The Kuntreisim of the Rebbe Rashab n"e

00:01 Speaker 1 Today’s class is dedicated to the elevation of the soul of my sister, Chaya Mushka, daughter of [unclear], may he live long, Reb Kusil [unclear]. Today, 18 Cheshvan, is her yahrzeit. It is also dedicated to the elevation of the soul of my grandmother, Libba, daughter of Reb Amram and [unclear], whose yahrzeit falls on a Shabbos in Cheshvan. Today we’re going to speak in connection with Cheshvan, the month of the birthday of the Rebbe Rashab, n”e. I want to speak a little about his kuntreisim. That will be the subject of today’s class: some background, history, and content of the Rebbe Rashab’s kuntreisim. We all know what is written in many places: the Rebbe Rashab is called the Rambam of Chassidus. The Frierdiker Rebbe writes this, and the Rebbe also cites it in sichos during Cheshvan. The Rebbe explained it at length several times in 5751: the Rebbe Rashab, n”e, was the Rambam of Chassidus. What does that mean? Look at what the Rambam did with the revealed parts of Torah: he brought order. His greatness was that he took the entire Torah, which was like a sea where it was often hard to find anything—the Gemara discusses everything alongside everything else, everywhere—and organized all its subjects systematically. The Rebbe Rashab’s innovation was to do something similar with the inner dimension of Torah. He brought order to Chassidus. He organized the maamarim and explained them clearly, systematically, and in detail. You see that throughout his works. But there is something special here. We can’t talk about everything. There is the Hemshech 5672, which is studied in yeshiva—the Rebbe Rashab’s Hemshech 5672 is a subject of its own. Perhaps another time. But there are the kuntreisim, and that is what I

02:21 Speaker 1 want to discuss today: the kuntreisim. The Rebbe Rashab, n”e, wrote several kuntreisim. The well-known ones, in the order they were published, are Kuntres Hatefillah, Kuntres U’Maayan, Kuntres Eitz Hachayim, and Kuntres HaAvodah. These are the main kuntreisim of the Rebbe Rashab that people know. There is also Chinuch LaNaar, a different kind of kuntres that we’ll discuss if there’s time. What is the story behind the kuntreisim? Why did the Rebbe Rashab write them? For whom? What do they contain, and what is their history? We all know that in Elul 5657, the Rebbe Rashab, n”e, founded the Tomchei Temimim yeshiva. It was a kind of resurrection. The Frierdiker Rebbe describes the transformation the Rebbe Rashab brought about in Lubavitch in those terms. After the passing of the Rebbe Maharash, there had been a long period when the Rebbe Rashab was very young and also unwell. He traveled frequently to other countries for treatment; he had lung problems. The Frierdiker Rebbe describes the situation in Lubavitch as “Lubavitch fever”—as though there was a sense of emptiness there. Then, in 5654, came the formal acceptance of the nesius. Although the Rebbe says that the acceptance of the nesius actually took place immediately after the passing of the Rebbe Maharash in Cheshvan 5643, with the maamar “Kesser Yitnu Lecha,” its full acceptance in practice, in every detail, was in 5654. In 5657, at the wedding of the Frierdiker Rebbe, his only son, the Rebbe Rashab founded the Tomchei Temimim yeshiva, in 5658. During its first year, the yeshiva did not study in Lubavitch. Only at the end of 5658, in time for Tishrei 5659, did the Temimim arrive in Lubavitch. That was when the regular schedule of

04:49 Speaker 1 Tomchei Temimim in Lubavitch began. That was also when the series of maamarim began. Although Tomchei Temimim was initially a small yeshiva with just a few students, it brought a new vitality—it stirred things up and brought new life to Lubavitch, to all the communities throughout Russia, and to all the places around it. It brought about a transformation. Suddenly there was a tremendous awakening. Chassidim would travel to the Rebbe and see a yeshiva, with young men sitting and studying Chassidus for several hours every day. It caused a stir; the news reverberated. What was going on? There was a kind of—how do you put it? Kuntres Hatefillah explains the avodah of davening according to the approach of Chabad Chassidus. Much of it explains hisbonenus, contemplation, in general. What is hisbonenus? What is it meant to achieve? It gives a powerful explanation of daas. The Rebbe Rashab explains it there at length, over several chapters. There is chochmah, there is binah, and there is daas. As the Alter Rebbe explains to us in Tanya, the main thing that affects a person and awakens feeling, a middah, is daas. On this, the Rebbe Rashab explains that daas means connection and agreement. How does one develop daas? What is it? Why is it so important? He explains at length the faculty of daas within the soul, and how hisbonenus should affect a person. He discusses several kinds of hisbonenus and several levels in the ways one contemplates. There is simpler, more external contemplation; there is more inward, deeper contemplation; and there is contemplation that brings a person to a kind of seeing—as though you actually see the matter. There is seeing within chochmah; there is the inner dimension of binah. He discusses all sorts of very lofty levels of hisbonenus. So much so that,

09:39 Speaker 1 as I heard from chassidim, Reb Alpotofs [unclear] used to tell this story. I heard that when Kuntres Hatefillah came out, people asked the Rebbe Rashab, n”e, whom he had written it for. There are sections that seem to be speaking to people on a very high level. Who could relate to them? After all, Kuntres Hatefillah was written mainly for the students of Tomchei Temimim, young men. So what are these lofty levels doing there? They say the Rebbe Rashab, n”e, named one of the students. According to what I heard, it was Avrum Dovid. At the time, in 5661, there was a student in Tomchei Temimim called Avrum Dovid Pazno [unclear]. That is the name I heard; others give a different name. In any case, Reb Avrum Dovid Pazno [unclear] was the brother-in-law of Chacham Amruzov [unclear]. He was one of the early students of that period. His name appears in the Sefer Hamaamarim for 5661: several records of the maamarim are credited to Reb Avrum Dovid, Avrum Dovid Klimovitch [unclear]. In any case, the Rebbe Rashab said, “He can relate to it.” In other words, there were Temimim in Tomchei Temimim who could relate even to the higher levels. The Rebbe Rashab wrote for all kinds of students. But there is a section that is more relevant to every one of us, something that truly speaks to everyone: the last part of Kuntres Hatefillah, primarily from chapter 11 onward. There the Rebbe Rashab, n”e, goes into more detail, offering practical advice and more specific guidance on how to prepare for davening. From chapter 11 to the end—chapters 11, 12, 13, and onward—there are several very foundational chapters with specific guidance on how the avodah of davening should be approached. These are chapters that truly every young man

11:42 Speaker 1 Really, you need to learn it and know it. He explains it there. In chapter 11, he gives five preparations needed for davening, five aspects of preparation. He speaks about clearing away distractions and foreign thoughts about worldly matters. That’s one preparation. The second is contemplating Chassidus. The third is making a personal accounting beforehand—Krias Shema before bed and teshuvah. And there is the contemplation before Shemoneh Esrei: thinking about before Whom you stand. He explains it there at length, and everyone can look it up inside. After that, he also discusses what happens when someone tries to daven and it doesn’t work for him, when he tries to contemplate and it has no effect on him. He speaks there about dullness of the heart and mind, about the coarseness that sometimes leaves a person without vitality or concentration, without the vitality to daven. After that, he also speaks about the younger students, the boys at the beginning of their time in yeshivah: which things apply to them, and which do not? At the end of the kuntres, he emphasizes yiras Shamayim: to be a vessel for avodas hatefillah, the first thing is to have yiras Shamayim, to study Shulchan Aruch, for it to matter to you personally. The whole matter of studying Shulchan Aruch. That is more or less the structure of Kuntres Hatefillah. This was in 5661. As the Frierdiker Rebbe relates, it had a tremendous impact throughout the Chabad chassidic world at the time and brought about a great awakening. This kuntres was later printed again in Hatamim. Hatamim was—when the Frierdiker Rebbe was already in Poland before the war, in the late 5690s, close to World War II, a periodical called Hatamim began coming out. Today it’s available as a book, Hatamim, containing the issues printed in Poland. And then, in one of the issues, the Rebbe

13:42 Speaker 1 Rashab printed Kuntres Hatefillah with the introduction we mentioned earlier. After that, it came out as a separate kuntres in America. The first kuntres Kehot printed—just as an aside, this is interesting to know too—when the Frierdiker Rebbe founded Kehot Publishing. It began in America in 5702, after the Rebbe arrived—after our Rebbe arrived by way of—after the Rebbe arrived in 5701, having come from—having gone into exile in America. Immediately afterward, at the beginning of 5702, the Frierdiker Rebbe founded Kehot, and one of—the first book Kehot printed was Kuntres Hatefillah. That’s how it began. In any case, there is Kuntres Hatefillah as we have it today. Kuntres Hatefillah, as we have it today, is the edition printed by the Rebbe in 5702, with all the details. That’s the first kuntres. In 5663, the Rebbe Rashab published the second kuntres, Kuntres Umaayan. What’s the story behind Kuntres Umaayan? If you look at Kuntres Umaayan today, you’ll see that it too has an introduction. Before Kuntres Umaayan there’s an introduction, a journal the Frierdiker Rebbe wrote. What’s the story? The Frierdiker Rebbe wrote that journal later, in America, but in it he describes the history of Lubavitch. What led the Rebbe Rashab to decide to print Kuntres Umaayan? What’s the story? It’s very interesting and very long. I won’t go into all the details now, only what brings us to Kuntres Umaayan. He relates that in 5662—5662 is a very important year for us, because that’s the year the Rebbe was born, on 11 Nissan—but in 5662, the Rebbe Rashab, n.e., was not in Lubavitch for 19 Kislev. It was the first or only time that—well, it was something exceptional. The Rebbe Rashab wanted to be in Lubavitch, but there was a reason: because of a blood-libel affair. There was some turmoil, and the Rebbe Rashab had to travel to Moscow to deal with certain problems involving decrees,

15:58 Speaker 1 and he couldn’t get to Lubavitch for 19 Kislev. Back then there was no internet, no telephones, and the chassidim didn’t know. Many chassidim came to Lubavitch for 19 Kislev, and the Rebbe wasn’t there. The chassidim were deeply disappointed. Imagine: chassidim had come to Lubavitch to spend 19 Kislev with the Rebbe, and the Rebbe wasn’t there. The Rebbe was in Moscow. There was a great deal of pain over this, and then the Rebbe Rashab, n.e., sent a letter. This is the famous letter everyone knows, the letter at the beginning of Hayom Yom. The letter explaining what 19 Kislev is: “This day is the beginning of Your works,” “the beginning of”—the whole famous letter explaining the essence of 19 Kislev. “The light and vitality of our souls were given to us.” It’s a wonderful, very moving letter. And thanks to that—meaning, our setback became our gain, as they say—because the Rebbe Rashab, n.e., couldn’t be in Lubavitch, he sent the letter. To this day, that letter is foundational in Chassidus for understanding the essence of 19 Kislev. The letter brought the chassidim a kind of great joy. The Frierdiker Rebbe relates that they sent the letter to all the towns in Russia where there were chassidim—to all the places, all the regions, all the cities—and it once again brought about a great awakening, a kind of new vitality. The awakening everywhere was so great that in various places they decided to establish an, uh, an organization. An organization was founded called—I don’t remember the exact name now—something to do with the study of Chassidus: the Committee for the Study of Chassidus, the Committee for the Support of Chassidus, the Committee for the Strengthening of Chassidus. It became a kind of committee in all the towns to make sure there were Chassidus classes in every town, everywhere, right? It’s very interesting: the Frierdiker Rebbe relates at length about the letters that reached Lubavitch, including complaints. He says that the letter arrived late. In some places it only arrived in Adar, and they held

20:15 Speaker 2 Because you learn it in yeshivah and then don’t go back and study it. And דווקא when a person is older, it’s actually quite good to study Kuntres Umaayan, because these things shouldn’t be forgotten. There are many, many things in it that are fundamental to life: ways of looking at life, perspectives, advice, guidance, and very simple, fundamental things. Kuntres Umaayan. So it was written in 5663 and then published. But Kuntres Umaayan as we have it today was also printed in America, around 5706. The Frierdiker Rebbe wrote an account. There is a journal he wrote then, when he was already in America, recounting everything that happened in 5663. It serves as an introduction to Kuntres Umaayan, and the two were printed together as Kuntres Umaayan. There he also tells about the Rebbe Rashab, n.e., and his struggle against Zionism, which was also taking place at that time. The Rebbe Rashab was then engaged in a major struggle against various aspects of Zionism and its approach to going to Eretz Yisroel. There are many, many interesting things there. In any case, that was Kuntres Umaayan. It was printed in 5706 in the form in which we have the kuntres today. Just a story in passing—perhaps I heard this from the person it happened to, so I want to tell it to you. He passed away a little while ago, I think. Srul Golden. Have you heard of him? Srul Golden is the son of Rabbi Yechezkel Golden. Srul Golden told the story. He told me that one evening the Rebbe came into 770. The Rebbe, of course, was the director of Kehot. He prepared all the kuntreisim, and the Rebbe asked whether there was a bochur willing to take a kuntres to the printer. Someone had to take the kuntres to the print shop. The print shop was in Manhattan or somewhere like that, and you had to take the train to bring it there. So he agreed. In short, the Rebbe gave him

22:44 Speaker 2 the money for the train and said—it was twenty-five cents a ride back then. So the Rebbe gave him a dollar and told him to bring back the change afterward. Okay. So he went, and on the way he opened it. It was Kuntres Umaayan—the whole kuntres. It was Kuntres Umaayan; it was something special. He sat on the train and read the whole thing, and there he encountered that novel account of the whole history for the first time. In short, he brought it to the printer. It was late in the evening when he returned, and he imagined that perhaps the Rebbe would give him something for his trouble. Anyway, the Rebbe was waiting for him, and he realized the Rebbe was waiting for him to return the... He made a face, as though he was a little upset. So the Rebbe told him, “You had time to read it—that’s your payment. Your payment is that you got to read the kuntres.” But the young man didn’t like that. He made a face; he was a little upset about it. That was in 5706. He relates that in 5710–5711, after the passing, when the Rebbe had now become Rebbe, he still felt a little... he felt bad that he had once been upset. I don’t remember the details exactly now; I’ve forgotten them over the years. But he relates that once he drove the Rebbe in his car. He had a car, and he drove the Rebbe sometime at the beginning of the Rebbe’s leadership. And then the Rebbe—he didn’t say anything, but the Rebbe looked at him, smiled, as if to say, “Everything is all right.” He erased the... The Rebbe noticed that something was troubling him inside. The Rebbe let him know that everything was all right, all was well, he was forgiven. That’s how it ended. That’s a story about... So that’s that, and we’ll get to Kuntres Umaayan. In 5664, the Rebbe Rashab, of blessed memory, published Kuntres

25:06 Speaker 2 Eitz Hachayim. Kuntres Umaayan was not specifically for the young men. On the contrary, Kuntres Umaayan was for the Chabad community, for Jews who had begun studying Chassidus and needed the basics of Chassidus. Then, in 5664, the Rebbe Rashab decided there needed to be a kuntres for the young men: they needed to know what Tomchei Temimim was about, what Chassidus was about, what we were doing in yeshiva, and what our goal in yeshiva was. That was what led the Rebbe Rashab, of blessed memory, to write Kuntres Eitz Hachayim. That is precisely why he called it Kuntres Eitz Hachayim. In other words, it was made for the students of Tomchei Temimim, who study the inner dimension of Torah—that is the concept of the Tree of Life. What is in Kuntres Eitz Hachayim? It is divided into two broad parts. The first part explains in depth what the inner dimension of Torah is, why we need to study it at all, what the difference is between the revealed dimension and the inner dimension of Torah, why we need both, and why we cannot study the revealed dimension without Chassidus. It explains the whole subject of yichuda ila’ah and yichuda tata’ah—why we need both yichuda ila’ah and yichuda tata’ah. It explains the whole subject of the sin of the Tree of Knowledge. What was Adam and Chava’s sin? He wanted to take the Tree of Knowledge without the Tree of Life, and from that comes the approach of taking the revealed dimension of Torah without Chassidus. In other words, Chassidus is a correction for the sin of the Tree of Knowledge. He explains this at length and connects it to study: when you study the revealed dimension alone, even though it is Hashem’s Torah, because it is clothed in physical matters, it can cause a person to fall into self-importance and pride, even becoming a “potion of death” if he is not meritorious, as the Gemara says. Therefore, we need to study the inner dimension of Torah, because the inner dimension of Torah speaks about G-dliness, and so on. And in terms of inner avodah, too, he explains why there needs to be a balance that includes yichuda ila’ah, not

27:05 Speaker 2 just yichuda tata’ah. After all, we’re not on the level of yichuda ila’ah. Who is? No one. Nevertheless, Chassidus speaks about yichuda ila’ah so that yichuda tata’ah does not stand alone. Because if you take only yichuda tata’ah, that too can provide nurture to the external forces, to self-importance. He explains it very, very beautifully and extensively. There are several very beautiful topics in Chassidus there. One of them is a subject they are studying in yeshiva right now as well: matter and form. The whole discussion of matter and form found in the maamarim of 5710, in Torah Sasson 5710, is based on the opening chapters of Kuntres Eitz Hachayim. The whole subject of matter and form, [unclear], the state of speech, the state of will and desire, in the Chanukah maamarim—that is the beginning of the kuntres. After that he explains—that’s the first half of the kuntres. The second half is “The Purpose for Which Our Association Was Founded.” It explains the purpose of Tomchei Temimim. It’s very, very interesting and very relevant. Every young man in yeshiva must study it, simply to know what Tomchei Temimim wants from us. First, in the introduction, he explains that Tomchei Temimim was founded so that the higher purpose could be fulfilled: there must be both the revealed dimension of Torah and Chassidus, as well as avodas hatefillah, a proper outlook, and inner avodah. He explains the whole matter—why Tomchei Temimim came into being for all of this—and then he explains, in very practical terms, the yeshiva schedule: what time one should get up for Chassidus, how to study Chassidus in the morning and in the evening, the study period for the revealed dimension of Torah, and how and in what manner to study it. He gives all kinds of instructions and guidance about how to daven and about keeping to the study schedule. There is a section about Shabbos, about how Shabbos should be structured. All kinds of very, very practical,

29:05 Speaker 2 fundamental and essential matters concerning how students should be guided in Tomchei Temimim. He ends the kuntres by saying that he is publishing it because it is difficult to repeat everything again and again and again. So he is writing it in a kuntres to keep it before your eyes as a reminder, so that everyone will know the purpose of Tomchei Temimim. That is Kuntres Eitz Hachayim. When the Frierdiker Rebbe published Kuntres Eitz Hachayim in America, he included a letter in its introduction. It is a letter the Frierdiker Rebbe wrote in 5692, at the time of the wedding of his third daughter, Rebbetzin Sheina, the Frierdiker Rebbe’s third daughter, who was killed in the war—may Hashem avenge her blood. Her wedding was in 5692, and at that time the Frierdiker Rebbe wrote a very, very sharp letter about the state of the yeshivos. A very forceful, very interesting, very sharp letter. He speaks about the situation in yeshivos where Torah is studied but there is no fear of Heaven: how the street enters the yeshiva instead of the yeshiva influencing and illuminating the street. Instead, an atmosphere of balebatishkeit, of coarseness, of coldness enters the yeshiva. It is very sharp—a very, very forceful letter. It brought about an upheaval and made a great stir at the time. That letter was printed as an introduction to Kuntres Eitz Hachayim. There is another letter printed in the introduction to these kuntreisim, a shorter letter that the Frierdiker Rebbe wrote in America. It is the well-known letter in which the Frierdiker Rebbe writes that a day will come when all the students will have complaints against their mashpi’im: “Why didn’t you teach us how to serve Hashem? Why didn’t you teach us how to study, how to daven, how to serve Hashem with joy?” And what will we answer our students on that day? A very sharp, very important letter, especially for mashpi’im. The kuntreisim. Kuntres Eitz Hachayim—that’s the kuntres. Ah! I also want to add a story about Kuntres Eitz Hachayim.

31:16 Speaker 2 Yes, the Frierdiker Rebbe—sorry, the Rebbe—had this kuntres printed in 5751. The Rebbe asked for it to be printed that year, which marked 130 years—120, sorry, 130 years—since the birth of the Rebbe Rashab, of blessed memory. In connection with his birthday, the Rebbe asked for the kuntres to be printed and distributed it to everyone. That was on 20 Cheshvan 5751. The Rebbe distributed Kuntres Etz Hachayim to everyone. This was a very significant development. It caused a great stir and a tremendous awakening, I remember. I didn’t merit to receive the kuntres because I was in Australia then, but the Rebbe distributed it to everyone—men, women, and children—and it brought about a tremendous awakening. There were those who argued that Kuntres Etz Hachayim was for the fifth and sixth generations, not for the seventh generation. Today, avodas hatefillah, intellectual study, all those things aren’t really what’s called for now; now it’s mivtzoim. Bringing Moshiach, taking action—this isn’t the time for those earlier things. That was once upon a time. On the Shabbos after 20 Cheshvan, Shabbos Parshas Chayei Sarah, the Rebbe came down to the farbrengen with the kuntres in his hand, and at the farbrengen the Rebbe spoke about why he had distributed it. The Rebbe read what it says in the kuntres, what the Rebbe Rashab had written: why does he emphasize this? Because it’s difficult to have to say each time that this applies today as well, in our generation; there’s no need to keep repeating these points. These teachings are timeless and apply today, and so on. That’s regarding Kuntres Etz Hachayim. After that there is Kuntres Ha’avodah. The Rebbe Rashab published Kuntres Ha’avodah in 5671. By then, several years later, things were already very deep, and Lubavitch was already deeply immersed in Tomchei Temimim. 5671. The story of Kuntres Ha’avodah is that it was a kind of continuation

33:20 Speaker 2 of Kuntres Hatefillah. The Rebbe Rashab wrote Kuntres Ha’avodah during the period when he was delivering the maamarim of Hemshech Ayin Beis. It appears that he began working on it in 5669. That’s what the letters seem to indicate: he began working on it in 5669, and his main work on it was in 5671, around the time of 5670, and it came out in 5671. Those years were already a very developed period in Lubavitch. Lubavitch was in its glory. The Tomchei Temimim yeshivah was a large, well-known yeshivah. Around that time—a little later—the Rebbe Rashab also sent the shluchim to Toras Emes[?], in 5671 or 5672. So it was during that period that the Rebbe Rashab wrote Kuntres Ha’avodah, where he goes into greater detail about inner avodah. The central point of Kuntres Ha’avodah, and the difference between it and Kuntres Hatefillah, is that in Kuntres Ha’avodah the Rebbe Rashab speaks more about inner avodah, about matters relating to love and awe. Kuntres Hatefillah speaks more generally about contemplation and about davening as a whole. In Kuntres Ha’avodah he speaks in greater detail. What kind of contemplation is needed to awaken love? What kind of contemplation is needed to awaken awe? There is love like water and love like fire; there is lower awe and higher awe; there is avodah through the inner faculties and avodah through the encompassing faculties. What contemplation is needed for this? And what contemplation is needed for that? There is also an entire chapter there—we’re talking about Kuntres Ha’avodah. There is a whole chapter, one of the most important and foundational chapters, which every bochur must study, know, and engrave in his mind: chapter 2 of Kuntres Ha’avodah. It’s an entire chapter about simple yiras Shamayim. Before love and awe, and before all the various levels, there must be simple yiras Shamayim, kabbolas ol. There he speaks about guarding one’s eyes, guarding one’s thoughts, guarding one’s speech, guarding one’s... guarding one’s hearing. How one must

35:27 Speaker 2 guard the garments of thought, speech, and action, and maintain kabbolas ol and yiras Shamayim. It’s a very, very foundational and important chapter. But before and after it, the discussion is about inner avodah, about love and awe. After that he discusses details and all kinds of practical advice. What do you do when contemplation doesn’t have an effect? He gives guidance. Chapters 6 and 7 discuss how contemplation must lead to actual avodah, to refining one’s character traits. That is the subject of Kuntres Ha’avodah. So it came out in 5671, and later it was printed again in America, in 5701, when the Frierdiker Rebbe arrived in America. Kuntres Ha’avodah was printed together with a letter that the Frierdiker Rebbe wrote some years later, explaining Kuntres Ha’avodah and several details concerning contemplation. Those, generally speaking, are the main kuntreisim that the Rebbe Rashab, of blessed memory, published—the four kuntreisim. There are other kuntreisim by the Rebbe Rashab as well. We mentioned Kuntres Chanoch Lanaar, which is a will. Chanoch Lanaar is a will the Rebbe Rashab wrote, part of which the Frierdiker Rebbe gave permission to print together with an account of his life, Divrei Chayim. That is Kuntres Chanoch Lanaar. It is a very interesting kuntres that discusses foundations of education: how to raise a child, protect him from bad friends, and how parents—both the father and the mother—bear responsibility for their children and what their roles are. It’s a very interesting kuntres on education, Kuntres Chanoch Lanaar. There is another famous kuntres, Heichaltzu. It is a maamar of the Rebbe Rashab that the Rebbe printed in 5709, fifty years after Kuntres Heichaltzu was delivered, on Simchas Torah 5659. In 5709, the Rebbe prepared this kuntres for publication and had it printed. It is also one of the Rebbe Rashab’s kuntreisim, the famous kuntres about Ahavas Yisroel, baseless hatred, and unconditional love—Kuntres Heichaltzu. To conclude, I want to tell you an interesting story

37:37 Speaker 2 that Rabbi Greenglass used to tell us. The Rebbe Rashab, of blessed memory, once told one of the chassidim that he had prepared—or wanted to prepare; I don’t remember the exact wording—a special kuntres. He really wanted to write a Kuntres on Eating and Drinking, to teach bochurim how to eat and how to conduct themselves while eating and drinking. If you want to get to know a bochur, the place to do it is really the dining room, not the zal. As it turned out, that kuntres was never printed, but the Rebbe Rashab had considered writing a Kuntres on Eating and Drinking as well. In practice, these kuntreisim are very important and very foundational. A bochur who wants to be truly part of Tomchei Temimim, and to appreciate and live by the inner path of Tomchei Temimim, ought to set aside time to study these kuntreisim. They will teach us how to be chassidim as the Rebbe wants.