Pesach Publications - Part 4: The Haggada with the Rebbe's commentaries

00:00 This is Behemshech, in continuation to the earlier installment regarding the publishing of the first Chabad Haggadah in Tov Shin Hey, 1945. We now continue with installment number four, where we will discuss the publishing of the Haggadah with the Rebbe's commentaries in the year Tov Shin Vav, 1946, and its various editions. This is based on an interview published in the monthly issue of the Hasidish HaDeher. Now we cite from this article in Hasidish HaDeher. Rabbi Leib Shapiro gives us a history of the Haggadah. In Tov Shin Vav, 1946, when the Rebbe's Haggadah was first published, the original text of the Haggadah was not redone. It was copied from the Siddur Teideid and printed on one side of the page, and the Rebbe's Pirush commentaries were printed on the other side. If the Rebbe wrote a lot on a certain topic, then there were two pages of Pirushim in a row, one page after the other. In the year Tov Shin Yud Zayin, 1957, the Rebbe wrote Heisofis, additional comments on the Haggadah, and a small three-page booklet was then published. In the year Tov Shin Chav Gimel, 1963, which marked 150 years from the Istalkos of the Alter Rebbe, the Rebbe wrote more Heisofis, and these were basically comments which were connected to the Alter Rebbe, Sipurim of the Alter Rebbe, etc. Eventually, these were published in a single sefer, the original Haggadah, with two sets of Heisofis in the back. Over the years, many sichas of the Rebbe and the Haggadah were published. The sichas

02:23 on the second night of Pesach, Parshas Vo'era, Boi, and so on. At one point, they were collected by the Bochrim and published in a booklet. In the year Tov Shin Lamed Gimel, 1973, the members of the Vaad Lafratse Sichas, who were publishing on a weekly basis a sicha which was edited by the Rebbe, the title Likute Sichas, decided that perhaps a new edition of the Haggadah should be printed. This proposed edition would be different in several ways. One, the Heisofis, the additions that the Rebbe wrote later, would be inserted in the Haggadah itself, in every section where it belonged. Under the title of Ma'neshtana, or other titles, instead of being listed in the Heisofis of the Haggadah. Number two, the Haggadah itself would be reformatted, with the Haggadah on the top and the Rebbe's Pirush on the bottom. Number three, it would include all the Rebbe's edited sichas on the Haggadah, as well as the Michtavim Klalim, which was the Pesach message, which the Rebbe would release every year for Pesach. And in the later years, there were three letters for each Pesach. Number four, it would be renamed from Haggadah im Likutei Taimim u'Menhogim to a new title, Haggadah im Likutei Menhogim Taimim u'Biurim. Rabbi Shapiro relates that we asked the Rebbe whether we should do this. On the general idea, the Rebbe answered, V'nochim b'maid, it is a very good idea. Though he added that someone should review it very well. The Rebbe also agreed to the formatting of the Haggadah, as well

04:43 as the new name. As an aside, the new edition of the Haggadah was published for Pesach with thousands of copies, and one copy was, of course, given to the Rebbe. The final words of the Sefer were a footnote on a Hadran, on a conclusion of a tractate, which the Rebbe spoke to one of the Fabrengans, which was discussing why we don't say Shechayonu at a Bris Mila. And it concluded with the words, Mishum Tzayir de Yinuka, that Shechayonu is not recited because of the pain of the infant. When the Rebbe saw that these were the last words with their negative content, the Rebbe wrote that we should make a rubber stamp with the words, Leshonu Habo B'Yerushalayim, and stamp it into every single Sefer. This is because of the Klal, Mesayim B'Teiv, that one should always conclude on a positive note. As we saw in other instances as well, the Rebbe was always very particular about this. So we went on to stamp each one of the thousands of Svarim. We will, im Yirtzeh Hashem, continue in the next installment.