Sounds of evening descended upon Crown Heights as I sat in the living room of Rabbi Shlomo Zarchi’s house. I asked him to share his memories of Purim at ‘Beis Chayeinu.’ His eyes lit up and he readily held forth, sharing many stories that he saw and heard.

Rabbi Zarchi, who was fortunate to be part of the “chozrim” team of the Rebbe, has an extraordinary memory. Even though decades had passed since those Purim days, he remembers them as if they happened yesterday. For example, when he talks about the first maamar he heard from the Rebbe after his Bar Mitzva, on Purim 5720, he recites entire sections by heart, with special sweetness and in the same melody he heard from the Rebbe…

Before he begins to recount the years in order, Rabbi Zarchi takes a moment to describe the uniqueness of the Purim farbrengens:

“Unlike the major farbrengens of Yud-Tes Kislev, Yud-Shevat, and others, where many Jews who were not Chabad Chassidim would come, the Purim farbrengens, held on the night after Purim, were a time when most Jewish homes were having their Purim seuda which starts in the early evening and continues into the night. So, very few outsiders came, and the attendees were mostly Chabad Chassidim.

“Indeed, Chabad Chassidim who lived in Crown Heights and nearby towns knew that they couldn’t extend their Purim seuda too much, because they had to head to the Rebbe’s farbrengen at 770. They couldn’t drink too much at the seuda either, so they could hear and understand the Rebbe’s words at the farbrengen.

“Still, there were always a few individuals who came to the farbrengen after a few generous ‘l’chaims’ and looked the part… Even at the farbrengen itself, there were some Chassidim who would allow themselves to say ‘l’chaim’ more than necessary. Later, during the farbrengen, they would approach the Rebbe and ask for all sorts of things that they would have been too shy to ask at any other time of the year. They would ask about personal matters, like for a tikkun, etc. And just like ‘water reflects a face to a face,’ the Rebbe responded to them in a special way.

“It can certainly be said that Purim was a time for ‘heimishe farbrengens,’ and the Rebbe revealed many deep and pnimiyusdike matters.”

So let’s give Rabbi Zarchi the floor:

5713 – The Awakening from Below Before “Hu Ra”

Everyone surely heard of the events of Purim 1953, when the Rebbe spiritually acted to bring about the downfall of Stalin, yemach shemo. I was still a young child that year, but years later, Rabbi Shmuel Levitin told me that at the start of that farbrengen, he approached the Rebbe and asked for mercy for the Jews of Russia in general, and for Chabad Chassidim in particular.

Many Chassidim were imprisoned during that period (including my uncle, Rabbi Moshe Vishedsky), and the entire Jewish population in Russia was in dire danger due to Stalin’s fabricated Doctors’ Plot. Rabbi Levitin begged the Rebbe to do something for the Jews of Russia.

Indeed, as we all know, later in the farbrengen, the Rebbe brought about the matter through spiritual means, and that very day Stalin passed away, and the decree was nullified.

5715 – Behind the Scenes of the Proposal for Wealth

The Purim farbrengen of 1955 is particularly remembered due to the missed opportunity to receive great wealth. At that farbrengen, the Rebbe spoke extensively about the challenge of the test of wealth, and then said that despite this, Hashem would grant wealth, and they would pass the test. The Rebbe said that because in America everything was done by vote, anyone willing to accept the test of wealth should raise their right hand with a full heart… Unfortunately, only three people raised their hands, and the Rebbe later expressed his pain that the opportunity was missed.

I heard at the time, based on what the Rebbe said during the farbrengen, that among others, the Rebbe intended for certain Chassidim to become wealthy, but they did not raise their hands…

One of them was a very talented and blessed Chassid, possessed of many virtues, particularly a gift for writing. The Rebbe wanted him to work at the Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch to publish pamphlets and books on Jewish subjects and Chassidus.

The problem was that his wife came from a family of “Torah and gedula” (i.e. $), and she wanted her husband to be wealthy. Since the salary at Merkos was only four dollars per hour, she refused to let him work there and pushed him to use his talents in business.

That was the situation going into the Purim farbrengen of 5715. It was said that the Rebbe wanted to bless that Chassid with wealth from ‘Heaven’ so that his wife would allow him to work for the Rebbe’s cause. However, that Chassid, who was a true Chassid, found it absurd to ask or even think about material matters during the farbrengen and did not raise his hand…

As mentioned, the Rebbe was not pleased with this, and he said that when an auspicious time arrives, people do “Chabad-shtusim…” Among the things the Rebbe mentioned was the wife who was troubling him about financial matters, and the hint was clear. In the end, that Chassid went into business under pressure from his wife, but he experienced the truth of the saying “Not to the wise is bread,” and he lost all his money. Eventually, after many years, he had to leave New York, and the Rebbe was greatly saddened by this.

We need to learn from this that when we hear something from the Rebbe, we should accept it as it is and not try to outsmart it.

5718 – When Moshiach Comes, There Will Be Two Rows…

The Purim farbrengen of 1958 is considered to be the farbrengen with the highest giluyim (revelations). From the beginning of the farbrengen, the Rebbe was in a particularly elevated mood. It was said that during the Purim meal at his house, the Rebbe said ‘l’chaim’ about ten times. The Rebbe mentioned in that farbrengen that, “It is told that Chonye Morosov used to say that on Purim, after he drank a little, he could say anything… and the listener wouldn’t be upset because he could claim that he was drunk…”

That year marked 18 years since the establishment of Tomchei Tmimim in the United States, and in the sixth sicha, the Rebbe spoke amazing words about the greatness of Tomchei Tmimim, instructing the students who had founded the yeshiva 18 years earlier to go out and dance. The Rebbe even stood up and danced in place.

At that farbrengen, there were two men present who, in the early years of Tomchei Tmimim in the U.S., had been maggidei shiur in the yeshiva, but had sent their children to study in other yeshivas. The Rebbe said that when Moshiach comes, there will be two rows – one for those who had the merit to learn in Tomchei Tmimim, and another for those who didn’t. How unfortunate it was that the father and son would not stand in the same row…

As mentioned, the Rebbe drank many ‘l’chaims’ during the farbrengen. At one point, the elder Chassidim became concerned for the Rebbe’s health and asked him not to drink any more. The Rebbe did not listen to them and asked Rabbi Mordechai Mentlick, the Rebbe’s ‘chief cup-bearer,’ to pour more. The Rebbe said that if he pours, fine, and if not, someone else will be found for the job…

The elder Chassidim tried to take the bottle from Rabbi Mentlick, and there was a dispute about it. The day after the farbrengen, the Rebbe asked Rabbi Groner, the secretary, what the argument had been. He explained that the elder Chassidim had argued that they should protect the Rebbe’s health, while Rabbi Mentlick claimed that if the Rebbe wanted to continue revealing lofty revelations, they, as balabatim, couldn’t stop it. When they argued that the Rebbe’s health was more important than giluyim, Rabbi Mentlick replied that since this was the Rebbe’s will, it would be both: the revelations and the health. The Rebbe heard the story and commented that Rabbi Mentlick was right.

5720 – The Rebbe Pleads: Open for Me…

The Purim farbrengen of 1970 remains especially etched in my memory, as I had already reached Bar Mitzva age. The famous maamar, beginning with the words “On that night,” which was said at that farbrengen, was the first maamar I heard after my Bar Mitzva, and it remains unforgettable.

The Rebbe began the maamar with the pasuk, “On that night, the king’s sleep was disturbed” in the usual melody for the maamar, and slowly his voice turned full of emotion, a voice of plea and request, explaining the verses “I am asleep, but my heart is awake,” that even when a Jew is spiritually asleep and lacks all spiritual levels, because of Hashem’s deep love for His people, no matter where they are – Hashem reaches out to every Jew, and one can hear His ‘voice knocking,’ calling and pleading, crying “Open for me!”

Long after Purim, we “lived” with the point of this maamar. Hashem’s plea and request of every Jew: “Open for me!” Wake up! Show that you are ready to receive the divine light.

These are words we remember and cannot forget. The Rebbe burst into heartbreaking tears as he recited the maamar, describing how Hashem longs for a Jew to open his heart to the divine revelation. And how, when he opens even the smallest crack, Hashem illuminates him.

The words of the righteous endure forever, and even today, the Rebbe says these words, and the Rebbe himself turns to us with immense love, wanting to bestow upon us spiritual abundance. He only pleads and asks that we open the door and want to receive. The moment we show a movement of desire, the Rebbe will immediately grant and bestow upon us more and more.

To Come Before the King!

As mentioned, the atmosphere during the Purim farbrengens was unique. The Rebbe would elevate the Chassidim to extremely high spiritual realms. Even when Chassidim would approach and ask the Rebbe for a tikkun for matters that required repentance, the Rebbe would elevate them and say that they were now in a higher time, a time higher than Yom Kippur. On Yom Kippur, we must turn our sins from red to white (“Though your sins be like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow”), but now we are on a level above all of that.

We often heard from the Rebbe that Purim is a time of “And so, I will come before the king, not in accordance to the law” – even when one finds themselves in a state unworthy of coming before the king, still, they enter, and the king accepts them, extends the golden scepter, and receives them joyfully!

Once, the Rebbe specifically noted that when Haman requested the royal clothing and the horse, he also requested “and the crown of the kingdom to be placed upon his head.” However, King Achashveirosh did not agree to give him his crown. But now, the Rebbe said, we are in a state where Hashem is willing to give even the crown of the kingdom. We only need to want it and ask for it!

Purim is the time – to want, and to ask for the complete hisgalus!

***

The Rasking Family Purim Miracle

On 9 Adar II 5733, we received the terrible news about the car accident in which our relative, Mushka Raskin, daughter of my uncle, R’ Dovid Raskin a’h, had been critically injured. A truck had hit her and she was taken to the hospital, unconscious. Tests showed a serious brain injury and the doctors gave no hope.

R’ Dovid wrote a pidyon nefesh to the Rebbe using extraordinary language, “I hereby give my daughter [Chaya Mushka bas Chava Elka] to the Admor shlita so that from now on, she is the Rebbe’s daughter.” He received special brachos. The Rebbe even reached out personally to Dr. Robert Richter and asked him to visit Mushka every day and report to the Rebbe every evening about her condition.

As relatives, we wanted to support the Raskins, and my wife and I would go every day to visit Mushka in the hospital. There were some tense moments there when her condition deteriorated and the doctors told R’ Dovid to prepare for the worst. That’s when I saw how strong R’ Dovid’s emuna and bitachon were. He remained calm and said: The Rebbe told me explicitly that she would recover and so, there is no reason for concern.

On Purim 5733, a few days after the accident, R’ Shimshon Stock decided to have a minyan of Chassidim submit a pidyon nefesh to the Rebbe with a request for a bracha for Mushka. They decided that three kohanim: R’ Shimshon, R’ Zelig Katzman and I, would submit the note while the other Chassidim would stand around.

We stood in ‘gan eden ha’tachton’ and waited for the Rebbe to come out for Mincha. The Rebbe left his room and went to the shul without saying a word. After Mincha, while we still stood there, the Rebbe asked R’ Groner, “Why are they standing here?” R’ Groner said, “They are here to ask for a bracha for R’ Dovid’s daughter.” Then we gave the pidyon nefesh to the Rebbe and after the Rebbe read it, he said, “It should be fulfilled. May Hashem fulfill all of their heart’s desires for good, and whoever extends his hand you give him.”

Two days later, on 16 Adar II, which was her fourteenth birthday, she opened her eyes for the first time since the accident. Her condition continued to improve after that until she was well and lived many decades after that. This was our family’s personal Purim miracle.

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