TRANSCENDENT CHESED IN THIS WORLD

Dear Reader sh’yichyeh,

In the HaYom Yom of 22 Cheshvan, that fell out on Shabbos Chayei Sara in the year 5704, the Rebbe writes: “One of the teachings of the Maggid of Mezritch, heard by the Alter Rebbe when he was in Mezritch for the first time, from late summer 5524 (1764) until after Pesach 5525 (1765):

“‘I (Anochi) have made the earth, and upon it created man.’ Anochi, He who is the true ‘I’, unknown to and concealed from even the loftiest emanations, clothed His blessed Essence through numerous condensations to give rise to the emanations and creatures, to Seraphim, Chayos, and Ofanim, angels and worlds beyond number. Through countless condensations, ‘I made this (physical) world and upon it created (barati) man.’ Man is the end-purpose of Creation, and barati is the end-purpose of man. (Barati, ‘I created,’ has the numerical equivalent of 613, the number of scriptural commandments).

“As (the book of) Pardes quotes Seifer HaBahir: ‘Said the attribute of Chesed (kindness) before the Holy One Blessed be He, Master of the Universe, since the days Avram has been on earth, I have not had to perform my task, because Avram stands and serves in my stead.’ This is because Avraham, a soul clothed in a body, occupying himself with hospitality to strangers as a means of disseminating the idea of G‑d in this lowly world, is actually on a higher plane and level than the attribute of kindness of Atzilus. The complaint (‘Said the attribute of Chesed before the Holy One etc.’) is an expression of envy of Avraham’s service by the attribute of kindness of Atzilus.”

This HaYom Yom reminds me of a story that the Frierdike Rebbe related on Shabbos VaYeira 5701. A storekeeper from Polotzk, a Chassid called R. Yisroel, once visited the Tzemach Tzedek in Lubavitch for Shabbos Parshas VaYeira. He was no scholar, but while there he listened to a maamer in which the Rebbe quoted the teaching that “Avraham Avinu was generous – with his body, his money and his soul.” In this connection the Tzemach Tzedek quoted a teaching of the Pardes in the name of Seifer HaBahir: “The Attribute of Kindness complained to the Holy One, blessed be He: ‘Master of the Universe! Ever since Avram has been on earth, I have not been required to perform my tasks, for Avram is there to function instead of me!’”

To this the Tzemach Tzedek added that Avraham Avinu, down here on earth, by means of his acts of material kindness, substituted the S’fira of Chesed of the World of Atzilus! From this it is clear that Avraham Avinu was superior to the Attribute of Chesed of Atzilus, because if Chesed of Atzilus were to be down here, it would not be able to vest itself in materiality; whereas Avraham Avinu did draw it down into materiality. And this was enabled by the superiority of an [embodied] soul, in the spirit of the mystical principle of birurim.

The scholarly maamer was beyond the grasp of this man, but those words permeated him so profoundly that he repeated them to himself until he had them memorized.

Now, in those days, whenever a Chassid came home from Lubavitch, his friends would welcome him home with a comradely farbrengen at which they would ask him what he had heard and seen there. Someone asked him, “Could you please repeat the maamer for us?”

“No,” he answered, “but I can repeat for you the few words that I memorized.”

This he did, and then went off as usual to his stall at the marketplace. Once there, he decided to call on his friend, Nachman, to ask for a gemilus chesed, a loan. Not that he needed the money: he just wanted to give Nachman the z’chus, the meritorious opportunity, to fulfill the mitzvah of gemilus chassadim. He then did the same with Yosef, another friend, and from then on, day after day, they would all borrow money from each other.

During R. Yisroel’s next visit to Lubavitch, the Tzemach Tzedek stepped out of his study, entered the beis midrash, and asked one of the gabbaim to point out to him R. Yisroel the Storekeeper. That gabbai had no answer, because R. Yisroel was not one of the better-known Chassidim. So the Tzemach Tzedek asked Chayim Ber, who said, “That’s R. Yisroel the Storekeeper from Polotzk,” and the Tzemach Tzedek asked that R. Yisroel be invited to enter his study.

When the Tzemach Tzedek questioned him about his daily routine, he said that he rose at five, read T’hillim, drank tea, chopped the day’s firewood, went off to the local Beis Midrash to daven, learned a chapter of Mishnayos, went home, had a bite of breakfast, and went to the marketplace. Late in the afternoon he returned to the Beis Midrash for Mincha, listened in to the daily shiur in Ein Yaakov, davened Maariv, and then went home.

The Tzemach Tzedek had another question: “Nu, and what about tz’daka?”

R. Yisroel answered that he was a poor man and had nothing to give – until the Tzemach Tzedek steered the conversation in the direction of his daily custom with regard to gemilus chassadim.

The Rebbe Maharash, who was particularly close to his father and lived in the same house, later took the liberty of asking his father, “What did you see on him?”

The Tzemach Tzedek replied, “Over Yisroel the Storekeeper I saw a pillar of light – from the Divine Attribute of Chesed of the World of Atzilus…”

It is quite amazing to me that this HaYom Yom is learned right around the time of the Kinus HaShluchim. It is the Shluchim of the Rebbe, in all cities and towns around the world, who have sacrificed so much to spread the light of Hashem to the world, that we can say about them “because Avraham, a soul clothed in a body, occupying himself with hospitality to strangers as a means of disseminating the idea of G‑d in this lowly world, is actually on a higher plane and level than the attribute of kindness of Atzilus.”

Yet, with every privilege comes tremendous responsibility. It is so important, when the Shluchim of the Rebbe – and the truth is that this is really relevant to every single Jew – gather together this Shabbos in Beis Chayeinu to receive a recharge of Chayus from the Rebbe for the Kinus HaShluchim that all remember the directive that we received from the Rebbe 25 years ago this Shabbos at the Kinus HaShluchim 5752.

“This then must be the practical lesson that results as we gather now at the opening and commencement of the International Convention of Shluchim.

“We must come out with a resolution and an announcement to all shluchim and to every Jew that the work of shlichus now is to lead to the greeting of our righteous Moshiach, whatever their capacity may be. This means that all the details of the work of shlichus in spreading the Torah and Judaism and spreading the Wellsprings of the inner teachings of Torah outward must be permeated with greeting our righteous Moshiach.

“This is as was emphasized in the program of the convention – ‘all the days of your life to bring the days of Moshiach.’ All aspects of Divine service (every day of your life, and in every day itself, in every detail and hour of the day) must be permeated with ‘to bring the days of Moshiach.’ It’s not sufficient ‘to increase’ (as stated in many places), or that he (the shliach) should stand and wait until Moshiach will come, at which point he will take part and have the satisfaction. Rather he is ‘to bring.’ He does all that depends on him to bring ‘the days of Moshiach.’ [The word ‘days’ is] in the plural, [meaning] not only the beginning of one day, but also the days of Moshiach; (and not only when Moshiach is ‘presumed to be Moshiach,’ but all the days of Moshiach, i.e. also the completion of “absolutely Moshiach” etc.)

“From the international convention must come and be brought good resolutions such that every shliach must prepare himself and prepare all Jews in his place and city, etc. to greet our righteous Moshiach. This should be done through his explanation of the concept of Moshiach, as explained in the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, in a way that it will be received by everyone according to his intellect and understanding. This includes in particular learning the subject of Moshiach and Redemption, and specifically in a manner of Wisdom, Understanding and Knowledge.

“And since this is the Divine service of the time, it is understood that this applies to every Jew without any exception whatsoever.

“Further and fundamental: since the work of shlichus has already ended, every Shliach needs to approach the true M’shaleiach, G-d, and declare: I have done my shlichus and now the time has come that You, as it were, should do Your shlichus (for G-d is also a shliach (“He tells His word to Yaakov, etc.”) and together with the ten S’firos (G-d, Himself, is the essence and being as it were of our righteous Moshiach). ‘Send now the one You will send’ – send us our righteous Moshiach in actual reality.”

Rabbi Avtzon is the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Lubavitch Cincinnati and a well sought after speaker and lecturer. Recordings of his in-depth shiurim on Inyanei Geula u’Moshiach can be accessed at http://www.ylcrecording.com.