader and head, but he is the head of the entire Jewish nation.

This also explains how the Rebbei’im felt and heard the cry of a Jewish person no matter where there were. Some want to say it was through ruach hakodesh (a divine spirit). But the truth is just as everyone’s brain feels the pain of all organs of their body, even if it is a loose toenail, so too the Rebbe who is the head of our nation, actually feels the pain, anguish and suffering of every Jew.

A Taste of Chassidus
Hachodesh Hazah Luchem 5733

This week is called Parshas Hachodesh (the Shabbos before Rosh Chodesh Nissan) and these words are at the beginning of the special parsha that we read from the 2nd Sefer Torah. The simple translation is that this month of Nissan is the head of the months of the year, and when one counts the twelve months, they begin from the month of Nissan.

The obvious question on this is that the year begins on Rosh Hashanah, which is on Rosh chodesh (the 1st day) of Tishrei. So, if that is the beginning or as Chassidus stresses the head of the year, it is also the head of all months. So how can we have two months that both are called or referred to as the head of all months?

The midrash Raba (Shemos chapter 15) addresses this and states, when Hashem chose to create a world, He established a day to be the head of the world. When he chose His nation of Israel He established the month of redemption.

So, evidently, each one is referring to a different aspect, and therefore each one is the beginning of the aspect it represents. This point is underscored from the word the midrash uses, “He chose.” When a person chooses one of two (or more) items, the same way that became the chosen item, the other item can have been chosen. Otherwise, you can’t really say the person chose that, as they were almost forced to do so.

[For example, if a few identical envelopes are placed in front of you and in each envelope is a folded piece of paper with a letter inside of it, and each letter represents a different item or amount of money, but you don’t know what each one represents, so then you “choose” one envelope. However, if you are told in advance what each envelope represents, are you truly choosing one at random, or you are going to pick up the one that you desire?

So at that point, it isn’t a free choice of which one you should choose, but it is based on reasoning and preferences. But choice, or as it is called in Loshon Hakodesh, bechira chofshis means that to the chooser both items are equal in all aspects, but without a reason, you chose one of them]

Creation is nature, while our redemption from Mitzrayim was above nature or better said miraculous.
So, when we are looking for the beginning of Hashem’s manifestation in this world in a natural way, that began on Rosh Hashanah, the first day of Tishrei. However, when we are discussing Hashem’s manifestation in a super-natural way, that began on Rosh Chodesh Nissan.

We can now understand the first Rashi in Bereishis. Rashi quotes Rabbi Yitzchok, “The Torah should have begun from the words Hachodesh Hazeh Luchem, but it began with the word and concept of Bereishis – His creating the world, in order to reveal His true power.”

As mentioned, Hashem chose to create the world in a manner that we see that it follows the rules of nature. But that means that He could have chosen to create it in a manner of above-nature, as is expressed in the words Hachodesh Hazeh Luchem. But He chose to begin the Torah with the word Bereishis.

Bereishis begins with the letter Beis, and not with the first letter of the Aleph-Beis which is Aleph. The reason for this is that since He created the world through the Torah, so the initial stage of the Torah is unlimited, it is higher then the world and above nature, while the second stage of the Torah is as it descended into this physical world, which is limited.

So, Rabbi Yitzchok pointed out to us that the Torah should have begun with the words Hachodesh Hazeh Luchem, as the world is an extension of Hashem’s essence and is truly unlimited. A person can also come to that realization from the knowledge that the sun has not become smaller even though it seemingly is burning trillions measures og its gas, which by nature would cause it to become smaller.

But why did the Torah begin with Bereishis, in order that we should reveal that what seemingly is limited and is natural, running its own course, is in essence super-natural, unlimited, and is essentially G-dliness.
This is also what the above-mentioned midrash stated. First Hashem chose the world to be seemingly conducted in a natural way, therefore, He chose Tishrei to ne the head and beginning of the year etc. However, after that He chose His nation of Yaakov and his children that they reveal that the truth is that the world is not a natural phenomenon, but is unlimited and part of G-dliness.

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