The fifty-seventh "room" in the palace of Hayom Yom.
Shabbos, 17 Shevat, Shabbos Shirah, 5703.
"Shabbos Shirah" is the name given to the Shabbos on which we read Shiras Hayam, which is in parashas Beshalach. The daily teaching has several parts: first, in addition to the shiurim, three customs that the Rebbe notes; and afterwards a story in which two entirely heavenly accounts are interwoven, which the Rebbe shares with us.
We will begin with the customs. The first custom, written at the head of the teaching: "We stand during the reading of the Shirah". As long as the baal korei is reading Shiras Hayam, we stand. The source of the custom: there is a journal entry that the Rebbe wrote in the year 5691, in which he relates what he heard from the Rebbe Rayatz, his father-in-law, about the practice of the Rebbe Rashab during krias haTorah. There the Rebbe relates three things connected to krias haTorah. First, that almost always at krias haTorah, throughout the entire year, he would stand, with his face turned to the side.
Then there is a reference there to specific readings. At the reading of the Shirah, which is in parashas Beshalach, and at the Aseres HaDibros, which is in parashas Yisro, he of course stood as well, but he would turn his face toward the Sefer Torah; whereas at Shiras Miriam, at the end of parashas Beshalach, he would turn his face toward the Aron Kodesh. So it is described in the Rebbe's journal. Out of all of this the Rebbe conveys only the line "We stand during the reading of the Shirah" - which became the accepted custom, that one must stand. He does not note in which direction the face should be turned, but simply says "we stand".
The second custom that the Rebbe notes is the haftorah that is said on Shabbos Beshalach. There are various customs regarding this haftorah: among Sephardim the practice is to begin the haftorah from the words "Vatashar Devorah", whereas our custom is to begin from "UDevorah ishah neviah". The Rebbe notes the second custom - "The haftorah: UDevorah ishah neviah" - in order to emphasize how we conduct ourselves in the saying of the haftorah.
Shiurim: Chumash, Beshalach, shevi'i, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim, the 17th of the month, from chapter 83 through chapter 87 inclusive.
Tanya, on this day we begin to learn chapter 22 from the word "Rak", and conclude the daily shiur at the word "Tamid".
Before the teaching itself there is another custom. The Rebbe says in Yiddish, and in translation: "The custom is to eat black kasha [buckwheat]". What is the source of the custom and what is its idea? Since on this Shabbos, Shabbos Shirah, Shabbos Beshalach, we read about the descent of the mon, there is a custom to eat on it a food made of wheat or of grains, in order to mark the miracle of the descent of the mon. And here it is written that our custom is to eat buckwheat, which is of those ingredients that remind us of the matter of the descent of the mon.
From here comes the teaching, which is really a story. So that things be orderly, we will first state their course briefly, and afterwards read it from within. The Rebbe notes that the Tzemach Tzedek said a certain maamar in the year 5621 - and it is the first maamar printed at the beginning of Likkutei Torah, whose dibur hamaschil is a verse from parashas Beshalach: "R'u ki Havayah nosan lachem haShabbos". This maamar, which the Tzemach Tzedek said in the year 5621, is a maamar of the Alter Rebbe, which he said in the year 5565.
And here there is an interesting addition: the Tzemach Tzedek called in his son, the Rebbe Maharash, and told him a heavenly story. What did he tell him? The Tzemach Tzedek related that the Alter Rebbe told him thus: "When I was by the Maggid of Mezritch, in the year 5529, the Maggid called me in and told me a story". The Maggid told him that he merited to hear from the Baal Shem Tov a certain maamar three times - once in a natural way, and twice in a heavenly way.
That is: once the Baal Shem Tov said the maamar to him in the year 5516, during the Baal Shem Tov's lifetime (for the Baal Shem Tov passed away in 5528), on the verse "Vayashav hayam lifnos boker l'eisano", on Shabbos Beshalach. Afterwards, one year after the passing of the Baal Shem Tov, in the year 5521, the Baal Shem Tov revealed himself to the Maggid and said to him once again that same maamar, with an added explanation. All of this the Maggid relates to the Alter Rebbe in the year 5529, and then he adds: "Today" - in 5529, already nine years after the passing of the Baal Shem Tov - "the Baal Shem Tov was here with me again and said the maamar before me a second time".
Here we have a heavenly matter: the Baal Shem Tov said the maamar three times - once in his lifetime in this world, and twice more after his passing: once a year after his passing, and a second time nine years later. And the second time he added an explanation beyond the previous time.
Now the teaching concludes with another heavenly matter. All of this the Tzemach Tzedek told his son, the Rebbe Maharash - what he had heard from the Alter Rebbe many years earlier, what the Maggid had told him. And at the end the Tzemach Tzedek adds another heavenly matter, and says to his son: "Today" - in 5621 - "the Baal Shem Tov, the Maggid and the Alter Rebbe were here with me" - all three of them already after their passing - "and they said this maamar to me, each one in his own style".
When the Tzemach Tzedek finished telling this story to the Rebbe Maharash, there is a description in the sichos of the Rebbe Rayatz that the Rebbe Maharash was in complete astonishment and did not come back to himself; it took him several hours to recover from what he had heard. It is described there that even though the Rebbe Maharash was really a person capable of what ordinary people are not capable of - for a person cannot think two thoughts at one time, while the Rebbe Maharash was capable of thinking three analytical thoughts simultaneously and answering each person in his own matter - nevertheless, here he was in astonishment, and it took him three and a half hours to come back to himself. Afterwards, as the teaching concludes, the Tzemach Tzedek called him in - after he had calmed down - and said before him an explanation of his own on that maamar.
Now we will read it from within, so that the flow of things will be clearer. The wording of the teaching: "On Shabbos Beshalach of the year 5621 the "Tzemach Tzedek" said the maamar 'R'u ki Havayah' which is printed in "Likkutei Torah". And afterwards he related to his son, my grandfather [the Maharash]" - the Rebbe Maharash is, in relation to the Rebbe Rayatz, his grandfather. And he tells him thus: "On Shabbos Beshalach of the year 5565 my grandfather [the Alter Rebbe] said this maamar". Who is saying this? The Tzemach Tzedek, that his grandfather the Alter Rebbe said this maamar in the year 5565. And here comes the heavenly story.
"Afterwards he [the Alter Rebbe] called me in and told me" - he called in the Tzemach Tzedek and told him. What did the Alter Rebbe tell him? He shared with him "that in the year 5529, when he was in Mezritch, the Rav HaMaggid called him into his room and said to him: On Shabbos Beshalach of the year 5516 the Baal Shem Tov said a maamar on the verse 'Vayashav hayam lifnos boker l'eisano' - l'tna'o, as Chazal say", the content of which is, as Chazal say, that when the Holy One, blessed be He, split the sea, the sea necessarily opened, for from the outset, at the creation of the sea, the Holy One, blessed be He, made a condition with it that a day would come and it would open; and consequently the sea reverted according to the condition that was stipulated with it. This the Baal Shem Tov said in the year 5516.
The Maggid continued and told the Alter Rebbe: "In the year 5521" - and here the Rebbe notes in parentheses, so that the wonder of the matter be clear, "one year after the passing of the Baal Shem Tov" - "my master was here with me - the Maggid continued", his master, the Baal Shem Tov, "and said the maamar" - he said again the maamar on "Vayashav hayam lifnos boker", "and added an explanation" - he added after his passing a point of explanation, "in the matter of doing the will and not the word of the Omnipresent". It is written in Tehillim "osei devaro", and there is a saying of Chazal "osin retzono".
The Alter Rebbe relates that the Baal Shem Tov explained the precision of the wording - what the difference is between "osim retzono" and "osim devaro". We will state the content of the matter: it is like a father who says words of wisdom, and his son argues with him in his own wisdom and refutes his words. If you look at the thing superficially you will say: "Where is the derech eretz? The father said something, and why are you saying otherwise?"; but if you look deeply, the father has nachas - "See how wise my son is and how he succeeds". It emerges that the son is not only "doing the word" of the father but "doing his will", which is far deeper. So he explains that at times it appears that tzaddikim bring about something that is not exactly as the Holy One, blessed be He, said - and on the contrary, this is His will.
And the Alter Rebbe continues to relate what the Maggid said to him - a wonder even greater: besides the fact that the Baal Shem Tov had been with him a year after his passing, he said to him: "And today my master was here with me to review the maamar" - today, in the year 5529, nine years after the passing of the Baal Shem Tov, he was with me again. "And the Maggid said the maamar before the Alter Rebbe and added an explanation" - after relating to the Alter Rebbe all of the heavenly history, the Maggid shared the maamar with him, and added to what the Baal Shem Tov had said an explanation "in the matter of the Ginai river, that this is like the matter of the splitting of the Yam Suf".
The intent is to the well known story with Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair, who was going to redeem captives, and the river wanted to hold him up on the way. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair said to it: "I am carrying out the mission of my Master, and you are carrying out the mission of your Master". The river argued with him and said: "I certainly succeed, for I flow always, but you - who knows whether you will succeed". Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair said to it: "If you do not open now, I decree that no water shall ever be in you". And the Maggid added the explanation on this matter, that it is like the matter of the splitting of the Yam Suf: just as at the splitting of the Yam Suf the Holy One, blessed be He, stipulated with the sea from the outset that a day would come and it would open, so too with the Ginai river this condition was stipulated in advance, that when Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair would need to cross - it would open before him.
The Rebbe speaks about this maamar over the years, mentioned it in maamarim of chassidus and explained it at length. In one of the sichos the Rebbe says: what is the message to us from this whole story? That a Jew must know, that a chassid must know, that whenever he receives an instruction of what to do, and at times it seems to him that there is a "sea" that cannot be crossed - he should not be impressed by any difficulties, but should go; and when he goes with complete devotion, he will see that it will become clear to him beforehand that all the hindrances and obstacles never existed at all, and were only there to reveal how much devotion shines forth from him. This is the message of the teaching.
The conclusion of the teaching: "And he [the Tzemach Tzedek] concluded: Today the Baal Shem Tov, the Rav HaMaggid and my grandfather [the Alter Rebbe] were here with me and said the maamar to me, each one in his own style" - in 5621 all three of them were with the Tzemach Tzedek, and each one said to him the maamar on "Vayashav hayam lifnos boker l'eisano" in his own style. "After some hours" - and here it is not related what took place during them, since, as mentioned, the Rebbe Maharash was in astonishment such that he could not speak - after three and a half hours "the Tzemach Tzedek called in my grandfather", his son the Rebbe Maharash, "once again and said before him an explanation on the maamar", an explanation of his own on that same maamar that he had heard from the Baal Shem Tov, from the Maggid and from the Alter Rebbe, each one in his own style, and he too added according to his own style. Here, then, is a combination of two heavenly and utterly great stories.
It is interesting that in one of the sichos the Rebbe Rayatz says in the name of his father, after relating the story: "By them [by the Rebbeim] there was no boundary between the lower world and the upper world" - between this world and the upper world there was no partition whatsoever; they were here and they were there without any difference. And there is another interesting addition there: "In general, a head [the intent is to the head of the Jewish people, the Rebbe] - although he is a head, a head is a head, but he is in proportion to the body". There must be a proportion between the body and the head, and here we are speaking of heads who had heavenly matters beyond all proportion. With this the Rebbe Rayatz says that in earlier times klal Yisrael was more connected to spirituality - the body, the Jewish people, was more heavenly, and consequently the head too had far more heavenly matters. That is, there is a connection between the state of the people and the great revelations that the head has. This is the wording of the Rebbe Rayatz there.