"Cheder" three hundred forty-two in the palace of Hayom Yom.
Thursday, 6 Cheshvan 5704.
Shiurim: Chumash, Lech-Lecha, fifth aliyah, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim: for the sixth of the month, from chapter 35 through chapter 38 inclusive.
Tanya: On this day we study Iggeret 26. The daily lesson begins on page 143 with the words "ve'od yesh," and concludes on page 286 with the words "behester ku'."
The quotation appearing today — which includes a story — is taken from a letter written by the Rebbe on 23 Iyar 5702. In its original form this is a very long and sharply worded letter, explaining the polarity between the approach of Chassidus in general and Chabad Chassidus in particular, in matters of faith in G-dliness, the holiness of the Torah, the purity of the practical mitzvos, and the radiance of the customs of Israel — as they are received among the chassidim, as opposed to the way they are received among those he calls "people of the world."
Toward the conclusion of the letter, the Rebbe relates that among the community of chassidim there were also businessmen who were exceedingly wealthy, yet their entire essence was solely in avodas Hashem; even when they were engaged in commerce, their true essence was in avodas Hashem. He notes that there were hundreds of such chassidim, but in the letter he brings only a few examples. The Rebbe chooses to insert the teaching in the third example, but for the sake of completeness I will also bring the two preceding examples that appear in the letter itself.
One example the Rebbe brings is of a chassid named Reb Binyamin Kletzker. It is told about him that he once traveled to Leipzig to buy merchandise, for he was a businessman. He stood by one of the windows and began to contemplate, and being so deeply absorbed in his contemplation and in his thoughts, he stood that way for seven hours, and no one disturbed him — until his brother-in-law arrived there, who was also a chassid of the Alter Rebbe and a renowned Jew, named Reb Pinchas Reizes. His brother-in-law approached him, tapped him on the shoulder, and asked: "What are you thinking about?" Reb Binyamin roused himself from his thoughts and said to his brother-in-law: "Where were you? The Rebbe just gave an explanation on the maamar 'Shechora Ani' ('I am black')." He recalled a maamar he had heard from the Alter Rebbe twenty years earlier, and became so immersed in the matter that he experienced it as though it were happening right then, and when his brother-in-law roused him, he said to him: "Where were you at all? The Rebbe gave an explanation on the maamar." This is one example.
The Rebbe brings a second example from a chassid named Chaim-Ber Vilenski, who lived in Kremenchug and owned a wine business. He traveled to Kishinev to buy wine and arrived at the merchant from whom he was supposed to make the purchase, but the merchant was not at home. R' Chaim-Ber sat down to wait until he would arrive, and in the meantime he did not let his time go to waste but rather began to think about Chassidus. When the homeowner arrived and saw the visiting merchant immersed and absorbed in his thoughts, he did not disturb him and gave him time. An hour passed, and another hour, about four hours, and he did not disturb him. After four hours, when he saw that night was approaching, he decided that he had to disturb him, so he approached and said to him "Shalom aleichem." R' Chaim-Ber woke up, and at that moment he forgot where he was; in his imagination he was at home in Kremenchug, and when he saw the wine merchant before him and recognized him, he said to him: "When did you arrive in Kremenchug? After all, we didn't meet." That is how much their entire world was — the world of Chassidus. This is the second example.
The third example is the one the Rebbe brings in the teaching. "When the Alter Rebbe wished to bless R. Yekusiel Liepler with wealth, he said that he did not desire this" — when the Alter Rebbe wished to bless Rabbi Yekusiel Liepler with wealth, he said that he had no desire for it. Why? As he explains: "so that the wealth would not distract him from studying Chassidus and engaging in avodah" — he was concerned that the wealth would distract him from the study of Chassidus and from engaging in avodah; for if he were to have great wealth he would be preoccupied, and he did not desire that, but rather to study Chassidus and engage in avodas Hashem, and the wealth was not something he needed.
The Alter Rebbe sought to bless him a second time — "and when he wished to bless him with length of days," when he wished to bless him with length of days, Reb Yekusiel made a condition, and stated what kind of days he was prepared to receive as a blessing. "He said: But not with the life of peasants, who 'have eyes but see not, have ears but hear not' — who do not see G-dliness and do not hear G-dliness" — he did not want days that are like the life of simple people, simple peasants, who have no concept whatsoever of G-dliness. He used the wording of the verse in Tehillim (chapter 115): "they have eyes but see not, they have ears but hear not" — people who do not see G-dliness and do not hear G-dliness; such a life he did not want at all. This was the chassid Reb Yekusiel Liepler.
It is noteworthy that in the famous kuntres "Inyanah shel Toras HaChassidus," the Rebbe brings this story and explains at length that this movement of the soul comes about when the yechidah of the soul is revealed; for then nothing else holds any meaning, there is no meaning in life, unless it is a life of Torah and mitzvos. The Rebbe asks there, ostensibly: they wish to bless you with long life — why do you set conditions? Take what is given to you! But the point is that, from his perspective, he feels no gratitude at all for a life that is not a life of Torah and mitzvos, and therefore, if it is not that kind of life — he has no desire for it whatsoever.
And in actual fact he merited length of days. As is known, Rabbi Yekusiel — from which we understand that he was a chassid of the Alter Rebbe — merited to be also by the Mitteler Rebbe, by the Tzemach Tzedek, and also by the Rebbe Maharash. He lived a long life, close to one hundred years, and of course he had a life as he wished — that was his life.
And with the help of Hashem, when we reach 1 Kislev we will encounter another teaching, another step in the distinctive conduct of this chassid, Reb Yekusiel Liepler.