Chapter 184 - Accusations Against the Alter Rebbe, His Daughter Devorah Leah Gives Her Life for Her Father

00:01 We go back about five years, to 5552, around 1792, and to one of the most dramatic events in the history of Chabad Chassidus. Here is the story. It is known that 5552 was a very difficult year for the Alter Rebbe. For many months, from Rosh Hashanah until Shavuos, even his family—his son, the Mitteler Rebbe, and the elder chassidim close to him—did not know of the Alter Rebbe’s terrible suffering because of the persecution by the misnagdim. On Shavuos 5552, the Alter Rebbe farbrenged as usual at the Yom Tov meal and spoke about our teacher, the Baal Shem Tov. As is known, the Baal Shem Tov’s passing was on Shavuos. A deep inner bitterness could be felt in the Alter Rebbe’s words. He was in a state of profound deveikus. His holy face was uncovered, his eyes were closed, his lips moved in a whisper, and tears ran down his cheeks. From the gravity and bitterness on his holy face, those present understood that he was whispering a prayer and arousing mercy. Everyone felt that both the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid were in the room at that moment. Suddenly the Alter Rebbe rose from his seat and said in a tearful voice, “Grandfather, Rebbe, please arouse abundant mercy for me, for your students, for those bound to you, and for your teachings. Oy, oy, gevald, gevald! Our Father in Heaven, have pity on us and show us mercy.” And the Alter Rebbe fell and fainted. Those gathered were shaken. The whole family—the Rebbetzin and the daughters—came running. They brought Yona the doctor. Meanwhile, the little grandson, two years and nine months old—the Tzemach Tzedek—entered the room. When he saw his beloved grandfather lying on the floor, he threw himself upon him, crying out, “Grandfather, Grandfather!” The Alter Rebbe opened his eyes and saw his little grandson reaching out his small hands toward him and calling, “Grandfather, Grandfather, take my hand and get up!” The Alter Rebbe took his grandson’s hands and said, “Give me your hand.” He got up and said, “This one will be our comfort.” In Elul 5552,

03:34 the Alter Rebbe instructed that his little grandson’s bed be brought into his room and said, “It would be a pity for him to forget what he has been taught, and he will learn Torah for its own sake through avodah and effort.” On Erev Rosh Hashanah 5553, the Alter Rebbe blessed his grandson that his avodah to reach the lofty level of “a person’s soul will teach him” should not be difficult for him. And what was the background to all this? For eighteen years, from 5534—a year after the passing of the Maggid of Mezritch—until 5552, the Alter Rebbe had devoted himself with mesirus nefesh to educating and guiding Chabad chassidim. This aroused a great accusation in Heaven, and the Alter Rebbe needed advocates to speak in his defense and arouse mercy. As we know, the Alter Rebbe then sent special emissaries to the holy resting places of our teacher the Baal Shem Tov in Mezhibuzh and the Maggid of Mezritch in Anipoli. He also informed his fellow students of the holy fellowship and sent a special pidyon nefesh to the holy tzaddik Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl. On Motzaei Shabbos Selichos, the eve of Zechor Bris, the Alter Rebbe summoned several of his senior students and told them about the serious accusation. He thought that on the coming Rosh Hashanah, 5553, the accusers would shift their accusation from Chassidus to him, the Alter Rebbe. He asked the students to arouse mercy and also to arrange who would help his son, the Mitteler Rebbe, lead and administer the chassidim and the affairs of Chassidus. In other words, the Alter Rebbe was hinting that he might pass away. The Alter Rebbe’s daughter, Rebbetzin Devorah Leah, the mother of the Tzemach Tzedek, heard everything her father told that small group of students. She decided that she would take her father’s place and considered how to do it. On Erev Rosh Hashanah, when the Tzemach Tzedek turned three, the Alter Rebbe arranged his grandson’s first haircut. He left his payos and blessed him, placing his holy hands on his head. That same day, Erev Rosh Hashanah, after Minchah,

06:42 Rebbetzin Devorah Leah entered the room where the small minyan met. The family and several senior students were there, absorbed in saying Tehillim. Rebbetzin Devorah Leah approached the Aron Kodesh, opened its doors and said, “Everyone present, you are witnesses that before the holy Torah scrolls I take upon myself, with a clear mind and [unclear], and under oath, that I, Devorah Leah daughter of Shterna, take the place of my father, Rabbi Schneur Zalman son of Rivkah, so that he will remain alive.” To continue describing the situation: In the years 5551–5552, the rose of Chassidus flourished, but an evil eye held sway, like the evil eye that held sway over the First and Second Beis Hamikdash, and a great accusation arose Above—that is, in Heaven. There were disputes over communal affairs, particularly matters concerning our Holy Land. Letters were exchanged between our Rebbeim in the Holy Land—Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Horodok, Rabbi Avraham of Kalisk and others—and the Alter Rebbe. Slander was spread to cause a rift between the Rebbes of Volhynia, or Viltoria [unclear], as he calls it, and the Alter Rebbe. They were all students of the Maggid of Mezritch. All this darkened the lights of holy Israel, and the work of the Satan succeeded. The Alter Rebbe thought that his time had come, that the sun was setting. Through the chossid Rabbi Yaakov of Smolyan, the Alter Rebbe sent a pidyon nefesh to the holy Rabbi Menachem Nachum in Chernobyl, on his own behalf and on behalf of Chassidus as a whole. One day, the Alter Rebbe told his daughter, the righteous Rebbetzin Devorah Leah, mother of the Tzemach Tzedek, about the intentions he had in mind when he named her Devorah Leah. He also told her the whole story of his work to spread the teachings of his holy teachers, and of the good state of Chassidus, thank G-d. But the Satan had been provoked, and so it had been decreed upon him from Heaven that he would apparently pass away. He did think that the flow of Divine influence into this lower world could continue from the higher world as well, but that was not the way of the world of Tikkun. He

09:30 also felt, he told her, that this was a grave hour and the accusation was very great. The Alter Rebbe was distressed about the state of Chassidus and the chassidim, and about the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov. Rebbetzin Devorah Leah said nothing and went away. After some time, she returned to her father and told him that he must not accept this. Rebbetzin Devorah Leah understood that the situation was dreadful and that her father’s life depended on its outcome. For several days she was distraught over everything she had heard. She decided that she needed to disclose it to a few select students and consult with them. In her heart, she also resolved to give her life for the life of her father, the Alter Rebbe. Rebbetzin Devorah Leah summoned three of the elder chassidim: Rabbi Moshe Meisels, Rabbi Pinchas Reizes and Rabbi Moshe Vilenker. She told them they must promise to do as she instructed and swear to her, with an oath and an “Amen” carrying the full force of Torah law, that everything would remain completely secret until it could be revealed. These lions, though strong-minded and stouthearted, were deeply shaken. They told her they first needed to consult among themselves about whether they could agree to her conditions, and asked for one day. In those days, the Alter Rebbe kept to his room even more than usual, and not even the chassidim closest to him could enter. This change showed that it was a time of trouble, a time of distress. What was the trouble? How could they help, or do something to avert it? They did not know. The three students—Moshe Meisels, Pinchas Reizes and Moshe Vilenker—met together twice during the day and decided to continue consulting all night, to consider whether they could fulfill the conditions Rebbetzin Devorah Leah had set. They met, thought over the situation and understood that Rebbetzin Devorah Leah knew more than they did, and that they had no choice,

12:02 So they came and told her that they had decided to accept the conditions. Rebbetzin Devorah Leah received them warmly and began, “We are all chassidim of our father, our Rebbe, and we are all obligated to give our lives, quite literally, for our father, our Rebbe, and for his teachings, the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov.” She stopped speaking and burst into tears. Hearing this, the chossid Rabbi Moshe Meisels was deeply moved. He stood up and said, “Why are you crying? Tell us what this is about. I will be the first to die by fire or water for our great Rebbe, for the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov. Tell us what to do, and I will go gladly—with joy and a glad heart, more than for all riches, as the Alter Rebbe explained to us.” Rebbetzin Devorah Leah said, “First, I require you to take a solemn oath that cannot be annulled, that you will do everything I tell you. You must take the oath solely on my understanding of it, since you do not yet know what I will tell you. So swear a solemn oath according to the Torah, an oath that cannot be annulled even when a human life is at stake.” Hearing this, even the chossid Rabbi Moshe Vilnaker, known for his extraordinary intellect, courage, and remarkable deliberation, became deeply agitated. He said that such a thing must be considered with great care and deliberation, and was afraid to agree. But Rabbi Moshe Meisels and Rabbi Pinchas Reizes told him, “We’ve already decided. That’s it.” “Now,” said Rebbetzin Devorah Leah, “I appoint you as a beis din. You will undertake to serve as a beis din and issue a practical ruling according to the statutes and laws of our holy Torah.” She continued, “The situation that has arisen after the slander that has inflamed matters between the Rebbes in our Holy Land and the Rebbes of Volhynia, on the one hand, and our father, our Rebbe, on the other, is most alarming. From what I have heard from my father, it could lead to terrible consequences. My father told me:

14:39 “For thirty years, the good tree must be hoed and weeded before it bears fruit. The teachings of our master the Baal Shem Tov and our master the Maggid have only now grown into a mighty tree... a living tree. And now this terrible accusation has arisen, threatening to cut it all down. My father tells me, ‘I want to live, for that is what the Torah requires of a person. But even more, I want to hoe and weed this tree so that it will bear fruit until Shiloh comes. My teacher, the Maggid, told me that hard and bitter times would come, and he promised that he would help me at all times. I saw my teacher and his teacher, the Baal Shem Tov, but their faces were dark—a sign that their teachings are in danger.’ And so,” Rebbetzin Devorah Leah concluded, “I have decided to give my life in exchange for my father’s. I want to atone for him. I give the years of my life to my father. I am going to my bed, and my father will go on to a good, long life, to tend the tree he planted, to hoe and weed it. In this way, I too will have a share in my father’s teachings.” As mentioned, the Alter Rebbe sent a pidyon nefesh to the holy Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl. Rabbi Menachem Nachum was already at the mikvah to immerse in honor of the holiday, but he delayed his immersion, saying, “They are bringing me a pidyon nefesh from Liozna.” Afterward, the Alter Rebbe summoned a minyan of his great chassidim, students from his cheder, and told them, “This Rosh Hashanah, we need help and support,” since even Rabbi Menachem Nachum, the eldest of the group, was unable to act. Then, on the first night of Rosh Hashanah, after Maariv, the Alter Rebbe came out and, contrary to his practice of not speaking at all on the first night of Rosh Hashanah, asked where Devorah Leah was. When he saw his daughter, he began to wish her a good year, but had only managed to say the word “May...” when Rebbetzin Devorah Leah jumped in and said to her father, “May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year, Father! Please, don’t speak!” The next day, on the second day

17:12 of Rosh Hashanah, the Alter Rebbe taught Chassidus until Havdalah. The Alter Rebbe would teach Chassidus on both days of Rosh Hashanah. After Havdalah, he called his daughter, Rebbetzin Devorah Leah, and her husband, Rabbi Sholom Shachna, into his room. Rabbi Sholom Shachna stood by the wall and wept, saying, “What will we do with a three-year-old child—and such a child?” On the second day of Rosh Hashanah, Rebbetzin Devorah Leah fell ill, and on the Fast of Gedaliah, 3 Tishrei 5553, she passed away, remaining lucid until the very last moment. She asked her father to raise and guide her only son. The Alter Rebbe promised her and also told her, “Your son Menachem is a comfort to me. He will be a comfort to you and a comfort to the Jewish people.” With great esteem and reverence, every chossid... all the chassidim, and especially the three outstanding chassidim mentioned earlier, spoke of the Rebbe’s daughter, the holy Rebbetzin. Each knew well that her self-sacrifice and nobility of spirit had saved the tree of Chassidus. The chossid Rabbi Eliyahu Reuven [?], a man of lofty spiritual stature, a Torah scholar and kabbalist of whom the Alter Rebbe said that the light of his soul shone openly within him, held the child in his arms during the funeral. The Alter Rebbe recited the first Kaddish, and after him the little orphan recited Kaddish together with Rabbi Eliyahu Reuven [?].