Weekly Dvar Torah: Mine Says — And With How Many Mitzvos Are We His?
There is something striking about the sequence of Hayom Yom in these days of Shvat.
On the 21st of Shvat, the Hayom Yom speaks explicitly about the obligation and centrality of the Jewish woman.
On the 22nd of Shvat — the Yahrzeit of the Rebbetzin — there is no explicit mention of the Jewish woman at all.
And then comes the 23rd of Shvat — and suddenly we are lifted to the most profound, cosmic level a Jewish woman can reach: “Tze’enah U’Re’enah,” in order to go out — leave your limitations — and see Elokus, G-dliness, this comes about through “B’nos Tzion,” the daughters of Zion.
Malchus arousing Ze’er Anpin, feminine arousing the masculine. In the future, when Moshiach comes, it will be “Eishes Chayil Ateres Baalah,” the woman will be the crown of her husband.
Perhaps this is not accidental.
On the 22nd, when the primary Jewish woman of our generation passed from this world, words fall silent. And on the 23rd, we are shown what a Jewish woman truly is.
The story is simple. The Alter Rebbe once overheard his Rebbetzin telling a group of women, “Mainer Zogt — Mine says.”
Out of respect, she did not say his name. She called him “mine.”
The Alter Rebbe stopped.
Mine?
He fell into Dveikus.
He meditated on one word.
When he emerged, he said something that seems almost playful, but is actually staggering: “With one Mitzvah I am yours. With how many Mitzvos are we Hashem’s!”
One word triggered oceans.
The Rebbe pointed out that from this simple domestic moment emerged not only a short teaching on “Tze’enah U’Re’enah B’nos Tzion,” but entire Maamarim in Likkutei Torah on the giving of the Torah — the marriage between G-d and the Jewish people. The Alter Rebbe even composed a niggun on those words.
Why?
Because Chassidus teaches us to look at the inner dimension of everything. Even a wife saying “mine.”
What did the Alter Rebbe hear?
Connection.
Ownership.
Belonging.
But he translated it upward.
“I am yours by virtue of one Mitzvah.”
Marriage binds a husband to a wife through Mitzvah obligations. That Mitzvah creates connection. It creates belonging. It makes one person significant to another.
And then he asked the question that shattered him into Dveikus:
If one Mitzvah makes me yours — with how many Mitzvos are we Hashem’s?
What is a Mitzvah? The word itself means connection — Tzavta.
Between Creator and creation there is infinite distance. Not just smallness — nonexistence. What are we before Him?
And yet He says: Do this for Me.
Like a genius asking a simpleton for a favor. Suddenly the simpleton matters. Suddenly he is essential.
Hashem gave us Mitzvos not because He needs us — but because He wants connection.
Every Mitzvah is Him saying: You matter to Me.
And that realization overwhelmed the Alter Rebbe.
But the story does not end there.
He then explained the verse: “Tze’enah U’Re’enah B’nos Tzion B’Melech Shlomo.”
Go out — leave your limitations — and see Elokus.
And how does that happen?
Through B’nos Tzion.
Through the daughters of Zion.
Malchus arouses Ze’er Anpin.
The feminine awakens the masculine.
The Jewish woman enables the man to transcend himself.
This is not poetic sentiment. It is structural reality.
The Rebbe illustrated this with a living example: when heavenly accusations were leveled against the Alter Rebbe for which he was imprisoned, who saved the situation? His daughter, Devorah Leah, who gave her life to overturn the decree and save Chassidus.
A Jewish woman does not merely support Torah. She releases it.
She does not merely reflect light. She arouses revelation.
This is why the Previous Rebbe said that teaching women is not optional. Just as one puts on Tefillin every day without fail, so must one educate women and children every day. It is not modern innovation. It is foundation.
The home rests on her.
The future rests on her.
The revelation rests on her.
And in the Ultimate Future, what is now hidden will be revealed: “Eishes Chayil Ateres Baalah.” The woman will be the crown above the head of her husband.
This Hayom Yom is not about etiquette. It is about destiny.
And perhaps that is why it follows the 22nd of Shvat.
On the day of the Rebbetzin’s passing we say little. But on the 23rd, we are taught what Malchus truly is.
A single word — “mine” — unleashed decades of Chassidic teachings on marriage, Torah, and Divine union.
And this week, by Divine Providence, these words take on personal resonance for me.
Next week, my daughter Rochelle will stand under the chuppah with her Chosson, Dovvy.
And I find myself thinking: with one Mitzvah I am yours.
Marriage is not merely emotional partnership. It is sacred connection. It is the earthly mirror of the giving of the Torah. Every chuppah echoes Sinai. Every wedding renews our belonging to Hashem.
When a bride and groom stand together, it is not only two individuals joining. It is Malchus and Ze’er Anpin. It is connection being formed. It is Mitzvah creating belonging.
And it is the Jewish woman who enables transcendence.
“Tze’enah U’Re’enah.”
Step out of yourself.
See G-dliness.
See the King.
A wedding is that stepping out.
A marriage is that connection.
A Mitzvah is that bond.
And as I rejoice, I feel the weight and the beauty of it all.
May Rochelle and Dovvy build a home filled with Torah, warmth, laughter, and children who continue this chain of connection. May they experience the deepest joy, and may we merit to see from them and their children generations of nachas and light.
And may we all merit the day when the connection becomes complete, when Malchus is revealed as crown, and when our belonging to Hashem is not only through Mitzvos — but through open revelation.
Mine says.
With one Mitzvah I am yours.
With how many Mitzvos are we His.
Have a Shabbos of Absolute Connection,
Gut Shabbos. Mazal Tov.
Rabbi Yosef Katzman
