This letter was sent to R. Shlomo Matusof, a member of the chassidic community who would ultimately assume a leadership role in the activities of Lubavitch in Morocco.

B”H, 8 Kislev, 5711

Greetings and blessings,

In response to your letter of Rosh Chodesh Kislev: I am rushing to answer it and notify you that according to my opinion you should steadfastly maintain your view that you are one of those who merited to participate in one of the branches of the activities of my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, הכ"מ, and in particular, in a branch that actively spreads the wellsprings of Chassidus outward in the fullest sense of the word. The intent is straightforward: to bring the wellsprings [of Chassidus] to Africa and spread them there, even among the circles that, at present, can be called “the peripheries.” This will be one of your responsibilities: to bring in [the local Jews] and position them in the ray of light, the light of Torah, together with “the luminary within,”1 the Torah’s inner dimensions, i.e., the teachings of Chassidus.

The fact that there were — and perhaps still are — obstacles and hindrances is nothing more than further proof of how great and yakar the matter is. As is well known, the term yakar has two meanings: “weighty” and “precious.”

We sent a telegram to Casablanca with regard to visas for you and your wife. In any case, it is my hope that in this month, the month of redemption,2 this matter will also be overcome and the wellsprings [of Chassidus] will spread outward.

I have already written in brief in the introduction to the kuntreis for Yud-Tes Kislev3 about the expression used by Mashiach that “the wellsprings will spread outward.” As is well known, springwater can also purify water that has been drawn [from a body of water].4 [This applies] provided [the spring water] has not been separated from its source, [as evident from the statements of] the Mishnah (Mikvaos 5[:1]) [regarding] a spring that is caused to pass over a pool. If, however, [the connection between] the wellspring [and its source] has been interrupted, its water no longer has the status of a wellspring.5 This is the ruling of the Tzemach Tzedek in his Responsa on Yoreh Deah 164:2, and in Shaar HaMiluim, Vol. III, p. 37a, b.6 This interpretation accords with the view of Raavad, Rashba, and Rambam’s Commentary on the Mishnah, that the mishnah is speaking about an empty pool.7 This does not concur with the approach of Maharik (cited in Beis Yosef [Yoreh Deah 201]).

Even according to the approach of Maharik — that the pool is filled with ordinary water — it is considered like a wellspring only when the waters of the wellspring are connected to their source.

According to Rambam ([Mishneh Torah, Hilchos] Mikvaos 9:9), an additional stipulation must be fulfilled: the waters of the wellspring must flow out of the pool.8

With regard to the matter at hand, [i.e., the spiritual parallel to the above,] spreading the wellsprings outward: The water9 that we grant to others must be connected to their source through bonding with the Nasi of our generation, my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, הכ"מ, who is the Baal Shem Tov of this generation. According to Rambam, another stipulation is that the water of the wellspring flows outward [beyond the pool]. [In the spiritual parallel,] the intent is not to remain satisfied by the fact that one is sufficiently spiritually animated to inspire others,10 but to stir those who are inspired to the extent that they can also inspire others, like the waters of a wellspring that do not remain in the pool, but also cause water to flow outside the pool and have an effect even on far-removed peripheries.

It is possible [that this concept] is alluded to in [Tanya,] Iggeres HaKodesh, Epistle 27 and its explanation, which speaks of “successive generations of offshoots.”11 [Another allusion, this one] in the teachings of the revealed realm of Torah law, is found in our Sages’ interpretation of the verse:12 “...will not depart from your mouth, the mouth of your descendants, and the mouth of the descendants of your descendants.”

With blessings for success and that, together with your wife, you establish yourself in a good way, both materially and spiritually.

M. Schneerson

Your letter of 8 Kislev was just now received. [A letter] has already been written to Michael Lipsker to inform you of the particulars [necessary] quickly. Then you will present, together with your wife, a request for an entry visa to Meknes.