When All the Neshomas Finish Their Gilgulim

Shelah Hakadosh, parshas Bereishis

Yevamos 64b: "Ben Dovid doesn't come until all the neshomas in the Guf are finished." The meaing of this is that now, in golus, there are very few new neshomas; the vast majority are merely gilgulim. But when these neshomas will be finished [completing their tikkun via gilgul] new neshomas will come. Then will be the geulah and the renewal of the hidden light and there will be new neshomas, as the verse states "the small will be a thousand, etc", meaning that the Holy One says "I will multiply you that you will give birth to very many in order that all the neshomas that are in the Guf should be finished", and then it is the moment of the Geulah, and the Holy One says Achishena ["I will hasten it"] because He speeds the Geulah.

The Final Geulah in One Instant

Lubavitcher Rebbe, Vayechi 5752

[It took the bnei Yisroel 14 years to enter the land of Israel under Yehoshua.] This is not the case in the true and complete geulah -- we won't need to wait 7 years, and not even 7 days, 7 hours, or 7 minutes since it will be "in one moment" "I will bring you on clouds of glory".

Our Ahavas Yisroel draws down Hashem's Ahavas Yisroel

Sicha, 26th Of Kislev, 5752

G-d's expression of love for the Jews depends on their expression of love for each other. Thus in addition to the love we should show a fellow Jew, because he is a Jew, we must show him additional love, because G-d loves him. And this imperative is increased by the knowledge that this course of conduct will enable each person, his family, and the entire Jewish people to leave the exile in the immediate future.

Seeing the treasure...or looking off to the side?

This is what is meant by "you turned the back of your neck to me and not your face", as it is explained in various places in Chassidus, that they can be standing alongside a great treasure in the middle of the day -- and what treasure is greater than the one we have waited for over all the generations, which is the revelation of Moshiach Tzidkeinu? -- the treasure stands revealed and this is in the middle of the day, when the sun is shining strongly and the light is bright, never-the-less they don't see it because they are looking to the side, involved in other things.

Sicha of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Parshas Va'era 5730

Suffering is to purify, not for punishment

Mitteler Rebbe, Toras Chayim, Bereishis Miketz 219c

It is not possible that all the suffering stems from Israel being suited for punishment, because the sins do not rise to the degree of the hard and bitter suffering that truly reaches the very depths of the soul. And even for the little bit of good that is done, it is fitting to sit in peace, as we find by Nevuchadnezzar that because he took three steps in honor of Hashem, greatness was decreed that he and his sons for three generations -- and there is no Jew who hasn't honored Hashem much more than this!

We are forced to recognize that the main purpose of the suffering that comes upon a person is "לבטל את גסות רוחו" to nullify his coarseness and ego and only to make him humble and submissive [and not as a punishment for sins].

Kulo Zakai -- all meritorious

From a private meeting between R' Shneur Chaim Gutnik and the Lubavitcher Rebbe (5 Menachem Av 55727/1967)

R' Gutnick: ...There is an inyan of b'ita and achishena, and it is stated in chazal (Sanhedrin 98a) that it is dependent on whether it will be a situation of zachu ("they merit") or lo zachu ("they don't merit") -- kulo zakai ("all meritorious") or kulo chayav ("all culpable"). Could it be that the Rambam says that it must be according to a certain order, yet in the words of chazal we see differently (that not necessarily does it need to be all meritorious")?

Lubavitcher Rebbe: Nu, how do you understand? Obviously the Rambam also knew these words of chazal that you know, and nonetheless this is his psak din [binding halachic decision] (that there needs to be [a king from the house of Dovid who will] "compel all of Israel, etc." -- kulo zakai).

Regarding what you are saying, that it appears [to you] that there could also be a situation of kulo chayav -- we see the Satmar, Harav Katznellenbogen and Menachem Schneerson will not allow this to happen. Additionally, regarding kulo chayav you have nothing to talk about and the only way is that it will be kulo zakai.

Revelations are dependent on both our Actions and our Divine Service

Lubavitcher Rebbe, Maamor "V'Haya Eikev Tishma'un" 5727

It is explained in Tanya that the complete perfection of the Messianic era and the revival of the dead is dependent on "ma'aseinu" and "avodaseinu" (our "actions" and our "divine service") in the time of exile. [The Rebbe's] father explained that the difference between "ma'aseinu" and "avodaseinu" can be found in the fourth book of Tanya, Igeres Hakodesh, in the letter which discusses the giving of tzedakah.

As explained there, "ma'aseh" (action) is something which one is accustomed to do, whereas "avoda" (divine service) is something which is accomlished only with great effort to overcome one's nature and nullify one's desires to the Supernal Desire of Hashem.

Thus it can be understood that the reference to "ma'aseinu" refers to fulfilling Torah and Mitzvos according to one's nature and habit, whereas "avodaseinu" refers to the effort in Torah and Mitzvos which is more than one's nature and habit.

The illustration found in Igeres Hakodesh is the mitzvah of Tzedakah. "Israel by nature are merciful and generous" (Yevamos 79a), and the manner of giving tzedakah which is termed "ma'aseh ha-tzedakah" (act of tzedakah) means giving which is due to the inherent generous nature posessed by every son of Israel from their moment of creation. "avodas ha-tzedakah" (service of tzedakah), on the other hand, is when his giving of tzedakah goes beyond the generous nature of even his G-dly soul.

From this we can understand the difference between "ma'aseinu" and "avodaseinu" (in Torah and Mitzvos in general), which is that although it may require effort to reveal the nature of his G-dly soul which has been obscured by his animal soul, nontheless the results of this are only on the level of "ma'aseinu", whereas "avodaseinu" is his effort which goes beyond the nature of his G-dly soul.

Have no doubt that G-d will help

The Rebbe Rayatz, in a letter

According to the teaching of our mentor, the Baal Shem Tov, when a person places his trust in G-d but is agonized and worried and sighing, he has not yet attained a complete trust in G-d. For when one's trust in G-d is complete, his unfavorable - or even (G-d forbid) bad - situation should not affect his heart by causing it distress or, certainly, melancholy. Rather, he should do, according to the Torah and mortal understanding, whatever he is able to do, and place his trust in G-d. He should not have even a shadow of a doubt that G-d will help him, inasmuch as His Providence watches over every single created being [...]. All their affairs and even all of their most trivial motions are under the eye of His specific supervision, and it is this Divine Providence that gives life and strength to every living being in the heavens and on earth.

The geulah will be "Achishena" with chesed and rachamim

Sicha of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Parshas Naso 5747 (free translation)

The geulah itself is in a manner of wealth, regarding the negation of the aspects of "chevlei Moshiach", since the Mitteler Rebbe explained that we have already fulfilled the obligaion of "chevlei Moshiach" by way of all the oppression and pogroms, etc. How much more so after all the matters that took place in the generations after this, up to our generation, and therefore the geulah must be with Chesed and Rachamim (kindess and mercy), as was said, in a way of wealth. This also applies to the time of the geulah -- not only in a way of "achishena", but "achishena" within "achishena" itself. That is to say, that also the "achishena" will be in a way of wealth.

(view online in Hebrew)

Moshiach will be revealed in America

"Moshiach will be revealed in America."

Divrei Chaim (R' Chaim Halberstam, the Sanzer Rebbe 1793-1876), Artzos Hachayim letter 6

Learning Chassidus: obligatory for this generation!

...the main thing is that in our generations the study of Pnimiyus Hatorah is obligatory; not only this, but the lack of this learning G-d forbid delays the Geulah, as stated in the words of both the Alter Rebbe and the Gaon of Vilna...

Letter of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, 5721 (1961), Igros Kodesh v. 20, p.84

Sound asleep? He gets carried along too...

We will immediately merit to the true and complete geulah through our righteous Moshiach -- "I will carry you on clouds of heaven". And those who are sleeping and dreaming about other things -- they will be carried along on the clouds of heaven along with their beds...this way, they will be able to keep sleeping comfortably on the "clouds of heaven"...and when they awaken from their sleep, they will grasp that they are involved in a completely different matter (not the matters they were dreaming about...) -- that they are standing in our holy land, in Yerushalayim the holy city, and in the Bais Hamikdash!

Lubavitcher Rebbe, Vayakhel-Pekudei, 5748