Immortal

12 Cheshvan 5782

“For I have known him because he commands his sons and his household after him, that they should keep the way of the Lord to perform righteousness and justice, in order that the Lord bring upon Abraham that which He spoke concerning him.”" (Bereishis 18:19)

Rashi expounds “It does not say “upon the house of Abraham” but “upon Abraham.” We learn from this that whoever raises a righteous son is considered as though he does not die.”

“For his ruach remains truly in our midst, within those of us who are bound to him, when he sees his children, i.e., his disciples, who embody the work of his hands, sanctifying [G-d’s] blessed Name.” (Lessons in Tanya, Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 27)

How much more so is the above, said about a father who raises up one righteous son, true for a Tzaddik who raises up hundreds, sometimes thousands, of disciples? In this letter the Alter Rebbe comforts the Chassidim of the saintly R. Mendele of Vitebsk “with the teaching of the Zohar that a Tzaddik is to be found in this world after his passing to a greater extent than while he was physically alive. His disciples are thus able to receive his guidance in their Torah study and Divine service to an even greater degree than before.” (Tanya, as above)

“For the Conductor; by David, a psalm, a song.” (Tehillim 68:1)

Even after his death we refer to King David as “Melech Yisrael Alive, Living and Existing.” His spiritual lifework, among it the Book of Tehillim, allows us to connect to his essence in all times and places. This heritage “he left unto us, to each and every individual, corresponding to the degree of his genuine bond with the Tzaddik and his true and pure love of him.” (Tanya, as above)