Chof Menachem Av: The Hilulo of the Rebbe's father

00:00 The of the Rebbe's father. This year it's seventy-five years since his Yahrtzeit. We'll discuss a sicha of the Rebbe, where the Rebbe tells the story of how his father approached Rabbi Chaim Brisker to receive semikhah from him. In the farbrengen chof menachem av 5711 1951, the Rebbe says as follows: "When my father learned to receive semikhah for rabbonim, he decided for some reason to travel and be tested by many gedolei Yisroel that were not from Hasidim circles, as the Gaon Rabbi Chaim Brisker and the Gaon Rabbi Yoel Chaim Meisel from Lodz, and more of the Olam HaGedolim in that time period. Since it was obvious from his levush, from his garments, that he was a Hasid, and especially known that he is a descendant of the Alter Rebbe, Rabbi Chaim Brisker really gave him a difficult task. Lashon in the sicha is, "Er hot im gut gematert." He really exerted him, hoping that he'll be successful not to give him semikhah. To have an excuse not to give him semikhah when he will see that he's not gonna be according to the standard of what he should be. In conclusion, when Rab Chaim realized that he is not gonna be able to slip out of giving him semikhah, he concluded with the words, "Gevald, Rab Levik, az a gute kop in vos hat ir es areingelegt." Wow, Rab Levik, such a good head in what did you invest it in? Meaning of these words was referring to the fact that the Rebbe's father invested his

02:26 mind in the study of Hasidus and Kabbalah. And when the Rebbe mentioned this statement, the Rebbe smiled and repeated it again. "Az a gute kop in vos hat ir es areingelegt." In order to receive semikhah, the candidate who was to receive semikhah needed to spend time in the environment of Rabbi Chaim Brisker in the Cheder HaBeis Midrash, in the Beis Midrash shtiebel, when he would answer questions, and at times Rabbi Chaim Brisker would ask the candidate who is working to get semikhah to express his opinion how the psak halakha should be in a certain instance. And so likewise, it was benegeah to the Rebbe's father. He was spending time in the Beis Midrash shtiebel, and amongst the shailas that were given to him to pasken was also a shaila that came to Rabbi Chaim Brisker in the middle of the Yom Tov of Chag HaSukes. Either it was Yom Tov that fell on Shabbos, or it was Shabbos Chol Hamoed Sukes. In any case, it was after Shabbos has already entered. And the question was benegeah to people in a yard that are using one sukkah, and they forgot to make a eiruv chatzeires, an eiruv to be able to carry. When Rab Chaim approached the Rebbe's father with the question, he immediately answered that the sukkah itself is considered an eiruv. Rabbi Chaim Brisker liked this original idea, and he confirmed that the halakha is as the Rebbe's father said. The Rebbe takes out a lesson in avodas Hashem benegeah to this story. The

04:53 Rebbe explains the contents of an eiruv is that all the people that are members in that courtyard from which we collect food, a certain amount of food, and this accomplishes that they are all participating in the seudah, in the meal, u'be'efim, and in a way that one should not be uncomfortable with another if, for example, the other person will eat from his food, because if he is uncomfortable, he's makpid, there's no eiruv. Because the, the idea of eiruv is, as the name represents, that they're all mixed together, they're all pleased with each other. It is a pleasant partnership. This expresses the ingian of Ahavas Yisroel and Achdus Yisroel. The hemsech to the earlier installment benegeah to the Rebbe's father. Mekubed yom hahillula chof menachem av. We're continuing now with installment number two, an additional story that the Rebbe relayed on various occasions benegea to his father. But firstly, just to add in reference to what was mentioned in the earlier installment benegea to the receiving of Semikhah from Rab Chaim Briskker, we find a letter of the Rebbe Rashab that he wrote to the Rebbe's father on the fifth of Chanukah, the year תרצ"ז, that's late 1906. And in the letter he writes, כאשר דרשים סמיכה מבריסק צריך לנסיעה לשם. When there is a need to receive Semikhah from Brisk, there is a need to travel there. ובטח יקרבך כי הוא ירא שמיים באמת. And surely Rab Chaim Briskker will be mekarev you because he, Rab Chaim Briskker, is a true God-fearing person. And the

07:11 Rebbe Rashab continues, באמת כבד לי לכת ולו זה. Realistically, it is difficult for me to write to him about this matter. ועדיין לא נזדמן לכת ולו. And I did not yet have the occasion, the opportunity to write to him. אמנם אין צריך לזה. But he really does not need this. You don't need that I should write to Rab Chaim Briskker. ואם אך נתן סמיכות. If he gives Semikhah, תקוותי, my hope is, אשר יתן לי, that he will give you. אי בדרך מכתב מליצה. Or he'll give you a letter of recommendation. וה' יתברך יצליח נסיעתי לבריסק. The Aibishter should give you success in your trip to Brisk. You should be able to attain and have your request fulfilled. And the Aibishter should give that it should end up very soon in a good way. This is how the Rebbe Rashab refers to the Rebbe's father's trip to Brisk to receive Semikhah. Now we go on to the second story that the Rebbe mentioned benegea to his father. And the Rebbe mentioned it during two different farbrengens. One was תש"ד and one was תש"ז, 1954 and 1956. The Rebbe says as follows. The first Rabbonus of his father was in the city of Yekatirinoslav, which was one of the big cities in the region. In the city where he served as Rabbonus, he had many מנהגים, many people that opposed him. Since he would customarily חזק חסידים, בליי חסידים, and he also implemented in the city חומראς and הידורים שנים. To enhance the קיום המצוות, he instituted

09:39 חומראς and הידורים שנים. On another occasion, the Rebbe says that this Rabbonus, there was a big opposition. Seemingly, מצד concealments for other reasons, עניינים in physical matters. And there were many libels, many מסירות. One time, an officer came to the Rebbe's father and he gave him over an order that was just received from the capital city, Peterburg, that within the next 24 hours, he needs to leave the region. In order to verify by this officer the reason for this order, חסידים gave this officer a little משקה and נכנס יין, יוצא סוד, wine comes in and secret goes out. And it was verified that there was a certain libel on the Rebbe's father that he is causing a sense of disorder in the city. And they elaborated, a Jewish Rav, instead of being a role model for others, that others should learn from him, he's drunk and he's tearing clothing off from people. The captain of the police was surprised about the fact that many יidden of the city chose such a Rav. And therefore, he sent one of his officers to the house of the Rebbe's father to check, to investigate what was taking place there. When the officer came to the house of the Rebbe's father, he saw him sitting and learning, no משקה on the table, everything is in order. The officer was even more surprised. What sort of a מאיסה is this? What's happening over here? And he told the Rebbe's father about this libel. The Rebbe's father answered, I don't know

11:55 what this is all about. אין בשינית מקיין מאיסה. He doesn't know from anything. At the end, it was verified there was some יסוד to this story. It was Yutras Kislav when a farbrengen took place, and those present at the farbrengen, who attended the farbrengen, farbreng very well as the in the loshon of the Rebbe, men azir gut farbracht. And the Rebbe's father, Chassid, a lot of Chassidis, and everybody was in a very uplifted mood, and the farbrengen went into the late hours of the night. The Seder, which took place by farbrengens of Chassidim that when the farbrengen went through many hours into the night and already almost the morning, before the morning, Chassidim would take off the kapotes and would go out dancing without the kapote. And this was also customary at that Yutras Kislav farbrengen. When Chassidim took off the kapotes in order they should be able to dance as the conclusion of the farbrengen, there was one Yid, one Chassid, who was not able to take off the kapote so easily. So the Rebbe's father helped him to take off the kapote. And when they explained to the officer this story, he understood what took place, and the gezeira was nullified. The hemshacha of the earlier installments when they gave to the Rebbe's father, we're continuing now with installment number three, discussing the news of the hishtalkus of the Rebbe's father and how it reached the Rebbe in Tav Shin Daled, nineteen forty-four. It is told by Chassidim that the news, the nigea

13:56 to the Rebbe's father's hishtalkus, reached seven seventy by telegram, which originally was known only to a few of the bachurim that were studying at that time in seven seventy. They decided to wait for the Rebbe coming to seven seventy and to inform him. The Rebbe would usually every day arrive in seven seventy at a set time from his work, but this day he didn't come. They called the house. The Rebbe's son, Chai Mushke, said that the Rebbe went out to work as usual. They called the place of work. They were informed from them that the Rebbe never arrived that day to work. So the bachurim then went to the Rebbe's room, and they realized that the key is from inside in the hole of the lock. They knocked on the door. The Rebbe opened the door, and they notified the Rebbe the sad news. The Rebbe tore Kriya and did all the additional halachas that are related to it. The Rebbe was asked why he didn't go to work today, and the Rebbe answered, "When I got up in the morning, I had a feeling that my father is no longer here, and therefore I remained in my room. I understood that the idea, the news will come sooner or later." The hemshacha of the earlier installments when they gave to the Rebbe's father, Rav Levi Yitzchok. We're continuing now with installment number four, discussing the details what took place in the days that the Rebbe was notified about his father's passing. The news about

16:13 his father's passing reached the Rebbe on the twenty-eighth of Menachem Av, and the Rebbe sat shiva till the fourth of Elul. At that time, the previous Rebbe traveled on the seventeenth of Menachem Av to Morristown, and he stayed there for a month. Lefi haShmua, the Rebbe would always visit the previous Rebbe, his father-in-law, almost on a daily basis. When the Rebbe received the news of his father's passing, he began sitting shiva. The previous Rebbe interested himself in knowing w-why his son-in-law, the eidem, is not showing up. The mekoravim, the people around the previous Rebbe refrained from disclosing the news until the end of the shiva. On the fourth of Elul, when the previous Rebbe found out about the passing of his mechutan, the Rebbe's father, he wrote a letter to the Rebbe. He opens his words with, "That I just... I have just been notified about the terrible tragedy that happened with the passing of my relative, my mechutan. Kved avicha, your father, Horav a Chossid, Horav a Goen. Ti in mishmas isru l'bevzeh rachayim. And I'm participating in your great pain." And the previous Rebbe writes the Nusach HaMakom Yeinachem, which is the nusach of Nichom Aveilim, and he continues writing in the letter customs of Aveilim. And of the Rebbe Rashab when he was in the days of avelus for his father, the Rebbe Maharas. The day after shiva was over on the fifth of Elul, the Rebbe traveled to Mariastahl, where the previous Rebbe, uh, stayed for the month, and the previous

18:28 Rebbe continued discussing with him various menuhagim of avelus and as mentioned earlier, also the of the Rebbe Rashab when he was in avelus for his father, the Rebbe Maharas. At that time, an article was published about the Rebbe's father, an overview of his activities and so on. The article was written by the previous Rebbe, but upon his request, it was published anonymously. The previous Rebbe wrote the article as a third person. In the coming years, the Rebbe was, was concerned about a fact of the date of the hishtallus of his father. It was in Taf Shin Hey, that's early nineteen forty-five. The Rebbe mentions in a letter that he is waiting for a response. Maybe he can verify the exact date of the passing of his father. Because up till now, he was not successful in verifying the date. The Rebbe discloses that the telegram was sent on the twelfth of August, which is the twenty-third of Menachem Av. And this also appears in the article of the previous Rebbe that initially it was figured that the hishtallus took place on the twenty-third of Menachem Av. And the Rebbe concludes, "Thank you very much for setting up a seder of learning and davening the kovet, the yahrtzeit, which was, uh, earlier, months earlier, and also for the tefillah for the health and peace of my mother for long and good years." In Taf Shin Zayin, that is late 1906, the Rebbe writes to someone that, "I have just been notified that your relatives that, uh,

21:03 reside near you lived in the city where my father lived in the last years of his life. And since I was not successful to receive details about this time period when the Rebbe's father was in the last few years of his life, the details of his illness, his tzarah, his passing, his kevurah, and the yom ha'yahrtzeit, I would greatly appreciate if they can write to me about this matter, and this would be considered a mitzvah for them." In Taf Shin Tes Zayin, Tishrei time, which is late 1955, Rab Yankiv Yeseph Raskin was greeted by the Rebbe in Yechidus. The Rebbe began speaking with him about his father, and the Rebbe asked him that since Rab Yankiv Yeseph was one of the main people near the Rebbe's father in Alma Ata. So over the years, the Rebbe said that he wanted to verify very precise when exactly was the hour of the hishtallus of his father. It is difficult for him to speak with his mother about it, referring to the Rebbe's Sochana for understandable reasons. The Rebbe did not want to agonize his mother in any way. He did not wanna bring up the, uh, events of the hishtallus to verify when it was and so on. The Rebbe continues, wants to verify if this was chof av before sunset since Rab Yankiv Yeseph Raskin was standing near his bed. Rab Yankiv Yeseph answered, "Definitely is before sunset." And to prove it, he mentioned to the Rebbe many Shimonim. One, that in the, in, in

23:19 the house in Alma Ata, there was no electric. They used a lamp and kerosene, Naft kerosene, and this they lit a half hour after the hishtallus. And as long as there was daylight, they did not light that lamp. Besides that, Rab Yankiv Yeseph tells the Rebbe, "I remember very vividly that there was light outside. It was still daylight outside." The hemsech to the earlier installments bein ge'ulah to the Rebbe's father, we're continuing now with installment number five, discussing a sicha of the Rebbe where the Rebbe explains tzadikim, nezi'ei Yisroel, g'daylei Yisroel who passed away, who were nastalik before their time. The Rebbe speaks in a sicha chof Menachem Av Taf Shin Yud Beis nineteen fifty-two and cites the maimar Chazal, "Zachu achishno, lei zachu be'ito." Zachu, when the neshamah merits. Zachu is also from the word zichuch, refinement. So when the neshamah leaves the body before her time. Achishno, it takes place in a quick way, and the reason for that is that in order that at the time of the hishtallus, the neshamah should still be before her complete avoda in kedushah, and b'meheilah, klipah, the negative elements cannot draw any energy from kedushah. There can't be an achiza l'lo maza. If, but it was le'zachu, that the neshamah is not at its fullest refinement, so then the neshamah leaves in the regular time, be'ito bezmana, after it completes her aveida in Kedusha, and bemeila, this allows an opportunity that le'umaze, the negative elements could draw energy sustenance from Kedusha. So the Rebbe continues

25:45 that this inyan of istalkos before the time, a manner of zachu achishena, we find by many gedalei Yisroel. It is known the sipur be'negeah to the istalkos of the Alter Rebbe that as a result of an error that was made in during the course of the trip running from Napoleon, when they arrived at a certain intersection and they weren't sure which direction to take, and a family member decided on his own, although usually they would consult the Alter Rebbe. And as a result of this mistake, the Alter Rebbe was nistalik before his time. The son of the Rebbe Malach, Rav Avram Sender, was an exceptional child, very much so that Tzamach Tzedek played with him quite often. He was nistalik at the age of eight years old. Before his istalkos, he said that the Alter Rebbe is coming to be with him. As Tzamach Tzedek explained after the istalkos that the neshama of Rav Avram Sender was the neshama of the Alter Rebbe, and he lived the number of years that the Alter Rebbe needed to live as a full life. It was eight years, which means the Alter Rebbe was nistalik eight years before his time. And the Rebbe concludes that likewise we find also by many nesi Yisroel, ugdei Yisroel, that were nistalik before their time. It was in a manner of zachu achishena, that because of the great refinement of their neshama, their istalkos was in a way of achishena in order not to allow le'umaze to have any achiza from kedusha.

27:54 Umesaymim betev. A hemshach to the earlier installments been agir to the Rebbe's father. We're continuing now with installment number six, discussing various details how the Rebbe elaborated on the aveida of his father and his mesirus nefesh. In Tov Shin Zay in 1947, Shabbos Mevarchim Hachedesh Menachemov, the Rebbe spoke about the mesirus nefesh of his father. And bekesher lozer the Rebbe stated the difference between the mesirus nefesh of Rabba Kiva and the mesirus nefesh of Avram Avinu. The Gemara tells us that Rabba Kiva searched for mesirus nefesh. As he said, mosa yovei le yodi va'akamenu. When will there be an opportunity that something will come my way of mesirus nefesh and I will be able to fulfill it? Ma she'enken by Avram Avinu, his whole metzios was to fulfill the ratzon of Hashem. That was his entry. And bemeil if there was a need for mesirus nefesh, he fulfilled it. But he did not go out of his way to look for mesirus nefesh. Another difference between the mesirus nefesh of Rabba Kiva and mesirus nefesh of Rabbe Yeseph Kari, the author of the Shulchan Aruch, Shulchan Aruch HaMachaber, that Rabba Kiva had mesirus nefesh bepeil. The Beis Yeseph was not zecha to the mesirus nefesh bepeil. And as the Rebbe continues, although he needed to write the Shulchan Aruch, but it could have been someone else that would write the Shulchan Aruch. The meil of this is the chelek between mesirus nefesh bekeyach and mesirus nefesh bepeil. In a sicha of the Rebbe Chof Menachemov

30:12 Tov Shin Lametzay in 1977, the Rebbe says, as mentioned already earlier, that Alpi Teva, the stalkos, the passing of his father was shaleb izmano. That came through the pain of the arrest and the exiles that followed. And the arrest and the exiles were related and came as a result of his aveida in working in inyonim of kedushet hedu mitzvahs. That his aveida in this physical world consisted of hafotza sayadus, spreading Yiddishkeit. And as a result of that came the arrest and the exiles. Because there was no opposition to him as he conducted himself in his private life. And also, there was no opposition on what he spoke in his house or what he did-- spoke in shul, in Beis Haknesses, Beis HaMidrash. The opposition that was against him, bederech hateva, that led to the arrest and the exiles that resulted after that was that he was involved in hafotzes hayadus, spreading Yiddishkeit, that it should also reach a second and a third person, and wherever he can reach out to. To the extent that it should reach to all the corners of the country. And as known, his efforts when he traveled to Moscow and made sure that the matzahs should be kosher l'Pesach, and when they wanted to convince the world not to pressure the country because everything is according to Yiddishkeit, and therefore they wanted to have also signatures of Rabbonim that everything is in a very positive way. So the Rebbe's father sacrificed himself, ma- was mesing nefesh himself not to sign

32:41 and not to approve something which was not true. And this angered them even more yet, and eventually he was arrested for that, and then he was exiled to various cities. And the Rebbe derives from this the yesodotos, the inspiration that we need to learn from this mesirus nefesh. When Yidden ga-gather together, especially that it takes place in a makom kodesh, in a sacred place, in a place where we learn and daven, it's a definite fact that this should result in an increase in the exertion in de'aveida til unaveida v'ygiya, really toiling b'negeia to inyonim of Torah and mitzvos. In the Sicha of Chof Melach Hamov Tov Shin Lamed Vav nineteen seventy-six, the Rebbe says as follows, that this is what we actually see, Yidden who were uvgelept, inspired because amongst them was one in exile together with them, and now his tziyun is found in that city, and we see all the inyonim of inspiration, yiras shamayim, and holding on to Yiddishkeit, studying Torah, fulfilling mitzvos, which resulted from his activities. And if he would not have been there, we would not have any idea what the place would have looked like. As the loshon from the Rebbe, "Vidos volt dorten uzgezen", how it would have looked without his presence. Behemshech to the earlier installments, b'negeia to the Rebbe's father, continuing now with installment number seven, discussing the shofar of the Rebbe's father and how it reached the Rebbe. Rab Yankiv Yosef Raskin, who was zecher to be near the Rebbe's father and mother sh-

35:09 in the years before the hisdalkus, in the last time period of his life, be'al madin, relays the following. There was a Chossid, Rab Yehudi Guerari, from the city of Yekat- uh, Yekatrinoslav, and he received from his father a shofar of the Rebbe Mahrash, and he kept it by him meshech of the years. When the Rebbetsin Chana was planning to travel to her husband, who was already in exile in Chile, she requested of him if he can give her the shofar in order that he-- she should be able to deliver it to her husband. Rabbi Guerari fulfilled her request, and she delivered the shofar to her husband. Rab Yankiv Yosef Raskin continues, "When I was planning to leave Russia," this was two weeks before Rosh Hashanah, this was already after the hisdalkus of the Rebbe's father, "I asked of the Rebbetsin if she can give me the shofar that she has." In addition to this shofar, she also had a wh- sh- white shofar from the Tzemach Tzedek. She gave me the shofar that I asked for, uh, as it is also known with the name the Schwartzer Shofar, or Shofar HaShofar, the black shofar. In Elul Tov Shin Yud, nineteen fifty, Rab Elchon Chaskin arrived in Eretz Yisroel from Brooklyn, a certain shlichus, a certain mission, and he relayed to Rab Yankiv Yosef Raskin that the Rebbe asked to relay to him the following, that since Rab Yankiv Yosef, uh, recalls, "I received A shofar from the Rebbe Tzinchanah, and al pi halacha, the Rebbe

37:14 is the yevish, is the one that inherits it. So therefore he is requesting from me that I should return it to him. Kimuvin, understandably, I did not object, chas v'shalom, but I asked if I can receive in exchange a certain gift from a certain cheifetz, a certain item of the previous Rebbe. After Tishrei Tov Shen Yud Aleph, this is late 1950, I received a letter from my son, Rabdovid, and he writes to me that since the Rebbe was davening for Yomit every day because of the year of after the petrachos of the Friedrich Rebbe, and after that tefillah, he would in a very pastoristic way would approach people, would speak with them personally. So he approached my son, Rabdovid, and he said that since your father is asking for a matanah for the shofar, and by him it is also an inion of his kafiyah, not easy to part with the shofar. So the Rebbe suggested he will give him a gift, a handkerchief of the previous Rebbe. When I received this message from my son, I was puzzled of what value is it, a handkerchief. I figured I'll get something which is a spoon or a kos, and I relate to my son that he should give over to the Rebbe, I want a more chosheve matanah. After a short time, the Rebbe again approached Rabdovid and said, why is your father turning down this offer that I want to send to him? And during this time, the Rebbe says, the handkerchief is becoming

39:22 shorter, the ticha levert klenner, which means everybody was schlepping threads, something from this handkerchief. And my son writes to me with his rakshus, with a special excitement, why am I turning this down? The Rebbe is already very popular in Brooklyn between the talmidim and mekusharim. Everybody is aware of the Rebbe's greatness and the Rebbe's kedusha. Although in Eretz Yisrael and in Chutz Laretz Bechalal, he is not known and they don't realize his greatness. But here, everybody knows the Rebbe's greatness. And since the Rebbe is suggesting to you such a gift, surely he knows the value of this gift. And it's a blessing for itself. How are you turning down this offer? After I received this letter and I agreed that I will accept it, so after davening, the Rebbe called in my son to his room. The Rebbe got up and he opened up a certain closet with a key. And there were drawers there. And one of the drawers was the ticha levert klenner. The handkerchief. He took out the handkerchief and he gave it over to my son to send it to me. Imirt Hashem, the hemshech will discuss the following events. The hemshech to the earlier installments been a gear to the Rebbe's father. We're continuing now with installment number eight, discussing and continuing in reference to the earlier installment where we discussed the Rebbe's father's shofar as it was passed on to the Rebbe. In exchange, the Rebbe gave Rab Yankev Yesef Raskin a handkerchief of the previous Rebbe. Rab Yankev

41:40 Yesef relayed that Rab Dovid Raskin, his son, writes that taking consideration where this was placed by the Rebbe, where this was kept, this handkerchief, nira, that this was very choshev. The ticho, the handkerchief, is from white linen batiste, a very thin material. And one of the corners, there are two letters diagonal which says J.S., which is the Friedrich Rebbe's name. In addition to that, in another two places, there are some tikunim, some designs. Rab Yankev Yesef continues that when I received the handkerchief, it was white like snow, pressed very nicely. And in one corner, there was already a little piece missing. And it seems like this was cut off to give to someone as a sgula. And this is what the Rebbe told my son, aditicha levert klenner, the handkerchief is becoming smaller. It seemed like it was, uh, given to someone for a refuah or similar. In Tofshin Chaf Hei, 1965, I was zecher to visit the Rebbe for Chag HaShavuot. Standing in the room of the yechidas in front of the Rebbe, I had many questions. During that yechidas, I gained strength, and I turned to the Rebbe and I said, "It's already fifteen years since I received this matpachat, this tichel, this handkerchief from the Rebbe, and it is laying by me, and I have no idea what to use it for." So the Rebbe responded, "Ir vet alein farshteyn", You will understand on your own. I told the Rebbe, "Ich farshteyn it. Wenn ich bet, der Rebbe soll mir zogn." I

44:07 don't understand, and I'm requesting that the Rebbe should tell me. So the Rebbe then asked me, "Are you about tekiah? Do you blow shofar?" I said, "Yes." So the Rebbe said, "Be'ez tekiah shofar Rosh Hashanah, you should cover the shofars with this matpachat. And if this matpachat is not large enough, you should take another ma- mapa, another covering, and cover the shofars." Since then, fifteen years have passed, and I customarily cover the shofars with this matpachat as the Rebbe advised me. And be'emes, it's taker not big enough to cover it completely. I also have a mapa, a, uh, other covering from the Rebbe that they would use to cover the Rebbe's old shtender. And this is what I use also to cover the shofars Rosh Hashanah. The hemsekht of the earlier installments been agier to the Rebbe's father. We're continuing now with installment number nine, discussing the picture of the Rebbe's father as it began to be circulated in Tofshin Lamed, nineteen seventy enan. It all began one day in Tofshin Yud Beis, nineteen fifty-two. The Rebbe's mother, the Rebbetzin Chana, called Rab Dovid Raskin that he should come to her house, and she asked him that he should do her a favor. She has a picture which is unclear of her husband, and she wants that someone should fix it and clean the picture. Rab Dovid answered that the bachur atomim, Rab Meishe Groner, is very much involved in pictures, and surely he can help her. The next day, Rab Dovid Raskin and Rab

46:16 Meishe Groner arrived at the Rebbetzin's house, and she showed them the picture. The picture only included a half of his face, of the Rebbe's father. It was torn in the middle, and it was full of tears and cracks. The Rebbetzin asked Rab Meishe if he's mesugol, if he's able to fix this picture. And he answered that he's familiar with a studio in Manhattan, which they can edit the picture and complete it. The Rebbetzin thanked him for it, and she added that this is the only picture that's left by her from her husband, and the meila, Rab Meishe should be careful and preserve this picture and watch over it, and be mestagol that the results should be in the most successful way possible. About two weeks later, Rab Meishe returns to the Rebbetzin with the picture edited and complete. The Rebbetzin asked if more tikkunim, additional tikkunim could be made, corrections, editing, and Rab Meishe took care of it that they were done. Again, he showed the Rebbetzin the picture. When the Rebbetzin looked at the picture, she asked for additional tikkunim. The third time, when the Rebbetzin received the picture, she was pleased and said, "This is what he looked like two weeks before his hishtalkus." She asked from Rab Meishe he should make four copies, one for herself, one for the Rebbe, one for Rab Meishe, and one for Rab Dovid. The next occasion that the Rebbe visited his mother, Rab Meishe and Rab Dovid were hiding in one of the corners of the

48:35 house, and when the Rebbetzin gave the picture to the Rebbe, the Rebbe asked, "Ver ist dos?" Who is this? The Rebbetzin answered, "S'iz dein tate. It's your father." When the Rebbe saw the image of his father, how it changed since he saw him, this is after he endured the various exiles, the Rebbe started to tremble. He placed the picture, as he turned it over, on a, uh, clothing dresser. Years later, when they were publishing in Tofshin Lamed nineteen seventy, the first volume of the Sefer Likutei Levi Yitzchak, which was on Tanya, the Rebbe asked that his father's picture should appear in the beginning of the Sefer. Vaskir Rabbi Groner asked the Rebbe, "Where could we get a copy of the picture?" The Rebbe said that he has one in his house, but he does not have time now to look for it. The Rebbe continued, "I believe that your brother, Rab Meishe, Meishe Groner, has a copy of the picture. You can receive it from him." Rab Meishe brought to the Rebbe a copy of what he had. The picture remained overnight on the Rebbe's table, and in the morning, the Rebbe gave this picture in order that it should be published in the Sefer Likutei Levi Yitzchak Antalya. It's interesting because over the years, we see that there is a picture of the Rebbe's father, like this picture, and on the bottom is written, "Amur?" It's the Rebbe's Ksav YaKades. Amur is the abbreviation of the Adeni Meili VeRabi, referring to his father, and

50:47 the Rebbe writes a question mark, which coincides what is mentioned earlier, that the Rebbe asked, "Who is this picture of?" This story, Bene Gier to the Rebbe's father's picture, as well as the earlier installment, Bene Gier to the Rebbe's father's shofar, were included in the recently published Kevetz VeAvdi Dovid, which includes the sipurim and zechreiness of Rab Dovid Raskin, alav ha-shalom. The hemsek to the earlier installments relating to the Rebbe's father, we're continuing now with the tenth installment, discussing various stories which the Rebbe shared with Hasidim during his fabrengens, recalling personal experiences that he had with his father or while working for his father. In one, the Rebbe, when referring with much agony and pain to the law of return, me'u Yehudi, that it needs to be corrected according to halacha, the Rebbe elaborates on negative experiences in communal work in Russia. In the sikha, Shabbos Parshas Meketz, Tov Shin Lamed Beis, late 1971, the Rebbe said the following. While the Rebbe is referring to me'u Yehudi, the Rebbe says, here they want to harass me, madil zich mit mir zidlen, arguing with me in a very harsh way. In reality, I don't feel touched or affected by this, because I was raised in a communist country, which was in the time that my father was the chief rav of Yekatarnislav. Since I was the pchor, the oldest, bemeile, when it came to a topic where there was need to argue with the opposers of Yiddishkeit, I had the task to do this. There, ot

53:03 mezach gezidelt, they argued very harshly and asked many challenging questions, and I didn't get affected by it. Likewise here, in the case of me'u Yehudi, how much, viful mit zich mit mir zidlen, how much they will argue with me does not measure up to what I experienced then. The second story relates to the time of World War I. The Rebbe discusses the connection between Lubavitch and Ger. This took place after the istalkos of the Gere Rebbe, the Beis Israel, and the Rebbe dedicated a sikha regarding this relationship. In conclusion, the Rebbe mentioned two personal experiences. The second story includes his father. In the sikha Shabbos Parshat Itzaveh, Tov Shin Lamed Zayin 1977, the Rebbe relayed as follows. The story took place before I became acquainted with my father-in-law, with the Rebbe. There were decrees issued from the Tsar in Russia and his uncle Nikolai Nikolayevich. This is when Germany was waging war with Russia. They made a libel, a bilbul, that the Jews support Germany, and they drove the Jews out from Warsaw. The Jews came to Yekatarnislav, where our family lived, and one of them lived in the same house building where our family lived. The Rebbe says an expression, I was a young boy then and was busy with my studies in cheder or with playing between this learning, as it was customary by children, so I didn't pay attention to what was happening around us. But when Shabbos came, I saw that my father is honoring this Yid who lived in the

55:16 same house, and he placed him at the head of the table, although there were many old Hasidim present then, and he conversed with him in topics of Torah and additional matters. The person spoke with a strange Yiddish that I did not understand. As the Rebbe elaborates the comments on the pasach, how it interchanges in Peileche Yiddish. And honestly, I had no interest in the conversation. But seeing that my father honored him very much, I wanted to know who is this person. Since I feared to ask my father, so I inquired from my mother as to who is this person that was given such an honor. My mother responded, I should know that this is the brother-in-law of the Gere Rebbe, Rabbinacham Mendel Kamenner. He arrived from Poland and settled here, and he came to us for Shabbos. This is what the Rebbetsin Chana told the Rebbe. And the Rebbe continues, this story remained in my memory amongst many other things. The Rebbe concluded with a bracha to the new Gere Rebbe who just assumed Nesius leadership.