Igrot Kodesh · Letter 1971 — Faith & Bitachon

By the grace of Hashem,

First day of Rosh Chodesh* Teves 5713,

Brooklyn,

Greetings and blessings,

A) I duly received your letter of 20 Kislev. On the eve of Rosh Chodesh* Teves, I went to the tziyun* of my father-in-law, the Rebbe, whose merit will protect us, and I mentioned there your name, as well as those of the members of your family, so that you may obtain the satisfaction of your needs.

B) You also ask me[1] whether you should settle in another place, in which you think you will obtain better lodging, in a better environment, good work, allowing you to earn your livelihood properly. You solicit my opinion on this question.

My position is the following. I ask you to communicate it to the chassidim* who reside in Kfar Chabad. Some have asked me about this, and this will therefore be the answer to their question.

Your letter indicates, and all know, that you went to the Holy Land in the lifetime of my father-in-law, the Rebbe, in this physical world. He wrote to you to tell you in what manner you were to settle there. He emphasized, on numerous occasions, that you were to remain all together and build Kfar Chabad.

Various chassidic texts emphasize that the manner of ensuring one's livelihood, at the present hour, is comparable to the manna that one received in the desert[2]. The latter is, strictly speaking, miraculous. Referring to logic, our Sages note how difficult it is to satisfy the needs of man. How much more so is it the case in the present era!

Thus, the livelihood of each one is truly miraculous, even if the darkness of galus* makes error possible. It is so in every place, but it is particularly true in the Holy Land which, for the moment, is destroyed but will soon be rebuilt and restored. There, it is even more difficult to ensure one's material livelihood.

This is the reason for which one must favor everything that allows one to render one's own situation easier, but not to complicate it, chas veshalom*.

One of the most effective means of receiving the blessings consists in uniting with others, as chapter 32 of Tanya* says. Various chassidic texts and also books of Mussar* explain it. Furthermore, elementary logic permits one to establish that this is indeed so.

There is also another point. One must maintain the course indicated by the leader of the generation, my father-in-law, the Rebbe. Indeed, if one acts by one's own means, sometimes one nevertheless obtains the expected result, but, other times, this is not the case, chas veshalom*.

Third point: in order that these channels fully convey the blessing, one must adhere strictly to the instructions given by the one who revealed their presence, who is the intermediary charged with linking the source of these blessings to those who must receive them.

It follows from what has just been said that the opposite of unity, and disagreement, are the antithesis of the will of our master, my father-in-law, the Rebbe, who distributes all the blessings. Whoever acts in this manner, chas veshalom*, causes harm to himself and causes it to others.

You know, in this regard, the saying of the Tzemach Tzedek*[3] on the first four letters of the alphabet, Aleph, Beis, Gimmel, Daled. Unity, achdus*[4], and love, ahavah*[4], lead to blessing, berachah*[5]. Pride, gaavah*[6], provokes poverty, dalus*[7].

C) It is quite clear that the blessing granted by my father-in-law, the Rebbe, addresses itself first and foremost to the chassidim* who immigrated from our country[8] and settled in Kfar Chabad, and only afterwards to those who chose another place.

One must therefore, in all possible ways, endeavor to receive this blessing in this place and not go elsewhere, where it would have to travel a longer path. It is evident that some chassidim* do not have the means to ensure their livelihood in Kfar Chabad. Nevertheless, the Torah* itself asks one to follow the majority way. Subsequently, if one realizes that there is no way out, after having tried everything, one may then take another path.

D) If, in every place, it is necessary to maintain the various practices instituted by my father-in-law, the Rebbe, how much more so is it the case for those who are not yet fully settled, in particular in our Holy Land, toward which "the eyes of Hashem are always turned, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year."

There, a greater merit is necessary in every domain. It is therefore even more indispensable to adhere to the practices of my father-in-law, the Rebbe, and, in this way, to receive, in a natural manner, the supernatural blessings of which each one has need, for himself and for all the members of his family.

E) As I said previously, you will doubtless transmit this to all the chassidim* of Kfar Chabad. It is above all the first point that must be emphasized to them, the necessity of making efforts to realize unity among men, as the chassidic discourse Hechaltzu* explains, with a commentary of my father-in-law, the Rebbe.

All this is even more important in the Holy Land[9], especially for chassidim* attached to the Rebbeim of Chabad.

With my blessing that Hashem inspire you with the right place to settle and that you know material and spiritual success,

Notes

[1] See, in this regard, letters no. 1939 and 2242.

[2] And transcends rationality.

[3] See, in this regard, letters no. 1035 and 2241.

[4] Words that begin with an Aleph.

[5] Word that begins with a Beis.

[6] Word that begins with a Gimmel.

[7] Word that begins with a Daled.

[8] Russia.

[9] See, in this regard, letter no. 1769.