Strashelye (Hasidic dynasty)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Strashelye, is a branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism, named after the town Strashelye in the Mohilev Province of present-day Belarus, where its leader lived. Like all Hasidim it is based on the teachings and customs of Chasidut as taught by the Baal Shem Tov, based on the Kabbalistic works of Rabbi Isaac Luria (also know as the Arizal).
Contents |
[edit] Disagreements over succession
Rabbi Aharon HaLevi Horowitz, the founder of Strashelye, was a student of Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812), the founder of the Chabad Chassidic school of thought. While both Strashelye and Lubavitch consider Rabbi Shneur Zalman to have been the first rebbe of their respective schools, the former considered Rabbi Aharon HaLevi Horowitz the continuation of the dynasty. The latter consider Rabbi Dovber Schneuri the second rebbe. Inasmuch as that is the case, the Strashelye branch of Chabad Chassidus began in 1812, when Rabbi Shneur Zalman passed away.
[edit] Disagreement over Prayer
While both were good friends Rabbi Dovber and Rabbi Aharon disagreed about the place for emotional expression in Chassidic prayer. According to Rabbi Dovber[1], the greatest service a Jew can perform in worship is to totally nullify himself before his creator. Therefore, maintained Rabbi Dovber, it is necessary for a person's meditation can appear to be cold and emotionless on the exterior. As explained by his father The Alter Rebbe Shneur Zalman of Liadi, Rabbi Dovber prayed with D'veikus (cleaving), where the prayer (the one who is praying) feels himself one with his Creator, rather than with Hispaylus (excitement), where the prayer gets excited over his Creator but remains, in his own feeling and understanding, a separate entity and existence. Rabbi Dovber prayed perfectly still, hardly moving. His outward countenance remained completely unaffected.
Rabbi Aharon disagreed, claiming that it is acceptable and even commendable for a Chassid to get outwardly excited during prayer. Rabbi Shneur Zalman himself was known to pound his fist so hard on the wall while praying that he sometimes literally bled from his hand. Rabbi Aharon had a similar outward involvement and intensity during prayer. Moreover, he encouraged others to similarly express themselves openly during prayer.
[edit] Disagreement over education
Furthermore, the two disagreed with one another about the extent to which the deepest elements of Chassidic wisdom should be taught openly. Rabbi Dovber, in his magnum opus Sha'ar HaYichud (The Gate of Unity), explains the entire spiritual superstructure of creation. Rabbi Aharon argued that it was dangerous to discuss certain aspects of creation because it could lead a person to inadvertently view God anthropomorphically. It is enough for a person to know that God is so great that the existence of God precludes the existence of created beings, and that created beings nonetheless still exist. The paradox is a testimony to the greatness of God. While his teachings involve some of the deepest aspects of Kabbalistic wisdom, they nonetheless entreat the reader to use the deep intellectual wisdom of Kabbala in order to inspire simple love and fear for God. This was the foundation of Rabbi Dovber doctrine as well. The difference lied primarily in the outer (Chitzonius) and obviously emotional conduct Rabbi Aharon expected from his followers, whereas Rabbi Dovber expected a more intense manifestation of self effacement.
[edit] The succession
At some point before Rabbi Shneur Zalman's passing, Rabbi Dovber and Rabbi Aharon had a disagreement. It is not known what disagreement was about. What is known is that Rabbi Aharon left Liadi (where he, Rabbi Shneur Zalman and Rabbi Dovber lived), and settled in his home town of Strashelye. After Rabbi Shneur Zalman died, Rabbi Dovber moved to the city of Lubavitch. Seeking to become the leader of the Chabad school, Rabbi Dovber became the Rebbe of the Lubavitch school of Chabad Chassidus. Rabbi Aharon, similarly seeking to be the leader of the Chabad school, became the Rebbe of the Strashelye school of Chabad Chassidus. The two competing schools held strongly to the ideological distinctions between their leaders.
[edit] The First Rebbe
As Rebbe, Rabbi Aharon was said to be incredibly charismatic. Stories that related by the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn, claimed that some Chassidim of Rabbi Dovber went to visit Rabbi Aharon and were so taken by his charisma that they stayed despite their promises to the contrary.
[edit] Rabbi Aharon's books
Rabbi Aharon's two books were based on Rabbi Shneur Zalman's magnum opus, Tanya. Rabbi Aharon's first book, Sha'arei HaYichud ve'Ha'emuna (The Gates of Unity and Faith), is based on the section of Tanya of a similar name. In it, Rabbi Aharon argues that the corresponding part of Tanya was incomplete, and that it is therefore necessary to learn his book in order to understand it fully. Sha'arei HaYichud v'HaEmuna focuses on the creation of the universe, and the universe's relationship with God. It develops the concept of pe'le (wonder), which refers to the paradox caused by God's and the universe's simultaneous existence. It then argues that one will never "understand" God, because God is incomparable with created existence. Therefore, the closest thing man can come to "grasping" God is to meditate on the pe'le , and to constantly desire to understand God further. The book further elaborates on the relationship between the universe, God, and the Ten Sefiros.
The second of his books is called Sha'arei HaAvoda (The Gates of Divine Service). It is based on the first book of the Tanya, which outlines the specific divine service of the Beinoni (the "Average Man"; see the article on Tanya. The concept of Beinoni is difficult to describe in this limited forum. Suffice it to say that Tanya was written for the common man to learn in order for it to affect his divine service). It was in this book, and in Avodas HaLevi, that Rabbi Aharon systematized his approach to divine service: Rabbi Aharon emphasized the importance of heartfelt emotions as a tool of connecting with the Divine. He argued that, contrary to Rabbi Dovber Schneuri's position, cold and intellectual contemplation cannot lead to nullification. Only by openly and emotionally desiring to cleave to God can one attain something approaching nullification before the Infinite (the highest goal of Chabad Chassidism). Rabbi Dovber, by contrast, called that approach a glorification of the self.
Rabbi Aharon's students compiled many of the oral discourses that Rabbi Aharon gave, and some of the discourses that he either wrote himself or transcribed from discourses given by Rabbi Shneur Zalman. That compilation is called Avodas HaLevi.
Today, his books are not commonly learned within Chabad circles. However, they are very well respected in general. Furthermore, the Toldos Avraham Yitzchak Rebbe instructed his Chassidim to learn Rabbi Aharon's books. The discourses constitute explanations of passages in the Torah, or concepts in Torah thought, in the light of his Chassidic outlook.
[edit] The Second Rebbe
After Rabbi Aharon died, his son became Rebbe in his place. However, the dynasty did not last into the next generation. The chassidim of the Strashelye returned to Chabad-Lubavitch in the third generation, accepting the Tzemach Tzedek as their Rebbe.
[edit] See also
[edit] References and further reading
- ^ as laid out in Kuntres Hispa'alus (Tract on Ecstasy)
The information in this article about Rabbi Aharon and about his leadership comes mostly from Beis Rebbe (by Hillman) (Hebrew).
The information about his teachings come from the books themselves, and from Naftali Lowenthal's book "Communicating The Infinite: The Emergence of the Habad School, (ISBN 0-226-49045-9)
