Imagine a philosopher.

You’re probably thinking of someone with furrowed brows, deep in thought, maybe his hand on his chin, staring deep into space. Perhaps he is stopped in the middle of a busy street, entirely unaware of his surroundings, as he contemplates the existential questions of the meaning of life, what is “is”, where the world is going, etc. etc.

You’re probably not thinking of someone chopping wood.

Because philosophers don’t chop wood. They’ll philosophize about what wood is, they’ll ponder the difference between a branch and a twig, and they may even come to the ironic realization that from the forest itself comes the handle of the ax. But you won’t find them chopping the wood. Or doing any other manual and menial labor, for that matter. That’s just not what philosophers do.

And that’s why Chassidus is not (just) “Jewish Philosophy”, or even “Mystical”, or “Hassidic”, or “Kabbalistic Philosophy”.

Because Chassidus doesn’t value the school of thought for the sake of thought alone. Chassidus was, is, and never will be, just about getting lost in the world of atzilus, sovev, eser sefiros, or anything of the sort.

Yes, Chassidus will absolutely take you on a wonderful, delightful and intense trip to all the aforementioned destinations, and beyond. And yes, Chassidus will absolutely encourage, and even demand, deep thought into the existence, meaning, and purpose of all these abstract levels of elokus.

But then, Chassidus will ask you one simple question:

“What does it mean to you?”

Because Chassidus is the philosopher’s ax.

Chassidus is about the integration, application, and relevance of all these lofty levels and divine data in your life. As the Frierdiker Rebbe says, “One must not forget for a moment that if a person is lacking in the self-refining labor of practical avodah, then the entire point of Chassidus is missing”. (Likkutei Dibburim Vol. 1 p. 113 – translation from sie.org.)

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This is the goal of the new podcast, “Spreading the Springs – Conversations in Chassidus” by Rabbi Shmuel Wagner.

Launching in honor of Yud-Tes Kislev – the day when we ought to ask ourselves where we are holding in our mission of spreading the Ba’al Shem Tov’s springs, the day when we are reminded of the Alter Rebbe’s arrest and mesirus nefesh for Chassidus – this podcast will feature discussions centered around the relevance of Chassidus. Real-life conversations about real-life Chassidus.

Structured not as a shiur, but as a farbrengen, these conversations will bez”h encourage us to realign the direction of our lives and the focus of our passion to the ways of Chassidus, by internalizing the teachings of Chassidus in a truly meaningful way.

Episodes will bez”h be released every other week.

They can be found on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and 24Six, all under “Conversations in Chassidus”. Follow and subscribe to receive notifications on each new episode, and Spread the Springs even further by sharing the episodes with your friends and family.

Gut Yom Tov! May this be a step in the right direction of spreading the springs and bringing Moshiach now!

Episode 1 with Rabbi Hertzel Pewzner: