Tishrei By The Rebbe: 5716 (Late 1955) : Part III

00:00 The hemsek in continuation to the earlier installment in regards to Tishrei tav shin tay zayin, 70 years ago, late 1955. We continue now with installment number three, discussing the second day Rosh Hashanah. When the Rebbe approached the bimah for the haftarah reading, two bundles of panim, pidyonos, were brought to the bimah. During the davening, they had been laying on the shtender, the Rebbe's shtender, and then they were brought for tekiahs. After the haftarah, the Rebbe began arranging the shofros. Apparently, there were three shofros. First, he wrapped them in a white cloth, and afterwards in a red clo- a red cloth. Two cloths wrapped together that are attributed to our Rabbeim, and over them, another new white cloth for the blessing of Shehecheyanu. The bundles with the panim, the Rebbe placed on the bimah table and covered his face with the tallit, which reached down to the table so that the bundles were also covered. After some time, the Rebbe removed the covering of the tallit and looked to his side to see whether the makri, who is the one that prompts the sequence of the sounds of the shofar, if the makri was standing beside him. And again, the Rebbe wrapped himself in the tallit and began to recite the Lam Natzeach, the chapter in Tehillim which is repeated seven times. And after that, the Rebbe announced the verses which followed, and then he recited the blessings of the shofar. The Rebbe held the black shofar attributed to the Rebbe Ma'aras, and he blew all

01:48 thirty tekiahs, all thirty kolos, sounds. In teruat, he made about fifty tnu-- uh, truas, and in teruat, he made about ninety. The manner of the haftarah reading, in the preparations for the tekiahs, when the Rebbe's head was bowed on the bimah and covered with the tallit, with the special melody of Zechus and soul expiring in the verses before and after the tekiahs, and the tekiahs themselves that aroused the soul, while the minyan was pressed and crowded together as one man around the bimah, it was felt in the air a sublime elevation and holy nobility. It should be noted that in-- as in previous years, this year too, there was a special minyan in the echad room of the previous Rebbe on the second floor. After Musaf, the Rebbe went upstairs on the second floor for the seudah of Rosh Hashanah, but did not prolong the meal and hastened to conduct Tashlich. The Tashlich procession was headed to Botanical Gardens. It was organized by Siri HaKodesh Chabad, the Lubavitch youth organization, which was established just a half a year earlier, following the success of the Tzach, which is the Lubavitch youth organization in Eretz Yisrael, which had been founded three years earlier. The order was as set in recent years, in an organized manner. At the head stood the young cheder students, stretching several hundred meters. After them, the yeshiva students. After them, the older students. And at the end, all the Hasidim and guests who had come from many different countries, and this procession extended

03:52 about a kilometer and a half. The line extended from seven seventy, Full Street. When the Rebbe left the entrance of seven seventy, they began to sing the Mizraim Ve'al Tanum, and the Rebbe began to walk and passed before the eylam, the head of the crowd, head of the line, and, and how beautiful it was to see how everyone was singing, and the Rebbe walked, looking with a radiant face. And so the procession began with the Rebbe walking at the head. Beside him was Maski Roshi, the secretary, Rabbi Khodikov, and after them, several hundred people. Throughout the entire procession, the participants sang Chabad melodies until all the residents of the houses along the way came out to look at this wondrous sight. Of course, students and Hasidim used the opportunity to speak with Jewish passerbys about matters of Torah and mitzvahs. Along the way, there were supervisors who supervised that everything should work out in an organized m-manner, and people should walk in a two-by-two file line all the way to the Tashlich. On the way, many more people joined. When they needed to cross the street, cars were stopped from both sides, and they waited until the entire procession passed. It is impossible to describe in words the degree of holiness, joy, and awe of holiness that the Rebbe imparted both to those marching in the procession and to those observing from the outside. When they arrived near the place where they say the Tashlich tefillah, a rush and a-- and great tumult broke out,

05:55 for everyone wanted to stand in close proximity to the Rebbe. The Rebbe concluded reciting the tefillah of Tashlich and immediately left the park. On the way back, the procession had fewer people because many hurried back earlier to Seven Seventy in their desire to secure a place in the chalash, in the yard, which is in the tent, which is where the davening and fabrengens took place, and they wanted to have a place for the fabrengen. And also because many were still not yet done reciting the tefillah at the tashlach, since the crowd was exceedingly large as many Yidden came from all the surrounding areas. When they returned to Seven Seventy, an instruction came forth from the Rebbe that each and every one should wash the two shivayim for the fabrengen to make a metzy. Of course, everyone hurried to wash and to secure a good place in order to see and hear the Rebbe. The Rebbe entered after some time, managed to wash his hands before sunset, and began the fabrengen. At the conclusion of the first sicha, the Rebbe instructed to sing Havina Malkenu and Tzam Alecha Nachshi. Afterwards, he instructed to sing the nigun preceding a maimer, and he began saying the maimer, Lehovin Inyan Reish Hashana. At the conclusion of the second sicha, the Rebbe instructed to sing the nigun Mimizrayim Gealtanu and the Sephardic melody Ein Adir and the nigun Nezer Yitza. And then he continued with following sichas. During the fabrengen, the Rebbe instructed that everyone should say l'chaim, and all

07:49 those gathered held a cup of wine in their hands, said l'chaim, and the Rebbe responded to each and every one. At the conclusion of the fabrengen, which continued until close to midnight, the Rebbe benched over a cup of wine, and at the conclusion of Birchas Hamazon, the Rebbe announced loudly before the conclusion of Birchas Hamazon, "Harachaman yechadeshu aleinu es hashanah hazeh l'tovah u'l'brachah", that Harachaman Hashem should renew for us the year for good and for blessing. After the benching, the Rebbe related that when they published the siddur, Chabad siddur in Elul Tov Shin Alef, late 1941, the Rebbe asked his father-in-law, the previous Rebbe, whether to also print the Harachaman text for Rosh Hashanah. Since in the Sha'ar Hakeiluh, which is a commentary on the siddur Torah Air, he, he made specific points and brought proof not to say this tefillah, not to say this Harachaman. And the Rebbe continues that my father-in-law answered that they would say it quietly. Accordingly, the printer said it in the typeface of Kidush Levana, made it in very large fonts, whether because he did not have any other type or for another reason. But in any case, it was printed in large letters. And the Rebbe continues and concludes, "And may it be Hashem's will that from this we will have a good and sweet year for good and for blessing." Afterwards, the Rebbe with the minyan davened Ma'ariv in the chalash, and the Rebbe himself recited the Avdah for the whole minyan. After Avdah, the Rebbe distributed

09:52 to all those gathered wine from the cup of Birchas Hamazon, and this event lasted for quite a while. Before leaving the shul, the Rebbe, uh, spoke a few words briefly in connection with the weekly Torah parsha, Parshas Hazinu. We will, im yirtze Hashem, continue in the next installment.