Ears to Hear 25 | "The Youth Does Not Lean Toward Compromises"

00:00 Speaker 1 And Hashem gave you a heart to know, eyes to see, and ears to hear.

00:08 Speaker 2 Ears to Hear. Audio programs for the Temimim from Ata Haolami.

00:14 Speaker 4 The Rebbe tells you that when you study a dispute between Tosafos and the Rambam [?] in depth, it changes the way you think. Then, when you speak about Moshiach, it will be absorbed within you; it will light you up. You won’t be coarse or unrefined. You’ll be more refined, more... You’ll hear a word from the Rebbe, hear a recording of the Rebbe, and it will move you; it will have an effect. You won’t be dry or coarse. Sholom aleichem to all the Temimim in Tomchei Temimim Lubavitch yeshivos throughout the Holy Land and around the world. We’re now beginning a special episode in the Ears to Hear audio series. This program is steeped in a spirit of steadfast hiskashrus to the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach shlita, and in the cherished mission of loving Moshiach and bringing him in actual practice. In this, our twenty-fifth episode, we’re sitting down with Rabbi Nachman Lerner, head of Yeshivas Gedolei Lubavitch in Beit Shemesh [?], for a special farbrengen. It’s a program about the overall direction of a Tomim’s life without compromises: how every Tomim’s responsibility to love Moshiach finds practical expression, particularly in the Temimim’s primary task of Torah study, and the inner, essential approach needed to do these things in the most correct and sincere way. Sholom aleichem, Rabbi Lerner.

01:43 Speaker 1 Sholom uverachah. L’chaim and blessings. L’chaim to all the Temimim.

01:46 Speaker 4 L’chaim, l’chaim. Boruch Hashem, just sitting together for a program like this, talking about Temimim, is itself inspiring.

01:52 Speaker 1 Especially when you feel that all the Temimim listening are here with us—if not physically, then in spirit. The divine souls of all the Temimim are here. A powerful worldwide farbrengen. So l’chaim and blessings.

02:03 Speaker 4 L’chaim, l’chaim. Boruch Hashem, in this program we’re talking about the lives of Temimim in general, and how to focus ourselves on the place where the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, wants to find each of us. So perhaps, before getting to the practical side and the outcome, we should start with a fundamental question: what does it mean, in essence, to be Temimim without compromises? How does refusing to compromise find particular expression in the lives of Temimim? The Rebbe spoke about this generally. You can see in hundreds, even thousands, of letters in Igros Kodesh that the Rebbe did not accept compromises in Yiddishkeit or in the observance of mitzvos, despite all the prevailing winds in America and elsewhere. This was especially true in educating the younger generation, and particularly with young people, who are not inclined to compromise. So how does that apply to us? What does refusing to compromise mean in the life of a Tomim, both in essence and in practice? And from there, with Hashem’s help, we’ll get to the results we’ve mentioned. So what’s the general idea?

02:53 Speaker 1 First of all, one of the earliest places where the Rebbe addresses youth in general, and therefore the Temimim in particular, is in the Rebbe’s letter before Yud Shvat 5711. There the Rebbe sets out the familiar customs for the day of the hilula. But at the end are two very substantial sections that we may not always notice. They take up much more space in the letter than the individual customs of lighting a candle or receiving an aliyah. The Rebbe writes that one should go to gatherings of observant Jewish youth, and, if possible, to young people who are not yet observant, and tell them of the great affection and love that my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, had for them. Then comes a very special sentence. I’m not quoting the exact words, but it says approximately that he had great faith and confidence in them: that they would bring about the desired goal, the fulfillment of the work entrusted to them as the young people of the Jewish people. We need to listen to those words. The Rebbe is saying something astonishing, something awe-inspiring: the faith and confidence he placed in them. You, a Tomim sitting at home now and listening on your phone, should close your eyes and picture the Rebbe. The Rebbe had confidence in you. It doesn’t say he placed his confidence in the adults. He placed his confidence in them—in the Temimim, in the young people. So these special words weren’t addressed to just anyone, to Jews in general. They were addressed to youth, to young people. And that is our strength, the strength of the Temimim, of every person listening to this. What is the special strength of young people? As you mentioned, the Rebbe addresses this in many letters and sichos. And when you know the spirit of that period, you understand it better. In the early years of the Rebbe’s leadership, a major phenomenon began in the United States: the so-called hippies. These were young people who decided to rebel against all the conventions of the well-dressed, tie-wearing adults. We’re talking about young people, not necessarily

05:09 Speaker 1 Jewish—young people in general—and there were millions of them. The Rebbe said that, of course, in movements like these it was always Jews who led the way. In every such revolution, Jews are the ones who lead it. The Rebbe said you could plainly see that young people were unwilling to accept the “half-truths”—that’s the Rebbe’s expression—of the adults. They wanted straightforward truth, without compromises. And then you see letters the Rebbe wrote to people in America and in the Holy Land saying that young people do not like compromises. They hate compromises and are not willing to accept them. In a particular sicha of the Rebbe [unclear], the Rebbe also speaks about how this had always been the approach of the Frierdiker Rebbe: Lubavitch is not about taking the easy way out. Lubavitch means going all the way, without compromises. And here we come to the central point. The Rebbe says, “People think that if you refuse to compromise, fewer people will come.” The Rebbe speaks as though some communal activists had apparently told him that not enough students were coming to Lubavitch institutions because the approach there was too strong. The Rebbe said, “You’ll see that this approach brings not only students of higher quality, but more students in number”—when you stand by the truth without compromise. So when we come to our most essential mission, bringing Moshiach and welcoming Moshiach, who carries the banner of no compromises more than we do? Is there anyone among us more uncompromising? When it comes to Moshiach, we need to take this teaching of the Rebbe to heart too: to proceed without compromises. And, boruch Hashem, we do that well; we don’t make compromises. But we need to apply it to our own personal avodah, to bringing

06:57 Speaker 1 Moshiach—to truly see that we are carrying out our mission without compromises.

07:01 Speaker 5 In other words, as Rabbi Lerner is saying, going without compromises isn’t just a position you put in a headline: “Our position is no compromises.” It’s how you live your life. It comes down to daily life, to what you actually do. How do I live at that level as I work to bring Moshiach?

07:19 Speaker 1 Yes. Refusing to compromise isn’t only a matter of outlook. Certainly my outlook is uncompromising. Everything the Rebbe says is true, without compromises, and that’s all well and good. But that lack of compromise has to be present in our daily conduct, on the ground. There’s a story about Reb Nissan Nemenov. One Shabbos, after the Rebbe began Mivtza Tefillin, the bochurim from Brunoy had gone out to Paris to put tefillin on people. Reb Nissan was deeply stirred—as is well known, he was someone who became enthusiastic and was very deeply moved. So at the farbrengens afterward, he spoke about Mivtza Tefillin. Apparently he had been there; perhaps he had seen it or heard about it. I don’t know exactly what happened. But he said to the bochurim, “Think what this means. You approach a distinguished man on the street, wearing a suit and tie, impeccably dressed in modern French fashion, and you ask him, right there in the street, to take off his jacket, roll up his sleeve, and put on tefillin—and not to be self-conscious about it. So come on, what about you? Where are you taking off your own jacket and tie? You ask it of him because you know it’s the truth: he’s a Jew, he has mitzvos, and he has a divine soul, so he shouldn’t be self-conscious. Now let’s see you roll up your sleeves and do something.”

08:25 Speaker 5 If living without compromises is a way of life, then it’s a way of life in every detail.

08:29 Speaker 1 Exactly.

08:31 Speaker 5 So this is a very powerful point, one we all want to take all the way. I saw a letter from the Rebbe [unclear]. The Rebbe says that in our generation we can already see, proven on the ground, that the approach of compromise has gone bankrupt. “Gone bankrupt”—those are the Rebbe’s words. In other words, we already know it doesn’t work. So it’s clear to us, certainly as Temimim, as Chabad chassidim, and as people who go all the way with the matter of Moshiach, that we’re taking this to its fullest extent. But within that, if we want to break it down and bring it into actual practice—if I’m ready not just to hold an opinion, but to live without compromise as a Tomim—what is the first way that should show up in my daily life?

09:11 Speaker 1 Before I share the anecdote, something you said reminded me: This past week I was at a farbrengen with several chassidim. There was a very prominent communal activist there, a Litvish Jew through and through, from the heart of the Litvish community. But he has a very good friend, one of our own Chabad chassidim, a Jew who lives with Moshiach and is a major activist in matters of Moshiach. This Litvish Jew is at the complete opposite end of the spectrum, yet he’s very close to him personally. He began talking about something happening in Israel that needs to be protested, something being done against Judaism. He said, “I spoke to a few Chabad chassidim about getting involved, and they didn’t really move.” Then he said, without any embarrassment, “I can understand the Chabad chassidim who aren’t so involved in matters of Moshiach. I understand that they might not come along with me. But you—you’re genuine people who go without compromise.” That’s what he said. “Every word of the Rebbe is true to you. You’re people we can really work with. You need to lead us.” So we really have to know that this is how people see us. In the end, everyone knows it’s us. We go with the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, who lives and endures, without compromise; we go with the truth. And as the Rebbe says, people appreciate that, and consequently...

10:40 Speaker 5 Let me put in a brief aside about Beit Shemesh. Do you see that here?

10:45 Speaker 1 We see it very, very clearly.

10:46 Speaker 5 Because the environment here is not a simple one.

10:50 Speaker 1 We’re in a neighborhood where a large part of the population is [unclear], people close to Neturei Karta, who have a history of friction with Chabad. Yes. But as one person told one of the rabbis here, “I’m completely opposed to it, but when I see the bochurim, what can I do? I can’t help but answer amen. I have to admit, this really is something different.” You can see it plainly. There was a Jew here who had an event at a local shul, and a few bochurim were there. He said a little l’chaim. He’s a chossid of a very distinguished and important Chassidic group; I won’t mention its name. The occasion was a bris, and after a little l’chaim he began saying, “My Chassidus is finished.” He didn’t name it. “Chassidus is finished. There are no more Chassidic groups; there’s only Torah. Lubavitch—the Rebbe. Look at his bochurim! What lively bochurim, what serious bochurim!” And then he said, “My Rebbe has passed away, and the Lubavitcher Rebbe is alive!” That’s what he shouted. You really see it plainly. You see it in our conduct: a Tomim who carries himself like a Tomim is a walking banner. It’s no joke; he has an enormous impact on the world just by being there. So let’s return to the point. If we’ve spoken about going without compromise, and how even people on the other side appreciate it, then how does that first express itself in a Tomim? Here we come to a very central point. There’s a sicha of the Rebbe that you could call the Temimim’s Dvar Malchus. There’s Dvar Malchus—the whole year of 5752—but there’s also the Temimim’s Dvar Malchus. And often we’re used to quoting all sorts of

12:52 Speaker 1 other Dvar Malchus sichos. There’s the children’s Dvar Malchus, from Simchas Torah 5752. There’s the shluchim’s Dvar Malchus, from the Kinus Hashluchim of 5752. We also know how to wave those proudly. Any shliach who isn’t fulfilling the mission that all of his shlichus must pass through the gateway of welcoming Moshiach Tzidkeinu can expect an earful from us—and that’s good. He should get an earful. We’re the Temimim. Who works on the front lines? Who are the Rebbe’s watchdogs? Who are the guards? The Temimim. And in the camps, thank G-d, we also know how to quote the Rebbe well. What is a Jewish child? The Rebbe says on Simchas Torah 5752 that when you look at a Jewish child, you see Moshiach. That’s the children’s Dvar Malchus. And what is the Temimim’s Dvar Malchus? It’s the Rebbe’s yechidus in 5752, the last yechidus to date. With Hashem’s help, we’ll yet merit the next yechidus. But the yechidus the Rebbe gives us in Dvar Malchus is that yechidus of 5752, in which the Rebbe gives the Temimim such Geulah-oriented guidance. I want you to notice a point that perhaps doesn’t get enough attention in the wording of the sicha. On Simchas Torah 5752, the Rebbe uses the expression I mentioned earlier: when you look at a Jewish child, you see Moshiach. And in the yechidus, the Rebbe says almost the same words about a yeshivah bochur. The same words. When you look at a true yeshivah bochur, what do you see? The reality of Torah—that his true reality is the reality of Torah. And that conveys the idea. It really is the same wording. Someone once asked me, “What, you see Moshiach in children, but once a child gets a little older, that’s it? We leave that to camp songs? Evolution?” Yes, there’s development: suddenly you see Torah in him. I don’t know—he becomes a businessman, and you see money,

14:47 Speaker 1 right? He gets old, and you see honor? What? G-d forbid. What does it mean when you look at—on the one hand. But on the other hand, these are the same words. What does that mean? First of all, this question ought to bother us. We need to think about it. Throughout the sicha, the Rebbe speaks about matters of Geulah and, as we’ll discuss shortly, about learning the entire Torah, as chassidim know. But what is the meaning of this sentence, which so closely parallels the sentence about seeing Moshiach in a Jewish child? The answer is actually simple. If you look a few paragraphs earlier, the Rebbe begins by saying in section four of the sicha, as a wish, that the matter mentioned at the end of the Rambam should be fulfilled: in the days of Moshiach, all the things that hinder Torah study will fall away, leading to Torah study in a different manner, as chassidim know. So the Rebbe begins speaking in the form of a wish. The Rebbe says that the learning in the days of Moshiach will be far beyond the wondrous union described in Tanya; it will truly be one reality. And then the Rebbe continues as part of that wish. What is the wish we’re expressing? “And similarly, when one looks at a true yeshivah bochur, one immediately sees his true reality—the reality of Torah.” In other words, the Rebbe—this is part of the wish. Exactly, it’s part of the wish. Continuing the theme of Simchas Torah: on Simchas Torah 5752, the Rebbe uses another very distinctive expression. The Rebbe speaks about the need to live with Moshiach, and says we should “live in the state and condition of the Jewish people in the days of Moshiach.” We’re always grappling with what it means to live in that state and condition. There are many explanations and much to contemplate. But here, in this sicha, the Rebbe is essentially telling us how to live in that state and condition: for a true yeshivah bochur, our reality is the reality of Torah. And we’ll soon discuss how to do that in a truly Geulah-oriented way.

16:28 Speaker 1 But youth does not tend toward compromise, and in this, Temimim need to go with the Rebbe without compromise. The Rebbe gives us a path, and we’re not going to zigzag along it, be intimidated by it, or worry that fewer people will join us on this path. As I explained in the earlier sicha, the Rebbe says that when we go without compromise, the entire Jewish people will come. Everyone, of every kind, will come and rally around the banner of living with Moshiach, living with the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach.

16:58 Speaker 6 That really is an interesting point. As you mention it, Rabbi, we’re talking about a span of ten days—Simchas Torah and the yechidus.

17:07 Speaker 1 Ten days.

17:08 Speaker 6 Yes. Simchas Torah is at the very end of Tishrei, and the yechidus was on 4 Cheshvan. That year they were practically in the same week.

17:13 Speaker 1 Exactly.

17:13 Speaker 6 Almost.

17:14 Speaker 1 Very close together.

17:14 Speaker 6 Speaking about the very same idea. Not far apart at all.

17:17 Speaker 1 Yes, this isn’t some analogy. You can see it’s really the very same thing.

17:21 Speaker 7 [unclear]

17:44 Speaker 6 In this very point, Rabbi Lander [?], we hear these words, and they really awaken us to understand just how much this is our shlichus and our work: learning the entire Torah, quite literally. And this is the idea of Moshiach. But when we hear the word “Moshiach,” what immediately comes to mind is talking about Moshiach, spreading the message of Moshiach, perhaps studying Moshiach, studying matters of Geulah and Moshiach. Suddenly, they come and take what seems like an old, familiar point—learning, all Torah study—and tell us: this is Moshiach. How exactly did Torah study get put into the Moshiach category? In a sense, it’s a nagging question. We want to understand it.

18:18 Speaker 1 Right, that really is a very, very important question. A genuine question. So what will make it apparent that we’re living Moshiach? We keep learning, only a bit more sharply, with one more kvetsh? We really have to be very careful about this. I once spoke with a shliach, a good friend of mine, and asked him, “What about Moshiach at your Chabad House?” He said, “Putting tefillin on a Jew isn’t Moshiach? Learning Torah with a Jew isn’t Moshiach?” Well, that’s a very good argument, but what do we know the Rebbe wants? As the Rebbe emphasizes in those talks, it must be out in the open. It must not only permeate everything; it must be visible. So yes, you put on tefillin and you learn Torah, but matters of Moshiach have to be out in the open. How, then, does Torah study actually bring Moshiach out into the open? There’s a wonderful sicha of the Rebbe from the last day of Pesach 5697. There the Rebbe speaks at length about Seudas Moshiach, explaining at length why it specifically involves matzah and four cups of wine, why it is specifically on the last day of Pesach, and why it is specifically on Pesach. And a fourth detail the Rebbe mentions is that it was specifically entrusted to the Temimim.

19:35 Speaker 6 By the Rebbe Rashab.

19:36 Speaker 1 By the Rebbe Rashab. It’s very interesting: in that sicha, there seems to be an initial thought that Seudas Moshiach belongs only to the Temimim. The Rebbe says that since today the Temimim are connected to the entire Jewish people, it therefore belongs to the entire Jewish people. But really, at Seudas Moshiach, all Jews are, in essence, Temimim. Incidentally, that’s why the Rebbe said the wine should come from Tomchei Temimim. If you’ve noticed, to this day all the wine that comes is from Tomchei Temimim. There’s an instruction from the Rebbe that the wine should come from Tomchei Temimim, because it’s part of Tomchei Temimim. The Rebbe says that the reason Seudas Moshiach was given to the Temimim is because what is the idea of Moshiach? [unclear] So where is Moshiach found today among the Temimim? In Tomchei Temimim, Moshiach is there, because they bring together Nigleh and Chassidus in practice, inwardly, as one, and consequently Moshiach shines there. There’s a saying, something people have heard the Rebbe said: the whole world needs Moshiach, but Temimim live with the idea of Moshiach.

20:33 Speaker 8 …

20:33 Speaker 1 So it isn’t complete yet, because the whole world isn’t living that way, as the Rebbe says in several places. But look: they live in a world of Moshiach. In simple terms, we all know what the Rebbe’s sichos explain about Moshiach: the revelation of G-dliness, the revelation of Moshiach, and seeing Melech HaMoshiach [unclear]. As the Rebbe says in the hadran on the Rambam, knowing that he is Moshiach is a revelation of G-dliness in creation. In other words, Moshiach means living with G-dliness. Someone connected to the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, lives with Moshiach. And ultimately, when we speak to people about Moshiach in the world, someone comes to us and says, “Okay, I want to live Moshiach. Help me live Moshiach.” What do I tell him? I tell him, “All right, study matters of Geulah and Moshiach, say ‘Yechi,’ connect yourself to the Rebbe.” Then he says, “I want to take another step. Tell me how to live Moshiach more.” So you tell him, “Also study another maamar of the Rebbe.” He says, “Okay, I’ve studied a maamar too. I want to—I want to enter a place where I can really live Moshiach, as the Rebbe said.” Then you have to bring him to a place where people live Moshiach. You have to bring him into the halls of Tomchei Temimim, so he can see Temimim there living in a state of learning about Moshiach. In other words, there has to be at least one corner of the world, or ten corners, or a hundred corners, that will gradually fill the whole world—but places where people truly live Moshiach.

21:56 Speaker 8 Not in terms of [unclear]; he wants to be there.

21:58 Speaker 1 He wants to be there. “I want to live Moshiach.” So you can’t be satisfied with having a nice explanatory booklet for the public, or even with knowing a few of the Rebbe’s sichos. We are called upon to bring into the world a place, a reality, where people truly live Moshiach.

22:15 Speaker 8 …

22:15 Speaker 1 And when the Rebbe tells the Temimim in a Dvar Malchus to learn the entire Torah, the first thing is that the Rebbe says this follows everything that happened in 5751: studying matters of Geulah and Moshiach, talking about Moshiach. Not just what that shliach told me—that putting on tefillin is Moshiach. No, not just that. We have to say the word “Moshiach” morning and evening, to mention Geulah and Moshiach all day and all night. That’s the difference between Torah study in the past and Torah study today. In the past, Torah study was Torah study. Today it has to be accompanied constantly by talk about Moshiach, by studying matters of Geulah and Moshiach, by spreading the news of the Geulah, and by connecting people to the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach. Then, when on the one hand there is study of the entire Torah, and on the other there is constant talk about Moshiach, there really is a place in the world where people live Moshiach, where they live in the Geulah.

23:04 Speaker 8 …

23:04 Speaker 1 Not just saying things—someone actually lives with the Geulah.

23:08 Speaker 8 There are two sides here. If we only occupy ourselves with Torah study, then we have only the filling of the sandwich.

23:14 Speaker 1 Then we’ll remain in the past. Not—

23:16 Speaker 8 But we won’t have the whole sandwich.

23:19 Speaker 1 Right.

23:19 Speaker 8 And if, on the other hand, we stick only to the peripheral matters and don’t engage with the main thing, then the main thing will also be missing.

23:25 Speaker 1 Right.

23:26 Speaker 8 We really need the whole thing. So this is a point that genuinely awakens us to understand how much the idea of Moshiach demands of us at the highest level—in knowing Hashem and in studying the entire Torah, investing ourselves and learning properly. And when we talk about this, we come to the Rebbe’s yechidus in Cheshvan 5752 and try to understand what the Rebbe’s demand means. There, the Rebbe makes a demand that sounds detached from reality, an elevated, almost otherworldly demand. The Rebbe says: “Study the entire Torah, quite literally.” The Rebbe repeats it again and again: “Study the entire Torah, quite literally.” Now, it’s one thing to tell me that I have to believe in Moshiach. But imagine a bochur who has gone through 5751 and reached Tishrei 5752, and suddenly hears this demand from the Rebbe to study the entire Torah. He tries to understand for a moment: how do I reach a level where I can study the entire Torah? I’m willing to invest in Torah study, in both quantity and quality, but not to reach a level where I study the entire Torah. Can this be translated into practice? Is it something practical?

24:33 Speaker 9 So first of all, that’s really why we began with this point: no compromises. No compromises. First, we set out.

24:39 Speaker 8 That’s the foundation.

24:39 Speaker 9 Yes, we do. First of all, we need to set ourselves a goal. This is going to happen. We’re going to finish the entire Shas, study the entire Shas, the entire Rambam, all the laws of [unclear]. And the Rebbe mentions the Alter Rebbe here. As is well known, the halachic authorities discuss the Alter Rebbe as one of those who says there is a mitzvah to study the entire Torah. But look, this feels like something with a defined scope. He lists Shas, Shulchan Aruch, Midrash, Sifra, Sifrei, and so on. So it has a defined scope. Yes. How long does it take? We have eternal life. We’re not under pressure, but it does have a defined scope. And more than that, in the sicha itself, in the yechidus itself, the Rebbe also gives some answer to this. I’ll get more precise about it in a moment, but first I want to continue, so we understand this point about going for it without compromises. First of all, we have to internalize that it’s in our hands. There’s the Rebbe’s well-known sicha after Pesach 5751 about the Arizal’s students. The Arizal wanted to go with them to Jerusalem, and they refused. They wanted to stay—and someone argues—and then the Rebbe uses the expression, “You can’t bring Moshiach when you look in the Shulchan Aruch and find an interpretation of a baraisa.” What does that mean? What is this expression, “an interpretation of a baraisa”? Don’t we want to follow what it says in the baraisa?

25:57 Speaker 8 A baraisa is one of the clearest things there is.

25:58 Speaker 9 Yes, exactly. Yes. But what happens? When something is difficult, they look for an interpretation. They look for clever little interpretations. The Rebbe says: Don’t look for an interpretation, because in the end, the baraisa fits exactly with what the Arizal said. And that’s what the Rebbe means when he says your teacher is a learned man, thank G-d. Trust him that what he tells you is in accordance with halachah. But we want to find clever little interpretations. So don’t look for them. If it says to do something, the first thing is to do it. Go for it. How? We’ll talk about that in a moment. So the Rebbe’s expression in the sicha is, “I want each of you to increase your study of the entire Torah.” What does it mean to “increase your study of the entire Torah”? Either you study the entire Torah or you study half of it. What does it mean to increase your study of the entire Torah? The explanation is simple. Studying the entire Torah is a direction you’re moving in. It’s a direction. I’m going to study the entire Torah. A person who sets out, uh, on a hike—

26:52 Speaker 8 The Israel National Trail.

26:52 Speaker 9 The Israel National Trail is right here, literally five meters from us. So a person doesn’t walk the whole Israel National Trail at once. He says, “I’m doing the entire Israel National Trail.” When? He’s in the middle of walking it now. He goes home, but he’s doing the Israel National Trail. He does one section, and then another section, and then another section. He’s moving toward studying the entire Torah. Someone told me about Rabbi Meni Sasson shlita’s father that in your house, all the books are full of highlighting. Your father goes through book after book, highlighting every page he’s studied. He’s studying the entire Torah.

27:25 Speaker 8 The parts that aren’t highlighted mean he studied them on Shabbos and Yom Tov.

27:30 Speaker 9 That’s someone who has taken on the task of finishing his studies. He keeps moving forward. He doesn’t rest, he doesn’t rest for a moment. And that’s the main message, first of all: increase your study of the entire Torah. Add to it. There’s no such thing... There’s something in the hadran on Pinchas—we’ll talk about that in a second too. After the Rebbe speaks about all the matters of the Geulah, the Rebbe says the practical instruction is to make a siyum, a siyum and more siyumim. A siyum on a tractate. You don’t complete a tractate in one day. You can’t make a siyum on a tractate in an instant. Unless, apparently, the only tractate each year will be Taanis. Yes, you can do that in a day. But to make siyumim on tractates, you also have to take a tractate and study it. That’s what the Rebbe speaks about in Pinchas. He’s laying the groundwork for a few weeks later—uh, for nineteen days. And the same applies to a student: there should be another tractate he finishes, and another one, and another maamar in Likkutei Torah, following an organized schedule. When he works according to an organized schedule, he really does increase his Torah study.

28:28 Speaker 8 So I’m trying to understand the distinction the Rabbi is making here. The Rabbi is saying that what can turn studying the entire Torah from something theoretical into something practical is making it a direction you’re moving in, rather than something that has to happen here and now.

28:42 Speaker 9 Exactly, just like that. There’s a special emphasis on studying Rambam: it really has to be done with study and understanding. And by the way, the Temimim today genuinely surprise me. I didn’t believe it, but here in the yeshivah, thank G-d, I see boys who, on their own initiative, take tests at the end of every book. They take a test on the entire book, both oral and written. And I see that the Temimim manage to study nigleh and Chassidus and other subjects, and still know the books of Rambam well. They take a test on every book. So with Rambam study, this applies all the more. There’s also a special power from the Rebbe to succeed and, through it, to study the entire Torah at the level of Rambam study.

29:21 Speaker 8 It’s not as though we’re inventing the Rebbe’s instruction to study Rambam.

29:24 Speaker 9 Oh, good. In the sicha, the Rebbe also mentions studying in depth, which we’ll talk about in a moment. But the Rebbe also gives practical advice—and more than that, strength. The Rebbe gives the strength and the blessing to truly succeed, through studying Rambam, in studying the entire Torah. But certainly, the point is the direction: the Rebbe is saying that today everyone needs to be moving in this direction. We hadn’t seen anything like this from the Rebbe before, and it’s a matter connected with the Geulah—this special strength. Any student who says of himself, “I live Moshiach,” needs to take this Dvar Malchus that the Rebbe gave him and change. Instead of being a student who checks things off a list and looks for his Moshiach enthusiasm in all sorts of other things—which are right, and which we mustn’t give up, because anyone who gives them up goes back a hundred years, not for the better but for the worse—his banner really has to be this direction of living Moshiach. And how does he live Moshiach? By being “as the waters cover the sea.” His entire being is a being of Torah.

30:19 Speaker 8 Without compromises.

30:19 Speaker 9 Without compromises.

30:20 Speaker 8 So this really is an interesting point. Here, with the Rebbe’s demand to study the entire Torah in the plain sense, a student sits with the sicha and says, “Okay, I live Moshiach,” and decides to go all the way with it. But then we encounter another paradox: Are we dealing with quantity or quality? Sinai or one who uproots mountains? As in all the Rebbe’s sichos, we know the Rebbe always teaches that quantity brings quality, and so on. On the other hand, for the Temimim, there’s in-depth study and pilpul, and the Rebbe emphasizes that in this very sicha: to study in depth and with pilpul, and so on. If you’re speaking to me about a demand for quantity, that’s fine. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, and one day we’ll reach the point of finishing the entire Torah. But if we’re talking here about the quality of in-depth Torah study, how can you even get there? So perhaps we really need to be precise about what the demand is.

31:05 Speaker 9 Well, that really is a general question that also relates to guidance in studying altogether. There’s a famous letter of the Rebbe in which he writes that every Jew is suited to Torah study, both in-depth study and broad reading. It’s just that people differ in how much of each suits them. In other words, some are suited to a lot of in-depth study and a little broad reading; for others it’s the reverse. It depends on each person’s circumstances. But I want us to look at this question more deeply, also in the context of living with Moshiach. In a number of sichos, the Rebbe mentions the instruction to study matters of the Geulah and Moshiach. First of all, given the time we’re in, we’ve just had Parshas Tazria-Metzora. Only recently we learned about studying matters of the Geulah and Moshiach. But as is well known, each time the Rebbe speaks about studying these matters, he illuminates it from a different angle, in a different context, for a different reason. In the Dvar Malchus of Parshas Balak, when the Rebbe speaks about studying matters of the Geulah and Moshiach, he doesn’t present it as a segulah or as a direct path to bringing the Geulah. Rather, it’s an answer to the problem that, after all, it’s difficult: we see that living with Moshiach is hard. Recognizing and instilling the awareness and feeling that here is Moshiach—that’s difficult. And in response, the Rebbe gives the instruction to study matters of the Geulah and Moshiach. What’s the answer? Let’s look closely at the sicha itself. At the end, the Rebbe reaches the point that when we live with and study the Geulah and Moshiach, the mind becomes filled and permeated with it. And how does that carry through? But at the beginning, the Rebbe speaks at length about the Torah’s power to change a person’s mind.

32:37 Speaker 10 Even that of any non-Jew, an uncircumcised person.

32:38 Speaker 9 To every non-Jew and uncircumcised person. The Torah changes reality. And who knows this better than we chassidim, whose work is to show that Torah governs the world? If you pay attention to that sicha, the Rebbe does not begin by saying that specifically studying Torah on the subject of Geulah and Moshiach changes a person’s mind. Studying Torah in general changes a person’s mind. In simple terms: today you finished your daily study session and learned a sugya in Chezkas Habatim about the land of Bei Rav Idi[?] or the property of Rav Abba. You said to yourself, “I just said ‘Yechi,’ and in a moment I’m going to a class on Geulah and Moshiach. Where does this Gemara fit in?” The Rebbe tells you that when you study a dispute between Tosafos and the Ramban in depth, it changes your mind. Then, when you speak about Moshiach, it will be absorbed within you; it will illuminate things for you. You won’t be coarse or unrefined; you’ll be more refined, more receptive. You’ll hear a word from the Rebbe, listen to a recording of the Rebbe, and it will move you and affect you. You won’t be dry or coarse. That’s what the Rebbe says in the Dvar Malchus of Balak. So this brings us back to studying in depth. As we know from a number of places, beginning with chapter 5 of Tanya, the point is that Torah study truly penetrates you when your mind grasps and encompasses the idea—the Torah—through in-depth understanding. When someone delves into his studies, it truly takes hold of him.

34:04 Speaker 10 It takes hold of the entire soul.

34:07 Speaker 9 And therefore—

34:07 Speaker 10 It is present throughout all 248 limbs.

34:09 Speaker 9 Right. And following on from that first letter I mentioned, where the Rebbe says that everyone should study some material in depth and some at a faster pace, the Rebbe isn’t saying that some people relate to this Dvar Malchus sicha, or to the Rebbe’s yechidus for the Temimim, and others don’t. It’s very simple: each person according to his own mind. If his mind is suited to a little in-depth study, then when he studies in depth to the full extent of his ability, his mind also becomes a mind capable of in-depth study. He is truly studying Torah, and it penetrates him. He becomes immersed in his learning, and the learning penetrates him. Most important for our purposes, his mind becomes a G-dly mind, and then he truly believes every word the Rebbe says. He feels it; he lives it. He isn’t thrown off by someone on the street telling him something different. And we have no other way. That’s what the Rebbe says in Balak. Temimim, understand: we have no other options. There is no other way. Maybe right now we’re living among friends, among bochurim, in a good atmosphere. But then we reach bein hazmanim, and we all know what it’s like when we get to the shul in our community, or wherever we live. Suddenly there are hardly any bochurim around us, and all the fervor for Moshiach that we had in yeshiva—wow—we can barely bring it out. It hardly comes out. But you can plainly see that a tamim who truly lives this, whose day is a day in the life of a tamim, has Torah as his true reality. His true reality is another sicha in Likkutei Sichos, another maamar, and especially another Dvar Malchus. It’s simply easy for him. He says these things, confident that people will accept them from him. It comes easily; it flows. And that comes from the approach of studying in depth. True, one must study

35:42 Speaker 9 the entire Torah in depth, and only [unclear] studies the entire Torah in depth. There’s no difference between one tamim and another, but everyone needs to have that approach of studying in depth. So in-depth study is essential. Then even study at a faster pace, and even studying Rambam, are done with care and dedication; they penetrate inwardly.

35:59 Speaker 10 So, Rabbi, you’re saying that we’re working in both directions, on both levels—quantity and quality, [unclear]—but that at each level we should approach our learning in depth, while also aiming to study the entire Torah in the plain sense. As we come toward the end of the program, every tamim listening understands that this is a complete, holy program centered on living with Moshiach. That means living with Moshiach without compromise in the life of a tamim, while studying the entire Torah in the plain sense. So we want to get practical, to the actual deed: I sit down now with pen and paper and put together a plan. How do we bring this approach down into the details? How do we actually do it?

36:52 Speaker 11 The first thing is to look to the Rebbe. In everything, we simply see how the Rebbe guides us. First of all, I think it’s fair to say that every Dvar Malchus, or almost every Dvar Malchus, includes an instruction to increase Torah study. And the problem is that we’ve become so used to it that we no longer hear it. It seems like a line that has to be written, so it’s written. But in every Dvar Malchus, the Rebbe says to increase Torah study. What does that mean in practice? There’s that famous sicha the Rebbe gave—I think it was in the late 5740s—when Vaad Hamosifin was established. The Rebbe said that for a whole year there had been talk about adding in various areas, and he wanted each person to write on a note what they had added that year. Then Chabad communities set up Vaad Hamosifin to make sure people added in carrying out the Rebbe’s instructions. Now, the first thing the Rebbe says in every Dvar Malchus is to increase Torah study—so increase your Torah study. You finished this week’s Dvar Malchus; you don’t let a week go by without it, right? Every tamim. So add something to your Torah study this week. Say, “This week, my addition is a passage in [unclear][?]. This week, my addition is a maamar in Hemshech Ayin Beis[?]. This week, my addition is a siman in Shulchan Aruch that I haven’t studied.” You’re in a mode of adding. First of all, that way you’re carrying out what the Rebbe said in the Dvar Malchus.

38:16 Speaker 10 A day and a half after the sicha of 28 Nissan[?], when the Rebbe spoke on Parshas Shemini, the instruction there was about Torah study, observing mitzvos, and encouragement. In other words, the Rebbe speaks about Torah study very clearly.

38:25 Speaker 11 As a continuation of 28 Nissan[?].

38:27 Speaker 10 Yes.

38:27 Speaker 11 But here the Rebbe goes further and speaks about adding. There’s a sicha of the Rebbe from 5730. The Rebbe said it to the bochurim going on shlichus in Canada and the United States. He speaks about how, even among the Temimim themselves, there are those who dwell in the tent of Torah study and those who are engaged in worldly activity. What does that mean? The former are bochurim completely immersed in learning. The latter are those who have the ability, outside the scheduled study periods, to go out and draw more students to the yeshiva. Then the Rebbe says, “Each one must do his work as he should, including those engaged in worldly activity.” Because what kind of worldly activity are we talking about? Bochurim who go out during breaks to bring students to the yeshiva. They must go with their learning in their hands, with it firmly in their minds. That’s how it finds expression. In other words, even when you go out, your learning is on your mind; that’s what you’re immersed in. And it begins with this: as part of the overall approach of living with Moshiach, one of the most fundamental sichos to live with is the Dvar Malchus of Pinchas on the division of Eretz Yisroel. What the Rebbe says there is that the lesson from dividing Eretz Yisroel is that when a Jew does his work properly in his particular place in the world, he truly brings Geulah to his own part and to the entire world. For a bochur to be immersed in learning, first of all he needs to be calm. Relax—you’re bringing the Geulah right now. We’re under pressure. The Rebbe gave us the task of bringing the Geulah. “I haven’t even reached the press in South Africa yet, so how am I going to bring the Geulah?” The Rebbe tells you: trust me. Do your work properly where you are, in your place. Carry out fully, with dedication and self-sacrifice, what the Rebbe asks of you in your place. That will bring Geulah to the entire world.

40:16 Speaker 10 That’s a very reassuring point. This whole sicha provides a foundation for the life of

40:20 Speaker 11 Absolutely, absolutely.

40:21 Speaker 10 humanity in general, but for the life of a tamim, who is

40:24 Speaker 11 Absolutely.

40:24 Speaker 10 so fired up about this—

40:26 Speaker 11 Right.

40:26 Speaker 10 Living with Moshiach is very reassuring and calming, and usually it also enables you to sit down, focus, and yearn with a pure soul.

40:32 Speaker 11 It gives a lot of strength both to the Temimim and to a shliach, but especially to a tamim who says, “I’m sitting here in yeshiva, studying Tosafos, studying the commentaries, studying Chassidus. Am I bringing the Geulah?” The Rebbe says yes. First of all, remember that this is about bringing the Geulah. As I’ve said, we must constantly emphasize that this is Moshiach and that it is connected to the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach. It isn’t enough merely to know that of course it’s connected to Moshiach. You have to live with that openly, but live it where you are. And what does that mean in practice? Actually add something every week, and make sure you study Rambam, complete it, and understand it.

41:01 Speaker 10 The rabbi is speaking only about adding more from week to week, or about a structured project.

41:05 Speaker 11 And I keep saying: both. The main thing is to make a real plan, so that you learn the entire Torah—another tractate, another volume of Dvar Malchus, another volume of Likkutei Sichos, another volume of Melukat, and another book of maamarim. What are they called? The green maamarim. Today it’s very easy to finish the Rebbe’s maamarim—quite simply, quite simply, quite simply. When we do that, we will see the Geulah and the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, plainly, now, literally.

41:28 Speaker 10 Thank you so much, Rabbi Lerner. A Chassidic and holy conversation like this, about the Temimim, really awakens us. With Hashem’s help, may we merit that this program bring about its results. Surely it already is: learning the entire Torah, loving Moshiach, and living with Moshiach in the most proper way. Thank you, Rabbi Lerner.

41:45 Speaker 11 Thank you, Rabbi Menny Sasson, and to all the Temimim: may you have tremendous success. And most importantly, may we actually see the revelation of the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach. Long live our master, teacher and Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, forever and ever.

41:57 Speaker 10 Life and blessing. Thank you, Rabbi Lerner.

42:00 Speaker 3 Ears to Hear. Audio programs for the Temimim from ATA Worldwide. For more programs, dial *6358. Long live our master, teacher and Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, forever and ever.