In view of the interest aroused by Rabbi Herbert Weiner’s description of the Lubavitcher movement in his recent two-part article (March and April), we here present some “teachings” from various “Rebbes” of this particular branch of Hasidism. The founder, Shneur Zalman, taught that the spirit of Hasidism could be transmitted only through “vessels,” and that one such “vessel” was an accurate transcription of each Rebbe’s own writings, informal discourses, reminiscences, and songs, as well as anecdotes told about him. In line with this idea, the Lubavitcher movement has published numerous books and pamphlets recording the thoughts and experiences of Shneur Zalman and the six Rebbes (all descendants of his) who followed him as spiritual heads of the movement.

The excerpts below were selected and translated by Rabbi Weiner.—ED.

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—Rabbi Shneur Zalman

When Rabbi Shneur Zalman was in prison, the head of the prison noticed his noble bearing, and was cordial to him, often engaging him in discussions on religion and faith. Once the head of the prison asked: “What is the sense of God’s question, ‘Where art thou?’ Is it possible that God, Who knows all, needs man to answer His question?”

Rabbi Shneur Zalman replied: “The question should be understood in this way. The Holy One, Blessed be He, speaks to every man in every generation at every moment, and says to him: ‘Where art thou?’—what point have you reached, for so many years have passed you by, and still you have made no accounting of your world and your deeds.”

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—The “Middle” Rebbe, Rabbi Dovber

When people come for a private audience, and reveal the wounds of their heart, each revealing himself as he is, then the listener must search within his own self for every defect that is being exposed to him. It is not possible to give to him who has come to question us any advice or help, unless we first locate in ourselves that particular touch of evil, in however slight measure it may exist.

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—Rabbi Sholom Dovber, the fifth Rebbe

It is possible for a man to study some teaching in Hasidism with deep perception and sound understanding—really sound—and the teaching not only becomes a part of him, he becomes a part of it. With this teaching in mind he says his evening prayers properly, arises for the midnight prayers, even sacrifices his sleep because he is so engrossed; then, after all the preparations of the ritual bath, and contemplation, he deepens his understanding of the teaching; still he has not grasped the quality of Divinity which is contained in the teaching.

He knows very well the enormous difference between the understanding of the mind and understanding of God, and his lack of perception of the Divine causes him great sadness. He cries, implores, complains—in vain. All the gates are closed before him. The answer is, No! From above, they say to him: “You want to be one who understands—then be. But Divine Light we do not give you.”

Above, they say to the people of the mind, “You who seek My face, who seek the face of God through your wisdom and scholarship—be gone! Who asks that you trample my courtyards, that your gross self enter into the courtyard of light? Your monthly festivals and Holy Days, your subtle points of Torah, cause you to be the destroyers of the festivals; you compete one with the other in making fat his neighbor with ‘understanding.’ This My soul abominates. Therefore, even if you multiply your prayers, I will not listen.”

Prayer requires preparation of the heart, and this does not come about except through the sweat of the mitzvah, the commandment, and it is to this that the Bible refers when it says: “Wash ye, cleanse yourself,” through the sweat of the commandment. It is necessary to wash ourselves in tears in order to see the light of God.

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—Rabbi Joseph Isaac, the sixth Rebbe

One day in the summer of 1896, my father took me for a walk in the fields. The crops were ripening, a light breeze moved through the sheaves, the ears of corn nodded and whispered to each other.

My father said to me, “See, my son—Divinity! Each movement of every ear of corn, and of every tuft of grass, was anticipated in the primal thought of the first Adam, who could foresee the future of all the generations; and the Most High displays in all this His divine plan.”

We had gone into the forest, and I, absorbed in our conversation, stirred by the sound of my father’s voice and the purity of his words, had distractedly broken off a leaf from a tree and was holding it in my hand, tearing it to bits and dropping the pieces to the ground.

My father said, “The Holy Ari¹ used to say, apart from the fact that every leaf of a tree is a creature that has in it divine life, and was created by the Name, Blessed be He, for some predesigned purpose—there is also contained in every leaf a spark of some soul that has descended to this world in order to be redeemed.

“And now, regard how careful a man must be in this world, whether awake or asleep. For in what way is he who is awake different from the man who sleeps? In inner powers and feelings. Every person who sleeps has outer powers, but his inner powers are blurred. Is that not why one can in a dream see a thing and its opposite at the same time? And how do we know whether a person is awake or asleep? By the fact of the power of sight. He who is asleep does not see. He who is awake sees Divinity; he who is asleep does not.

“But a man is obliged to fulfill his task in this world, whether he be awake or asleep. See, even now, as we were speaking about Divine Providence, you absentmindedly plucked a leaf, held it in your hand, tore it into little pieces, and scattered the pieces to the ground. And is this proper—to treat the creations of the Holy One, Blessed be He, so lightly? The Creator, Blessed be He, wrought this creation too for some purpose, there is divine life in it. Within its own body is contained its own life. In what way is the ‘I’ of the leaf less than your ‘I’?

“Yes, there is a great difference. The leaf is in the category of the vegetative world, and you in the category of the ‘human.’ But everything created has its own end, and its Divine obligation to accomplish something in the world.”

It was then that my father began to explain the teaching of “A mosquito preceded [in the scheme of creation]”: “And the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdom have this advantage over man—that those in them are absolutely careful about their predestined function; each and every individual fulfills the upper will that was responsible for its creation.”

My father continued speaking to me on this subject for several days, during our walks, and afterwards began to speak about predestination and free will, explaining that the Knowledge on High did not deprive us of freedom of will; a man is always free to choose good and despise evil.

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¹ Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534-1572), the founder of a Cabbalistic school.

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