Shevat provided a lot of inspiration to Reb Shlomo. Some of his most profound Torahs are based on the Rebbes whose Yahrzeits we remember in Shevat.

On the first of Shevat, Moshe Rabbaneu convened the Jewish people and began the 37-day “review of the Torah”, which he concluded on the day of his death on Adar 7. The second of Shevat is the Yahrzeit of Meshulam Zusha of Anipoli (1718-1800) who was a disciple Rabbi Dov Ber of Mezeritch. On the 3rd of Shevat we remember Reb Yosef ben Rabbi Menachem Kalish zt”l, the Amshinover Rebbe, who died in 1935. On the 4th of Shevat we celebrate the Yahrzeit of Reb Moshe Leib of Sasov (1745-1807), one of the early Chasidic Rebbes in Poland whose actions served as the basis of many of Reb Shlomo’s most memorable stories.

On the 5th of Shevat we remember the Yahrzeit of the “Sfas Emes”, Reb Yehudah Arye Leib Alter of Ger (1847-1905), who was the second Gerer Rebbe. On the seventh of Shevat, Reb Dovid Biederman of Lelov (1746-1814) passed on to olam habah.. He was a disciple of the Seer of Lublin. Reb Shlomo was influenced by Reb Dovid’s Ahavat Yisrael (love of his fellow Jew). Reb Dovid was incapable of seeing faults in a fellow Jew. Two printed collections of stories about him are Migdal David and Kodesh Hillulim. Rabbi Dovid’s main disciple was Rabbi Yitzchak of Vurke whose parables so influenced Reb Shlomo.

On the 22nd of Shevat we remember the Yahrzeit of the Kotzker Rebbe (Menachem Mendel of Kotzk (1787-1859)) the forerunner of the Chassidic dynasties of Ger and Kotsk and on the
25 of Shevat we remember Reb Yisrael Lipkin of Salant (1810-1883), the founder of the “Mussar” movement.

Tu Bishvat (Shevat 15), the “New Year of the Trees” (Rosh HaShanah La’Ilanot) is one of four “New Years” mentioned in the Mishnah. Many Chassidic Rebbes pickle or candy the etrog from Sukkot and eat it on Tu Bishvat and pray that they will be worthy of a beautiful etrog on the following Sukkot.

Read

• Shevat: Getting the Vessels to receive the Redemption
• Trees: Know what comes first
• Tu Bshvat and Passover: The Mystery of Seder Nights
• Shevat: The tree lives forever because the seed prayed so hard
• Tu Bshvat: The Prayers of the Trees

Reb Shlomo shared with us many insights about the month of Tevet. In addition to Hanukkah which is celebrated between 25 Kislev—2 Tevet and the fast day of 10 Tevet when the armies of the Babylonian emperor Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem. (On Tammuz 17, the city walls were breached, and on Av 9th of that year, the Holy Temple was destroyed.), the month is laden with many days that recall events in the history of the Jewish People

On Rosh Hodesh Tevet, Esther made Queen (and Esther was taken to King Achashwerosh, to his palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tevet, in the seventh year of his reign. And the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won his favor and kindness more than all the virgins; he placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in Vashti’s stead.” On the 8th of Tevet the Torah translated into Greek, and the 9th we celebrate the Yahrzeit of Ezra, who led the return of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel after the Babylonian exile (423-353 BCE), oversaw the building of the Second Temple, canonized the 24 books of the Bible and, as head of the “Great Assembly” legislated a series of laws and practices (including formalized prayer) which left a strong impact to Judaism until even this day. Ezra died on the 9th of Tevet of the Hebrew year 3448 (313 BCE, which is exactly 1000 years after the Torah was given on Mount Sinai). The death of Ezra marked the end of what is called the “Era of Prophesy.”

On the 18th of Tevet (469) The Exilarch (“Resh Galuta”) of Babylonian Jewry, Huna Mori bar Mor Zutra, was executed in Pumpeditha by order of the Persian emperor . Also killed on that day was Rav Mesharshia bar Pekod (the third Jewish leader who was arrested with them, Rab Amemor bar Mor Yenuka, was executed two months later). On the 20 Tevet Reb Moses ben Maimon,(Rambam -Maimonides) a famous Talmudist, Halachist, physician, philosopher and communal leader died in Egypt in 1204.

The month of Tevet also includes the Yahrzeits (anniversary of the death) of many great Rebbes who had a profound influence on the Torahs and Stories of Reb Shlomo.

On the 17th of Tevet we celebrate the Yahrzeits of Rec Aaron Zelig ben Joel Feivush of Ostrog, Russia, who authored of Toldot Aaron, (1754) and Rabbi Yaakov Wolf Krantz (1740-1804), the Maggid (itinerant preacher) of Dubna, who is particularly known for the parables (meshalim) he employed in his sermons and writings. On the 18 Tevet – (1841) – we commemorate the Yahrzeit of Rabbi Zvi Elimelech Shapiro of Dynov (1783-1841), author of the Chassidic work B’nei Yissachar. On the 24th of Tevet we celebrate the Yahrzeit of Reb Schneur Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812), the founder of Chabad Chassidism and on the 27th of Tevet we recall the Death of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888), a Talmudist, scholar, philosopher, prolific author and Rabbi of Frankfurt am Main. He is noted for encouraging Orthodox Judaism to German Jewry, convincing thousands to the teachings of the Torah at a time when assimilation trends were very high for Jewish life in Western Europe.

Reb Shlomo shared with us many insights about the month of Kislev. In addition to Chanukkah which is celebrated between 25 Kislev—2 Tevet, the month is laden with many days that recall events surronding many great Rebbes who had a profound influence on the Torahs and Stories of Reb Shlomo.

On the 5th Kislev we celebrate the yahrtzeit (anniversary of the death) of Reb Shemuel Eliezer Eidel’s (1555-1631), the “Maharsha” and on the 9th of Kislev we recall the day that Reb Dov Ber. the son of Reb Schneur Zalman·of Liadi was born and died on. On the 10th of Kislev (1826) Reb Dov Ber was released from prison, a day that is celebrated by Chabad Chassidim and on the 18th of Kislev the body of Reb Baruch Mezhibuzher, the son of Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov’s daughter, Adel, and her husband, Rabbi Yechiel Ashkenazi left this world. On the 19th we remember the death of the The Maggid of Mezeritch and on the 19th of Kislev we recall the release of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi from prison. On the 21st of Kislev we recall how in 1944 the Satmar Rebbe, Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum was rescued from the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, along with 1,368 other Jews. On the 27th of Kislev we recall the time that the Flood rains ceased (forty days and nights of rainfall which covered the face of earth with water in Noah’s time) and the death of Reb Chaim of Tchernovitz (Be’er Mayim Chayim (“Well of Living Waters”)) who was a disciple of the Maggid of Mezritch and of Rabbi Yechiel Michel of Zlotchov.

Read

• Chanukah: The great light when we see each other again
• Chanukah: Taking care of our children, Taking care of the little candles
• Chanukah: Seeing in the shining lights only the beauty of people
• Chanukah: Giving us the Strength to Perform the Greatest Miracles
• Chanukah: Light reaching the darkest corners of our hearts
• Chanukah: Kindle one more candle to shine into the world, until all the streets of the world are full of light
• Chanukah: All the Doors and the Windows of our Hearts are Open to Each Other