The one hundred and forty-third "room" in the hall of Hayom Yom.
Monday, 14 Nissan 5703.
First, let us address the date of 14 Nissan, which contains an interesting nuance. Throughout the year, we have the three festivals - Pesach, Shavuos, and Sukkos - as well as two rabbinic festivals - Chanukah and Purim. We see an interesting thing: when 5 Sivan arrives, the Rebbe notes that it is "Erev Chag HaShavuos"; when 29 Elul arrives, the Rebbe notes that it is "Erev Rosh Hashanah"; and similarly on Erev Yom Kippur, and on 24 Kislev - "Erev Chanukah".
There are two holidays that the Rebbe does not note in this way: on 13 Adar, it does not say "Erev Purim", and here, on 14 Nissan, it does not say "Erev Chag HaPesach". The apparent reason for this is that we are dealing with a day that is a holiday in its own right. 14 Nissan is a holiday in and of itself, the day the Pesach offering was sacrificed, and therefore it does not receive the title of "Erev" of another day, since it is a day in its own right. In a similar vein, one can say regarding Purim: in this year, 5703, Purim (the 14th) fell on Sunday, and Erev Purim, the 13th, fell on Shabbos. Shabbos is also a holy day in its own right, and therefore it is not written as "Erev" of the next day. However, for all other holidays, there is a reference to the preceding day, with the emphasis that it is the "Erev" of the following day.
Before the daily study portions, there is a directive regarding bedikas chametz (the search for chametz) and Maariv, which reads: "Bedikas chametz follows Maariv." What is the emphasis here? It is written in the Shulchan Aruch regarding the time the Sages established for bedikas chametz, that it must be immediately at Tzeis Hakochavim (nightfall); meaning, one must push aside everything else, and bedikas chametz must take place at the time established by the Sages, at nightfall.
Regarding Maariv, it is written in the Shulchan Aruch that when there is a regular minyan, a person should go daven with the regular minyan, and afterward perform bedikas chametz. Why? Because if he delays with bedikas chametz in his home, he might later forget the minyan. Also, a person who regularly davens with a regular minyan, and only today says, "I will daven individually at home" - since he is not accustomed to davening individually, he too might forget Maariv; therefore, he should daven Maariv first and follow it with bedikas chametz.
Only in the case of a person who always davens Maariv individually, who does not have a fixed habit in his soul to go to a minyan but always davens individually at home - he should perform bedikas chametz first and then Maariv, since there is no concern that he will forget. As the Rebbe notes in a letter printed in Likkutei Sichos volume 17, in the letters section, on page 434: The Rebbe mentions there regarding the practice of the Frierdiker Rebbe (the Rebbe Rayatz), observing that his practice was to perform bedikas chametz before Maariv and daven Maariv afterward. However, the accepted custom is indeed to daven Maariv first and then do bedikas chametz, and this is what is emphasized here: "Bedikas chametz follows Maariv."
Study portions: Chumash, Acharei Mos, Sheni, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim: 14th of the month, from chapter 72 to chapter 76 inclusive.
Tanya: Continuing in chapter 41, from the words "shivah yomin", and concluding on page 57 with the word "laYehudim".
Afterward, the Rebbe addresses two customs of our Rebbeim connected to the selling of chametz (mechiras chametz) and a special practice on Erev Pesach and the baking of matzos. The first section speaks about mechiras chametz. Let us preface by saying that regarding mechiras chametz, there were several stages of development over the generations. Initially, the arrangement was that on Erev Pesach a person would seek out a non-Jew he knew, a friend of his, and give him all his chametz as an absolute gift; after Pesach, the non-Jew would return all the chametz to him as an absolute gift.
Later, a different arrangement was instituted - this began more during the time of the Alter Rebbe - where the custom spread not to give the chametz as a gift to a non-Jew, but to sell it to him. How does one sell it to a non-Jew? Suppose you have chametz worth ten thousand shekels; when you come to sell it to the non-Jew, he does not immediately pay the full amount, but gives a small down payment, and it is agreed that he will pay the rest of the money - which remains with him as a loan - by a certain date. The chametz has already become his, since he gave a down payment and the rest is a loan. What happens after Pesach? The non-Jew comes and says he cannot pay the remaining balance, so he wants to cancel the transaction, and he returns the chametz and does not owe the rest of the money. This was the arrangement for mechiras chametz.
The Alter Rebbe added that one should not only perform this process, but also add an "arev kablan" (a primary guarantor). What is an "arev kablan"? A Jew is brought in who guarantees the balance that the non-Jew owes as a loan, ensuring there is a guarantor who will return this loan. This guarantor is an "arev kablan" - meaning the owner of the chametz can demand the money directly from the arev kablan, and he is completely at ease that the money is secured. This solidifies the sale completely. This was the arrangement.
According to this arrangement, one approaches the Rav. What is the role of the Rav here? The Rav has power of attorney; he is empowered to conduct the entire process with the non-Jew - to sell to the non-Jew, to arrange an arev kablan, the whole process - and whoever comes to the Rav gives him power of attorney to do this.
Regarding this, the Rebbe notes in the teaching that our Rebbeim adopted a more stringent practice in this regard - not merely to give the Rav power of attorney, but more than that. Let us examine the wording: "In the household of our Rebbe, the custom is not to make the Rav an agent (mursheh), but rather to sell the chametz to him, with an arev kablan." A "mursheh" is an agent with power of attorney. They do not merely make the Rav a mursheh - meaning he is authorized to do as he sees fit with the chametz and is trusted to carry out the whole process - rather, they sell the chametz to him. The chametz is sold to the Rav, and the Rav will now execute the process and sell it to the non-Jew, etc. That is, when they come to the Rav, they do not just make him an agent to execute an action, but they actually finalize the transaction with him. He will already act as the arev kablan who commits to the entire transaction, and the Rav, of course, subsequently sells it to the non-Jew.
The next topic relates to the baking of matzos. This, too, is written in the Shulchan Aruch: the matzos eaten on the night of the Seder - with which one fulfills the Torah obligation of eating matzah - are compared to the Pesach offering. Just as the Pesach offering is eaten at night but slaughtered on Erev Pesach, so too is it customary to bake the matzos eaten at night on Erev Pesach. And just as the Pesach offering is prepared after midday, these matzos are also baked after midday. This is written in the Shulchan Aruch.
However, it is immediately explained in halachah that this is not an absolute requirement, and strictly according to the law, one can certainly bake the matzos even several months before Pesach, and there is no problem with that; it is simply a hiddur (an enhancement of the mitzvah) to bake the matzos on Erev Pesach after midday. This was the practice of our Rebbeim. Regarding the Rebbe Rashab, it is written that he himself was present during the baking - in the words of the teaching, "My father, the Rebbe [the Rebbe Rashab], used to be present at the baking of the matzah shmurah on Erev Pesach after midday" - the baking of these matzos eaten at the Seder. The hiddur in this is that they are baked precisely on Erev Pesach, and the Rebbe Rashab himself was present during the baking.
Incidentally, the Rebbe's matzos were also baked on Erev Pesach after midday, but the Rebbe himself writes in a letter, "I am not present during the baking of the matzah shmurah." In practice, the temimim in the yeshivah are present and bake the Rebbe's matzos on Erev Pesach after midday, but the Rebbe Rashab made it his practice to be there personally.
"He would also recite Hallel." Furthermore, the Rebbe Rashab would also say Hallel - just as in the Beis HaMikdash, when the Pesach offering was sacrificed, they would read Hallel. Since this is comparable to the Pesach offering, the Rebbe Rashab had the custom, while present at the baking of the matzos, to recite Hallel concurrently, while others were busy with kneading, baking, etc. The novelty highlighted in the teaching here is: "He would interrupt even in the middle of a chapter" - he would stop even mid-chapter, if necessary, "in order to give directions regarding the kneading, baking, and the like." If he had a comment or instruction related to the process, he would interrupt and comment, not even waiting for the end of the chapter. Because this was a necessity for the baking and for this important matter, he would interrupt even in the middle of a chapter to do this.
In conclusion, the connection between the teaching and the halachah in the Rambam's Yad Hachazakah. We are currently, in the daily portions of recent days, in Sefer HaAvodah, and we have reached Hilchos Maaseh HaKorbanos. The previous teaching was also linked to Hilchos Maaseh HaKorbanos, and the current teaching also has an allusion there: at the end of chapter 12 of Hilchos Maaseh HaKorbanos, the Rambam describes the minchos (meal offerings) that were brought in the Beis HaMikdash. It is known that regarding the minchos in the Beis HaMikdash, and indeed for all offerings in general, there was never any chametz in the Beis HaMikdash. Chametz was associated with Pesach, but in the Beis HaMikdash there was no chametz, as it is explicitly written, "You shall not burn any leaven or any honey."
The minchos involved kneading and baking, but with care, without chametz. The Rambam even adds that they would do this using lukewarm water - and with lukewarm water there is a greater risk and possibility that the flour might, Heaven forbid, become chametz, due to the warmth of the water. Nevertheless, this is how they did it in the Beis HaMikdash, and the Rambam adds that since the Kohanim serving in the Beis HaMikdash are zealous, one can consequently rely on them to do it properly.