8352 —לימוד תניא יומי, חסידות לעומת זהר וכתבי האריז"ל, והשאלת ספרים

B"H, 7 Adar II, 5722. Brooklyn.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

In response to your letter from Tuesday and your question whether studying a chapter of Tanya each day is sufficient to fulfill the obligation of learning the inner dimension of Torah: It is surprising to even have such a doubt, for it is a general rule in all mitzvos of the Torah that one must do "as is fitting to do," and certainly you can learn, understand, and comprehend additional books of Chassidus—especially as explained in the notes of my father-in-law, the Rebbe, Nasi Yisrael (printed in Sefer Kitzurim v'He'aros l'Sefer HaTanya), that Tanya in relation to other Chassidus works is like Written Torah compared to Oral Torah. From his words there and from the language of our Rebbe the Alter Rebbe in his Iggeres HaKodesh, it is clear that matters in Written Torah—even its mitzvos—are not revealed or explicit except through Oral Torah (see there at length section 29). Similarly, this applies regarding the teachings of Chassidus. This should be understood well.

Regarding your note about which books are available to you etc.—since you live among Anash in Jerusalem the Holy City (may it be rebuilt and established), it is well known from our Sages about the virtue of one who owns books and lends them to others.

In your letter's conclusion you write that Zohar and writings of the Arizal are also called "the inner dimension of Torah," so why emphasize that this was revealed through Chassidus? This question too is puzzling: what is seen clearly needs no proof or explanation. My intent is that when comparing understanding a concept as learned in Zohar versus as explained in Chassidus—and similarly regarding writings of the Arizal [for example: study a topic as explained in commentaries on Zohar after first seeing it in Zohar itself]—it is like learning only Mishnah without Gemara and its commentaries. There is no need to elaborate on something so obvious.

I hope you participated in the farbrengen for Yud Shevat—the yahrzeit of my father-in-law, the Rebbe—who gave his life for spreading this study, even though you did not mention this in your letter.

With blessing for good news.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that while daily Tanya study is important, one should also learn other works of Chassidus for a fuller understanding—just as Oral Torah explains Written Torah. He highlights how Chassidus uniquely reveals inner Torah concepts beyond what Zohar or Arizal provide and encourages sharing seforim with others.