960 —אחריות וכח שלוחי הרבי

B"H, 25 Adar II, 5711, Brooklyn.

Haraha"ch vavac"h iy"a nu"m etc. Yosef Schneersohn

Shalom u'Vrachah!

Enclosed is the kuntres for Monday, 2 Nissan, may it come soon, the yahrzeit of the Rebbe Rashab of blessed memory. Surely you will merit to enable many to study it, especially on Shabbat Parshat HaChodesh, Rosh Chodesh Nissan, and the following day on the yahrzeit.

As stated in the sichah printed in this kuntres: The students of the one whose yahrzeit it is—his sons and grandsons—possess his strength: the power of one who teaches Torah to another’s child. Therefore, they bear responsibility toward their teacher—the one whose yahrzeit it is. Moreover, even those who merely saw him also possess his strength—the power of a teacher. And even those who did not see him still have this strength through the power of the sender (the meshaleach), for through this power a person’s agent becomes like himself.

There are several levels in this: granting permission and power to an agent to act as the sender would—yet the action remains that of the agent because he is an independent entity in all respects; he simply wishes to fulfill his mission. Then there is granting power from the sender so that even though the agent acts, it is considered as if the sender acted—since in matters of agency, the agent’s actions are not an independent entity but are only an extension of the sender’s power. Finally, there is granting power from the sender along with nullification of self by the agent to such a degree that he himself becomes nothing but an extension of the sender. Each person fits into one of these categories and bears responsibility accordingly.

In accordance with what my father-in-law said at the end of his aforementioned sichah: "One must know what strengths we possess, and may Hashem help us"—to bring these strengths into action and reach their purpose: to become—as demanded by the one whose yahrzeit it is—a shining lamp in all aspects explained in the introduction to this kuntres.

Blessings and regards to your entire group.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that every shaliach has unique powers and responsibilities depending on their connection to their source. Recognizing these strengths enables each person to fulfill their mission with dedication and bring light as intended by their teacher.