1508 —טהור האויר על ידי תורה, בריאות רוחנית, וכוח הפסח

In the talk printed at the end of this booklet for Acharon Shel Pesach, my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, proclaims the necessity of purifying the air through the letters of Torah, since a person's health depends on the air. In an atmosphere of Torah and mitzvos—life is healthy. In an atmosphere of heresy, G‑d forbid—there is a danger of contagious illness in various forms. If this is true for a healthy person, how much more so for someone who is weak. The danger is even greater for someone who is ill, even if only mildly so—and certainly for one whose illness is life-threatening.

Our Sages said that this illness refers to the yetzer hara (evil inclination), which only in the future will the Holy One slaughter (Sukkah 52a), and it is the source for life-threatening illness—desire for forbidden things—and for non-life-threatening illness—desire for permitted things.

This especially recalls and awakens us regarding the Exodus from Egypt: eating matzah and avoiding chametz on Pesach. The people fled because the evil within Jewish souls was still strong in their left side (since their impurity did not cease until Matan Torah; after the sin of the Golden Calf it returned). The Jews then were like a king’s only son who was weak; they said he should eat only healing foods and that no other food or sustenance should be found in his house.

Therefore, there is also an absolute necessity to purify the air—purification through thought and speech with letters of Chumash, Tehillim, Mishnayos, and Tanya—as explained at length in that talk.

Through all this we also bring closer the end of exile; then chametz will no longer be able to rule over or harm Israel. Even more—the yetzer hara called chametz will be burned by the power of Malchus’s illumination. Then will be fulfilled: Lo b’chipazon tetze’u u’v’menusah lo teleichun ki holeich lifneichem Hashem ("Not in haste shall you go out nor in flight shall you go; for Hashem goes before you")—may it be speedily in our days.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that immersing ourselves in Torah purifies our environment and protects our spiritual health. Especially during Pesach, focusing on Torah study helps us overcome negative inclinations and brings us closer to redemption.