English translation — וישלח-י"ט כסלו

1.

On the verse¹

"I have become small from all the kindnesses and from all etc.,"

is explained by the Alter Rebbe in his holy letter²

which he wrote "after his arrival from P'B",

"that with each and every kindness" which the Most High does with a person must effect in him that he become lowly of spirit,

because the kindness is "the closeness of God literally",

and the more kindness,

whoever is more "before Him" the more he is nullified,

"as nothing and naught and void".

And therefore Jacob said "I have become small from all the kindnesses etc.",

that through all the kindnesses which the Most High did with him, Jacob became small in his eyes.

Which this is the self-nullification that comes from the side of the closeness.

Rashi's commentary on the verse

("my merits have diminished through the kindnesses and the truth which You did with me,

therefore I am afraid lest since You promised me I became soiled with sin and it will cause me to be delivered into the hand of Esau")

is the plain meaning of the verse,

he explains why Jacob asked "deliver me please etc." having an explicit promise "and I will guard you etc."³

; "and I will be with you"⁴

— that this was because he was afraid "lest since You promised me I became soiled etc.";

The Alter Rebbe explains the words "I am diminished from all the kindnesses etc." as this is a Torah — a teaching in the service of God,

related and relevant to every Jew — that

The revelation of kindnesses from above must effect that he should be lowly of spirit.

This is also in accordance with the difference in manner between Yaakov's saying "I am diminished" and the manner in which the Alter Rebbe writes the Igeres HaKodesh: Yaakov said it as a prayer and request,

when he stood in a situation and state of danger and was afraid of Eisav — therefore one explains the reason for his fear and request etc.

The Alter Rebbe wrote the letter "after his arrival from Petersburg",

i.

e.

when he emerged from danger,

and the letter is

(together with the thanksgiving to the Almighty)

an instruction and warning to Chassidim,

"And therefore I have come from the informants to give a great notification to all our people about the abundance of kindnesses which G-d has magnified to do with us...

lest their hearts be haughty etc." — and in this situation the interpretation "that with every kindness and kindness that the Holy One, blessed be He, does for a person, he must be exceedingly lowly of spirit" is appropriate.

2.

One must, however, understand

(In the inwardness of the matters)⁵

: How is it indeed possible,

that Yaakov should fear "lest I have become soiled with sin" — how is such a thing possible regarding Yaakov?

It is understandable that "my merits have been diminished by the kindnesses and truth that You have done with me,"

because at the time "a miracle is performed for him," "they deduct from his merits"⁶

— this is, however, only a reason for the "they deduct from his merits,"

it becomes

but by this there is no sin that should cause the nullification of the promise from the Most High⁷?

This we must understand regarding the old Rebbe:

From that which the Alter Rebbe brings in that same Igeres HaKodesh not only "and this is also the attribute of Yaakov",

but also the continuation in explanation of the verses "and with this he excused his fear of Esav and was not satisfied with His promise 'and behold I am with you etc.' because Yaakov was very very small in his own eyes due to the abundance of kindnesses 'for with my staff etc.',

and he is not worthy and deserving at all to be saved etc.,

and as our sages of blessed memory said⁸

lest the sin cause that he imagines that he sinned" — it implies:

a)

That the explanation of the Alter Rebbe in "Katonti" etc. that this is the self-nullification that comes from the aspect of abundance of kindnesses,

from the aspect of closeness to G-d — is connected with the simple explanation,

that this means the fear of Yaakov because it seemed in his eyes that he had sinned.

b)

That also <b>the </b>matter pertains to the state as the Alter Rebbe was "after his arrival from Petersburg."

And it may be said that with this he also intends to hint,

that notwithstanding that while still in imprisonment he had the <b>promise </b>from the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid that he would be freed and would thereafter be able to further reveal Chassidus with greater excellence than before⁹

— nevertheless also "after his arrival from Petersburg" <b>he asks </b>the Almighty for this.

It is not understood:

How is it possible regarding the old Rebbe such a matter of "I am diminished — perhaps the sin may cause"?

3.

In general, the reasoning in this is: When one ascends to a higher level,

a thing which on a lower level was not a sin,

is counted as a sin on a higher level.

And the explanation in this is: Not only if he will now <b>anew</b> do the same deed will it be a sin

(this is not such a novelty)

— rather the <b>previous</b> already <b>done</b> deed,

which at the time of its doing was not a sin, therefore it pertains to Yaakov and to the Alter Rebbe — is one <b>now</b>,

in his higher level,

judging it¹⁰,

and he must do teshuvah on it¹¹.

This, however, is not sufficient.

True indeed that at the time of the deed it was not a sin, and nevertheless <b>in his ascent</b> it is considered like a sin,

But one must say that “not a simple matter” it should have been at the time of the deed as well.

For if everything was in the ultimate proper manner — then later too, teshuvah is not applicable to it¹².

The question remains, how is it possible to say this regarding Yaakov,

and then regarding the Alter Rebbe?

D.

The Panim Yafot explains the matter of "Katonti miKol haChasadim": regarding the ascents of souls from one world to a higher world

(for tzaddikim have no rest, etc., as it is said, "They go from strength to strength"¹³),

before they ascend to the higher world, they return to a state of smallness (katnut)

(which is as discussed in the introduction to "Chinuch Katan" regarding the matter of "For a tzaddik falls seven times and rises"¹⁴),

And in the language of the Panim Yafot: between the first greatness (gadlut rishon) and the second greatness (gadlut sheni) there is a second smallness (katnut sheni).

And this is the explanation of the verse "Katonti" etc.: regarding the ascents that Yaakov ascended from outside the Land to the Land of Israel,

before the ascent there was by him "Katonti".

And based on this will be understood what Yaakov requested "Save me please from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esav": since after the promise,

and also after the previous ascents,

there was by him the matter of "I am diminished" — he must come to "Save me please".

And as he explains in Panim Yafot,

that although the second smallness is higher than the first greatness¹⁵,

nevertheless,

since this is still a matter of smallness,

one must then have a great protection.

(Perhaps I have become soiled with)

sin" is from the language "I and my son Solomon are sinners"¹⁶,

that there is a deficiency

(smallness)

in his service relative to his standing and state the new.

And this itself is connected with the "multiplication of kindnesses" that the Above did with Yaakov,

which brought out in him not only that "my merits have diminished" but that his avodas Hashem itself now is in the category of

(katnus and)

deficiency&lt;sup&gt;17&lt;/sup&gt;,

because from the aspect of "the closeness to G-d actually with greater intensity than before"&lt;sup&gt;18&lt;/sup&gt;

the avodas Hashem must also be "with greater intensity than before",

and if his avodah is not so,

he is in the category of descent and fall and katnus]&lt;sup&gt;19&lt;/sup&gt;.

Hei.

Through this one will understand also in connection with the old Rebbe:

It is known²⁰,

that the matter of "your fountains shall spread forth outward" through the Alter Rebbe began primarily after his coming from P.B.; which proves the greatness of the ascent

(greatness)

to which the Alter Rebbe attained after P.B. in comparison with the greatness before P.B.²¹.

So between the greatness before P.B. and his greatness

(above the previous one)

after P.B.,

there was by him the matter of "I have become small" — the imprisonment of the Alter Rebbe.

The imprisonment brought with it many and great sufferings.

And as is known²²

what the Berditchever demanded of the Alter Rebbe regarding his arrest: why did he take so much upon his shoulders — "so many sufferings of the community of Israel,

sufferings from above,

your sufferings of the soul and sufferings of the body,

I could have accomplished this with encompassing lights."

What the Berditchever said regarding the sufferings of the imprisonment itself,

and after this — there were still the sufferings that the Alter Rebbe had in the three hours after the imprisonment,

which were by him "a greater pain than all the imprisonment"²³.

It is understandable,

that

(in a revealed way)²⁴

this was smallness and fall even relative to

the <b>previous</b> level of greatness of the Alter Rebbe.

And as we see from the words of the Rebbe

(Moharashab)

n"e²⁵

that although it is difficult to say so,

nevertheless,

it is indeed so,

that the revelation of light that came after p"b became in the manner of ma'azal²⁶

zayit k'she'khotshin oto motzi shemeno.

From the parable it is understood,

that at the time of the imprisonment there was a smallness even relative to before p"b:

At the time of the crushing of the olive,

when the olive lies under the press,

it indeed possesses none of the two virtues: neither does it have the later virtue — for it has not yet given forth the oil that can illuminate the entire world — nor does it have its earlier virtue,

when it was a fruit,

that although before the crushing one could not yet use its oil for illumination — it was nevertheless then a fruit for eating.

Not so at the time when one crushes it, the olive also loses the virtue*²⁶.

The same is understood also regarding the time of his imprisonment in P.B. — that not only was the dissemination of the wellsprings not yet after P.B.,

but it was then,

at the time of the imprisonment,

also not possible for there to be any dissemination of Chassidus in the manner that the Alter Rebbe did it before P.B.

And this matter,

that at that time there was not the possibility to disseminate Chassidus,

was relevant

(also)

the old Rebbe himself.

And as understood from the matter of Abraham our father at the time that he could not perform acts of lovingkindness with hospitality because there were no guests²⁷.

And all the more so: this speaks about acts of lovingkindness in material matters and with gentiles and before the giving of the Torah — all the more so when this speaks after the giving of the Torah,

and to Jews,

and about Torah study²⁸,

and all the more so — Torah study of the public,

and all the more so the inner dimension of the Torah²⁹

— and therefore he wrote "I have become small, etc."

6.

In each and every year they repeat themselves

the matters³⁰,

and just as all matters begin from Torah,

therefore one reads in the Torah on the Shabbat adjacent to Yud-Tes Kislev³¹

(or on Yud-Tes Kislev itself)

"I have become small from all the kindnesses etc."

That this is the request of Yaakov Avinu and of the Nesi’ei Yisrael

(As it is brought in Kehilat Yaakov³²

that “Nasi” is an acronym for nitzotzo shel Yaakov Avinu),

And especially from the Alter Rebbe —

That they pray and also for every Jew,

That not looking upon that which “Katonti etc.”,

Should be fulfilled the <b>promise </b>“Heiteiv eitiv imakh,

Vesamti et zar’acha kechol hayam asher lo yisafeir merov”.

(From the talk of Shabbos Parshas Vayishlach 5725)