Bidspirit auction | Important Chabad Manuscript – Vast

Important Chabad Manuscript – Vast Collection of Over Sixty Ma’amarim of the Alter Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek, and Others – Early 19th Century and Onward * A large volume of 178 leaves, containing an extensive collection of “bichelach” (small, handwritten notebooks) written by various scribes. The manuscript includes more than sixty ma’marim (essays) on Chassidus, primarily from the Alter Rebbe, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, author of the Tanya, as well as from his grandson, the Tzemach Tzedek, the Mitteler Rebbe, Rabbi Hillel of Paritch, and Rabbi Yitzchak Isaac of Homil. The booklets were written in the early nineteenth century, and were already bound together in their present form by the first half of the nineteenth century. At that time, a new, continuous page count was added throughout the volume. (We have seen another similar volume of bichelach with an identical binding, which apparently originated from the collection of Rabbi Yissachar Ber Horowitz, the well-known posek of Lubavitch. If so, it is possible that the present volume likewise comes from Rabbi Yissachar Ber, who was very close to the Tzemach Tzedek. Many Chabad manuscripts were safeguarded in his possession, including important autograph writings of the Chabad Rebbes.) This manuscript has not been thoroughly examined by Zaidy; however, a preliminary review indicates that the ma’marim were printed in various places, though at times there are variations in wording, or the addition of a date at the beginning of a booklet that are not known from any other source. For example, at the head of the first essay in this manuscript — “Lehavin ha-kushya hanizkeres b’techilas Sefer haTanya, ” by the Tzemach Tzedek — there appears the notation: “Erev Rosh Hashanah 1828.” These chiddushim are of particular significance for the study of Chabad teachings, a Chassidus which has, for centuries, been known for its rigorous effort to refine and perfect the wording of its ma’amarim. A collection of this scale, containing so many ma’amarim bound together in a single volume, is extremely rare. Russia/Belarus, from the early nineteenth century onward. Page Count: [178] leaves. A small number of ma’amarim are incomplete. Size : 23 cm. Condition : Fair to moderate. Wear and old mildew stains along the margins; several leaves with marginal text loss. Worn antique binding. ---------------------- A fine example of a chiddush found in this manuscript is the ma’amar “Vatenach haTeivah baChodesh haShevi’i, etc., Hineh beZohar Parshas Behaloscha” which was printed in the sefer Likkutei Torah LeGimmel Parshiyos (Vilna, 1884), pp. 68–70. On the title page of that sefer, it is stated that the drashos are from the Alter Rebbe and they were arranged by the Rebbe Maharash. This sefer has been widely discussed in Chabad circles; see at length the entry on Chabadpedia and the references cited there. In the present manuscript, the above-mentioned drush opens with the following words: “Torah of Rebbe Menachem Mendel, may he live, year 1833, here in the city of Lubavitch.” This is a clear reference to the Tzemach Tzedek!