This letter is fundamentally a call to increase support for Eretz Yisrael, but the Alter Rebbe does not base the appeal merely on charity. He explains a spiritual principle: the Divine life flowing into Eretz Yisrael is renewed every year, and therefore the response from below should likewise increase every year.
- Reviving the Old Love for Eretz Yisrael
The Alter Rebbe opens emotionally:
โืืขืืจืจ ืืช ืืืืื ืืืฉื ื ืืืืืช ืืจืฅ ืืงืืืฉโ
He wants to reawaken the existing love and attachment that his chassidim already have for Eretz Yisrael.
Not merely to maintain previous support, but:
โืืืื ืืขืืืโ
to increase it from year to year.
- A Difficulty in the Pasuk
The Alter Rebbe cites:
โืชืืื ืขืื ื ืโ ืืืืงืื ืื, ืืจืืฉืืช ืืฉื ื ืืขื ืืืจืืช ืฉื ืโ
A simple question arises:
If Hashemโs eyes are always upon the Land, why does the verse say:
โfrom the beginning of the year until the end of the yearโ
instead of saying:
โforeverโ?
- Every Year Receives a New Divine Flow
His answer is that each year is not merely a continuation of the previous one.
Rather:
Every year receives a completely new illumination.
The Divine vitality that animated the previous year completes its mission and returns to its source.
Then a new revelation descends for the coming year.
Therefore the verse speaks of:
beginning of the year โ end of that year
because each year has its own distinct spiritual life.
- โHashem Founded the Earth with Wisdomโ
The source of this flow is:
โืโ ืืืืื ืืกื ืืจืฅโ
The Divine wisdom (Chochmah Elyonah) is the source of life that sustains:
- The upper โearthโ (the spiritual source)
- The lower Eretz Yisrael, which corresponds to it
Thus Eretz Yisrael occupies a unique place because it is directly connected to this heavenly source of life.
- Why the Light Is Always New
Since:
- Hashem is infinite.
- His wisdom is infinite.
there can never be a repetition of exactly the same revelation.
Each year brings:
โืืืจ ืืืฉ ืืืฉโ
a genuinely new light.
Not merely more of the old light, but a higher revelation that had never previously shone.
- The Role of Rosh Hashanah
The Alter Rebbe explains that on Erev Rosh Hashanah the previous yearโs illumination withdraws to its source.
Then through:
- Shofar
- Prayer
a new and higher light is drawn down for the coming year.
This is why Rosh Hashanah is not just marking time. It is a renewal of the worldโs spiritual vitality.
- The Same Pattern Exists Every Day
This is not only yearly.
A similar process occurs daily.
Every morning prayer draws:
โืืืืื ืขืืืื ืื ืืืชืจโ
new and higher spiritual awareness.
The new illumination is greater than the one that departed previously.
Thus growth is built into creation itself.
- Why This Leads to Increased Giving
Although the Alter Rebbe saves the explicit request for the end of the letter, the logic is already clear:
- Every year Eretz Yisrael receives a new, higher Divine flow.
- Therefore our response should also be renewed.
- Love for Eretz Yisrael should not remain static.
- Support should increase along with the increasing holiness revealed there.
Key Peshat
The central idea of this letter is that Hashem renews the spiritual vitality flowing to Eretz Yisrael every year through a new and higher revelation from Divine wisdom. Since the gift from Above is constantly increasing and renewing, Jewish love, support, and generosity toward Eretz Yisrael should likewise grow from year to year.