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In this letter, dated the 24th of Marcheshvan, 5720 [November 25, 1959], the Rebbe corresponds with an individual on the absolute necessity to learn Chassidus:

…Now to refer to the question of the need to learn Chassidus which you raise in your letter. You do not mention what Shiurim you have in Chassidus, though I had suggested to you the following courses; Kuntres UMaayan; Iggeres haTeshuvo (part III of Tanya), Shaar HaYichud VehaEmuno (part II of Tanya), followed by Derech Mitzvosecho of the Tzemach Tzedek.

You quote me as having written to you that there are many who have learned and know a great deal of Gemoro, yet lack in knowledge of the practical dinim [laws]. To which you remark that you know people who know a great deal of Chassidus and likewise lack knowledge of the dinim. But as I recall, I did not make that statement as an argument in favor of learning Chassidus. I merely pointed out the need of learning the practical dinim apart from all other studies. For unfortunately it is a fact that in most Yeshivoth the need of learning dinim is not given sufficient attention. Therefore, your attempt to challenge my statement is quite irrelevant, ve’ito haselichah.

How Chassidim Managed To Stay Frum in Soviet Russia

As for the general necessity of learning Chassidus, this is amply explained in Kuntres Etz haChayim, by the father of my father-in-law of saintly memory, and elsewhere. Above all, it is based on the Halocho itself, which sees the proof of a theory in its applicability and in its actual results in practice, maaseh rav.

Let me give you an illustration, which I trust you will not take amiss, especially as you can verify it through other sources. I do not have to tell you under what terrible conditions the Jews have lived in Soviet Russia under the Communist regime, and how it affected Jewish religious life, especially of the younger generation who had no opportunity to anchor themselves firmly or at all in Yiddishkeit. When the Iron Curtain temporarily lifted after the war and many Jews managed to get out of Soviet Russia, it became clear that of the various classes and types of Russian Jews only those who had learned In Chabad Yeshivoth and were brought up in Chassidic homes and in the Chassidic way of life were able to survive those terrible trials and difficulties and remain faithful and practicing Jews, not only themselves but also their sons and daughters with them. This should convince even the most skeptical as to the power and efficacy of Chassidus as a living force and practical means of the preservation of Yiddishkeit even under the utmost difficulties.

But since you question the need of learning Chassidus according to the authority of the Shulchan Aruch, I will answer you, as briefly as possible, on the basis of your own criteria.

Six Constant Mitzvos

As you know, there are various kinds of Mitzvoth. There are, for example, compulsory Mitzvoth, and there are Mitzvoth which become incumbent under certain conditions only, the performances of which become compulsory when the specific conditions prevail; and one is not obligated to create those conditions (e.g. Maake [a guardrail around one’s roof]) (Rambam, Berachos).

Among the so-called compulsory Mitzvoth, there are, again, such Mitzvoth which depend on the time element, and they may be occasioned once a year, or once a week, or daily, as the case may be.

There are however six Mitzvoth which are not merely incumbent in one way or another, as the other Mitzvoth, but their incumbency (Chiyuv) is a constant one, and they are obligatory on all Jews without exception, or, to quote: “Their incumbency is constant, of which man is not free for a moment, all his life.”

They are mentioned in Sefer HaChinuch, in the Introduction (Igeres): (1) To believe in [in Rambam, to know] G-d, (2) Not to believe  in any other thing, (3) To affirm His Unity, (4) To love Him, (5) To fear Him, and (6) Not to go astray after the temptation of the heart and the vision of the eyes.

The first five of the above obviously demand intellectual preparation. Even the sixth can be properly fulfilled only after the acquisition of certain doctrines and knowledge.

It is clear that to obtain the essential knowledge (without which these six constant Mitzvoth could not be fulfilled properly) by an effort to glean it from different sources, would require an enormous amount of time and effort, and even then one could not be sure whether or not the sources were rightly understood, and the right opinions and beliefs were formulated.

On the other hand, Chassidus has done just that. It has gleaned and collected from various sources the necessary knowledge, and it presents it in a pure and concise form to all who wish to avail themselves of it.

To be continued

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