Weekly Story: Yud Beis Tammuz 2

by Rabbi Sholom DovBer Avtzon

This week I am posting a powerful saying or thought which I heard during a farbrengen on Yud Beis Tammuz, as well as one of the concepts that I mentioned at a farbrengen. As always, your feedback and comments are most welcome and greatly appreciated. 

While the main focus of a Yud Beis Tammuz farbrengen is about the Frierdiker Rebbe’s mesiras nefesh for every aspect of Yiddishkeit and especially as it applies to the education of Jewish children, however, it is also a time to pay attention to the hundreds of and possibly thousands of chassidim that not only put their lives in danger, but some of them actually paid the price. Either by being placed in prison, sent into exile and some actually gave up their life to fulfill the mission that the Frierdiker Rebbe gave them. 

The chassidim knew of the strong possibility of what might happen to them, but they will that did not change their decision. They were also well aware that the sentence of imprisonment and exile was often a camouflaged death sentence, as many were not able to survive the harsh elements. Those that did survive did so only due to Hashem’s tremendous kindness. 

One such person who was in the Russian prison for many years was Reb Shmuel (Mulei) Mochkin, the oldest son of the Mashpia, Reb Peretz. Once when the friends of Reb Mulei’s son came over to the house, one of them asked Reb Mulei in amazement, how was he able to live his life the way he did it, with so much mesiras nefesh in Russia? You sat in jail in Siberia. 

Reb Mulei replied, what we did wasn’t special. I am positive that if any one of you would be living under the same situation and circumstances that we were living, all of you would have acted with the same mesiras nefesh that we did. None of us did anything extraordinary

The boy countered and asked in bewilderment, are you saying that there’s no difference between this generation and your generation? It can’t be!

He replied, yes there is one major difference. We grew up with a passion and a fiery desire to participate in a farbrengen especially if it was on or connected to one of the important dates in Lubavitch (Yoma D’pagrah’s). With today’s boys and teenagers I don’t see that tremendous passion.

That saying reminded me of what I heard from Reb Shlomo Galperin, that shortly before the Frierdiker Rebbe left Russia, a chossid asked him what can and should I do to demonstrate and impress upon my children to conduct themselves as chassidim.

See to it that [they are aware that] the farbrengens take place in your house.

At the moment we might not feel that we gained anything from a farbrengen, but years later everyone will clearly see the tremendous benefits of a farbrengen.

Now to what I mentioned at a farbrengen. 

There is a saying, it is not important to know how much Torah a person learned, the important thing is how much did the person learn from the Torah.

So while it is important that we all discuss and know various aspects about the arrest and liberation pf the Frierdiker Rebbe, the main purpose is that we learn from it and apply a lesson from it into our lives.

Rabbi Berel Rivkin writes in Ashkavta D’Rebbe, that after the histalkus of the Rebbe Rashab, his son, the Frierdiker Rebbe said to him, My father commanded me to say a maamar chassidus, so I will say it to you in this room and thereby fulfill his request. However, after that maamar, Reb Berel informed the other chassidim who entered the room when the Frierdiker Rebbe began saying a different maamar. So we see that the Frierdiker Rebbe wasn’t looking to be in the spotlight, but when he saw what the Communists were doing to the Jewish people, by forcefully closing the schools, shuls, mikvaos, forbidding shechita and brissen, he saw that there was no one who was ready to do something, so he undertook the responsibility to be the one who does something in this aspect. 

We often hear and perhaps discuss it ourselves about certain things that have to be addressed and it isn’t being done so.

Maybe it is a sign that we should get out of our comfort zone and do something about it ourselves. But each one of us may say, it isn’t my nature, and there are people who are much more qualified than me. 

Even if that is true, Yud Beis Tammuz teaches us, to step forward and take a stand and do something.

If it is to help a youngster in years (or perhaps in knowledge of the Torah) that is in need of encouragement or help in their learning, be there for them.

If someone needs someone to speak to and get some advice, yes there may be people who their credentials show they are qualified, but your concern makes you the qualified person. [Obviously, don’t give advice if you are not positive that it is proper and sound.]

Your mesiras nefesh will be going out of your comfort zone, to be there for someone else. And this is something we all can do.

A Taste of Chassidus 

Tzav Es Bnei Yisroel 1  Likkutei Torah Bamidbar 75A. 

The Alter Rebbe explains a few points in this maamar and here we will focus on just a couple of them. One of the main question is, Why is it that the only place where the Torah notes that Hashem has happiness from our fulfillment of a mitzvah is when a person brings a Korban (sacrifice) to Him? 

Our sages explain that this happiness is a result of Hashem stating I received enjoyment from the fact that I said something and My desire was fulfilled. Doesn’t that apply when we fulfill any mitzvah, and not just a korbon? 

The truth is that it applies to every mitzvah, however, it is more openly apparent when one brings a sacrifice than when they fulfilled an other mitzvah, and Hashem wrote it in the Torah, connecting it to a mitzvah that we can physically see His happiness.

Every Korbon has something burnt on the Mizbaiach, (some more some less). Chassidus explains that the reason why blood is sprinkled on the mizbaiach is that blood represents a person’s passion. That is telling us that Hashem is informing us that we should use our passion to serve Him. Similarly, the reason why we burn the various fats on the mizbaiach is to guide us that our desires should be to serve Hashem, and not to enjoy worldly pleasures.

When we bring it on the fire of the Mizbaiach, a fire from heaven comes down and burns (eats) it.

That openly demonstrates that Hashem is happy with our action. So while this happens with the fulfillment of every Mitzvah, it is revealed to all when a korbon (sacrifice) is brought.

To explain it with a little more clarity. The possuk notes that every korbon that is brought onto the Mizbaiach, is called לחמי – My food. Just as by humans and other creations, when one who is faint eats something, their strength  and subsequently their soul begins to return to the body, so too when we bring a korbon (or fulfill any mitzvah), we cause Hashem’s shechina to descend into the world (and strengthen it).

A second [but related] point the Alter Rebbe explains in this maamar is, why do we have the ability to do Teshuva only in this world and not in Olam Habuh. In Olam Habuh there is a revealed state of G-dliness, and the yetzer Horah admits that Hashem is the Creator, but our sages explain that nevertheless, the Yetzer Hora continues to act as it conducted itself when it was living in this world. [And that embarrassment is (part of) its punishment.]

The difference is that in Olam Habuh, everything has its set place; positive is positive and negative is negative. So being that everything is defined, it is not possible to transform negative into a positive (simply meaning to change anything). That is the way it is in the world that is set up by the path of Mimaleh kol  Almin (that the amount of G-dly revelation depends on the ability of each thing to accept it).

However, in the world of Soivev there is no higher and lower, the heavens and earth are equal. Therefore, in this world which also has a connection to Soivev, there is a mixture of positive and negative. In other words, they are not defined, and therefore even something that seemed to be a negative can still be channeled into a positive. 

This is similar to what was explained last week, that desire itself is not bad or wrong, the problem is only if I connect my power of desire for something that is opposite or even if it is not for a G-dly purpose.

With this we can understand why the sacrifices had to be in a specific place, the Mishkan or Beis HaMikdash (and also in a specific time frame), while davening which is in place of sacrifices and learning the laws of sacrifices are to be done even when  the Beis Hamikdash is not standing and we are in exile or at night, when sacrifices can’t be brought.

Since the revelation of G-dliness is becoming apparent in the physical world, that can only take place in the place where Hashem’s essence is omnipresent, and the physical limitations don’t prevail, and that is in the Beis HaMikdash.

However, when one learns the laws of Korbonos or davens which is in place of them only cause a revelation in a spiritual sense, and therefore that is not limited to a specific time or place.

The Alter Rebbe brings out another interesting point showing how davening is connected to the korbonos.

In Shacharis we describe in great detail how the angels, the heavens and all creations nullify themselves to Hashem. That is in order to remind and inspire us to nullify our ego and desires to serve Hashem. And only then do we daven Shemoneh Esreh.

However, by Mincha we say Ashrei and say Shemoneh Esreh.

Shemoneh Esreh is where we request from Hashem to grant us something. That is similar to drawing down the fire from Above onto the Mizbaiach. While in Shacharis we strive to nullify ourselves, which is the inner concept of bringing a sacrifice.

Rabbi Avtzon is a veteran mechanech and is the author of numerous books on the Rebbeiim and their chassidim. He is available to farbreng in your community and can be contacted at avtzonbooks@gmail.com.