Rebbetzin Chana, The Rebbe's Mother

00:00 Today, of the Rebbe's mother, we'll discuss various teachings from the Rebbe where the Rebbe discusses, relates stories about his mother. The Rebbetzin Chana was born, this was early 1880, to her father Rabbi Yosef, Rabbi Meir Shlema, the Rav of the city Nikolayev, and to her mother, Holabonis Roho. In Tov Shin Tes, early 1949, when the Rebbetzin Chana was already residing in the United States, the previous Rebbe sent the Rebbetzin a letter in honor of her . The letter is dated , 27th of Cheshvan, Tov Shin Tes. The previous Rebbe writes, referring to the Rebbetzin as a relative, blessing and peace. This was the, uh, Seder of the previous Rebbe and the Rebbe when they wrote a letter addressed to a woman, they would first write brocha and then shalom, halachically. And the previous Rebbe begins, on the occasion of this bright day, day of your birthday, I wanna bless you with mazel tov, and the previous Rebbe writes mazel tov. Hashem Yisbarach should strengthen your health and should give you long days and years, good ones and illuminated ones with all sorts of goodness, physically and spiritually. And you and us should attain, should receive from your son, who is our very special son-in-law, Holabanus Roho, the previous Rebbe, mentions the Rebbe by his name, Vel Yoase, and his wife, Betenu Moras Chaya Mushka Yichio, our daughter, Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka umebinchem, and from your son, the one that is living in England, that is Rabbi Yisroel Arye Leib, and his family, you should receive much

02:35 nachas, physical and spiritual. And the previous Rebbe concludes, the one that's interested in your well-being, and blesses you in physical sense and in a spiritual sense. I will discuss now various sichas where the Rebbe relates stories benegeert to his mother. In a few sichas, the Rebbe mentions that already in her youth prior to her marriage, while still living in her father's home, Holabanus Roho, Rabbi Chassid, Rabbi Meir Shlema, the Rebbe continues, "My mother was known for her ability to copy carefully Hassidic texts, new ma'amarim of the Rebbe Rashab which arrived from Lubavitch, either written or orally through a cheder, and the reason that she would copy them was to enable them to be circulated throughout the Hassidic community. She did this on her own because of her desire to spread the wellsprings of Hassidus." On another occasion, in Shabbos Beshalach, Tov Shin Mem Alef, that's 1981, the Rebbe mentioned benegeert to his mother that she occupied herself and, um, dealt with my chinuch, and the qualities that I have are surely from her aim and goal. Now we go on to a sicha of late 1984. The Rebbe says that, "One of the memories I have of my mother from which it behooves us to derive a lesson concerns the time of the First World War. I was then in cheder and did not really know what was happening. But there were unusual occurrences that were impossible not to notice, and the following is one which I remember. At the beginning of the First World

04:51 War, the Russian government issued an edict that all Jews living near the borders of hostile countries must move deeper into Russia, since the government did not trust Jews. This edict affected a huge number of Jews, and thus many, many refugees moved inland. One of the cities to which these refugees fled was the city in which my family lived, Yekatrinoslav. Because of the large number of refugees, it was imperative that they be properly taken care of as soon as possible. For the proportionally small number of Jews resident in our city, this was a heavy task indeed. Various committees were immediately established to provide the refugees with all their needs, and it was my mother who headed these committees. I then witnessed an amazing thing. Never had I seen such incredible energy as my mother displayed then in attending to the refugees' needs day and night. It was so outstanding that although I was then in Cheder, not in the house, it remained engraved in my memory forever. In another Sikha, where the Rebbe discusses the contribution that the Rebbe Tzinchana made for her husband that he should be able to write on the margins of his Svarim his commentaries on Zeyar, on Tanya, and so on, the Rebbe explains how this was possible. My father's whole being and life was his Torah study. He labored in Torah, especially the esoteric teachings of Torah, the Kabbalah. For himself, the mental activity and the words of Torah would have sufficed, but to disseminate his teachings to others, that

07:05 needed transcription. It had to be recorded in ink on paper. But what to do? No such thing was available. There was no ink to be had in the lands of exile. Here my mother came into the picture. In addition to helping my father in all his usual needs, she got involved in assuring the recording of my father's Torah for posterity. She learned how to make ink, and she personally searched for the necessary grasses and herbs, which she painstakingly gathered with great difficulty. To these she added some special chemicals from which she prepared homemade ink. It was with that ink that my father was able to record his teachings in ink on paper. As a result of this, she created the possibility that today we are able to disseminate my father's teachings in print, so that still today, in Tovshin Memvov, my many Jews, many Jews, may study his teachings and commentaries on the esoteric aspects of Torah as illuminated through the understanding of Chassidus Chabad. For this we pay homage to the woman whose yard set we observe today. This Sikha was said on Vov Tishrei Tovshin Memvov, late 1985. For she made the ink that made it all possible. The story must bring about great wonder and awe, for we speak of action completely out of the ordinary. The Torah gives guidelines for the role of a woman and what is expected of her. The oral Torah also expresses certain responsibilities of a Jewish wife. But nowhere do we find that a Jewish woman

09:07 must manufacture ink for her husband. My mother was raised in the cradle of Jewish tradition and Chassidic lifestyle, and was probably prepared to take on the role as a wife of a Chassidic leader. But she was not taught to make ink. Yet, when she realized the importance of spreading Torah, she volunteered to do something very difficult and well beyond her training. All for the purpose of spreading Torah and bringing closer the true and complete redemption through Mashiach Tzedekenu. This teaches each and every one of us, man or woman, how strong our dedication must be for all matters of Limud HaTorah and the dissemination of Torah to the masses. It must reach the degree of martyrdom. Martyrdom.