אַאַמוּ"ר אָמַר: חֲסִידוּת אִיז נָעוּץ תְּחִלָּתָן בְּסוֹפָן וְסוֹפָן בִּתְחִלָּתָן, דִי דַּרְגָא פוּן עִגּוּלִים מִבְּלִי אֲשֶׁר יִמָּצֵא רֹאשׁ וְסוֹף, אָבּעֶר אַחַר כָּל זֶה אִיז דעֶר עִקָּר אִיז סֵדֶר.

דעֶר בַּעַל שֵׁם טוֹב אִיז געֶוועֶן אַ מְסוּדָּר, דעֶר מעֶזרִיטשׁעֶר האָט מְדַקְדֵּק געֶוועֶן אוֹיף סֵדֶר, אוּן דעֶר עֶלטעֶר זֵיידעֶ — רַבֵּנוּ הַזָּקֵן — האָט געֶלעֶרעֶנט חֲסִידִים זֵיי זאָלעֶן זַיין מְסוּדָּרִים, דאָס זעֶהט מעֶן אִין זַיינעֶ מַאֲמָרִים, בְּרִיף, נִגּוּנִים. דִי חֲסִידִים וואָס האָבּעֶן געֶהאַט אַ זְמַן קָבוּעַ אוֹיף קוּמעֶן אִין לִיאָזנאָ — דעֶרנאָך אִין לִיאַדִי — האָבּעֶן נִיט געֶהאַט קֵיין רְשׁוּת בַּייטעֶן דעֶם זְמַן אָן אַ רִשָּׁיוֹן פוּן רֶבִּי'ן, אוֹיף בּאַקוּמעֶן אַ רִשָּׁיוֹן האָט מעֶן געֶדאַרפט זאָגעֶן אַ טעַם.

בּאַם רֶבִּי'ן אִיז געֶוועֶן אַ וַעַד מְיוּחָד אוֹיף פִיהרעֶן סֵדֶר הַחֲסִידִים וּבְרֹאשׁוֹ מַהַרִי"ל אֲחִי רַבֵּנוּ, אוּן אַ בּאַזוּנדעֶר וַעַד אוֹיף אָנפִירעֶן מִיט חֲסִידִישׁעֶ יוּנגעֶלַייט וּבְרֹאשׁוֹ אַדְמוּ"ר הָאֶמְצָעִי.

My revered father, the Rebbe [Rashab], once stated: “[To] Chassidus [can be applied the statement],1 ‘The beginning is rooted in the end and the end in the beginning.’ This is the level of Divine influence called iggulim,2 in which beginning and end are indistinguishable.3 Nevertheless, this having been said, the main thing is seder — ‘structure.’

“The Baal Shem Tov was an organized person;4 the Maggid of Mezritch was particular about orderliness; and my great-greatgrandfather, the Alter Rebbe, taught his chassidim to be orderly. We see this in his maamarim, letters, and niggunim. The chassidim who had a fixed time to visit Liozna — or later, Liadi — were not allowed to change it without permission from the Alter Rebbe. To receive such license, one had to provide a reason.

“The Alter Rebbe established a special committee, headed by his brother, R. Yehudah Leib,5 to maintain orderamong the chassidim. And he had a separate committee, headed by the Mitteler Rebbe, to guide the younger married men of the community.”6

Living as a Chassid

In the course of the sichah delivered on the evening of the 28th of Nissan, 5751 (1991),7 the Rebbe declared: “Do everything you can to bring Mashiach, here and now, immediately.”

The Rebbe then added a critical directive: “[Act] with [the energy and raw power of] the lights of [the lofty world of] Tohu, but [balance your actions] with [the stability of] the vessels of [the more ordered world of] Tikkun.”8

Though specifically relevant to the Rebbe’s campaign to bring Mashiach, his directive has wider implications, and relates to theapproach of Chabad in general. Chabad seeks to harness the limitless energy that the Baal Shem Tov revealed, and channel it productively into the daily routine of our lives.