Hei Teves Didan Notzach

This seminal work of Chabad Chasidic philosophy is considered to be the "last will and testament" of the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn. The discourse was released for the 10th of Shevat in the year 5710 (1950); on that day Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak passed away. Chasidim customarily study Basi LeGani each year in honor of the yahrzeit, and each year his successor, the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, explained another of its chapters in depth. The Rebbe's exposition of Basi LeGani, the first Chasidic discourse he spoke upon assuming the mantle of leadership in 5711 (1951), was also a declaration of his own mission and goals. This widely acclaimed English edition will enable many more Jews to participate in the study of this important work.

A biography of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson that discusses his childhood in Russia, education in Germany and Paris, messianic conviction, religious leadership, legacy, and other related topics.

Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1902-1994), the Lubavitcher Rebbe, took an insular Chasidic group that was almost decimated by the Holocaust and transformed it into one of the most influential and controversial forces in world Jewry. This superbly crafted biography draws on recently uncovered documents and archives of personal correspondence, painting an exceptionally human and charming portrait of a man who was well known but little understood. With a sharp attention to detail and an effortless style, Chaim Miller takes us on a soaring journey through the life, mind and struggles of one of the most interesting religious personalities of the Twentieth Century. --

The Strashun Library was among the most important Jewish public institutions in Vilna, and indeed in Eastern Europe, prior to its destruction during World War II. Mattityahu Strashun, descended from a long and distinguished line of rabbis, bequeathed his extensive personal library of 5,753 volumes to the Vilna Jewish community on his death in 1885, with instructions that it remain open to all. In the summer of 1941, the Nazis came to Vilna, plundered the library, and shipped many of its books to Germany for deposition at a future Institute for Research into the Jewish Question. When the war ended, the recovery effort began. Against all odds, a number of the greatest treasures of the library could be traced. However, owing to its diverse holdings and its many prewar patrons, a custody battle erupted over the remaining holdings. Who should be heir to the Strashun Library? This book tells the story of the Strashun Library from its creation through the contentious battle for ownership following the war until present day. Pursuant to a settlement in 1958, the remnants of the greatest prewar library in Europe were split between two major institutions: the secular YIVO in the United States and the rabbinic library of Hechal Shlomo in Israel, a compromise that struck at the heart of the library's original unifying mission.

Between 1941 and 1945, the years of cataclysm for European Jewry, the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe published a remarkable monthly journal entitled Hakeriah Vehakedusha Reading and Holiness. A collection of discourses from this journal is published here for the first time in English translation. Many of the discourses have as their central theme the concepts of self-sacrifice for G-d and the Jewish people, repentance and strengthening the observance of Torah and Mitzvot. The Rebbe often speaks of the lessons to be learned from the earth-shattering events of that time and their connection to the coming of Mashiach. They were written for a broad audience and are accessible even to those who have never studied Chasidic philosophy.The two volumes include explanatory footnotes, a glossary of Hebrew terms, a general index and, in the second volume, an index of quotations and references for Volumes 1 and 2.

A concise and illuminating narrative provides glimpses of the true stature of this modest woman. Far more than a passive observer, the Rebbetzin was often an active participant in the events that shook the very foundations of Jewish life. Her biography is an account of the trials and triumphs of the Lubavitcher movement during those tumultuous times. The first of a series, this elegantly presented booklet is enhanced by 18 illustrations, charts and maps including to rare photographs of the Rebbetzin in her youth.