What Chassidim Should Ask For on a Yom Hilula

Welcome to our weekly Motzei Shabbos program.

The truth is, tonight is not a time for programs, or lectures, or philosophy, or discussions. It's Gimmel Tammuz. It's a time to be in shul. It's a time to learn Mishnayos. It's a time to farbreng. It's a time to go to the Ohel, and it's a time to make good resolutions. This is a Yom, a holy day — it's the Yahrzeit of our Rebbe.

So we'll try to maybe shorten this program a little bit. We'll see. And we have to go to the Ohel — we have to, at least — I mean, but since we have a program every week, I thought we'll also have a program tonight, even though we should be now at a farbrengen.

I just want to say here: the life of a Rebbe is not a physical life. It's a spiritual life, as it says in Tanya — the life of a tzaddik is emunah, yirah, and ahavah: faith, fear, and love.

When the Rebbe was in this physical world, these three things were in a gashmius, a physical place, and we were connected with him, and we received only a drop, through his speech, through his thoughts, through the guf hagashmi, the physical body.

But after his histalkus, when it goes out of the guf, the physical guf, as it says, now you can receive from him even more than before.

Therefore, it's easier to receive part of the spirit of the Rebbe — the love of Hashem and the fear of Hashem — because now it's after the histalkus, so you can get more than before.

And it's as I once heard. I heard that the Rebbe once told somebody — he went to be menachem avel [comfort a mourner] — and I think it was the Rebbe — and the Rebbe was asked, somebody asked the Rebbe, why do we call Hashem "Makom"? Because there's no place that He is not, right? But he could use a different expression. So the Rebbe answered: the reason it's called that is because every person has a makom, a place, in this world. Every person has a makom in this world. The person now passed away, so the makom is empty — the person is not here. But all the things that the person did in this world remain in that makom. So that makom, that place, is a comfort, because now it's even more than before.

We see, as was said, that this is true of all people, especially of a tzaddik, and even more of a Rebbe. And the connection the Rebbe had with the entire world — as Rabbi Mindel writes in Letter and Spirit. He writes in the introduction — I'm sure everybody saw Letter and Spirit, and by the way we have six volumes, the seventh volume is coming out soon — Letters of the Rebbe — and he writes in the introduction that the Rebbe wore three crowns. The Rebbe was a Rebbe of [unclear], the Rebbe was a Rebbe of all Yidden, and the Rebbe was a Rebbe of [unclear] — that's what the Rebbe [Rabbi Mindel?] wanted to make [known], which, by the way, we have — maybe we'll print it, you know, in the future.

So it's now easier to connect than before. So today is the Hillula. Why is it called Hillula? Hillula is really usually [the word for] a wedding. For Rashbi they call it Hillula. The Rebbe is the Rashbi of our generation. So it's a special time today.

We should take advantage of the 24 hours. We should learn Mishnayos, go to the Ohel, daven, and ask that Hashem should bless everyone — that there's much more each one should [receive]. And as we once mentioned, why first should [one ask]? Because if somebody has good children, then — and he has [unclear] good children — and whoever needs a [unclear] should have a [unclear], and whoever needs [unclear] should have it this year. And this is the time, today, by the Ohel, to ask for everything that they need.

Now I want to read to you a very short letter here about Gimmel Tammuz. We are approaching the holy day of Gimmel Tammuz, of the Rebbe. We should take to heart that this is an auspicious day to connect ourselves to the tree — to the Tree of Life. We should all merit that the light and merit of our Rebbe should shine upon us and the members of our families. The Rebbe, who dedicated and gave his life to lead and guide us in the circle of tzaddikim, the foundation of the world, to help us in matters of children, life, and sustenance. The Rebbe instructed us regarding a Hillula, that we should awaken and enter the gates of Hashem, which are the shuls, synagogues, and houses of learning and davening, gathering in love of friends, to strengthen learning and supporting Talmidim, all members of [unclear], and all who participate in the ways of [unclear] should stand together — you and your wives, sons and daughters, to receive the blessing of Hashem in abundance, blessings for life, livelihood, and nachas from your children. And Hashem, blessed is He, will bless, through our awakening, great compassion from the source of compassion, which is the Rebbe — will awaken and bless.

So now their influence and work is engraved for many generations. I don't know if there was ever a Rebbe that brought back so many Yidden to mitzvos — millions of Yidden.

The Baal Shem Tov came down to this world. Then there were pogroms, there were — people were fainting, and so there was the [unclear] movement, so people had doubts in emunah. So the Baal Shem Tov came down. His name was Yisroel. When somebody's fainted [has fainted], you call his name, he wakes up. So his name was Yisroel, to wake up — call Yisroel. We know what the Baal Shem Tov accomplished in this world.

But the communication then was not like today. He couldn't reach the entire world. But our Rebbe — after the Holocaust, people lacked emunah and they were fainting, people had doubts. So the Rebbe became — he revived them. That's why his name was Menachem, which means to comfort. He comforted not just part of the world, because they couldn't get to them, but he awakened the entire world, because today, baruch Hashem, the communication is different. So today is a very special day.

So the last thing that the Rebbe said was — he's speaking about Moshiach, that he really wanted Moshiach. People ask about Moshiach — I [think] everybody — and in his speech it was "Moshiach now." But the Rebbe made Moshiach real, that we wait every single day Moshiach will come, that Moshiach will come, takeh mamash.

Thank you.