DVAR MALCHUS

THE MIRACLES
OF CHANUKA
In terms of its role in establishing the days of
Chanuka as a holiday, the disagreement is only
as to whether the miracle of the victory at war
is only a preface and preparatory event to the
miracle of the lights, which is the finale and
completion of the Chanuka miracle, or whether the military triumph is not
considered a mere preface but is on par with the miracle of the lights. *
From Likkutei Sichos Vol. 30, pg. 204 ff.
Translated by Boruch Merkur

WHEN DID THE VICTORY

AT WAR TAKE PLACE?
1. There is a dispute among
Rishonim as to when the
miraculous military victory
celebrated on Chanuka took
place: a) the opinion of Rambam
is that it was on the 25th of
Kislev, as he puts it, When the
Jews prevailed over their enemies
and vanquished them, it was
the twenty-fifth of the month
of Kislev, and they entered the
Heichal, etc.; b) the opinion of
Miri is that overpowering [their
enemies] took place in Kislev, on
the twenty-fourth of the month.
At first glance, the dispute as
to when the victory at war took
place parallels the well-known
discussion as to how the days
of Chanuka are to be observed,
whether they were established as
days of praise and thanksgiving
but not for feasting and rejoicing
(Maharam of Rotenberg, etc.
see Footnote 6 in the original),
or whether they were established
for feasting and rejoicing as well,

as Rambam writes, These eight

days, which begin on (the night)
of the twenty-fifth of Kislev, are
days of celebration and praise.

ESTABLISHED FOR THE

MIRACLE OF THE LIGHTS
OR ALSO FOR THE
MIRACLE AT WAR?
Now, it was discussed on
another occasion (see Likkutei
Sichos Vol. 10, pg. 142 ff.)
that the differing views as to
whether the days of Chanuka
are just days of praise and
thanksgiving or also days of
rejoicing parallels the reason for
originating the holiday: To those
who maintain that the days of
Chanuka are only days of praise
and thanksgiving, the holiday
was established (primarily) on
account of the miracle of the
oil. Since this miracle is (for the
most part) something spiritual,
the celebration of the holiday
is likewise through spiritual
activities, by means of praise and

thanksgiving to G-d. Whereas,

according to Rambam (the main
reason for) the establishment
of the days of Chanuka is on
account of the military victory.
Thus, Rambam maintains
that just as the victory at war
amounted to the salvation of the
body, the Sages enacted that
Chanuka should be celebrated
as days of joy, a celebration
that is expressed physically and
materially. The fact that, to
Rambam, Chanuka was (also)
established as days for (spiritual)
praise and thanksgiving is an
additional component to how
Chanuka is to be observed for
the miracle of the oil (a spiritual
concept).
On this basis it would
follow that both ideas the
Rambam discusses a) that
the days of Chanuka are days
of rejoicing, and b) that [in
addition to the miracle of the
oil] the victory (also) took
place on the twenty-fifth of
Kislev are interconnected,
for Rambam maintains that
Chanuka commemorates both
events that happened on that
day [the twenty-fifth of Kislev;

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Dvar Malchus
i.e., the miracle of the oil as
well as the military victory].
Whereas, the opinion that
Chanuka (which begins on the
night of the twenty-fifth) was
established mainly on account of
the miracle of the lights and not
the victory at war corresponds to
the opinion that the victory took
place on the preceding day (on
the twenty-fourth of the month),
and the (only) miracle that took
place on the twenty-fifth of
Kislev was the miracle of the oil.
The latter sheds light on the
wording of Miri in explaining
the reason for celebrating the
first night of Chanuka (given
the difficulty in ascertaining
what miracle with the oil is
associated with the 25th of
Kislev). Miri writes, A blessing
is said for the redemption and
as thanksgiving for finding
the container [of oil]. That
is, Miri does not suffice with
the notion that the blessing is
made for the redemption (i.e.,
the military triumph); he adds
that it is also thanksgiving for
finding the container [of oil].
Would it have been on account
of the redemption from their
enemies alone, the Sages would
have established the holiday on
the twenty-fourth (the day the
war was won). Thus, he adds
that the reason for celebrating
the first day of Chanuka is also
on account of the discovery of
the cruse of uncontaminated
oil (connected with lighting
the Menora on the night of the
twenty-fifth).

CELEBRATING VICTORY
OR CELEBRATING PEACE
2. A careful analysis,
however, reveals that the above
logic is inconclusive. Regarding
Purim there is explicit mention
that the holiday commemorates
the victory at war: the Yehudim

dominated over those who hated

them. Nevertheless, the holiday
was established (not on the day
of the triumph but) on the day
of the cessation from war: there
was peace on the fourteenth
[and] on the fifteen of the
month, and it was established
as a day of banquets and
rejoicing. Perhaps then the same
principle applies to Chanuka.
That is, although the war victory
occurred on the twenty-fourth
of the month, the holiday was
established (to celebrate winning
the war) on the following day,
the twenty-fifth of Kislev, the day
the war ended. (As is known, the
name Chanuka alludes to [this
peace, being comprised of the
two words] chanu bka they
rested [from war] on Kaf-Hei
[the 25th of the month], insofar
as the twenty-fifth (Kaf-Hei) is
a day of menucha, a day of rest
and peace.)
The Alter Rebbe also cites this
concept (in Likkutei Torah, Tzav
16a) that the holiday of Pesach
is the day on which the miracle
took place, whereas Chanuka
and Purim are [celebrated] on
the day of cessation from war
(as will be discussed in Section
4).
It comes out that, according
to the opinion of Rambam,
who maintains that the military
victory took place on the twentyfifth of Kislev, and he holds that
the holiday was established on
account of the victory at war,
as above (and according to
the Pri Chadash, Rambams
opinion is that the first day of
Chanuka is only on account
of the military triumph), the
holiday of Chanuka begins (not
on the day after the victory, as
is the case with Purim but) on
the day of the victory itself, like
Pesach. Whereas, according to
the opinion of Miri that the

military triumph was on the

twenty-fourth of the month
the establishment of the holiday
(which, in his opinion, is also
celebrated for the redemption
from their enemies) is on the day
of peace (like Purim).
Now, the dispute whether
Chanuka is on the day of peace
or on the day of victory depends
on how the military triumph is
connected with the holiday of
Chanuka:
According to all opinions
the holiday of Chanuka pertains
to both the military triumph as
well the miracle of the lights.
The disagreement is only as
to whether the miracle of the
victory at war is only a preface
and preparatory event to the
miracle of the lights, which is
the finale and completion [of the
Chanuka miracle], and that is
the reason for establishing the
holiday, or whether the military
triumph is not considered a mere
preface but is on par with the
miracle of the oil, in terms of its
role in establishing the days of
Chanuka as a holiday.
(Thus, according to the
opinion that the military triumph
is only a preface and preparation,
and the holiday of Chanuka
actually marks the purification
of the Mikdash and the lighting
of the lamps of the Menora
the miracle of the lights the
days of Chanuka are not days of
rejoicing. Whereas, according
to the opinion of Rambam
that the victory at war is just
as compelling of a reason for
the establishment of the days of
Chanuka Chanuka has two
aspects, one of which is days of
celebration [and the other being
the spiritual aspect associated
with the miracle of the oil].)
[To be continued beH]

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MOSHIACH & GEULA

MOSHIACH
AND CHINUCH
By Rabbi Gershon Avtzon

Dear Readers shyichyu,

In the past few articles, we
discussed some of the basic and
necessary approaches to educating
our youth today. There is one
more very important and necessary
component that cant be stressed
enough: Trust. Our children must
hear and feel from us that we really
believe and trust in them that they
will use their capabilities to be
successful.
The youth of today, especially
teenagers, are not really in touch with
themselves. There are many changes
going on in them and they are not
always able to react appropriately.
They feel in themselves a tremendous
energy and do not always know how
to express it. That is why many times
they end up doing silly things. It
leads to a lot of guilt that weighs on
them internally, and this does not
allow for positive growth.
Conventional wisdom dictates
that youth is a stage that they
need to grow out of. In the world
of the Rebbe, that does not exist.
The Rebbe views the youth as a
world-changing power, a power
that naturally looks for truth and if
channeled properly can turn over the
Hanachos Haolam and make the
world a better place. To tap into that
energy, the youth must feel believed
in and loved. When that happens,
they will dedicate themselves and
all their unique energy to better the
world.

The truth is that the Rebbe gave

over this message from the beginning
of his leadership. In the letter for
10 Shvat 5711, the Rebbe gives the
following instructions:
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.
When analyzing the above it is
clear that while it must be made very
clear to the youth what is expected
from them, it is sandwiched between
explaining the youth the love that
the Rebbe has for them and the
trust that he has for them. The
Rebbe is not hiding or sneaking in
the expectations; he is teaching us
that the only way that the youth will
respond to our expectations is if it
sandwiched between love and trust.
We see this as a general approach
in the Rebbesbehavior. The Rebbe

demanded complete dedication to

the cause and to the Hanhala of the
Yeshiva. He would not hold back
from telling the Bachurim and
many times very strongly what
he expected of them. Yet the Rebbe
would start the year with Birchas
HaBanim (blessing to ones children
on Erev Yom Kippur) directed
exclusivelyto the Bachurim. He
showed them that right before Kol
Nidrei, when one thinks about what
is most precious to him, the Rebbe
thinks of them.
Our Rebbe even before the
Nesius always had the loyalty of
the Bachurim. They knew and felt
that he believed and loved them.
Not only did this not interfere with
his demands of them, it allowed the
Rebbe to demand more.
The important principle that rules
were created to help us grow must
be delivered to todays youth (we will
explain more in our next article), but
that cannot be done and will not be
internally accepted if the youth do
not feel that those who are enforcing
the rules trust that they can and will
grow and succeed.
Rabbi Avtzon is the Rosh Yeshiva
of Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati
and a well sought after speaker
and lecturer. Recordings of his indepth shiurim on Inyanei Geula
uMoshiach can be accessed at
http://www.ylcrecording.com.

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STORY

ROSH HASHANA

LCHASSIDUS!
A moving description of the Yud-Tes Kislev
farbrengen of 5662, when it was revealed for the
first time that Yud-Tes Kislev is Rosh HaShana
LChassidus.
By Menachem Ziegelboim

PART I
Gut Yom Tov! Gut Yom
Tov! The sounds of rejoicing
were heard in the zal of the great
yeshiva in Lubavitch on the night
of Yud-Tes Kislev 5662 which
fell out on Shabbos that year.
Many candles were lit and the
tables were set royally but the
main thing was that it was a Yom
Tov for us, Chassidei Chabad!
A Yom Tov for the Tmimim, a
Yom Tov for Toras Hachassidus,
and actually, a Yom Tov for all of
creation.
The joy reached the heavens,
but not many knew that this joy
was almost marred. This is what
happened.

PART II
It was Kislev, the month of
holidays, light and Geula. From
the beginning of this ninth month,
Chassidim look forward to the
holidays it contains, the Chagai
HaGeula of the Alter Rebbe
and Mitteler Rebbe. The Chag
HaGeula of Yud-Tes Kislev was

celebrated each year in the large

zal of the yeshiva in Lubavitch
with much pomp and majesty,
with the Rebbe Rashab sitting at
the head and farbrenging.
In addition to the hundreds
of Tmimim who learned in the
yeshiva, numerous Chassidim
came, and even balabatim from
Lubavitch attended. They wanted
to participate in this farbrengen
of the Rebbe Rashab.
How majestic the Rebbe
looked. His face shone with an
ethereal light. The farbrengen of
this day was celebrated as was
fitting for this great and holy
occasion. The Rebbe Rashab
said a maamer Chassidus and
delivered many sichos which
gave pleasure to the heart and
the neshama. Although material
plenty was not lacking at this
festive farbrengen, who paid
attention to such picayune
matters?
Kislev 5662: Enemies of the
Jewish people in Russia began
persecuting them. They came up
with a pretext and arrested the

Chassid R Mendel Horenstein,

the Rebbes brother-in-law. They
accused him of trumped-up
charges, accusing him of burning
down his factory in order to
damage the merchandise there
belonging to a gentile. It was a
despicable allegation which had
no basis in fact, but the Jewhating prosecutor Shemakov
saw an opportunity to cause
trouble. Very quickly, R Mendel
Horenstein was arrested and
placed behind bars to await his
trial.
The Rebbe was greatly
distressed over this. A heavy
cloud rested on my fathers face,
is how his son described the
Rebbes pain.
On 5 Kislev, the Rebbe had
to leave Lubavitch and travel to
Moscow in order to make efforts
on behalf of R Horenstein and
to arrange first class lawyers for
him. This trip was sudden and
unexpected. At first, everyone
thought that the Rebbe would
manage to return for Yud-Tes
Kislev. But as time passed, the

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Chassidim and Tmimim realized

that it was unlikely the Rebbe
would be spending the special
day with them.
A meeting was held by a
committee of Tmimim in which
the menahel of the yeshiva, later
to be the Rebbe Rayatz, officially
announced that it was unlikely
that his father would return in
time. Still, the talmidim should
plan for Yud-Tes Kislev as they
always did, with all of the older
and younger talmidim in the
yeshiva eating the holiday meal
together with the mashpiim,
mashgichim, roshei yeshiva,
magidei shiur, and even with the
office staff. This meal was special
and festive, and unlike the rest of
the time when the talmidim ate
in the yeshiva dining room, this
meal was held in the large zal.
The vaad of the talmidim,
which was comprised of the
older, serious bachurim in the
yeshiva, who heard this news,
was shocked. Some of them even
had tears in their eyes. They had
all hoped to be in the Rebbes
presence for this farbrengen, to
gaze upon his countenance, and
to hear everything he would teach
them, and now...
Throughout
the
days
preceding Yud-Tes Kislev, the
preparations went on as usual
in the hopes that the Rebbe
would return after all. A special
vaad of bachurim was formed
to organize the festivities. Many
guests streamed into Lubavitch,
including
famous
senior
Chassidim like R Dovid Tzvi
Chein of Chernigov (Radatz)
and the exceptional Chassid R
Dov Zev Koznikov, the rav of
Yekaterinoslav.
The hanhala of the yeshiva
convened to discuss the order
of events. They decided that
even though the Rebbe would
not be there, everything would

carry on as usual. The mashpiim

also unanimously decided that
those Tmimim who had already
received permission to come to
Lubavitch for Yud-Tes Kislev,
having counted on the Rebbe
farbrenging, would still be
allowed to come.
It was Thursday, 17 Kislev.
The next evening was when the
grand
farbrengen
would be held. Despite
the short amount of
time remaining, they
still hoped the Rebbe
would arrive. But as
the hours passed,
the cloud of sadness
intensified, as the
Rebbe Rayatz put it.
At eight in the
morning, the two
outstanding Chassidic
powerhouses of the
mind, the Radatz
and
the
rav
of
Yekaterinoslav, met.
They discussed the
possibility of asking
the Rebbe to make a
special trip or even
that all the talmidim
should go to him.
In the early evening,
the two of them went
to Rebbetzin Rivka,
the Rebbe Rashabs
mother, and asked
her to ask her son to
come to Lubavitch,
even for one day.
They assumed the son
would not refuse his
mother.
The Rebbetzin wisely replied,
I am sure that if he could come
here, he certainly would. After
thinking momentarily she added,
I cannot ask him something
which his holy view does not
agree to.
The Chassidim accepted this
and left with heavy hearts.

PART III
At 8:30 Thursday night, the
postman knocked at the yeshiva
office and brought in a letter.
The Rebbe Rayatz opened it and
bolted upright in holy awe. It was
a letter from his father. He read
the letter and saw that it was a
fundamental letter that explained
the significance of the holy day.

It was written especially for the

grand farbrengen that would
be taking place the following
evening as a substitute for his
presence.
The Rebbe Rayatz was
ecstatic. He rushed to the zal,
ascended the platform and in
the presence of the mashpiim

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Story
and mashgichim he festively
announced, We just now
merited a holy letter from
my father, the Rebbe. This
letter that he sent explains the
holy upcoming holiday. With
Hashems help, tomorrow at the
Chag HaGeula farbrengen the
letter will be read out loud.
Many of the bachurim
were encouraged by this. The
atmosphere lifted somewhat
even though all understood that
this letter could not make up for
the absence of the Rebbe. In the
meantime, the members of the

Motzaei Shabbos, Maariv at 5. At

5:30 the large zal will be opened
and all are invited. Hot drinks
will be served. The menahel
(the Rebbe Rayatz) will read the
letter from the Rebbe Rashab,
founder, which speaks about
the significance of the day. At
6:30, the rav of Yeka(terinoslav)
will read the Igeres Kotonti
in Tanya and ten talmidim of
the yeshiva will give each guest
a Tanya so they can listen while
looking inside. This rav will
also tell of the happenings of
this day. This will last an hour

The Rebbe Rayatz was ecstatic. He rushed to the

zal, ascended the platform and in the presence
of the mashpiim and mashgichim he festively announced,
We just now merited a holy letter from my father, the
Rebbe.

celebration committee worked

around the clock to be able to
have everything ready before
Shabbos.
The zal was scrubbed and
decorated. Long tables and
hundreds of chairs were set up.
Beautiful utensils and dishes were
brought from the Rebbe Rashabs
house to adorn the tables.
Some
bachurim
worked
for hours to set up numerous
candles on the walls of the big
zal. All along the length, many
rows of candles were set up in a
most orderly fashion. There were
those in the know who said there
were 1668 candles, the numerical
equivalent of Chag Rabbeinu
HaGadol VHaKadosh Nishmaso
Eden.
On the yeshiva notice board a
detailed sign was hung about the
schedule. It said:
Schedule for the Great
Chag: the celebration will be

and a half (we strongly request

that everyone sit quietly and not
disturb the program). At 8:00,
drinks and saying lchaim with
some refreshments, and the
singers will share some of their
songs until 9:00. From 9-10:00:
rest period. The meal will begin
at 10 and last until 1:00. Singing
and dancing until 3:00.
The building is open to
all who wish to come, but the
honored people are asked to obey
the ones in charge.

PART IV
The Shabbos Queen had
arrived in Lubavitch. It seemed
that not only had an extra
soul descended on hundreds
of talmidim and guests but a
double and redoubled soul
double for Shabbos and tripled
for the Chag HaChagim, Yud-Tes
Kislev.
All streamed toward the

yeshiva zal, dressed in Shabbos

garb and with joy in their hearts.
The honored guests took their
places. Faces shone and eyes
sparkled with the joy of the
holiday. There was no better way
to begin this great and holy day
than with the study of Chassidus.
Hundreds of talmidim sat and
learned. The sound of Torah
reverberated,
bursting
forth
through the windows of the zal.
After an hour and a half of
learning, the gabbai announced
a break for the davening of
Kabbalas Shabbos. When the
davening was over the gabbai
rose again and announced that
they would now read the holy
letter from the Rebbe.
With measured, dignified
steps, the Rebbe Rayatz went up
on the platform. To his right and
left were the two mashgichim
of the yeshiva, of the sidrei
Chassidus and Nigleh. The sight
was reminiscent of the Rebbes
shofar blowing, when he stood
on the platform with a retinue of
distinguished Chassidim around
him. There was a rustling noise
as hundreds of talmidim, as one,
stood up respectfully, as is fitting
when listening to the words of
the Rebbe.
The Rebbe Rayatz began to
slowly read the letter out loud.
Each word was gold and every
letter a shimmering pearl.
Boruch
Hashem,
Wednesday, Kislev 16, 5662.
Moscow.
My son, gather on the
upcoming 19 Kislev those who
learn and their leaders and
teachers
and
mashgichim
and rejoice with the joy of
the holiday on which He
redeemed our soul in peace,
and our souls illumination
and vitality were given to us,
this day of Rosh HaShana for
Chassidus bequeathed us by

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our sacred forebears, identical

with the teachings of the Baal
Shem Tov.
This day is the beginning
of Your works, the fulfillment
of the true intention behind
the creation of man on earth,
which is to call forth revelation
of the light of the inward part
of our holy Torah.
On this day, that light is
called forth, in a general way,
for the entire year. It is our
duty, on this day, to awaken
our hearts with an innermost,
elemental desire and will, in
the very core of our heart, that
G-d illuminate our souls with
the light of His Inner Torah.
From the depths I called to
You, O G-d, to elicit the depth
and inwardness of G-ds Torah
and G-ds mitzvos from the
inwardness and essence of the
Infinite (May He be blessed),
to illuminate the inwardness
of our souls. That all our being
(meaning our total existence,
the essence and the extensions)
be devoted to Him alone, to
banish from within us any of
the natural traits that are evil
and unworthy. Instead, all our
works and affairs (our Avoda,
meaning davening and Torah
and mitzvos, and our worldly
undertakings necessary for the
maintenance of the body), be
with sincere intention for the
sake of Heaven, as G-d wishes.
May G-d the Merciful
Father have compassion upon
us and lead us along the good
and righteous path and may we
see His face in uprightness
(Thillim 11:7).
Upon concluding the letter,
the talmidim sat down and
began to sing an old Chassidic
melody, one that pierces the
hearts and burrows into the soul.
The sound of the niggun poured
forth sweetly, and as it was sung

simultaneously by hundreds
of bachurim, the sound was
especially powerful and uplifting.
It was at this particular
farbrengen, one without the
Rebbes
attendance,
that
the Chassidim merited an
exceedingly
lofty
revelation
of light in the form of the
Rebbes letter. It revealed, for
the first time, that
Yud-Tes Kislev is
Rosh
HaShana
LChassidus.
This
title has been used
ever since for the
Chag HaChagim.
At
6:45,
R
Dov Zev, rav of
Yekaterinoslav began
to tell the story of the
arrest and Geula. He
described the anguish
of the Chassidim
at the time that the
Alter Rebbe was taken
away; the pain, the
sorrow, the tears. He
recounted the story
until the part about
the Rebbes release
from imprisonment in
the Petropavelskaya
fortress. He went
on to describe the
somersaults that the
Chassidim made in
the snowy streets of
Petersburg and the joy
that enveloped them
all.
When he reached
this part, he took a
Tanya and began to read the
letter which the Alter Rebbe
wrote, known as Kotonti. As he
read it, it seemed as though the
Alter Rebbe was present in the
yeshiva zal and was reciting the
letter to them.
The talmidim all bent over
their Tanyas, looking at the holy
letters, and learning from the

teachings of the Baal HaGeula.

They all listened intently, silence
prevailed, and only the occasional
sparking from the thousands of
candles could be heard.
When R Dov Zev was
finished, the old Chassid, R
Shmuel Betzalel rose. He had
seen many Yud-Tes Kislevs in his
life, but this was the first time in

his life that he merited to hear

this astonishing revelation that
the Rebbe Rashab had written,
that this was not merely a holiday
but Rosh HaShana LChassidus.
Rashbatz raised a cup for
lchaim and his voice shook with
emotion. The talmidim watched,
entranced by this elderly Chassid
who had seen the Tzemach
Tzedek.
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Story
Exceedingly
lofty
and elevated is this day of
celebration, he began. If not
for this day, the redemption
and freedom of our great and
holy Rebbe, we would not know
Hashem, the Giver of the Torah,
because Rabbeinu HaKadosh
taught us to know Hashem, our
Maker. We ought to rejoice on
this luminous day and as per

It
was
at
this
particular farbrengen,
one without the Rebbes
attendance, that the Chassidim
merited an exceedingly lofty
revelation of light in the form
of the Rebbes letter.

the words of our luminary, the

Rebbe Shlita that this day is
Rosh HaShana LChassidus and
the day of the revelation of the
inward part of Torah. Therefore,
we ought to give thanks and
praise to Hashem who did not
deprive us of an offshoot of the
Alter Rebbe.
Tmimim! We have the
Rebbe who stands and serves
before the people
of G-d to teach
them knowledge of
Torah and of G-d,
the Giver of the
Torah; our Nasi and
teacher who shows
us wonders as in
the days of the Alter
Rebbe, to return the
hearts of the beloved
children
to
their
Father in heaven. I
raise my cup to the
life of our Rebbe,
and with all power of
my soul I say: Yechi
Rabbeinu
Lolam!
May Hashem fortify
his strength and the
power of his arm to
bear aloft the tower
of light to illuminate
the earth and those
who dwell upon it
until the coming of
Moshiach!
A
powerful
response could be
heard from one end
of the room to the
other: Amen! Yechi
Rabbeinu
Lolam!
May the fellowship of Tomchei
Tmimim and all its leaders live
on forever!
All felt that these special
moments were not only for the
young Chassidim but also for
the older Chassidim who sat at
the dais. All raised their cups in
lchaim and wished one another

heartfelt brachos for the new

year, the upcoming Chassidishe
year.
After a brief break, the meal
began and lasted until two
oclock in the morning. There
was plentiful food and drink, as
is fitting for the Chag HaChagim.
At the end of the meal, all danced
joyously.
At three in the morning, the
Rebbe Rayatz rose and blessed
all present, and with great love
parted from the guests and
talmidim. He turned to leave
as the talmidim preceded him
and stood in two straight, long
rows at the entrance, and as he
went out they began to sing Ki
Bsimcha Seitzeiu. This is how
they escorted him home.
All the guests tremendously
enjoyed
the
magnificent
celebration (except for the city
school teacher who also passed
by to see the sight. He was
consumed by envy and the rays of
light were like swords and spears
to his eyes). The celebration
also had a very positive effect
on the talmidim for they were
drawn close to the service of
Hashem and to increase in their
diligent study of Torah with faith
and sincerity. This is how the
Chassid R Moshe Rosenblum,
the Rebbe Rayatzs secretary,
concluded his description.

PART V
Since the great revelation
of Kislev 5662, the Chassidim
began referring to Yud-Tes Kislev
as Rosh HaShana LChassidus.
In later years, the traditional
formulation for Yud-Tes Kislev
was established: Gut Yom Tov.
Lshana Tova in the learning
of Chassidus and the ways of
Chassidus, may you be written
and inscribed.
The
Chassidic
calendar

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known as the HaYom Yom begins

and ends with Yud-Tes Kislev.
The reason for this, wrote the
Rebbe Rayatz, is based on a
letter of my father, the Rebbe,
about the Chag HaChagim which
is Rosh HaShana LChassidus
Chabad. (As an aside, in a
photocopy of the manuscript of
the HaYom Yom, you can see that
the Rebbe MHM ended it with
the blessing of Gut Yom Tov
and the Rebbe Rayatz added, in
a handwritten note Lshana Tova
Blimud HaChassidus Vdarkei
HaChassidus.)
When the Chassidim who
lived in Brisk received the Rebbe
Rashabs letter in which he called
Yud-Tes Kislev the Chassidic
Rosh HaShana, they considered
establishing Purim Katan as a
day of rejoicing to make up for
the previous Yud-Tes Kislev.
When the Gaon, R Chaim
Brisker heard about this he said,
You dont mix one simcha with
another. The Yom Tov of YudTes Kislev is worthy of its own
blessing.
The
Chassidim
in
Kremenchug
(upon
receipt

The gaon, Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzenski

of the letter) made three days

of rejoicing (16, 17, and 18
of Shvat) and the rabbanim
who belonged to the Poilishe
Chassidim, such as Rabbi Yisroel
Yaakov and R Terchinski, danced
without their jackets on. They
said: Chabad, Boruch Hashem,
is alive. May Chagas (i.e. Poilishe
Chassidim) live too.
The Chassidim in Vilna held
a large festive meal as soon as
they received the Rebbes letter.
One of the Vilna rabbanim,

who heard about the meal the

Chassidim were having and that
they referred to Yud-Tes Kislev as
a Rosh HaShana, told the gaon
Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzenski
about this and criticized the
Chassidim saying that in the
Mishna
only
four
Roshei
Shonim are mentioned, and the
Chassidim were making a fifth.
R Chaim Ozer said, By them,
more is added and by us, there is
a decrease.

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LETTERS FROM THE REBBE

ACCOMPLISHING
SOMETHING EVERY DAY
In commemoration of Chag HaGeula, Yud-Tes Kislev, Beis Moshiach
presents two timely letters from the Rebbe MHM, gleaned from the
personal collection of the internationally renowned sculptor, Chaim
Yaakov (Jacques) Lipchitz. Part 4.

By the Grace of G-d

12th of Kislev, 5720
Brooklyn, N.Y.
To the Participants in the
Yud-Tes Kislev Celebration
G-d bless you all
Warm
Greetings
and
Abundant Blessings!
I was very pleased to be
informed of your forthcoming
Yud-Tes Kislev celebration. I
hope and pray that it will bring
each and every one of you
lasting inspiration which will
effectively be felt in every-day
living throughout the year.
The historic day of Yud-Tes
Kislev, as is well known, and as
explained at length in one of the
epistles of my father-in-law of
saintly memory, was more than
a personal triumph for our Old
Rebbe, Rabbi Schneur Zalman,
the Founder of Chabad. For,
in regaining his personal
freedom on that day, as well
as the freedom to continue his
teachings and work, he gained a
victory for the whole Chassidic
movement which had been

threatened with suppression

and extinction.
For the Old Rebbe was the
chief exponent of the teachings
of the Baal Shem Tov who
had founded the Chassidic
movement about half a century
earlier. It is for this reason
that he was made the chief
target of attack, and his Geula
(redemption) brought salvation
to the numerous followers of
the Baal Shem Tov, and to our
people as a whole.
This years Yud-Tes Kislev
is of special significance, since
this year marks the 200th
anniversary of the HistalkusHilulo (demise) of the Baal
Shem Tov.
One
of
the
great
accomplishments of the Baal
Shem Tov is that he opened
our eyes to the true nature of a
Jew. While he dedicated his life
to the spreading of the Torah
and Mitzvoth in the fullest
measure, he never despaired of
any Jew, no matter how much
circumstances
temporarily
overshadowed his Yiddishkait.

The Baal Shem Tov taught us

and the Old Rebbe expounded
it at length that the Jew was
essentially, by his very nature,
incorruptible and inseparable
from G-d; that no Jew is
either able or willing to detach
himself from G-dliness. It is
often necessary no more than to
scratch the surface, to reveal
the Jews true inner nature.
The
Baal
Shem
Tov
introduced a new relationship
between Jew and Jew, based on
the inner meaning of Have
we not all one Father? (as
interpreted by the Old Rebbe).
By the example of his own
dedicated work, he taught us
what should be our attitude
and approach to our fellow
Jews. For, the Baal Shem Tov
began his work as an assistant
Melamed, taking tender care
of little children, and teaching
them the Shema, Brachos, and
so on. At the same time he
revealed to the more mature
minds some of the profoundest
teachings of the Inner Torah,
the Kabbala, and the true way to

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serve G-d with heart and mind

together, a profound philosophy
which found its systematic
expression and exposition in
Chabad.
Nowadays, as ever and
more, it is the duty and privilege
of every Jew to help educate
Jewish children children
in the literal sense, in age; and
children in knowledge of
Yiddishkait. In a true sense, a
mans education is not confined
to the school-bench; it should
continue throughout his life,
getting wiser and better every
day. One must be a student and
teacher at the same time, and
in both cases success depends
on mutual affection, on true
Ahavas Yisroel.
Let us all open our hearts
and minds to the teachings
and inspiration of Yud-Tes
Kislev, through the observance
of which we identify ourselves
with, and attach ourselves to,
the great luminaries of our
people, the Old Rebbe and the
Baal Shem Tov.
May G-d bless you all, and
bless your efforts to spread the
fountains of Ahavas Hashem,
Ahavas HaTorah and Ahavas
Yisroel, in an ever growing
measure, and in ever wider
circles, thereby hastening the
day of the true and complete
Redemption of our people,
through
our
Righteous
Moshiach, speedily in our time.

W i t h
blessing, M. SCHNEERSON

By the Grace of G-d

9th of Kislev, 5724
Brooklyn, N.Y.
Mr. Chaim Yaakov Lipchitz
168 Warburton Ave.
Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y.

Nowadays, as ever and more, it is the duty and

privilege of every Jew to help educate Jewish
children children in the literal sense, in age, and
children in knowledge of Yiddishkait.

Greeting and Blessing:

I was pleased to receive your
letter in which you acknowledge
my letter and good wishes for
the new year, and also write
about your return from Italy.
I trust that you and your
family are enjoying good health,
and a happy frame of mind.
No doubt you know of the
significance of the forthcoming
19th day of Kislev, the Day of
Liberation of the founder of
Chabad, and the triumph of
the Chassidic movement. The
Jewish concept of liberation,
both in the material and
spiritual sense, is one that
applies to the daily life of every
person as a daily personal
experience. For a person
must recognize that he must
accomplish something every
day, and since there are always

various deterrents or difficulties,

he must endeavor to overcome
them, and liberate himself from
the limitation, whether they be
internal or external. This is why
the Old Rebbe, the founder of
Chabad, whose 150th Yahrtzait
Anniversary we are observing
this year, has explained that the
idea of Yetzias Mitzraim, the
liberation from Egypt, is not
only to be remembered every
day, but also experienced every
day, in order that the individual
may
consistently
advance
and elevate himself. May the
inspiration of Yud-Tes Kislev be
a lasting one, and be reflected
in every aspect of the daily life
throughout the year.
With kindest personal
regards and
With
blessing,
M.
SCHNEERSON

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KISLEV

IMPOSSIBLE

CHOICE
The Rebbe encouraged the telling of miracles. Our
boy was hit by the train in Jerusalem and BH lived. *
Written in honor of Kislev, a month of miracles.
By C. E. Pfeffer

utside the Main Sukka

in front of the Jaffa
Gate in Jerusalem,
the light rail train hit
our son at approximately 7pm on
Monday the 13th of October, Chol
HaMoed Sukkos.
We were leaving the concert
area after a Chabad gathering of
English speakers living in Israel.
This was the first time our family
had made a trip to Jerusalem after
making Aliya 2 months before.
The festivities had ended and
everyone made their way to the
street. In Brooklyn the children
never had such opportunities
to run free and the taste of
Israels freedom had lead them
to somewhat take their comfort
level to an extreme.
Our 3 year old son, Yisroel,
ran out in front of us down the
stairs and across both tracks of
the light rail trains. He did not see
that the train was coming towards
his direction. Our 8-year-old

daughter was standing next to

me and my 7 and 5 year old boys
were standing behind me. We
saw the train coming down Jaffa
toward the Old City and we knew
Yisroel was in danger. I knew
that soon the train coming from
the Old City could be on its way
as well. Our daughter tugged at
me and said, I can get him, I can
get him, I can save him mommy,
let me go.
All I wanted at that moment
was for time to stop. I wanted
to run quickly and tackle Yisroel
to the ground. All my daughter
wanted to do was save her
brother, but I couldnt sacrifice
my life or hers. So, in that
moment, I had to make the most
difficult decision of my life.
It was like the Akeida. My
youngest child was essentially on
the Mizbeiach, and my instincts
as a mother were tested to choose
between my life, my childrens
life, my childrens life with or

without a mother and my baby.

The 2 years leading up
to Yisroel coming into the
world and the year after were
impossible times. The test was
unbelievable! Our little Yisroel
Tzvi Hirsch was our family
savior. He brought blessing and
sunshine into our home amongst
a lot of pain and he eased each
day of painful suffering with his
happiness. With great mesiras
nefesh I nursed our new son and
loved him with as much love a
woman in my position could give.
The word for love in Hebrew is
ahava, and Ive been told the root
of the word means to give. My
love and bond with Yisroel was
stronger than anything I ever felt
in my life as I painfully carried
him in my womb, birthed him
under difficult circumstances and
nursed him while sick, sad and
suffering.
Here I was on Jaffa Street on
a day which was beaming with

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new beginnings a new, happy,

healthy life in Eretz Yisroel,
and our first time in Jerusalem
with the kids. We spent the day
dancing to the music and taking
in the sights, sounds and smells
of the Holy City. We made new
friends and made a million
memorable moments.
At those final seconds before
the train came down Jaffa I tried
to have telepathy with Yisroel,
Stay where you are, dont move,
stay where you are dont move,
do not move. I thought I could
will him with my prayers not
to move but at 3 meters away
Yisroel ran out directly in front
of the train and was hit head on
by the train and all I could do
was watch and scream at the air.
I held on to my daughter so that
she wouldnt try to save her little
brother and went in deep with
G-d.
In a flash the bright lights
of the train drowned my baby

and in that moment that I had

already chosen to save my other
children and myself I chose to
accept Hashems will. What
could I do fight the Creator
and Master of the whole universe
and everything in it including
Yisroel and myself? I said to
myself, speaking to Hashem, He
is yours, he is not mine, and if
that is what You will, then I thank
you for the time we had him,
this holy tzaddik. Please dont
think I wanted to accept this and
that I was accepting it bsimcha.
NO, I was accepting this with
bittul! I was accepting my size
and weight in the world. I was
accepting my role as a servant
to Hashem and a shlucha to our
great Rebbe. Like any creative
person I needed to find a place
of healing and I created a place
in my mind that was whole, holy
and clean. I painted a picture, a
story of truth that I saw his soul
go up to Heaven and leave this

world. I saw that his soul was

needed on high and that Hashem
desperately needed him back in
the upper realms. I understood
that as great as he was to us he
was greater on high. I began
to mourn him because I saw a
32 meter train going at least 12
miles an hour take down my son.
The second he was hit was
the same second I painted my
picture. It felt like 20 minutes! In
the next second we saw that the
train somehow just stopped.
Miraculously,
after
the
train hit him it just stopped,
completely.
At least a thousand people
were
there
and
hundreds
witnessed as police, emergency,
pedestrians came running to
our aid. The train was packed to
capacity and all the passengers
on the train were thrown from
the quick stop. Everyone got off
the train and the already busy

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KISLEV

They ran to help us in our time of need, and

they screamed in the Holy Tongue to Hashem,
Neis (miracle)! and to the driver, Gibor (Hero). A true
nation of love coming together to praise Hashem and His
messengers and life!
and crowded street became
even more mobbed. People were
screaming and hysterical.
Soon thereafter someone
passed me Yisroel, and unsure
of his condition, I ran with him
away from the crowd and away
from the street. I was afraid of the
worst and that someone would
take him away from me for good
and all I wanted was to be with
him, alone. To see his sweet face
and his stunning long eyelashes.
He wasnt moving or making
any noise as I ran for cover away
from the chaos. I ran and ran
and found some stairs and tried
to hide but the mob followed me.
I sat down, looked into Yisroels
face, and checked over his whole
body. He was in total shock, but
BH, totally fine.
We were sent to the hospital
and there Yisroel acted like
his usual adventurous self,
pulling everyones curtains open
and yelling, touching all the
computers and running around
the place like a wild man, not like
a kid who was just hit by a train.
We went through all the tests and
in the morning we went home,
back to normal life, BH.
A lot of emotions surfaced. I
sought out answers and closure
by contacting the train company.
I sent them part of this article,
in a much shorter version. It
concluded: We hope to hear
from the driver his account
of what happened so we can
have some closure on this very
traumatic but miraculous event
that we witnessed. Thank you

so much to the driver for being

so alert; may G-d protect you
and keep you and yours safe.
Thank you also in advance
for your timely help with this
matter. Obviously we wish this
didnt happen, but we feel so
blessed to have our little precious
son safe BH, and we feel a
tremendous respect and gratitude
to the Israeli people for being so
concerned and rushing to our
aid.
We got a call this week that
we were invited on Thursday at
1pm to come and meet the team
that saved Yisroel. It was a month
and a half after the day of the
accident. We didnt think about
the date, because after all because
we arent in America anymore.
But when we woke up Thursday
morning we realized it was
Thanksgiving. What Hashgacha
Pratis for us Americans to be
celebrating
Thanksgiving
in
Israel, giving praise and thanks
to Hashem with our brothers and
sisters at the Headquarters of the
Jerusalem Light Rail.
We were able to meet Nir
Moar, the conductor of the
train who saved Yisroels life.
He insisted it was a miracle. He
admitted his heart was in his
feet when he saw Yisroel dart in
front of the train. He said he saw
Yisroel, 3 meters before the train
hit him and at that point pulled
the emergency break. He was
able to stop the train in 3 meters,
hit Yisroel, but not run over
him, chas vshalom. He reported
immediately to the control room
that there had been an accident.

Nir then got off the train to see

how Yisroel was doing because
he did not know his condition,
while his colleagues in the control
room came to the scene and
called for help. He asked me,
Do you remember me? and I
did remember his face that night,
despite the bright lights and
chaos. That night this hero saved
my child and this day we praised
Hashem together.
There is no distance between
him and us. The Rebbe teaches
that every Jew is a diamond.
Are they ever! His being called
secular and our being called
religious its all nonsense! We
were a room full of Jews praising
G-d for His open miracle at the
Headquarters of the Light Rail.
Hashem split the Sea for our
entire nation on that day He took
us out of Egypt as one, and He
split the Sea for our family on
that day our son walked away
without a scratch after being hit
by the Light Rail Train. Everyone
present there at Safra Square,
religious, not religious, everyone
came together to help. We saw at
such a time the sheer beauty of
Am Yisroel Chai. What a stunning
group of selfless, loving, caring,
good people. They ran to help
us in our time of need, and they
screamed in the Holy Tongue to
Hashem, Neis (miracle)! and
to the driver, Gibor (Hero).
A true nation of love coming
together to praise Hashem and
His messengers and life!
The words of the VAl
HaNissim prayer, which we say
this month, best express or deep
feelings of gratitude for this huge
miracle: And [we thank You] for
the miracles, for the redemption,
for the mighty deeds, for the
saving acts, and for the wonders
which You have wrought for our
ancestors in those days, at this
time.

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PARSHA THOUGHT

SIGNET RING,
CLOAK, AND
STAFF
By Rabbi Heschel Greenberg

YEHUDAHS DESCENT
After the sale of Joseph
into captivity by his brothers,
Yehudah, who suggested selling
Joseph rather than killing him,
descended from his brothers
and got married. His wife bore
him three sons. He married his
oldest son, Er, to Tamar. After
she was widowed, she married
Yehudahs second son, Onan.
When he died too, Yehudah
decided that Tamar should
remain a widow because he was
reluctant to allow her to marry
his last son, Sheila.
After Yehudahs wife died,
Tamar disguised herself as a
harlot. Yehudah propositioned
her and promised to send her
a goat to pay for their liaison.
When she asked him for his
signet ring, cloak and staff as
collateral against that promise, he
agreed.
We know that the Torah does
not just tell us stories. Each
and every detail is fraught with
meaning and contains many
layers of knowledge.
Why would the Torah go
into such detail about Yehudahs
payment and collateral for this
relationship?
The
question
begs that we seek a deeper

understanding of this entire

episode, especially since it was
from this union that Peretz was
born. Peretz is closely associated
with Moshiach. First, he was the
direct ancestor of King David,
from whose line Moshiach
would emerge. Second, the very
name Peretz means to break
out of boundaries which aptly
describes Moshiach. It is his role,
as one whose influence is out of
the box, to break through the
walls of Galus.
The fact that Peretzs birth
is associated with the items
Yehudah gave as collateral (his
signet ring, cloak and staff)
suggests that these three items
may symbolize an unconventional
leadership.

LEADERSHIP, LEADERSHIP
AND LEADERSHIP
The Midrash on this verse
connects these three items to
three forms of leadership. The
signet ring represents royalty and
refers specifically to Ychanya (or
Chaniah), the last monarch to
reign before the Babylonian exile.
In his lament of the imminent
exile, the prophet Jeremiah
describes G-d as exclaiming:
though Chaniah the son

of Yehoyakim king of Judah

were the signet upon My right
hand (Yirmiyahu 22:24).
Hence Tamars prescient demand
for the signet ring was prophetic
and alluded to their offsprings
future role in royalty.
The Midrash also teaches
the figurative meaning of the
cloak and staff Yehudah gave
Tamar: The cloak refers to the
Sanhedrin and the staff refers
to the King Moshiach, as it is
stated: And there shall come
forth a shoot out of the stock
of Jesse (Isaiah 11:1), and it
is stated G-d will stretch forth
your mighty staff from Zion
(Thillim 110:2)
How can we understand why
Tamar prophesied about these
three periods of leadership that
would emerge from her union
with Yehudah?
If she was predicting that
royalty would emerge from her
union with Yehudah, why did she
not allude to Kings David and
Solomon? After all, they were
the progenitors of the Davidic
dynasty and laid the foundation
for and actually built the Bais
HaMikdash.

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PARSHA THOUGHT

RESISTING, COPING AND

SURVIVING THE EXILE
Tamar saw even further into
the future of the Jewish people
and realized that it would be a
long trek before Moshiach ushers
in an age of spiritual and physical
perfection. The Jewish people
would need to go through much
travail before their redemption.
When she gazed penetratingly
at the future, she saw that there
would be three periods in which
her descendants would serve as
the support for the Jewish nation
before the final Redemption.
Each period would require a
different stage of leadership.
The first stage of leadership
she saw was when the last

continue to exercise influence

over the exiled Jewish people.
They helped enable the people
to cope with the harsh realities
of exile and keep the Jewish
community intact. This was in
stark contrast with the 10 lost
tribes exiled a century earlier that
assimilated and disappeared from
the Jewish community.
Tamar was not satisfied. It
was not enough just to survive
and cope with adversity. A Jew
comes into this world to grow
and thrive spiritually. What will
keep them going even when
the overt role of Davidic royalty
ceases?
The answer she received in
her prophetic words was the
cloak. This was a reference to

Moshiach is a Galus leader who brings out the

best in us to resist, cope, manage, thrive, and
then transform the Galus into the triumphant Geula.

king
reigned
before
the
Babylonian exile. She saw that
he is associated with G-ds seal.
What is a seal? It is a sign of
confirmation and permanence
revealed, in this context, through
the unique impression left by the
design of a signet ring. Moreover,
our Sages tell us that G-ds
seal is truth. It is ironic that
this manifestation of G-ds seal
occurred precisely when King
Ychanya (or Chonia), a scion of
the Davidic dynasty, was on the
threshold of Babylonian exile!
Tamar, however, saw it
differently. On the surface it
seemed that the leadership of
King Chonia and the Davidic
dynasty was coming to an end.
Tamar, however, knew that G-d
would promise David that his
light will never be extinguished.
Tamar was prophetically aware
that Davids descendants would

the mantle of leadership vested

in the Sanhedrin, an important
institution that flourished and
exercised incredible influence
over Jewish life for many
centuries.
The
Sanhedrin
leadership included descendants
of Tamar and Yehudah. It did far
more than just keep the status
quo. The Sanhedrin and its heirs,
the Torah Sages of Israel, guided
the Jewish people to incredible
life and growth.

THE STAFF AND THE

BRANCH
Tamars prophecy did not end
there. She saw a third element,
the mateh-staff which symbolized
the final stage in the Galus saga:
Moshiach and the Redemption he
leads.
The Hebrew word for staff,
mateh, is often contrasted with its

synonym, shevet. The difference

is that the shevet represents the
branch of the tree when it is still
connected to the tree, whereas
the mateh describes that very
same branch once it is detached
from the tree and hardened into
a staff.
Upon reflection, we can
see that the mateh possesses
a paradoxical nature. On the
one hand, it lacks the life and
vibrancy of the shevet. The mateh
is no longer connected to its
source of life, yet, the mateh is
firm and unbending, unlike the
pliable and flexible shevet. What
do these diametrically opposite
features symbolize?
The Rebbe, in a talk on the
Torah portion entitled Matos
(Likkutei Sichos, Volume 18, p.
382), explains that the detached
state of the mateh symbolizes the
state of the soul when it descends
into our physical world to inhabit
a body. It is no longer attached
to its heavenly source, unlike the
soul when it is still in its G-dly
abode prior to descent into our
world.
However, in order to meet
the challenges and storms the
soul must weather down here, it
must be endowed with additional
power. The soul, detached
though it may be down here,
possesses a superior strength that
it receives from its very essence.
Kabbala and Chassidus refer to
this strength as the eisan, the
hard-core strength of the soul.
When in its heavenly abode, the
soul does not need that powerful
attribute, which remains dormant
until the souls descent into the
physical world.
Furthermore, as we meet the
challenges of the physical world
and overcome its obstacles, the
souls eisan further strengthens
us and reveals the even greater
power of the soul.

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In his discussion of the

difference between the shevet
and mateh states of the soul, the
Rebbe also draws a parallel to
the period in history when we
had our Bais HaMikdash-Holy
Temple and then the subsequent
period of exile.
When the Bais HaMikdash
stood, G-ds glory was revealed
to the world, overt miracles
abounded and the Jewish people
were in the shevet state; they
felt their attachment to G-d.
However, as a result of the exiles
we lost that state of attachment
and were relegated to the mateh
state.
Precisely because we have
sojourned in this detached state
of Galus for nearly two millennia,
we have been forced to elicit the
most powerful forces from the
essence of our souls. Galus has
revealed within us that we have
unprecedented powers to resist
the darkness and even convert it
to light.
The staff that Yehudah, the
progenitor of Moshiach, gave
Tamar as collateral, represented
the future power of Moshiach to
cope with Galus conditions and
enable all of the Jewish people
he leads to summon their own
eisan. The Rebbe explains that
Moshiach is a Galus leader who
brings out the best in us to resist,
cope, manage, thrive, and then
transform the Galus into the
triumphant Geula.

GIVE ME THE POWER OF

THE MATEH!
We can now read the story of
Yehudah and Tamar more deeply
in a new, uplifting fashion:
Tamar represents the Jewish
people. Yehudah (whose name
contains the four letters of G-ds
sacred name) is a metaphor for
G-d, who saves the Jewish people
from the state of widowhood,
i.e., estrangement from G-d, the
metaphoric husband of the
Jewish nation.
Yehudah (read: G-d) asks us:
What collateral shall I give you
to guarantee your survival until
I bring the Redemption? What
power do you need to preserve
yourself in the bitter harshness
of Galus so you can prepare for
and experience the glory of the
Redemption?
Tamar (the Jewish
people) answers, It
is the signet ring,
the cloak and staff
that you have in
your hand. It is the
power of royalty found
in G-ds hands that
He passed over to us
(Tamar). We never lost
the regal status that this
conferred upon us and
which was responsible
for our survival, even in
exile.
Beginning
with
Ychanya, continuing
through the Sanhedrin




(and their spiritual heirs, the

Sages and teachers of Torah
throughout the ages), and finally
through
Moshiach
himself,
we were and are empowered
to survive, even thrive and
eventually transform our exile.
Indeed, the true purpose of a
leader is to reveal the power
of royalty and leadership that
resides in each and every one of
us, so we can be masters over our
lives and our Galus environment.
Moshiachs role in particular
is to reveal the spark of
Moshiach, the mateh and the
eisan that exists within each
and every Jew and by so doing,
conclude Tamars vision for the
future and usher in the ultimate
Age of union between Tamar
(the Jewish people) and Yehudah
(G-d).

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952 is by

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FARBRENGEN

WHEN THE
AMERICAN ICE
WILL MELT...
From the Sichos Kodesh of the Rebbe Rayatz at
the Yud-Tes Kislev farbrengen of 5708
Presented by R Boruch Sholom Cohen
Edited by Y Ben Boruch

BEGINNING WITH
BLESSING WITH A NIGGUN

penetrates the other person, but

to affect and permeate oneself.

start from, but the main thing in

Chassidus is avoda.

There is an expression, One

opens with a bracha, which
means to sing a niggun. A niggun
is higher than speech. A niggun
expresses atzmius (the essence of
the thing), and then you feel the
pnimius and atzmius of what is
spoken.

IN CHABAD YOU ALSO

NEED CHAGAS

HINTED AT IN THE LETTER

OF YUD-TES KISLEV

There are those who err,

who think that Chabad is
(only)
haskala
(intellectual
conceptualization)
because
Chabad is an acronym for
chochma, bina, daas. If so, they
maintain, how does it extend to
the avodas hamiddos (the work
of refining and elevating ones
emotional traits), i.e. Chagas?
We once said that there are
Chagas Chassidim, Chagasnikes,
and
Chabad
Chassidim,
Chabadnikes. This doesnt mean
that Chagas Chassidim are solely
Chagas (middos) without Chabad
(mochin), and that Chabad
Chassidim are solely Chabad
without Chagas. The difference is
only in the beginning, where they

In my father the Rebbe

Rashabs letter that he sent me
for Yud-Tes Kislev 5662, when he
was not in Lubavitch, he writes,
this day is the Rosh HaShana
for Chassidus which our
saintly forebears, [the Rebbeim
of their respective generations,]
have bequeathed to us i.e., the
teachings of the Baal Shem Tov,
etc. [We read in the Machzor:]
This is the day which is the
beginning of Your works. In
this letter, this is alluded to.
(Apparently, the meaning of
this is that this inyan, that we also
need Chagas, is alluded to there,
... to awaken our hearts on this
day, to an inward and elemental
desire and yearning, within the

THE NIGGUN
BEFORE DAVENING
As was once said, this is
the reason why Chassidim sing
before davening. There is the
niggun before davening and the
niggun during davening. The
niggun before davening is the
preparation to take and throw
out what is unnecessary during
davening.
One needs to sing a niggun;
not so that it affects and

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very core of our hearts, that G-d

illuminate our souls with the light
of the innermost dimension of
His Torah to expel every bad
and disgusting midda from us, of
our natural middos.)

FOR MYSELF, I WAS NOT

AT ALL AFRAID
When the Alter Rebbe
returned from Petersburg he
said: For myself, I was not
afraid at all (of arrest). I said (to
myself), Boruch Hashem that
the arrest was after 25 (or 30)
years of inner work to reveal
the teachings of the Baal Shem
Tov in a way that the matter was
already accomplished, so I wasnt
afraid for myself.

MESIRUS NEFESH FOR

THREE THINGS
The Alter Rebbe was moser
nefesh for three things: 1) for

Hashem, 2) for Torah, 3) for

Eretz Yisroel.
For Hashem: through mesirus
nefesh for Kiddush Hashem.
For Torah: the mesirus nefesh
for Torah and mitzvos. Torah
without mitzvos is nothing. When
you say Torah it doesnt mean
that he understands the Torah
with his intellect. Rather, that
with his intellect he understands
what the Torah wants.
For Eretz Yisroel: it is known
that the Alter Rebbe strengthened
and supported our holy Rebbeim
and their families and the families
of Anash who settled in Eretz
Yisroel.
This is what the Alter Rebbe
meant when he said about
himself that he was not at all
afraid because by then he had
already accomplished all (three)
things, so he personally did not
care about himself.

MESIRUS NEFESH
FOR A SIMPLE JEW
The Alter Rebbe would be
moser nefesh for a simple Jew for
a material matter or a spiritual
one. He saw the essence of
simple Jews.

HE DID NOT GET INVOLVED

The Alter Rebbe did not mix
in to when the galus would end.
His avoda was to bring light to
the Jewish people.
May Hashem help so there
will soon be the revelation
of Moshiach, without false
interpretations, but people will
sense the essential, inward
revelation in Torah and avoda.

HE BEQUEATHED TO THE
CHASSIDIM
This power of mesirus nefesh
was bequeathed by the Alter

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Farbrengen
Rebbe to the Chassidim but it
is hidden. In order to reveal it,
mesirus nefesh is also required.
Every one of the Chassidic flock
needs to have mesirus nefesh.

WHEN WILL I BE
ABLE TO FULFILL IT?
This mesirus nefesh is in
a manner of when will the
opportunity come to my hands
and I will fulfill it (vakaymena).
With mesirus nefesh the main
point is not to give ones life but
(vakaymena I will sustain it)
that it needs to be lasting.
By a goy, lhavdil elef alfei
havdalos, it happens that he gets
drunk and then he drops dead
like a corpse, but this is from the
vodka and for the vodka.

THE CLEVER IDEAS

OF THE ANIMAL SOUL
You stuff the animal soul like
the animal it is. You throw it a
piece of meat or a piece of challa.
You let your G-dly soul starve.
The animal soul comes to you
with its chochmos (clever ideas)
and claims: Everything having
to do with Shabbos is double, so
you need to eat two types of fish
on Shabbos, two types of meat,
two types of ptcha. Thus, the
animal soul leads you into the
hole. Then you daven Mincha
and Maariv only once in a while,
you say the bedtime Shma once
in three weeks, you fulfill your
obligation with tying straps
around your arm. This is how
you stuff the animal soul. And
you let the G-dly soul starve.

The Alter Rebbe would be moser nefesh for a

simple Jew for a material matter or a spiritual
one. He saw the essence of simple Jews.

But by a Jew, the idea

of mesirus nefesh is the
vakaymena the sustaining of
the matter. And what is mesirus
nefesh? That what he wants is
not necessary. And what he does
not want is necessary!

MY BROTHER: YOU HAVE

WITHIN YOU A LITTLE
IMPURE CREATURE
There are those who say, how
can we attain spiritual things?
What sort of mechutan am I to
that? I am not holding by that.
But the truth is that you need
to tell him: My brother, you have
within you a little sheretz (impure
creature) that makes you its
mechutan for its interests.

TO FEEL THE TRUTH

Chassidim are clever wise
men. They tell themselves the
truth. By Chassidim not much is
demanded; the main thing is to
sense the truth.
You can be expert in Shas,
speak Rambams, and innovate
Torah thoughts, but these are not
the main thing. The main thing is
to sense the truth. You can learn
a pasuk in Chumash and feel the
truth.
Today,
much
can
be
accomplished.

SPIRITUALLY RICH
According to Torah, a father
must support his little son. Even
more so a servant whose master
is responsible to feed him, so may

Hashem give plentiful bounty

materially and spiritually, so that
the Jewish people have chayus to
truly live.
The Jewish people are very
rich. As far as the material, they
need to be given what they need,
but spiritually all the Jewish
people are rich. However it is
concealed and it needs to be
taken out of concealment and
brought out into the open.

HASKALA ALONE IS
WORTHLESS
In Chassidus and the ways
of Chassidim the main thing is
avoda; haskala alone is nothing.
Haskala itself is worthless. There
is an order: mochin, middos,
thought, speech, action, but the
main thing is action in actual
avoda.

THE PLEASURE UP ABOVE

FROM A YISHUVNIK
A large measure of haskala
does not come close to actual
avoda. Up above, a good word
of a yishuvnik (villager) is loftier
than a large measure of haskala.
A yishuvnik meets a Jew
on the road and says: Shalom
Aleichem. He brings him into his
house and tells his wife: throw
another bundle of twigs into the
oven so the house will warm up;
we have a guest. And he gives
him bread to eat with dairy
delights and then tells his guest:
Go up on the oven and warm up
and rest there.
Then the yishuvnik says a
chapter of Thillim (for his guest)
and says (sadly), why does he
need to travel the roads in such
snow to look for a calf in order to
support his household?
This behavior of the yishuvnik
is very precious up above, far
more than the Chiddushei Torah
of a gaon.

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TO HARNESS THE BODY

A yishuvnik once said to
my father [the Rebbe Rashab]:
I dont know anything. I just
know how to harness the body by
saying a chapter of Thillim!

OUR REBBEIM KNOW

WHAT IS GOING ON IN THIS
WORLD
It is a certainty that the Rebbe
(the Alter Rebbe) in the upper
Gan Eden and the Chassidim
who were moser nefesh for
Chassidus and the ways of
Chassidus have pleasure from the
joyous celebration of their joyous
occasion.
It is definitely the case that
the Rebbe (the Alter Rebbe) and
our Rebbeim know what is going
on this world. The [departed]
forebears of Chassidim have
pleasure from this (celebration)
and they receive blessings from
the Alter Rebbe for their children
and grandchildren.

THE THREE LOVES

ARE INTERTWINED
The three things love for
G-d, love for Torah and love
for Jews need to be braided
together by the Chassidim like a
Havdala candle.

THE YOUNG MEN DID

NOT SEE THE LIGHT
It is a great pity on the young
men here. The elder Chassidim
still remember from their home;
they saw the grandfather, the
father. As they call it here, der
alte heim (the Old Country,
i.e. Eastern Europe), but the
young men did not see the light,
especially in this country.

THE HOO-HA
OF AMERICA
It is forbidden to say this; after
all, I am a batlan, I dont go out
in the street. I just see that from
the window enters such coldness
that one begins to shiver. When
you see the pandemonium and
the hoo-ha here, the tzitzis that
get hidden away, a beard that is
not necessary, it is something
disgusting, lowly. In der heim
there was an expression, es iz
chalushes. The truth is that all the
Jews are precious; the fault lies
within us.

WHEN THE
AMERICAN ICE MELTS
There is just one consolation.
When the ice melts into liquid,
the liquid will spread over a
greater area than when it was
ice. If so, when the American
ice melts, there will be so much

water and mayim chaim and from

that alone we ought to be joyful.

CHABAD
DEMANDS PNIMIUS
The Rebbe Rayatz said
they should sing a niggun and
then said: You need to sing a
pnimiusdike niggun. Chabad
demands pnimius in everything!
A dance needs to be a rikud
pnimi and a niggun needs to be
a niggun pnimi.

TO FEEL
ERETZ YISROEL PNIMIUS
The Rebbe Rayatz said to his
relative from Eretz Yisroel, R
Schneersohn:
Travel in good health and
return in good health and sense
Eretz Yisroel in a pnimius
manner.

THE END OF THE

FARBRENGEN
The Rebbe Rayatz said they
should sing the niggun Dalet
Bavos of the Alter Rebbe. When
they sang it, the Rebbe sang it
with tremendous dveikus and
much crying.
Afterward, he said they should
sing Nye zhuritze chloptzi and
said they should sing it with great
joy. Everyone present sang and
danced with tremendous joy.

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Issue 952

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PROFILE

REVEALING THE
SPICE OF TORAH
If you happened upon the Hebrew University Jerusalem
Botanical Garden or the Botanic Garden of the University of
Tel Aviv and you met a Chassid there, you should know that
he is R Avrohom Dahan. He is a researcher and a member
of the senior staff who conducts research and supervises
hundreds of types of plants as well as various spices. *
For the past six years he has been devoting his life to his
childhood love, botany. In his free time, he researches
segulos and sources from Torah literature about the powers
and segulos of plants in Eretz Yisroel.
By Nosson Avrohom

t the southern end of Mt.

Carmel, between Zichron
Yaakov and Binyamina,
is Ramat HaNadiv, a
nature park and gardens which
memorialize
Baron
Benjamin
Rothschild. A community has
formed here that is committed to
maintaining a balance between man
and nature. There is a recycling
project in which branches, grass,
leaves etc. are collected and
processed into compost that is then
reused for gardening. Many people
visit the gardens as do researchers
and botanists from all over the
world.
The community that lives on

this pastoral yishuv is committed

to nature and its laws. Sadly, with
the same measure of devotion,
they are far from Torah and
mitzvos. This is why it was most
surprising to see in the brochure
that they produced before their
annual vacation for employees,
that one of the speakers that the
organizers of the place arranged
for their employees is none
other than R Avrohom Dahan
of Ramat Yishai. Though if you
know him, it is not surprising at
all.
After years in the field
of restaurants and hotels in
which he worked in managerial

positions, he decided on a new

career course and for the past six
years has been devoting his life to
researching plants and herbs in
Eretz Yisroel according to Torah
sources. He is presently in the
final stage of writing an ambitious
and revolutionary project a
five volume encyclopedia called
Talmud HaTzmachim. The
added dimension of the project
is that we also included Chassidic
and kabbalistic explanations on
every plant and spice, says R
Dahan.
The purpose in writing the
encyclopedia is to expose the
public to and make accessible the

24 20 Kislev 5775
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subject of Jewish herbal healing.

The objective was to locate and
identify spices, healing herbs,
fruit and fragrance trees in Jewish
sources, to see how earlier sages
used them and to understand
their nutritional contribution. I
was surprised to discover ancient
recipes hidden away in the
Jewish cupboard, which were
unknown even to researchers in
this field.
He got to know the people of
Ramat HaNadiv as well as many
of the researchers and botanists
through his work. Previously,
those people who are generally

part of a tiny sector of elite

Leftists were surprised to meet
a Chassid, but since then they
have learned to respect him as
a colleague and an extremely
knowledgeable person. They are
helped by him tremendously in
their research. He is even invited
to botanical regions throughout
the country.

DRAMATIC RESCUE
If you were sure that R
Dahan was born on a kibbutz
or a moshav that grows spices
or plants, you are mistaken. He
was born to Iraqi immigrants and

grew up in an urban environment

in Ohr Yehuda. From a very
young age he yearned to connect
to the earth. When he passed bar
mitzva age, he begged his parents
to look for a kibbutz dormitory
where he could stay and learn.
My father refused, he
recalls. Life in the city bored
me. It was superficial and lacked
any imagination and I was a
rebellious kid. I would go to class
and sit with my feet up and pass
the time.
His rebellion soon showed in
his marks. From a child whose
marks were in the top percentile

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Profile
of his class he went down to zero.
His parents realized they had
no choice and asked the Jewish
Agency for help in finding a
suitable kibbutz.
One of my uncles suggested
sending me to an agricultural
dormitory, Mikveh Yisroel, which
was nearby. My parents agreed
and we went to check it out. At
first, the people there did not
want to accept me because of my
terrible marks, but the principal,
Dr. Gideon Katz, realized that it
was impossible for a child to get
a zero in every subject and he
accepted me on a trial basis for
three months in the weak class.
The expanses in the village, the
planting and harvesting, the work
with plants, got me going again.
It was a dream come true.
Of course, his marks went
back up. It was such a sensation
that the staff talked about it. He
turned on the burners and
within three months he was
promoted to the honors class.
Some more months went by and
local history was made when
Dahan was picked as head of the
student council even though he
wasnt yet in the highest grade. I
specialized in raising sheep, algae
and vegetables. I also worked in
the hothouses and in growing
flowers and ornamental trees.
When he finished school in
Mikveh Yisroel he was drafted
into an anti-aircraft unit in the
Air Force. His officers course
coincided with the outbreak of
the first Intifada and he was
called upon, together with other
soldiers, to man the Jenin district.
Every day we would deal
with rock throwing and Molotov
cocktails, but one incident stands
out for me. One day, we were
called to extract a collaborator
with the IDF from the village
of Arabeh which is near Jenin.
We went in a military command

car, six soldiers and me, their

commander. Intelligence was
obviously flawed because when
we arrived at the building,
hundreds of masked Arabs
attacked us with rocks and other
weapons of destruction.
Right off, the command car
was hit and we had to get out
and enter one of the houses and
defend ourselves there. But the
hoodlums chased us and we fired
the materials we had that are
used to disperse demonstrators.
That did not deter them and it
reached the point that one of the
soldiers was injured by a knife
which landed on him. When we
saw that, and that reinforcements
were delayed, I ordered my men
to use live ammunition. Thanks
to that, we retreated from the
village. The results were three
dead terrorists and others who
were injured.
The story made waves and
an investigative committee looked
into it and concluded that we
acted properly. But this incident
made a tremendous impression
on me and I decided to leave the
army.
Upon his release, he joined a
program which combines study
and volunteering on a kibbutz.
He moved to Kibbutz Ramat
Yochanan.
Those were days of selfsearching while being completely
disconnected
from
Jewish
tradition. When I met my
wife Michal, from one of the
moshavim in the Jezreel Valley,
we moved to live on a nearby
moshav and together realized
her culinary dream of opening
a gourmet catering service. It
quickly became the hottest thing
in the north. Many distinguished
people, including heads of state,
ate the food we prepared.
For years life was tranquil.
They did not lack for money or

prestige, but then came Yom

Kippur and changed everything.
Yom Kippur in those days
was not a reason to change ones
routine. On the contrary, all the
fixing up and jobs that needed to
be done to maintain the house
and the garden were postponed
for this day. That Yom Kippur,
we traveled to my in-laws and I
was on a ladder painting the tile
roof.
It was about five in the
afternoon, the time when shuls
are praying Nila. I was painting
when I suddenly began to leak
tears. I did not understand what
was happening to me. The tears
turned to sobs which welled
up from within without my
having any control whatsoever.
Suddenly the niggun Keil Nora
Alila played in my head that
I remembered singing when I
was boy standing next to my
grandfather in shul in Ohr
Yehuda. My legs trembled and
my teeth chattered. I got off
the ladder and took a shower
where I sobbed for a long time.
Thoughts raced in my head about
how I had deteriorated to such
an extent and had departed from
tradition.
A few days after Yom Kippur
I met a good friend, Erez Ovadia,
from the yishuv Gan Ner, and I
told him what I had experienced.
He suggested that I meet with
a rabbi. I was so distant at that
point that his suggestion seemed
unrealistic. What did I have to
do with a rabbi? But in the end
I agreed and went to a shiur
given by R Yitzchok Yadgar of
Taanachim. He spoke, and I felt
he was speaking to me. Start
coming regularly, he requested,
but in my great fear I disappeared
for half a year. When I couldnt
take it in anymore, I went back
to the shiurim and became one of
his regular students.

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He began neglecting his

previous
lifestyle
and
got
more involved with Torah. His
wife, who did not grow up in
a traditional home, did not
understand what had come over
him and wasnt particularly
cooperative.
R Yadgar always told me
not to pass my wife by, and
to do everything in ways of
pleasantness, and thats what I
did. In the meantime, we moved
to Ramat Yishai where I joined
the Chabad community led by
the shliach and rav of the yishuv,
R Yosef Yitzchok Wolosov. The
shliach arranged a Shabbos
Achdus in Kfar Chabad and my
wife agreed to join me.
The Dahans were hosted by
R Avrohom and Yaffa Kadosh
and had an inspiring Shabbos
with them.
On Motzaei Shabbos, there
was a Melaveh Malka and each
person was asked to make a
hachlata. I was flabbergasted
when I heard my wife say she
commits to keeping Shabbos
and to covering her hair. It was
completely unexpected. She
bypassed me and since then,
its all history. That was the
point of crossing the sea and
since then, we made further and
further progress in the ways of
Chassidus. The house changed
completely and we became
Chassidim. The ones who helped
us a lot in the beginning were the
Grossman family from Migdal
HaEmek whom we met through
the shluchim in Kfar Boruch.

EVERY PLANT HAS ITS

(JEWISH) SOURCE
Avrohom did not abandon
his love for nature and his strong
attachment to plants. On many
occasions he would go on trips
and walk the pathways of Eretz

A small selection of the spices and herbal remedies

Yisroel, collecting wild vegetation

for eating.
I especially loved visiting
the forests of the Jezreel Valley
in Ramot Menashe and other
open nature preserves. With my
involvement in Judaism, I learned
that every Jew is obligated to
harness his talents to instill
G-dliness in the world. Thats
when I decided to go back and
work in the field I loved. After
getting the Rebbes bracha, I left
my prestigious job as an hotelier
and began looking into who was
teaching about plants and their
properties.
It was obvious to me that if
it is going to be plants, then it
has to be those things which are
mentioned in the sources, for I
sought to be involved more in the
spiritual dimension of this field. I
looked for schools but not one of
them taught about plants in Eretz
Yisroel. There is one place that
teaches the properties of plants
in Indian medicine, a second that
teaches Chinese medicine, a third
for western medicine, but for
some reason I was not drawn to

any of this.
A few days later I learned
the daily Chitas and at the end
of chapter 8 of Tanya it says that
one who learns the wisdom of
the nations of the world lowers
the chochma, bina, and daas
of the G-dly soul to the depths
of klipa. I read this again and
again and realized why my soul
was not drawn to these secular
approaches.
By Divine Providence, he
came across a brochure which
said that in a nearby yishuv,
Beit Lechem HaGlilit, there was
a spice farm where they were
offering a course given by owners
of the farm together with a guest
professor of the history of Eretz
Yisroel at the University of Haifa.
The topic was Plants of Eretz
Yisroel and their Medicinal Uses
in Ancient Times.
I was thrilled and signed up
for the course, but when it ended
I felt that we had just begun, that
we had just touched the tip of the
iceberg, and I left with a feeling
of having lost out. Was a course

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Profile
that met six times all the Jewish
sources had to offer about the
properties of plants?
A short while later, I was
riding bikes with my son and by
mistake, I rode into the Volcani
Institute located in the area.
I looked around me and was
amazed there were fields of
herbs and spices. I spent a long
time looking around and decided
I wanted to volunteer in this place
because I would learn a lot. That
same day, I called the director,
Dr. Netiv Dudai. He accepted
me but was bit taken aback by my
religious appearance. He wasnt
used to religious people being
interested in plants but treated
me nicely. Once a week, for a
long time, I volunteered there.
I was like a child in a candy
store, said Dahan laughing.
From that point, he began
working with the plants most
devotedly. He was given the job
of mapping all the types of plants
that grew at the institute, which
gave him vast knowledge about
the names and categories of
plants.
At a certain point, I felt
frustrated as it seemed impossible
to me that the Jewish, traditional
medicine of plants and spices
disappeared. I met with men
in academia and they warned
me that it was hard work. You
will need to collect information
and shreds of information
from thousands of books and
manuscripts and figure out the
names of the plants. This did not
discourage me; I considered it a
challenge.
R Dahan set out on what he
knew would be a long journey,
but accompanied by the Rebbes
brachos he considered this work
a shlichus. There had been some
researchers, who had done work
in this field, but there still hadnt
been a comprehensive project

completed and he decided to take

it on.
I collected a list of hundreds
of plants that I knew grew in
Eretz Yisroel and began doing
botanical research, the first of its
kind. I dug around in university
archives, I visited libraries, I
dug up old books and immersed
in them for nearly six years.
Not a day goes by without my
involvement in this and without
discovering new things.
I gathered all the sources in
a five volume encyclopedia and
called it Talmud HaTzmachim.
The purpose of my research, as
a resident of the Jezreel Valley, a
gatherer of wild plants for eating,
a researcher of medicinal herbs
and the wilds of Eretz Yisroel,
was to make accessible Jewish
Herbal Medicine to the public.
Over the years, I found
impressive evidence at institutions
and academies, in botanical
gardens and agricultural places
of research. I also collected
thousands of bits of information
that were scattered throughout
the Jewish bookcase in Tanach,
the Mishna, the Talmud, Kabbala
and Chassidus, as well as ancient
medical
manuscripts
whose
origin is Jewish doctors and wise
men. I collected it all and edited
it in academic fashion.
Along with trips to fields
with medicinal herbs and spices,
I journeyed through time to the
magnificent Jewish medical past,
to holy sources and to ancient
medical writings of Assaf the
Doctor, R Shabtai Dunulo,
the Rambam, the holy Ari, R
Chaim Vital, Tuvia the Doctor,
Ezra HaSofer, Tuvia Katz, R
Nosson ben Yoel Falkira, R
Meir ibn Aldabi, and others.
To my surprise, I discovered
the connection between plants
and the soul powers as they are
spoken of at length in Chabad

Chassidus. I discovered that

spices have marvelous medicinal
uses when you understand their
medical properties and their
effect on the health of body and
soul.
A significant problem I
encountered during my research
was that the material is not
always written in Hebrew and
sometimes it is written only in a
peripheral context. But slowly,
while compiling and developing
my research method, the pieces
of information came together.
The various encyclopedia entries
tell us a story about Jewish herbal
medicine which is thousands of
years old and about what Jewish
medicine is about, i.e. a synergy
of body, soul and G-dliness.
Can you give us an example
of what made this work
difficult?
Ill take the yoezer plant as
an example. When the Jewish
people were exiled to Bavel, the
name changed to putnak. After
Alexander Mokdon conquered
Eretz Yisroel, its name changed to
minta bara. When Bavel declined
and the Jewish people moved to
settle in Spain, we see that its
name takes on Spanish aspects.
Rashi is very helpful for he often
explains the name of a plant in its
various permutations. He creates
a bridge so we understand which
plant we are talking about.
What did you discover about
the healing properties of plants?
In general, the medicine
back then was quite different
than medicine today. In Parshas
Noach it says, So long as the
earth exists, seed-time and
harvest, cold and heat, summer
and winter, and day and night
shall not cease. Rashi divides
this into two month periods: from
mid-Tishrei till Kislev is zera, and
from the middle of Kislev until
Teves is kor, etc. with six seasons;

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in each one, a person needs to eat

a different type of food.
The role of a doctor is not
to deal with symptoms as they do
today, but to make sure a person
is healthy by adjusting his food
intake to the seasons as well as to
the persons temperament.
Meaning?
A nervous hot-tempered
person, for example, should not
eat black pepper, mustard or
garlic.
R Dahan gives an example of
nigella, an herb of the buttercup
family. The growth and use
of nigella in Eretz Yisroel is
mentioned in sources 2800 years
ago. It is first mentioned as a
metaphor by the prophet Yeshaya
to arouse the people to tshuva
when Sancheriv, King of Ashur,
threatened the Jewish kingdom.
In the time of the Mishna
and Talmud, nigella is mentioned
as a spice for food and most of
its usage was to bake bread and
pastries. In the Talmud, nigella
is mentioned as a source of
preventative nourishment which
protects from heart disease.
Rabbi Chama bRabbi Chanina
said, one accustomed to nigella
does not have heart pain.

PLANTS FROM THE

PERSPECTIVE OF CHAZAL
R Dahan divides his work
into three parts: first, the writing
of his book; second, courses,
workshops and nature tours.
This is why you can meet him
as a staff member in the Hebrew
University Jerusalem Botanical
Garden and at Michlelet Orot in
Elkana and the Botanic Garden
of Tel Aviv University and other
academic platforms that have
become aware of his research and
articles. The third aspect of his
work, with which he is busy these
days, is his search for land where

During research in the Yericho area, he spreads the Seven Noachide Laws

he can set up a botanic garden

for plants and spices of Eretz
Yisroel.
What role does Chassidus
play in your work?
Chassidus
provides
the
finishing
touches
for
this
research. For example, take
the eizov (hyssop) which was
used when the Jews left Egypt.
Hashem commanded Moshe
to tell the Jewish people to take
a lamb for a korban Pesach and
the blood was to be smeared on
the lintel and doorposts with a
bunch of hyssop. The message is
that the slaughtering of the lamb,
the god of Egypt, the animal soul
and the revelation of the G-dly
soul is through the hyssop which
represents humility and modesty
(which is why it is used in other
ceremonies, such as purifying
the leper and preparing the ashes
of the red heifer and is a symbol
of purification, purge me with
hyssop and I will be purified).
Beyond
the
botanical
perspective and the perspective
from how it appears in the
sources, I bring ideas in

connection to its centrality to the

Exodus, when the Jewish people
were told to slaughter the lamb
and to take hyssop and dip it in
blood and smear it on the lintel
and doorposts. The message is
clear: in order to break through
from slavery to the Geula,
whats needed is: 1) a bundle
unification of forces, and 2)
hyssop modesty and humility
and tshuva. Real unity, humility
and modesty personally and
collectively are the key to the
Geula, then and now. If you want
success, act like hyssop, with
humility and modesty.
People from moshavim,
kibbutzim, and the field of botany
are exposed to these messages.
They have no Torah knowledge
and I provide them with this
connection which I got from the
teachings of Chassidus and the
sichos of the Rebbe.
R Dahan points out that
other researchers preceded him,
including Rav Burstein from
Machon Puah and Professor
Zohar Amar from Bar Ilan
University, but until now nobody
had done such comprehensive
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Profile
began my research in the field,
research which will be the final
chapter to all the research I did
on plants of Eretz Yisroel which I
will soon finish writing.

PLANTS IN
THE ERA OF GEULA

Prepared for a 15 Shvat lecture at Kibbutz Sdeh Eliyahu

research. Each one sufficed with

one narrow niche. He gives an
example to illustrate what his
research has brought to the field.
Lets
take
the
tzari
(persimmon resin). It is probably
the mythological persimmon
which grew in the Jericho
Valley. The tzari appears twice
in the Torah: in the sale of Yosef
when the Yishmaelim brought
tzari down to Egypt. Also, the
prophets use tzari as a metaphor.
During the war of Masada we see
the Romans taking three legions
of warriors to fight the handful
of rebellious Jews. Why did
they need to send such a large
contingent of soldiers there?
The reason which seems
likely is that in that area there
were many persimmon orchards
which served as a medicinal fruit
for a wide range of diseases and
the Romans were afraid the Jews
would take control of it. When
I opened the work of R Chaim
Vital, Shaar HaKavanos, in the
Drushei Birchos HaShachar,
he makes a parallel, quoting
his rebbi, the holy Ari, between
the spices of the Ketores to the
G-dly Sfiros. Tzari is Kesser,
kosht is chochma, mor is
chesed, charkom is netzach, etc.

Chassidus takes these sfiros

and draws a parallel to mans
soul and we can understand the
power of each plant. I note the
process in the encyclopedia.
Last year, R Dahan began
researching the grape, its
properties and its citations in the
sources.
Until the seventh century,
Eretz Yisroel was the biggest
exporter of wine in the world.
No wonder then that in every
archaeological dig they find
things associated with wine
production. When Dr. Shimmy
Drori of Yeinot HaBikaa heard
about the research Im doing, he
contacted me and told me that in
the digs in Tel Shiloh they found
grape vines and they managed to
revive them and they are starting
to blossom. Science today has the
ability to take shards of ancient
history and revive them.
I met with him and we
agreed that I would do the
research work and he would
provide the findings from the
site. It will be interesting to taste
wine from 1500 years ago and
earlier. I consider it closure,
for when I was in the dorm in
Mikveh Yisroel as a kid, I worked
in the vineyard. That is where I

R Dahan feels that the

world is ready for Geula. The
discoveries being made in the
field are only intensifying the
Jewish identity among the
researchers.
I dont hesitate to talk in
the language of Geula, to bring
Chassidus to my audiences, most
of whom are not religious and
even further than that. When
I show them the depth there is
to plants, based on sources in
Chazal and the Rishonim and
Acharonim, they realize that
Judaism is not what their teachers
forced down their throat over the
years. Just today I spoke with the
curator of the botanic gardens of
one of the prestigious universities
here. She wanted to hear about
my work and was amazed by
it. When your encyclopedia is
published, it will be placed on the
top shelf, she said. And she is
known as a thorough atheist.
According to R Dahan,
even the nations of the world
are connecting to the depth in
Torah including the medicinal
properties of plants. Among his
other activities, R Dahan works
with Bnei Noach and spreads the
Sheva Mitzvos:
Seven years ago, a German
company learned what Rabbi
Chama bar Chanina said about
the properties of the nigella
that is good for the heart. The
drug company checked this out
scientifically and was amazed by
the results and quickly patented
it. I understand they have already
begun marketing it there.

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CROSSROADS

ELECTIONS

5755
The Rebbe gave us a mission, and we
dont have the luxury of sitting idly and
lamenting over this governments failed
policies of fear and loathing. Instead of
crying over the hostile atmosphere, we
can offer a solution. With boundless love
for our Jewish brethren and unwavering
determination, we must act with all our
strength to bolster our efforts in doing
the Rebbes holy mivtzaim, giving the
Jewish People the special connection they
need so desperately the connection to
holiness, spirituality, and the Word of G-d
as brought forth in the Shulchan Aruch.
By Sholom Ber Crombie
Translated by Michoel Leib Dobry

1.
The Nineteenth Knesset,
recently dissolved after only
twenty-two months in office,
was the second shortest in Israeli
political history (only the Fourth
Knesset lasted less time). The
government established solely
on an agenda of hatred has
been sent packing. Yet, while
it served less than two years in
power, it has managed to cause
destruction that will take another

several years to repair. The

comrades in arms, who created
this government of hatred on
a program of Out with the
chareidim, have revealed for all
to see that while its quite easy
to despise someone, its much
harder to take steps toward
building something true and
long-lasting. Although they failed
to fulfill their great promise
before the last election to deal
with the high cost of living, they

did succeed in demolishing the

protective wall of Yiddishkait
and big time.
This government will be
remembered as an eternal
disgrace. During this truncated
parliamentary term, legislative
initiatives were proposed and
enacted into law that had been
shunned for many years. The
Knesset passed the Conversion
Law, which took authority for
conducting conversions away
from the chief rabbis of Eretz
Yisroel; a square for mixed
Reform prayer services was
established on the site of the
Western Wall in Yerushalayim;
the process began on dismissing
municipal rabbis who reached the
age of seventy in contradiction
of the halachic ruling stating
that it is forbidden to dismiss a
rav from his duties; the system
for registering marriages, which
served as a means of guarding
the entry to the Jewish People,
was wrecked in a most arbitrary
and irresponsible manner; the
passage of the malicious Military
Conscription Law designed to
cause untold pain and anguish to
yeshiva students; the slashing of
National Insurance Institute child
allowances for large families;
depriving Torah institutions of
desperately needed budgetary
allocations,
thereby
placing
their very existence in serious
danger for the past two years;
eliminating the Jewish culture
budget, which funded hundreds
of ultra-Orthodox institutions
offering Torah classes and
activities, replacing it with a
Jewish renewal program and
providing tens of millions of
shekels
for
non-Orthodox
study centers, including for the
Reform movement...
While this is just a partial list,
it clearly reflects the devastation
and ruin that this government has
left behind at every Jewish level
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CROSSROADS
and we havent even begun to
talk about the burning hatred
of discord that has prevailed in
Eretz Yisroel over the past two
years. Therefore, its good that
this evil government has passed
from the scene. Furthermore, its
good that the outgoing Knesset
will forever be remembered with
great humiliation as one of the
shortest in Israels parliamentary
history.
This was a government
born in sin. The only uniting
force that connected all factions
within the ruling coalition was
the appalling hatred towards the
ultra-Orthodox community. The
hi-tech worker from Raanana
and the media host from Tel
Aviv struck a deal: Lets kindle
the fires of hatred and well take
control of the government. While

designed to encourage army

enlistment among the ultraOrthodox sector became a
law designed to punish the
chareidim. Naturally, this law
didnt just fail to encourage
greater chareidi IDF enlistment;
it slowed the whole process
down.
Furthermore,
while
the Israel Defense Forces had
previously acquired tremendous
respect and honor even within the
ultra-Orthodox sector, chareidi
soldiers were now suddenly
embarrassed to walk through
ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods
wearing their army uniforms.
The rampaging hatred last winter
against the chareidi community
was so intense, it was already
quite clear that this law had no
connection to drafting yeshiva
students it was pure hatred

This was a government born in sin. The only

uniting force that connected all factions within
the ruling coalition was the appalling hatred towards the
ultra-Orthodox community.
many people today have already
forgotten this, just two years ago,
there were provocative banner
headlines agitating the public
at-large against the chareidim.
It was the kind of incitement
that no one had seen here for
sixty years. At every available
opportunity, the chairman of the
Bayit Yehudi Party made certain
to declare that he would take
the ministries of housing and
religious affairs from the ultraOrthodox and return them to the
people... In the pursuit of votes,
everything is permissible.
And what has happened
since then? They took control
of the government by storm,
but they didnt know how to
run the country... The military
conscription law turned into a
cruel joke. A piece of legislation

towards yeshiva students.

Even on other issues, the
government operated in stark
contrast to every reasonable
manner of public conduct.
Opening
marriage
districts,
granting recognition to Reform
Judaism at the Western Wall,
waging war against the Tzohar
rabbanim, the Conversion Law
all this was done in the most
crude and abusive fashion.
Instead of achieving the objective
of transforming the Jewish
religious issue into a cherished
legacy belonging to all sectors
of the population, they gave us
hatred towards rabbanim, hatred
of the ultra-Orthodox, and hatred
of every religious institution.
Anyone who claimed that he was
bringing the issue of improving
the rabbinate to the national

agenda in order to make religious

services in Eretz Yisroel more
gratifying to the general public
achieved the exact opposite.
Throughout the entire process,
a campaign of slander and
falsehoods was conducted against
religious services in Eretz Yisroel,
convincing more and more
currently non-observant couples
to give serious consideration to
the possibility of boarding a plane
for Cyprus.

2.
We can sit, complain, and
cry over the disagreements,
the grievous injury to religious
services, the trampling of Torah
institutions, and the drastic
reductions in child allowances,
bringing hunger to hundreds of
thousands of chareidi children. A
better course of action, however,
would be to supply the missing
elements. They brought greater
hatred; we can bring greater
love. They worked to instill
revulsion for Yiddishkait; we can
work to create a deeper sense
of Jewish awareness and bring
our fellow Jews closer to their
Father in Heaven. They brought
destruction; we have the strength
to build and repair.
The
Rebbes
mitzvah
campaigns are the best answer
to the hatred towards Jewish
tradition and the sowing of
discord left behind by the
aggressors of the past two
years. None of the harsh edicts
put forth by this government
can be an excuse for weakness
and despair. On the contrary, it
provides an excellent reason for
us to intensify our activities in
spreading Yiddishkait with even
greater force, while conveying the
clear message of reaching out to
more Jewish souls and preparing
the world to greet Moshiach
Tzidkeinu.

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We must connect the Jewish

People to their true and eternal
principles, uniting them around
the announcement of the
Redemption and the Redeemer,
as a means of strengthening
their faith and connecting
them to their roots. The simple
conclusion from the collapse of
this government is that true unity
can only exist in an atmosphere
of Torah values. Unity based on
hatred toward others eventually
led to this chaos. We must unite
the People of Israel around the
truest of all messages: Besuras
HaGeula in anticipation of
Moshiachs imminent arrival.
When confronted by hatred,
we must increase our efforts
in Mivtza Ahavas Yisroel.
When faced with the nonstop
persecution against religious
institutions, we must intensify
our campaign for greater study
of Torah, bringing it to each and
every Jew. When we see hungry
Jewish children going to school
with nothing to eat, we must
encourage fulfillment of the
mitzvah of Tzdaka and expand
the charitable activities of Chabad
Houses throughout Eretz Yisroel
and the world. When we bear
witness to the neglect of battei
midrash and their programs to
make Yiddishkait more accessible
to Jews thirsting for knowledge,
we must utilize all our resources

in providing proper Torah

education to our fellow Jews,
young and old.
The Rebbe gave us a mission,
and we dont have the luxury
of sitting idly and lamenting
over this governments failed
policies of fear and loathing.
Instead of crying over the hostile
atmosphere, we can offer a
solution. With boundless love
for our Jewish brethren and
unwavering determination, we
must act with all our strength to
bolster our efforts in the Rebbes
holy mivtzaim, giving the Jewish
People the special connection
they need so desperately
the connection to holiness,
spirituality, and the Word of G-d
as brought forth in the Shulchan
Aruch.
There can be no doubt that
the oppression we have seen over
the past two years is merely a
part of the process of Geula. As
the Rebbe once said, if they give
away portions of Eretz Yisroel,
this will become a depraved
country, and it is written in the
prophecies of the Redemption
that prior to the coming of
Moshiach, the sovereign powers
over the Holy Land will become
heretical.
The Midrash asks why did
G-d make it possible for the
magicians in Egypt to do the
same miracles and wonders

as those performed by Moshe

Rabbeinu, and then answers its
own question: If the Redemption
had come without giving the
Egyptian sorcerers a chance
to bring it on their own, they
would have claimed that the
Redemption was incomplete,
because they could have brought
it themselves. Therefore, G-d
enabled them to act using their
own powers the powers of
impurity. However, its clear that
since these powers were proven
to be limited, the Redemption
could not materialize through
them.
Even this government was
another stage in the process of
Redemption, another clarifying
phase en route to the ultimate
objective, when the prime
minister of Eretz Yisroel will
be Moshiach Tzidkeinu. As
the Rebbe said nearly twentyfive years ago to Israeli News
correspondent Oded Ben-Ami:
I do not mix into politics.
Furthermore, and this is the
main thing, I hope that very soon
the prime minister there will be
Moshiach Tzidkeinu. However,
for those very few moments
until Moshiach comes, it is
imperative that the approach be
like his approach has been: that
concerning all of the territories,
even the smallest part cannot be
relinquished.

ADD IN ACTS OF GOODNESS & KINDNESS

TO BRING MOSHIACH NOW!

www.MoshiachForKids.com
Check it out!! Educational and Fun!!
Issue 952

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2014-12-09 8:03:15 AM

TZIVOS HASHEM

S OLVING

A RIDDLE
By D Chaim

On Sunday, at the end of

the first lesson, our teacher
announced a new project.
Bezras Hashem, on Thursday,
there will be a project for the
students of our class. To start
with a challenge, you will need
to guess what the topic of our
project is. I will dictate a riddle
to you and the one who solves it
correctly will get a book.
The classroom was silent.
Our class loves riddles and
everyone wanted to win the
prize. The teacher waited until
we all took out pens and paper
and then he read from the
paper he was holding:
A mission was assigned right
from the start, and throughout
the generations they worked to
complete it. In every place they
went, the mission was carried
out and soon the dream will be
realized.
I wrote the riddle into my
notebook. When the bell rang, I
said goodbye to my classmates
and walked home as I thought
about the riddle.
was
I
day,
next
The
concentrating on the interesting
lesson when my attention was
suddenly diverted. A small
paper ball flew through the air
in an arc and landed on my
desk. I opened it curiously and

read the following: Tonight, at

7:30, we get to work. Itzik.
Ah, Itzik, the class mischief
maker. Only he would throw
notes in the middle of class
despite our teachers great
lessons. He had started paying
attention lately, but apparently
he still wasnt remembering the
rules of behavior during class.
The mitzva of judging others
momentarily
was
favorably
I
when
and
en,
forgott
ty
curiosi
my
it
bered
remem
wondered
I
aroused.
was
ng to. It
referri
was
Itzik
what
g.
excitin
d
sounde
I tried to guess which of
his good friends who sit near
me had been the one meant
to receive the note. It had to
be either Shmuli or Zalmy, I
concluded. I expected one of
them to ask me for the note
but no one did.
I sniffed an adventure and
the day passed by with me
looking forward to 7:30 that
evening. I decided to wait in the
yard of Itziks house at 7:00 so
I could follow him when he left
the house.
passed
minutes
Fifteen
and nobody left the building. I
almost gave up when suddenly
I could see Itzik passing by. I
waited a little bit and when a

safe distance opened between

us, I began to follow him.
Itzik walked quickly with
me after him until we arrived
at the park. So this was the
place Itzik and his mystery
friend had arranged to meet. I
wanted to know who the friend
was to whom he had sent the
note when I suddenly noticed
him and was taken by surprise.

The person Itzik met was

none other than our teacher!
What?! Itzik threw the note
toward the teacher? That
couldnt be!
My thoughts raced in a
jumble. I finally decided to put
aside the mystery of who was
supposed to receive the note
and focus on what Itzik and the
teacher were doing. After a few
minutes, someone else joined
them. I guess that is whom Itzik
meant when he threw the note.
It was Zalmy, as I had guessed
earlier.
They gathered round a large
table in a corner of the park
and the teacher took out some
poster boards, glue, scissors,
and colored markers. The three
of them got to work.
I carefully moved closer to
them while remaining hidden
behind thick bushes nearby. I
looked at the poster boards

34 20 Kislev 5775
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2014-12-09 8:03:15 AM

that they were working on

and noticed that they had
outlined a map which was now
being cut by Itzik into big puzzle
pieces. In the center of each
piece was a prominent mark.
I racked my brains to
figure out what they were
doing. After some minutes of
concentrated thinking I got
it! They were preparing the
project for Thursday! Now I
had the opportunity to find out
the topic of the project and to
win the prize.
At first, I had no idea why
the teacher had chosen to
prepare the project in the park,
but after looking around a
little, I noticed something in the
shape of a globe set up nearby.
I suppose that helped them
prepare the project.
On Thursday, during recess,
I sat with my notebook and
tried to understand the riddle. I
remembered one of the lessons I
had had in camp. I thought over
what I had seen in the park and
after a few minutes I knew
the answer.
first
the
When
the
of
lesson
a f t e r n o o n
over,
was
teacher
the
asked, Who
to
wants
and
try
guess the
t o p i c
the
of
project?

back of the class and usually has

a hard time understanding the
lesson, raised his hand. Yes?
the teacher said, as he called
upon him.
Dovid was a bit shy at first
but he got up his courage and
said, The mission assigned
from the start is to sift out
the sparks of holiness that are
all over the world. Throughout
the generations, we worked
to carry this out and to bring
holiness everywhere. When the
holiness permeates the entire
world, we will have the Geula.
So the project will demonstrate
this.
the
said
nice,
Very
teacher, praising his answer,
and he called him up to
take his prize. You must be
surprised about why I did not
respond. Wait a bit and you will
understand.
The teacher began the
very
was
which
project
fascinating. We

were divided into groups.

Each group was given a job and
when it was done, we got part
of the puzzle of the map of the
world. In the center of each
piece was marked the location
of a shliach of the Rebbe who
worked there.
After a long time the map
was completed and we could all
see how the Rebbes shluchim
fill every part of the world.
The message was clear. Today,
there are Jews everywhere in
the world who have brought
holiness to their place and the
world is ready for the Geula.
Now I can tell you that I
guessed the answer but decided
to forgo the prize. Now that
the world is full of the light of
holiness, I wanted to do a little
act to hasten the Geula. I am
sure that in the merit of the
small deed that I did, Dovid
was encouraged to go further
and will, with Hashems help,
be successful.

After
few
a
minut es
f
o
silence,
Dovid,
who sits
the
at

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