Igrot Kodesh · Letter 960 — Chinuch

By the grace of Hashem,
25 Adar Sheni 5711,
Brooklyn,

To the Rav, distinguished chassid* who has yiras Shamayim*, Rav I.[1],

Greetings and blessings,

Enclosed I send you the kuntres* edited on the occasion of 2 Nissan, the date of the hilula* of the Rebbe Rashab. You will no doubt make it available to the greatest number, and it will in particular be studied during Shabbos* Parshas HaChodesh, Rosh Chodesh* Nissan and the following day, the day of the hilula*. Indeed, the sicha* contained in this kuntres* develops the following explanation.

The disciples of the one whose hilula* we are commemorating, their children and grandchildren, possess his strength — that of the man who teaches Torah to the children of others. They are therefore committed to this teacher, the one whose hilula* we are commemorating.

Even more, those who only saw him[2] also possess this strength, that of the teacher he was.

More still, those who did not see him have no less his strength, that of the man who delegates them. Thanks to this strength, they are his shluchim*, identifying with the one who appoints them.

In this sense, one can distinguish several levels[3].

The shliach* can receive the authorization and the power to act on behalf of the one who delegates him. For all that, it is indeed his own action, for he retains his own personality, which is marked in all areas. Nevertheless, he wishes to carry through the mission entrusted to him.

One can also charge the shliach* to act in such a way that his action belongs to the one who delegates him. Within the framework of the mission entrusted to him, the latter can no longer accomplish anything for his own account. He embodies the strength of the one who delegates him.

One can also instill in the shliach* a strength that makes him lose all independent existence. From then on, the latter is, properly speaking, the one who delegates him.

Each person belongs to one of these categories and therefore receives, within its framework, full responsibility.

In accordance with the words of my father-in-law, the Rebbe, in this sicha*, "we must be aware of the strengths placed at our disposal, and may Hashem help us" to give them concrete application, to attain the desired objective and, according to the explanation of the one whose hilula* we are commemorating, to become "a luminous candle" in all the aspects developed in the introduction of this kuntres*.

With my blessing and with greetings to your entire kehilla*,

Notes
[1] This "personal collective" letter was sent to several persons. See letter no. 481 on this subject.
[2] The Rebbe notes at the bottom of the page: "See Tractate Eruvin 13b, the Yerushalmi Beitzah, chapter 5, paragraph 2: 'I had the merit of being a Torah scholar only because I saw him.'"
[3] The Rebbe notes at the bottom of the page: "One can, in fact, subjugate one's personality without abolishing it or, on the contrary, abolish it entirely. Thus the beinoni*, the average man of the Tanya, only repels his evil feelings, according to chapter 35 of the Tanya, and he reasons by the strengths of his own intellect, according to chapter 37. It is not the same for the tzaddik*. One will find illustrations of all this in the revealed part of the Torah in Tractates Gittin 29b and Kiddushin 43a. You should also consult the Lekach Tov of Rav Y. Engel, who explains all this in detail, at the first principle."