Belzer Chassidus Publishes Pirush on Tanya

The new set on Tanya by Belzer Rosh Kolel and close confidant of the Belzer Rebbe, Harav Pinchas Friedman, opens a new chapter in hafatzas hamaayanos.

By Anash.org reporter

In another milestone in the unfolding story of hafatzas hamaayanos, a groundbreaking new pirush on Tanya has been released by the Belzer publishing house Ohr HaTzafun.

Written at the behest of the Belzer Rebbe, the work is based on many years of shiurim given by renowned Belzer prodigy R’ Pinchas Friedman, Rosh HaKollelim of Chasdei Belz. A close confidant of the Belzer Rebbe, R’ Pinchas is best known for his weekly Torah essays, which have been compiled into the Shvilei Pinchas series of seforim, as well as his sefer Pri Hodor on the Pri Megadim, which is widely used by advanced students learning Yoreh Deiah.

The 950-page two-volume Mesilos Beseifer HaTanya approaches its subject from a fresh angle, combining chiddushim, explanatory prefaces, and in-depth discussions to create a unique new work. Comparisons and parallels drawn from other talmidei haMaggid, the Alter Rebbe’s colleagues and contemporaries, provide never-before-seen context and background to the revolutionary chiddushim introduced by the Tanya. The theory is then brought into the realm of the practical, with a writing style aimed at presenting the concepts in a down-to-earth manner that can be taken as a practical lesson in avodas Hashem.

In an interview with the Lubavitcher “Ki Karov” magazine, Rabbi Friedman shared how he spent years toiling on the meaning of Tanya and he consulted with various Chabad chassidim to understand its full depth.

One Lubavitcher commentator shared the following:

“It’s no secret that over the last decades many yungeleit from all sectors of Klal Yisroel have dedicated themselves to the serious study of Chassidus Chabad. A special attraction has been shown by those termed ‘mevakshim,’ spiritually attuned souls who thirst for a deeper way to cleave to Hashem.

“The Belzer Rebbe, known as a trailblazer on many fronts, may have recognized that the solution to the unique challenges of our generation is the kind of real, internal relationship with Hashem which can only be accomplished by learning and applying the teachings of Chassidus, as outlined in Tanya.

“Some may suggest that this is an attempt to minimize the risk that yungeleit will end up completely joining Chabad. My response to that is that in the introduction to the Tanya, the Alter Rebbe writes that the sefer was written for ‘yodai umakirei’ for ‘my familiar circle of students,’ and chassidim have traditionally interpreted this to mean that whoever studies Tanya becomes part of the Alter Rebbe’s circle. If more people will study Tanya, I think that is sufficient reason to celebrate.”

Photos: A.M.S. for JDN