Manuscript, Chabad Chassidic "Bichel" – copying of discourses by the Alter Rebbe of Liadi, his son the Mitteler Rebbe of Lubavitch and his grandson the Tzemach Tzedek of Lubavitch. [Russia, ca. 1800s-1870s].
The Bichel is composed of adjoined booklets, handwritten by various copyists, and includes about twenty Chassidic discourses, most by the Alter Rebbe and his grandson the Tzemach Tzedek of Lubavitch, and a minority by his son the Mitteler Rebbe of Lubavitch, with variant texts, omissions and additions in comparison to the printed versions. To the best of our knowledge and research, some of these discourses have never before been printed.
Some of the booklets are early, apparently having been copied during the lifetime of the Alter Rebbe (before his passing in 1813), as he is mentioned with the blessing for the living:
"may he live forever" (pp. 30b, 38a). At the top of p. 30a, several lines are copied from the Kuntres Acharon of the Tanya, with variants and differences from the printed text (as the Kuntres Acharon of the Tanya was famously printed only after the Alter Rebbe's passing, the present manuscript is thus an early text of this passage).
Inscription at end of one of the discourses of the Mitteler Rebbe:
"Copied from the handwriting of [Rebbe…] Dov Ber, delivered on Purim 1823" (p. 60b). An inscription at the beginning of one of the discourses of the Tzemach Tzedek:
"I heard it from Rebbe M[enachem] M[endel]" (p. 13a). Other inscriptions:
"Teaching of the Rebbe, may he live" , "Today, 1829",
"[Copied from] the handwriting of… R. Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch".
The Bichel is bound at the beginning and end with: • Shaarei Kedushah, ethics and kabbalah by R. Chaim Vital. Without title page [Königsberg, 1859?]. • Avkat Rochel, selections on the end of times, the Messianic era, the World to Come and the revival of the dead, by R. Machir son of Yitzchak Sar Chesed (a disciple of R. Yehudah son of the Rosh). [Shklow? 1820?].
Chassidic Bichel: [65] leaves. Shaarei Kedushah: [2]-24, 29-32 leaves. Lacking title page. Avkat Rochel: 22, [1] leaves. Without [1] leaf with corrigenda at end. Approx. 18 cm. Overall good-fair condition. Stains and wear. Creases and tears. Close trimming, affecting text in margins of several leaves. Inscriptions. Old binding, somewhat worn.
A detailed list of the Chassidic discourses appearing in the Bichel will be provided upon request.
