Room one hundred and five in the hall of Hayom Yom.
Friday, 5 Adar II 5703.
Shiurim: Chumash, Pekudei, Shishi, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim, 5th of the month, from chapter 29 to chapter 34 inclusive.
Tanya, chapter 35. The daily shiur starts from the words "Vehu behakdam", and concludes on page 44 with the word "beroshov".
The daily teaching is taken from a letter written by the Rebbe Rayatz as a response to a yeshiva student. In the winter of 5698, a yeshiva student sent a question to the Rebbe Rayatz: How should he arrange his daily schedule according to the tasks imposed upon him as a yeshiva student - he must study nigleh, study chassidus, and also pray with contemplation, and he does not know how to organize his time, what to postpone and what to do first, and how the day is structured. To this came the reply, which is the daily teaching.
Let us examine the wording. The Rebbe writes to him: "The study of nigleh, the study of chassidus, and actual avodah" - "actual avodah" also includes the simple performance of mitzvos, and from the letter it is understood that it also refers to the avodah of prayer, as appears later on - these three tasks "are all equally essential". There are no concessions, and there is no situation where you will do one and omit the other; you are obligated in all three. "And not only is it irrelevant to say that one should push aside or be pushed aside by another" - it is irrelevant to say that one of these three should be pushed aside for another, because there is something more important. Is it possible to forgo one of these three? To this the Rebbe says: "It is irrelevant."
"Rather, on the contrary" - and he brings proof that one is obligated in all three, that each and every one needs all three - "they assist one another". When a person studies both nigleh and chassidus and also engages in the avodah of prayer, on the contrary, one strengthens the other and benefits it.
Where do we see that all three are needed and that one strengthens the other? The Rebbe cites the teaching of our Sages: "And as the saying goes, an ignoramus cannot be pious (a chassid)". What do we learn from this? "That there must be the study of nigleh," because if you are a chassid in the simple sense - one who studies chassidus - there is no way you will not study nigleh, for if you do not study nigleh you fall into the category of an ignoramus, and "an ignoramus cannot be a chassid". It turns out that the study of nigleh assists in making you a chassid; in order to be a chassid, there must be the study of nigleh. This is what is learned from the first sentence.
On the other hand, it is impossible for him to study only nigleh, rather he must also study chassidus. Why? "Who is a chassid? He who deals kindly with his Creator." A "chassid" in the inner sense, as explained in Tanya at the end of chapter 10, is one who, as it were, deals kindly with his Creator. What is "deals kindly with his Creator"? "His Creator" is the Holy One, blessed be He, who desires to have a dwelling place in the lower realms and that man should connect everything with the purpose of creation. And in order to instill in his consciousness how everything fulfills the intention of creation, and how he makes a dwelling place in the lower realms out of everything and connects everything to G-d - he must study chassidus, in order to understand the significance of his actions. Therefore, he is obligated in this study so that he may be called a "chassid". It turns out that a chassid is also obligated in nigleh, and of course is also obligated in chassidus, for otherwise he cannot be called a chassid.
And what about the third point, actual avodah? Regarding this he says: "And the ultimate purpose of study is, after all, actual avodah." What is the ultimate purpose of all study? That it should not remain solely in the realm of study, but that a practical outcome should emerge from it. Consequently, all three are required.
It is interesting to see the continuation of the letter that the Rebbe Rayatz writes to him. Regarding the time for the avodah of prayer, he says that it does not have fixed hours in the day - whether one hour, two hours, or half an hour - but rather as much time as is needed; and nevertheless, times must be set for it, and Shabbos is a more propitious day for this. But nigleh and chassidus need to be studied on a regular basis, several hours every day, and each person must consult with his mashpia on how to arrange those hours. Nigleh and chassidus are not a once-a-week matter, but a very constant one.
Then the Rebbe addresses an interesting question. He says "And regarding what he said" - apparently that student wrote that he sees before him the entire Talmud, which is vast and extensive, and how is it possible to cover it all; do you see the tasks imposed upon you? How will we achieve all this? To this the Rebbe replies with a hint: "It is written, a wise man's heart is to his right." The intention is to the verse that King Solomon says, "A wise man's heart is to his right, and a fool's heart is to his left." What is the meaning of this? There is a common interpretation of this, which the Rebbe is hinting at.
But first the following sentence, and then we will explain. He says: "One needs to know what he has already learned" - that a person should be joyful about what he has already accomplished and what he has already learned, and should not be overwhelmed by what he still has left to learn. What you have learned - rejoice in it, and do not look at the future and the vastness and give up. Why is this hinted at in the concept of "a wise man's heart is to his right"? When opening a Jewish book, there is always a right side and a left side: the left side is how much is still left and I have not yet accomplished, and the right side - even if it may be small - is what I have already accomplished. What should a person look at in order to be joyful? If he has "a wise man's heart", he will look to his right - what he has accomplished, and not at what he has not accomplished and think who knows what will be. One must know what he has already accomplished.
And the Rebbe concludes the excerpt with a saying from the Gemara in Tractate Eiruvin: "As he catches each one, he breaks its wings." What is the intention? The Gemara brings a parable for how a person should study Torah - a parable of a bird catcher: if you catch a bird and set it aside and go to catch another, in the meantime the first one will fly away; you catch the second - the first disappears; you catch the third - the second disappears. What must you do? The wording of the Gemara is "as he catches each one, he breaks its wings" - every bird you catch, break its wings so that it cannot fly away and it will be kept for you, and then you catch another bird. This is a parable for the learner: learn a little, review it and internalize it, and then go and add a little more; and thus everything you have learned is grasped in your hand and will not fly away from you, and you will be able to add more without being overwhelmed by what remains. This is the conclusion of the letter of the Rebbe Rayatz.
It is interesting that in the final yechidus for yeshiva students in Tishrei 5752, the Rebbe spoke very strongly about the students' study of nigleh, and said that the study must be at such a level that the students will dream at night about what they studied during the day - to such an extent that the matter will be so internalized and settled that it will even influence their dreams.
And we will conclude with the connection of the teachings to the progression of the Rambam's Yad Hachazakah. We are currently in Sefer Zeraim, in its first halachah, as we saw in the previous teachings. The first topic in Sefer Zeraim is the laws of kilayim, and this teaching is internally connected to it. For what is the concept of the laws of kilayim? What is permitted and what is forbidden to join together - there are things that are forbidden to join and there are those that are permitted. And the entire teaching speaks of this point: you have several tasks, and you become confused - is it permitted to combine them? Should one be removed and one left? The entire teaching comes to explain that on the contrary, they must be combined together, and this is not a problem and it is not kilayim - but rather on the contrary, one complements the other, and this is the perfect thing that is permitted to be done.