Room two hundred and seven in the hall of Hayom Yom.
Tuesday, 13 Iyar, 28 Omer, 5703.
Shiurim: Chumash, Behar, Shlishi, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim, 13 of the month, from chapter 69 to chapter 71 inclusive.
Tanya, we are in chapter 48. The daily shiur begins on page 134 with the words "Uchechachah mamash", and ends on page 68 with the word "Veachlit".
Before the teaching, the Rebbe first brings a custom: "At Minchah we say Tachanun". What is the emphasis in this statement? Since 13 Iyar is the day before 14 Iyar, which is known as Pesach Sheni. Generally, it is known that when we are on the eve of a holiday, or even the eve of Rosh Chodesh, we do not say Tachanun at Minchah of the preceding day. Seemingly, if 14 Iyar is Pesach Sheni, then already at Minchah of 13 Iyar, the day before it, there should be a situation where we do not say Tachanun.
However, also in the Siddur, in the list of days on which we do not say Tachanun before "Lamenatzeach", Admor Hazaken says that on 13 Iyar we do say Tachanun at Minchah. What is the reason for this? Because the holiday of 14 Iyar, which is due to the offering of the Pesach Sheni sacrifice, only begins from midday of 14 Iyar. If so, Minchah of the 13th is still too early, and therefore we do say Tachanun on 13 Iyar. This is the emphasis of this custom.
Afterwards there is a short teaching here, originating from a letter written by the Rebbe Rayatz on 13 Nissan in the year 5695. The letter itself is interesting: it was written to a Jew after the Rebbe Rayatz had not been at his home for about five months. At that time the Rebbe Rayatz lived in Warsaw, and for five months he stayed in Vienna for medical reasons. When he returned home, he found letters that had been received during those months, and he responds to one of the letters written to him by a chossid.
In that letter, the chossid asked a short question regarding netilas yadayim - why we wash hands before eating on Shabbos, according to the inner explanation of netilas yadayim; a question in chassidus. The Rebbe Rayatz tells him that the interest of chassidim in the Torah of chassidus is so precious in his eyes, that he will therefore explain to him at length the entire concept of netilas yadayim in general, and the avodah of man in general. There is a long letter there of about five or six pages, just to reach this specific explanation, and right at the opening of the letter he brings the current teaching.
What is written there? "Rabbeinu Hazaken, in those years when he would say short maamarim". It is known that in the early years of Admor Hazaken's leadership he would say very short maamarim, and as the Rebbe Rayatz describes in various places, he would say them with great enthusiasm, "with a flaming fire, with a melody of longing" - very short sayings.
One of the short sayings that Admor Hazaken said then, in those years. Many times it was said in the name of the Maggid of Mezritch; here it is not written in the name of the Maggid, but the saying is on the verse "He said: Know what is above you", the language of the Mishnah in "Pirkei Avos". According to the simple meaning of the Mishnah, these words are an introduction to what follows: "Know what is above you", and what indeed is above you? The continuation says "a seeing eye, a hearing ear, and all your deeds are written in a book".
But here the saying says that the sentence "Know what is above you" is a statement in and of itself, and everything is already said within it, not just as an introduction to the next sentence. What does this sentence say? "Know, that everything that is above, everything that happens above in the supernal worlds, in the partzufim and the supernal sefiros".
What are the supernal partzufim? It is known that any level which is an inclusion of several sefiros together is called a "partzuf" in chassidus, similar to the analogy of a person: the face, the "partzuf", is a place where many senses are included together - a blend of sight, hearing, smell, and speech; all the senses together are included in one partzuf. Therefore in chassidus, when speaking of the supernal sefiros and there is a level that has an inclusion and blending of many sefiros together, it is called a "partzuf".
And he says, that everything that happens above in the partzufim and the supernal sefiros - "everything is 'from you'; that it depends on the avodah of man". Man is comprehensive in creation, and everything depends on his avodah. Therefore, everything that man does has a very great G-dly effect. This was the entire Torah that Admor Hazaken said in the short maamarim.
In one of his sichos, the Rebbe Rayatz adds a detailed description following this, saying: "To the edge of the world of Atzilus it waits for a word of Torah from a Jew; angels on high wait for a Jew's 'Barchu'; and the earth that is trodden upon waits since the creation of the world for a Jew to pass by and say a chapter of Tehillim here, or for two Jews to pass by and speak words of Torah between themselves". The whole world waits, from above and also from below, for the avodah of man and its effect. This is essentially the content of the saying.
Admor Hazaken said short maamarim, and afterwards the order changed and he began to say long maamarim with long explanations. The matter changed after he returned from Petersburg, from the imprisonment, for the second time, in the year 5561. Then he began to say long maamarim, and a new order was made.
Hence the known saying "maamarim from before Petersburg" and "maamarim from after Petersburg": previously there were short and focused maamarim, and afterwards a different order began, of great expansion and maamarim of great length. Sometimes one can still find very short maamarim in Likkutei Torah, which are from the maamarim before Petersburg, but most of the maamarim are from the period afterwards, and they are much longer.