Shmuel Schneersohn
Encyclopedia
- "Maharash" redirect here, for the 17th century Polish rabbi, see Meir WahlMeir WahlMeir Wahl or Meir Wahl Katzenellenbogen, was a Polish rabbi. He was the son of Saul Wahl, who according to legend, was king of Poland for one day....
Shmuel Schneersohn (or Rabbi Shmuel of Lubavitch or The Rebbe Maharash) (17 March 1834 – 14 September 1882 OS
Old Style and New Style dates
Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...
) was an Orthodox
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
and the fourth Rebbe
Rebbe
Rebbe , which means master, teacher, or mentor, is a Yiddish word derived from the Hebrew word Rabbi. It often refers to the leader of a Hasidic Jewish movement...
(spiritual leader) of the Chabad Lubavitch chasidic
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
movement.
Biography
Schneersohn was born in LyubavichiLyubavichi
Lyubavichi is a rural locality in Rudnyansky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia.-History:The village is known to have existed in the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth since at least 1654 . In 1784 mentioned as a small town , then a possession of the magnate Lubomirski family...
, on 2 Iyar 1834, the seventh son of the Tzemach Tzedek
Menachem Mendel Schneersohn
Menachem Mendel Schneersohn also known as the Tzemach Tzedek was an Orthodox rabbi and the third Rebbe of the Chabad Lubavitch chasidic movement.-Biography:...
. He faced competition from three of his brothers, primarily from Rabbi Yehuda Leib Schneersohn
Yehuda Leib Schneersohn
Rabbi Yehuda Leib Schneersohn of Kopys was a Ukrainian Habad Hasidic rabbi, the second son of Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, and founder and first leader of the Kapust Hasidim.-Life and career:...
who established a dynasty in Kapust upon their father's death. Other brothers also established dynasties in Lyady
Lyady
Lyady, Liady, or Liadi may refer to one of the following settlements:* Lyady, Smolevichi District, Smolevichi District, Minsk Voblast, Belarus* Lyady, Zhlobin District, Zhlobin District, Homiel Voblast, Belarus...
, Babruysk
Babruysk
Babruysk or Bobruysk is a city in the Mahilyow Voblast of Belarus on the Berezina river. It is a large city in Belarus with a population of approximately 227,000 people . The name Babruysk probably originates from the Belarusian word babyor , many of which used to inhabit the Berezina...
, and Nizhyn
Nizhyn
Nizhyn is a city located in the Chernihiv Oblast of northern Ukraine, along the Oster River, north-east of the nation's capital, Kiev. It is the administrative center of the Nizhynsky Raion, though the city itself is also designated as a district in the oblast...
.
In 1848 Schneersohn was married to the daughter of his brother, Rabbi Chaim Shneur Zalman Schneersohn. After several months she died, and he then married the Rebetzin Rivkah, a granddaughter of Rabbi Dovber Schneuri
Dovber Schneuri
Dovber Schneuri was the second Rebbe of the Chabad Lubavitch Chasidic movement. Rabbi Dovber was the first Chabad rebbe to live in the town of Lyubavichi , the town for which this Hasidic dynasty is named...
, the Mitteler Rebbe.
Schneersohn was said to have had chariots on call for the evacuation of books in time of fire.
Besides his communal activism, he had wide intellectual interests. He spoke several languages, including Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
. He wrote widely on a range of religious and secular topics, and much of his writing has never been published and remains in manuscript form alone. His discourses began to be published for the first time under the title Likkutei Torat Shmuel in 1945 by Kehot, and 12 volumes have so far been printed.
He died in Lyubavichi, on 13 Tishrei 1882, leaving four sons and two daughters, and was succeeded by his son Sholom Dovber
Sholom Dovber Schneersohn
Sholom Dovber Schneersohn was an Orthodox rabbi and the fifth Rebbe of the Chabad Lubavitch chasidic movement. He is also known as "the Rebbe nishmosei eiden" and as "the Rebbe Rashab" .His teachings represent the emergence of an emphasis on outreach that later Chabad Rebbes would develop...
.
Schneersohn urged the study of kabbala
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
as a prerequisite for one's humanity:
A person who is capable of comprehending the Seder hishtalshelusSeder hishtalshelusSeder hishtalshelus means the "order of development" or "order of evolution", where the word Hishtalshelus is derived from the reduplicated quadriliteral root ŠLŠL "to chain", and so literally means "the chain-like process"...
(kabbalistic secrets concerning the higher spiritual spheres) - and fails to do so - cannot be considered a human being. At every moment and time one must know where his soul stands. It is a mitzvahMitzvahThe primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
(commandment) and an obligation to know the seder hishtalshelus.
Aphorisms
"The world says, 'If you can't crawl under, climb over.' But I say, Lechatchilah Ariber--'At the outset, one should climb over.'"
"You cannot fool God; ultimately, you cannot fool others either. The only one you can fool is yourself. And to fool a fool is no great achievement."