The two hundred sixty-ninth "room" in the palace of Hayom Yom.
Monday, 22 Menachem Av 5703.
Lessons: Chumash, Re'eh, Sheini, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim: on the 22nd of the month, one recites two chapters — chapter 106 and chapter 107.
Tanya: On this day we conclude the sixth letter in Iggeret HaKodesh. The lesson begins on page 220 with the words "Vehinei im hoda'at," until the end of Letter 6 with the word "tikonani."
The daily saying is a very brief remark, appearing in its original source in a letter written by the Rebbe Rayatz on 6 Menachem Av 5697 — an interesting letter, short and sharp. The Rebbe Rayatz writes to the administration of the "preparatory divisions of Yeshivas Tomchei Temimim in Warsaw," and the content of the letter concerns the hygiene and cleanliness of the students.
First of all, the Rebbe Rayatz writes that at that time a health organization was established in Poland whose purpose was to assist Jews in matters of hygiene, and its name was "TOZ." The yeshiva asked the Rebbe whether to join this organization, and he responds that it is indeed fitting for medical matters to be under their supervision. If it is possible for this to be without cost, for free — so much the better; and although generally people said that "a doctor who is free is worth nothing," in such a case this is not a problem, since it is an organizational body. And if it is not possible for free — the money should not hold one back from entering into this matter of hygiene and supervision of cleanliness.
The Rebbe Rayatz notes that his father, the Rebbe Rashab, placed great emphasis on the matter of cleanliness, and here comes the daily teaching: "My father and teacher said: One should not recite a blessing before washing the mouth in the morning" — that is, before one rinses the mouth in the morning, upon arising from sleep, no blessing should come forth from one's mouth while it is unwashed. And he adds in parentheses: "except for the morning blessings on fast days" — for on a fast day it is forbidden to rinse the mouth, but on all other days one should not recite the morning blessings before washing the mouth.
The continuation in the letter is fascinating: the Rebbe Rayatz relates that the Rebbe Rashab told someone from whose mouth an unpleasant odor emanated—because he had neglected his oral hygiene—that the angels created from his Torah and prayer are "foul-smelling" angels, and this is the opposite of a korban. For regarding the korbanos it is said that they must be a "rei'ach nicho'ach" (a pleasing fragrance), and when a person prays in such a manner, the angels that emerge are not fit.
Afterwards, the Rebbe Rayatz adds a short story to round things off. He relates that in the year 5669, when he was the director of the Tomchei Temimim yeshivah, there was an incident with a certain student whose mouth gave off a foul odor. One of the mashgichim in the yeshivah told him to go to a dentist to clean his teeth and treat the bad breath, but the student refused. This was reported to the director — the Rebbe Rayatz — who called him in, rebuked him, and told him that he must go to the doctor, yet he refused. And so it happened a second time as well, with the student persisting in his refusal.
The Rebbe Rayatz related that he was accustomed to enter the presence of his father, the Rebbe Rashab, once a month in order to report on what was happening in the yeshiva, and the Rebbe Rashab would relate to every detail of the report. Thus he told his father about the bochur who did not want to rinse out his mouth. Concerning this the Rebbe Rashab wrote that it is stated in halacha, in matters of marriage, that there are blemishes which compel a person to divorce his wife, and one of them is bad breath, which makes it difficult to live with him, and he is compelled to divorce. And one who does this deliberately — who does not want to take care of himself — even if he is an important student, must be expelled from the yeshiva. The Rebbe Rayatz showed this to the bochur, and understandably, that very day he went to a doctor, took care of the matter, and the problem was solved. See how careful one must be in this matter.
This too is written in the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe, in the opening halachos in siman 4, that in order to utter the Name in holiness and purity one must rinse the mouth in the morning.
To conclude, it is worth noting that the Rebbe once told Rav Zalman Shimon Dworkin that, as is known, the temimim and also others had the custom to fast on the day they went in to the Rebbe for "yechidus." The Rebbe said that the Rav may tell the bochurim that on such a day when one is fasting, it is permitted to brush one's teeth and rinse one's mouth, and this does not constitute breaking the fast — unlike a regular fast day, on which, as is explicitly stated in the "pidyon," one must refrain from this. But on this fast day of going in for "yechidus" — one may indeed rinse the mouth and brush the teeth.