The Tzemach Tzedek: Difference between revisions

== Birth and Childhood ==

{{Chabad}}

When he was eight years old, the Alter Rebbe suggested to his son, [[the Mitteler Rebbe]], to take him as a chosson for his daughter Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka, but the Mitteler Rebbe hesitated and showed his father through the window how he was playing with all the children in childish ways. The Alter Rebbe approached the window and motioned with his finger for his grandson to enter the room. When Menachem Mendel entered, he gave him a Gemara and instructed him to memorize a daf with [[Rashi]] and Tosafos within half an hour, to return to the room and repeat everything he had learned. The Mitteler Rebbe, who waited in the room, noticed after about fifteen minutes that the child was again playing outside with his friends, turned to his father and said 'He doesn't even listen to your voice!' The Alter Rebbe called the child and rebuked him but Menachem Mendel claimed that he had already learned and began to repeat the daf by heart.

== His Portrait ==

There was a non-Jewish artist who knew the Tzemach Tzedek and very much wanted to paint him, but the Tzemach Tzedek wouldn't agree. The artist cleverly came on Shabbos to the Tzemach Tzedek's house, studied him carefully to remember his likeness, ran home, and hurried to paint him. For this reason, the Tzemach Tzedek appears in the painting wearing his white Shabbos clothes, which he had inherited from the Alter Rebbe. Later, when the Tzemach Tzedek saw the picture, he was distressed that it was painted on Shabbos - but 'consoled' himself with the fact that the artist had made two mistakes: First, he painted the Tzemach Tzedek with the left side of his garment placed over the right, while Jewish custom is the opposite. Second, he painted the sefer that the Tzemach Tzedek was holding as a secular book, read from left to right. The Rebbe once noted an additional mistake - that in the painting, the Tzemach Tzedek places his glasses on the sefer's cover - something that would never be done as it shows disrespect for the sefer.

In 5647 (1887), the portrait was restored and the mistakes were corrected, and since then it has been circulated in its corrected version.

The Tzemach Tzedek had many sons and two daughters:

# [[Reb Boruch Sholom Schneerson|Rabbi Baruch Shalom]]

# [[The Rebbe Maharash]]

# Rebbetzin Rada Freida Schneerson, wife of Rav Schneor Schneerson

==== Distinguished Chassidim ====

Among the distinguished chassidim of the Tzemach Tzedek were:

* Rabbi Shneur Zalman Fradkin of Lublin, author of "Toras Chesed"

* Rabbi Avraham Dovid Lavut, author of "Shaar HaKollel"

== External Links ==

[[Category:Chabad Rebbes]]

[[Category:The Tzemach Tzedek]]

[[he:רבי מנחם מענדל שניאורסון (אדמו"ר הצמח צדק)]]