2285 —איסוף גשמיות וזריעת רוחניות בעבודה חסידית

B"H, 5th of Kislev, 5714. Brooklyn.

Haraha"ch vavac"h iy"a nu"n oseik b'tzt"z Moreinu HaRav Shneor Zalman HaLevi

Shalom u'Vrachah!

I received your letter pleasantly, including the continuation of your memoirs. It is a pity that you shorten them; surely at the appropriate opportunity you will continue with more detail and additions.

It is surprising that you do not write anything about matters of spiritual sowing. As is well known, the saying of my father-in-law the Rebbe, of blessed memory, to those traveling on missions like yours: 'One must gather materiality and sow spirituality.' Since he combined them together in an added phrase, it is evident that one depends on the other. Especially regarding one's situation—where even the material aspect is spiritual—so too, conversely, the spirituality here is also materiality; meaning it must be drawn down below ten handbreadths—not only in material matters but also in coarse matters.

This is as I wrote in my letter for Rosh Hashanah this year: one must transform even the vegetative-mineral-animal parts within a person into 'adam' (human), and 'adam' comes from 'adameh l'Elyon' (I will resemble the Supreme). There is no need to elaborate further.

Especially in the month of Kislev—the month of redemption and when it was decreed Above that it is permitted and therefore necessary to spread Chassidus—and thus also all matters of Chassidus—broadly and expansively. It is told that after they explained to the Alter Rebbe that there was a heavenly accusation against him for speaking openly, nevertheless the conclusion was: since he already began, he should continue in this manner.

With blessings for success in your journey—both in gathering materiality and sowing spirituality.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that material and spiritual efforts are intertwined; true success comes from integrating both. In Kislev especially, one should expand Chassidus outwardly while transforming even mundane aspects into holiness.