Farbrengen 11 Nissan 5749, Kfar Chabad

00:06 Speaker 1 …

00:58 Speaker 2 Thanks to the Master of the Universe for that rare hour of grace 87 years ago, which lit the darkness of the night of exile and the gloom of the footsteps of Moshiach with a Divine light. On this day, words disappear. In their place comes a mighty song of the soul, bursting from the depths of the hearts of hundreds of thousands of Jews—tzaddikim and baalei teshuvah, the greatest scholars and ordinary people alike. All of them give thanks and sing of the wonder of this day and the miracle of this hour. The sweet singer of Israel said: “For the choirmaster, a psalm of David: You greet him with blessings of goodness; You place a crown of fine gold upon his head.” These words of the sweet singer of Israel, words King David spoke in joyful praise, beautifully express our joy—the joy of the Chabad chassidic family together with the joy of the entire people. “You greet him with blessings of goodness”: a song of thanks to Hashem, Who has greeted us with abundant blessings of goodness. “You place a crown of fine gold upon his head”: Master of the Universe, You have crowned us with our leader, our holy Rebbe, as with a crown of fine gold. On this day, 11 Nissan 5749, we mark 87 years of precious light shining across the world. Ladies and gentlemen, dear brothers, this day is a fitting and auspicious time to receive a great gift: the great gift of the revelation of holy light that came into the world on the birthday of the tzaddik. This accords with the words of the Midrash at the beginning of Parshas Toldos. The Midrash says there: “Joy upon joy when the tzaddik is born.” The emphasis in the Midrash is on the word “when.” The commentators explain why the Midrash added that word: each year, when that time comes around, there is joy and gladness in the world. The verse and the Midrash use the word “joy,” gilah. Gilah is related to giluy, revelation—the revelation of holy light, as we have said. The Rebbe shlita explains in one of his sichos that although a gift comes solely from the giver’s desire, and not as a result of the recipient’s efforts, nevertheless, the Rebbe says, our Sages stated: “If he had not brought him pleasure, he would not have given it to him.” In other words, even a gift, the Rebbe

04:48 Speaker 2 shlita says, is connected to the recipient’s efforts—to the pleasure he brought the giver. A gift, however great, is given only to someone worthy of it. Ladies and gentlemen, honored gathering: as brothers sit together here in Kfar Chabad, the center and capital of Chabad in our Holy Land, on the night following the great and bright day of 11 Nissan, let us resolve to be worthy of the great gift, the crown of fine gold, by bringing pleasure to His Holiness the Rebbe shlita. What brings him pleasure? How can we bring the Rebbe satisfaction? By devoting ourselves fully to all his concerns and holy activities, each according to his ability. Then we will merit the great gift, far beyond what our own efforts could have earned us. Dear brothers, together with all our Jewish brethren wherever they are scattered, let us offer a heartfelt prayer: “May my prayer come before You; incline Your ear to my song.” May Hashem strengthen the power and health of His Holiness the Rebbe shlita, and may he continue, with true satisfaction, to lead his students, his chassidim, and all of Israel toward the yearning of his pure soul and the yearning deep in the hearts of the chassidim: the true and complete Geulah, immediately—now. Amen, may it be so. And now, ladies and gentlemen, let us open our great celebration with the opening words of Chapter 88 of Tehillim, the chapter we began saying today. In his address at yesterday’s farbrengen, the Rebbe shlita spoke about its first two words, “A song, a psalm.” I ask the orchestra and the choir, together with the entire audience, to open our celebration by singing “And You Shall Rejoice on Your Festival.” Please.

07:44 Speaker 13 Ay… “And you shall rejoice on your festival, and you shall be…” “And you shall rejoice…”

10:15 Speaker 23 [unclear] “How good…” [unclear] “How good…” [unclear] “How good…” [unclear] Hey, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la. [unclear] Ay-la-la. Hey-la-la. [unclear] Thank you very much. Hey, hey. Hey-la-la. Hey, lai-la. Hey. Lai-lai, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la. Ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay. “How good…” [unclear] “How good…” [unclear] Lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai. Hey, hey. [unclear] Hey! Lai-lai, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la. [unclear] Hey, hey. Lai-lai, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la, lai-la. Ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay. [unclear]

14:20 Speaker 26 [unclear] Hey, [unclear]. Oy, [unclear], and things are going very well. Hey, lai-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la. Hey-da, hey-da, la-la-la. La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la. Hey, [unclear]. [unclear] a very good Jew. Hey, hey, lai, lai, lai, lai, la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la. Hey, [unclear]. No one can [unclear]. You have no desire, or even no money. [unclear] And even if he has no interest in it, [unclear]. And a good Jew, too. Hey, hey, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai, lai!

15:51 Speaker 27 How are you?

15:51 Speaker 28 Boruch Hashem.

15:53 Speaker 27 Did you bring Rivlin to me too? No, no.

15:55 Speaker 28 They brought me to Rivlin.

15:58 Speaker 27 All right. Thank you very much, and yasher koach to the Kol Hasimcha orchestra, conducted by Rabbi Cheshin, together with the choir of Chabad chassidim from Kfar Chabad. Ladies and gentlemen, we have merited to hold this great farbrengen and celebration here in Kfar Chabad. In one of his letters, the Rebbe shlita testifies about this very Kfar Chabad, writing in the name of his father-in-law, His Holiness the Frierdiker Rebbe, that he—the Frierdiker Rebbe—arouses great mercy for its residents and their families, for all who support it, for all who care about its development and success, and for those who share in their joy. He arouses great mercy for them and for all their families. I therefore have the honor of inviting the blessing of our host community from its esteemed local rabbi, the scholarly chossid Rabbi Mordechai Ashkenazi shlita. Please.

17:56 Speaker 29 As chassidim customarily do at a chassidic farbrengen, based on our Sages’ saying that sharing a drink brings people closer, chassidim always open a farbrengen by saying l’chaim. L’chaim, l’chaim! Honored rabbis, Knesset members, ministers, public figures, distinguished guests, dear and holy congregation: We have gathered tonight, at the close of the great and luminous day of 11 Nissan, the birthday of the leader of our generation, the Rebbe shlita of Lubavitch. May he be blessed with long and good years. This is a special day for us, a great day for all the Jewish people, and for the community of chassidim in particular. As the Rebbe shlita mentioned at the farbrengen on Shabbos in connection with this day, it is tied to his great initiative, which has spread to every corner of the world: the daily study of Rambam, divided into three chapters a day. We have already merited to reach the sixth cycle. And today—nothing happens by chance—in the lesson for 11 Nissan, we completed Sefer Hafla’ah and began Sefer Zera’im. We did not stop at completing Sefer Hafla’ah; at the very same time, we immediately connected it with the start of the two chapters in Sefer Zera’im. The Rebbe shlita explained the connection between Sefer Hafla’ah and Sefer Zera’im. And when we reflect on it, we see this special connection. What does it mean to be a Rebbe? What does it mean to be the leader of the generation? What does it mean to be a tzaddik who is the foundation of the world? Both of these things—all of these things—are alluded to in the words hafla’ah and hafla’ah in Zera’im. Hafla’ah comes from the word peleh, a wonder. Hafla’ah also means setting apart, separating. And yet, when we examine the Rambam, we find something that seems to require explanation. In his division of the laws, he included the laws of nezirus—where the Torah indeed says, “When a man makes an extraordinary vow, a vow of nezirus”—and then the laws of valuations, where the Torah also says, “When a man makes an extraordinary vow.” But between them he also placed the laws of oaths and vows in Sefer Hafla’ah. And then

21:50 Speaker 29 there are laws that are indeed related—the laws dependent on the Land, such as terumah, first fruits, the first tithe and the second tithe—which also seem to be founded on setting something apart, on separation. Yet he separated them and assigned them a book of their own, Zera’im. That does not mean they have no connection to Sefer Hafla’ah. On the contrary, as we see in today’s lesson, they are connected and united. There is hafla’ah in people—what is called, in yeshivah terminology, in the gavra—and there is hafla’ah in the cheftza, in the Land, in the laws dependent on the Land, in its fruits and in the seeds on which a person lives. They are the source, foundation and root of all a person’s sustenance. The tzaddik’s role and mission in the world is not merely to be like Noach, righteous for himself: to sanctify and purify his body and be like the outstanding sage of the Sanhedrin, so that anyone looking at him will stand in awe and say, “What a wonder!” A soul in a body, yet literally a part of G-d above. Hashem’s very Essence is revealed within him, just as Hakadosh Boruch Hu was revealed in His time between the poles of the Ark in the Holy of Holies. That was so for eight hundred and thirty years, and before that for forty—ah, for several hundred years in the time of the Mishkan. Then there are the tzaddikim of the generation, the leaders of the generation, of whom it is said, “They shall make Me a sanctuary, and I shall dwell among them.” Where are they found? Where is Hakadosh Boruch Hu today, when we have no Holy of Holies, when we do not have G-dliness openly revealed? When chassidim make a pilgrimage to the Rebbe, they fulfill the saying, “Just as he comes to see, so he comes to be seen.” But the tzaddik’s role is not merely to be extraordinary in himself. The role and mission of a tzaddik, and especially of the leader of the generation, is to elevate the generation, to transform the Land and the world, to refine and purify the world and prepare it for the coming of our righteous Moshiach. And anyone who sees and considers the great transformation that has taken place in the world over the past decades will see

24:44 Speaker 29 that even those who oppose, even those who trample on it, even those who laugh and those who mock, also take up what he envisioned and what he accomplished decades earlier. The difference is this: As explained in the holy maamar published for 11 Nissan this year, some draw their sustenance directly, while others draw it from the back. But ultimately, both holiness and its opposite, kelipah—the opposing side—have their source and root in the tzaddik and in holiness. Fortunate is the one who draws sustenance directly; woe to the one who draws it from the back. This is the tzaddik’s role and mission: to prepare, refine and purify the world. We see this with terumah, and with setting aside the tithe, the second tithe, first fruits, challah and so on. A person takes something that was ordinary. It was no different from the other wheat, no different from the other seeds, no different from the other fruits. Through the power of a Jew, he confers holiness upon it. The thing becomes holy; he brings holiness into the physical object itself. That is the power of the tzaddik, the power of the leader of the generation: to bring holiness down, not leave it floating in the air, but invest it in the physical world, in the entire world. And we see this tangibly. Today we can approach Jews and see how ready they are to receive. The whole world is ready to receive—ready to receive Torah, ready to receive the mitzvos. We can take the world by storm through the spread of Torah and Yiddishkeit. How has this happened? How has the world suddenly become prepared for it? How did the world come to be ready? How is it suddenly ready for this? Only through this hafla’ah, through the outstanding sage of the Sanhedrin. Not only is he himself extraordinary in his generation; Hashem has done wondrous and great things in our generation, for

27:01 Speaker 29 He sent us the Rebbe shlita’s holy soul on 11 Nissan. All of us at this farbrengen, gathered here together, wish him long and good years. May he reign for many years and lead us to greet our righteous Moshiach very soon.

27:31 Speaker 30 Blessings and thanks for the host’s greeting to the local rabbi of Kfar Chabad, the distinguished chossid Rabbi Mordechai Ashkenazi shlita. Thank you, and yasher koach! And now, ladies and gentlemen, a brief announcement before we continue the program. Since this is an evening full of blessings, and we want to hear everyone’s blessings, the program is very long, and we want to hear a blessing from each and every person here and from those yet to arrive. So we will have to shorten the musical selections a little and leave more time for spoken words. We also ask all those offering blessings to give us the concentrated essence, so that from it we can bring many more blessings into our homes. Let each speaker convey their blessings concisely—everything we have been hoping to hear—and we will take those blessings home to our families for the whole year. Ladies and gentlemen, our first speaker, fittingly in the order of the Torah, will give us a kohen’s blessing. We will now hear a blessing from the chief rabbi of Be’er Sheva, the distinguished Rabbi Eliyahu Katz shlita. Please.

29:24 Speaker 31 Ladies and gentlemen, honored rabbis, honored Knesset members, holy congregation—each according to their standing. It has already been said of kohanim that they are quick, but no one has yet said that they are brief. I must prove that we can be brief as well. I really do intend to be brief. “Whether one gives much or little, provided one directs one’s heart to Heaven.” As you wrote in the invitation, today’s farbrengen marks the eighty-seventh birthday. So, as a kohen, I think it fitting to explain a little of the verse of King David, the sweet singer of Israel: “For You greet him with blessings of goodness; You place upon his head a crown of fine gold.” Ladies and gentlemen, on my way here we passed Gan Shlomo, but when I entered Kfar Chabad, I knew I was entering a little Jerusalem. You may ask, “How can you be so sure?” It is simple and clear. Jerusalem is the City of David, and what is the numerical value of Chabad? The same as David. So if it is Kfar David—Jerusalem is the City of David, and Kfar Chabad is the Village of David. Ladies and gentlemen, we want to speak about the eighty-seventh birthday, a crown of fine gold. I would like to explain a little of what the Chida writes in his commentary on Tehillim and quotes in several places in his books: the Priestly Blessing contains exactly eighty-seven words—no more and no less. Eighty-seven words. The calculation is a little difficult, but when the Chida said it, he knew what to count and what not to count. And I think it is very fitting. Why? The Priestly Blessing ends with “And I will bless them.” When we take ani and Ad-nai, what do we get? What is the value of Ad-nai? Sixty-five. Ani is sixty-one, and twenty-six is twenty-six. What is sixty-one and twenty-six together? Exactly eighty-seven. So I, as a kohen, an ordinary kohen, send my blessing to the Rebbe: may he merit more and more crowns of fine gold, crown upon crown befitting him. And I want

33:17 Speaker 31 I would like to say one more thing in honor of the occasion. To keep it short, one way is to write a few words on paper; then you know you won’t go on too long. So I want to conclude with a few words I wrote at the beginnings of the lines. On this bright day, 11 Nissan, blessings like a crown of fine gold. On this bright day, 11 Nissan, in this year of goodness according to the full count. Five thousand, seven hundred and forty-nine—this very year, 5749. In this year of goodness according to the full count. May we merit goodness, may we merit the coming of Moshiach Tzidkeinu, and may we merit the building of the Beis Hamikdash. Now the lines according to the letters: Behold, the light on this bright 11 Nissan grows brighter at a great farbrengen for old and young, from north and south, from village and city. Today is the Rebbe’s birthday, [unclear]. May the Merciful One, in His mercy, protect him. Together we must voice the request: May our righteous Rebbe flourish like a palm tree. The eleventh of the spring month is very dear to us all. In old age may the Rebbe still bear fruit, with strength ever increasing, bringing good tidings. [unclear] the crown. The year of eighty-seven, in holiness and purity. This is a kohen’s blessing of eighty-seven, given with love. May it be His will. And a kosher and joyous Pesach. Yasher koach, yasher koach for the Torah, the wisdom, and the delightful insights of the distinguished Rabbi Eliyahu Katz shlita, rabbi of Be’er Sheva. And now, ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to invite our distinguished guest, the rabbi of Akko, the distinguished Rabbi Yosef Yashar shlita, to offer his blessing. Please.

36:02 Speaker 3 With the permission of the esteemed mara d’asra, the distinguished Rabbi Mordechai Ashkenazi shlita; with the permission of all the honored rabbis, the members of Knesset, and everyone at the head table; my teachers and friends. Is there anyone who does not sense it? Is there a Jew who does not feel, on this bright day, the golden lights shining upon the Jewish people in every corner and every place? We sense it, we feel it, and we are part of the light shining in every corner of the world. The Midrash says: Anyone who fails to acknowledge the good done for him by another person—if someone is capable of denying it, of failing to show gratitude for the good done for him by another person, he may come to a point where he fails to acknowledge the good done for him by Hashem. And the Midrash says that we learn this from Pharaoh, of whom it says, “Who did not know Yosef.” Pharaoh ignored Yosef’s kindnesses; Pharaoh ignored what Yosef had done, and in the end declared, “Who is Hashem that I should heed His voice?” We are Jews. Is there a single Jew in the world today who does not sense and feel the tremendous good the Rebbe shlita has done for him? Is there a rabbi today, in some corner of some community, who can lead his rabbinate and his community without sensing the good the Rebbe shlita has done for him? Let anyone who says he does not recognize the good the Rebbe shlita has done stand up! We stand here with feelings of gratitude, because the entire Jewish people owe a debt to the Rebbe shlita. The Jewish people benefit from the Rebbe shlita’s light, radiance, holiness, majesty, and splendor. May Hashem grant him long years of goodness and pleasantness. Surely we all—the entire Jewish people, every Jew individually, and all Jews together—can unite today in prayer to the Creator of the world: Master of the Universe, send blessings, blessings of nachas and long life to the Rebbe shlita. The world needs him so much; the world benefits so much from his splendor, his light, and his radiance. This is the prayer we offer on this bright day, a prayer from the heart, a prayer of true Jewish unity, a prayer of hearts united

40:17 Speaker 3 before the Creator of the world. To send, to send that blessing there, to the Rebbe, for long life and many years.

40:37 Speaker 4 Blessings and thanks, and yasher koach. Yasher koach once again to Rabbi Yosef Yashar for the beautiful words, the blessings, the goodness, and the gratitude he has brought before us. This evening, before that, before the next part, a song and a psalm. As the Rebbe said yesterday at the farbrengen, we sang a song aloud and a psalm from Tehillim. Now that we have heard the song aloud, let us turn to the psalm from Tehillim. The orchestra and choir, “May the righteous flourish in his days,” please.

41:40 Speaker 5 May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Ah, ah, ah, hey, hilili tayta, hilili tayta, hey tay, tay, tay, tay, tay, hilili tayta. Ah-ah, hoy, hoy, tsay! Hey, hey, hilili tayta, hilili tayta, hey, lay, lay, lay, lay, lay, hilili tayta. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Ah, ah, ah, hey, hey, hoy, hilili tayta, hey, hilili tayta, hey, lay, lay, lay, lay, lay, tay, hilili tayta. Ah, hey, hey, hey, hey, hilili tayta, hilili tayta, lay, lay, lay, lay, lay, lay, hilili tayta. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Everyone! Hey, hop, hey, hey, hop, adiday day da, adiday day da, ay ay ay ay ay ay ay, adiday day da, ah hey, hey ya

45:10 Speaker 5 ya, adiday day da, hey adiday day da, ay ay ay ay ay ay, adiday day. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah, adiday day da, adiday day da, ay ay ay ay ay ay ay, adiday day da, ah ah ah. Adiday day da, adiday day da, ay ay ay ay ay ay ay, adiday day da, ay ay-hey rayday dayda rayday day day. Hey day day day day. Hey day day day day. Hey day day day day day day. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. Hey hey rayday dayda, hey hey rayday dayda. Hey hey hey hey rayday day day day. Ha ha hey day day day rayday dayda rayday dayda. Hey day day hey day day day day day day. Hey day day day hey dayday day. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Where are you? May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Aha aha aha aha hey, hari rayk da hari rayk da, ay da ay da ay da ay da ay da aha hey, heyda heyda hari rayk da hari rayk da

48:39 Speaker 5 ay da ay da ay da ay da rayk da. Hey, may his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed—is that it? Hey! May the righteous flourish in his days. And may peace abound until there is no moon. May his name endure forever, hey! Before the su—listen, everyone, let’s dance together. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Hey, heyda heyda hey, heyda heyda heyda heyda. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed, just like that. Aha aha aha aha hari rayk ya hari rayk ya ya ya ya ya hari rayk ya. Ah hey, hey kayk ya hari rayk ya hari rayk ya. Hey, ay ay ay ay ay ay. Ay ay ay ay ho di di di. Ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Ah hey, hey, lay, ya ya hey, lay, ya ya-yaya yaya hey, lay, ya-ah hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, lay, ya ya, lay, ya ya-yayaya hey, layla la haya. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. Where are you? Hey! May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. Heyda! May the righteous flourish in his days, and may peace abound until there is no moon. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed. May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.

52:07 Speaker 5 … No, “In his days may the righteous flourish, and may there be abundant peace until the moon is no more.” “In his days may the righteous flourish, and may there be abundant peace until the moon is no more.” “May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.” “May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.” … “May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.” “May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.” “In his days may the righteous flourish, and may there be abundant peace until the moon is no more.” “In his days may the righteous flourish, and may there be abundant peace until the moon is no more.” “May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.” “May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.” … “May his name endure forever; before the sun, may his name flourish. May all nations be blessed through him and call him blessed.”

55:21 Speaker 5 May he live, may he live forever and ever. [unclear] May he live, may he live, may he live forever and ever. [unclear] May he live, may he live, may he live forever and ever. [unclear] … Come on, in a moment. … Day by day, [unclear]. … Come on, in a moment. Day by day, [unclear]. … Come on, in a moment. … Day by day, [unclear]. … Come on, in a moment. Day by day, [unclear]... And, ladies and gentlemen, amid this magnificent, moving singing, allow me to pass on a proposal that has just reached the stage. It is the proposal of the distinguished scholar and chossid, Rabbi Moshe Ashkenazi shlita: so that the prayer “In his days may the righteous flourish” be fulfilled and strengthened, each and every member of Anash should undertake to put one coin each day into a Rabbi Meir Baal Haness tzedakah box, and say: “For the merit and long life of the Rebbe shlita, for many good years, and may the righteous flourish

59:17 Speaker 5 in his days.” And amid this singing, I have the honor of inviting our distinguished friend and esteemed guest, Professor and Minister Avner Shaki, to address us. Please.

59:49 Speaker 6 Honored Rabbi Ashkenazi, honored rabbis, my friends in the Knesset, wonderful, holy gathering. I assure you that across the entire globe, on every continent, in every country, wherever Jews are found, there is no joy like the joy Chabad knows how to celebrate. No other community knows how to rejoice like this. Our Sages say: Whoever has not seen the joy of the Simchas Beis Hashoevah has never seen joy in his life. We would not be mistaken to say today: Whoever has not seen Chabad’s celebrations does not know what the joy of a mitzvah is. I will never forget my first meeting with the holy Rebbe shlita. He spoke to me about warmth—warmth. He told me: Know that the most essential thing in Judaism is warmth. It is a warm faith. And therefore, with Hashem’s help—this was on the question of “Who is a Jew?”—we must not despair, he said. Through faith, struggle, determination and perseverance, with Hashem’s help, we will succeed. And on this day, his birthday, from every Jewish home in the world a call will go out to the Creator: “Grant a long and happy life to the greatest tzaddik of our generation, the Lubavitcher Rebbe shlita.” Amen and amen. My friends, ladies and gentlemen, today the people in Israel are confused. The people in Israel are torn over the great questions: questions of religion and state, the future of Eretz Yisroel, and our relationship with the Arabs of Judea, Samaria and Gaza. How wonderful it is, on this day when we all benefit from the light of the Rebbe shlita, to say this: His greatest contribution—he has so many contributions, and who can assess them, who can measure them, who can count them? But among his greatest contributions is genuine Ahavas Yisroel, without limit or end. Today the people need true love, love without calculations, love without scorekeeping, love without party divisions—pure, unalloyed, genuine Ahavas Yisroel for its own sake. This is the righteous man of our time, who embodies Ahavas Yisroel at its highest. And I believe that, especially in light of the past few weeks, every

1:03:06 Speaker 6 Jewish home will come to understand that if there is a fortress of Ahavas Yisroel in the world, if there is a spring, a wondrous, flowing spring, wholly devoted to “Love your fellow as yourself”—of which Rabbi Akiva said, “This is a great principle of the Torah”—it is here. The one who lives this with every one of his 248 limbs and 365 sinews, who educates an entire generation by its light, before whom even non-Jews bow their heads because of his contribution to educating the generation, to educating the young, to teaching love for one’s fellow human being—that is the holy Rebbe shlita. His birthday is a day of celebration for us all. It is a day of celebration for the State of Israel, with all its parties, organizations, factions and disagreements. There is a fortress that unites and brings people together, that gives strength, resolve and faith. May it be Your will, Creator of the world, to grant this greatest tzaddik of our generation the strength, the vigor, the health, the ability and the many years to bring us closer to the Geulah. May it be so. Amen and amen.

1:04:44 Speaker 7 That applause, that acclaim, is for you, Professor and Minister Avner Shaki, for your heartfelt words. “The words of the wise are gracious.” And today is Professor Avner Shaki’s day, though only by way of a hint: our nasi is, after all, “Asher,” the initials of Rabbi Avner Shaki. So yasher koach to you, Avn—Rabbi Avner. Someone told me earlier: Don’t call him professor or minister. Call him the chossid Reb Avner Shaki. Yasher koach, Reb Avner. My teachers and friends, dear brothers, a full year later we are still under the tremendous impression made by the words we heard here last year from a great friend of Chabad. And everyone is guessing who that force in the Knesset is. Knesset member and friend of Chabad, Rabbi Avraham Verdiger, please. Excuse me—Rabbi Tanchum Borshinsky[?], you are needed outside most urgently.

1:06:12 Speaker 8 Honored chairman, honored local rabbi, my friend Minister Professor Avner Shaki, members of the Knesset, the mayor of Netanya and his deputy, rabbis, dayanim, my teachers and esteemed guests. I would like to say a few words from the Rebbe shlita about the meaning of a birthday. We—I, at any rate, remember the years before the Holocaust. We did not know, understand or attach importance to the whole subject of a Jew’s birthday. We knew of Pharaoh’s birthday, and perhaps that is why we did not understand the significance of a Jew’s birthday. Then the Rebbe shlita came and brought home to us, and to the Jewish people as a whole, the meaning and importance of a Jew’s birthday, and what every Jew can put into this vessel called a birthday. In his sichos, the Rebbe shlita discusses birthdays at length as one of the ways to fulfill the command, “They shall make Me a sanctuary”—so that even a Jew’s everyday belongings become a sanctuary. Therefore, the Rebbe says, it is worthwhile for every Jew—men, women and children—to adopt this custom and celebrate a birthday in a way connected with Torah and mitzvos. Although a birthday celebration, the Rebbe says, may seem to be a mundane matter, a Jew has been given the power to use his birthday: instead of letting it pass as just another ordinary day, he can make it a Yom Tov. And there is no good but Torah and its mitzvos. Every Jew can use the day to recall his past and reflect on it, and to do teshuvah and correct whatever needs correcting. On that day, the Rebbe shlita says, he should also add to his Torah study, his service of Hashem, his davening, his giving of tzedakah and his observance of mitzvos in the most beautiful manner. In addition to all this, the Rebbe instructs us to hold a joyous Chassidic farbrengen with our families, friends and others, so that the good resolutions made on a birthday will be made with joy, which will in turn help us carry them out. My teachers and esteemed guests, how great and holy this idea

1:09:46 Speaker 8 is! How the Rebbe guides and teaches us, each and every one of us, to use every opportunity to increase Torah, fear of Heaven, service of Hashem, kindness and tzedakah. This is how he educates the entire Jewish people. An “ateres paz,” a crown of fine gold, was mentioned here. Indeed, this is a crown of fine gold—the crown of the Rebbe, who guides and directs the entire Jewish world, in the Holy Land and throughout the world. From here, we send the Rebbe shlita our blessing: may he have good health and strength; may Hakadosh Boruch Hu give him strength, fortify and sustain him, and lead us toward our righteous Moshiach, speedily in our days. Amen and amen. At this opportunity, thanks and gratitude to our distinguished friend, a friend of Chabad, a Chabad chossid, Knesset member Rabbi Avraham Verdiger. In Hebrew, the initials of “Knesset member” spell “strength.” We have already said that he is Chabad’s strength in the Knesset. Besides, the numerical value of “strength” is twenty-eight, and “friend” also equals twenty-eight. But despite all these signs, Rabbi Verdiger needs no signs. Yasher koach. Still under the impression of what we heard from Mr. Verdiger shlita, I received a note saying that this evening, at the Western Wall, opposite the Holy of Holies, a minyan of Jews happened to gather. Of course, we do not believe in coincidence, but in Divine Providence. Together they recited Psalm 88. And now, ladies and gentlemen, a song—a Chassidic farbrengen, as is the custom of chassidim on a birthday. The orchestra, the choir, the audience, the adults, the young people and the children, all together: “From Egypt He redeemed us.”

1:12:32 Speaker 9 From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt He redeemed us, from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. Hey! From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. Ay. From Egypt He redeemed us, from the house of bondage He freed us. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. Hey, from Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt and from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. He redeemed us, from bondage He freed us. From Egypt He redeemed us, from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, from the house of bondage He freed us. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt, from Egypt. The Jewish people. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egyp— From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egyp— From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egypt. And from bondage He freed us. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egypt. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egyp— From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt? Ay, from Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egypt? Ay, from Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egypt? From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us. From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt, from Egyp— From Egypt He redeemed us, and from bondage He freed us, from Egypt. Thank you very much to the choir, and thank you very much to the orchestra. And now, honored audience, it is a special pleasure to welcome a great friend

1:17:00 Speaker 9 of Chabad, who assists and helps the Rebbe’s shliach in the great city of Netanya. I have the honor of inviting the mayor of Netanya, our distinguished guest Mr. Yoel Elroi, to bring the greetings of the city of Netanya. Please. The Chassidic rabbi, the righteous Rabbi Yitzchak Kogan, is invited to come up to the stage. Please.

1:17:41 Speaker 10 Honored Rabbi Ashkenazi shlita, honored rabbis, members of the Knesset, deputy mayor of Netanya Rabbi Shimon Sher, holy congregation. I do not know what I have done to merit an invitation to offer greetings on the birthday of the Rebbe shlita. I assume this privilege has its origins in 8 Kislev 5748, when I first saw the light of the Rebbe’s face up close and heard a message from him. I came to the Rebbe as the mayor of Netanya, to bring him the greetings of the city’s residents and dignitaries and to serve as his messenger in conveying his greetings to them. After a few introductory sentences, the Rebbe said the following to me, and I quote his words verbatim: “Netanya is a city whose name tells its story: it was given by Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and He dwells within it. Your own name, Elroi, attests that within you is a great city in Israel, to the glory of G-d and man.” Those were the words of the Rebbe shlita. I hurried to write them down, and when I returned to my city, I made them a guiding light in my public work. Indeed, holy congregation, anyone familiar with the atmosphere in Netanya knows how deeply it is imbued with the Rebbe’s principles: tolerance, Ahavas Yisroel, concern for every person’s difficulties and struggles, and a constant effort to help both spiritually and materially. Why did I attach such great weight to the Rebbe’s message? After all, I could seemingly have regarded his words as mere courtesies. For many years, my teachers and esteemed guests, I have followed the Rebbe’s achievements in making Chabad a source of light and hope for individual Jews in Israel and the Diaspora. In my visits to Jewish communities around the world, I have seen that Reform, or so-called liberalism, will not ensure the eternal existence of the Jewish people. The beis midrash, the shul and community activity in the spirit of the Torah of Israel will do that. I therefore see the Rebbe shlita as the greatest and most distinguished Jew on earth. The worldwide work of the Chabad movement

1:21:33 Speaker 10 under his inspiration and guidance has no equal, and it is the chance—perhaps the one and only chance—to bring those who have lost their way back home. Honored guests, holy congregation. About two months ago, as you know, local elections were held. Many of my fellow mayors were naturally nervous before the votes were counted. Some were bitterly disappointed when the results became known. Allow me to tell you that I was more fortunate. On the eve of election day, I received the Rebbe’s blessing. It contained clear—remarkably clear—hints of an unprecedented achievement and great joy the next day. I was therefore calm and at peace. And indeed, when the votes were tallied, the achievement proved unprecedented, and all my supporters, including the Chabad people, rejoiced greatly. It is thus an honor for me to be here now among such eminent people and, before this entire audience, to bless the Rebbe shlita with good health and long life: a life of goodness, a life of blessing, a life in which the One Who dwells on high fulfills all his heart’s wishes for the good. A kosher and joyous Pesach to the Rebbe shlita, to the Chabad chassidim and to the entire Jewish people in Israel and the Diaspora.

1:23:45 Speaker 11 All the blessings, all the thanks, all the applause are for you—the prolonged applause. May it continue for you, the mayor of Netanya, Mr. Yoel Elroi. May it be Hashem’s will, first of all, that you fulfill the Rebbe’s blessing for the city of Netanya: that it become a great city in Israel, with the Shechinah resting in every corner, together with the Rebbe’s shliach in the city, Rabbi Wolpo, may he live and be well. And from this great farbrengen—the Alter Rebbe said that a Chassidic farbrengen has more power to accomplish things than an angel—let us pray and say that all the mayors will learn from you, Mr. Yoel Elroi, and that all the cities in Israel will become renowned and glorious, with Hashem’s Shechinah in their midst. You have been chosen tonight to represent them all by virtue of your initials, Y.A.—11 Nissan—the representative of all the mayors. May all the mayors learn from you. And now, ladies and gentlemen, with your permission, I have the honor of inviting the rabbi of Kiryat Malachi, the distinguished scholar and chossid Rabbi Aryeh Gershon Koren shlita, to bring the blessings—Gershon Koren shlita, to bring the blessings of Kiryat Malachi. Please.

1:25:54 Speaker 12 I’ll tell a little story. Before Seder night, the Bnei Yissaschar used to walk around his town. He loved hearing how Jews conducted the Seder. As he was walking, he suddenly heard a simple Jew reading the Haggadah. This Jew had learned in cheder, and he knew that when you say “one,” you have to say “one.” So what did he say in the Haggadah? “One wise, and one wicked, and one simple, and one who does not know how to ask.” Everyone stood there laughing and saying, “Well, he’s put the Shema into the Haggadah, and he’s put the four sons into the Shema.” One of the tzaddikim said that this story is not so simple. In truth, through the “one” of Shema—when there is unity and faith—we can elevate the wise son, pull the wicked son out of his mud, elevate the simple son, and raise up the one who does not know how to ask. And, I think, Rabbi Yissachar Dov of Belz said that this is also an acronym: “My teachers, the time has come for the morning Shema.” The Hebrew word for “morning” is an acronym for wise, wicked, simple, and one who does not know how to ask. Through the Shema and through the unity of the Jewish people, we will be able to reach the dawn, the complete Geulah. May it be Hashem’s will that the Rebbe, who is unique in his Ahavas Yisroel and champions the unity of the people and the land, lead us all to the complete Geulah in good health. Amen and amen. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, when I asked Rabbi Gershon Koren shlita to say a few words, he told me, “What will I say? I have nothing to say.” He did have something to say, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you, Rabbi Aryeh. Chassidim, people of action. Tonight’s surprise on the program is the helicopter. The helicopter has now arrived in the skies over Kfar Chabad, carrying the distinguished and honored guests who should arrive at any moment, so that we can welcome them with the honor they deserve. I ask the orchestra and choir to strike up “Hoshia es Amecha” together with the crowd. This will be our welcome song for the guests in a few minutes.

1:32:15 Speaker 14 Save, save, save and bless Your people, Your people, Hashem. Shepherd them and carry them forever. Save, save, save and bless Your people, Your people, Hashem. Shepherd them and carry them forever. Save, save, save and bless Your people, Your people, Hashem. Shepherd them and carry them forever. Save, save, save and bless Your people, Your people, Hashem. Shepherd them and carry them forever. Oy, oy, oy, oy, oy, oy, Your people, Your people, Hashem. Shepherd them and carry them forever. Oy, oy, oy, oy, Your people, Your people, Hashem. Shepherd them and carry them forever. Save, save, save, save, Your people, Your people, Hashem.

1:38:24 Speaker 15 Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, we have received word that the helicopter did indeed take off, but because of fog in Jerusalem it had to land. The honored rabbis—the Rishon LeZion, Rabbi Eliyahu; the elder of the kabbalists, Rabbi Kaduri; His Holiness the Rebbe of Lelov shlita; and Rabbi Yaakov Yosef, Rabbi Yosef’s son—are on their way to us by car and will arrive in Kfar Chabad in twenty-five minutes. I ask the crowd to wait patiently and joyfully. And now, ladies and gentlemen, for a blessing from an old friend of many decades, since our youth. Who doesn’t know the head of the Nachalim Yeshiva, a great friend of Chabad, the rabbi and chossid Rabbi Yosef Bagad shlita? Please.

1:39:41 Speaker 16 Ladies and gentlemen, as you know, I’m a Litvish misnaged, after all. That is to say, in plain language, I was born to Litvish parents, real misnagdim. And as someone who grew up in the world of the Chevron Yeshiva, the world of the great misnagdim, of the Mussar movement, I thought all my life that I was a misnaged—until I met His Holiness the Rebbe shlita. I arrived in New York, and my former students from the Nachalim Yeshiva who were studying there invited me to come stand in line and receive a blessing from the Rebbe shlita. I came, stood in a long line, and people kept pushing and pushing, and I didn’t really know where I was. Suddenly I found myself in a small room and saw someone giving out dollars. I couldn’t grasp what was happening to me. Once I began to understand, the Rebbe shlita said something that changed me, right there and then, from a thoroughgoing Litvish misnaged into a thoroughgoing Chabad chossid. And the Rebbe shlita said, “I bless you that you should not be content with your lot.” When I heard that blessing, my face went pale. Have you ever heard such a blessing? Blessing a person not to be content? The Rebbe shlita immediately said, “No, no. I want to explain. Someone who has a hundred wants two hundred, but someone who has two hundred no longer wants three hundred. He wants four hundred and more. So a person must not be content with his lot. I bless you that, however many students you have, you should not be satisfied. Don’t be content with your lot; always strive for more and more.” I was astonished by this blessing from the Rebbe shlita, because anyone who knows me knows that ever since, with Hashem’s help, I founded the Bnei Akiva Yeshiva in Nachalim thirty-five years ago, I have never been satisfied. I always want more and more. In fact, two weeks ago we celebrated the yeshiva’s thirty-fifth anniversary with a great kiddush Hashem. Boruch Hashem, about a thousand students study there, and I am still never satisfied. And that night

1:43:17 Speaker 16 of the great celebration, I announced the establishment of another yeshiva, a yeshiva gedolah, in Nachalim. And this comes from that same blessing of the Rebbe shlita: this year we must begin building, and whoever begins a building—then, with Hashem’s help, the words “Creator of the universe, with an act of acquisition, complete this building” will be fulfilled in it. So when I heard the Rebbe’s blessing—he didn’t know me, and it was the first time he had seen me, yet he immediately knew my inner nature, that I am never content with my lot, never satisfied with what already exists, and always want more—I felt at that moment, at that very moment, what the holiness of a truly great person is, something beyond nature. And I want to tell you that when I came away from the Rebbe shlita, all the chassidim gathered around me: “Who are you, that the Rebbe spoke with you for ten minutes?” That’s not usual; everyone else is given a dollar. Suddenly someone who wasn’t from Chabad came up to me and said, “Tell me, where in Lithuania are you from?” I told him, “The town of Ushpol, near Utena, in the Kovno region.” He said, “Now I understand everything. The chassidim of Lithuania grew up in the town of Ushpol.” That was when I discovered that I wasn’t a misnaged at all—I was really a chossid. And I can only say that the graduates of the Nachalim Yeshiva accuse me of having too many Chabadniks among the alumni. They make up a sizable minyan. Boruch Hashem, they are all a credit to us. May all the students increase in holiness and yiras Shamayim, as the Chabad students bring that special holiness into the yeshiva. I tell you, one meeting with the Rebbe shlita made me a lifelong Chabad chossid. May it be Hashem’s will that, in the Rebbe’s eighty-seventh year, he continue on this path until we merit the coming of Moshiach Tzidkeinu speedily in our days. Amen.

1:46:10 Speaker 17 Thank you, thank you. I still remember when we called Rabbi Yosef Bagad “Yoske Bagad,” the man who always opened his doors and the doors of his institutions to Chabad and welcomed in the light of Chabad. Bagad has a numerical value of ten; add its four letters and you get fourteen, the numerical value of Chabad. And following those beautiful, truly beautiful words from Rabbi Yosef Bagad, I now have the honor of inviting one of Chabad’s veteran students in Morocco. He merited special attention from the Rebbe shlita, recorded in one of the letters: the Rebbe asked after him when he was a small child lying ill. Today he serves as the rabbi of a large neighborhood in Israel: the great Chabadnik Rabbi Ben Abu, rabbi of the Gilo neighborhood in Jerusalem. Please, bring us the neighborhood’s blessings.

1:47:41 Speaker 18 Honored chairman, the distinguished Rabbi Tali Roth [unclear] shlita, the local rabbi, the distinguished Rabbi Ashkenazi, the rabbis present here, each according to his honor and standing, and last but certainly not least, this holy and esteemed gathering. My friends, who are we to bless the holy Rebbe, thanks to whom I and so many of my friends, scattered throughout Eretz Yisroel, abroad, and almost all over the world, have come to where we are? But let us say just a few words to understand how great the tzaddik’s stature is. Of Moshe Rabbeinu it says: “Moshe was tending the flock of Yisro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. He led the flock beyond the wilderness and came to the mountain of G-d, to Chorev.” Many people think a person can cleave to the Creator only after passing away. After 120 years, when a person leaves this world, then he can cleave to the Creator. But as long as he lives on this earth, he cannot. How can a person cleave to the Creator? The Creator is exalted to the utmost, while man is lowly to the utmost. How can a human being, a physical creature, cleave to the Creator? So many philosophers thought a person could cleave to the Creator only after death, but not, G-d forbid, during his lifetime. At the beginning of his journey, even Moshe Rabbeinu thought this way. It says, “He came to the mountain of G-d, to Chorev.” He thought: When is it possible to reach the mountain of G-d? Only through destruction—when the body is destroyed, dies, and passes away. But in this world, G-d forbid, how could a person reach the mountain of G-d? Hakadosh Boruch Hu came and answered him: “Remove your shoes from your feet.” Remove that doubt gnawing at your mind, for the place on which you stand is holy ground. Not only can a person cleave to the Creator; even the place where you stand is holy. Why? Because you stand upon it. If you, Moshe, stand upon it, then you are holy. Even

1:50:48 Speaker 18 the place is holy, and through your merit the Jewish people can cleave to the Creator. That is why the Torah later says: “And you who cleave to Hashem your G-d are all alive today.” Not after 120 years, as I thought at first. Today, you are all alive. How? By cleaving to the tzaddik, for the place on which you stand is holy ground. So, my friends, all our Torah learning and everything we have learned is thanks to the Rebbe, and through the merit of the tzaddik a person can connect with the Creator. That is what Hakadosh Boruch Hu told Moshe: not only you, not only the people—even the place, which is inanimate, can become holy, because you stand upon it. My friends, I will not go on at length, but King Dovid said: “Our leaders bear the burden; there is no breach, no going out, and no outcry in our streets. Fortunate is the people for whom this is so.” “Our leaders bear the burden”—when our leaders bear the burden of the generation, lead it, set it straight, and guide it, as the tzaddik does. They bear the burden: they endure, they listen and do not answer back. They bear the burden of the generation. “There is no breach, no going out, and no outcry.” “No breach”—there will be no one left without children. When there is a tzaddik, through his merit those who were childless are blessed with children. “No breach and no going out”—the soul will not depart before its time. People will merit good, long lives. “And no outcry in our streets”—there will be no lack of livelihood, with people crying out in the streets for bread and work. No. Why? Because “our leaders bear the burden.” When our leaders bear the burden of the generation, people merit children, life, and sustenance. We saw this with the Rebbe shlita, as our esteemed friend the chairman said. When I was a student at the yeshiva in Morocco, I was ill with a disease—may it not happen again—and Rabbi Michoel Lipsker, of blessed memory, sent a letter to the Rebbe asking for a blessing. Later, the Rebbe wrote in one of his letters: “Let me know how the student Moshe ben Frecha is doing.” That is it, my friends. What is the tzaddik who stands at the head of the world thinking about? He is thinking about a little boy,

1:53:37 Speaker 18 wanting to know how he is doing. That is it, my friends. And boruch Hashem, thanks to his blessing, I stand before you today, boruch Hashem. And yes, I phone him. So surely, my friends, at this holy gathering, where we have come together in great numbers to honor the King, we all bless the Rebbe shlita: in the merit of the burden he bears—as we said, “our leaders bear the burden”—and in the merit of the blessings he gives the entire generation, may Hakadosh Boruch Hu bless him and prolong his reign in physical and spiritual health. And with Hashem’s help, may he lead us all to the coming of our Moshiach speedily in our days, amen.

1:54:32 Speaker 19 Thank you very much, and yasher koach to Rabbi Moshe Ben-Abu shlita, rabbi of the Gilo neighborhood in Jerusalem. This is also an opportunity to thank him for the great help and support he gives the Chabad chassidim and Chabad shluchim in the flourishing Gilo neighborhood—with its large, beautiful Chabad House, its educational institutions, and the activities of Chabad, the Chabad House, Tzivos Hashem, and more. Ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to introduce a guest who arrived last night from a special mission to Russia, to Moscow, returning to our Holy Land only last night. With your permission, I am honored to invite him to bring us greetings from there and tell us about Chabad Chassidus and Chabad activities there: the chossid, Rabbi Nachman Elboim. Please.

1:55:51 Speaker 20 I am complying with “Whatever the host tells you, do.” My host is Reb Zalman Solkovitz [unclear], whose home I stayed in in 5701—nineteen forty-one. I traveled to spend Shabbos with him, and he did not let me leave for two and a half months. So he asked me to bring greetings from Russia. First of all, wherever you go, whichever shul you enter, you meet Lubavitcher chassidim, people close to Lubavitch, or baalei teshuvah who came through Lubavitch. I received a letter from the head of a Lubavitch yeshiva, himself a baal teshuvah. He writes to the Rebbe: “His Holiness the Rebbe shlita, with blessings and good wishes for the approaching bright day of 11 Nissan, I hereby bring you the news that we have purchased the house in Lubavitch for His Holiness the Rebbe shlita, in the name of Yeshivas Tomchei Temimim Lubavitch, Moscow. Nachum son of Kalman Melech [unclear] and son of Golda Tamarin [unclear].” One more thing: they printed Tanya in Moscow and asked me to take out a suitcase containing 150 copies of Tanya. There was quite a discussion at customs, but in the end they decided perhaps it was better for them to be abroad. They let me take them out. I will conclude with the blessing the Rebbe of Lubavitch told me to convey to the Rebbe of Ger: may his reign be long. May Hashem help the Rebbe of Lubavitch to reign for many years, and may we all go together to greet our righteous Moshiach speedily in our days, amen.

1:58:06 Speaker 21 Yasher koach! Thank you very much, Reb Nachman. And may we truly merit that the so-called Iron Curtain be broken down and opened for all our Jewish brothers throughout the exile. How much longer must we wait? The orchestra and choir: “May the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt.”

1:58:38 Speaker 22 May the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days, [unclear], [unclear]. [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], may the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days, may the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days, [unclear]. Subtitles in collaboration with the Higher Institute for Torah at Bar-Ilan. [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], and may the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days, may the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days, may the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days, [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], [unclear], may the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days. May the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. May the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days. May the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. May it be rebuilt speedily in our days. May the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt speedily in our days. [unclear]. [unclear].

2:01:55 Speaker 22 [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear] builds his father’s house from the wellsprings. And the people of our organization and institutions [unclear] arranged a shliach for him, but [unclear]. We were there with the children [unclear]. He gave three months’ rent, three months [unclear]. It should be clear that he is building his father’s house. [unclear] Could they do harm? Soon [unclear], in a hundred days. Let them come with her. [unclear]. The words [unclear]. [unclear]. On Facebook, it is very hard to see [unclear]. Secular morality [unclear]. Send it to hell! [unclear] tell about himself. [unclear] freedom. There is no private concern there, and [unclear] reveal his soul. [unclear].

2:06:33 Speaker 22 [unclear]. The main thing [unclear]. Wait a moment, I know. [unclear]. As we said, that is exactly what was there for all the viewers. So are there people who already know too much? No, Yehuda, but we still have no idea. [unclear] near the wall. [unclear] will spread very soon [unclear] Jerusalem [unclear].

2:09:22 Speaker 22 [unclear] Whose beard? Our beard. [unclear] Whose beard? [unclear] Whose beard? Ay, ay, ay, ay, ay! [unclear] Whose beard? Our beard. Ay, ay, ay. [unclear] Whose beard? Our beard. [unclear] Whose beard? For a good Rosh Hashanah. [unclear] An empty cup [unclear]. Ay, ay, ay. [unclear] It gave me blisters; that’s his duty. [unclear] I have a sore today; it moved on its own. [unclear] A little glass, just for the honor. [unclear] Ay, ay, ay, and we have [unclear]. Oh, oh, oh. How is he making fun of you? When [unclear], you always come back [unclear]. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh. We didn’t forget to send him to get it.

2:11:40 Speaker 22 us on this trip for fun. [unclear] What wonderful weather! [unclear] This is your opportunity. [unclear] before the wellsprings spread outward. [unclear] I know [unclear]. The reason is that when the wellsprings spread [unclear]. [unclear] before it is created. [unclear] “When will the master come?” “When your wellsprings spread outward.” “When will the master come?” “When your wellsprings spread outward.” Moshiach, Moshiach, Moshiach, Moshiach [unclear] the wellsprings will spread. Moshiach, Moshiach, Moshiach, Moshiach [unclear] the wellsprings will spread. [unclear]. Tell me, Amnon! [unclear]. We want Moshiach now! …

2:15:42 Speaker 22 … [unclear]. [unclear]. [unclear]. …

2:20:17 Speaker 24 [unclear]. Come on, [unclear], come on. … [unclear]. Come on, [unclear], come on. … [unclear]. “And I will cut off all the horns of the wicked.” I don’t feel like it. Oh no, [unclear]. “And I will cut off all the horns of the wicked; the horns of the righteous will be raised up.” “And I will cut off all the horns of the wicked; the horns of the righteous will be raised up.” [unclear] Yom Tov [unclear]. [unclear] Yom Tov [unclear]. “But I will cut off all the horns of the wicked; the horns of the righteous will be raised up.” “But I will cut off all the horns of the wicked; the horns of the righteous will be raised up.” [unclear]. [unclear]. But every horn

2:26:18 Speaker 25 [unclear]. We have just a little more time. We have just a little more time. [unclear]. [unclear]. We have just a little more time. We have just a little more time. [unclear]. [unclear]. We have just a little more time. We have just a little more time. [unclear]. [unclear] just a little more time. [unclear]. [unclear]. “I will cut off all the horns of the wicked; the horns of the righteous will be raised up.” [unclear]. … Your heads, your heads.

2:30:16 Speaker 25 And be lifted up, everlasting doors, that the King of Glory may enter, the glory, Selah. Ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya, oy da da oh oh um, ya ya ya ya ya ya, oy nei nei da dam. Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted up, everlasting doors, that the King of Glory may enter, the glory, Selah. Ya ya ya ya ya ya ya, oy ya ya oh oh, ai ya ya ya ya ya, ai ya ya ya ya ya. The glory, Selah. Ya ya ya ya ya ya ya, ai ya ya ya ya ya, ya ya ya ya ya ya ya, ya ya ya ya ya ya. Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted up, everlasting doors, that the King of Glory may enter, the glory, Selah. Ya ya ya ya ya ya ya, ai ya ya ya ya ya, ya ya ya ya ya ya ya, ya ya ya ya ya ya.