What is Chassidus?
Chassidus is a path of Orthodox Judaism that emerged in the early 18th century under the leadership of Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer (1698 – 1760), the Baal Shem Tov. Chassidus emphasizes the value of mitzvos (commandments) along with Torah study, loving one’s fellow Jew, humility, chesed (helping others), joy, community, modesty, drawing inspiration from righteous people, and the value of regular, simple Jews. The Baal Shem Tov taught that our divine service includes both serving G-d and our treatment of other people. The Baal Shem Tov uplifted the status of the common person by teaching Jews to serve G-d with love and joy and to sing and dance as a form of divine service. Chassidic music is full of feeling and oftentimes upbeat and energic energy. Chassidic Torah finds positive messages in the Chumash (Bible) and Aggadata (stories from the Talmud) and often utilizes Kabbalah to describe the workings of the heavens and the soul.
Each Chassidic group has a Rebbe or Tzadik (saintly leader), who serves both as the spiritual leader and inspiration around whom his followers are organized. The Tzadik is also called the Admor (acronym in Hebrew for "our master, teacher and Rabbi"). It is understood that the Admor is a righteous person who brings down divine flow into the world. The relationship between the Chassid and Rebbe is very close. Chassidim do not follow blindly; each Chassid makes his own decisions and works to achieve his goals, with the Admor there to guide and assist.
Estimates as to how many Jews in the world identify as Chassidic vary. Some estimates are at 1/2 million and some much higher. There are approximately a dozen large Chassidic groups and many more smaller groups. Some of the larger groups (in alphabetical order) include Belz, Bobov, Breslov, Chabad, Chernobyl, Gur, Karlin-Stolin, Sanz-Klausenburg, Satmar and Vishnitz,
7th Lubavitcher Rebbe on Chassidus:
Before the dawn of Chassidus, many Jewish communities lacked harmony. A gulf, rarely breached, separated the common folk from the scholarly elite. In many regions, that chasm had become so deeply entrenched that the townsmen who identified with either of the two diverse groups even congregated in separate shuls.
For many individuals, a similar cleavage marred the harmonious cross-fertilization that should spark all the positive components of one's inner world. For such individuals, Divine service had been defined almost exclusively in terms of erudition. The potential fire and energy possessed by every soul were often allowed to lie dormant.
Chassidus broke through these barriers. This was no mere sociological phenomenon. It was a spiritual dynamic, for the study of Chassidus empowers a person to tap into the yechidah of the Torah, its spiritual essence, which arouses the very essence of his soul. This in turn creates harmony within the individual's spiritual personality - between his intellect, on the one hand, and his super-rational powers of faith and kabbalas ol, the acceptance of G-d's dominion. Furthermore, it engenders unity among the Jewish people by revealing and highlighting the common soul-root by virtue of which all Jews are brothers.
The study of Chassidus also uncovers the intrinsic harmony that underlies the Torah itself, unifying nigleh, the revealed corpus of the Torah, with pnimiyus haTorah, the mystical dimension which is its soul.
(7th Lubavitcher Rebbe, Tackling Life's Tasks, p. 4-5; See Likkutei Sichos, Vol. 15, p. 281ff)
Chassidus is a path of Orthodox Judaism that emerged in the early 18th century under the leadership of Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer (1698 – 1760), the Baal Shem Tov. Chassidus emphasizes the value of mitzvos (commandments) along with Torah study, loving one’s fellow Jew, humility, chesed (helping others), joy, community, modesty, drawing inspiration from righteous people, and the value of regular, simple Jews. The Baal Shem Tov taught that our divine service includes both serving G-d and our treatment of other people. The Baal Shem Tov uplifted the status of the common person by teaching Jews to serve G-d with love and joy and to sing and dance as a form of divine service. Chassidic music is full of feeling and oftentimes upbeat and energic energy. Chassidic Torah finds positive messages in the Chumash (Bible) and Aggadata (stories from the Talmud) and often utilizes Kabbalah to describe the workings of the heavens and the soul.
Each Chassidic group has a Rebbe or Tzadik (saintly leader), who serves both as the spiritual leader and inspiration around whom his followers are organized. The Tzadik is also called the Admor (acronym in Hebrew for "our master, teacher and Rabbi"). It is understood that the Admor is a righteous person who brings down divine flow into the world. The relationship between the Chassid and Rebbe is very close. Chassidim do not follow blindly; each Chassid makes his own decisions and works to achieve his goals, with the Admor there to guide and assist.
Estimates as to how many Jews in the world identify as Chassidic vary. Some estimates are at 1/2 million and some much higher. There are approximately a dozen large Chassidic groups and many more smaller groups. Some of the larger groups (in alphabetical order) include Belz, Bobov, Breslov, Chabad, Chernobyl, Gur, Karlin-Stolin, Sanz-Klausenburg, Satmar and Vishnitz,
7th Lubavitcher Rebbe on Chassidus:
Before the dawn of Chassidus, many Jewish communities lacked harmony. A gulf, rarely breached, separated the common folk from the scholarly elite. In many regions, that chasm had become so deeply entrenched that the townsmen who identified with either of the two diverse groups even congregated in separate shuls.
For many individuals, a similar cleavage marred the harmonious cross-fertilization that should spark all the positive components of one's inner world. For such individuals, Divine service had been defined almost exclusively in terms of erudition. The potential fire and energy possessed by every soul were often allowed to lie dormant.
Chassidus broke through these barriers. This was no mere sociological phenomenon. It was a spiritual dynamic, for the study of Chassidus empowers a person to tap into the yechidah of the Torah, its spiritual essence, which arouses the very essence of his soul. This in turn creates harmony within the individual's spiritual personality - between his intellect, on the one hand, and his super-rational powers of faith and kabbalas ol, the acceptance of G-d's dominion. Furthermore, it engenders unity among the Jewish people by revealing and highlighting the common soul-root by virtue of which all Jews are brothers.
The study of Chassidus also uncovers the intrinsic harmony that underlies the Torah itself, unifying nigleh, the revealed corpus of the Torah, with pnimiyus haTorah, the mystical dimension which is its soul.
(7th Lubavitcher Rebbe, Tackling Life's Tasks, p. 4-5; See Likkutei Sichos, Vol. 15, p. 281ff)
