221 —מקור בנגלה לכך שריבוי עברות קלות שווה לעבירה חמורה בתניא

Shalom u'Vrachah! I saw written in the essay Teshuvos U'Biurim (Kovetz, second booklet, p. 22) that everything stated in the talks of our Rebbe shlita has a source in the words of our Sages. Certainly, all the more so, there is a source for what is said in the discourses and books of Chassidus. My question is whether there is also a source in Nigleh for what is written in Tanya, Iggeres HaTeshuvah chapter 7, that through many minor transgressions there can be a blemish similar to that of a karet or death penalty transgression.

Answer: An example of this concept in Nigleh, and not only that but also as practical halacha: It is stated in Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim (siman 328:14): If there is a dangerously ill person who needs meat, one slaughters for him and does not say to feed him non-kosher meat. Even though if he eats non-kosher meat less than a kezayit it is only a regular prohibition, while slaughtering on Shabbat is punishable by stoning, nevertheless we slaughter. One reason is because in such a case he would transgress the prohibition of stoning only once, but by eating non-kosher meat he would transgress with every act of eating even though it is only an ordinary prohibition (see Ran and Magen Avraham cited by our Rebbe's Shulchan Aruch there se'if 17). Some say (Bach, Taz) that even regarding rabbinic prohibitions and even if the prohibition is very light, the law remains the same.

See also Sefer Lekach Tov by R. Yosef Engel, klal 15 (whether quantity outweighs quality), where he notes several places in Shas about this topic. Among them are Rashi on Yevamot (32b) and Tosafot s.v. Kasavri Sanhedrin (50a).

See note to siman reish tet above. This letter was later found at its source; it was sent to Moreinu HaRav Menachem Mendel Margaliot on Monday, 20 Menachem Av 5705. Additional letters to him: above letter 177 and those referenced there.

In Teshuvos U'Biurim: see above vol. I letter 154.

Only once...and eating: See also below letter 257.

In section 20 there he questions this principle—if so, one should give up one's life rather than transgress other sins when forced to do so multiple times, just as with one-time violation of the three cardinal sins. This is not difficult since our Rebbe already explained in Tanya chapter 24 that whether one must give up one's life or not does not depend on the severity or leniency of the sin.

Summary

The Rebbe shows that halachic sources recognize how repeated minor sins can accumulate to equal or surpass a single severe sin—supporting what Tanya teaches about spiritual blemish from many small transgressions.