Kuntres Acharon #1a- Introduction: Kabbalah isn't Chasidus, History of printing- Rabbi Chaim Dalfin

We are now tackling a cheer and a cigar. Yeah. Contress a sh mute yourself please. Contress aon. I'm going to use the safer lessons in Tanya. Um which is a page 259. I'm going to not read the introduction here but rather give a synopsis of it. Okay. Kutra sakran is the f fifth section of Tanya and originally it was not published together with the Tanya the Tanya of 1796 and the Tanya of 1798 and in for the first I think eight um seven printings of Tanya we didn't have ain there ain was the first time printed I believe in 1811 a year before the alterba passed away and it was uh and then again in 1813 I believe or 14 after the alter passed away. Now the the interesting thing about this countress and the Reb says what I'm saying is that it's nine essays. Kris means a pamphlet a the latter the later one. And what does that mean? It means that these are supposedly nine essays which explain and expound upon certain ideas of that were the first section of Tanya. So for example today the first chapter I don't know if we'll get to it today or tomorrow it's it's it's it analyzes certain things the alterba says in chapter 40 of and the alterba wrote this when he was studying and preparing and write and wrote Tanya chapter 40 but for whatever reason he didn't include it in the actual peri he he wrote it as a separate kind of a separate notebook and that's why it's called a or maybe he maybe he wrote it after he finished all all 53 chapters he went back and wrote more analysis on certain points in the 53 chapters so I don't know exactly when he wrote it I don't know if we know exactly if he wrote it at the time when he wrote chapter 40 or later. But one thing's for sure that the idea of of the countress is to reconcile contradictions between what he writes in Tanya and in Kabala. Kabala meaning zarim and preim those primarily those three swuring. Okay. From the andal etc etc. So, it would all be good if we if this was the case for all nine essays. But there's a problem if you look and we'll get to it from essay uh 789 no uh 678 I think four of the essays are not about count are not referring back to something that he wrote in the first section of Tanya rather they're letters they're like they're so they don't really belong here they belong In the previous section we called the garesish. And indeed in the 1811 version of the countress a there was only six chapters uh six and the three and the last three four essays were not there. They were included in a kaidesh. Now why why the Rabim of Labavich kept kept the the the kept it the way it is. It's because the first the the sons of the alterba that's the way they they did it in 13. Why? I I I didn't see an answer. I we don't know. But that's what they did. They somehow decided to to to put three or four letters that are letters have nothing to do with with reconciling cabalistic concepts has to do with soda and and dvening. The famous letter the last essay in the is about dinging for the um and not rushing and dvening around the famous letter. But they put it into contra. So we we continue that. One second. We we continue that. But but it's good to know that in the 1811 version it was not there. So why the change? I don't know. And maybe maybe it was uh an error of the copist. Now, now, but that doesn't explain it because in other words, we know there that in at that time the people who were the print doing the printing weren't the biggest scholars. Okay? And they made mistakes. I mean, this is you can find it in all kinds of they made mistakes. But the question is even if they made a mistake, why didn't the Reb change it? Why didn't the Seak said change it? The Reb Ashab had the Tanya reprinted in 1900. Why didn't he change it? Don't know. Yes. Mo, what you wanted to ask, Moshe? Yeah. Just wanted to ask just to clarify. It was the sons of the alterba who did all of the um what the Tanya again. I guess you just said something now about 1900, but the sons of the alterba, they were the ones responsible for for compiling the five sections of what we call Tanya today. Yes and no. The the first time Tanya was printed was during the lifetime of the alterba in 1796 and then I think it was reprinted again in 1798 in another city. So the alterba was well you know I'm saying the alterba lived till 1812. So I can't it's not that the sons overruled the father in those years he didn't. And and and and in those years there was no I I I didn't say that before. In the version of Tanya of 1796, you only have three the first three sections and aarasuva. And even a garisa, I think initially was not there. I'm not sure if aua wasn't the first. It might have been the second I think it was in the second second or third version. But that alterba that alterba wrote and he and he put it that was alterba. Here we're talking about the uh even even though you see it's what what what I'm not clear I saw 1811 the alterba lived till 1812 but they attribute I think the 1811 um uh printing to the sons of the of the alterba and I'm just questioning it myself why would they do that if the alterba was alive 18 passed away in 1812 I don't know but surely in the 1814 13 version after the altar passed away the three sons write clearly that they they they appended the fourth section to the Tanya and they also appended the contra is it clear I I want to make sure that you know you you all understand this it's a little historical with dates um any questions by anyone else okay once what from 1813 and on It always is the way. It's always the way it's now. And I just said that when the Rasha, for example, in 1900 had Tanya reprinted with a editing it again cuz there were mistakes. You know, the print press took, you know what I'm saying? There were copies. They were mistakes, you know. So, he had someone go over the original. So, at that time, why didn't the Rashab say, "Hey, six essays in countries make sense. They're reconciling um statements in Tanya and and and and Kabala, but the other three are letters. They shouldn't they let's move them to the section of letters. I mean, you could say you could say and we find this in our tradition of 200 plus years that one Reba didn't when it comes to these things, he wouldn't change what the previous one did. So since the mitereb and the and you know they kept it the way it is the rashab wouldn't wouldn't wouldn't change it even if even if he thought it should be changed. I mean the reb is the one our rebba is the one who says much of what I'm telling you. I'm not sure any of the other I think they didn't. What I'm telling you is not from the previous. It's from the Reba. The Reba was a not going to use the word stickler, but the Reba was very much into manuscripts and at these type of things. You see this in in his teachings uh and and and you know dates and he was very very uh meticulous. So I believe he raises this issue that I've raised with you. So I just want you should have some background about that. That's the first thing. Now the next thing is that when it comes to reconciling kabala comes to reconciling kabala who is next to you moa ussher oh usher doesn't look usher you can show your face uh you have a nice face so so when it comes to reconciling when it comes to reconciling kabola Andis I also want to say a few words of introduction. We have discussed over our 8 n years learning is notidis and it's one of the biggest mistakes out there is why especially because he uses all his cabalistic words and on and on and on. So that's you find that all in z and inim but that's a that's a that's wrong and here is not the place to go into detail but there it's been written about in Hebrew in English and but briefly it's just the opposite it's two different ways is as you know in in books they they put uh the right we're saying Friday night the right hand is is is is the left hand is gura and so they label the body. You find these diagrams in books of kabala. So what's been what's happening? It's it's it's it's removing the the physical the physical. So it's it's going it it's going one way. This is just the opposite. It's taking the physical and making it spiritual. In in Hebrew, the words used in for this is there's h and there is halos. H means have to strip. Malish means to invest to dress up. This is about dressing up Hashem. Dressing up Hashem through man. Kabola is stripping man of humanity and making man more spiritual and and that's a very great thing but that's kabala. So ari the idea of the cabala andis are the same is is is a is is a big mistake. is wrong factually not not I'm not talking emotionally now and spiritually on the ground it's wrong simply wrong but both systems work together very well it's like you know someone says I can work with this person but I can never marry them you know we can be good friends but not not under it don't work that way right are good good friends but you can't marry each other because the objective of kabala is and the objective of this is so I'm looking at mo I would say like Mosha would always say you know what share with me the practicality you know you know right this it's not just a practical it's the insight into God but has more of a practical ical aspect to it. Cabal is more ethereal and mystical. Hence the word mysticism removal from gashmas teaches of when you see your your friend's donkey who is velv is your enemy right so one way is to crush it to destroy it to eliminate it and the other way is to incorporate incorporates. Cabala eliminates. Yes. M just going back to what you said. I want to make sure I understood this. Takes the physical but brings out the spiritual from it. Yeah. It it it it it infuses the spiritual into the physical. It infuses the spirituality into the physical. So the physical must be there and then kabala cabala re removes this the the physicality out of the physical. Hence okay right hence mysticism is do you have any better words for this because I'm sure you've thought about it. No. Okay. Anyway, this so so I I would agree on the on the point that uh Cassidus is more on the practical level um even though it deals with divinity and and Cabala is more theoretical. Okay. But you see the word we the reason I'm a little ambivalent to use the word practical because practical means of practical means practical means not that not in that sense. Oh. Oh. Exactly. Not in that sense. Right. So, so that's why I think we need we need a different word than practical, you know. And I I I would the example you gave was very good. When you see your neighbor's donkey under its burden, how the BMT interprets that, that's practical in terms of your growth spiritually. Okay. Okay. Now what what what is it? What is what is the and I I you know it's very difficult. So I'm I'm learning it and it's on my mind. I I I realized a good word for it is percolating in my mind and and I don't have a complete a finished product but we'll learn together and we'll do as best as we can. So it's not just that the way I see it who am I? But the way I see it is not just that he's reconciling technical contradictions between something some things that he wrote in Tanya and and what it says in Kabala. That's true. That's that's that's the basics, right? I think that he's also adding insight into the deeper understanding of what he said earlier in Tanya in in certain points so that now when we learn it and we understand it better and better we'll have a better understanding of what he said in Tanya which is said that's what I that's why I'm making my point now is part Tanya, it's not part of Cabala. It's part of Tanya and Tanya ism. So even though the way he's going to go about it is reconciling Kabola and but the objective is you hear me? I see that you're shaking your head. Uh the new forget his Gordon. What's your first name? My cup. I'm older. I'm forgetting. Bor. Bur. I apologize. But you were shaking your head and I I I I'm right. I'm with you. Yeah. But so you got it. You understand? Since this is part of and it's part of it's part of so now you have to ask yourself it's part of what's this why why why do why are we delving into cababalistic ideas and rec reconciling the answer is to understand better not to understand the cabala better the alterba didn't come as the available as a teacher of kabala it's it's Another mistake was a go. He knew all of there's no question. But that's not his. He's he's a tal of the I say this over and is very important. Very important. This what this the following. As soon as you say, I don't care what you can't forget about the the part cuz if you do, you're not aid. You're your own man with very smart ideas and great ideas. It's notidus is a system. One second. Misha Misha, please listen first. Is a system. It's a system of the BMP. Within the bal and each one has a nuance this way, a nuance this way. But it's so so if you if if you if you look at as a a further development of kabala and it really it's kabala dressed in it's notidis it's kabala it's it's an interesting type of kabala where you've taken very mystical concepts and you apply them and guess what I'm not saying that's a bad system and there are people that do that day it behooves the st the the student ofidis I don't care London breast Boston makes no difference it behooves us as to find and understand how the teachings of our ram whatever group you belong to is not kabala butidis now in kabad frankly or let's sayim it's a little a little easier because of the style of its teaching but take take let's say zid hill is not here I don't see hill here but hill always tells us he's you know related right you go through the sur of the it's full of cababola and it's very hard to find and understand how That'sidis now obviously he was a aid but but the obviously doesn't yet give me an understanding here in my brain it's a misha what did you want yeah I wanted to just ask yeah kind of two questions one is that I've heard before said many times that the uh the villagon is actually uh people might think of the vagon more in the realm of let's say nigla etc but the vagon actually was quite a whereas the alterba people think might think of alterba some I mean saying outside as being because of more of a in the in the realm of but alter of course was was an unbelievableist in but my my question I've also heard that the or maybe there's two separate things that the alter actually his whole in was to take the world of nigl and to take the world of nister and bring them together I I to say that that is the thesis of his is is a very far stretch I I I don't see it that way and I don't think you're going to have any serious whether or not say that. Uh I would like to know um from you uh you know a source for that because it's it's a far stretch in in other words no one sec in other brings certain things of let's say with putting on fillin standing or taking off your fillin standing or sitting putting on he brings it in if that's what you mean okay but but most of the is Not kabala, notidis. Yeah, right. Maybe. Okay. No, what I mean is that his approach to is to I I I I I I'm not I I I do not know enough to be able to to make such a statement. And um I I I don't think I ever heard such a thing from the Reb. I would have to talk to some of my colleagues, you know. Um, I hear what you're saying and if I assume you heard it somewhere, uh, or read it. I heard it from Yeah, I heard it from I can see his name Shia from he had been here in She I know I know I know him and and he's a great a great uh I will ask Shia I I communicate with him. I'll ask him what what he meant, you know, and and he he he's a good source. I would agree that he's a good source. Go ahead. You and I just make sure you know which Shia I'm talking about. Yeah. Shia who lived in Raish. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I I know him from Yeshiva. He's a few years older than me. I know. Yeah. Okay. I figure regard regarding your first point of the go. The go the I don't know if he said it but the go they say was greater in Kabola than in Nigla. that again, you know, who knows? But that the go that the go was a a goin in in Cabala and yeah, but but but he wrote I think he wrote more on Cababola than I think I heard that also. Um, and I understand I understand the the comparison. I I understand what you're saying. I I hear what you're saying, but we need to, you know, we got to really look at this very very carefully. It's a study what you just mentioned. I I think it would be wonderful if some knowledgeable person would would write a a thesis on this, would write a a paper, you know, I I I think uh it would be maybe it exists out there, but I don't know of I don't know of it. Um that was the only point you wanted, right? Those are your two points, correct? Yeah. Yeah. We're going to stop here. I know we didn't learn inside anything, but I I I did want to give you this. And this is basically what uh what it says uh in the lessons in Tanya from 259 to 261. This is uh a synopsis of of what what I told you today and and I hope I think this was very important and useful uh before we start the actual. So we'll see everyone tomorrow. Okay. Zonta is have a safe trip. Safe trip. Thank you. And if you come into town, let me know. Okay. Okay. Okay. Take care. Shalom. Bye-bye. and monitor.