Content of his Character

Here, after perusing milestones from his life more hisorically, now we wll point at things that characterize him and his career, his content, relating to his teachings and to his unique personality, that all come together.

Death Consciousness

He died in Sukkot, in October 1810. For this reason, his disciples emphasize the significance of Rosh ha’Shana for him, for them… 

Not long before, in Uman, his house caught fire and burned to the ground. His maskilim friends supported him and gave him room to live.

And just at that time he told a parable, a story - he was full of stories, this was one of his famous stories, “Seven Beggars” - and in the story, he obviously is relaying events from his life, for example, including his house burning down, and the anticipation of death, and that his sons were already dead. 

Unlike other Hasidic courts at this time, again, differing from the pioneering generation, these “Tsaddiq” masters and their following, would appoint the successor by blood - the son of the leader is the new Tsaddiq (this was quite the opposite of the ethos of the original Hasidic vibe and principles - merit of spiritual depth and power, not an institution, not dynasties…

So when his surviving infant son Shlomo Ephraim died, and it became clear he had no successor, he was depressed, and his followers were disappointed, for they had expectations for him, for themselves as a group, and they had more than subtle messianic expectations for their Tsaddiq (more on this shortly). 

Death consciousness entered and filled the thought and Torah teachings of Nachman, and he died, and there was no new leader, and they stayed that way - a group without a Tsaddiq, or rather, without a living present Tsaddiq - Nachman became their eternal Tsaddiq. And they were coined by others as the dead Hadids - (in Yiddish - toite Hasidim). 

Remember, Nachman himself did not write - but his followers took notes and wrote and published his material posthumously.

So there is much death consciousness in the writings, thought, and lifestyle of Nachman of Breslev Hasidism, Breslevers. 

This was different from other Hasidic groups: Not only because of the new absence of their eternal Tsaddiq, but already in his lifetime they were quite different - their leader was not just any ordinary, or even more than ordinary Tsaddiq - he was already, altogether different, in a category of his own.

Posthumous Literature

We perused through the milestones of the life of Nachman. We poked at a couple points that would be relevant to his thoughts.

We are trying to work our way in a bit more - we already mentioned the motifs of death, heir to the Ba’al Shem Tov, no sons, high self - super special Tsaddiq, parables or stories, the creativity, the wanderings, the posthumous publishing…

The writings or literature of Nachman were compiled, edited, and published by Nathan, Rabbi Nathan, Sternherz, of Namirov. Only after Nachman’s passing.

The most important book was Likutei Moharan, the collected teachings of our teacher Rabbi Nachman. This vast corpus includes many sermons (otherwise arranged and published by topic or form, among them - virtues, principles or guidelines, halacha, and prayers). 

The other highly important book is the collection of stories, Sipurei Ma’asiot, the tales of Rabbi Nachman. The way he told stories was unique.

Full of complex and strange story lines, full of paradox and absurdity, by which he would capture the attention of his audiences, originally and creatively, and through them deliver his deep and mysterious and complicated character. 

These and more books. His followers then, who knew him and studied under him, who then survived him and published or distributed his writings, and also meditated upon them - for them this was not just in memory of him, or to cherish his teachings, nor just to market their special teacher… it was a way for them to experience him, to continue experiencing, in his absence. 

The writings of Nachman are a thing, because this is a way of experiencing him, on top of spreading the word, and also there is a mission through the spreading of his teachings, just like the messianic mission of the Ba’al Shem Tov, his great grandfather - spread the words, the teachings, thus hasten Messiah. 

And through the literature, you can experience him, like many authors, of course, and Nachman was such a creative thinker and writer and mysterious that until today many religious and secular people spend a lot of time analyzing his complex content.

And, through his words, we can try to understand what he thought of himself, what he taught in regards to his self, we can try to enter his mind and also catch him by his own words. 

Two Types of Tsaddiq

Well, there is a thing where you can sort of draw up two types of Hasidic spiritualistic leaders, in lieu of the Ba’al Shem Tov. And each is represented or relayed by a different disciple of his.

There was the Magid of Mezritch, who was more mainstream, more of a proper and popular strong rabbi with a strong following. He is said to have taken the Besht’s teachings into more of a proper set and system. Perhaps it was he, one could say, with his reputation and stature, he could protect the new Hasidic movement, he also made it into a thing, and he also passed it on to the next generation through his many followers and the institutions he set up. And his type of Hasidic leader was just that, one who mostly passed on to the disciples, that they are all the Tsaddiqim, every one does their part, everyone builds this.

On the other hand, Ya’akov Yoseph of Polnea was more of an intimate deep and quiet follower of the Ba’al Shem Tov. He became his scribe. He did not have much of a following but he was the steward of the words, writings, and teachings of the Tsaddiq himself. And the type we receive from him, of the Besht himself, is more of a mystical master, who takes on himself the spiritual burden, not prone to delegate on his minions. Among other things. 

We could for the sake of theorizing call these two types - the popular teacher versus the esoteric mystic. 

Of course in reality they all had a mix of these dynamics, but for our purposes to internalize what he was, Nachman of Breslev, the actual family relation of the Ba’al Shem Tov, followed the school of the latter, of the intimate disciple Ya’akov Yoseph of Polnea, understanding the Hasidic movement and the founder and teacher as a special superior mystic, that is taking on himself the burden.

Apparently the way of Ya’akov Yoseph of Polnea was closer to that of the Ba’al Shem Tov himself, and the reason of the Magid of Mezritch reduced a bit of the extreme individual leader was that it would cause more Sabbatian suspicion! 

One of the key elements in this whole ordeal was that the Tsaddik, the Hasidic mystical master, as we saw in the visions of the Ba’al Shem Tov, was to perform these acts, the deep ecstatic prayers, and part of the mystical practice of the mystic, was to do these Lurianic style, descend in order to ascend...

The down to go up was scary because it sounded like Sabbatianism! But this was a thing before and after Sabbatianism. Shabbtai Zvi made the descending part about performing strange acts, even heretical acts!

In the Hasidic tradition, it was more that the leader takes upon his soul, going down and down, into the darkness.

This is definitely expressed in the life and teachings of Nachman, but to more of an extreme, he was the Tsaddiq, the mystical exceptional leader, who had a role and mission to see the darkness, understand it, feel it, carry the burden, on his own, on his soul and in his life.