We are at the fifteenth lesson in the chain of the generations, and in it we begin the life story of the Rebbe the Tzemach Tzedek, which is presented in section 3.
"His Honorable Holiness the Rebbe, our teacher and master Menachem Mendel" - after whom was the Rebbe the Tzemach Tzedek named? After Rebbe Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk, who passed away on Rosh Chodesh Iyar 5548 - a year and five months before the birth of the Tzemach Tzedek, who was born, as we will see shortly, at the end of the year 5549, on the very last day of the year. He was the first in the Rebbe's household to be named after Rebbe Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk.
"Born in the year 5549, on the eve of Rosh Hashanah" - he was born on the last day of the year 5549, which is the eve of Rosh Hashanah of 5550. Although in various places there are discussions and uncertainties as to exactly which year he was born, here it is stated decisively, without any doubt, that the date of his birth was the eve of Rosh Hashanah of 5550. And it is told in the biographies that immediately when the Tzemach Tzedek was born, the Alter Rebbe gave a special piece of cloth in which the infant was to be swaddled for the first time after being washed; and he did the same at the birth of the Mitteler Rebbe. It is not told what the history of that cloth was, but this is what is related about the birth of the Tzemach Tzedek.
5562 - the Tzemach Tzedek, at the age of twelve, "begins to write chiddushei Torah in nigleh and in Dach [chassidus], what he heard from His Honorable Holiness his grandfather" - from the Alter Rebbe, his grandfather - "and his own chiddushim in explaining the concepts". That is, he recorded what he heard from his grandfather in nigleh and in chassidus, and also added his own chiddushim to explain the matters he had heard. Already from the age of twelve he began to write chassidus.
"5563 - his wedding", which took place on 5 Kislev, when he was thirteen years and two months old; for he was born at the end of 5549, on the eve of Rosh Hashanah of 5550. As we already related in the life story of the Mitteler Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek married the third daughter of the Mitteler Rebbe, Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka. Here the Rebbe does not mention whom he married, because it was already written in the previous passage. The previous Rebbe relates that when the Tzemach Tzedek was eight years old, the Alter Rebbe already spoke with his son, the Mitteler Rebbe, about taking him as a groom for his daughter Chaya Mushka; that is, the Alter Rebbe planned this well in advance, and in practice the wedding took place at the age of thirteen years and two months.
"5566", when he was sixteen years old - "His Honorable Holiness the Alter Rebbe", his grandfather, "entrusts to him and to his grandfather's brother, the brother of our Alter Rebbe, our teacher Rav Yehuda Leib, the incoming questions, to answer them". The Alter Rebbe used to receive questions in various fields - simple Jews and rabbis who asked questions requiring a detailed response with sources - and all these questions he gave over to the two of them, each one to answer in his own way: to his brother the Maharil, Rebbe Yehuda Leib, about whom we already spoke in connection with the Alter Rebbe, and to his grandson the Tzemach Tzedek, that they should write responses on the matter.
After each of them wrote according to his own approach, they brought the material to the Alter Rebbe, and he answered the questioners as he saw fit; but before he answered, he wanted to receive the opinion of both of them, each according to his own method. In the Rebbe's farbrengen on Shabbos Bereishis 5719 this account is expanded upon, that the Alter Rebbe noted the differences between the style and the approach to the subject in the Maharil's answers and those of the Tzemach Tzedek. The Rebbe explains at length there that this is the difference between seeing and hearing: to grasp the essential point first and then to see how to work out the details, or the opposite - to proceed from the details to the general principle. Each of them had a different approach in how he saw things, and this was already evident at the age of sixteen.
"5569", when he was nineteen years old - the Tzemach Tzedek "travels with His Honorable Holiness the Alter Rebbe to Volhynia". Regarding this journey there is no elaboration in the sources and the books as to exactly what purpose they traveled for. And it is possible that the name of the place here should be corrected: instead of Volhynia - Vitebsk. For in the previous Rebbe's Sefer HaSichos of the year 5701 there is an account of a journey that took place in that same year, in 5569, to Vitebsk. The previous Rebbe describes that in Vitebsk there was a great dispute among the rabbis and the leaders of the city as to how to run the city and how to set matters right, and they could not reach common ground; and then it was decided that the Alter Rebbe would come to them to settle the matter. He relates that the Alter Rebbe traveled with his brother, Rebbe Moshe, and with the famous chassid Rebbe Pinchas Reizes, and took with him his grandson the Tzemach Tzedek, who was then nineteen years old, and said: he is young in years, but old in knowledge of Torah. The three of them traveled to bring order to the leadership of the city of Vitebsk. It is possible, then, that this is the journey being referred to, even though it is written Volhynia, which is a different place.
"5570", when he was twenty years old - "His Honorable Holiness the Alter Rebbe entrusts to him and to his uncle, the son of our Alter Rebbe, our teacher Rav Reb Moshe, the involvement in communal matters". That is, the Alter Rebbe placed the handling of the general affairs of the chassidim and other communal matters in the hands of two people: his son Rebbe Moshe, and his grandson the Tzemach Tzedek. The Tzemach Tzedek took this upon himself, even though he himself did not like being occupied with communal affairs, and preferred to sit and learn undisturbed.
And how do we know that he did not like it? From the fact that all of this continued only until the passing of his grandfather, the Alter Rebbe, on 24 Teves 5573. As we learn here in a further passage: "5574 - 5587" - over the course of about twelve years - "he secludes himself and learns with great diligence". After the passing of the Alter Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek moved to live in Lubavitch together with the Mitteler Rebbe, but around the end of 5574 he secluded himself and said: "I want to learn Torah with great diligence", and he stipulated that he not be disturbed at all with communal matters. For twelve years he did not want to be involved in anything, until the year 5587, which is the end of the Mitteler Rebbe's leadership. That is, throughout the entire period of the Mitteler Rebbe he did not want to be occupied with communal affairs; when his grandfather placed the task upon him - he did it, but afterwards he did not want to.
"5588 - accepting the leadership". The Mitteler Rebbe passed away on 9 Kislev 5588, and then the Tzemach Tzedek accepted the leadership - but not immediately; he did not agree to accept it right away upon the passing of his father-in-law and uncle, the Mitteler Rebbe. As is related, the matter took half a year, until the month of Sivan, until the eve of the festival of Shavuos of that year, 5588. There were delegations, attempts and pressures, and he did not agree; and on the eve of the festival of Shavuos he accepted the leadership.
It is told that great chassidim came to him, headed by the chassid Rebbe Peretz Chen, together with Rebbe Hillel of Paritch and Rebbe Yitzchak Isaac of Vitebsk. Of the three of them, Rebbe Peretz Chen was the main speaker, and he said to the Tzemach Tzedek: I have explicit proof from the words of Chazal that only you must accept the leadership. The Tzemach Tzedek responded and said: one may not make light of the sayings of Chazal, say what you have to say.
He said to him: the verse says "When a woman conceives and gives birth to a male", and Chazal say about this that when the man emits seed first - she gives birth to a female, and when the woman emits seed first - she gives birth to a male. So let us make a reckoning: the man emits seed first - that is your grandfather, the Alter Rebbe; what does she give birth to? A female - and who is that daughter? Your mother. A woman who emits seed first gives birth to a male - that is your mother, and you were born. It turns out that you are the direct continuation of the Alter Rebbe, and you must accept the leadership.
And it is interesting that in the Hayom Yom saying for 28 Iyar it is related that the Tzemach Tzedek saw his grandfather in a vision at night on the thirtieth day after his passing, and the Alter Rebbe said to him in the dream exactly the same thing - this entire reckoning - already on the thirtieth day after his passing. But only years later, when he heard those very words from Rebbe Peretz Chen, did he agree to accept the leadership, on the eve of the festival of Shavuos 5588.