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The First Chassidic Commentary on the Zohar! Biurei HaZohar by the Baal HaTanya. Unique Copy with Wide Margins. Kapust, 1816. First Edition. * Biurei HaZohar, containing drashos on the Zohar delivered by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the Baal HaTanya, every Friday night. His son, Rabbi Dov Ber, the Mitteler Rebbe, wrote the drashos at his father’s request. Before his passing, the Baal HaTanya personally reviewed most of these manuscripts and, in the words of his son, “they found great favor in his eyes.” The first Chassidic commentary on the Zohar ever published.  An exceptional copy with wide margins — measuring up to 5.5 cm beyond the text! The margins are so broad that the original printing holes at the upper corners of the leaves, used during the printing process, remain intact and were never trimmed away by later binders (see below). Numerous ownership inscriptions of the author’s disciple, the prominent Rabbi Shlomo ben Rabbi Meir Raphaels, who was closely connected not only to the Mitteler Rebbe but also to his successor, the Tzemach Tzedek. (See the account in the book Beis Rebbe, leaf 73a, describing the financial loss he suffered because of his Chassidic affiliation.) Bound at the end is the booklet ‘Hosafot LeSefer Biurei HaZohar, ’ first edition, originally printed as part of the second edition of Biurei HaZohar (Lvov, 1861). This volume therefore combines the first edition of Biurei HaZohar with the first edition of its supplementary booklet. Kapust, 1816. First edition. Printed by the Chabad chassid Rabbi Yisrael Yaffe. Page Count: [4], 139, 57 leaves. Height: 25 cm. (Standard copies are the average approximate size of 20 cm.) Condition: Good. Tears and repairs to several leaves. Stains. Minor restoration to the title page. Antique leather binding (lightly worn). Bound at the end: Hosafos LeSefer Biurei HaZohar. Lvov, 1861. First edition. Page Count: [12], 13–20, [1] leaves. The volume originally consisted solely of Biurei HaZohar. The supplement was bound at the end at a later date, as evidenced by ink offset on the final page of Biurei HaZohar, which comes from inscriptions that originally appeared on the back flyleaf. Today, the supplement separates the two. The supplement's binding was done a long time ago. Numerous signatures and ownership inscriptions appear at the beginning and end of the volume. Antique stamps on the title page. Provenance: Kedem Auction (2019). Bibliography: Stefansky, Sifrei Chassidus, no. 79. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - “This was the level attained by the Arizal, who merited the revelation of Eliyahu and Ruach HaKodesh.” Printed at the beginning of the volume is a “Letter to All Our Brethren” by the author’s son, the Mitteler Rebbe, in which he describes the Baal HaTanya’s approach to studying the Zohar: “It was evident to all that Ruach HaKodesh rested upon him, as the hidden light of the Torah’s deepest mysteries was revealed to him... As I heard from his holy mouth... throughout his life he established a fixed practice of studying the holy Zohar specifically on Shabbos. He said of himself that he would ordinarily study only one or two pages each Shabbos, but with profound concentration, great exertion, and painstaking precision, analyzing every word until it fully accorded with the true principles of Kabbalah. It was through this approach that he reached the level of the Arizal, who merited the revelation of Eliyahu and Ruach HaKodesh because of the immense effort he invested in the language of the holy Zohar.” - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The Printing Holes in Wide-Margined Copies Early accounts indicate that during the printing process, the sheets were secured to the printing press with small nails that pierced the paper to prevent them from shifting during printing. We have seen similar holes in sefarim printed at the presses of Slavita, Zhitomir, Vilna, and Kapust. Not every copy was originally printed with wide margins. Even among those that were, the vast majority were later trimmed by binders so that owners wouldn’t have to pay for a large binding, and binders saw little reason to preserve the excess paper. As a result, these distinctive printing holes have survived in only a very small number of Hebrew books worldwide from the entire history of Hebrew printing. These preserved printing holes are clear evidence that this copy has never been trimmed by a binder, and is exactly as it emerged from the printing press!