Tonight: 67th Anniversary of Yud Shvat

Tonight is Yud Shvat; on this day 67 years ago the Frierdiker Rebbe passed away, and exactly one year later the Rebbe assumed leadership of the Lubavitch movement. We present for out readers a collection of videos and learning material, specially produced and compiled for this auspicious day.

The tenth of Shvat is the day on which our saintly master and teacher – R. Yosef Yitzchak, the sixth of the Rebbeim of Chabad – departed this world. Born on Yud-Beis Tammuz 5640 (1880), the Rebbe Rayatz succeeded to the leadership in the year 5680 (1920) and passed away at 8.45 a.m. on Shabbos Parshas Bo, on the tenth day of the eleventh month, Shvat. His resting place is in New York.[670]

By the Grace of G-d
Rosh Chodesh Shvat, 5711
Brooklyn, N.Y.

To Anash, to the students of Tomchei Temimim, and to those who have a bond or a relationship with my revered father-in-law the saintly Rebbe, of blessed memory:

G-d bless you all.

Greeting and blessings:

In reply to the many questions that have been asked about a detailed schedule for the Tenth of Shvat, the yahrzeit of my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, I would hereby suggest the following:[671]

1. On the Shabbos before the yahrzeit [each chassid] should attempt to be called for an aliyah to the Torah.

2. If there are not enough aliyos the Torah should be read [a number of times] in different rooms. However, no additions[672] should be made to the number of aliyos [at each reading].

3. The congregation should see to it that the Maftir should be the most respected congregant, as determined by the majority; alternatively, the choice should be determined by lot.

4. The congregation should choose someone to lead the prayers on the day of the yahrzeit. It is proper to divide [the honor, choosing] one person to lead Maariv, a second to lead Shacharis, and a third – Minchah. In this way a greater number of Anash will have the privilege.

5. A [yahrzeit] candle should be lit that will burn throughout the twenty-four hours. If possible, the candle should be of beeswax.[673]

6. Five candles[674] should burn during the prayer services.

7. After each prayer service (and in the morning, [this means] after the reading of Tehillim), the sheliach tzibbur should study (or at least conclude674 the study of) ch. 24 of Mishnayos Keilim and ch. 7 of Mishnayos Mikvaos. He should then recite the mishnah beginning “Rabbi Chananyah ben Akashya…,” followed silently by a few lines of Tanya,[675] and Kaddish deRabbanan.

8. After Maariv, part of the maamar (Basi LeGani) that was released for the day of the demise should be recited from memory. If there is no one to do this from memory, it should be studied from the text. This should also be done after Shacharis, and the maamar should be concluded after Minchah.

9. Before Shacharis, a chapter of Tanya should be studied. This should also be done after Minchah.

10. In the morning, before prayer, charity should be given to those institutions that are related to our Nasi, my revered father-in-law, of sainted memory. Donations should be made on behalf of oneself and on behalf of each member of one’s family. The same should be done before Minchah.

11. After Shacharis and the recitation of the maamar, each individual should read a pidyon nefesh. (It goes without saying that a gartl is worn during the reading.) Those who had the privilege of entering [the saintly Rebbe’s study] for yechidus, or at least of seeing his face, should – while reading the pidyon nefesh – picture themselves as standing before him. The pidyon nefesh should then be placed between the pages of a maamar or kuntreis, etc., of his teachings, and sent, if possible on the same day, to be read at his graveside.

12. In the course of the day one should study chapters of Mishnayos that begin with the letters of his name.

13. In the course of the day one should participate in a farbrengen.

14. In the course of the day one should set aside a time during which to tell one’s family about the saintly Rebbe, and about the spiritual tasks at which he toiled throughout all the days of his life.

15. In the course of the day, people (to whom this task is appropriate) should visit synagogues and houses of study in their cities and cite a statement or an adage drawn from the teachings of the saintly Rebbe. They should explain how he loved every Jew. [Furthermore,] they should make known and explain the practice that he instituted of reciting Tehillim every day, studying the daily portion of Chumash with the commentary of Rashi, and, where appropriate, studying the Tanya as he divided it into daily readings throughout the year. If possible this should all be done in the course of a farbrengen.

16. In the course of the day, people (who are fit for the task) should visit centers of observant youth – and, in a neighborly spirit, should make every endeavor to also visit centers for the young people who are not yet observant – in order to explain to them the warm love that the saintly Rebbe constantly had for them. It should be explained to these people what he expected of them; they should be told of the hope and the trust that he placed in them – that they would ultimately fulfill their task of strengthening the observance of Judaism and disseminating the study of Torah with all the energy, warmth and vitality that characterize youth.

If prevailing conditions allow, all the above should of course be continued during the days following the yahrzeit, and particularly on the following Shabbos.

May G-d hasten the coming of our Redeemer, and then “those who repose in the dust will awaken and sing joyful praises.” And our Nasi among them will give us wondrous tidings, and lead us along the path that leads up to the House of G-d.

“I once heard from my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, that before visiting a resting place or ohel [i.e., the structure built over or around the grave of a tzaddik] it is customary not to eat, but one drinks something.”[676]

It is the custom of the Rebbe Shlita to make an appeal for Keren Torah (“the Torah Fund”) at the farbrengen of Yud Shvat.

On the tenth of Shvat, 5711 (1951), in a favorable and auspicious hour, the Rebbe Shlita undertook the leadership [of the Chabad-Lubavitch chassidic movement].

On this day, [the first anniversary of the passing of his revered father-in-law, the Rebbe Rayatz,] the Rebbe Shlita publicly delivered the first maamar, Basi LeGani.[677]

Footnotes:

670. See Biography of the Rebbe Rayatz [published in English as Rabbi Joseph I. Schneersohn, The Lubavitcher Rabbi: A Short Biography, by R. Nissan Mindel (Kehot, N.Y., 1947); see also Sefer HaToldos of the Rebbe Rayatz, compiled by R. Avraham Chanoch Glitzenstein; Heb.]; the maamar beginning Basi LeGani, 5711 [and its English version, edited by the present translator (Kehot, N.Y., 1990)]; and the sichos of Yud Shvat, 5711.

671. See also the letter of my saintly father-in-law, the Rebbe, concerning the first yahrzeit of his father, the Rebbe Rashab (in Chachmei Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, p. 33).

672. A directive of the saintly Rebbe, on the authority of his father. See also the She’elos U’Teshuvos of the Tzemach Tzedek, Orach Chayim 35.

673. The Hebrew word for “beeswax” (shavah) comprises the initials of the verse, hakitzu veranenu shochnei afar – “Those who repose in the dust will awaken and sing joyful praises” (Yeshayahu 26:19).

674. See Kuntreis Beis Nissan, 5708 and 5709.

675. This was the practice of my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe.

676. Kovetz Michtavim III, p. 6, where the Rebbe Shlita refers the reader to: Zohar III, 71a; the Acharonim in the Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim, end of sec. 581; Likkutei Zvi; Yalkut Avraham, by R. Avraham Lifshitz, on Orach Chayim 581; and Elef HaMagen, loc. cit.

677. [See end of footnote 670, above.]

 

Introduction for Yud Shvat (the Tenth day of the Hebrew month of Shvat)

1. Yud Shvat commemorates the passing of the Previous Rebbe, Rebbe Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson , in the year 1950.

Yud Shvat also celebrates when our Rebbe, Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson , assumed the mantle of leadership exactly one year after the passing of his father-in-law, the Previous Rebbe.

2. Some basic information about the Previous Rebbe:

The Previous Rebbe, Rebbe Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, was born in the year 1880 in Lubavitch, Belarus.

At the age of fifteen he was appointed as the personal secretary of the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe, his father, Rebbe Shalom DovBer.

At the age of seventeen he married a distant cousin (Nechama Dina Schneersohn). He was then appointed to be the first dean and head of the new network of Lubavitch Yeshivas (named Tomchei Tmimim) in the Russian empire.

The Previous Rebbe was arrested and jailed seven times during his lifetime for spreading Judaism! During these arrests the Czarist police would horribly torture the Previous Rebbe which eventually led to the Previous Rebbe being physically weak and ill.

During his final arrest in Leningrad he was even sentenced to death, however after a world-wide storm of outrage and pressure from Western governments the communist regime was forced to lessen the punishment and he was instead banished to a place called Kostroma and was released nine days later!

After many years of fighting to keep Judaism alive in the Soviet Union he was came to the United States in the year 1940.

3. Here is some information about the discourse that is translated in this email:

A) The last Chassidic discourse written by the Previous Rebbe before his passing was a four-part series entitled “Basi L’Gani – I have come into my garden” . The Previous Rebbe’s (apparent) plan was to give out the first part of the discourse on the Tenth of Shvat to mark the anniversary of the passing (Yahrtzeit) of the Previous Rebbe’s saintly grandmother. As it transpired, the Previous Rebbe himself passed away on this day.

This four-part series is named “Basi L’Gani” after a verse in the Song of Songs because the four-part series is based on this verse. The verse says, “Basi L’Gani Achoisee Kallah – I have come into My garden, My sister, My bride”. The four-part series had twenty paragraphs in total.

B) Every year on the Tenth of Shvat our Rebbe would take one paragraph from the Previous Rebbe’s four-part discourse and expound heavily on it. Being that there are twenty paragraphs in the original four-part discourse, it took twenty years to finish expounding on the whole discourse of the Previous Rebbe. The Rebbe actually went through it almost two times. He started in 1951 on the Tenth of Shvat and ended in 1970 on the Tenth of Shvat for the first time. He then started again to expound on the first paragraph of the Previous Rebbe’s discourse in the year 1971 on the Tenth of Shvat. He would have finished it for the second time in the year 1990 but stopped after the year 1988 with only two paragraphs left.

The discourse translated in this email is the first discourse the Rebbe ever gave over!When our Rebbe accepted the seat of leadership on the Tenth of Shvat 1951, a year after the passing of his father-in-law the Previous Rebbe, he said a very heavy discourse. This first-ever discourse from the Rebbe was an explanation of the first paragraph of the Previous Rebbe’s four-part discourse.

In the Rebbe’s first discourse he clearly outlined for us what his mission statement is and what is expected from each and every one of us. The Rebbe began a new generation with new sights and goals, namely to spread Judaism and Chassidus throughout the entire world to bring Moshiach (the Messiah) who will redeem us and take us to our complete and ultimate redemption. Amen.

Yud Shvat – The Tenth of Shvat

Here is an excerpt from the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s first-ever discourse.

The Rebbe says:

1. The Torah says, “Basi Le’Ga’ni Ah’choy’see Kallah – I have come to My garden, My sister, My bride”.

The Midrash Rabah (a major collection of homilies and commentaries on the Torah attributed to Rabbi Oshiah Rabah) tells us that this verse was said by Hashem (G-d) when the Jewish people received the Torah and then built the Mishkan (the Tabernacle). In other words, this verse is saying that when the Jewish people received the Torah and built the Mishkan Hashem came down and actually rested there, as it says, “Hashem descended upon Mount Sinai” .

The Midrash Rabah continues and observes that the word used in this verse is not “Le’Gan” which would mean “To the garden”, rather “L’Gani” which means “To My garden”. The Midrash Rabah explains that the reason for this is that Hashem is saying, “I have come to the place where My main essence (Ikar Shechinah) was originally found and revealed”; Hashem is saying that He is not coming to a new place in which He has never been before (which would be connoted by the word “Le’Gan – To the garden), He is coming to a place in which He has been before and for whatever reason He left (as we will explain soon) but now at the time of the giving of Torah and the building of the Tabernacle He is coming back (and this is implied by the word “Le’Gani – To my garden”).

2. The Rebbe now examines the Midrash Rabah’s wording of “…Hashem’s mainessence…”:

The Midrash Rabah said that “Hashem’s main essence was originally found in this world (and then left) and is now coming back to the world at the time of the giving of the Torah and the completion of building the Tabernacle”. This means that the level of Hashem that was originally in this world and is now coming back is not just any level, but His main essence (Ikar Shechinah); there are myriads upon myriads of levels within Hashem, but the part of Hashem that was originally in this world and is now coming back is Hashem’s mainessence.

3. [Translator’s note: The Rebbe now actually enumerates many levels within Hashem and speaks at length of what Hashem’s “main essence” (Ikar Shechinah) could mean. After close examination at what each level means, the Rebbe explains, based on the words of the Alter Rebbe , exactly which level is referred to as Hashem’s “main essence”].

4. The Rebbe now explains why Hashem’s main essence left this world:

The Midrash Rabah explains that when Hashem created the world His presence was found here; his main essence was in this world. Then Adam Harishon (Adam) sinned by eating from the “Tree of Knowledge” (Eitz Hadas) and this sin caused Hashem’s main essence to leave this world and reside in the heavens.

To be sure, there are actually seven heavens, and when Adam sinned he pushed Hashem’s main essence away from this world to the lowest heaven, the level of heaven closest to earth. Then there were six other sins done which pushed Hashem’s main essence even further away from the world.

The Midrash Rabah continues and tells us that the next sin was done by Adam’s son Cain when he killed his brother Abel . This sin pushed away Hashem’s main essence from the heaven closest to earth, the lowest heaven, to a higher heaven, the second level of heaven.

The next sin was done by Adam’s grandson Enosh by bringing idolatry into the world . This pushed away Hashem’s main essence even further away from the world from the second heaven to the third heaven.

[Translator’s note: The next four sins were not stated clearly by the Rebbe in this discourse. At this point in the discourse the Rebbe said “and so on…”. Perhaps we could say that the Rebbe did not want to belabor ideas of sin. The next four sins are however stated clearly in the Midrash Rabah:

The next sin was done by “the generation of the flood” during Noah’s lifetime by acting immorally . This pushed away Hashem’s main essence even further away from the world from the third heaven to the fourth heaven.

The next sin was done by “the generation of the dispersed” who built a tower to wage war with Hashem . This pushed away Hashem’s main essence even further away from the world from the fourth heaven to the fifth heaven.

The next sin was done by the people of Sodom who acted wicked and sinful . This pushed away Hashem’s main essence even further away from the world from the fifth heaven to the sixth heaven.

The next sin was done by the people of Egypt in the days of Abraham our Father by being steeped in lewdness . This pushed away Hashem’s main essence even further away from the world from the sixth heaven to the seventh heaven].

5. The Rebbe now explains how the sin of Adam was the worst sin of all:

The sin of Adam was the worst sin of all these seven (abovementioned) sins because his sin pushed away Hashem’s main essence from this world. This means two things:

Reason one: Even though the other six sins also pushed Hashem’s main essence further away from this world (from the first heaven to the second heaven, or from the second heaven to the third heaven, and so on), this was only within the heavenly spheres; however the sin of Adam caused Hashem’s presence to leave our physical world, and of course what matters to us most is Hashem’s presence being pushed away from our world.

Reason two: Pushing Hashem’s presence further away from this world once it was already in the heavenly realms was not nearly as great of a feat as to push away Hashem’s presence from the physical (world) to the spiritual (worlds). In other words, besides for the fact that what is most relevant to our lives is what happens in our world and therefore the sin of Adam was the worst of all, to push Hashem’s main essence away from the physical world to the spiritual world is also the most powerful act of removal. [Translators addition: For example, let’s say that there is one hundred miles between each level of heaven, but five hundred miles between earth and heaven; it is obviously a much more formidable task to travel from earth to heaven then to travel from one level of heaven to another. So-too with regards to Hashem’s main essence leaving this world and going to heaven, rather than leaving one level of heaven to another heaven, it is a much more formidable removal].

6. The Rebbe now tells us how Hashem’s main essence was brought back into this world:

The Midrash Rabah continues and tells us that after these seven sins there came seven Tzadikim (righteous ones) who returned Hashem’s main essence back to the world.

The seven righteous ones were:
1) Avraham Avinu (Abraham our Father).
2) Yitzchok Avinu (Isaac our Father).
3) Yakov Avinu (Jacob our Father).
4) Levi (one of Jacob’s children, one of the twelve tribes).
5) Kehos (the son of Levi).
6) Amram (the son of Kehos).
7) Moshe Rabbeinu (Moses our teacher, the son of Amram).

Through these seven Tzadikim being totally nullified to Hashem and acting out His every will they brought back Hashem’s main essence.

1) Avraham Avinu brought down Hashem’s main essence from the highest heaven to the lower heaven, from the seventh heaven to the sixth heaven.
2) Yitzchok Avinu brought down Hashem’s main essence from the sixth heaven to the fifth heaven.
3) Ya’akov Avinu brought down Hashem’s main essence from the fifth heaven to the fourth heaven.
4) Levi brought down Hashem’s main essence from the fourth heaven to the third heaven.
5) Kehos brought down Hashem’s main essence from the third heaven to the second heaven.
6) Amram brought down Hashem’s main essence from the second heaven to the first heaven.
7) Moshe Rabbeinu brought down Hashem’s main essence from the first heaven to this world.

7. The Rebbe now explains how Moshe Rabbeinu’s act of bringing down Hashem’s essence was the greatest of all the seven righteous ones:

Just as we explained with regards to the sin of Adam that pushing away Hashem’s presence from this world is worse then pushing away Hashem’s presence from one heaven to the next, for the two reasons mentioned above, this also holds true for the other way around; when Moshe Rabbeinu’s brought down Hashem’s presence into this world it was greater than the other six righteous ones drawing down Hashem’s presence, for two reasons:

Reason one: What matters to us most is that Hashem’s main essence is now in our physical world.

Reason two: The descent of Hashem’s main essence into the physical world is the greatest kid of descent (as opposed to the descent within spiritual realms). [Translators addition: As we said earlier, for example, let’s say that there is one hundred miles between each level of heaven, but five hundred miles between earth and heaven; it is obviously a greater descent to go from heaven to earth then from a higher heaven to a lower heaven].

8. The Rebbe now explains why Moshe Rabbeinu had the merit of bringing down Hashem’s main essence into this physical world:

Moshe Rabbeinu was the seventh righteous one starting from Avraham Avinu. The Midrash tells us that “all seventh ones are special” , this means that Hashem decided that all seventh ones are special and there is no logical reason for it. Therefore Moshe Rabbeinu merited being the one who gave the Torah to the Jewish people and brought down Hashem’s main essence back into this physical world.

9. The Rebbe now clearly states that we are the seventh generation from the first Chabad Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Alter Rebbe, Rebbe Shneur Zalman of Liadi , and we must bring the revelation of Moshiach into this world:

We are now in the seventh generation from the first Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe.

[Translators addition: The Alter Rebbe, Rebbe Shneur Zalman of Liadi, was the first to disseminate the wellsprings of the inner Torah, namely Chassidus, in a clear format of understanding.
The second Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe and successor of the Alter Rebbe was his son the Mitteler Rebbe, Rebbe DovBer Schneuri .
The third Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe and successor of the Mitteler Rebbe was his son-in-law the Tzemach Tzedek, Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson .
The fourth Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe and successor of the Tzemach Tzedek was his son the Rebbe Maharash, Rebbe Shmuel Schneerson .
The fifth Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe and successor of the Rebbe Maharash was his son the Rebbe Rashab, Rebbe Shalom DovBer Schneerson .
The sixth Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe and successor of the Rebbe Rashab was his son the Frierdiker Rebbe (the Previous Rebbe), Rebbe Yosef Yitzchok Schneerson .
The seventh Chabad Lubavitch Rebbe and successor of the Frierdiker Rebbe is his son-in-law, Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, our Rebbe].

As we mentioned above, the Midrash tells us that “all seventh ones are special” and therefore we have the great responsibility and privilege to be the ones to bring down Hashem’s main essence into this world. We did not work for this privilege, we did not choose to be the seventh ones, and it’s possible we do not even want to be the seventh ones. However the fact remains: Hashem made us the seventh and He demands from us to fulfill His mission to bring down His main essence into this world.

We are now at the end of the birth pangs of Moshiach (Messiah) and we have the privilege to bring Moshiach now!

Translated and adapted by Shalom Goldberg. Taken from Basi L’Gani Tuf Shin Yud Aleph.

 

LEARNING MATERIAL:

Reminders for Yud Shvat, compiled by Rabbi Levi Y. Gorelik – Yud Shvat, 5775 (English), Yud Shvat, 5775 (Hebrew).

English translation of Basi L’Gani, 5715, by Simply Chassidus – Basi_LGani_5715.

Kovetz Limmud for Yud Shvat, compiled by Rabbi Shmuel Lesches – Kovetz Yud Shvat

 

VIDEOS:

In honor of Yud Shvat CrownHeights.info put together a collection of three different Rabbis teaching the Maamar Bosi Lagni, in three different languages – English, Yiddish and Hebrew.

Rabbi Yisroel Spalter – English:

Reb Yoel Kahan – Yiddish:

Rabbi Chaim Sholem Deitsch – Hebrew: