The Holiday of Lag BaOmer in the Sources

00:00 Speaker 1 The laws of Lag BaOmer are found in Shulchan Aruch, section 493. They appear in the Tur, then in the Shulchan Aruch of the Mechaber, Rabbi Yosef Karo, and the Rema, and later in the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch. But the reasons behind the laws of Lag BaOmer remain somewhat unclear. In other words, Lag BaOmer and the laws connected with it already appear in the halachic works of the Rishonim. The story begins in the Gemara, in Yevamos. The Gemara relates that Rabbi Akiva had many students, and because they did not treat one another with respect, they died between Pesach and Shavuos. That was the plague in which Rabbi Akiva’s students passed away, and it is recorded in the Gemara. The Gemara continues that the world was desolate. It was left almost empty of Torah until Rabbi Akiva took on the sages in the south—five students: Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Yehudah, Rabbi Yosi, Rabbi Nechemiah, and Rabbi Shimon. There are other names I’ve forgotten to mention, perhaps Rabbi Levi and Shimon HaKaponim[?]—five students or six. The Gemara says that with them he rebuilt Torah. From there, the whole Oral Torah was built. That is the story of Rabbi Akiva and his students. But the Gemara does not mention Lag BaOmer. It says “from Pesach until Shavuos.” There was, however, a tradition passed down orally. It is not stated explicitly in the Gemara, but the tradition was passed down. The Meiri, for example, cites it in the name of the Geonim. In other words, there was already a tradition from generation to generation that on Lag BaOmer they stopped dying. This was debated throughout the generations—because it is not stated explicitly in the Gemara, there was debate about it, even among the early authorities. What exactly happened? And so in the Shulchan Aruch he

02:41 Speaker 1 brings two opinions. The Alter Rebbe brings two opinions in his Shulchan Aruch, opinions already established earlier in the Tur and its commentaries. In simple terms, these reflected two customs practiced in different places. Some said that there are 33 days of mourning: the tradition was that the mourning associated with Rabbi Akiva’s students lasts 33 days. Why, then, were there two opinions? One opinion held that the 33 days begin on the first day of the counting of the Omer and end on Lag BaOmer. Lag BaOmer is the thirty-third day, so the mourning ends on Lag BaOmer. According to this opinion, one must still observe at least part of the mourning on Lag BaOmer itself. The Alter Rebbe explains in Shulchan Aruch that only then may the mourning practices be discontinued. Even in communities that get haircuts on Lag BaOmer, they do not do so on the night of Lag BaOmer. They do it during the day, because part of Lag BaOmer itself must still be observed as a time of mourning. They do not get haircuts, and the other joyous activities also begin during the day, not the night before. Lag BaOmer itself was included in the 33 days of mourning, but because the deaths stopped then, they applied the principle that part of a day counts as a whole day. Another opinion among the Rishonim, based on a different tradition, held that the 33 days run from Rosh Chodesh Iyar until 3 Sivan, the beginning of the Three Days of Preparation before Shavuos. Those are the 33 days. According to this opinion, Lag BaOmer has no particular significance. The 33 days begin on Rosh Chodesh Iyar. So according to this opinion, until Rosh Chodesh Iyar one may get a haircut, say Shehecheyanu, and hold parties and weddings. The restriction begins on 2 Iyar. In fact, the Shulchan Aruch says from 2 Iyar until 3

04:57 Speaker 1 Sivan—those are the 33 days when the mourning practices must be observed. They are days of judgment. That was the tradition, and from it came the two opinions. The Rebbe rules that one may choose either one, but one cannot take the leniencies of both. One may choose one or be stringent according to both. There are communities that refrain from all these activities from Pesach until Lag BaOmer, and after Lag BaOmer they get haircuts and hold celebrations and other joyous events. I think that is also what our Sephardic Jewish brethren do here in Argentina, and around the world. I’m familiar with it here, but as far as I know, they hold weddings after Lag BaOmer. Right, they do everything by then. That is because they follow the opinion that Lag BaOmer marks the end of the mourning. On the other hand, some do the reverse: until Rosh Chodesh Iyar they say Shehecheyanu and do everything. For them, the entire month of Nissan is not a time of judgment; the days of judgment and mourning begin on 2 Iyar and continue until the Three Days of Preparation. The Alter Rebbe writes: if you follow the first custom, you must observe it until Lag BaOmer; if you follow the second, you must observe it from Rosh Chodesh Iyar until... But you cannot do half and half—hold celebrations until Rosh Chodesh Iyar and then again after Lag BaOmer. You certainly cannot take the leniencies from both sides. He says, though, that some accepted the stringencies of both opinions. That is also the Chabad custom: we accepted the stringencies of both sides, and we observe the mourning practices throughout the counting of the Omer, from Pesach until the Three Days of Preparation, and even longer. We know what it says in Hayom Yom: even during the Three Days of Preparation, the Rebbe, nishmaso Eden, did not give permission to get a haircut until Erev Shavuos—or this year, when Erev Shavuos falls on Shabbos,

07:01 Speaker 1 until the day before Erev Shavuos. That is a further stringency established by the Rebbe, nishmaso Eden. Why are we so stringent in both directions? The reason is connected with Kabbalah, because according to Kabbalah it is a different matter. According to Kabbalah, all the days of the Omer, from Pesach until Shavuos, really are days of judgment. That is not connected to the days of the plague. It is connected to the fact that, according to the mystical teachings, according to the Zohar, the days between the Exodus from Egypt and Shavuos were days of purification, days of counting. It is like a woman counting the days of her niddah. These are days for becoming purified of impurity. So they are days of judgment, days associated with gevurah. That is why it is called the Omer: the Omer offering was barley, and barley is associated with gevurah. Wheat is associated with chessed; barley is associated with gevurah. These matters are explained in Chassidus, in the inner dimension of Torah. So all the days of the Omer are days of judgment, and that is why we observe these customs throughout that period. But when we come to Lag BaOmer, the only thing stated explicitly in the halachic authorities is that the deaths stopped. That is what the Beis Yosef cites in his commentary on the Tur and, as we said, the Meiri cites it in the name of the Geonim. It is also brought by a number of other great Torah scholars. Some say that although the Gemara says they died until Shavuos, in fact they stopped dying on Lag BaOmer. That is how it was accepted by the authorities in the revealed dimension of Torah. But many halachic authorities came along and asked: What does this mean? It is a good explanation for why the mourning ends. So we understand why those who follow that custom may get a haircut on Lag BaOmer, hold parties, and so on. But that is still no reason to celebrate. Why is Lag BaOmer a Yom Tov? Why not

09:11 Speaker 1 Say Tachanun? Why have celebrations? What we see in Jewish custom is that on Lag BaOmer, not only does the mourning stop, but the day was made into a day of joy. And it wasn’t clear why it was a day of joy. So much so that there was even a dispute among the later halachic authorities—great Torah scholars who objected and argued that it had no source. What exactly was being celebrated? People tried to find all kinds of explanations. What do we know from the wisdom of the Zohar, from the mystical teachings? You have to understand that the whole subject of the mystical teachings was a secret. For many years, the teachings of Kabbalah and the Zohar weren’t widely available, so people didn’t know about these things. That is precisely why the positive aspect of Lag BaOmer isn’t found in the books of halachah. Why do we celebrate? So the matter remained somewhat shrouded. There was a tradition passed from person to person, known but not officially published in books, concerning what is now known throughout the world: Lag BaOmer is the day of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s celebration. What is the story behind that? It’s interesting just to know the history. What is the story of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s day of celebration? The earliest source in what are called authoritative books, books we rely on, is the Arizal. As stated in Shaar Hakavanos and Pri Eitz Chaim, the Arizal had a practice: Rabbi Chaim Vital relates that the Arizal would travel to Meron and spend three days there around Lag BaOmer. There it speaks of joy on Lag BaOmer because of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s celebration, but it still doesn’t say explicitly what the celebration was about. There’s an interesting story here, not so well known: it isn’t entirely clear what

11:28 Speaker 1 exactly the celebration was. There are several versions, since the writings of the Arizal were recorded in several versions. There is what Rabbi Chaim Vital wrote, and even within that there are several books. There’s Pri Eitz Chaim, and there are also the She’arim, including Shaar Hakavanos. Many things are written similarly, but many things are written somewhat differently. So there’s Shaar Hakavanos, there’s Pri Eitz Chaim, and other students of the Arizal also wrote books. One of them is a well-known book often cited in Chassidus: Mishnas Chassidim. The author of Mishnas Chassidim was one of the—I'm not sure. In any case, he lived in Italy. For many years there was some doubt about the book, but the Baal Shem Tov endorsed it. The Alter Rebbe said in the name of the Baal Shem Tov that the Kabbalah throughout Mishnas Chassidim is truly the Kabbalah of the Arizal, and one can rely on every word of it. In any case, the writings of the Arizal contain the phrase “the day of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s celebration.” There is also a version that says “the day on which Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai died.” If you notice, the Hebrew words for “his celebration” and “on which he died” are very similar. In most printed editions it says “the day of his celebration”; in another version it says “the day on which he died.” Some therefore said the latter was a mistake, that it says “his celebration,” not “on which he died.” This led to a certain dispute as well: Did Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai actually pass away on Lag BaOmer? Is that what the Arizal said? Or did the Arizal say “the day of his celebration,” without necessarily meaning that it was the day he passed away? Some great Torah scholars said—and this is cited in several books—that two things happened on Lag BaOmer. First, there were those who died

13:47 Speaker 1 on Lag BaOmer, but there were also those who did not die on Lag BaOmer. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai was among the students who survived, and that itself was the cause for joy: the joy over the students who remained alive. The plague stopped. Several halachic authorities give this as the reason we celebrate on Lag BaOmer, rather than merely ceasing the mourning, for those who do cease it then. The plague had spread among all the students, and suddenly it stopped. Rabbi Akiva’s students remained alive, and Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai was one of the greatest among them. So it became a celebration of the students of Rabbi Akiva who survived. That is what “the day of his celebration” means. Another view says that what happened on Lag BaOmer was that Rabbi Akiva gave them semichah, ordination; it was a celebration of their ordination. Rabbi Akiva gave those five students semichah. They had studied under Rabbi Yehudah ben Bava, as the Gemara relates, right? They were his students; they were young. He didn’t manage to give them semichah—he did give them semichah, but not, not without—he had to flee because the Romans killed him, so he gave them—they needed proper semichah. In short, Rabbi Akiva took those five students and ordained them. That happened on Lag BaOmer, so it was called the day of his celebration, the day he—and they received semichah. But it’s rather surprising to say that this is the straightforward explanation, and many people ask about it: If so, why is it named for Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai? There were five students. Why is he singled out above the other four? Call it the day of celebration of the five students. Rabbi Meir Baal Haness was among them—he was certainly no small figure—and Rabbi Yehudah bar Ilai, and Rabbi—in short, great Torah scholars, including Rabbi Yosi. There were five great students there. Why only Rashbi?

15:46 Speaker 1 Why call it Rashbi’s celebration if all five students received semichah? So, as we said, Mishnas Chassidim, for example, is the only one who writes that it marks Rashbi’s passing, that it is Rashbi’s hilula. In other words, his passing and hilula took place on that day. And that view was accepted among—Rabbi Saadia—among the Jewish people as a settled ruling. As we said, the first official source we can rely on is the writings of the Arizal, and today this has been accepted straightforwardly throughout the Jewish world. Although some people still insist on looking for a contrary view and like to make [unclear]. But this view, of course—the tradition of the Arizal—is considered authoritative in practical halachah. That is how it is accepted today throughout the Jewish world: Sephardim, Ashkenazim, chassidim and misnagdim, though there are still some who object. It is simply accepted among the Jewish people today that Lag BaOmer marks the hilula, the passing, of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. Incidentally, something interesting has come to light in recent years from books that may not be authoritative in halachah, but are historical travel accounts. Jews used to travel to the Land of Israel in every generation, right? Centuries ago, they wrote accounts of their journeys. There is the travel account of Rabbi Ovadiah of Bartenura, which he wrote when he came to the Land of Israel. There are accounts by the Ramban, and accounts by Rabbi Binyamin and Rabbi Pesachiah. Many Jews, Torah scholars and others, wrote books like diaries of their travels. And those accounts revealed that this was already an accepted tradition in the Land of Israel before the Arizal.

18:06 Speaker 1 There are books written two or three hundred years before the Arizal that describe people traveling to Meron on Lag BaOmer, celebrating there, pouring oil, and lighting lamps and fires. In other words, this did not begin with the Arizal. The Arizal gave it, as they say, his seal of approval. But the tradition that Lag BaOmer is connected with the passing of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai had already been handed down from earlier generations. The Rebbe adds another point here. Right at the beginning of his leadership, in 5711, the Rebbe wrote a lengthy letter about this. The Rebbe adds two important details. One is the Zohar. At the end of the Zohar on Parshas Haazinu, the Zohar tells the whole story of how Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai passed away. It goes into great detail. It recounts the entire Idra, called the Idra Zuta, describing what happened at the time of Rabbi Shimon’s passing. Wonderful accounts. We know some of this from Chassidus, from the maamarim. There are even Lag BaOmer maamarim on “Thus said Rabbi Shimon,” “I am my Beloved’s, and His desire is for me,” and “All the days I was bound...” This is a well-known passage in the Zohar about what Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said and what happened to him on the day of his passing. So in that Zohar, in the Idra Zuta on Parshas Haazinu, it says that Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai rejoiced with very great joy. He said he was so happy because he saw that all the people, the whole world, were rejoicing in his joy. And then it says at the end that after he passed away, a heavenly voice called out: “Come and gather for the hilula of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai.” In other words, come, everyone, and gather for the day of Rabbi Shimon

20:09 Speaker 1 bar Yochai’s hilula. So from that passage in the Zohar, we understand that on the day Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai passed away, he explicitly said that he wanted it to be a day of joy. A heavenly voice even called on everyone to come and take part in his joy. This answers the question raised by the halachic authorities, including the Chasam Sofer: If this is the day of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s passing, how can it be a day of joy? It should be a fast day. According to halachah, the day of a tzaddik’s passing is a fast day, not a day of joy. The Rebbe explains, based on this Zohar, that Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai asked for it to be a day of joy. And the halachah is that when a tzaddik makes a request of this kind, we fulfill it. So because Rabbi Shimon asked and instructed that people rejoice on the day of his hilula—he called it a hilula, a word associated with a wedding—it became a day of joy at his request. The difference is that the Zohar tells the whole story, but it does not say that this happened on Lag BaOmer. For that we need the tradition, passed down from person to person, that it happened on Lag BaOmer. In any event, this Zohar answers all the questions the halachic authorities debated: why Lag BaOmer is not merely a day when the mourning stops, but a day of joy, with all the excitement and celebration. That is a little of the history, to understand the story of Lag BaOmer and how things developed. Now, the Rebbe brings the Alter Rebbe. For us, Chabad chassidim, there is an especially strong tradition. In other words, if there are still doubts about whether Lag BaOmer really is the day of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s passing, the Alter Rebbe settles them.

21:59 Speaker 1 The Alter Rebbe writes explicitly in his Siddur, in the section on Lag BaOmer, in the maamar beginning “Ad Hagal Hazeh,” that Lag BaOmer is the day of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s passing. And Divrei Nechemiah, written by a chossid of the Alter Rebbe, says that it has been known and widely accepted throughout the world for generations that Lag BaOmer is the day of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s passing. That is just to give a little background on the history of Lag BaOmer. There are other interesting points too, to round out the picture. Broadly speaking, we know two things: Lag BaOmer was a day of joy because the deaths stopped and the plague ended; and Lag BaOmer is the day of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s rejoicing—the day of his passing, which for him was actually a day of joy. The halachic authorities and discussions of Jewish custom add a few other, smaller points. One is that, as I recall, the Chasam Sofer also writes that according to the Midrash, the manna began to fall on Lag BaOmer. According to Rashi, the manna began to fall on the 16th or 17th, but according to the Midrash it took another three days, bringing it to the 18th. The Chasam Sofer works out the calculation, and because this was the day the manna began to fall, that is another reason Lag BaOmer is a day of joy. Other books offer another explanation: What is special about Lag BaOmer? It is seventeen days before Shavuos, and seventeen is the numerical value of tov, “good.” So Lag BaOmer marks the beginning of the preparations for the giving of the Torah. These are already more spiritual explanations. So that is the history in brief. Now let’s

23:58 Speaker 1 talk a little about the customs and practices of Lag BaOmer. What halachos apply on Lag BaOmer? First of all, we do not say Tachanun. As for the afternoon before Lag BaOmer, the Alter Rebbe cites a difference of opinion: Do we say Tachanun at Minchah or not? It depends on what we discussed earlier. If Lag BaOmer is connected with the end of the mourning period, then we should say Tachanun on the afternoon before Lag BaOmer, because the mourning has not yet ended. The Alter Rebbe writes that according to this view, Tachanun is said at Minchah. But according to the other view, Lag BaOmer is not connected with the mourning period, because that mourning runs from Rosh Chodesh Iyar until Shavuos. On that view, the joy of Lag BaOmer is a separate matter. We now know that it is connected with Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai—a matter in its own right. So, like other Yom Tov days, it begins the evening before. Just as we do not say Tachanun at Minchah before other Yom Tov days, we do not say it at Minchah before Lag BaOmer. That is the Chabad custom. The Hayom Yom and the Alter Rebbe’s Siddur both say that Tachanun is not said at Minchah on the afternoon before Lag BaOmer. This is noteworthy, because it depends on that disagreement over the nature of Lag BaOmer and when it begins. That is regarding Tachanun. Another Lag BaOmer custom has to do with—oh, yes, the custom of going out to the fields and shooting arrows. The straightforward reason, as brought in the books, is that the Gemara says no rainbow was seen in the days of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. And a bow—the bow in the game of bow and arrow—is also called a bow. So it alludes to the absence of a rainbow in his days.

25:49 Speaker 1 of the Flood, because in the merit of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai there was no need for any sign of the Flood. The Rebbe explains that there is a spiritual aspect to this as well, since Lag BaOmer is connected with Jewish children and their education—education in yiras Shamayim—and that is what the bow symbolizes. As explained in Chassidus, a bow reaches a distant place. That relates to yiras Shamayim: even in matters that seem far removed, the yetzer hara is present. Because that yetzer hara seems distant and you don’t feel it, it disguises itself as though everything is fine. It is precisely for those subtler forms of evil that a special yiras Shamayim is needed. The Rebbe explains at length in 5744 how this relates to education. More generally, the custom throughout the generations—and it did not begin in Chabad; it goes back a very long time—was to spend Lag BaOmer with children. They would have less time in cheder and go out to the field to do special activities. The reason is that Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai wrote remarkable things in the Zohar about children’s Torah study. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai speaks of its great importance right at the beginning of the Zohar, in Parshas Bereishis. The Rebbe spoke about the children on Lag BaOmer 5742 and about what the Zohar says on the verse “The blossoms have appeared in the land”: through children’s Torah study, they save the world from all sorts of harmful things. And Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said that before the coming of Moshiach, children would study the inner dimension of Torah. He gave children special importance, and that is why we, too, give them special attention on this day. Another Lag BaOmer custom is to eat carobs. The Rebbe related that in his home, with his father, Reb Levik, they would bring carobs on Lag BaOmer and eat them because

27:35 Speaker 1 of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. There is the story in the Gemara, Shabbos 33, about Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and the carobs. He was in the cave, and Hakadosh Boruch Hu performed a miracle: he had a spring of water and carobs nearby. So we have that custom too. I don’t know whether you can get them here. If you can, there is reason to eat them, because the Rebbe related that they ate carobs in his home. Another custom mentioned in the sefarim is to eat colored hard-boiled eggs. You hard-boil an egg, color it brown, and eat it on Lag BaOmer. They say the Rebbe observed this custom too. Some people relate that at a Lag BaOmer farbrengen one year, the Rebbe even ate one. [unclear] at home—that’s how they say it was done. You boil eggs and add some dark coloring. The reason for the custom is that an egg is associated with mourning, and since the period of mourning ends, coloring it is a way of marking the end of mourning, as though negating the mourning. Something like that—that’s how it is explained. Some say you must not eat an ordinary egg on Lag BaOmer because it would appear to be a sign of mourning. So you eat a colored egg, as though it isn’t actually a sign of mourning. It’s different, something along those lines. Presumably there are also reasons and allusions for this according to Kabbalah, but that is the straightforward reason. That is about the foods eaten on Lag BaOmer. What else? As for weddings and celebrations generally, in Chabad, until a few years ago, they did not hold weddings on Lag BaOmer. But on 15 Menachem Av, a wedding was held in the courtyard of 770, and the Rebbe spoke about it

29:36 Speaker 1 in a sicha, saying that it was good and blessed. From then on, people in Lubavitch began holding weddings on Lag BaOmer as a matter of course. That was the story; that was when it happened. Generally, we try to celebrate Lag BaOmer with all the excitement, but when it comes to haircuts, we still do not get them unless someone needs one. If a person’s hair is too long and so on, he can get permission to have a haircut on Lag BaOmer, but preferably we try not to. As for music and all those things: on the night of Lag BaOmer, it depends on that dispute in the Shulchan Aruch. What is the Jewish custom? If a celebration is held in honor of Rashbi, they begin on the night of Lag BaOmer: there is music, dancing, and everything else from that night. Some are careful to wait until the following day, including for celebrations. Because the dispute about haircuts also applies to celebrations, the custom is not to schedule weddings and the like on the night of Lag BaOmer. This accommodates the opinion that the night is still part of the mourning period, so those celebrations are held only the next day. And the halachah, as everyone rules, is that if the wedding began during the day, it can continue into the night. In other words, the music can continue after Lag BaOmer ends, because it is still a continuation of the day’s celebration. But even then, you would not schedule a wedding to begin at night. We try to begin it during the day and continue it into the night. Dancing in honor of Rashbi, though, can certainly take place both at night and during the day, and so on. Those are special dances held in honor of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. Then there is the custom of lighting a fire. On the simplest level, the custom of lighting is connected with candles and light. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai

31:33 Speaker 1 wrote the Zohar. Zohar means light, and Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai brought light into the world. That is the straightforward reason we increase light on Lag BaOmer. Over time, this developed into the Jewish custom of lighting bonfires. Some have claimed that the fires are lit for other reasons connected with Bar Kochba. There is an approach that tries to say Lag BaOmer was when a miracle occurred in the story of Bar Kochba, but that has apparently already been ruled out. It is not really connected, although people in the modern world still speak as though that were the reason. In any case, we know that the real reason we light fires on Lag BaOmer is Rashbi’s Torah: he illuminated the world and kindled the light of holiness throughout it. And regarding going out to the field—yes?

32:32 Speaker 2 Rashbi’s house caught fire.

32:34 Speaker 1 What?

32:35 Speaker 2 Rashbi’s house. It was engulfed in a great fire.

32:39 Speaker 1 There is also what happened when Rashbi passed away. Ah, yes, you’re right about that too. Before his histalkus, when he revealed secrets, fire descended from above and surrounded the entire house. That is connected too. Yes, it is all connected with the inner dimension of Torah. Right. Now, as for going out to the field on Lag BaOmer, that was customary among our Rebbeim throughout the generations. This practice of going out to the field on Lag BaOmer among our Rebbeim begins with the Alter Rebbe—though not so much with the Alter Rebbe. The Alter Rebbe did hold celebrations and would say a maamar of Chassidus. There is a letter from the Alter Rebbe in which he writes, “Rejoice and be glad in Rashbi’s celebration.” It is a short letter from the Alter Rebbe. “Rejoice and be glad in Rashbi’s celebration, for the day of Rashbi’s hilula is greater...” In short, we merit to study Torah and drink from the essence of his teachings, and therefore we should rejoice, sing songs of praise, and say Tehillim, including “Tehillah LeDavid.” It is a very interesting letter from the Alter Rebbe about how to celebrate Lag BaOmer. The Alter Rebbe himself would say Chassidus on Lag BaOmer. There are wonderful maamarim from the Alter Rebbe. Almost every year there were profound maamarim—teachings of Chassidus that the Alter Rebbe revealed specifically on Lag BaOmer. Some were maamarim about Lag BaOmer itself, the hilula of Rashbi and the like, and others were explanations of the Zohar that the Alter Rebbe would deliver on Lag BaOmer. For the Alter Rebbe, Lag BaOmer was one of the great days. For the Mitteler Rebbe, even more so. As is well known from what is written in Hayom Yom, Lag BaOmer was a special day for the Mitteler Rebbe. They would travel out to the field and have a meal, and he would give blessings concerning children. After that, all the Rebbeim followed this custom: the Tzemach Tzedek, the Rebbe Maharash, the Rebbe Rashab, up to the period

34:32 Speaker 1 On certain occasions, they would also go out to the fields on Lag BaOmer, hold a farbrengen, and say Chassidus. There are maamarim from all the Rebbeim for Lag BaOmer—many maamarim. As for our Rebbe, the leader of our generation, we saw different practices on Lag BaOmer. There wasn’t really a fixed custom. With the Rebbe, there was no set schedule for Lag BaOmer. Every Lag BaOmer was different. One year the Rebbe held a farbrengen; another year he spoke to the children. There was even a Lag BaOmer when nothing took place. It was different each time. The Rebbe did always go to the Ohel on Lag BaOmer, and the Rebbe would also give blessings, with many miracles. As is well known, many, many Jews were born thanks to blessings the Rebbe gave on Lag BaOmer. When the Rebbe came out of the mikveh, many people would be waiting there. Even when he left his home, wherever he went, people who needed blessings for children would be waiting. And the Rebbe brought about many miracles involving children on Lag BaOmer, as is known. But in practice, the Rebbe’s custom was interesting—and we’ll get to the outing to the fields. When there were parades and all these activities, the Rebbe would often, especially in the later years, drive through the park. That was, in a sense, his outing to the fields. The Rebbe would drive into the park for a visit, without getting out of the car. He would just drive through, pause and look around, and then continue on his way to the Ohel. That was the practice. The Rebbe would go through the park where the children were playing to take part in the outing to the fields. Now, as for going to the Ohel: In general, the sefarim speak about visiting the graves of tzaddikim. For those who cannot go to Rashbi in Meron, since all the tzaddikim are together on that day, going to other tzaddikim is also considered a way of taking part. That is why some people go to the cemetery on Lag BaOmer.

36:26 Speaker 1 For example, it is told that when the Frierdiker Rebbe was in Poland, he too went on Lag BaOmer to the graves of various tzaddikim. There are records of his going to the grave of the Taz, to the grave of Reb Shlomo of Karlin, and to the graves of various tzaddikim from different generations, so that he could be at the graves of tzaddikim on Lag BaOmer. So for the Rebbe, there was the practice of going to the Ohel on Lag BaOmer. There is even an occasion, in 5710 or 5711, when the Rebbe says that tomorrow everyone should go to the mikveh and we will go to the Ohel on Lag BaOmer, right? There the Rebbe speaks about everyone going together to the Ohel on Lag BaOmer, and that it would be an auspicious time. In any case, to conclude: We need to know that Lag BaOmer is an auspicious day, a very great day, as our Rebbeim revealed to us over the generations. The deeper meaning of Lag BaOmer, in the Rebbe’s words and in the language of the maamarim, is the giving of the Torah—the giving of the inner dimension of Torah. That is the deeper meaning of Lag BaOmer. So we can understand why the joy is so great: We have merited, particularly as Chabad chassidim, to have the inner dimension of Torah revealed in the teachings of Chabad Chassidus. That is the greatest joy of Lag BaOmer. It is the day on which Hakadosh Boruch Hu gave us the possibility for the inner dimension of Torah to be revealed here below, so that we can study it and live with it. That is the giving of the Torah on Lag BaOmer, and it is true of the giving of the Torah on Shavuos as well. May each and every one of us merit the fulfillment of the well-known verse associated with Lag BaOmer, which the Rebbe cites in the maamarim: “Open my eyes, that I may behold wonders from Your Torah.” May Hakadosh Boruch Hu open our eyes so that we can see the wonders in Your Torah, especially the “new Torah” of Moshiach, of which it is said, “A new Torah will go forth from Me.” And in the words with which we are now concluding the Rambam, “The earth will be filled with the knowledge of Hashem as the waters cover the sea.” So this is directly connected

38:12 Speaker 1 with “Open my eyes, that I may behold wonders,” as the Rebbe explains in the maamar “Open My Eyes.” May we merit to see “The earth will be filled with the knowledge of Hashem as the waters cover the sea” with the coming of Moshiach Tzidkeinu, immediately, speedily in our days.