In this chapter we attempt to define who and what Moshiach is. It would certainly be impossible to describe the full greatness of Moshiach. To appreciate this, consider the statement of the Midrash2 that Moshiach will be greater than Avraham and greater than Moshe. We would first have to have a full understanding of the greatness of Avraham and Moshe before we could start to understand the greatness of Moshiach!
As another example, consider the following prophecy of Zechariah about Moshiach: “On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives.”3 In addition to its literal meaning, this is an allegory for the wisdom of Moshiach. Oil represents deep wisdom. Olives, the source of oil, represent an even greater wisdom. Olives on top of a mountain represent a higher wisdom yet. On this mountain of wis- dom stand the feet of Moshiach, the wisdom of the head being so much greater.4
It is our intention then to present some of the basic fundamental characteristics of Moshiach based on which the reader will at least be able to formulate an image of Moshiach.
Sanhedrin, 98a.Midrash Tanchuma, Toldos, sec. 14.Zechariah 14:4.Likutei Sichos 1:103.
65
The peace and perfection of the Era of Moshiach is the climax of creation. We find this goal stated at the outset, right at the beginning of the Torah. The second verse says, “The spirit of G-d hovered above the waters,” on which the Midrash comments, “This is the spirit of Melech HaMoshiach.” 5
Throughout the Torah—and especially in the books of the prophets—there are countless prophecies about the Era of Moshiach, some explicit and some allegorical. Explanation of and elaboration on these prophecies as well as further information is found in the Talmud, Midrash, Zohar and books on Kabbala, Chassidus and Halacha throughout the generations.
Rambam, the great Jewish philosopher and codifier of Jewish law, concludes his major work on Jewish law, Mishneh Torah, with two chapters discussing the laws of Moshiach—the basic definitions of Moshiach himself and the Messianic Era. Elsewhere, in his famous list of the “13 Principles of Jewish Faith,” the belief in the coming of Moshiach and the belief in the revival of the dead are the 12th and 13th on the list.
We begin with a prophecy of Isaiah which describes first Moshiach himself and then what the world will be like in the Era of Moshiach. This will be followed by selections from the last two chapters of Mishneh Torah which follow the same pattern—first describing Melech HaMoshiach (chap. 11), then the Era of Moshiach (chap. 12).6 Finally, we will draw on these sources as well as selections from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbala and Chassidus to sketch certain prominent characteristics of Moshiach.
Isaiah Chap. 11
And a staff shall come forth from the stump of Yishai and a branch shall sprout from his roots.
And a spirit of G-d will rest upon him [Moshiach], a spir- it of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and
Bereishis Rabbah 2:4.It is interesting to note the following anecdote in which the Rebbe MHM himself followed the same pattern: when he was presented with a painting of himself—Melech HaMoshiach—by the Chassidic artist Michel, he said, “And now, Michel, I would like you to make a painting of what the world will be like in the time of Moshiach.”
power, a spirit of knowledge and fear of G-d.
And he will judge [with ease] as with his sense of smell because of his fear of G-d; neither with the sight of his eyes shall he judge, nor with the hearing of his ears shall he prove.
And he will judge the poor with justice and he will admon- ish with fairness the humble of the earth; and he will strike [the evil ones of] the earth with the rod of his mouth and with the speech of his lips he will put the wicked to death.
And righteousness shall be the belt of his waist and faith the belt of his loins.
And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb and the leopard shall lie with the young goat; and a calf and a lion and a fat ox shall lie down together and a small child shall lead them.
And the cow and even the bear shall graze, together their children will lie down; and the lion as the cattle will eat straw.
And the nursing child will amuse himself over the hole of a poisonous snake; and into the hole of a venomous snake shall a weaned child stretch his hand.
They shall do no evil nor shall they destroy throughout My holy mountain, for the land will be filled with the knowledge of G-d as the waters cover the ocean bed.
And the one who comes forth from the root of Yishai [Moshiach] who will stand on that day shall be for the nations as a banner carrier—the nations shall seek him; and his peace shall be an honor.
And it shall be on that day that G-d will continue to apply His hand a second time to acquire the rest of his people who will remain from Assyria and from Egypt and from Pasros and from Cush and from Elam and from Shinar and from Hamas and from the islands of the sea.
And He shall raise a banner to the nations to gather the exiles of Israel; and the dispersed of Judah He shall gather from the four corners of the earth.
And the envy of Ephraim will depart and the oppressors of
Judah will no longer be; Ephraim will not envy Judah and Judah will not oppress Ephraim.
And [Judah and Ephraim] shall swoop down upon the Philistines on the west side [of the land of Israel], together they shall plunder the people of the East; upon Edom and Moav they will stretch forth their hand and the children of Amon will obey them.
And G-d will cut off the gulf of the sea of Egypt and He shall wave His hand on the [Euphrates] river with the strength of His spirit; and He shall beat it into seven streams and cause [those returning from exile] to walk with their shoes [on the dry land].
And there shall be a road from Assyria for the rest of his people who will remain, just as there was for Israel on the day they went up from the land of Egypt.7
Laws of Kings and Melech HaMoshiach
Melech HaMoshiach will arise and restore the ancient dynasty of King David to its original sovereignty. He will build the Beis HaMikdosh and gather the dispersed of Israel [to the Land of Israel]. In his time all the laws of the Torah will be restored as they were in days of old: We will bring sac- rifices and observe the Sabbatical and Jubilee years in accor- dance with all the Mitzvos stated in the Torah.
Anyone who doesn’t believe in him or does not await his coming denies not only the prophets but also the Torah and Moshe Rabbeinu since the Torah itself gives testimony regarding Moshiach. It says, “G-d will return your exiles and will have mercy on you and gather you in.… even if your exiles are at the end of the heavens … and G-d will bring you [to the Land of Israel].” These explicit words of the Torah contain within them all the things that all the prophets said on the matter.
Yeshaya chap. 11, translated by the author of this book based on Metzudas Dovid and Metzudas Tzion, with reference also to the translations of Rabbi Nisen Mangel (Kehot Publications) and the Judaica Press.
Also in Parshas Bilam there is a prophecy about the two Moshiachs—the first Moshiach which was King David who saved the Jews from their enemies, and the later Moshiach who arises from David’s descendants who saves the Jews from the hands of the sons of Esau. In that prophecy it says, “I see him but not now”—this refers to David; “I behold him but it is not close”—this refers to Melech HaMoshiach. “A star will shoot forth from Yakov”—this is David; “And a staff will rise from Israel”—this is Melech HaMoshiach.…
Also regarding the cities of refuge the Torah says, “If G-d will expand your borders you will add on three more cities.” This has not yet happened. But G-d doesn’t give an instruc- tion for nothing. [Thus it will happen in the future—in the time of Moshiach.]
We do not, however, have to bring proofs from the prophets [about Moshiach] since all their books are filled with this matter.
Do not think that Melech HaMoshiach is required to per- form signs or wonders, bring new things into the world or revive the dead or similar things.…
If a king will arise from the House of David who teaches Torah and is occupied in the Mitzvos like David his ancestor in accordance with both the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, induces all the Jews to follow the Torah and to strengthen it where it has been broken and who fights the battles of G-d he has the assumed status of being Moshiach (chezkas Moshiach). If he succeeds further, builds the Beis HaMikdosh in its place and gathers the dispersed of Israel— then he is Moshiach with a certainty (Moshiach vadai) and he will direct the entire world to serve G-d together.
Do not think that in the time of Moshiach anything of the way of the world will be cancelled or that there will be inno- vations in the order of nature. But rather the world will fol- low its natural order.… Some chachomim (Rabbis of the Talmud) say that before Moshiach comes, Eliyahu HaNavi will come. Regarding all these matters and similar matters no one knows how they will happen until they happen.… [The
main thing is] to await it and to believe in the matter in gen- eral as we explained above.
The scholars and the prophets desired the Era of Moshiach … only so that they would be free to pursue the study of the Torah and its wisdom without anyone oppress- ing or distracting them so that they will merit the “World to Come.”… At that time there will be no famine or war, no jealousy or rivalry since there will be abundant good and all the delicacies will be as plentiful as the dust of the earth. The only occupation of the entire world will be to know G-d. Thus the Jewish people will be great scholars and will know the hidden secrets and will attain knowledge of the Creator to the full capacity of man as the prophet says, “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of G-d as the waters cover the ocean bed.”8
While Rambam writes that Moshiach is not required to perform wonders, this is only as a Halachic requirement i.e. the Halachic def- inition of Moshiach does not require him to perform wonders but, as we will see later from many sources, Moshiach will in fact have a miraculous nature. Rambam is only stating what the minimum Halachic requirements of Moshiach are. Similarly, his statement that the world will maintain its natural order applies only to the initial period of Moshiach’s coming, the so called “First Era.” Later on how- ever, in the “Second Era,” the order of nature will certainly change as the revival of the dead will occur—a very great change in the order of nature indeed.9
As mentioned before, the belief in the coming of Moshiach and the belief in the revival of the dead are the 12th and 13th principles of faith on Rambam’s famous list of the Thirteen Principles of Faith. Similar to Rambam’s statement here that one who does not believe in Moshiach denies the whole Torah, is his statement elsewhere that one who does not believe in the revival of the dead has no part in Judaism.10
Hilchos Melachim U’Melech HaMoshiach, chaps. 11–12, free translation by the author.Dvar Malchus on Hilchos Melachim, sicha no. 3.Rambam’s commentary to the first mishnah in Sanhedrin, Perek Chelek.
“The innovation of Moshiach is that through him the two concepts of ‘above’ and ‘below’ will be united.”11
The unification of opposites is a fundamental characteristic of Melech HaMoshiach which derives from his life source which is Atzmus, the essence of G-d. This is indicated by the verse in Isaiah, “And a spirit of G-d will rest upon him, a spirit of wisdom and under- standing, a spirit of counsel and power, a spirit of knowledge and fear of G-d.”12 This verse is analyzed carefully in the writings of Chassidus where it is pointed out that even though wisdom and understanding are opposite intellectual powers (wisdom is the essential kernel of a concept, often symbolized by a fountainhead, and understanding is the broad expansion and development of a concept, symbolized by a wide river), the spirit of G-d the descends upon Moshiach will con- tain both of these opposites. This will enable him to unify opposing forces in the world.13
We will use this concept of the unification of opposites as the framework for our presentation of some of the primary characteris- tics of Moshiach stated in the works of the Talmud, Kabbala and Chassidus.14
Majesty and Modesty
Regarding Moshiach, the prophet Isaiah says,15 “Behold, my ser- vant shall have great wisdom. He will be elevated, exalted and of very high stature.” In various sources this high exaltation is explained to mean that Moshiach will be greater than Adam, Avraham Avinu and even Moshe Rabbeinu.16
Melech HaMoshiach will be exalted, greater and more honored and more glorious than all kings who preceded him.17 His reign will
Sefer HaMa’amorim Melukat 2:297.Yeshaya 11:2.Sefer HaMa’amorim Melukat 2:297–98. See also chapter V, sec. 2b, “The Messianic World Order,” for a discussion of this in the wider context of Messianic phenomena.It is significant to note that at a conference about the Rebbe MHM and his influ- ence on the world held at New York University (NYU) in November 2005, one professor described him as “the embodiment of impossible contraries.”Yeshaya 52:13.Midrash Tanchuma, Toldos, sec. 14.Likutei Sichos 6:254.
extend over the entire world and will last forever.18 His wisdom will surpass that of Shlomo HaMelech (King Solomon) and he will be a prophet of the caliber of Moshe.19 He will reveal the deepest level of the Torah—both its Halachic content and its mystical secrets.20 What we know of the wisdom of the Torah now is nothing compared to what he will reveal.21
At the same time he will be of the greatest humility concerned with the common man,22 bringing this new wisdom and knowledge down to the level where anyone can understand it. He will show that the sincere faith of the simple Jew, who is totally dedicated to Judaism, is greater even than the deep understanding of the scholars.23
The Midrash tells a story about Moshe from the time that he was a shepherd. One of the sheep ran away from the flock and Moshe left the entire flock to care for this sheep and bring it back to the flock. This trait qualified him to be the leader of the Jewish people as he would be concerned about every individual Jew.24 Similarly Moshiach will cherish every single Jew—even one who has run away from the flock.25
These two extremes of majesty and modesty are symbolized by two prophecies, one which says that Moshiach will appear on a cloud and one which says that he will appear as a poor man riding on a donkey.26
Wisdom and Prophecy
The chacham (man of wisdom) and the prophet are two distinct personalities with different characteristics and abilities. Each has an advantage over the other. Moshiach will attain the highest levels of perfection in both of these areas As Isaiah says in the prophecy quot- ed above, “And the spirit of G-d (prophecy) will rest upon him, a spir- it of wisdom and understanding … a spirit of knowledge.…”
Bamidbar Rabbah 13:14.See references in nn. 27 and 28.Sefer HaSichos 5751, 566.Koheles Rabbah 11:8.HaYom Yom, 75.HaYom Yom, 9, 56.Shemos Rabbah 2:2.“Sicha of Achron Shel Pesach 5743,” in Hisva’aduyos 5743, 3:1314.Sefer HaSichos 5749, 109.
Rambam27 writes that Moshiach will be a chacham greater than King Solomon who was called “the wisest of all men,” and will attain a level of prophecy close to that of Moshe Rabbeinu of whom the Torah says, “There arose none like Moshe who knew G-d face to face.” The Midrash Tanchuma goes even further and indicates that Moshiach will be a greater prophet than Moshe.28
In fact, there is a close connection between these two characteris- tics of being greater than King Solomon and similar to Moshe, as we see from the continuation of Rambam’s statement: “therefore he will teach Torah to all Jews.” This refers to a deep level of the Torah which will be revealed by Moshiach. Now we know that the Torah has great depth. The greatest Rabbis and scholars—starting with Moshe Rabbeinu himself—have been studying it, analyzing it and delving into its depths for thousands of years. But the Torah being the wisdom of G-d has infinite depth so even the deepest analysis by the greatest chachamim for the longest time cannot reveal its full depth. Moshiach, however, will reveal in it a new dimension previ- ously unattainable. So new will this revelation be that the Midrash (based on a verse in Isaiah) calls it Torah Chadasha—a new Torah. King Solomon refers to it at the beginning of his Song of Songs and symbolizes it by a kiss from G-d.29
To be able to accomplish this task Moshiach needs two qualities. Firstly, he needs to have the highest level of prophecy—similar to Moshe—to be able to receive this revelation from G-d, just as Moshe received the original revelation of the Torah from G-d at Mt. Sinai. But that is not yet enough. To be able to teach this new dimension of Torah to all Jews he must be able to bring it down to their level. To do this one would have to have the wisdom of King Solomon—lit- erally. The greatness of the wisdom of Solomon consisted of his abil- ity to take the greatest abstract concepts and, by giving one example after another, bring it down one level after another until even the common man could understand it. Moshiach, who will reveal a wis- dom greater than Solomon’s, must therefore have this ability to a greater degree than even Solomon had.30
Rambam, Hilchos Teshuva, chap. 9, sec. 2.Sefer HaSichos 5751, 789.Shir HaShirim 1:2 and commentary of Rashi.See Sefer HaSichos 5751, 566–82.
There is another aspect of King Solomon’s wisdom which is also essential to the wisdom of Moshiach. Regarding wisdom King Solomon says, “I saw that there is an advantage to wisdom over non- sense similar to the advantage of light over darkness.” The Zohar asks a strong question on this: “Does it take King Solomon, the wisest of all men, to see that wisdom is better than nonsense and light is bet- ter than darkness? Doesn’t everybody know this?” Chassidus explains that “wisdom” and “nonsense” here actually refer to two types of wis- dom one which is termed “light” and the other which called “dark- ness.” The light derives directly from the Torah—the search from above—while the darkness is the view of reality resulting from the groping search from below—the attempt to understand the world in its own terms, i.e. scientific research. The difference between these two types of wisdom is so great that the latter is called “nonsense” relative to the former. The point that Solomon was making was that when the sciences are used to explain a matter in Torah—for exam- ple, when astronomy and mathematics are used to explain the laws of the new moon—this scientific knowledge ceases to be secular. It becomes part of Torah. The darkness is thus transformed into a great light—greater than the light derived directly from the Torah. This is the “advantage” that he is talking about. The light resulting from transformed darkness has an advantage over the light derived direct- ly from the Torah.31
The greatness of Solomon’s wisdom was due in part to his having transformed the sciences.32 This transformation of “nonsense” into wisdom is a major part of the refinement of the world that prepares it for and actually brings about the highest revelations in the Torah by Moshiach.33 This process actually began with Joseph, who was the master over ancient Egypt and its wisdom, reached a very high level with King Solomon and will be completed by Moshiach himself.34
Thus Melech HaMoshiach will unify the concepts of ‘above’ and ‘below’—including the wisdom from above and the wisdom from below.
Finally, the prevalence of peace in the time of Solomon (for which
Sefer HaMa’amarim Melukat 3:58–60.“Sicha of Parshas Emor,” sec. 6, in Sefer HaSichos 5751, vol. 2.
33. Sefer HaSichos 5751, 2:525, n. 73.Ma’amorei Admur HaEmtzai, Devorim 1:9–10.
he was named, as the prophet said, “His name will be Shlomo and I will put Shalom—peace—and tranquility on Israel in his days”35) was a sample of the peace that will prevail in the time of Moshiach. The power of his monarchy was due to the power of his wisdom by which all the nations were awed. It was a great light which dispelled the darkness of war and brought about unity just as Isaiah says in the Messianic prophecy quoted above, “They will not cause destruction
… because the earth will be filled with the knowledge of G-d.”36
Natural and Miraculous
Moshiach is a human being with human parents whose ancestry goes back to King David. Yet his soul is from the loftiest heights— from the essence of G-d Himself. “Moshiach, as a messenger of G-d, combines two extremes. On the one hand he is a being in and for himself, a soul in a physical body. But at the same time, being a messenger of Adam HaElyon (G-dliness), he is literally like—Him.”37 The essence of Moshiach is the same as the essence of G-d.
This essential fact about the life of Moshiach is connected with another essential fact: that he lives forever—an uninterrupted ever- lasting life. This fact is stated in the Talmud based on the verse in Psalms, “Life he [Moshiach] asked from You, and You granted it to him—length of days forever.”38 This is discussed extensively in the writings of Kabbala and Chassidus. The Mittler Rebbe, the second Rebbe of Chabad, in his explanation of this, contrasts Moshiach with other tzaddikim. He says that all other tzaddikim require some refinement of their bodies and therefore there has to be some sort of “passing away.” This is true even of Moshe Rabbeinu of whom the Talmud and Zohar say, “Moshe did not die,” and even regarding Dovid HaMelech (King David) of whom it is said, “Dovid Melech Yisroel Chai V’kayam”—David King of Israel is alive.
Moshiach, however, is on a much higher level. “No change or refinement takes place in his body at all. He will have a physical body similar to the bodies of all Jews of that time” which will eat, drink,
Divrei HaYamim I, 22:9.See Sefer HaSichos 5751, 527–29.Sefer HaSichos 5752, 1:107.Psalms 21:5.
wear clothes and sit on a chair but “Moshiach will remain alive in his body together with the essence of his soul—down here just as it is above, literally. By Moshe Rabbeinu “there was no difference at all between his body and his soul … and this will hold true of Moshiach in a much higher way. Therefore … he will not need to ascend above.”39 (There is, however, a period of concealment between the time he attains the “assumed status of Moshiach” and when he attains the status of “Moshiach with a certainty.”40)
Regarding Dovid HaMelech the Mittler Rebbe writes, “His life came only from the ten sefiros … of Atzilus (the highest spiritual world), but regarding Moshiach it says ‘You granted it to him’ which means from Atzmus, the infinite.”41 When G-d is addressed in second person (“You”) it refers to Atzmus i.e. G-d Himself, His essence. A life which comes from Atzmus is above all definitions and limitations of natural life and death as we know it. As the Rebbe Rashab says, “Relative to Atzmus, life and death are equal.”42 This will be dis- cussed at greater length later in this chapter.43
In fact Atzmus transcends all limitations. The miraculous and the natural are equal relative to Atzmus and can coexist. It follows that the life of Moshiach is completely above the laws of nature, even as he lives in the physical world. As the Maharal of Prague writes “Moshiach will be … outside of nature and the way of the world.”44 The Midrash says that G-d conceived of Moshiach even before He created the world because Moshiach is higher than the order of cre- ation.45 Yet at the same time, as we emphasized above, he lives with- in nature and the physical world. Because he contains these two opposites within himself, he will eventually bring the entire world to a new world order which will be characterized by the full revelation of G-d’s infinite essence within the finite physical world,46 a world order in which the natural and the miraculous combine and function simultaneously. This is expressed by the verse, “As in the days of your exodus from Egypt, I will show you wonders.”47
Ma’amorei Admur HaEmtzai, “Drushei Chasunah,” 131, 155.Bamidbar Rabbah, chap. 11, sec. 2. Likutei Sichos 9:381.Ma’amorei Admur HaEmtzai, Devorim 1:214–15.Sefer HaMa’amorim 5670, 100.See sec. 6, “The Everlasting Life of Melech HaMoshiach.”Quoted in Sha’arei Geulah 2:69, n. 29.Bereishis Rabbah 1:4; Or HaTorah, Miketz, 2202.Sefer HaMa’amarim Melukat 3:297–98.Micha 7:15. See Sefer HaMa’amarim Melukat 4:225–34.
Soul Within a Soul
While the everlasting life of Moshiach transcends that of Moshe Rabbeinu and King David, there is, however, a deep connection between them. In fact, in the writings of Kabbala and Chassidus it says that the souls of both Moshe Rabbeinu and King David will “enter into” the soul of Moshiach.48
This concept of a soul entering into another soul or one soul con- taining another soul, is a deep topic in Kabbala. But one of the most important facts about Moshiach is that his soul is a Neshama Klalis— a general soul which contains the souls of all Jews. This means that the soul of every Jew is a part of Moshiach and thus there is a part of Moshiach in every Jew. This technical fact has a very important practical implication: since the soul of every Jew corresponds to a unique part of the soul of Moshiach, each Jew has a unique role to play in preparing the world for the coming of Moshiach.49
Likutei Sichos 35:206, n. 6.Ibid. 20:522; Sefer HaSichos 5751, 590.
The Emergence of
Melech HaMoshiach
Immediately we see that Moshiach is already present among us, and everyone points with his finger and says, “Behold, this is Melech HaMoshiach. He has already come.”
—the Rebbe MHM1
The Birth of Moshiach
Rabbi Levi Yitzchok Schneerson, a fourth generation descendent of the Tzemach Tzedek, was known as a great Gaon and Kabbalist. On the 11th of Nissan, 5762 (1902), his first son was born in the city of Nikolayev in the Ukraine. At the bris, which took place on 18 Nissan—Rabbi Levi Yitzchok’s birthday—the boy was named Menachem Mendel after the Tzemach Tzedek. This was the boy who would grow up to be Melech HaMoshiach.
The Talmud says that when Moshe Rabbeinu was born his home was filled with light. Already at the time of his birth there was an indication that an extraordinary person was born. So too it was with Melech HaMoshiach. On the day of his birth, the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Shalom DovBer sent six telegrams to Rabbi Levi Yitzchok and his wife, Rebbitzen Chana, regarding the birth of the baby which included special instructions on how he should be cared for.
It became clear very soon that the young boy had special qualities
Sefer HaSichos 5751, 2:548.
of intellect and strength of character. He was educated primarily by his father, studying intensely on his own also.
In 1905, after an attempted revolution against the Czar failed, a wave of anti-Semitic pogroms began sweeping through Russia. One such attack was directed against the Jews of Nikolayev. Groups of Jews hid in various hiding places during the attack. In one such shel- ter, several families with small children were gathered. The children were frightened and started crying, putting the entire group in dan- ger of being discovered, which would mean certain death for all of them. The situation was becoming desperate when suddenly little Menachem Mendel, four years old at the time, got up and went over to each of the crying children, giving a candy to one, whispering something to another etc. calming down all the children—as well as their parents—and saving their lives.2
This young boy, who would grow up to be Moshiach, was already thinking about Moshiach and the Geula at this young age. He described these thoughts many years later in a letter to Yitzchok Ben- Tzvi, the president of Israel: “From the day that I started going to cheder (school), and even before then, the idea of the future Geula began to take shape in my mind—the redemption of the Jewish peo- ple from their final exile. It would be a redemption of such a nature that all the suffering and devastation of the exile would be under- stood. Part of that bright future, part of that Geula, would be the Nasi—the king … who has no one above him except G-d.”3
The Wisdom of Moshiach
In the previous section we discussed the characterization of Moshiach as combining two extremes. He will reach the loftiest heights of wisdom and prophecy, and at the same time have the greatest humility and care for the most humble people. We now look at some aspects of the Rebbe MHM’s wisdom which began to blos- som in his early youth.
While still a teenager, his father would consult with him on com-
For the stories mentioned here on the Rebbe MHM’s youth, as well as many others, see Herman Branover and Avraham Naveh, The Ultimate Jew (Jerusalem: Shamir, 2003), chap. 6.Igros Kodesh 12:414.
munity matters. There are also stories attesting to his genius during those years. Once, a dean of engineering at the university in Yekatrinislav was visiting the home of Rabbi Levi Yitzchok. He men- tioned that they were working on a difficult mathematical problem. Rabbi Levi Yitzchok suggested that his sons, who knew mathematics, might want to try to solve the problem, which the dean then present- ed to them. A half hour later, Menachem Mendel came back and handed the dean a piece of paper. The dean, knowing that no one could solve the problem in half an hour, did not take it seriously, just stuck the paper in his pocket and forgot about it.
Sometime later, the dean told Rabbi Levi Yitzchok that he was astounded to find that Menachem Mendel had in fact given him the correct solution to the problem—which would have taken the best mathematicians days to solve.
Young Menachem Mendel was interested in astronomy as well as mathematics. At the age of sixteen he told one of his friends that there would be a solar eclipse on February 25 of that year. When that day came, his friend and some other young men went out to observe the eclipse but, to their surprise, they saw no eclipse. The sun shone in its full glory as usual. The friend came back to Menachem Mendel the next day and said that there was no eclipse. Menachem Mendel responded that there certainly was an eclipse. His friend explained that they all went out to look for the eclipse but saw no sign of it. “But I’m telling you,” insisted Menachem Mendel, “that there was an eclipse. My calculations are very exact and they are correct.”
A few days later an article appeared in a local periodical reporting on the eclipse that had in fact taken place and explained that it was visible in nearby areas but not in Yekatrinislav itself.
This was perhaps a foreshadowing of things to come—the Rebbe MHM knew things that no one else knew. When he would announce them, people who go only by what is visible to the eye at the moment, would be skeptical. But eventually, the truth of his words would be clearly visible. This is what happened in 1990-91 when he first announced that the time of the Geula had arrived. Since then we have seen many aspects of the Geula actualized, as we have been dis- cussing in this book. As the Rebbe MHM himself said, “All we need
to do is open our eyes and then we will see that the true and com- plete Geula is already here, literally.”4
During the 1920s, the Rebbe MHM lived and learned in the household of the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe in Petersburg (Leningrad). On 14 Kislev, 5689 (1928), he married the Previous Rebbe’s daughter, Rebbitzen Chaya Mushka Schneerson.
Following their marriage, the Previous Rebbe sent them to Berlin where, at the instruction of the Previous Rebbe, the Rebbe MHM studied physics and other sciences at the University of Berlin (1928- 1932). He attended the lectures of Professor Irwin Schroedinger who discovered the fundamental equation of Quantum Mechanics known as the Schroedinger Equation.5 Some forty years later, the Rebbe MHM approved a suggestion by Professor Pesach (Paul) Rosenbloom that college students be given Schroedinger’s philosoph- ical work “What is Life” to read.
(It is interesting to note that Schroedinger was very sympathetic to the Jews. When the Nazis came to power and began firing Jewish academics from their positions, Schroedinger left Germany in protest. One may wonder to what extent Schroedinger’s attitude may have been shaped by his relationship with the Rebbe MHM.)
Majesty and Modesty
Even while mastering the sciences at the University, the Rebbe MHM’s primary occupation was learning Torah. Some of the gaonim of our generation, such as Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Rabbi Yitzchok Hutner and Rabbi Chaim Heller, were also at the University of Berlin at that time and they attest to this fact.
In 1933, after the Nazis came to power, the Rebbe MHM and Rebbitzen Chaya Mushka moved to Paris where he continued study- ing mathematics, science and engineering at the Sorbonne University (1934–1938).
Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, later to become the leader of mod- ern Orthodox Jewry and the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva University, was a close friend of the Rebbe MHM in Berlin. It was a friendship that
Sefer HaSichos 5752, 1:173.This was related to me by Prof. Rosenbloom, who heard it from the Rebbe MHM himself.
was to continue for decades to come. It was also a friendship that went back several generations. It went back at least as far as the friendship between Rabbi Shmuel, the fourth Rebbe of Lubavitch, and the elder Rabbi Joseph DovBer Soloveitchik (1820–1892), but was most notable in the next generation when Rabbi Shalom DovBer, the fifth Rebbe of Lubavitch, and Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik were very close friends and worked together very closely in matters relat- ing to the Jewish Community.
Much of what is known about the Rebbe MHM in the Berlin days comes from statements and stories by Rabbi Soloveitchik.6 He once said that whenever he had a question on a matter in Torah or a mat- ter in science, he would go the Rebbe MHM’s apartment to ask him. When he would arrive, he would always find him engrossed in learn- ing. “Even between the walls of the University,” Rabbi Soloveitchik would say, “in everything he did one could see that he was a tzadik.”
A deep insight into the Rebbe MHM can be gained from the fol- lowing two quotes from Rabbi Soloveitchik. On one occasion he said, “I knew him in the [university] and he was already a Rebbe then.” Another time he said, “Even now, when he is revealed as a Rebbe, he is still hidden. Only a little bit is revealed. We can never imagine the depth of his greatness.” Even when he was hidden—pursuing his pri- vate studies—his greatness was revealed, and even when he was revealed—famous as the Rebbe—his true greatness was hidden. Here, again, we see the combination of the two extremes—majesty and modesty—that characterize Melech HaMoshiach.
That the Rebbe MHM’s knowledge of Torah is vast and deep beyond description has been attested to by all the Torah authorities of the world. As Rabbi Soloveitchik once said, “I never saw anyone with such a good memory and such a vast knowledge of Torah.” After Rabbi Soloveitchik passed away, his younger brother, Rabbi Aharon Soloveitchik succeeded him as Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva University (in addition to continuing as Rosh Yeshiva of Brisk in Chicago) and a leader of Orthodox Jewry. He was one of the great Rabbis who looked to the Rebbe as Melech HaMoshiach.7
My primary reference here is Rabbi Shalom DovBer Wolpe, Shemen Sasson MeChaverecha (Israel, 1995). See also Branover and Naveh, Ultimate Jew, chap. 7.See Rabbi Soloveitchik’s letter published in The Jewish Press, June 28, 1996, p. 27.
The great Gaon, Rabbi Pinchus Hirschprung, Chief Rabbi of Montreal, Canada, was famous for knowing the entire Talmud by heart. He was one of the greatest supporters of the Rebbe MHM’s campaign to establish the daily study of Rambam. He said that G-d brought the soul of the Rebbe MHM into the world in our genera- tion to enliven “the dry bones,” and he called the program of the daily Rambam study “an exalted G-dly enactment.”
Rabbi Aharon Soloveitchik and Rabbi Pinchus Hirschprung both wrote letters after the concealment of the 3rd of Tammuz supporting the continued belief that the Rebbe is Melech HaMoshiach and the declaration of “Yechi Adoneinu Moreinu V’Rabeinu Melech HaMoshiach L’Olam Voed!” (“Long live our master, teacher and Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach forever!”)
In 1982, the great gaon and posek (halachic authority) of our gen- eration, Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, wrote a letter honoring the Rebbe MHM on the occasion of his 80th birthday saying that the Rebbe MHM rises above all other Rabbis and leaders of our generation because he has successfully established centers of Torah learning everywhere in the world where there are Jews. He then gives his blessing to the Rebbe MHM for everlasting life—not just long life— since, he says, “we hope that Melech HaMoshiach will come imme- diately and then the Rebbe shlita will merit to serve forever.”8
The Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu said of the Rebbe MHM: “There is no Rabbi as great as him in all areas of the Torah in this generation. In the logical understanding of the Torah no secret is hidden from him.… Similarly, in the hidden and Kabbalistic levels of the Torah.… It is absolutely correct to say of him that he is the greatest in the generation. There is no one sec- ond to him. But what is most important is his humility.… There is no one like him.” Majesty and modesty—the trademark of Moshiach.
The Science of Moshiach
And what about the sciences that the Rebbe MHM has mastered? We mention the experience of the renowned physicist, Professor
Letter from the great gaon and posek Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, of blessed memory, in honor of the Rebbe MHM’s 80th birthday
Yirmiyahu (Herman) Branover. He was the head of a physics institute in Latvia before leaving the Soviet Union and now heads the MHD (Magnetohydrodynamics) Laboratory at the University of the Negev in Beer Sheva, Israel. He is one of the directors of the Rabbi Yisroel Aryeh Leib Research Institute on Moshiach and the Sciences and some of his lectures at our conferences appear later in this book.
Professor Branover had frequent private meetings with the Rebbe1. The letter is reproduced in Rabbi Shalom DovBer Wolpe, Yechi HaMelech HaMoshiach, 137.MHM in which he would present reports on his most recent research. On one such occasion Branover presented his plans for a new invention. The Rebbe MHM told him to do the presentation as he would do it at the university for professional engineers, with all the technical details. Branover proceeded, mentioning the value of the two-phase flow velocity and the value of the efficiency of the sys- tem. The Rebbe MHM immediately responded that those two values were inconsistent. Professor Branover was completely taken aback by this statement but was too respectful to ask for an explanation.
When he went back to Beer Sheva, however, Branover and his team reviewed their calculations to try to find the error but found none. It was not until many months later that the error was found. A new doctoral student who had joined their team was studying the report line by line, equation by equation, to learn about the project and in the process he found the error. This was the error that the Rebbe MHM saw instantly.
The Rebbe MHM’s mastery of the sciences turned out to be a powerful tool in addressing perceived conflicts between modern sci- ence and Torah which often created a barrier between the modern Jew and his commitment to Judaism. Over the years, many Jews would turn to the Rebbe MHM to resolve these issues—from the late Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Yitzchok Isaac Herzog,9 himself a great Gaon well versed in the sciences, to professors such as Branover and Paul Rosenbloom, to the working scientist and engi- neer, and the Rebbe MHM answered these questions, explaining the issues in terms of the sciences themselves.10 Many Jewish professors, scientists and university students were brought back to Judaism as a result.
But there is a deeper significance to his mastering the sciences for it is a fundamental characteristic of the wisdom of Moshiach that it is derived (in part) from the transformation and refinement (beirur) of the wisdom of the world—the sciences—just as the wisdom of King Solomon was derived (in part) from the transformation of the wisdom of ancient Egypt.11 The revelation of the “wondrous aspects
See Rabbi Herzog’s letter to the Rebbe MHM in Igros Kodesh 13:142–46.We have quoted some of these answers in sec. 3 of this chapter, “Wisdom from Below.”See the sicha of Parshas Emor, 5751, esp. sec. 6, Sefer HaSichos 5751, 527–29.
of the Torah” in the Era of Moshiach, a very deep level of pure Torah intellect, “is brought about by the transformation of the wisdom of the world … in the same way that Geula is brought about through the revelation of the Alef in Gola12 and in the same way that the abundant wisdom of Solomon [was derived from] the wisdom of Egypt.”13
A Great Prophet
Rambam writes that Melech HaMoshiach will be a great prophet, close to the level of Moshe Rabbeinu. The Midrash Tanchuma implies that Moshiach will be a prophet even greater than Moshe Rabbeinu.
Before discussing some of the prophecies of the Rebbe MHM, we should point out that prophecy did not end with the close of the Biblical era of the prophets as is commonly thought. Quite the con- trary, the Rebbe MHM has explained in various sichos that it is a fundamental belief of Judaism that prophecy is always available to the Jews. In every generation there is a prophet. Rambam writes that “prophecy will return to the Jews” in an open manner as a prelude to the coming of Moshiach.14 Specifically, the Baal Shem Tov, the Maggid of Mezeritch, the Alter Rebbe and all the Rebbeim of Chabad were prophets.15
The Rebbe MHM discusses this in connection with the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah: “I will return your judges as in the beginning and your advisors as at the start,”16 explaining that the Previous Rebbe was the “judge of our generation and the advisor of our generation and the prophet of our generation” which has been confirmed by the fulfillment of his blessings and predictions.
The Rebbe MHM then extends this to our generation based on the halacha in Rambam regarding a prophet whose status is verified by another prophet: “A prophet about whom another prophet testifies that
See the sichos of Parshas Acharei-Kedoshim and Emor, in Sefer HaSichos 5751, for a full explanation of this concept. It is explained briefly in chap. 2, sec. 4 of this book.Sefer HaSichos 5751, 525 n. 73.Igeres Teiman, chap. 3.Likutei Sichos 14:72–74; Sefer HaSichos 5751, 2:786–95. These sichos include a full discussion of the issue of prophecy throughout the generations.Yeshaya 1:26.
he [the first one] is a prophet—as is the case regarding the previous Rebbe and continues in the next generation by his disciples etc.—has the chazaka of being a prophet.” The Rebbe MHM is indicating here, in the most humble way, that he is the prophet of this generation.
He then continues with an imperative to publicize this:
It must be publicized to everyone in the generation that we have merited that G-d has chosen a person whose stature is incomparably higher that the people of his generation, to be the judge, the advisor and the prophet of the generation. He gives instruction and advice regarding the service of G-d of all the Jews and all the people of this generation, in all mat- ters of the Torah and mitzvos and also regarding their daily life and conduct in general, including the attainment of knowledge of G-d through all their actions and applying all their actions to the service of G-d, and including the primary prophecy of “To the Geula immediately” and that immediate- ly—“Behold, Moshiach is coming.”17
The Rebbe MHM’s prophecies regarding world events in general and the Land of Israel in particular are well known.18 We mention briefly his prediction of great victory in the Six Day War in 1967. Prior to the war, he started the Tefillin Campaign and said that Jews putting on Tefillin gives the Jewish people the power to defeat the enemy. During the summer of 1973 (the year of the Yom Kippur War), when there was no sign of war in Israel, he began a campaign for Jewish children to study Torah saying that this gives us the power to defeat our enemies. He referred to the verse in the Psalms: “From the mouths of young children and babes You (G-d) set a foundation of strength to nullify the enemy.”19 A week before Yom Kippur he declared that there would be a great victory. These predictions were widely publicized in Israeli newspapers.
At the same time he warned against giving any of the liberated land back to the Arabs, saying that even talking about giving them auton- omy or land threatens the lives of Jews. Unfortunately, we have seen
Sefer HaSichos 5751, 2:792.See Rafael Heruti, Nevuat HaGeula (Kiryat Malachi) for extensive documentation of this.Tehillim 8:3.
this prophecy fulfilled also. Ariel Sharon once admitted in a speech that he gave in Kfar Chabad, Israel (before he became Prime Minister), that if they had listened to everything that the Rebbe MHM told them, they wouldn’t be in the predicament that they were in.
When Mikhail Gorbachov rose to power in Russia, the Rebbe MHM called in Professor Branover, who is a Russian émigré, and told him to start building housing and employment projects in Israel for the tens of thousands of Jews who would soon be leaving Russia and coming to Israel. This request surprised Professor Branover and was met with disbelief by his contacts inside Russia who told him that there was no indication of any permission being given for Jews to leave Russia. On the contrary, they told him, from all indications it looked like things were going to get worse under Gorbachov!
Professor Branover went back to the Rebbe MHM to make sure that he understood the message correctly. When the Rebbe MHM confirmed the prediction and repeated the instructions, Branover went to work on housing and employment projects immediately. The rest is history. The Jews came out of Russia en masse—an event which the Rebbe MHM said was the beginning of the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecy of Kibbutz Goliyos—the return of the exiled Jews to the Land of Israel in the Era of Moshiach.
Years later, when Gorbachov visited Israel, he met Professor Branover (who headed an Israeli government commission for joint research between Israel and Russia). Branover told him about the Rebbe MHM’s prophecy. Gorbachov was astounded. He explained that when he came to power he himself had no such plans regarding Russian Jewry and had no idea that this would eventually happen.
When the Persian Gulf War broke out in 1991, Iraq threatened to attack Israel with chemical weapons. But the Rebbe MHM said that this would not happen and that they did not need the protective gas masks. Furthermore, he said that Israel was the safest place in the world and encouraged people to travel there. While Iraq shot 39 deadly Scud missiles at Israel (which could have killed thousands, G-d forbid) they did not contain chemical weapons and they did not kill anyone. Many people were miraculously saved.20
See Sima Silman Schechter, Nisei Milchemet HaMifratz (Jerusalem: Haktav Institute, 1995) for extensive documentation of the war and the miracles. See especially pp. 187–90 for a collection of the Rebbe MHM’s statements about the Persian Gulf War.
Miki Diar survives the destruction of his home by an Iraqi missile
When the war started, the U.S. expected it to be an intense war lasting several months, but the Rebbe MHM indicated that the war would be over by Purim—which is exactly when it ended.
His major prophecy was, of course, “Higia Zman Geulaschem”— ”the time of your Redemption has arrived,” which was made in con- nection with the Persian Gulf War, as we explained in the Introduction. This book is about the various ways in which we have seen this prophecy fulfilled, especially from the point of view of the scientist.
With The Breath of His Mouth
It is not always possible to distinguish between a prophecy and a miracle. The prophet has the power to predict the future. But a prophet is also a tzadik and a tzadik has the power to determine the future. He can cause a miracle to happen. He has the power to make a declaration or a decree and G-d will back it up. In fact, the Talmud says that the tzadik has the power to cancel a decree that G-d Himself has made—and G-d will follow through. So when a prophet says that something miraculous will happen we don’t always know if he is predicting something that G-d will do or if he is actually per-
forming the miracle himself, making a declaration that G-d follows through with. For example, when the Rebbe MHM declared during the Gulf War that Israel is the safest place in the world, was he prophesying that it would be safe or was he actually making it safe by his statement?
But in addition to the prophecies, the Rebbe MHM has performed countless miracles, both for individuals and for the entire world. One of the most dramatic of these was in fact a fulfillment of the prophe- cy of Isaiah regarding Moshiach: “And with the breath of his mouth he will put the evil man to death.” This happened in January, 1953 when the evil Stalin arrested a group of Jewish doctors accusing them of killing some government officials. This was the infamous “Doctors’ Plot.” It triggered a wave of intense anti-Semitism through- out Russia and the lives of all Russian Jews were in danger. It was reported that Stalin had planned to deport the Jews to a distant northern region where they would be held in concentration camps.
On the night of Purim that year, the Rebbe MHM held a farbren- gen (Chassidic gathering) in “770.” Very late in the night, in the mid- dle of the Purim celebration, the Rebbe MHM’s face suddenly became very serious and he began to tell a story. He said that after the fall of the Czar, they held elections in Russia. The Rebbe of Lubavitch at that time, Rabbi Shalom DovBer, instructed the Chassidim to vote in these elections. There was one chosid who was totally removed from worldly matters and had no idea what an elec- tion was. But he followed the Rebbe’s instruction and went to vote. When he got there, however, he didn’t know what to do—how to vote or who to vote for. He met other chassidim there and they told him what to do. After the elections, everyone started shouting “Hoorah! Hoorah!” They were cheering their candidate. But this Chosid thought that they were shouting the Hebrew words “Hu ra! Hu ra!” meaning “He is evil! He is evil!” So he began to shout, “Hu ra! Hu ra!”
The Chassidim listening to the Rebbe MHM tell this story under- stood that he was telling them that they should also shout “Hu ra! Hu ra!” So they all stood up and began shouting “Hu ra! Hu ra!”
A few days later, it was reported that Stalin was dead.21
See the Appendix for the full story of the Doctors’ Plot and the death of Stalin.
The Purim farbrengen, 1953. The Rebbe MHM is in the middle, making a triangular shape with his hands.
\Prophecies and Miracles
It would be impossible to give a complete account of all of the Rebbe MHM’s prophecies and miracles over the years. (Some of these have been documented in the references at the end of this sec- tion.) Yet, I feel that I must mention some stories that have a certain character and illustrate certain points.
I would like to start with a personal story that happened to my fam- ily. In January 1978 we moved into an apartment in Minnesota and bought new mezuzos to affix to the door posts. Several months later, when my wife was expecting a baby, we wrote to the Rebbe MHM for a blessing.
In June we received a letter from the Rebbe MHM with a blessing for the pregnancy and birth. At the end of the letter he wrote that the mezuzos should be checked if they haven’t been checked in the pre- vious 12 months. We were surprised at this instruction since the new mezuzos which had been put up 5 months earlier had been checked before they were bought. So we took no action.
That summer we moved to Montreal, Canada where I had received a teaching position. The next January my wife gave birth to a baby
boy. One Shabbos, when he was a few weeks old, my wife noticed that the baby looked rather weak and was not nursing. After Shabbos we took him to the doctor who sent him to Jewish General Hospital for tests.
At the hospital, when they saw my son’s condition they became frantic. Doctors and nurses were running everywhere. They did a spinal tap which came out OK. Then they registered him into the hospital. At first we were not that worried and were confident that everything would turn out all right. However, shortly afterwards, my son was transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU). The doctors had determined that he had a virus called RSV, which is a type of pneu- monia. (Later, we found out that there was an epidemic of RSV in Canada that winter from which many babies died.) His condition grew worse and his respiratory rate was very high.
I spoke to the doctor and asked what they could do for him. The doctor said this and that. I asked what they planned to do if that did- n’t work. The doctor said that they would then try another treatment. Then I asked what they would do if that treatment didn’t work. The doctor just shrugged her shoulders indicating that that would “be it,” G-d forbid, and walked away.
At that point I became very worried, and began thinking what I should do. Something must be wrong. I had already called the Rebbe MHM’s office in 770 to ask for a bracha but didn’t get an answer. Suddenly, I remembered the answer about checking the mezuzos if they had not been checked in the past 12 months. It was then exact- ly 12 months since the mezuzos had been bought and checked. I went home, took down the mezuzos and brought them to the sofer (scribe). I told him that my son was sick in the hospital and that the mezuzos should be checked immediately. That was Tuesday afternoon.
That evening my son’s condition began to improve quickly. They took him out of the ICU and put him in a regular room. By Friday he was well and shortly before Shabbos we brought him home.
The sofer did not know of the Rebbe MHM’s instruction to me regarding the mezuzos. But when he returned them to me he said that my mezuzos were written on a thick parchment with a heavy ink so the letters tend to crack. Such mezuzos, he said, should be checked every 6 to 12 months.
Salvation for Slovenia
After the fall of Communism in Russia, other East European coun- tries rejected Communism and declared their independence. Among them was the small country called Slovenia which broke away from Yugoslavia in 1991. This drew a powerful military response from Yugoslavia. The Slovenians, small in number and poorly armed, stood against one of the strongest armies in Eastern Europe. Yugoslavian army tanks advanced toward improvised barricades manned by ill- armed defenders. The Slovenians’ struggle was greeted largely with indifference by the rest of the world.
Marian Furlan was a Slovanian Jew who grew up under Communism but rejected it and refused to join the Communist Party. He left Slovenia, moved to Israel and got married there. In the 1980s he and his wife moved to Toronto where they became close to the Chabad community.
When war broke out between Slovenia and Yugoslavia, Slovenia was desperate to get more arms to defend itself. In Toronto, an ambassador of the World Slovenian Congress approached Marian hoping that Marian could help him get arms for Slovenia from Israel through Marian’s wife who had served in the Israeli army. Marian explained to him that he could not help him obtain arms, but he mentioned that he was about to travel to New York to visit the Rebbe MHM and could ask for a blessing. The ambassador sent a letter to the Rebbe MHM with Marian on behalf of the Slovenian people.
The next day, Marian also received a letter for the Rebbe MHM from Ivan Plazar, a Catholic priest of Slovenians in Canada. In the letter he wrote:
Slovenians are hard working, live in peace with everyone (Jews and others).… Now these people are in a very difficult situation. They have been attacked by the communist army and are at war.… Marian Furlan, who is living in Toronto and belongs to Lubavitch is bringing to you our request that you support our tired hands with your prayer and blessing. G-d, Creator of the world, is our only help and He could also bring our nation to victory and liberate them from the slav- ery of G-dless communism and attain freedom and peace without further bloodshed. We would be very grateful for your prayers, help and advice.
Marian traveled to New York with Rabbi Yisroel Landa, the Chabad Rabbi of the Israeli community in Toronto. When they arrived, they received devastating news: The Yugoslav army was preparing chemi- cal warfare, and the Yugoslav high command had issued orders for a ground assault to break all resistance. The picture was bleak and get- ting darker. The all-out assault was to begin early the following week.
Marian met with the Rebbe MHM on Sunday, June 7, 1991 at 10:00 a.m. EST and explained the situation in Slovenia. The Rebbe MHM accepted the letters with the requests for blessings and gave his blessing for Slovenia. It was then 4:00 p.m. in Slovenia.
Upon his return to Toronto, Marian learned that shortly after 4:00 p.m., Yugoslavia suddenly requested a cease fire. An air raid which they had launched against Slovenia was recalled just twenty minutes from target. The war was over. Not a single Slovenian life had been lost after 4:00 p.m., the time of MHM’s blessing!
A Slovenian government publication that briefly outlines Slovenian history records the events of the war and the Rebbe MHM’s bless- ing. It reads in part: “A Slovenian Jew personally delivered to New York a number of letters from the Slovenian community and individ- uals, requesting both moral and practical support for embattled Slovenia. These documents were received by world Jewish leader Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson Shlita, and on the very day he blessed the Slovenian nation, hostilities ended.”22
Hurricane Andrew
Hurricane Andrew of 1992 was the most destructive United States hurricane on record before Hurricane Katrina of 2005. It started modestly as a tropical wave that emerged from the west coast of Africa on August 14. The wave spawned a tropical depression on August 16, which became Tropical Storm Andrew the next day. Further development was slow and the storm almost dissipated on August 20. But by August 21, Andrew had reached the Caribbean and strengthened quickly, reaching hurricane strength on the 22nd and Category 4 status on the 23rd. It blasted its way across south Florida on August 24 with sustained winds measured at 142 mph
Reported in the weekly newsletter L’Chaim! accessible at http://www.lchaimweekly.org/lchaim/palm/5764/793.htm
and wind gusts as high as 177 mph, and produced a 17 ft storm surge near its landfall point in Florida. It was responsible for 65 deaths and
$25 billion in damage in the United States, almost all of it in south Florida.
This is the story of how the Rebbe MHM, after having suffered a stroke earlier in 1992, guided the Lubavitch community in south Florida safely through the hurricane.
The National Hurricane Center had predicted that Miami Beach would be the hardest hit. In fact, they predicted that the ocean would surge on the east, and the bay on the west and Miami Beach would be destroyed. Evacuation orders were issued and throughout the night of Saturday to the morning of Sunday, August 23, the area was evacuated. It was recommended that people go to Kendal where it would be safer, and many people did.
Rabbi Tennenhaus of Chabad of Hallandale called the Rebbe MHM’s office to ask if the Chabad community should evacuate. The secretary, Rabbi Leibel Groner, brought the question to the Rebbe MHM in the following manner: He asked if the Chabad community should leave. The Rebbe MHM, who could not speak as a result of the stroke, shook his head to indicate “No.” Rabbi Groner then asked the question in the positive—should they stay? The Rebbe MHM nodded his head “Yes.” Rabbi Groner asked a third time if they should go and the response was again “No.” This was the procedure for asking such questions.
By Sunday, August 23, Hallandale was almost completely evacuat- ed—except for the Lubavitchers. By Sunday evening, Andrew was borderline Category 5. Rabbi Leibel Shapiro, who remained in Miami Beach throughout the storm, described what happened there: On Sunday, as the storm worsened, there was a rumor going around that the Rebbe MHM indicated that people should evacuate. He called Rabbi Groner to check this out. Rabbi Groner went to ask the Rebbe MHM if they should leave since the storm was getting worse. He shook his head “No.” Rabbi Groner asked again, “What about the danger?” The Rebbe MHM responded with a strong motion of his head as though brushing the whole thing off and, some people sug- gest, actually pushing the hurricane away.
Sunday night, at 12:30 a.m. the hurricane hit. At about 1:00 a.m.
all the power went out. They stayed in a room without windows and heard the winds howling the whole night.
When the storm had passed they went out and, to their great sur- prise, they saw that in their area of Miami Beach, there was very lit- tle damage. There was no flooding. There was less water on the ground than from a regular rain storm. The same was true of Miami, North Miami and Hallandale.
Kendal, however, where everyone was supposed to escape to, was the hardest hit. Rabbi Shapiro tells of one man who left Miami Beach for Kendal only to spend the night with his friends standing against the door of the house they were in so that the wind wouldn’t blow it open. The roof of that house had already caved in. When he came back to his home in Miami Beach, he found that everything was intact.23
Identity as Melech HaMoshiach24
In the previous section of this chapter, “A Day in the Life of Melech HaMoshiach,” we quoted Rambam’s halachic definition of Moshiach in which he describes the emergence of the Jewish leader who will be Moshiach:
If a king will arise from the House of David who teaches Torah and is occupied in the Mitzvos like David his ancestor in accordance with both the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, induces all the Jews to follow the Torah and to strengthen it where it has been broken and who fights the battles of G-d, he has the assumed status of being Moshiach (chezkas Moshiach). If he succeeds further, builds the Beis HaMikdosh in its place and gathers the dispersed of Israel— then he is Moshiach with a certainty (Moshiach vadai) and he will direct the entire world to serve G-d together.
As we mentioned above, the Rebbe MHM is a descendant of the Tzemach Tzedek, who was the grandson of Rabbi Schneur Zalman,
Based on the video, His Eye on the Storm, produced by Chabad of Florida. See also “Rabbi’s Advice is Simply Divine,” New York Post, Aug. 25, 1992.See the subsection “In Messianic Times” in the Introduction for a related discus- sion.
the Alter Rebbe, who was a descendant of the Maharal of Prague who was known to be a descendant of King David. So he is from the House of David.
We have quoted the leading Rabbinical authorities of our genera- tion who have attested to the Rebbe MHM’s mastery of the wisdom of the Torah, transcending all other scholars of the generation. “There is no one like him,” Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu has said. His teaching of the Torah and advancing the observance of the mitzvos is known to everyone and in this too he has no equal. This is attested to in the letter of Rabbi Moshe Feinstein discussed above. He has induced all the Jews to follow the Torah and has strengthened it where it has been broken, on a global scale.
He “fights the battles of G-d” primarily in the spiritual sense, as we have described at length above, but also with military advice he has given to Israeli generals and governments officials on many occa- sions.25
Towards the end of 1990, the Rebbe MHM made the historical announcement: “The time of your redemption has arrived.” This was the announcement that identified him publicly as Melech HaMoshiach as per the Yalkut Shimoni which foretold the Persian Gulf War and that G-d would deliver this message to the Jewish peo- ple at that time—“My children, do not be afraid … the time of your redemption has arrived.” Specifically, this announcement would be made by Melech HaMoshiach himself as the Yalkut Shimoni says, “At the time that Melech HaMoshiach comes … he announces to the Jews, ‘O, humble ones, the time of your redemption has arrived!” The Rebbe MHM made it clear that he was making the declaration that identified him as Moshiach and in his talks during 1990-92 the he reiterated this many times, repeatedly making it clear that he is Melech HaMoshiach.
Thus the Rebbe MHM said prophetically that Israel would be safe and encouraged Jews to travel there, and indicated that the war would be over by Purim. Everything happened exactly as he said. Even though 39 Scud missiles fell in Israel, no Jews were killed by them. And the war ended on Purim.26
This is documented in the video Faithful and Fortified, vol. 1, “Defense and Intelligence” (Jewish Educational Media, 2009).
A few weeks before that, in the sicha of Parshas Mishpatim, 5751 (1991), the Rebbe MHM said, “The appointment of Dovid Malka Meshicha (i.e. Melech HaMoshiach) has already taken place.… It’s just that the people have to accept his sovereignty and the connec- tion between the king and the people has to be completely revealed.”27
So by Nisan, 5751 it was clear that the Rebbe MHM had the sta- tus of chezkas Moshiach. In fact, later that year, the Rebbe MHM said that with the miraculous victory in the Persian Gulf War, “the words of the Yalkut Shimoni have been fulfilled … and since then, especially from the month of Nisan, the month of Geula, we are already ‘at the time [sha’ah—literally ‘the hour’] that Melech HaMoshiach comes.’”28 And again, “We have already actually seen wonders that confirm that this is ‘the year in which Melech HaMoshiach is revealed’ and even ‘the hour when Melech HaMoshiach comes’ and announces to the Jews, ‘Humble ones, the time of your redemption has arrived’ and even the announcement that ‘Behold, this is Melech HaMoshiach who came’—that he already came.”29
At the end of Nisan, Rabbinical authorities all over the world began signing a psak din (halachic legal ruling) regarding the Rebbe MHM being Moshiach. Initially issued by Chabad Rabbis in Israel on the 30th of Nisan, in the following days it was signed by many more Rabbis from Israel, Europe and the U.S. On the 15th of Iyar, the Rabbis of the Rabbinical Court of Crown Heights (who had already signed it) reissued it as an official psak din of the Beis Din of Crown Heights. That same day, the Rebbe MHM publicly encouraged the singing of the declaration “Yechi Adoneinu Moreinu V’Rabeinu Melech HaMoshiach L’Olam Voed!” (“Long live our master, teacher and Rebbe King Moshiach forever”) following the davening.30
Then, on the day after Shavuos, Chabad Rabbis from around the world who had come to Crown Heights to be with the Rebbe MHM
That’s not all. A couple of days after Purim, on 16 Adar, 5751 (1991), the Rebbe MHM made a statement in which he said that America would fight a war against Basra, that America is a country of goodness and kindness, and that it would be successful. In 2003, on exactly that same date, 16 Adar, the American army, assembled at Basra, attacked Iraq.Sefer HaSichos 5751, 1:330. 28. Ibid. 2:595.
29. Ibid., 690.for the holiday issued a more detailed psak din. Referring to Rambam’s criteria for determining the identity of Moshiach, it stat- ed in part:
“It is clear in accordance with the absolute law of the Torah that the halachic designation of chezkas Moshiach applies to the Rebbe since all the conditions listed in the abovementioned halacha in Rambam [Hilchos Melachim U’Melech HaMoshiach, chap. 11, sec. 4] have been fulfilled by the Rebbe.”
With the Rebbe MHM’s encouragement, this psak din was read at
Official ruling of the Beis Din of Crown Heights to the effect that the Rebbe is Moshiach.
the gravesites of the previous Lubavitcher Rebbeim in Russia and at the gravesite of the Ari Zal in Israel.
For the next year the Rebbe MHM continued to make stronger and stronger statements about his being Moshiach and about the Geula being here, and gave strong encouragement to those who were pub- licizing this.31 This encouragement continued even after the stroke in 1992. In 1993 he approved the publication of an anthology of selec- tions on Moshiach from his recent sichos,32 in which he would be explicitly referred to as Melech HaMoshiach.
On 27 Tishrei 5754 (1993), I personally was part of a group that had the privilege to pass before the Rebbe MHM and receive from him a dollar-for-tzedakah.33 As I passed before him, I greeted him say- ing, “Shalom Aleichem, Melech HaMoshiach!” and he nodded to me in acceptance.
At the beginning of 5752 (Nov., 1991), in the sicha of Parshas VaYera, the Rebbe MHM said, “In our days all the obstacles have been removed. Therefore, we not only have the presence of Moshiach, but also the revelation of Moshiach.34 Now it is necessary only to receive Moshiach in full actuality.”35
Then, a couple of months later, in the sicha of Parshas Shemos 5752 (1992), he made an even stronger statement: “Since we already have the ‘king from the House of David who teaches Torah and is occupied in the Mitzvos like David his ancestor … induces all the Jews to follow the Torah and to strengthen it where it has been bro- ken and who fights the battles of G-d’—thus he has the assumed sta- tus of being Moshiach (chezkas Moshiach)—he should immediately become Moshiach with a certainty (Moshiach vadai).” Just a few paragraphs earlier, he had mentioned the fact that the Rebbeim of Chabad are descended from “the House of David from the tribe of Judah.”
Video recording, 15 Iyar, 5751 (WLCC).Some of this is documented in And He Will Redeem Us–Moshiach in Our Time
(New York: Mendelsohn Press, 1994), 61–72.Besoras HaGeula (New York: Kehot Publication Society, 1993).This has been the only such event since the stroke.In the sicha, he explains that in every generation there is a presence (metzius) of Moshiach, in that there is a tzadik worthy of becoming Moshiach who would be revealed as Moshiach if there were no impediments.
In a letter written in 1962, the Rebbe MHM indicated that the one who becomes chezkas Moshiach will in fact become Moshiach vadai. He writes, “Quickly in our days we should see the fulfillment of the promise that a king will arise from the House of David who teaches Torah and is occupied in the Mitzvos etc., and will induce all the Jews to follow the Torah and to strengthen it where it has been broken and who fights the battles of G-d [i.e. chezkas Moshiach]—he is the one who is Moshiach Tzidkeinu—and he will build the Beis HaMikdosh and gather the dispersed of Israel [i.e. Moshiach vadai], as in the psak din of Rambam.”36 Thus in 1992, when he says that we already have chezkas Moshiach—which will develop into Moshiach vadai—the only thing to ask for is that it should happen immediately.
What does it take to become Moshiach vadai? Rambam states the criteria: build the Beis HaMikdosh and gather the dispersed of Israel. But does he have to complete these requirements in order to be Moshiach vadai?
Consider the following quote from the sicha of Shabbos Chazon, 5751: “that a Jew believes with complete faith that Moshiach Tzidkeinu, ‘a king from the House of David who teaches Torah and is occupied in the Mitzvos etc.’ as Moshiach vadai (by having suc- ceeded, built the Beis HaMikdosh in its place and gathered the dis- persed of Israel) enters the shul right now—he should come and redeem us and take us upright to our land—and leads all the Jews to the Holy Land, to Yerushalayim the holy city, to the Temple Mount, to the Third Beis HaMikdosh.”
This says that Moshiach, having the status of Moshiach vadai because he already gathered the dispersed of Israel, will enter the shul and take us to the Holy Land. But evidently he has not yet com- pleted gathering the dispersed of Israel (because there are still peo- ple in the shul who need to be taken to Eretz Yisroel). He has begun to do it, however, and because of that he is Moshiach vadai.
Now, the Rebbe MHM has said that the ingathering of the exiles has already begun with the mass exodus of the Jews from Russia who went to Israel in a pleasant and peaceful manner (i.e. not having to
Sefer HaSichos 5752, 1:95.Igros Kodesh 22:287.
escape, not as refugees).37 Furthermore, in an amazing sicha pub- lished under the title Kuntres B’Inyan Beis Rabbeinu She-b’Bavel, he explained that the construction of the Third Beis HaMikdosh has also already begun.38 Thus the Rebbe MHM may already be consid- ered Moshiach vadai.
In the sicha of Parshas Mishpatim, 5752, the Rebbe MHM made a statement similar to the one of Parshas Shemos a few weeks earlier, referring to the psak din of the previous year: “The psak din of Rabbinical authorities that ‘the time of the Geula has arrived’—‘a king will arise from the House of David … he has the assumed sta- tus of being Moshiach’ reaching the status of ‘Moshiach with a cer- tainty (Moshiach vadai).’ This is a psak din whose authority originates from Mt. Sinai.” This sicha was spoken a month before the stroke.
On the Rebbe MHM’s birthday, 11 Nissan, 5752 (1992), a month and a half after the stroke, a psak din signed by 200 Rabbis world- wide, was issued stating clearly and emphatically that the Rebbe MHM has the status of chezkas Moshiach based on Rambam’s halachic definition, and after Gimmel Tammuz, in Tishrei, 5758 (1997) a further psak din signed by over 120 Rabbis worldwide declares that he is Melech HaMoshiach. This psak din continues to gain more signatures.39
The sicha of Mishpatim 5752 itself is devoted primarily to Swords Into Plowshares.40 In it, the Rebbe MHM discusses a declaration made the previous day by the heads of state of the major world pow- ers at the United Nations announcing a new era of arms reduction, peace and cooperation among the nations of the world. He identified this declaration as the beginning of the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah that in the Era of Moshiach the nations of the world will “beat their swords into plowshares”—transform their military resources into peaceful uses.
The Rebbe MHM proceeds to explain that this declaration came about as a result of the influence of Melech HaMoshiach on the nations of the world. Specifically, he refers to his campaign to pro-
Sicha of VaYakhel 5752. See Sefer HaSichos 5752, 2:440–41.Printed in Sefer HaSichos ibid., 465–75.Photocopies of these piskei din are reproduced in Rabbi Raphael Heruti, Nevuas HaGeulah, 15–19.See chap. III sec. 2 for a full discussion of the sicha.
mote spread Torah and Judaism to Jews throughout the world, and especially to promote the ideals of goodness, justice and fairness among the nations of the world through the observance of the Seven Noahide Laws, indicating once again that he is Melech HaMoshiach.
At the end of the sicha, he explicitly identifies himself as Moshiach by saying that we are now in the generation of “Moshiach whose name is Menachem.”
The Everlasting Life
of Melech HaMoshiach
…the Chaim Nitzchi’im—everlasting life—of the future era, which is attained in our generation without any interruption [of death] in between.
—the Rebbe MHM1
“My beloved is like to a deer.” 2
In this verse in the Song of Songs, Shlomo HaMelech compares Moshiach to a deer. As the Midrash explains, Moshiach “is revealed, then concealed, then revealed again” just like a deer that emerges from the forest, then returns to the forest and runs out again. 3
On the third day of Tammuz, 5754 (1994), the Rebbe MHM was temporarily concealed from our eyes. As we see from the above Midrash, however, the temporary concealment of Moshiach is itself part of the process of his revelation.
In this section, we will analyze these issues by considering:
What is known about the passing of tzadikim (righteous, holy peo ple) in general from the Talmud, Kabbala and Chassidus;
How the life of Melech HaMoshiach surpasses the life of all other tzadikim, as he is granted Chaim Nitzchi’im—everlasting life—from G-d; and
How modern science assists in the understanding of the teachings
of the Torah on these matters.
Sefer HaSichos 5751, 496.Shir HaShirim 2:9.Midrash Shir HaShirim Rabba 2:22; Bamidbar Rabbah 11:2. See also Likutei Sichos 9:381.
105
Everlasting Life
The basic concept of Chaim Nitzchi’im is found in the Torah in connection with the creation of man. Adam was created in such a way that he would live forever. It is only because he ate from the Tree of Knowledge that this everlasting life was not actualized.4 However, since it was part of the original plan of creation it will be restored in the Era of Moshiach when the Revival of the Dead takes place and all Jews will live forever. The same is true of all the various types of perfection that were built into the original order of creation and were lost. They will be restored in a much greater way in the Era of Moshiach.
It should come as no surprise then, that throughout history some special tzadikim were granted everlasting life, being removed, to vary- ing degrees, from the prevalent order of nature.
The first tzaddik mentioned in the Torah who was granted everlast- ing life was Yaakov Avinu (Jacob) of whom the Talmud says, “Yaakov Avinu did not die.”5 This statement is discussed and analyzed exten- sively by the commentaries on the Torah and the Talmud. To begin with, we note that Rashi, whose commentary on the Torah is pshat— the direct, logical meaning—which is directed to the understanding of even a five year old child who is beginning his study of the Torah, states quite simply: “Death is not mentioned regarding [Yaakov]. Our Rabbis have said that Yaakov Avinu did not die.”6 This is a literal statement intended to be understood even by a child. In his com- mentary on the Talmud, Rashi states further (explaining why there was a burial etc.), “It appeared to them that he died but he was alive.” The Or HaChaim, in his commentary on the Torah, also says that Yakov was actually alive. It was only as if he was sleeping. (That’s why Yosef kissed him, which would not have been proper if he had died.)7
Talking to Yaakov Avinu
What are the characteristics of the life of Yaakov Avinu? One of the deepest and most analytical commentaries on the Torah, the Alshich,
Sefer HaMa’amorim Melukat 2:277.Ta’anis 5b.Rashi’s commentary to Bereishis 49:33.Or HaChaim on Bereishis 50:1.
written by Rabbi Moshe Alshich, a student of the Ari Zal, provides the technical details. As is well known from the Midrash, Kabbala and Chassidus, there are five parts of the soul which give life to the body. The first three, called nefesh, ruach and neshama, are contained in the body itself (the nefesh is centered in the liver, the ruach in the heart and the neshama in the brain). The last two, chaya and yechida, give a life which is higher than the specific life of the first three. They are not contained in any specific part of the body but rather encom- pass the entire body uniformly.
The Alshich explains that when death occurs, G-d forbid, the three parts of the soul that are contained in the body leave the body. The passing of tzadikim, however, is different. When a tzadik passes away only the ruach and neshama leave the body but the nefesh stays in the body. Thus they are not called dead but rather “sleeping in the dust.” Yaakov Avinu, however, transcends even this. The statement “Yaakov Avinu did not die” means that all three parts of the soul—the nefesh, ruach and neshama, together with all the faculties of the soul, all remained in his body. This distinguishes Yaakov Avinu from other tzadikim.8 The Ramban and Rabbeinu Bachaya, in their com- mentaries on the Torah, give similar explanations, but in more Kabbalistic terms.9
There is a practical application of this on a daily basis. The Midrash Rabba tells the story of Yaakov Avinu blessing his sons. Before he blessed them, he asked them if their belief in Hashem was complete to which they responded, “Shema Yisroel Hashem Elokeinu Hashem Echod!” Addressing their father by his title Yisroel, they said, “Listen, O Yisroel, Hashem is our G-d, Hashem is one!” Their belief in Hashem was complete. The Midrash continues to say that to this very day when we say “Shema Yisroel” twice a day, we are talking to Yaakov Avinu and saying, “Listen, O Yisroel our father, in the Cave of Machpela, we are still faithful to that which you commanded us regarding the unity of Hashem..”10 Since Yaakov Avinu is alive we can talk to him.
It must be mentioned that there is actually an “advantage” in the
This commentary of Alshich is quoted briefly in Likutei Sichos 4:1261.Ramban and Rabbeinu Bachaya to Bereishis 49:33.Midrash Bereishis Rabba 98:3.
soul of a tzadik leaving his body in that he is freed from the limita- tions of the body and is able to accomplish more for his followers than he was able to do when his soul was confined to his body.11 But there is also a state in which the soul of the tzadik is free of the lim- itations of the body even while it is still in the body. This state was attained by Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai on the day of his passing.12 So it is possible for some tzadikim to have both advantages—being able to transcend the limitations of the body while the soul is still in the body. The advantage of the soul remaining within the body is, of course, that it is more revealed so it is easier for his followers to com- municate with him.
Similarly, it is important to emphasize that the Rebbe MHM is alive so we understand that while he may be concealed he is still our leader and he is very close to us. We can talk to him and declare: “Yechi Adoneinu Moreinu V’Rabeinu Melech HaMoshiach L’Olam Voed!”— “Long live our master, teacher and Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach forever.” We are loyal to him and anticipate his com- plete revelation.
“Moshe came back to save us”
The Talmud and Zohar say the same thing about Moshe Rabbeinu (Moses) that they say about Yaakov Avinu: “Lo mes Moshe”—Moshe did not die.13 Rather they compare Moshe’s apparent passing to his ascent to Mt. Sinai where he lived miraculously without food or water. The Mikdash Melech, a Kabbalistic commentary on the Zohar, explains that the term VaYomos (“and he died”)14 which the Torah uses in connection with Moshe is not to be taken literally. He says, “Even though the Torah uses the term ‘death,’ it may have various meanings: If one does not merit, it is death in the literal sense, but if one merits, it will be concealment in the higher worlds like Eliyahu (Elijah).” This is not death because in this case the soul does not depart from the body. Rather the body ascends with the soul. This is in fact what happened to the prophet Eliyahu,15 and, according to one interpretation, something similar happened to Moshe. According
Tanya, “Igeres HaKodesh,” chap. 27.Sefer HaMa’amorim Melukat 5:272–73.Sota, 13b.Devorim 34:5.This is described in detail in Melochim II, chap. 2.
to other interpretations, he was actually buried. 16 In any case, he is similar to Yakov Avinu whose soul remains in his body.17
There are many stories of Eliyahu HaNavi returning to help Jews in difficult times or to teach them the secrets of the Torah. There is also such a story about Moshe Rabbeinu. The Midrash Rabba18 relates that at the time of the destruction of the first Beis HaMikdosh and the exile, our forefathers came before G-d to plead for the Jewish people, but the decree was not reversed. Then Moshe Rabbeinu came forward and said that he was going to bring the Jews back. He actually went to Babylon to redeem them. The Jews saw him in his physical body at the bank of the Euphrates River and declared, “Look! Moshe Rabbeinu has come up from his grave to redeem us!” However, G-d did not let him follow through with the redemption. Whereupon the Jews cried: “On the rivers of Babylon, we sat and cried.”19
Dovid HaMelech is Still King of Israel
Similar to the statement that Moshe did not die is the famous statement in the Talmud “Dovid Melech Yisroel Chai V’Kayam”— David King of Israel is alive!20 This declaration is part of the Kiddush Levana (sanctification of the new moon) service which we recite every month. The Rebbe MHM has clarified the exact meaning of this declaration. He said that it means that Dovid HaMelech (King David) is literally alive in this world, for if it meant that he is alive in Gan Eden (the afterlife) there would be no point to making the state- ment, since every Jew is alive in Gan Eden after this world. “From the moment he was anointed as King of Israel in Hevron until the end of all generations he continues to live—and continues to live as the King of Israel!”21
There are a number of cases on record in the Talmud, Midrash and other seforim of tzadikim who continue to live after their apparent passing; usually it is tzadik who is a Nasi, as we will soon explain.22
Sefer HaSichos 5749, 1:9.Likutei Sichos 26:7.Pesikta D’Eicha Rabbasi.Tehillim 137:1.Rosh HaShana, 25a.Sicha of 7 MarCheshvan, 5746, in Hisvaaduyos 5746, 1:525.In addition, it has been observed that the bodies of certain tzaddikim, who had tobe moved from their graves to other graves many years after their original burial, remained complete and unchanged.
The following story is one of the most dramatic stories on record of a tzadik returning after his passing. First, some background. Rabbi Asher ben Yechiel, (c. 1250–1327) known as the ROSH (literally, “the head;” acronym for “Rabbeinu Asher”) was one of the greatest Talmudic and halachic authorities in history. He was one of the lead- ers of German Jewry until he was forced to flee persecution of the Jews and settled in Spain where he became one of the leaders of Spanish Jewry. His halachic works are one of the foundations of the Shulchan Aruch—the Code of Jewish Law. This story is about his father, Rabbi Yechiel, and was recorded in a letter of Rabbi Yehuda, the son of the ROSH i.e., Rabbi Yehuda was writing about his grand- father Rabbi Yechiel.
Rabbi Yehuda writes:
Since I left Germany when I was a child, I didn’t hear much about what happened there, just the little that I heard from my father and my great aunt who told me that my grandfa- ther Rabbi Yechiel was born in the year 4970 (1210). When he was sixteen years old he had a loyal friend in yeshiva named Rabbi Shlomo HaCohen. They made a covenant that each of them would have a part in any mitzva or action that his friend did.
It happened once, on the night of Yom Kippur, that the candle that Rabbi Yechiel lit in the shul went out.… When he saw that his candle was extinguished, he feared for his life. On Chol HaMoed Sukkos [a week later] he passed away. It was the custom in Germany that [after the funeral proces- sion] they would place the coffin on a large stone near the cemetery and open it up to check if the body had become twisted during the long procession or if was still straight. At that point, Rabbi Shlomo approached the coffin, crying loud- ly. He then announced before the entire assembly, ‘I am reminding my friend Rabbi Yechiel before all of you that he should remember our covenant.’ Rabbi Yechiel then began to laugh inside of his coffin. Everybody saw this.
A few days later, Rabbi Shlomo was sitting and learning in the Beis HaMedrash during the daytime and he noticed Rabbi Yechiel sitting next to him and reading the halachic text along with him. Rabbi Shlomo asked him what’s going
on. He answered that he is situated very well in Gan Eden and he has a seat for himself among all the righteous of the generation. Rabbi Shlomo then said to him, “Please, my mas- ter, partner of our covenant, I wonder if you have permission to appear before people!”
Rabbi Yechiel responded, “You should know that I have permission to go home just like before, but I don’t want to so they don’t say that this tzadik is showing off more than all the tzadikim in Gan Eden.”
Six months later, on a Friday night, at midnight, he appeared to his wife, who was awake, and said to her, “What are you doing—hurry up and take your sons and daughters and escape quickly from this place because tomorrow they are going to kill all the Jews here.” She took my father and his brother…and six sisters.23
The story speaks for itself.
The Stature of the Nasi
Yaakov Avinu, Moshe Rabbeinu and Dovid HaMelech are the famous tzadikim, mentioned in the Talmud, Midrash and Zohar, who have everlasting life. In addition, there are other tzadikim who did not pass away and there is a quality with which this is usually asso- ciated. We see this in the explanation that the Rebbe MHM gives of the fact that his predecessor, the previous Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneerson, is still alive: “The Nasi (leader) of our generation … who did not die just like Yaakov Avinu.”24 The Rebbe MHM connects this with the fact that the Hebrew letters for the word “Nasi” stand for “Nitzutzo Shel Yaakov Avinu”—”A spark [of the soul of] Yaakov Avinu.” Just like Yaakov Avinu did not die, so too the Nasi does not die. From this we may infer that the same applies (in varying degrees) to the Nasi of every generation.
The uniqueness of the Nasi in this regard can be related to the spiritual stature of the Nasi as explained in Kabbala and Chassidus.
Quoted by Rabbi Chaim Yosef David Azulay (the Chida), Shem HaGedolim, “Ma’areches Gedolim,” 11b. Reproduced in Rabbi Shloma Majesky, Likutei Mekoros, 2nd ed. (New York: 2008), 1:48.Sefer HaSichos 5752, 2:242.
The soul of the Nasi is a “general soul” which includes within it the souls of all the Jewish people and thus the life of all the Jewish peo- ple. Just as the Jewish people continue to live, the Nasi continues to live. Furthermore, the Nasi of each generation is the candidate for Moshiach in that generation. This means that if the Geula were to occur in that particular generation, its Nasi would be Moshiach. The innermost part of the soul of every Jew is the spark of Moshiach that is within him. Moshiach (as the Nasi) contains the souls of all the Jews, and with them, all the individual sparks of Moshiach.25
The ability of someone, such as the Nasi, to break the barriers of nature is a result of his connection to the Torah, as explained by the great Chassidic Kabbalist, Rabbi Levi Yitzchok Schneerson. The Torah is the blueprint (the “source code”) of the universe. G-d used the Torah to create the world. Thus to the degree to which one is connected to the Torah he is above the laws of nature. For example, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who wrote the Zohar and revealed the inner depths of Torah to the world, led a miraculous life. But for him—relative to his level in Torah—this was not miraculous. Rather it was his nature. For something to be miraculous for him, it would have to be a higher level miracle. One man’s miracle is another man’s nature.26
Of course, Moshiach who reveals the deepest level in Torah is completely above the laws of nature and leads a totally miraculous life even as he exists in a physical body in the physical world, as the Maharal of Prague said, “Moshiach will be … outside of nature and the way of the world.”27
The Nasi Does Not Die
Now we are ready to discuss other Nesi’im—tzaddikim who were the leaders of their generation—who continue to live after their apparent passing, and who even reappeared in their physical bodies.
We mention first Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, who compiled the Mishneh. He lived in Eretz Yisroel about 150 years after the destruc- tion of the second Beis HaMikdosh. The Talmud28 says that after he
25. Sefer HaSichos 5751, 1:222; 2:590.
Likutei Levi Yitzchok, “Igros Kodesh,” 264.
Sha’arei Ge’ulah (Jerusalem: Heichal Menachem, 1992), 2:69 n. 29.
Kesubos, 103a.
“passed away” he would return to his home every Friday night in his Shabbos clothes and made kiddush for his family!29 He stopped doing this only when it became known publicly, as he felt that continuing this practice would be an insult to other tzadikim who were not able to do this. The Rebbe MHM emphasizes that this means that he came back physically, in his body.30
The great Kabbalist, Rabbi Yitzchok Luria, known as the AriZal (lit- erally, “the lion”; an acrostic for three Hebrew words that mean “our master Rabbi Yitzchok”), was the Nasi of his generation, in the late 1500s. After he “passed away,” during the preparations for his burial (the tahara), he immersed himself in the mikveh (ritual bath) on his own. 31 The Ari is frequently referred to as the Ari HaChai—the Ari who lives.
Many generations later, the Nesius passed to the Baal Shem Tov and his successors, the Maggid of Mezeritch, the Alter Rebbe and the Nesi’im of Chabad. What happened with the AriZal happened with the Baal Shem Tov32 and the Maggid33 also—after they “passed away,” at the taharas, they immersed themselves in the mikveh on their own.
It is well known that there was great opposition to the Alter Rebbe’s extensive teaching of Chassidus. Some of his opponents slandered him to the Czarist government who arrested him under a charge of treason and imprisoned him in the infamous Petropavli prison.
During his imprisonment, the Alter Rebbe was visited in his prison cell by the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid of Mezeritch—who had “passed away” years before. The Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe relates that he once visited the Petropavli prison and went to see the cell where his ancestor, the Alter Rebbe, was imprisoned. Afterwards, his father, Rabbi Shalom DovBer (the fifth Rebbe of Chabad) asked him if the cell was big enough to hold three people. From this, the Previous Rebbe writes, he understood that when the Baal Shem Tov
Sefer Chasidim, sec. 1129. Quoted in the notes of Rabbi Akiva Eiger, Gilyon HaShas, on Kesubos 103b.Hisvaaduyos 5746, 1:205. Reproduced in Majesky, Likutei Mekoros, 42.Igros Kodesh 20:81.Toldos Levi Yitzchok, 329.Ibid.
and the Maggid of Mezeritch came to visit the Alter Rebbe, they came in their physical bodies.34
A most remarkable story about the Alter Rebbe’s son and succes- sor, Rabbi DovBer of Lubavitch, the Mittler Rebbe, was told by Rabbi Nochum, Rabbi DovBer’s son. The Mittler Rebbe was buried in the city of Niyezhin in Russia. A shul was built near his gravesite where people would come to pray and Rabbi Nochum attended to the shul. Rabbi Nochum once said that many stories are told of miracles that took place for those who prayed at his father’s gravesite “But,” he continued, “I only know what I saw with my own eyes.” He then related the following:
Once, a fire broke out in the Shul. While everyone ran to bring water he went inside to try to save the Sefer Torah. When he entered, he saw that the holy ark containing the Sefer Torah was engulfed in flames and there was no way he could approach it. While he was standing there wondering what to do, his father, the Mittler Rebbe, appeared before him carrying the Sefer Torah. His father approached him and handed it to him. And as soon as he took it, his father dis- appeared. 35
The Mittler Rebbe, who had passed away and was buried there, certainly came to him in a physical body since a soul, a spirit, cannot carry a Sefer Torah.
Often, when people hear about the concept that certain tzadikim don’t die and their souls remain in their bodies, they ask, “Why should these tzadikim have to remain in their bodies? Why can’t they go to Gan Eden like everyone else?” I will comment on this based on my understanding of the commentaries on the Torah36 and sources in Chassidus.
Firstly, where is Gan Eden? Is it a thousand miles away from here? Is it a million miles out in space? No. It is not a physical place so it has no physical location. (We are speaking now of the Gan Eden of the souls, the afterlife, not the lower physical Gan Eden here on
Sicha of 19 Kislev, 5711, in Toras Menachem–Hisvaaduyos 5711, 113. Reproduced in Majesky, Likutei Mekoros, 41. See also the sicha referred to in n. 26 above for a detailed explanation and comparison to Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi.Rabbi Chaim Mordechai Perlow, Likutei Sippurim (New York, 1992), 95.Especially the Ramban on Bereishis 49:33.
earth where Adam was placed.) In fact, Chassidus explains that the “air” of Gan Eden surrounds every Jew and in it is registered all the good thoughts, words and actions that he does. As for Yakov Avinu, The Midrash Yalkut Shimoni says that when he entered the tent of his father Yitzchok to receive his blessing,37 “Gan Eden entered with him.”38 So who says that Yaakov Avinu is not “in Gan Eden” just because his soul remains in his body? He may very well be in Gan Eden.
Furthermore, the body of Yaakov Avinu itself may be higher than Gan Eden. It is explained in Chassidus, that at the time of the revival of the dead, all the Jewish souls will leave Gan Eden and go to a high- er level—they will enter their revived physical bodies which will then be very highly refined. This will be a much higher level than Gan Eden as the direct connection of their bodies with Atzmus (G-d’s essence) will be revealed.39 Those certain special tzadikim that we have been discussing, like Yaakov Avinu, may have attained a similar level of refinement in their lifetime and their bodies may have already been higher than Gan Eden.
The Chaim Nitzchi’im of the Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach
All that we have said until now relates to certain very special tzad- dikim—the Nesi’im of the Jewish people. But Moshiach is different. Just as Moshiach himself transcends all tzadikim that came before him, so too is the Chaim Nitzchi’im—the everlasting life—that is granted to him qualitatively different from the lives of all other tzadikim. We will now discuss this unique, uninterrupted everlasting life.
There is a verse in Tehillim (Psalms) which tells of the request for life that Moshiach makes from G-d, and G-d’s response granting him everlasting life: “Life he asked from You. You granted it to him— length of days forever.”40 The Mittler Rebbe discusses this extensive- ly in his Chassidic discourses. He contrasts the life of Melech HaMoshiach with the life of Dovid HaMelech of whom the state- ment is made: “Dovid Melech Yisroel Chai V’kayam” (“David King of
Bereishis 27:18–27.Yalkut Shimoni, Bereishis, sec. 115. See also Tanya, 147a.Sefer HaMa’amorim Melukat 3:33–38.Tehillim 21:5. See also Sukka, 52a.
Israel is alive”) as we discussed earlier. The Mittler Rebbe writes: “Regarding Moshiach it says ‘Life … You granted it to him’. This means a gift which has no interruption. Furthermore, regarding Dovid—his life came only from the ten sefiros … of Atzilus,41 but regarding Moshiach it says ‘You granted it to him’ which means from Atzmus, the infinite.” 42 When G-d is addressed in second person (“You”) it refers to Atzmus i.e. G-d Himself, His essence.
It is significant that the Rebbe MHM himself spoke of his life source from Atzmus on the eve of Rosh HaShana, 5752, the Rosh HaShana before the stroke. He said, “Regarding Moshiach—in addi- tion to the revelation of the name of Moshiach … we also have the Atzmus of Moshiach Tzidkeinu which is unified with43 the infinite Atzmus.”44 (He has spoken about the Previous Rebbe in similar terms: “The Rebbe … is connected with the essence.… Since the Atzmus is down here, the Rebbe is also down here.”45)
Similarly, the Rebbe MHM has spoken of his own everlasting life: “In this generation … everlasting life without any interruption.”46 He spoke about this often during the years 1990-92.
A life which comes from Atzmus is above all definitions and limi- tations of natural life and death as we know it. As the Rabbi Shalom DovBer (the fifth Rebbe of Chabad) says, “Relative to Atzmus, life and death are equal.”47 In fact Atzmus transcends all limitations. The miraculous and the natural are equal relative to Atzmus and can coexist.48 It follows that the life of Moshiach is completely above the laws of nature, even as he lives in the physical world. As the Maharal of Prague writes, “Moshiach will be … outside of nature and the way of the world.” Here too, it is significant that the Rebbe MHM wrote about G-d granting such life in a discourse he published for 3 Tammuz, 5749 (1989): “The life in which He puts our soul is higher than nature.”49
Atzilus is the highest spiritual world. See chap. 1, sec. 2, “Wisdom From Above.”Ma’amorei Admur HaEmtzai, Devarim, 1:214–15.Lit., “which is one thing with.”Sefer HaSichos 5752, 6–7.Toras Menachem–Hisvaaduyos 5710, 27. Reproduced in Majesky, Likutei Mekoros,
236.Sefer HaSichos 5751, 496.Sefer HaMa’amorim 5670, 100.See chap. VI, sec. 1c, “The Coexistence of Opposites.”Sefer HaMa’amorim Melukat 3:201.
The Mittler Rebbe further explains the everlasting life of Melech HaMoshiach by drawing a contrast between Moshiach and all other tzadikim. All other tzadikim require some refinement of their bodies and therefore there has to be some sort of histalkus (departure or ele- vation of the soul from the body). Even Eliyahu HaNavi whose body ascended to the heavens and became like an angel, required a trans- formation of his body from its physical condition on earth requiring food and clothing to its totally spiritual state in heaven.
Moshiach, however, is on a much higher level. “No change or refinement takes place in his body at all. He will have a physical body similar to the bodies of all Jews of that time” which will “eat, drink, wear clothes and sit on a chair,” but “Moshiach will remain alive in his body together with the essence of his soul—down here just as it [would be] above, literally.” In the case of Moshe Rabbeinu, the Mittler Rebbe continues, “there was no difference at all between his body and his soul … and this will hold true of Moshiach in a much higher way. Therefore … he will not need to ascend above.”50
The Mittler Rebbe once said, “I accept it upon myself to resolve all the doubts. Wherever I may be—in the infinite levels of Gan Eden— I will provide the Chassidim with the proper understanding in any matter which is causing them difficulty.”51 He has certainly resolved any doubts that anyone may have had about the Chaim Nitzchi’im of the Rebbe MHM.
To See the Rebbe MHM
Once, on Chol HaMoed Sukkos, while the Alter Rebbe was a stu- dent of the Maggid of Mezeritch, the Maggid called him in to his sukka, told him to lock the door behind him and not to get too excit- ed by what he was about to see. A moment later, the Maggid called out, “The Rebbe is coming.” The Baal Shem Tov (who had already passed away) then appeared before them and spoke to them.
The Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe explained that the Alter Rebbe merited seeing the Baal Shem Tov because he had the stature of being a meshores (literally, an attendant) of the Maggid. The Rebbe MHM analyzes this story and raises a question. The Alter Rebbe
Ma’amorei Admur HaEmtzai, Drushei Chasunah, 1:131, 155.Sefer HaSichos 5701, 52.
stayed with the Maggid in Mezeritch for only a number of months, while being a meshores entails continuous long term attending to a Rebbe or a tzadik. This was the status of Joshua who was called the meshores of Moshe Rabbeinu. Regarding Joshua the Torah says, “And his meshores, Joshua the son of Nun, the young man, would not depart from the tent [of Moshe].” 52
The Rebbe MHM then explains that since the Alter Rebbe was carrying out the mission of the Maggid even when he was away from the Maggid, he is considered a meshores just like Joshua. The Rebbe MHM concludes that we are carrying out the mission of the Previous Rebbe and therefore we should be able to see him!
From this we can conclude that in our time, since we are carrying out the mission of the Rebbe MHM by preparing ourselves and the world to greet Moshiach and by accepting his sovereignty, we should certainly be able to see him. It must be that one who is a proper meshores has this possibility.
Igros Kodesh
Now that we understand that the Rebbe MHM is alive, is with us and that we can talk to him—just as we talk to Yakov Avinu, it is cru- cial that we have a way to receive a response from him. Since Gimmel Tammuz it has been customary for people to direct their questions to the Rebbe MHM is through Igros Kodesh—the volumes of his published letters. One writes a letter addressed to the Rebbe MHM, signs it using his Jewish name and his mother’s Jewish name (e.g., DovBer ben Chana) and places it at random in a volume of Igros Kodesh (in Hebrew, English or any other language). The writer of the letter then opens the volume to the place where he put his let- ter and reads what is printed there. This is his answer. Or, one may open the Igros Kodesh with a question in mind without writing a let- ter and read the answer.
This method has its basis in the statements of the Rebbe MHM himself, and even further back in Jewish history. After the passing of the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Rebbe MHM instructed peo- ple to continue writing to the Previous Rebbe and said that the
Shemos 33:11.
Rebbe would “find a way to answer them.” Specifically, he instruct- ed people to place the letters in a printed volume of the writings of the Previous Rebbe. The method of finding an answer to a question that one has by opening a sefer (holy book) at random and taking what he sees there as his answer is mentioned by the Achronim (lat- ter Rabbinic authorities). There is fascinating story recorded by the Previous Rebbe in which he tells of a young scholar in the 1600s who resolved a doubt that he had by opening a Gemara.53 The Rebbe MHM explains that the basis for this is the fact that nothing is real- ly “at random.” Rather it is by Divine Providence that one opened the book to a particular page.
In fact, this was practiced in our times even before Gimmel Tammuz. A Russian Jew told me that in his hometown of Homil in Russia, during the era of the Communist regime when they were not able to send letters to the Rebbe MHM, they would write the letter and place it at random in the sefer HaYom Yom, the Rebbe MHM’s first book. I myself used to do this here in America during the 1980s using the published volumes of the Rebbe MHM’s sichos and the Memoirs of the Previous Rebbe.
What is most amazing, in my opinion, is how, after Gimmel Tammuz, Jews all over the world started doing this spontaneously using the Igros Kodesh, which had just recently been published. On the day of Gimmel Tammuz, 5754, the day of the concealment, I was walking around “770” trying to figure out “what was going on” and what I was supposed to do now. I had just been offered a position in the department of Nuclear Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York, and wondered if I should still take the position, especially since it involved being away from Crown Heights during the week. I felt that I should be in Crown Heights during this critical period.
Suddenly an idea came into my mind. I decided that I would ask the Rebbe MHM himself. How? Should I take a volume of the sichos like I used to? I didn’t do that. Instead I walked over to the shelves where the volumes of Igros Kodesh were and took one at ran- dom off the shelf (vol. 15) and opened it. What I read there told me that I should “go to the new place” so I took the position. Why did I
Likutei Diburim, Hebrew edition (New York: Kehot, 1990), 779.
take Igros Kodesh, which I had never read before, instead of the sichos? To this very day I have no idea. The only thing that I can sug- gest is that the Rebbe MHM put it into our minds that we should start using the Igros Kodesh to ask him questions.
There are thousands of stories of people who wrote to the Rebbe MHM through Igros Kodesh and received answers and blessings on a wide range of issues, ranging from day to day decisions to urgent medical issues. Miracles have occurred from these blessings. I am personally familiar with the case of someone who was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor and wrote to the Rebbe MHM through Igros Kodesh for a bracha (blessing). The answer was a strong bracha for good health. At the next medical examination there was no sign of the tumor.
What impresses me most about the answers in Igros Kodesh, how- ever, is their personal nature, i.e. the way in which the answer, orig- inally written to someone else, is often a perfect fit for the question that someone is now asking. This is similar to prophecy, where the recorded words of the prophet are meant for all generations. The Rebbe MHM’s letters were written not just to the person who wrote to him and asked for a blessing, but to all those who would seek his instruction and blessing and receive this letter as an answer for years to come. (I have received answers in Igros Kodesh where a certain phrase seemed to me to fit the question that I was asking even more than it fit the letter printed there.)
It is significant to note, in connection with this, what the Rebbe MHM said in a sicha on Rosh Chodesh of II Adar, 5749. He said he was “verifying” receipt of the letters that he had received with requests for blessings etc., and that this certification applied also to letters that were sent to him but not yet received-and even those let- ters that would be sent in the future. This includes the letters that we are writing now.
The Letter That Arrived Twice
Three brothers from Mexico came to Israel to learn in yeshivas. Although they were not Lubavitchers, one of them went to learn in a Lubavitch yeshiva and the other two went to Litvishe (Orthodox) yeshivas. In time, one of these two became acquainted with Chabad
Chassidus and transferred to the Lubavitch Yeshiva in Migdal HaEmek. He tried to influence the third brother to do the same but he wasn’t interested. Yet, after a while he also became familiar with Chassidus and began to wonder if, perhaps, he should follow his brother to the Lubavitch Yeshiva.
He decided to consult with his rosh yeshiva (the dean) on the mat- ter. The rosh yeshiva was sympathetic to the young man’s request and told him that, to be honest, he would prefer that the student remain with him. At the same time, he continued, since he had a personal interest in the matter, he could not be completely objective and sug- gested that the student consult with someone who is totally commit- ted to truthfulness. Thus he recommended that the student consult with the Amshinover Rebbe.
The student went to the Amshinover Rebbe who said that since the young man felt drawn to Lubavitch, he should go there. After a pause he added that this was his own opinion. If he wanted a higher level opinion (which he referred to as da’as elyon), the student should write a letter to the Rebbe MHM via the Igros Kodesh.
The student followed through with this advice. He opened Igros Kodesh to a letter that the Rebbe MHM had written to a rosh yeshi- va in Germany many years before. The rosh yeshiva was asking the Rebbe MHM to advise him on where he should send his young son to yeshiva. His response was that the boy should learn “where his heart desires.”
Now the young man in our story knew that he had his answer— that he should learn in a Lubavitcher yeshiva. He went back to his rosh yeshiva to tell him what happened. The rosh yeshiva was very impressed by the answer his student had received in Igros Kodesh and asked to see the letter. When he saw the letter he was totally astounded. The letter was about him. The rosh yeshiva in Germany was his father who had written to the Rebbe MHM many years before regarding his young son—this rosh yeshiva.54
Finding a Way
It is important to remember that the Igros Kodesh is not some
“The Letter That Arrived Twice,” Beis Moshiach, 16 MarCheshvan, 5761, 26.
machine or a computer that has a database of answers. It is the Rebbe MHM himself who is answering our questions. He “finds a way” to answer. Thus we see that there are variations on the way the question is asked and the way that it is answered. Sometimes the answer does not come through the pages of Igros Kodesh. This is because it is the Rebbe MHM who is answering, not the book. Let me give some examples of this.
About ten years ago I had a serious legal problem. I was not partic- ularly worried about it because there were standard procedures for dealing with such a problem and if everything went smoothly I would have the problem solved before the court date. But things did not go smoothly. The assistance that I was expecting did not come through.
As the court date neared things looked very serious and difficult. I realized that it was time to ask the Rebbe MHM for help. I came to “770,” went over to the bookcase where the volumes of Igros Kodesh are held, took one at random and opened it. I read the letters on both pages and, to my great disappointment, I didn’t see any answer to my question or any statement of reassurance.
As I stood there dumbfounded, wondering what was going to hap- pen to me, I noticed a young man whom I did not know running towards me urgently. As he approached me he called out, “Rabbi Silman, how do you say ‘nimna ha’nimnaos’ in English?” When I heard his question, I burst out laughing because his question was my answer. ‘Nimna ha’nimnaos’ means that G-d can do the impossible, as I explained to the bewildered young man. Indeed, with G-d’s help everything worked out fine for me.
The main thing is to present the question to MHM. He will find a way to answer it.
Finally, I would like to mention that part of the title of this book came from an answer in Igros Kodesh. Initially, the title was “Scientific Thought in Messianic Times.” A number of years ago, on the Rebbe MHM’s birthday, I wrote a letter to him about my progress on the book. In the letter in Igros Kodesh, the Rebbe MHM had written “Thank you for your book ‘She’eris Yisroel.’” Of course, I understood that the part that said “Thank you for your book” was an answer to me, but the title “She’eris Yisroel” did not seem relevant.
Some time later it hit me that “She’eris Yisroel,” which means “the
remnant of Yisroel,” was a very appropriate title for the book since the Rebbe MHM had used a similar phrase in referring to Rabbi Yisroel Aryeh Leib’s mathematical paper.55 When the Rebbe MHM was dis- cussing the manuscript of the paper with Professor Rosenbloom, the mathematician to whom he gave the paper to edit and publish, he said that it was written by his brother who had passed away. “That is the only thing left of him,” the Rebbe MHM said.56
Hence the title “She’eris Yisroel.”
Beyond Brain Waves
We have been discussing the concept of Chaim Nitzchi’im—the everlasting lives of certain tzaddikim—especially the Chaim Nitzchi’im of the Rebbe MHM. Our discussion has been based on sources in the Talmud, Kabbala and Chassidus. Can the modern sci- entific mind grasp all this or must it be accepted totally on faith?
Indeed, one may say that this concept of a tzadik being alive after he apparently passed away is incomprehensible and would have to be accepted on faith. If we reflect on the matter, however, we realize that life itself—a soul in a body—is no less incomprehensible. How is it that a soul gives life to a body? How is it that there is life in the first place? We don’t think about this too much because it’s part of our everyday experience. We take it for granted.
It is for this very reason that the Chachomim enacted that we say blessing on everything that we benefit from in this world—so that we remember G-d and don’t take his wondrous creation for granted. The daily blessing Asher Yotzar (on the creation and functioning of the body) ends with the words umafli la’asos—that G-d acts wondrously. One explanation of this is that it refers to the wondrous way that G- d unites the soul with the body to maintain a person’s life.
On the night of Simchas Torah 5711 (1950), the Rebbe MHM instructed the Chassidim going out to the various synagogues for hakofos to tell the people there that “Moshe did not die.” He was not just quoting the Talmud’s statement about Moshe Rabbeinu, whose apparent passing is mentioned in the Torah reading of Simchas
Reprinted in the Appendix of this book, with a commentary.See chap. II, sec. 2 for their full dialogue.
Torah. He was delivering a much more contemporary message. Several months earlier, the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe had “passed away” and the Rebbe MHM was delivering the message that the “Moshe” of our generation i.e. the Nasi of the generation—the Previous Rebbe—did not die!
The Rebbe MHM continued to say that if the people hearing this message have difficulty accepting it, the Chassidim should tell them—just like a teacher tells a child—“When you grow up you will understand.”57 From this we see that it’s actually possible to under- stand Chaim Nitzchi’im, not just believe in it.
So again we ask: “How can the modern scientific mind grasp the concept that a tzadik may be alive—body and soul together—while from all external indications it appears that he died?”
We claim that it is particularly the modern scientific mind that is in the best position to comprehend this. In the Introduction we dis- cussed the sicha in which the Rebbe MHM explains that the reason modern science (the “fountains of wisdom from below”) was revealed in recent times was in order to provide concepts that would help the mind grasp the revelations of the Era of Moshiach. In recent years a medical procedure was developed which will help us grasp the con- cept of Chaim Nitzchi’im that we have been discussing.
A woman was found to have a swollen artery (aneurysm) in her brain. Conventional brain surgery could not be performed because if they operated on the artery while the blood was still circulating in the brain the artery could burst at any time and she would die. As the surgeon explained it, it would be like operating on a tense balloon. She was operated on by a medical team at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, led by cardiac surgeon Dr. Craig Smith and neurosurgeon Dr. Robert Solomon, that has been successful at performing a radi- cally different type of surgery.
In their procedure they circulate the blood of the patient out of the body and through a refrigeration unit, thus lowering the body tem- perature until first the heart stops, then at about 64o F the brain waves cease! At this point the patient is scientifically and legally dead.
The team then proceeds to drain about half of the patient’s blood
Toras Menachem–Hisvaaduyos, 5711, 1:36. Reproduced in Majesky, Likutei Mekoros, 241.
out of the body, deflating the artery. The blood is stored until they are ready to transfuse it back into the patient after operating on the aneurysm.
After the operation they warm the blood again as they circulate it through the body, starting the heart again and restoring brain func- tion.58 When a reporter asked this woman how she felt about the fact that she was “dead” during the procedure, she responded simply, “I’m alive now!”
The patients in these cases are just regular human beings, not tzadikim. If a regular human being, who is subject to the laws of nature, can still be alive for a certain amount of time even after all signs of life—including brain waves—have stopped, it should be easy to accept the statements in the Talmud, Kabbalah and Chassidus that certain tzadikim who are not subject to the laws of nature contin- ue to live even though it may appear that they died!
Suddenly He Will Enter His Chamber
On the night of Simchas Torah, 5754 (1993), over a year and a half after the stroke, a chosid59 approached the Rebbe MHM with the well known photograph of the Rebbe MHM energetically waving both arms. The chosid asked if we would see him again as in the pho- tograph. The Rebbe MHM nodded his head, responding “Yes.” After the holiday, to verify the response, the chosid repeated the question in a letter to the Rebbe MHM, asking: “Will the Chassidim again see the Rebbe Shlita doing as in the enclosed picture, with the same physical capabilities (standing, waving both arms, mitoch simcha) and even more? We ask the Rebbe Shlita for his blessings that this occur soon.” The Rebbe MHM again responded in the affirmative.
We implore the Al-mighty to bring about the complete revelation of the Rebbe MHM immediately so that “all flesh may see it.” We anxiously anticipate the fulfillment of the words of the prophet Malachi regarding Melech HaMoshiach: “Suddenly, the master whom you are seeking will enter his chamber.”60
N
CBS News, “60 Minutes,” April 2, 1995.Mr. Meir Schreiber of Crown Heights. (The underlining in the quote is in his orig- inal letter.)
Epilogue: The Lawyers Agree
In 1995 I was working with a group of lawyers to incorporate our organization, the Rabbi Yisroel Aryeh Leib Research Institute on Moshiach and the Sciences, as a non-profit organization. The process was going smoothly and was almost concluded. Then one day my lawyers asked me to submit a paper stating the purpose of the Institute, its background and the concepts on which it was based. I wrote this all out explaining that our purpose is to investigate devel- opments in science and technology that are characteristic of the Messianic Era. I explained that this is based on the statements of the Rebbe MHM, who is still alive, that we are currently in the Messianic Era and that all aspects of the redemption have already begun.
After sending this document to the lawyers, I received a phone call from them. It was a conference call between my two lawyers, myself, and a third lawyer, a friend of mine who had referred me to them. They were all very serious. My lawyers said that they could not sub- mit a document that stated that the Rebbe MHM is alive to the gov- ernment. I calmly explained to them that there should be no prob- lem, since it is not the business of the government to make decisions regarding people’s religious beliefs. But they insisted that they just couldn’t do it. This went back and forth for a while.
Thinking that they were just trying to pressure me, I continued to argue my case. Finally, they said that if I insisted on making such a statement in the document, they could no longer represent my organization. They said that it would really cause me no difficulty if they withdrew since the application process was almost complete and I could complete it myself. They would even advise me and tell me how to do it. But they could not officially represent me.
At that point I realized that they really intended to withdraw. Seeing that I had lost my case with them, I decided to make my clos- ing statement. “Listen,” I said to them, “if you want to withdraw that’s your decision. But you should know that not only is the Rebbe MHM alive, but he has said that his father-in-law, the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe is also alive.”
Malachi 3:1.
As soon as I said that, they reversed their position completely. They began to apologize. “We’re sorry. We didn’t mean anything,” they began to say. “We can find a way to do it. We will write a cover letter explaining that these are the beliefs of our client. It will be OK.” And that’s exactly what they did. I had no idea why they reversed their position but everything was approved and the RYAL Institute became registered as a non-profit organization in the State of New York.
Then one evening, several months later, I happened to pick up an old Beis Moshiach magazine and started paging through it. I noticed a reprint of the sicha of 15 Tammuz, 5745 (1985) where the Rebbe MHM was addressing an issue related to the seforim (books) of the Previous Rebbe. Someone had made the claim that the Previous Rebbe’s seforim should be the inheritance of his heirs. But the Rebbe MHM said that this is not the case at all since the Previous Rebbe is alive and therefore no concept of inheritance applies. He concluded his statement by saying that no Rabbi and no lawyer will ever succeed in making a case for the inheritance of these books since the Previous Rebbe is alive!
Suddenly, I understood why my lawyers had reversed their position as soon as I mentioned that the Previous Rebbe is alive. It was because the Rebbe MHM had already decreed that no lawyer will ever succeed in going against the fact that the Previous Rebbe is alive!
The Lawyer’s Story
A few years later, on the holiday of Pesach, when Lubavitcher Chassidim, following the Rebbe MHM’s directive, go out to various shuls (synagogues) to speak, I went to a certain shul in Brooklyn and spoke about the Era of Moshiach and about the Rebbe MHM’s state- ments that we are currently in the Era of Moshiach and that all aspects of the redemption have already begun. Everyone was very interested in what I was saying and very receptive to it, with one exception. There was one man—a lawyer—who took a negative posi- tion and challenged some of the things that I said. I returned there on the holiday of Shavuos and spoke again, and once again this lawyer challenged me. We talked privately after each of my speech- es and in the end he agreed with me on some things and disagreed on others.
That summer, the rabbi of the shul invited me to lecture at a spe- cial program they were making for Gimmel Tammuz. As the partici- pants began to arrive, I saw that the lawyer was among them. This upset me. “Why did he come here,” I asked myself, “Just to argue with me?” My lecture was to be about the everlasting life of the Rebbe MHM. I was going to explain to them that the Rebbe MHM is alive. I was concerned about how the listeners—especially this lawyer—would receive this most delicate of all the Messianic con- cepts.
I began my lecture. I presented to them the same concepts that I wrote about in this section, and I concluded with the story about the incorporation of the RYAL Institute that I mentioned above, explain- ing that the Rebbe MHM had decreed that no lawyer could ever go against the fact that the Previous Rebbe is alive.
At this point the lawyer spoke up. “Yes, it’s all true!” he called out, and he began to tell his story. Some years before, he was working on a case for the government. A certain very important file that he was working on was misplaced and could not be found. He was in great distress. If the file was not found, all his work would be for nothing and it would cause him great difficulty. But the file was nowhere to be found.
As he was involved with Chabad, he decided to go the Ohel of the Previous Rebbe and pray. That night he had a dream in which he saw the Previous Rebbe looking through the file cabinets in a large stor- age room, searching for the missing file. The storage room, which he recognized from his office building, was full of filing cabinets. Suddenly, the Rebbe pulled a file out of a file drawer and held it up. It was the missing file! The lawyer then woke up.
The next morning, when he arrived at his office, someone walked in to his office and presented him with the missing file. “I believe that the Previous Rebbe is alive,” the lawyer concluded his story. “I believe that he came to my office building—maybe even physically— and searched the file room until he found my lost file.”
Once again, the lawyers confirmed the fact that the Previous Rebbe is alive.