The text below was written by Rabbi J. Immanuel Schochet, as the introduction to the ‘Likkutei Sichot’ in English. LIKKUTEI SICHOT Thirty-nine volumes of Likutei Sichot, anthologising sichot and letters of the Rebbe, have appeared to date. Much of the material is profoundly scholarly ? penetrating discourses, which require concentrated and analytical study. Other parts are of a more popular nature, geared and accessible to anyone open to spiritual guidance and inspiration. To attempt an evaluation of Likutei Sichot would be presumptuous on my part. We observe a breathtaking panorama of every aspect of Jewish tradition and scholarship: Halacha and Aggadah, Chakirah and Kabbalah, Mussar and Chassidut - the total spectrum of pshat (plain meaning), remez (allusion), derush (hermeneutical interpretation), and sod (esoteric). There is not a single area, be it general or highly specialized, of ancient or contemporary sources, textual, grammatical or interpretative, that is not touched upon to elucidate or to become elucidated. There is one theme, though, which very obviously permeates the sichot, a theme incisively stated in the Zohar: Said R. Shimon: Woe to the man who says that the Torah merely tells tales and ordinary matters. If this were so, we could ourselves compose even nowadays a 'torah' dealing with ordinary matters, and an even better one at that . . . ! In fact, all the words of the Torah represent lofty themes and sublime mysteries . . . The Torah is clothed in 'garments' which relate to this world, because otherwise the world would not be able to contain and absorb it. The stories of the Torah are only the 'garment' of the Torah, as opposed to the Torah itself .... David thus said, 'Open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of Your Torah' (Psalms 119:18) ? i.e., that which is beneath the 'garment' of the Torah. Come and see: There are garments that everyone can see. When fools see a person in garments that to them look beautiful, they look no further .... The Torah also has a 'body' ? namely the precepts of the Torah that are called gufey Torah (the 'bodies', i.e., main principles of the Torah), and that 'body' is vested in 'garments' ?namely the worldly tales [and language of the Torah]. The fools of this world look at the 'garment', the narration of the Torah, and do not know anything more. They do not consider what is beyond that 'garment'. Those who realize more [than the fools] do not look at the 'garment' but at the 'body' beneath it. But the wise ? the servants of the most high King, those who stood at Mount Sinai ? they look for the soul, the very essence of everything, the real Torah .... Many sichot offer original explanations that clarify the plain sense (pshat) of Scripture or of Haichic and Aggadic statements. Others develop the allusions (remez), hermeneutical meanings (derush), or the mystical dimension (sod). Oftentimes attention is drawn to the direct interrelationship and frequent interdependence of these four levels of Torah. The exoteric and the esoteric are blended and unified. But invariably the sichot make one conscious of the soul of the Torah: that the Torah has a garment ? its external form; a body ? its explicit instructions; and a soul ? its inner dimension, deeper meaning and ultimate purpose. This consciousness is of immense significance. It shapes and moulds our very attitude to Torah and mitzvot. It precludes a lackadaisical attitude. It will not permit an approach of 'With their mouth and with their lips they honour Me but have removed their heart far from Me, and their fear of Me is but a human precept learned by rote' (Isaiah 29:13). Torah and mitzvot are experienced as living realities. In this context there is another theme, dominant throughout the sichot: the typical Chabad?concept of becheyn. The becheyn is the 'therefore,' the practical relevance and the practical implication and guidance inherent in every part of Torah. The Torah is not something abstract or academic. 'It is not hidden from you, neither is it far off. It is not in the Heavens that you should say, Who shall go up for us to the Heavens . ... Neither is it beyond the sea that you should say, Who shall go over the sea for us .... But the thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it!' (Deuteronomy 30:11?14). These words were spoken and written by Moses 3273 years ago, but they transcend time and space. Rabbi Israel Beal Shem Tov, and his successor Rabbi Dov Ber, the Maggid of Mezhirech, set as a cornerstone of Chassidism that every, part, every word and aspect of the Torah is of timeless relevance to every individual. For as stated in the Zohar, The Torah is the 'Tree of Life' (Proverbs 3:18) Why is it called Torah,' Because it instructs and reveals that which was hidden, unknown. The Torah teaches man to walk in the right path. It counsels him how to return to his Master. This is the becheyn. It is a dominant theme in Chassidism in general and in Likutei Sichot in particular. To paraphrase a Chassidic aphorism: The sichot show how the Torah teaches man to become himself a living Torah. Hardly surprising is the special emphasis on Chassidut. The sichot are not only an integral part of the Chassidic heritage, but also discuss, explain and emphasize the principles or doctrines and the ways or practices of Chassidism. For the novice, they provide an enlightening and inspiring introduction to this dimension of the Torah, while the initiate will find his probing mind stimulated to discover new insights. In short, Likutei Sichot is a text for scholar and layman alike: 'of equal usefulness for everyone;' 'meeting the spirit of each and every one. Much benefit can be derived even from a simple reading, while also providing the matrix for a concentrated study. There are innumerable nuances and subtle insights which will escape the eye at a first or superficial reading (as I discovered time and again in the course of my careful reading for purposes of this translation, notwithstanding the fact I was present at the delivery of many sichot or had read them before). There is little doubt, then, that this translation, in spite of its deficiencies, will help make the light of the Torah accessible to a much wider circle ? to instruct and guide them 'in the way in which they are to walk and the deed which they should do' (Exodus 18:20). Moreover, it is another contribution to, and milestone in???the 'dissemination of the fountains' of Chassidus which were unlocked by Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov, who envisaged Chassidus as a stream of living waters, growing deeper and wider, until it should reach every segment of the Jewish People and bring new inspiration and vitality in their daily lives. There is no greater satisfaction or reward than to be instrumental in the realization of this goal, which is nothing less than the prelude to inaugurate the Messianic age when 'The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Eternal as the waters cover the sea,' (Isaiah 11:9) 'And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour and every man his brother, saying 'Know the Eternal,' for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them' (Jeremiah 31:33). Toronto, Ont., 6th of Tamuz, 5739 J. Immanuel Schochet