Rebbe Zusha of Anipoli

Rebbe Zusha’s full name was Meshulam Zusil, but everyone knows him by Zusha. Even he used to refer to himself as Zusha. Despite being one of the greatest tzadikim of his generation, Zusha would call out to God before going to sleep every night, “Almighty, Zusha did not conduct himself properly today. Tomorrow, Zusha will conduct himself as You have commanded.” Zusha is known to have been a genius in earnestness and sincerity and many of the stories about him highlight his earnest nature. 

There was a special connection between Rebbe Zusha and the Alter Rebbe, the founder of Chabad, both in life and in passing. Every male child that merits to be born on the 24th of Tevet, the yahrzeit (day of passing) of the Alter Rebbe, will be circumcised 8 days later on the 2nd of Shevat, Rebbe Zusha’s yarhzeit. 

When the Alter Rebbe first published his magnum opus, the Tanya, he sent an emissary to Rebbe Zusha and to Rabbi Yehudah Leib Hacohen1 to ask them for an approbation. Why did the Alter Rebbe choose them? Apparently, even though all of the Maggid of Mezritch’s disciples held each other in great esteem, these three had a special deep and emotional bond between them. It is known that after the Maggid’s passing, the Alter Rebbe with these two close friends wrote a note to the Maggid’s son, Rabbi Avraham the Angel (Hamal’ach), accepting him as their Rebbe and declaring their complete devotion to him. There they said that they were dedicating their entire being, all five levels of their soul, to Rabbi Avraham. 

Now let us add a little perspective to the special relationship between the Alter Rebbe and Rebbe Zusha. Rebbe Zusha was much older than the Alter Rebbe. He was born in 5462 (1702) and was only 4 years younger than the Ba’al Shem Tov. Even so, he was a disciple of the Maggid, the Ba’al Shem Tov’s successor. Zusha was actually 2 years older than the Maggid.  

Rebbe Zusha’s famous younger brother, Rebbe Elimelech (known as Rebbe Meilech) of Lizhensk, who founded the entire branch of Polish Chassidut, was 15 years his junior. Not only was Rebbe Zusha born close to the Ba’al Shem Tov and the Maggid, he also lived a very long life. He passed away in 5560 (1800) at 98 years of age. His brother, Rebbe Meilech, passed away at the age of 70, so Rebbe Zusha lived another 13 years after the passing of his famous brother. 

Since the Tanya was originally printed in 5556, it turns out that Zusha wrote his approbation at the age of 94, just four years before his passing. It is told that during the last 7 years of his life, Zusha lived like Adam before the primordial sin.  

The Alter Rebbe was born in 5505, so Zusha was 43(!) years his senior. This is the first point we would like to take from the relationship between Rebbe Zusha and the Alter Rebbe: it is certainly possible that your best and dearest friend be 43 years older than you, someone who could very well be your grandfather. This also says a great deal about Zusha’s earnestness and sincere nature. His Rebbe, his teacher, the Maggid, was 2 years younger than him and his best friend was 43 years younger.  

There are many stories that illustrate that this was Rebbe Zusha’s level of consciousness. One of them is that when the Maggid came to teach and had only uttered his first word, Zusha became so excited that he began yelling and tumbling about the room. He completely lost his countenance. He so disturbed the other students that there was no choice but to simply pick him up and take him out of the room. Even outside, he remained just as excited and continued his shouting. When the Maggid finished teaching and the students began reviewing what the Maggid had just taught, it turned out that Zusha knew the whole Torah (teaching of the Maggid) word for word. This was a common occurrence.  

Less known is the fact that one time when this happened, some of the disciples asked the Maggid to explain how this could be. How could Rebbe Zusha who was clearly beside himself when the Maggid taught, how could he know exactly what the Maggid had said. The Maggid explained that everything that is revealed to him is also revealed to Rebbe Zusha at the same time, except that the difference is that he (the Maggid) opens the gate. Because of this, there is a split-second lag between when it is revealed to me, the Maggid, and when it is revealed to Zusha. Still, Zusha is completely overwhelmed by what is revealed and that is why he cannot contain his excitement. 

There is another related story about Rebbe Zusha. One time, a simple Jew came to Rebbe Zusha. This man was bewildered and pained because his deceased father kept coming to him every night in his dream telling him to convert to Christianity. What a terrible experience to have night after night. Rebbe Zusha heard the man describe his troubles and without thinking twice told him that he should have his father’s grave opened and he will immediately know what to do. The man did as Rebbe Zusha instructed him and on his father’s coffin, he found two beams that were placed (apparently by the non-Jewish gravediggers) in the shape of a cross. He removed them and the dreams disappeared. This incident spread far and wide until it reached the ears of the Gaon of Vilna who was very surprised. He explained that the matter is alluded to in a certain cryptic passage of the Jerusalem Talmud and that he did not know how it is possible that Zusha, who was not known to be a Talmudic scholar, could know this. When the Gaon’s words reached Rebbe Zusha he said earnestly, as was his usual nature, that indeed he did not know about this passage in the Jerusalem Talmud. But he had taken his knowledge from the same source in God’s infinite light, the essence of the Torah, where the sages of the Jerusalem Talmud took theirs.   

Editor’s Note: Listen to a special niggun composed by Rabbi Shlomo Katz outside of Rebbe Zushia’s grave site. Read the article about how the niggun was composed here.

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Reprinted with courtesy of www.inner.org