Numerous interesting comments on this intriguing episode.
Seems that there is a Breslov teaching that one day the whole world will be Breslov. And Chabad tries to sell their way to all. But Reb Yisroel Dov Odesser, founder of the Na-Nach Breslov, allegedly said that Chabad is sheker. Breslov seeks out kivrei tzadikim to visit, while Chabad generally does not (outside their own leaders).
An encounter of two of the most aggressive, fringe, competing Hasidic groups has a nice ending.
Breslov (or Bratslav) is a unique Chasidic group, or stream, one of the oldest extant. R. Nachman was a great-grandson of Baal Shem Tov himself. Yet it has been enveloped in mystery, misunderstanding, and controversy for many, many years. Can we perhaps get a better grip on it, by examining the context of the turbulent times R. Nachman lived and operated in?
Why did the Shpole Zeide and some other Chasidim oppose R. Nachman of Breslov? Where did the idea of a "Tikkun Klali" come from? Were R. Nachman's famous stories totally new, or related to previously existing tales?
Those and other aspects of the mystery of Breslov are addressed in a fascinating and thought provoking new post at the Kotzk blog. Read and learn.
Some lighter fare, for a change, in this special time of the year.
An Israeli website (re)posted a link recently to a niggun attributed to R. Boruch Ber Leibowitz, Kamenitzer Rosh Yeshiva זצ"ל, to the famous words from שיר השירים of קול דודי דופק פתחי לי.
On the other hand, one of the oldest and most famous Chabad-Lubavitch niggunim, going back to their first Rebbe, is set to those words as well.
If you listen to the two, they are both songs of yearning, not so different from each other (just sharing the impressions of a non-music professional).
On a related note, someone once heard a Misnaged singing the tune to a Hasidic song, and expressed wonderment. The Litvak replied that he is being מעלה the ניגון, raising the niggun, the argument that Chasidim have made when using non-Jewish melodies. Although caution is necessary with Hasidic songs, particularly when they are attached to questionable, objectionable lyrics, limited use may perhaps be made of them under controlled circumstances (this is not a general psak, which I leave to regular halachic decisors), exercising caution. If a shinui is made in them, an alteration, that could be grounds for additional leniency as well.
א גוטען שבת און א פרייליכען יום טוב
Update: Mishpacha magazine just published a piece claiming that the attribution to R. Boruch Ber is incorrect. Seems convincing to me.
What is the נשמה, our soul?
Of course, our knowledge to precisely define and delineate certain things is limited, but we do have a מסורה (tradition) from our חכמים, from way back, דורי דורות, which finds expression in Chazal and ancient tefillos. And that is, that it is a spiritual creation of הקב"ה, that comes from a very high place (sometimes a description of חצובה מתחת כסא הכבוד, hewn from under the heavenly throne of glory, is seen). In later generations, some have used an expression taken from a pasuk in ספר איוב (לא:ב) for it, namely חלק אלו-ה ממעל. Chabad-Lubavitch adds the word ממש (literally) to that, zealously stressing it in its preaching. Due to that, there is fairly widespread misconception, to a significant degree fueled by and emanating from them, that the neshamah is "a piece of G-d" literally, ר"ל.
Of course, that is quite problematic, as it blurs, or eliminates, the distinction between the Creator and the created, the בורא and the נברא, and is reminiscent of foreign faiths, עבודה זרה ר"ל.
The matter has been discussed online in various fora, at various times, such as here, here, and here.
Recently, during a shiur on the ימים נוראים davening, in speaking about עלינו, a speaker displayed a Chabad-Lubavitch siddur open to that prayer (סדור תהלת ה' עם תרגום באנגלית, תשע"ד, ניו יורק, עמוד 288), in which the translation states that Hashem has given each of us a neshamah "that is part of Himself". Such dangerous, misleading, if not outright heretical words, blur or eliminate the distinction between the בורא, הקב"ה (the creator, Almighty G-d), and the נברא (the created - man), a very dangerous thing, which is even more problematic in a tefillah where we stress our distance from ע"ז, especially during this awesome time of the year.
On the other hand, in the beginning of the tefillah of אמיץ כח, in mussaf of Yom Kippur, where it relates the early history of the world, it states with regard to the neshamah (line 12), הפחת בחלדו טהר נשם מזבולך, You (HKB"H) breathed into him a pure breath (neshamah) from your zevul (an area of the heavenly sphere). No mention of it being a "part".
In the zechus of being careful, understanding what we say and believe, particularly in the area of עיקרי הדת, and avoiding and resisting dangerous distortions of our faith and mesorah, in addition to outright אפיקורסות (even if spread by men with lengthy beards), may we be zoche to a שנה טובה ומבורכת.
When Will Moshiach Come, According to Chabad-Lubavitch?
A prominent song associated with Chabad-Lubavitch Chasidim is set to words proclaiming that Moshiach will come when "wellsprings of Chasidus" (a vague and undefined term) spread outward (אימתי קאתי מר? לכשיפוצו מעינותיך חוצה). This song has been associated with Chabad-Lubavitch in particular, as opposed to Chasidism in general, although the Neo-Chasidus movement, led by people like Rabbi Moshe Weinberger, R. Yussie Zakutinsky, and others, who are heavily influenced by Lubavitch, has also incorporated it into their repertoire. More recently, the Neo-Chasidic TYH nation group has released a different version of it. Given the increased likelihood of non-Chasidim coming in contact with it, and perhaps mistakenly singing it, in view of the above, it is important that its acceptability or lack thereof be examined and addressed. With the help of הקב"ה, we will attempt to do that here.
The Real Story - What Chabad-Lubavitch Doesn't Tell You
Although purportedly sourced from a letter of ר' ישראל בעש"ט, considered the founder of the modern Chasidic movement, to his brother-in-law, over two hundred and fifty years ago, in actuality, the lyrics of the song represent only a partial, amputated version of it, which omits important context, leading to misunderstanding.
In actuality the letter goes on to explain what it means, beyond those few words. And that is, not when people learn and print Tanyas all over, but rather when they have/make yichudim and aliyos neshama like you (the בעש"ט). This is in accord with the kabbalistic doctrines discussed in his circle. As the plain, kabbalistic meaning is quite remote from people in our generation generally, Chabad-Lubavitch, excising the additional words from the story, promote(d) a different, new meaning to it, as referring to the spread of Chasidism of the type of modern Chabad-Lubavitch, that they were promoting (similar to that expressed in another well-known Lubavitch song from around the same time, ופרצת). Other Chasidim, however, did not go along with this new, abridged, changed version and meaning of it, so the song remained Chabad-Lubavitch, not adopted by other Hasidic groups.
The Misnagdic View
Firstly, it should be noted that the tune that Lubavitch uses to אימתי קאתי מר was taken from an old Yerushalmi song, מתי יבנה המקדש (When will the Beis Hamikdash be rebuilt?). Secondly, of course, Misnagdim don't accept the entire matter, as they don't accept Hasidism in general.
While to those of us born after the song was put together, it has always been around all of our earthly lives, for those who lived when it was new, it engendered a strong reaction. So much so, that it is told that when it was sung in Telshe, Rav Ruderman, the Rosh Yeshiva of Ner Yisrael (NIRC), who was visiting there at the time, said to stop it, as it was in conflict with Chazal, as different answer(s) to this question appear in the gemara (e.g. Chazal say that Moshiach will come היום אם בקולו תשמעון) (h/t).
Anyway, the bottom line is that the song should not be sung by non-Chasidim, and even not by non-Lubavitcher Chasidim, as it represents questionable theology.
In the זכות of being careful with our musical selections, may we be zoche to ביאת גואל צדק, בב"א.
כתיבה וחתימה טובה
The other day, I came upon a Hasidic pamphlet ("The Way of Emunah", which was referenced in a prior post) on the Shabbos Torah reading, and saw a piece there related to the discussion we had. Citing a work בית יהודה, it says that R. Zev Wolf, son of the Zlotchover Maggid, a Rebbe in the early generations of Hasidism, would call every Jew "tzadik", even wicked people (see attached images for more). So evidently that was a chiddush then. But even he realized the limits of such rhetoric, and declined a shidduch proposal from an unsuitable person who presented himself as a tzadik along such lines, and therefore an appropriate match for him.
Nowadays, in the era of great inflation that we live in, evidently R. Zev Wolf's chiddush doesn't suffice, however, and the "tzadik" of yesteryear has become the "big tzadik" of today.
Those who follow old Torah ways and are not in favor of flattery and inflation, on the other hand, hew to the words of the Torah that we recently read, ולא תחניפו את הארץ, which, according to one of our great authorities, is a Biblical prohibition of flattery, as well as to those of שלמה המלך ע"ה, the wisest of men, who taught אמר לרשע צדיק אתה יקבהו עמים יזעמוהו לאמים, the one who tells a רשע that he is a צדיק will be cursed.
See here how Rav Avigdor Miller zt"l put it in a Toras Avigdor Q&A from not long ago - the attitude that 'there are no reshaim' is unacceptable. Such extreme liberalism is not in accordance with our holy Torah.
In the zechus of אמת, and avoiding flattery, may we merit גאולה בקרוב.
There is an impressive wide range of diversity in Jewish music today in the frum world. But some of it is more appropriate, acceptable, and Torah'dig than others. While others have questioned songs based on their musical component, here we have discussed in the past how some of them are not recommended due to their lyrics, promoting questionable newfangled ideas.
But there are some great songs out there too, inspiring, and in accord with our Torah hashkafah. Some of which you may have not seen and are worthy of sharing.
So here we go, three recent selections, which earn high marks here.
1) איה שר התורה? Where is the Sar HaTorah? A beautiful tribute to Rav Chaim Kanievsky זצללה"ה with youth of ביתר עילית.
2) Youth of ירושלים עיה"ק sing המלאך, from the words of the Chazon Ish zt"l describing someone who is zoche to (true) ידיעת התורה, as being like an angel who walks among men, in a tribute to מרן שה"ת (lesser recording here).
3) Lakewood תשב"ר, at a chumash celebration, being led in a Yiddish song
די בעסטע זאך איז תורה
די געשמאקסטע זאך איז תורה
די זיסטע זאך איז תורה
די הייליגע תורה
in a beautiful brief video clip.
The faces of the youth, described by Chazal as שלא טעמו טעם חטא, singing such beautiful and holy compositions, give one hope for the future of our way.
Listen and enjoy.
אשרי העם שככה לו
