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Basi Legani 57??
Stop hitting snooze on the cycle: Are you actually "with the program" this Yud Shevat?
Yud Shevat hachanos are buzzing around town; hanhalos and shluchei kodesh are launching new mivtzas.
As the ringing in the air gets louder, I lift my head and look at the time: 7:28 AM. I hit snooze, knowing it will ring again in exactly one minute. Trying to shake off the clouds of sleep, I shlep myself out of bed, wash negel vaser, and tumble into the zal with my fresh off the press kovetz of Basi LeGani 5710. (תשכ"ו / מ"ו) that I just picked up from the Ohel.
I sit down and open to the first page just as my chavrusa rolls in. He sets down a תשי"א.
I ask him, "What’s your plan?"
He responds, "This is a very yesodosdike maamar; really, all the maamorim of Basi LeGani are based on this one."
What exactly is going on here? Is 5711 the "Bible" of Basi LeGani to the extent that we don’t believe in learning that specific year’s maamar? The Rebbe, literally every year, would say a NEW maamar on a 20-ois cycle based on the Frierdiker Rebbe’s maamar—and last I checked, the cycle wasn't only on Basi LeGani 5711.
Chassidus teaches us to "live with the times." If the calendar brings us to the year of the 6th or 16th Ois, that is not by mistake it is Behasgacha protis. Skipping it for 5711 is like reading the introduction to a book over and over without ever getting to the actual chapters.
Now, I’m not saying 5710 5711 isn’t important; it is an essential maamar for Dor Shviei. But by the time you reach your later years, you should be a little more "with the program."
When we learn the specific maamar the Rebbe designated for this year’s cycle, we aren’t just "studying history" - we are "living with the Rebbe".
5711 gave us the map, but the annual maamorim are the actual steps of the journey. By diving into the specific biurim and chiddushim the Rebbe gave us for this year's Ois, we show that we aren't just looking for the "easy way out" with a familiar text. We are looking to connect with the Rebbe’s pnimiyus and the specific koach he is giving us right now.
This Yud Shevat, let’s not just stay at the starting line. Let’s bring a real chayus into the zal by learning the maamar of the year with the depth it deserves. Let’s show that in Dor Hashvii, we are truly "with the program."
(Though, if you haven't learned 5711 yet, drop what you are doing and go learn it!)