Nissan & Pesach by the Rebbe

00:05 The, uh, union that we're gonna discuss at, uh, this evening has been in regard to the Seder what took place by the Rebbe on Cheshvan Nissan, beginning from, um, Cheshvan Nissan throughout the Yom Tov of the, of the days of Pesach, and, uh, how much time allows to, to cover the different details and events that took place also in different years. Certain Pesach were different from other, other Pesach. Beginning from Cheshvan Nissan, the first thing is the Rebbe would release a Michtav Klali, which means that the Rebbe would release a letter that he sent, which the world called a Pesach message, a message for, uh, Chag HaPesach. The letter was written in Yiddish. The contents of the letter related to Pesach and actually a lesson for the whole year. And the, uh... And the, uh, it was dictated to Dr. Mendel, and then Dr. Mendel would type it, and then send it in to the Rebbe. The Rebbe would look it over, and then the, uh, if there were any corrections, so it went back again, uh, again retyped. It's not like today we have the computer, so you can do everything, uh, inserting, but then actually you needed one typing, a second typing till mamash it was complete and correct, and then the Rebbe would release it. The Rebbe would usually release a Michtav Klali after the... He went to the jail. When the Rebbe came from the jail, so then the Rebbe would release the Michtav Klali, um, by signing his name, and

01:56 that's when the Michtav would be printed. It would be then, uh, posted on the wall in seven-seven upstairs. And then after that, the, uh, Michtav Klali would then be sent out different places. It was sometimes... I mean, we're talking here even before the fax age. The Michtav Klali would then, which is the general Michtav, the Pesach message, was then, uh, uh, translated into English also by Dr. Mendel, which would then be sent to the Mich- the Michtav Klali, the original, the Pesach message in Yiddish, would be sent also to Israel. In Israel, they would translate it into Hebrew, and that's how you had the letter translated in different languages. The letter, the Michtav Klali had , had footnotes and comments. And the com- the Michtav Klali, the me- the Pesach message that the Rebbe sent every year, uh, included, which is the date was Cheshvan Nissan. So that included also, uh, references to all the Rebbeim, which means that the Rebbe was very particular about it, to mention a source from the Baal Shem Tov, a source from Keser Shem Tov, Baal Shem Tov Sefer, a source from Eire Kedo, which is the Maggid, from Tanya, and so on up till, mamash, uh, up to the previous Rebbe. Chassidim, the ones that would also help with the would also mention a, a site from, a source from the Rebbe, and also including the Rebbe's father, the Yitzchak. So all this was in a Michtav Klali. And this was a Michtav Klali that came out in

03:38 general for two seasons. One was for the Rosh Hashanah, and one was for Pesach. The one that came out for the Rosh Hashanah was dated Chey Elul, and the second letter that followed was Yemei HaSlichos. The one that came out for Pesach was Cheshvan Nissan, and the second one was Yud Aleph Nissan. But in addition to the two before Rosh Hashanah time, and in addition to the two, but by Pesach, from time to time, there was also a third letter. Rosh, uh, Rosh Hashanah, I'm sorry, there were only two letters, Chey Elul, the 18 of Elul, and Yemei HaSlichos. By, by before Pesach, there was sometimes also a letter dated Chaf Heh Adar. So there were actually three letters. There was a Chaf Heh Adar, there was a Cheshvan Nissan, there was a Yud Aleph Nissan. What was the content of the letter of the Michtav Klali of Pesach? The letter was the Rebbe took a topic, a certain feature, concept in regard to Pesach, and a lesson that we derive for the whole year. This could be been in regard to, uh, Pesach Matan Torah. It can be been in regard to the concept of the . It could be been in regard to the union of the Korban Pesach itself. It could be been in regard to Chinuch. Different that the Rebbe took out. Today, as far as I understand the, the, these two Sefarim which compiled all the different Michtavim Klalim called Igrus HaMelech are already out of print as of Pesach

05:05 time this year. But it came out about 10 years ago, 12 years ago, a compilation of all the Michtavim Klalim together. And in the beginning, you have an overview of the contents of each letter. Uh, Michtavim Klalim to Klal Yisroel, general letters, messages to e- to the whole Jewish nation. Then you have Michtavim Klalim that went to the Jewish women, and then you have Michtavim Klalim that are to children. So the Rebbe sent, addressed the children in certain times. The Rebbe would write a letter to them and give a directives what to do. So this is called the se- the two-volume set is referred to as Igrus HaMelech. This is been in regard to the Michtav Klali, the signing of the Michtav Klali, which means the last part of the Michtav Klali, the Pesach message the Rebbe would usually sign off with a Bracha. The Bracha would be a, a Bracha for Chag HaPesach, but the Rebbe would include, especially in the later years, the Rebbe would also include a passuk of the Kapitel Tehillim- The, the Tehillim which he is ending, which corresponds to his age, which, which was ending already in those 10 days, which means this is the kapitel that the Rebbe was already ending right by Yud Aleph Nissan. In the letter of Yud Aleph Nissan, the Rebbe did exactly the opposite. He took a passuk which is after from the new kapitel, from the new kapitel of Tehillim, which means the new age that he was entering, the new... the

06:38 kapitel Tehillim, which is corresponding to the number of the age which he was entering Yud Aleph Nissan. So the Rosh Chodesh Nissan letter, the Rebbe used the kapitel as a beracha, the... a, a passuk of the kapitel Tehillim that he said a whole year, and it's gonna continue another 10 days. Next, in Yud Aleph Nissan, the Rebbe used a passuk of the new kapitel. This is basically what took place in, uh, uh, the mikrah klali. By Chassidim, a mikrah klali, although the Chadei letter is usually used with the word reading, but by Chassidim, the Rebbe's mikrah klali was not only read, but also studied. In 770, there used to be a shiur that the Rosh Yeshiva gave to learn through with the bachurim, a shiur klali for about 45 minutes, m- studying through the first letter, Rosh Chodesh Nissan, uh, two weeks later, the second letter, learning through the references, learning through the comments that the Rebbe wrote, and being dayeik, expanding on why the Rebbe chose after this reference, why one reference is before the other. And many times questions were asked by the Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Mendy, zol er sholn. He asked questions to the Rebbe, and the Rebbe would answer questions. And from the answers we saw how precise every source that the Rebbe used in the faith, in the letter is measured and weighed. Mamesh every source is exactly a certain intention, why this source was used, why not another one? Why this source is quoted before another one? Although historically,

08:13 chronologically speaking, one source was, well, it comes later in time than the other. So everything was, uh, accurately, uh, measured and weighed, and this is the letter that was released from the Rebbe. Another event that took place on Rosh Chodesh Nissan was the drawing of the Mayim Chalonu. The Rebbe himself personally went out. Shkiah time, now shkiah time is already after 7:00, but then before we turn the clock, especially right in the beginning of Nissan, so sometimes it was actually about 6:00, 6:15, like it was last week. So the Rebbe went out to draw Mayim Chalonu. There was a hose that was extended from the well where Mayim Chalonu is drawn, which is in the driveway between the 770 and the library. They drew a, uh, uh, they extended a hose, and the Rebbe came down from... uh, came out from 770, went down the top steps, went over to the valve, uh, to the, uh, valve which is actually controlling the water, opened up the water, took a big jar, rinsed three times the jar, and then poured in, uh, three quarts, and this marked the beginning of Mayim Chalonu. What was the occasion of this Mayim Chalonu? Why after then, and not later or not earlier, and not an earlier week or a later week? Because this was matzah that was baked for Chassidim in Eretz Yisrael that Rebbe sends about two, three days later, which meant that Chassidim in Eretz Yisrael were not able to receive matzah Erev Pesach. It wasn't shayeich.

09:49 So the matzah, the Rebbe bought a whole day, matzah, uh, a day in the bakery, and they baked matzah for Chassidim in Eretz Yisrael. Later, it also became the shluchim. And, um, this was matzah that the Rebbe sent to them. So although the Rebbe himself did not go to the bakery, but the Rebbe was represented by, and the shlichus was accomplished by Rabbi Mendy, who was running this project, that he is achrai for the matzah that was being baked in the bakery that day for the Rebbe. Um, the, they also had bachurim for 770 who were zocheh bigeital, which meant that they had almost 60, 70 bachurim, they would make a geital, and the first 25, roughly, were the ones that were zocheh bigeital. And the 25 gufef, if I'm not mistaken, part of them worked in the morning shift and part worked in the afternoon shift. One shift was 7:30 in the morning, the other one I think was 12:30, 1:00. This was the baking of the matzah for Eretz Yisrael. Two days late, later, the matzah came, was packed. We're talking here about containers, hundreds of pounds of matzah came to 770. The reason is because the Rebbe sent this matzah to Eretz Yisrael. The Rebbe himself took, was mafrish challah from this matzah. What does it mean? The Rebbe took off matzahs that, uh... in the bakery, they do it every day. By baking dough, you need to be mafrish a certain amount and burn it. So this is what's done in

11:18 the bakery. But the Rebbe, they gave the Rebbe the gelegnheit, the chance, the occasion, that since this is matzah that Rebbe's sending, so the Rebbe wanted to be mechayen the mitzvah himself. So the Rebbe would go into the library with a gartel, with a siddur, and make a beracha and be mafrish the, uh, cha- mafrish the matzah. Which the rehagav, sometimes we don't realize what this means. The beracha is a one-line beracha, a beracha that any child could, could know it be'al peh in no time. We're dealing here, we're talking here about the Rebbe, a person, chumein the Pashuta Rebbe, that said hours and didn't need any notes. Sitting hours by farbrengen didn't need any notes. As there was one time that the Rebbe was once by farbrengen, and a Yid is sitting behind the Rebbe- And, uh, after the Rebbe speaking for hours, this Yid watches the Rebbe by the end of the farbrengen. The Rebbe opens up a siddur and he makes a bracha al haneir. Person didn't understand. He says he knows it by heart. He has to open up a siddur to make a bracha? The answer is, I think the Rebbe once answered, is because the siddur is a siddur that the Friediker Rebbe used, and since the Friediker Rebbe did everything from a siddur, so the Rebbe did the same thing. And especially as the Rebbe once told, uh, uh, the Rebbe once mentioned that a- the Isias, the letters of the siddur or any sefer, when a person

12:45 sees something inside, are machimas, Isias machimas, and Isias meirias, which means that they are Isias that make a person wise, and they are also Isias that in, that in, uh, illuminate a person's eyes. So this is basically the reason paskut for the Rebbe used a siddur. The Rebbe then would give the shliach that went to Eitz Chaim. There was a Yid that used to come here every year, years ago. His name was Rabbi Mendel Dorelick. He was machlas Habad. He came from Russia originally, and every year he would probably visit the family here or whatever, and then the Rebbe would make him for shliach to take the matzohs back to Eitz Chaim. Physically, it wasn't easy. We're talking about boxes of matzohs, but he didn't have to do anything. He just has to have to travel with that plane. The Rebbe would escort the matzohs driven away from Seven Seventy with the Chassid until Albany Avenue, where they turned. Once they turned Albany Avenue, the Rebbe went back to Seven Seventy. What, what does it mean that the Rebbe escorted aside the Chassid and aside the matzohs, as he would see off orchim when they left after a Tishrei or after another occasion, other farbrengens that the Rebbe would, uh, see off the guest, stand away till he saw the, the, the buses turn on Albany Avenue. This is basically the inyan that took place by the matzah. When the Rebbe went out to take the Ma'ayan Shalona, Chassidim, the Ikar Bochurim, who else was

14:18 available then? The whole Chabad was already six o'clock, but not everybody knew the Rebbe's seder. So there was Bochurim around the lawn in front of the Mosquito's windows, which is one part of the lawn. Then there's another part of the lawn, which is in front of the Rebbe's windows. So the elom stood around and they were singing and they're needing Keili Yato, which was mekubal to sing by Ma'ayan Shalona. Now we go on to the next inyan. The next inyan basically is, uh, discussing the inyan of Beis Nissan, which is the yahrtzeit, the hilula of the Rebbe Rashab, which was this past Mo- uh, Friday, which this year was eighty-six years since the passing of the Rebbe Rashab, who was the fifth Rebbe of Chabad, and, uh, in Taf Resh Peh, and the Friediker Rebbe became a mehalech mokom on Beis Nissan Taf Resh Peh. Saying the first ma'amar, chiddush on the Shabbos right after the end, right by the end of the shiva. It's the shiva ended Shabbos in the morning, although not in a physical sense, but in a halachic sense, and the Friediker Rebbe privately said a ma'amar for someone in the afternoon. Uh, from then on, the week later, he started to say already ma'amarim already, was saying ma'amarim for Chassidim in public. Going on to Yud Aleph Nissan. Yud Aleph Nissan bachlal was the seder that, uh, how did it get known by-- how did it become known by Chassidim that the Yud Aleph Nissan is the Rebbe's yom haledet?

15:48 So it happened in nineteen forty-eight, approximately, that the Rebbe's Chana, the Rebbe's mother, told Chassidim that tonight is my son's yom haledet, and if you'll approach him, you'll request from him, he'll farbrengen with you. So although a group of Chassidim knew then, but it was a very small segment of Chassidim because it was not... It was the chayei of, of the Friediker Rebbe, and also we had-- there was a very small group of Chassidim that lived there, and it wasn't like a hoo-ha that they immediately called up all over the world that today is the Rebbe's, tonight is the Rebbe's yom haledet. So b'meila, this was a, uh, a very close group that was there then. It wasn't a... It was a very small elom. To the extent, and there could also be a proof of that, that two years later, in nineteen fifty, when the Rebbe, uh, the... It was after the petira, the passing of the Rebbe, the Friediker Rebbe, previous Rebbe, and the Rebbe then was discussing with one of the older Chassidim, the nigeia, when to go again to the eyl, the grave site of the, the Friediker Rebbe. So it came up, the issue came up, the nigeia, Beis Nissan, the second of Nissan. So the Rebbe then said that I have another reason, that I'm going in ten days. So the Chassid, Rav Shmuel Levitin, who was one of the older Chassidim, asked, "What in ten days?" So the Rebbe said, "It's a prophi- it's a inyan prophi." It's

17:22 a private inyan. It's a individual inyan, not mentioning that it's his yom haledet. The first time that the Rebbe commemorated his yom haledet, his birthday, boravin, was actually in nineteen fifty-two. The Rebbe then called in a group of Chassidim to his room, and the Rebbe said for them a ma'amar chiddush that began with a posuk of chapter nun alef, marking the Rebbe's fiftieth birthday, which was in nineteen fifty-two, on Yud Aleph Nissan. The Rebbe then said a ma'amar, a discourse for, for, uh, a Chassid, a group of Chassidim. I don't even know if all went in, and, uh, this was the first time that the Rebbe on that day commemorated something, commemorated his birthday in public. On Yud Aleph Nissan. Nineteen fifty-two, Taf Shin Yud day. The minor begins and it's on Kapittel nun alef which is the kapitel that the Rebbe enters that year. The next 10 years, the Rebbe did not commemorate Yud Alef Nissan in public, but instead every Acharei Sh'mini the Rebbe would in the ma'amar, the Chassidic discourse of every farbrengen Acharei Sh'mini, the Rebbe would include, he would just like mention an explanation on a pasuk of Tehillim of the new kapitel, of the new chapter that he entered, which means that, for example, in the next year, 1953, the Rebbe would mention, um, Kapitel nun beis, the, the chapter, the 52nd chapter in Tehillim. He would mention a pasuk from there, and he would explain it, and this is how the Rebbe... This is the only thing that

19:06 the Rebbe made mention of a new year by mentioning it in the ma'amar, not mentioning whose kapitel it is, what it's related to, no seuda, just mentioning an explanation on a kapitel Tehillim, on a pasuk of the Tehillim. That's how it went on for 10 years. When the Rebbe entered 60 years, which was in 1962, taf shin chaf beis, the Rebbe then farbreng- farbrenged in public. This was the first time the Rebbe farbrenged in shul, in public, and, uh, farbrengen, he made a siyum, finished the Masechta Pesachim, the, the Tractate of Pesachim. The Rebbe said, "Two ma'amaryim be-farbrengen," and the Gemara tells us that when a person reaches 60, he should commemorate because this is a special year in his life, passing the union of Kores, so facing a time of the Beit Hamikdash. Rachmana liclan, if a person was, was, um, was, uh, pun- punished with the union of Kores, they didn't pass a certain age. Therefore, a person, when he does reach 60, he should make a, he should make a seuda, commemorate it, and the Gemara tells us that there was a Tanna and Amora, Rabbi Yisser, who made a seuda, a meal, a festive meal by passing the, um, the year 60. This is the negiah to the 60th birthday of the Rebbe. Then the next nine years, the Rebbe again did not commemorate in public besides just mentioning a pasuk, passage from the kapitel Tehillim. The Tehillim, the, the Tehillim chapter that the Rebbe entered in that year, the Rebbe

20:48 would mention it in the ma'amar of Acharei Sh'mini, but not make anything on Yud Alef Nissan itself. Taf shin lamed alef, 1971, there was a surprise. The Rebbe every year went to the AL, visit the gravesite of the Friediker Rebbe, but that year after coming back from the AL, the Rebbe after Mincha announced, uh, says... Notified, and it was a very short notice, that there will be a farbrengen which meant that the farbrengen will be between, if I'm not mistaken, I think it was between Mincha-Ma'ariv. Actually, on the date of the farbrengen where it's printed, it usually says when it took place. So they... The farbrengen was then between Mincha... It was Mincha-Ma'ariv. It was a very small crowd. A small crowd for many reasons. One, the elom that was, uh, the, the elom that was in town was a small crowd. The reason being it's a few days before Pesach. Nobody expected any farbrengen till Acharei Sh'mini, and therefore people went home. Bocherim went home to their families. Uh, son-in-laws, the young couples went to in-laws or to their parents, and, uh, there was no Shabbat alarm then to notify people. So also people in Crown Heights also didn't know about it. Hakol panim, not everybody knew, uh, uh, did not have immediate notice of the farbrengen. The farbrengen was a small elom. The Rebbe then said a ma'amar which, uh, discusses Shavei Asher since this 11th day of Nissan corresponds to the tribe of Asher. The Rebbe discussed the Midrash that discusses what

22:32 the qualities are of the tribe of Asher, and the Rebbe brought in mashal, an example from a Midrash, that it's like someone that walks into a palace. So there are different people. There is one person that says, "I will take..." There's so much richness. On the way to the king, he says, "I will take, uh, this minister. I'm... I feel connected to this minister." Another one says, "I feel connected to this minister." Then comes in a smart person, says, "I will take the king." So the Chassidus asks the question: What does it mean that he's taking the king? What's the chiddush? What's the accomplishment? Why do you need a special wisdom for that? Because in kedusha, in order to con- be connected to the king, you have to also do something. You have to commit yourself to something. So therefore, the other elements which are not the Jewish nat- not from the Jewish nation, so they just wanna draw life from... They wanna draw a certain existence from kedusha without any commitment. Majenku, when it comes to the a Yid, so he says although he will have to commit himself to the king, but still he's considered a wise person because in the long run, in the investment, he's gonna get more than they get 'cause they're only getting through the ministers, but he's getting directly from the king. This was a very famous ma'amar. Years later, it even became more famous because people started to understand the Rebbe was meramez here the connection between

23:54 the Rebbe and Chassid. Eventually, this ma'amar was edited by the Rebbe for an occasion of a Yud Alef Nissan, uh, I think it was in '89, and then it was published in the, uh, Sefer Ma'amarei Halukot which are the edited ma'amarei Chassidus the Rebbe lu- uh, edited meshech of the years, the six-volume set. The Rebbe thanked everybody for the brachos, everybody that sent in brachos for, the good wishes for Yud Alef Nissan, and the farbrengen ended. There's one thing I can say from a personal experience that I remember from then, from an addition to the yohnen mentioned, is that there was a small crowd, and it stood out very much because the elom went dancing after the farbrengen because this was like a, a special surprise and a- and, um, a- and in addition to that also an openness on the Rebbe part to commemorate his Yud Alef Nissan with Chassidim which was the first time since 1962. So b'meheirah, this was a very special chavivus, and Chassidim were very touched by it. Usually, a reekuh, they dance, is usually in a circle. So there's one part of the circle, there's the other part. Here, there was such a small elom, and, uh, we're speaking about the shul as it wasn't up to K- up to Kingston It was just two-thirds of the shul that we have today. This was the mizrach of the shul. The mizrach was two-thirds of what we have, not all the way to Kingston. Still, when the alum danced on

25:28 one side, the whole other part of the shul was empty. It was managed a very, very small crowd. The weather was also, the ma'aleh matzeva was hailing that night, which was Yud Aleph Nisan. The whole eynim was a traa. Eynim, the Chassidim felt a range hatzah fabringen. The next year already, everybody was smart, but actually it was already obvious on its own. It was the Rebbe's 70th birthday, and the Rebbe continued the next 17 years fabringen every year Yud Aleph Nisan. Up till 1987, which was the last weekday fabringen of Yud Aleph Nisan we had since the year that followed. It was Chavdei Shvat, and then the Rebbe stopped all the weekday fabringens. There were sichas, there were Shabbos and Yom Tov fabringens, but not weekday fabringens. It's interesting to note that a chagav that the last Yud Aleph Nisan fabringen, the Shabbos around it, there were two ma'amodim. This was, I mean, in later years when a person thinks about it, this was like in an obvious way the Rebbe was like closing the season and the Yud Aleph Nisan tzkuva. This was basically the seder that took place Yud Aleph Nisan. Now we go on v'negi'a to Yud Gimmel Nisan. Yud Gimmel Nisan was a seder, the Tzemach Tzedek's yahrtzeit. The Rebbe would occasionally, very rarely, but occasionally the Rebbe would fabringen, but not often, veitz and often. I mean, one time the Rebbe fabringen was 40 years ago, exactly. It was 100 years since Tzemach Tzedek's yulubah, 40 years ago. Exactly the

27:01 Rebbe fabringen that night. But then the Rebbe didn't fabringen for the next 12 years, approximately. The next 12, lamed tach, lamed ches, 1978, the Rebbe then fabringen, which was a surprise. It was a special inyan, lamed ches. And sporadically in the course of the years, the Rebbe fabringen, but not often, not with a krius, not like a set krius every year. The Rebbe would go to the Eyl Yud Gimmel Nisan, and then the Rebbe would come back from the Eyl, the Rebbe would come back late. Erev Pesach in the afternoon, they would bake matzah for the Rebbe. The matzah that we are referring to is the matzah that the Rebbe ate from it. Personal matzah, the Rebbe's personal matzah, and the matzah that the Rebbe distributed personally on Erev Pesach. The ma'aleh we have over here, this was the ma'ayan shalom of the Rebbe's personal matzah. L'chayei, a person would think the Rebbe would take it himself, it's his own matzah. So we see over here a felidike zach, that davka this matzah the Rebbe did not take himself, but he davka left it for Rabbi Nanklik and also a group of bochadim that took care in the next day in the bakery in the afternoon when they baked the matzah. It was like completely left to others. That showed the reliance and the The word is how the Rebbe trusted, entrusted Chassidim with his own matzah. Mashinka when it came to send Chassidim in Eretz Yisrael, there most of the years the Rebbe took

28:32 himself ma'ayan shalom. Here the Rebbe did not draw the water himself, but Chassidim took it. Rabbi Nanklik and the ones that worked with him. What's the reason technically? Technically the reason is because that night, that evening it was very late to take ma'ayan shalom. It was way after sunset. And ma'ayan shalom is only taken by sunset. The Rebbe came back late from the After the shkiya. There were also peles Chassidim that would come to take ma'ayan shalom because they baked matzah then Erev Pesach after afternoon. It's an interesting meister with someone that he claims that he has a Belzer tradition. So when he was taking matzah that evening, not matzah, ma'ayan shalom, and when the Rebbe came through from the car into 770, he saw them take ma'ayan shalom, which was late. They took it as if it were a hidur, which was also late. Late to the extent that the Rebbe already could have taken because it was already way after shkiya, and that's when they took it. So whatever way, that's their zman. That's their zman of mincha, so that's their zman of ma'ayan shalom. So the Rebbe turned to him and said, we're going to daven our Belzer mincha. A Belzer mincha is known as a 60-minute after the shkiya mincha. And this is the Rebbe was telling this chassid, this Belzer, he says, I mean, the person calls himself a Belzer. The Rebbe says, we're going to daven now Belzer mincha. He was taking ma'ayan shalom then. The Rebbe was referring

30:07 to a mincha, which was after the Eyl, which was a late mincha. After mincha, Rav Shmuel Evitin, who originally was the rav, the oldest of the Chassidim, would also be a rav. The Rebbe would ask him to come into his room, and he would buy the chametz from the Rebbe. The Rebbe would sign a contract with all the addresses that has the Rebbe's name on the title. And then the rav would take care of it, the transaction. There would be also a kinyan to pick off a handkerchief, a yarmulke, whatever the rav brought in of Rav Shmuel Evitin. There was also a rav Kavlan. The Rebbe would sign his name, his father's name, the date, the year. And this would be the contract of selling the chametz, his chametz. Amongst the addresses that the Rebbe mentioned in the contract was an address in Australia. There was another address on Eastern Parkway, 570 Eastern Parkway, which today is called the Parkway Suites, which was sold. It was a building that was owned by Merkaz. Under the Rebbe's name, there was also a property in Eretz Yisrael, and in the early '90s, there was also a property bought for the Rebbe in the city of Lubavitch in Russia that had the Rebbe's name, so the Rebbe also mentioned it in the Shtar Mechirat Chometz. After that, the Rebbe went out to Ma'idiv, the Rebbe would go home. The next day, uh, by, uh, afternoon, the Rebbe would wait till they bake the matzah. The matzah, they started

31:34 to bake in the afternoon, and then they would, uh, they would notify the Rebbe that the matzah's already coming in, and the Rebbe would come out for Mincha, and then after Mincha, the Rebbe would distribute matzah to every man and child up till 1977, 5737. From 5738 in, in, in the hemsech to the health situation that took place that year by the Rebbe, so the Rebbe then made a new seder, a new setup that what will happen is the people that are learning in the kollel that year, each one will take a few pounds of matzah and distribute to everybody, and another group was a group of Rabbonim from here and from other neighborhoods. The Rebbe drew up a list, people that were close to the Rebbe, Rabbi Hollander, Rabbi Gomzer, different Rabbonim from different, uh, communities, and then there was a, the maskiros, the secretaries. There was also a group of schluchim that left, they were still going home, like an hour away, two hours away. The Rebbe gave them matzah. There was also a group of single people that would send matzah to people out of town, and it would get there the second night. There was also a group of doctors that the Rebbe would give matzah to. The doctors from here were basically my father, and the second one was Dr. Feldman, and the rest were all from out of town, Dr. Weiss, Dr. Reznik, alav ha-shalom, Dr. Land. The different doctors that dealt with the Rebbe, these were the ones

33:05 that dealt with the Rebbe, made a heart attack in 5738, end of '77, so these are the ones that the Rebbe then set up the list, and that's how it continued through the years, through nine days. Till up to actually till Menalev. Menalev already we, we really didn't have it because of the stroke, chazal ve'ezer. At night, the Rebbe would come into Ma'idiv, and after Ma'idiv, the Rebbe would visit the different Sdorim set up in the different places, 1414 President, Free, and Rochachana. These were the different, uh, meises. The Rebbe would walk through the tables, watch how everybody set up the, set up the chida, walk to the place where the lichter, the candles are set up, then the Rebbe would stop, he would give a bracha, and they would, and the Rebbe would leave. Go from one to another. This went on for years, tens of years, actually from the early '50s. Uh, Free and Rochachana didn't happen till later, but the yeshiva, the Rebbe already visited in the early '50s, the Bacharim. Later years, the Rebbe already started to speak a sicha. Not just a bracha, but he also gave a sicha. The Rebbe would usually walk into the cook, who was Mrs. Mutia, the, that cooked for the yeshiva. He would walk into the kitchen and give her a gechantas, and this was something, the lichtikeit, the light, the illuminating face that the Rebbe had then showing a g- telling a gechantas gave her chayas for the whole year. In addition to

34:30 her own qualities, that she was very devoted, committed to the Bacharim, even in her, in the time that she wasn't well already, the Bacharim did not want to settle for any other cook besides her. They felt that she's respons- she knows what's happening, she's responsible, and she knows exactly what they need. And she mamesh came up to the last years to cook. The second night, 1:30, uh, uh, going back to the first night briefly, the first night, the Rebbe, the first 20 years, would eat the seder upstairs on the second floor by the Friediker Rebbe's dira. And around the table, the Rebbe sat on the left side from the Friediker Rebbe's table. The head of the table was reserved by the, for the Friediker Rebbe's place, set up a place. The Rashag, the Rebbe's brother-in-law, sat on the right side as an older son-in-law. This is how it took place before 1950. And around, you had older sidim sitting around and participating in the seder, pashut, eating by the seder, being part of the seder, of Shmuel Levitan, Rab Bianca Katz from Chicago, and his son, zol zayn gezunt, Rab Solomon Teibel, Rab Yitchak Hurvitz, a whole group achei'em. The Bacharim would also come in. From time to time, more Bacharim would come in. They finish the seder early to be by the Rebbe's seder, and push around, around the table. I personally was zecher to be towards the end of three years Dorim, which was '68, '69, '70. And, uh, there was conversation going

35:55 on between the Rebbe and, uh, the Rashag, which today is all printed already with the oldest kreinim that the Rebbe spoke in Sefer Hamedakol Hamelach Demibeh. The second night Pesach, actually after 1970, '71, the Rebbetzin Chana Dina was nifter. From then on, the Rebbe stopped eating upstairs. Not the seder, not Yom Tov, nothing. Originally, the Rebbe ate all the Yom Tov meals upstairs. Sukkot, Pesach, Shavuot, Metzayim, Kippur, Rosh Hashanah, everything. Once she was nifter, the Rebbe felt he, he's eating in the house. And he ate privately in the house, and the guests all spread to different, they went to different families, to different, uh, their own families or guests and others. But the Rebbe ate privately with the Rebbetzin. The second night Pesach, there was an event that took place which went on for 20 years, and that was 1:30 in the morning. And that was the fabrengen. The fabrengen after the seder.