The Last Teaching of the Mezritcher Maggid on the Foundations of Chassidus - Rabbi Asher Perkesh

00:00 In the year 5533, the Maggid of Mezritch was in the last year of his life in this world. That year, the Alter Rebbe was with the Maggid of Mezritch. And it was not only the Alter Rebbe: several of the Maggid’s disciples were there with the Alter Rebbe as well. In the summer of 5532, a very important gathering was held to discuss matters of the utmost importance to the future of Chassidus. Some of the Maggid of Mezritch’s leading disciples took part, including the Alter Rebbe. He remained there until Kislev, when the Maggid of Mezritch passed away—on that 19 Kislev, a Tuesday, 19 Kislev 5533. In later years, the Alter Rebbe told a number of stories about what happened in those days, on that 19 Kislev, at the time of the passing of the holy Maggid of Mezritch and in the days surrounding it. The Alter Rebbe told some of these stories when the Tzemach Tzedek was born. The Alter Rebbe was then in a state of great revelation, and he related a number of personal stories about what had happened between him and the Maggid of Mezritch in those final days. And at a farbrengen on 18 Elul 5703, the Frierdiker Rebbe retold some of these stories, because that was the year in which, on 19 Kislev, it would be

01:59 170 years since that 19 Kislev 5533, the passing of the Maggid of Mezritch. He recounts several points mentioned in the sichos. One story the Alter Rebbe told was that the Maggid of Mezritch was unwell, and he spoke about it at the time. The chassidim, his disciples, came to visit the Maggid of Mezritch that Shabbos, Shabbos Parshas Vayishlach. It was 16 Kislev, and the Maggid of Mezritch passed away the following Tuesday, 19 Kislev. On that Shabbos, 16 Kislev, Shabbos Vayishlach, the disciples stood around the bed, and the Maggid of Mezritch, already weak, said a teaching. The teaching he gave was on “And Yaakov sent angels.” On this, Rashi says, “Actual angels.” The Maggid of Mezritch explained it this way: “Yaakov sent the actuality of the angels to Esav.” In other words, he understood “actual angels” to mean their tangible substance. Their body, their material aspect, their actuality—this he sent to Esav; but the angels’ spirituality, their soul, remained with Yaakov. That was the entire teaching. It was said on that Shabbos. Later, after Maariv and Havdalah, the Maggid of Mezritch said, “The vision of Ovadiah.” “The vision of Ovadiah” is also the haftorah read

03:46 on that Shabbos, Shabbos Vayishlach. He explained that “Ovadiah” means “one who serves Yud-Hei.” Regarding “Yud-Hei,” our Sages say: “The World to Come was created with a yud; this world was created with a hei.” “Ovadiah” is one who serves Yud-Hei. “The vision of Ovadiah”—one who serves, who serves Yud-Hei, sees. That is what he said on Motzaei Shabbos. Then, on Sunday, 17 Kislev, the Maggid of Mezritch said that during the last three days before one’s passing, one sees only the word of Hashem within physicality, and that the word of Hashem is the essence of physicality. The Maggid of Mezritch also summoned the Alter Rebbe and told him, “The vision of Ovadiah”—he said it again—[unclear], which was a hint about a son. The Alter Rebbe married soon after the passing of the Baal Shem Tov, in 5521, but he did not have a son. He had daughters, but until then he had no sons. And on that 19 Kislev, on the eve of that 19 Kislev, in the Maggid of Mezritch’s final days, the Maggid told him, “The vision of Ovadiah”—[unclear]. The hint about a son was that he would be born during that year. He asked the Alter Rebbe to name him after him—the Maggid of Mezritch, whose name was Dov Ber. And so it was: on 9 Kislev, about a year later, before 19 Kislev, yes, that

05:34 was the final teaching of the Mitteler Rebbe, whom the Alter Rebbe named after the Maggid of Mezritch. Another point, mentioned in a different sicha that the Frierdiker Rebbe related at a 19 Kislev farbrengen, is that in those days, in the final days, on the last day, the Maggid of Mezritch took the Alter Rebbe’s hand and told him: “19 Kislev—this is our Geulah.” What did “19 Kislev is our Geulah” mean? The Alter Rebbe did not understand. But twenty-six years later—from 19 Kislev 5533 to 19 Kislev 5559—that was the day the Alter Rebbe went free. The Alter Rebbe was released from prison. It was 19 Kislev 5559, twenty-six years after the Maggid’s passing. Then they understood what he meant when he said, “This is our Geulah, our joy.” Yes, because the number twenty-six has significance, as the sicha goes on to explain. The chossid Reb Shmuel bar Isser said that it relates to the name Havayah: twenty-six is the numerical value of the name Havayah. When the Alter Rebbe revealed the concept of the unity of G-dliness and the higher knowledge, he risked his life for it. That is what the Alter Rebbe risked his life for. And the Rebbe Maharash also told the Rebbe Rashab that, for the Alter Rebbe, those twenty-six years were a matter of self-sacrifice—that the Alter Rebbe

07:03 the Rebbe waited and revealed things in Chassidus that chassidim could grasp and through which they could sense the oneness of G-dliness and the higher knowledge. And that is one of the stories told about what happened in those days, on 19 Kislev 5533, when the Maggid said the teaching on Parshas Vayishlach. The Rebbe once spoke about this teaching—one of the last teachings we know the Maggid of Mezritch said in that period, shortly before his passing—at a farbrengen on Shabbos Parshas Vayishlach in 5720. In a deep and fascinating sicha, the Rebbe discusses how to understand the depth of this teaching. He says that since it is one of the Maggid’s last teachings known to us, and was said shortly before his passing, it is clear that it contains a lesson. It is something like a final testament, a broad principle that the Maggid of Mezritch revealed shortly before his passing. We must say that this teaching expresses the Maggid of Mezritch’s entire essence and purpose. And here a question arises. When we consider the Maggid’s teaching, a simple question arises: What, seemingly, is the deeper point of what he says here? Yaakov Avinu sent the angels’ tangible substance to Esav, while their spirituality remained with Yaakov Avinu. And that raises a simple question. First, what is

08:40 the point of this? After all, the reason Yaakov Avinu sent angels to Esav rather than ordinary people was that dealing with Esav required special powers. That is why he needed actual angels. What was the point of sending only the angels’ tangible substance, while their spirituality remained with Yaakov Avinu? Second, how is such a thing even possible? Even with human beings, if you send only the body without the soul, it has no connection to anything, nothing to hold on to. How can you send the body? How can you separate an angel’s body from its spirituality and say that its spirituality remained with Yaakov while only its body went? And there is another question: This contradicts the whole point Rashi wants to make. On the straightforward level, Rashi means the opposite: “Actual angels.” Not as other commentators explain, that “angels” means messengers, ordinary people whom he sent. Rather, these were literally angels; he sent actual angels. [unclear] But if we want to make this great distinction [unclear], the Maggid of Mezritch comes and says precisely the opposite of Rashi: that only

10:01 the angels’ tangible, material aspect went, while their spirituality did not go at all; it remained with Yaakov. That is precisely the opposite of Rashi’s explanation. But the Rebbe said that there is a fascinating explanation here, one that relates to avodah and expresses a broad principle. This is the teaching the Maggid revealed shortly before his passing, and it expresses the Maggid of Mezritch’s entire essence and purpose. And here a question arises. When we consider the Maggid’s teaching, the simple question arises: I understand, but what does he really mean by saying that Yaakov Avinu sent the angels’ tangible substance to Esav, while their spirituality remained with Yaakov Avinu? The simple question arises: First, what is the point of that? After all, Yaakov Avinu sent angels to Esav rather than ordinary people because, to deal with Esav, he needed special powers; he needed actual angels. What was the point of sending only the angels’ tangible substance while their spirituality remained with Yaakov Avinu? Second, how is such a thing even possible? With human beings, I can still understand: the body and soul are two things with no inherent connection between them. One can separate the body from the soul,

11:46 But with an angel? How can you separate an angel’s body from its spirituality and say that its spirituality stayed with Yaakov while only its body went? And then there is another, fundamental question: This seems to contradict the whole point Rashi wants to make. On the face of it, Rashi wants to say exactly the opposite. “Actual angels”—not as other commentators explain “Yaakov sent angels” to mean messengers, ordinary people he sent. Rashi wants to say that these were angels in the literal sense; Yaakov sent actual angels. But then the Maggid of Mezritch comes and says just the opposite: that only the angels’ tangible, physical aspect... This is in the spirit of “Yaakov sent angels to Esav his brother.” The soul is “truly a part of G-d above.” The soul is part of G-dliness, and it is connected to G-dliness. Yet the soul descends into this physical world, a world that is Esav’s world, a world of the sitra achra, as the Alter Rebbe says in Tanya: “the world of kelipos and the sitra achra, where the wicked prevail,” along with all the other things said there in Tanya. And it is here that the soul descends, so that it can act and make of

12:49 the world a dwelling place for Him, may He be blessed. For the G-dly soul to be able to act in the world—since there is the G-dly soul and the animal soul, and the two correspond to Yaakov and Esav, as the Alter Rebbe says in Tanya—it must be able to invest itself in the animal soul. And not only must this not cause a descent for the G-dly soul; on the contrary, it must be able to change the animal soul: “with all your heart”—with both your inclinations, so that the animal soul, too, will have love for Hashem. To do that, it must work within it. When the soul descends, only its external aspect descends. What becomes invested in the world, what is present in the body and the animal soul, and what is present in the world—all of that is only its external aspect. But its inner dimension remains connected to Yaakov, remains connected to G-dliness. That gives it the strength to act, so that not only does this not bring it down, G-d forbid, but on the contrary, it is a descent for the sake of ascent: it can reach Esav its brother and bring about his refinement, and make of the world a dwelling place for Him, may He be blessed, in the lower realms. And the point to remember is this: everything physical is secondary; the main thing is the spiritual. The spiritual remains with Yaakov Avinu. And he must use the physical to make a vessel for G-dliness. This is one of the most fundamental points.

14:13 In the revelation of the teachings of Chassidus, which were revealed by the Baal Shem Tov and then by the Maggid of Mezritch, this is what the Maggid wanted to allude to and express in a teaching he gave in the days shortly before his passing. One of the central themes of Chassidus is the unity of Hashem, and the Baal Shem Tov revealed its deepest meaning. The deepest meaning of Hashem’s unity is that the world and G-dliness are not two separate things. The entire existence of the world, the entire existence of the physical, is nothing but the word of Hashem. The word of Hashem, a G-dly power, brings the physical into being, gives it life and sustains it. It is present within the physical, to the point that everything about the physical, its entire existence, is nothing but G-dliness. And this is fundamental to our service of Hashem, as explained in Chassidus. Chassidus explains that when a Jew truly contemplates how there is nothing besides G-dliness, and how the entire existence of the world is nothing but the word of Hashem, it affects him when he is in the world. Although there is a world, with matters of eating, drinking and business, he feels that the physical is not an existence in its own right. Everything about the physical is nothing but G-dliness, and it exists only in order to

15:39 fulfill through it the intentions of “all your deeds should be for the sake of Heaven” and “know Him in all your ways.” And in this there can be many levels. On one level, a person feels that the physical is an existence, that it is something in its own right. Hakadosh Boruch Hu created the world: “In the beginning, G-d created the heavens and the earth.” So what follows from that? Hakadosh Boruch Hu sustains it; a G-dly power, Hakadosh Boruch Hu, creates it, and therefore one must use it for the sake of Heaven. But here, they are two separate things. The physical is an existence, and when he eats and drinks, he experiences the eating and drinking. So what? He knows that afterward he must use them in the service of Hashem: “all your deeds should be for the sake of Heaven” and “know Him in all your ways.” He must use the physical with the intention that it will enable him to learn and daven, or in order to [unclear], as explained in Tanya and in Chassidus. But what the Baal Shem Tov revealed goes even deeper: From the outset, the entire existence of the physical is nothing but G-dliness, and from the outset the world does not stand as an existence in its own right. Similarly, when we look at a person: yes, a healthy person has a body and a soul. A healthy person does not feel his body. That is to say, the body’s devotion to the soul is such that when a person is healthy and alive and everything is as it should be, he does not feel his body; he does not feel himself. When you feel your body, it is a sign that you are not healthy. When you feel your

17:13 head—when it hurts and you become aware of it—it is a sign that something is not right with the body’s bittul, its devotion to the soul. What hurts? His head hurts, his leg hurts, some part of his body hurts. When the body is properly nullified to the soul, the body is not a body in its own right to begin with; it is life. The same applies to the relationship between a created being in the world and G-dliness: a Jew is so connected to spirituality that everything physical is nothing but [unclear], a vessel for G-dliness. Consequently, he does not feel the pleasure or the [unclear] vitality of the physical at all; from the outset, he sees that its entire purpose is G-dliness. And this, as explained in Chassidus, is the deeper meaning of “know Him in all your ways” that Chassidus reveals. It is the deeper meaning of “know Him in all your ways” as compared with “all your deeds should be for the sake of Heaven.” These are two expressions: “All your deeds should be for the sake of Heaven” is from Pirkei Avos; “Know Him in all your ways” is a verse in Mishlei. Both are cited together many times in the Shulchan Aruch, in section 231, and by the Rambam in Hilchos De’os. But Chassidus explains that they are two distinct ideas. When we say, “All your deeds should be for the sake of Heaven,” there are still two things: we say “your deeds”—he eats, he drinks, he conducts business, he does things in practice,

18:40 physical things, as needed, in worldly matters. Well, he does them for the sake of Heaven, intending that they will lead afterward to something done for the sake of Heaven. They are two things, one serving the other. That, at any rate, is the goal. But the deeper meaning of “know Him in all your ways” goes further: “in all your ways”—within “your ways” themselves. From the outset, one does not see “your ways” as something separate that serves something else. So, in “know Him in all your ways,” what does one see in “your ways”? One sees G-dliness in the physical itself. One sees G-dliness in the very existence of the world. One sees a world—and what does one see in the world? One sees G-dliness in the world. This is a subject Chassidus explains at length in connection with [unclear]. And the idea we are discussing here is alluded to in the teaching the Alter Rebbe conveyed in the name of the Maggid of Mezritch: “Yaakov sent actual angels.” Yes, they were actual angels. And here we see the connection: not only does this not contradict Rashi, but on the contrary, the Maggid of Mezritch’s words reveal the depth of Rashi’s words. Rashi teaches us something remarkable: For Yaakov to be able to affect Esav and change Esav’s heart—which means changing Esav, making Esav [unclear], and this whole matter is, in fact, the goal of what follows—he had to send actual angels. Rashi had...

20:07 to teach us: actual angels. The Maggid of Mezritch comes and explains: not only the angels, but the “actual”—their tangible body. For the angels to carry out their mission, they needed a tangible presence, a body in the world. But what is the true point? Their true existence is their connection to Yaakov Avinu. In other words, when we look at the body, we see that the body, in every respect, is physical; it is a worldly existence. Yes, but it is only the channel for the higher purpose. The essence remains with Yaakov Avinu, and from him, and from Hakadosh Boruch Hu, they draw their sustenance. When one sees this from the outset, the angel can carry out his mission. So, since the angel’s tangible presence is with Yaakov Avinu, Yaakov had to send them, so that Yaakov would remain the essence of their existence. That is why the angel’s tangible presence came to Esav and affected him, while the angel felt that this tangible presence was connected to Yaakov Avinu and remained with Yaakov Avinu. He felt that the essence of it all was the higher power, the word of Hashem: “There is nothing besides Him”—there is no existence besides G-dliness. And this is the point the Baal Shem Tov revealed, and what the Baal Shem Tov received from Melech HaMoshiach—the matter of “the wellsprings will spread...”

21:30 “Your wellsprings will spread outward.” As is known, the Rebbe Rashab said that on 19 Kislev, with the Alter Rebbe’s liberation, the main thrust of “Your wellsprings will spread outward” began. And the point is precisely that word: “outward.” Outward—to the person, down below, in the physical world, outside the Rebbe, outside the world—and there, G-dliness must be revealed. “Your wellsprings”—these are the wellsprings. The wellsprings are the greatest depth, the innermost dimension of Torah. “Your wellsprings will spread outward” is the very point explained in the discussion of “Yaakov sent messengers.” He goes outward, to Esav, to the world. But to have an effect on Esav, on the world, it must be felt within that “outside” that its entire existence is nothing but a vessel for the wellsprings, for the G-dly light, for the light of Ein Sof, for the light of the inner dimension of Torah, where the inner dimension of G-dliness is revealed—and that reveals the inner dimension of the world. And the point expressed on that 19 Kislev came into practice 26 years later, with the Alter Rebbe’s liberation on 19 Kislev, as is known. When the Alter Rebbe was imprisoned on 19 Kislev 5559, the day of the hilula, 26 years after the passing of the Maggid of Mezritch, he was in prison. On that day, there came to him...

22:55 the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid of Mezritch. They came to him in prison, and the Alter Rebbe asked: What is the reason for this accusation being brought against him here? The Baal Shem Tov told him that there was an accusation against him for teaching Chassidus and spreading Chassidus publicly in the way he was doing. The Alter Rebbe asked him whether he should stop. The Baal Shem Tov told him: Not only should he not stop; on the contrary, when he leaves, he should spread and teach Chassidus even more, with greater strength and greater vigor. And he promised him that in every matter concerning the activities and needs of the chassidim, [unclear]. That was the blessing he received on that 19 Kislev of 5559. So every year, when the time arrives—and this was what was said in connection with our day of hilula—the time of 19 Kislev, the day of the hilula of the Maggid of Mezritch, and that same 19 Kislev, the day of the Alter Rebbe’s liberation, it all comes alive again each year. As the Rebbe Rashab writes in a well-known letter, 19 Kislev is “the festival on which He redeemed our souls in peace,” the soul of each and every one of us, “and the light and vitality of our souls were given to us.” This day is [unclear],

24:14 on which “the light and vitality of our souls were given to us.” “This day is Rosh Hashanah for Chassidus,” so that each year a new flow is drawn down. It is Rosh Hashanah, and a new month begins, a new beginning. And all the teachings of the inner dimension of Torah reveal the inner dimension of G-dliness, reveal the inner dimension of the soul, reveal the inner dimension of the world. May there be “a dwelling for Him, blessed be He, in the lower realms” throughout the world. And it is written in Chumash, in the weekly parsha, Parshas Vayishlach: “Saviors will ascend Mount Zion to judge the mountain of Esav, and the sovereignty will be Hashem’s.” May “the sovereignty will be Hashem’s” come about immediately. Through spreading Chassidus, through “Your wellsprings will spread outward,” the blessing and promise concerning the King Moshiach will be fulfilled: “The Master, the King Moshiach, will come.” May we merit the Geulah through Moshiach, may we see the Geulah in the world. And may it be that “the sovereignty will be Hashem’s,” and “Hashem will be King over all the earth; on that day Hashem will be One and His Name One.”