Ullim LeTroofah

עלים לתרופה

Leaves for Healing

The Sacred Letters of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov and Reb Nussun of Breslov, of blessed memory

LETTER THREE

Monday, 17th of Iyar, Parshas Bechukosai · Year 5567 (1807)
Written from the holy community of Zaslav

Editor's Introduction A verbatim, letter-for-letter copy of a letter in the handwriting of our Master himself, of blessed memory, which he wrote to his brother the Rabbi, our Teacher Yechiel, of blessed memory, of Krementchuk. There was at that time a machlokes (controversy and strife) against him there, stirred up by wicked misnagdim (opponents of Chassidus), who caused him very great distress — as is evident from our Master's own words in this letter.

With the help of G-d, may He be blessed

To My beloved brother, my dear and cherished friend — the extraordinary and outstanding scholar, the complete and perfect sage, and so forth — our Teacher the Rabbi Yechiel Tzvi — may his light shine and radiate.

Your letter reached me here in the holy community of Zaslav, and it caused me very great grief — how could the hearts of these wicked men have been so filled, and how could they have been so brazen against you. And I marvel that no righteous person was found to stand against the evil and to oppose them, to root out the wickedness.

My beloved brother, my very soul and my heart — fear them not, and be not broken before them. Only be strong and courageous in Torah and in the fear of Hashem all day long — as we have spoken between us. And the merit of your forebears will support you. For all of this is in order to elevate you, to increase your honor, and to enlarge your mind. For just as it is impossible for all manner of seeds to reach the fullness of their growth — until the seed is first placed in the earth, and then the seed decays, and only after its decay does it sprout and blossom and become a great tree — so too is this very matter:

Through their casting you down to the dust — through this very thing — you will grow great and blossom and flourish in the world. Were these wicked ones to know this, they would certainly not be disgracing you — but their entire intention is for evil.

I hereby inform your eminence that it is my intention to remain here in the holy community of Zaslav for approximately three months — and afterward I shall know which direction to turn.

I hereby inform you that my wife — at first she had experienced a change for the better, but now it has reversed and is going the other way, and her strength diminishes each day. And the expenses here are considerable — for I have had expenses here of fifty-four adumim (red coins). Nothing further for now — only life and peace.

From me, your brother, who loves your soul, who constantly seeks your welfare, and who longs to hear good tidings from you and to see you in life and in peace.

Nachman, son of our Teacher the Rabbi Simcha — may his Rock protect him and give him life.

Postscript — From the Family; To His Followers

My wife extends greetings of peace to your wife. My daughter Miriam extends greetings of peace to all of you. And extend greetings of peace to his supporters and to all those attached to him. Be strong and courageous — for there is reward for your efforts, in this world and in the World to Come.

Nachman, as above.

Overview: Written just eleven days after Letter 2, this letter to Rebbe Nachman's brother Reb Yechiel Tzvi in Krementchuk is one of the most spiritually charged in the collection. Rebbe Nachman's brother was enduring fierce persecution from misnagdim — opponents of Chassidus — and Rebbe Nachman responds with passionate encouragement, a luminous parable, and a glimpse into the Tzaddik's own personal circumstances: his wife's worsening illness and mounting expenses.

Key themes:

The Seed and the Tree This is the heart of the letter: humiliation and being cast down are not defeat — they are the necessary precondition for true growth. The seed must decay in the earth before it can become a great tree. Suffering at the hands of the wicked is the soil of eventual greatness.

Machlokes and the Tzaddik Rebbe Nachman expresses genuine grief and bewilderment that no one rose to defend his brother. This letter is a window into the very real suffering that Breslov Chassidim endured from their opponents — not an abstraction.

Chazak Ve'ematz "Be strong and courageous" — the same words spoken to Yehoshua before entering the land — appears twice in this letter. Rebbe Nachman consciously invokes this Biblical formula to fortify his brother and his followers against persecution.

Reward in Both Worlds The postscript closes with a direct promise: "there is reward for your efforts in this world and in the World to Come." Rebbe Nachman does not offer vague consolation — he offers a categorical assurance rooted in his certainty of Divine justice.

Wordplay note: The root ג-ד-ל (gadol — to grow great) appears three times in rapid succession in the original — "to elevate you… to increase your honor… to enlarge your mind" — and then again: "you will grow great and blossom." This deliberate repetition of the root intensifies the promise: every dimension of the person will be enlarged through the very affliction that seems to diminish him.