After explaining the unique holiness that rests upon ten Jews gathered together, the Alter Rebbe now turns to a painful and practical issue:
What happens when people misuse that gathering and turn a place of holiness into a place of idle chatter?
His words are unusually sharp because the holiness involved is extraordinarily great.
- A Disturbing Sight
The Alter Rebbe writes:
โืจืข ืืขืื ื ืืืขืฉื ืืฉืจ ื ืขืฉื ืชืืช ืืฉืืฉโ
โEvil in my eyes is the conduct done under the sun.โ
He is especially troubled by something occurring among those who come close to Hashem.
People gather for prayer:
โืืืฉื ืื ืชืคืืืโ
Approaching Hashem through tefillah.
Yet before or after davening, the same gathering becomes a place of:
โืืืฉื ืืฆืืโ
Frivolous conversation and lightheadedness.
- The Problem Is Not Merely Idle Speech
The Alter Rebbe is not objecting only to wasted time.
The issue is who is present there.
In the previous letter he explained:
When ten Jews gather together, the Shechinah rests upon them.
Therefore the setting itself possesses immense holiness.
- Two People Without Torah Is Serious
Chazal already teach:
โืฉื ืื ืฉืืืฉืืื ืืืื ืืื ืืื ืืืจื ืชืืจืโ
When two Jews sit together and no words of Torah are spoken, it is a spiritual deficiency.
If that is true for two people, how much more so for ten.
- The Greatest Insult to the Shechinah
The Alter Rebbe writes that when:
- Ten Jews are gathered,
- The Shechinah rests upon them,
- And the gathering becomes a place of levity,
there is scarcely a greater insult to the Divine Presence.
This is not merely a personal failing.
It affects the revelation of the Shechinah itself.
- Public Sin Is Worse Than Private Sin
Chazal say regarding someone who sins privately:
He โpushes away the feet of the Shechinah.โ
The Alter Rebbe now argues that public misconduct in the presence of a minyan is far more severe.
Why?
Because the Shechinah is actively resting there.
- The Meaning of โืืื ืื ื ืืืืโ
The Gemara says concerning arrogance:
โืืื ืื ื ืืืื ืืืืืื ืืืืจ ืืืโ
โI and he cannot dwell together.โ
The Alter Rebbe applies this concept here.
Improper conduct creates a contradiction to the very purpose for which the Divine Presence has gathered there.
- โThe King Is Bound in the Channelsโ
He alludes to the verse:
โืืื ืืกืืจ ืืจืืืืโ
The King, as it were, has chosen to be bound to and present among His people.
The tragedy is that people fail to appreciate the extraordinary holiness they are standing within.
- Delaying the Redemption
The Alter Rebbe then cites the Zoharโs severe language.
The Shechinah is currently in exile.
Hashem intends to raise her from the dust, as the verse says:
โืืชื ืขืจื ืืขืคืจ ืงืืืโ
โShake yourself from the dust; arise.โ
Yet certain behaviors delay this process.
- Three Things Prolong the Exile
The Zohar states that exile is prolonged because people:
- Push away the Shechinah.
- Cause disgrace to the Shechinah.
- Fail to honor the Shechinah properly.
The Alter Rebbe applies this directly to inappropriate conduct in places and gatherings of holiness.
The Connection to the Previous Letter
This section is a direct continuation of the earlier discussion.
Previously the Alter Rebbe taught:
Ten Jews together draw an infinite revelation of the Shechinah.
Now he explains:
Because the revelation is so great, the responsibility is equally great.
A minyan is not merely a gathering of people.
It is a place where the Divine Presence rests.
Key Takeaway
The Alter Rebbe teaches that a gathering of ten Jews possesses extraordinary holiness because the Shechinah rests among them. Therefore turning such a gathering, especially around prayer, into idle chatter or frivolity is not merely a personal failing but a dishonor to the Divine Presence itself. Recognizing the holiness of a minyan should inspire greater reverence, Torah study, and spiritual seriousness, thereby helping to elevate the Shechinah and hasten the Geulah.