The Meaning of “HaAvos Hen Hen HaMerkavah”

 Holy letters of the Rebbe, volume 17, letter number 6168. Baruch Hashem, the 7th of Nisan 5718, Brooklyn. Habosi Vachasid, Moreinu Avram Moshe sheyichye Greenberg in Bnei Brak. He asked the Rebbe a question, to which the Rebbe is responding. So the Rebbe says like this: Shalom u’vrachah. I am responding to your letter dated Beis Nissan, which is the Hilula, the yahrzeit of the Rebbe Rashab, with all the titles, zechus yagen aleinu v’al kol Yisroel.

He asked the Rebbe that in the Tanya it is brought down, and also in Chassidus in general, there is a statement: “Ha-avos hen hen hamerkavah.” The forefathers, Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov, are the chariot, the carriage—they are, so to speak, Hashem’s carriage. What does it mean that they are Hashem’s carriage? This represents and shows their level of subjugation to the blessed Hashem. When we say they are Hashem’s carriage, we mean that just as a carriage is totally subjugated to the one riding it—it has no say where to go or when to go, and does not move on its own—so too, whoever rides controls it completely. So when expressing how much the forefathers were totally subjugated to Hashem, it means they allowed Hashem to lead their lives entirely, without their own independent will, being completely nullified to Him.

This raised a question, because in many sefarim it is explained that the merkavah, Hashem’s chariot, refers to how Hashem leads the world—through the chariot, the conduct of the world takes place. So how does this fit with the explanation of Chassidus? The Rebbe says, “I do not understand—what is the contradiction between these two explanations?” On the contrary, they complement each other.

The Tanya explains the level of the individual—his standing, his situation, his condition in serving his Creator. When a person connects to Hashem, he becomes like a chariot to Hashem. Through serving Hashem, one subjugates oneself completely. This is a powerful lesson: to be subjugated to Hashem means to become a merkavah, allowing Hashem to rest upon him and direct his life, with no personal desires, but only the desire to fulfill Hashem’s will.

The other sefarim explain what this accomplishes in the world. Through a person becoming a chariot, the Eibishter conducts the world in such a way that the world itself becomes subjugated through that person. The individual begins by nullifying himself to Hashem, and this brings about a broader effect—that the world, too, becomes aligned and subjugated to Hashem.

The Rebbe says this is similar to the concept of Kehunah and the Kohanim. The Kohanim serve in the Beis HaMikdash and bring the korbanos of the Jewish people. Their role is to act in the world, especially in the Beis HaMikdash, facilitating the offerings. That is their practical impact. But beyond their function, there is also their inherent level as Kohanim.

What is the level of service of a Kohen? As the Rambam writes at the end of Hilchos Shemittah v’Yovel regarding the Levi’im: what defines a Levi? While a Levi is born into the tribe of Levi, the Rambam explains that conceptually, one does not have to be born a Levi to attain this status. We are not discussing lineage for aliyah, but rather the idea itself. A person whose spirit is generous, whose understanding leads him to stand before Hashem, and who separates from worldly ways—such a person attains this level.

So there is the level itself—Kehunah—and then there is what Kehunah accomplishes in the world. The same applies to the idea of merkavah: the Jewish people, or the forefathers, are themselves a merkavah in their state of being, and then there is the effect they bring about in the world through that state. There is no contradiction between the two; one describes the inner state, and the other describes the resulting impact.

The Rebbe concludes that it is his hope that you have established fixed times to study the teachings of Chassidus, and that you also influence your surroundings to spread this study, because this is the demand of the hour and absolutely necessary. This necessity is explained at length in the wondrous words in the introduction of Rav Chaim Vital, the primary student of the Arizal HaChai, in his introduction to Shaar HaHakdamos. And nothing stands in the way of the will. The Rebbe therefore encourages him to both study and spread Chassidus. The Rebbe blesses him with a Pesach kasher v’sameach, a kosher and happy Pesach. This letter was conveyed in the name of the Rebbe by the Rebbe’s secretary. The Rebbe had written to him several letters, answering his question regarding the concept that the forefathers are a chariot to Hashem—clarifying that there is no contradiction between their personal nullification and the way this manifests in the world.

Summary – The Rebbe teaches that true connection to Hashem means complete self-nullification, becoming a “Merkavah,” and that this inner state naturally transforms the world; therefore, one must actively learn and spread Chassidus, as it is essential for both personal service and global spiritual impact.

אגרות הקודש של הרבי, כרך י״ז, אגרת מספר 6168. ברוך השם, ז׳ ניסן תשי״ח, ברוקלין. החסיד הרב אברהם משה שיחיה גרינברג מבני ברק. הוא שאל את הרבי שאלה, והרבי משיב לו. הרבי פותח: שלום וברכה. הנני משיב על מכתבך מיום ב׳ ניסן, יום ההילולא של הרבי הרש״ב, זכותו יגן עלינו ועל כל ישראל.

שאלתך היא על הנאמר בתניא ובחסידות בכלל: “האבות הן הן המרכבה.” אברהם, יצחק ויעקב הם המרכבה. מה פירוש שהם מרכבתו של הקב״ה? הכוונה היא לביטול המוחלט שלהם לה׳. כמו שמרכבה בטלה לגמרי לרוכב עליה ואין לה רצון עצמי—כך האבות ביטלו עצמם לחלוטין לרצון ה׳, והניחו לה׳ להנהיג את חייהם ללא רצון עצמאי.

השאלה נובעת מכך שבספרים אחרים מוסבר שהמרכבה היא האמצעי שדרכו הקב״ה מנהיג את העולם. הרבי אומר שאין כאן סתירה, אלא להפך—שני ההסברים משלימים זה את זה.

התניא מדבר על מדרגת האדם בעבודת ה׳—כאשר האדם מתבטל לה׳, הוא נעשה מרכבה לו. זהו מצב פנימי של ביטול מוחלט. ואילו הספרים האחרים מדברים על התוצאה—כאשר האדם נעשה מרכבה, הקב״ה מנהיג דרכו את העולם, והעולם עצמו נעשה כפוף לרצון ה׳.

הרבי מביא משל מכהונה: הכהנים פועלים בבית המקדש ומקריבים קרבנות—זהו תפקידם בפועל בעולם. אך מעבר לכך יש את עצם מדרגתם ככהנים. כך גם כאן—יש את עצם היות האדם מרכבה, ויש את ההשפעה הנובעת מכך בעולם.

הרמב״ם מסביר לגבי שבט לוי, שלא רק מי שנולד לוי יכול להגיע למדרגה זו, אלא כל מי שמקדיש עצמו לעבודת ה׳ ומתבדל מענייני העולם. כלומר, יש מדרגה ויש השפעה הנובעת ממנה.

לכן אין סתירה בין ההסברים—האחד מתאר את המצב הפנימי, והשני את התוצאה בעולם.

הרבי מסיים בתקווה שקבעת עיתים ללימוד חסידות ושאתה גם פועל להפיץ לימוד זה בסביבתך, שכן זהו צורך השעה והכרח גמור, כפי שמבואר בדברי רבי חיים ויטאל בהקדמתו לשער ההקדמות בשם האריז״ל. ואין דבר העומד בפני הרצון. הרבי מברך אותך בחג פסח כשר ושמח.