| This Shabbat, the 10th of Shevat, is the anniversary of the Lubavitcher Rebbe officially accepting the mantle of leadership of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, on the first anniversary of his predecessor's passing. Before the Sixth Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson, of righteous memory, passed away, he published a 20-chapter discourse titled "Basi Legani" on various esoteric Chassidic concepts, all with practical, down-to-earth applications. It served as a last will and testament of sorts, guiding his followers in the days and years after his passing. Every year, on the yahrzeit, the Rebbe would deliver a discourse of his own, each year elaborating on another chapter of the original discourse. The 15th chapter of the discourse focuses on how the only way we can experience G-dliness in our own finite existence is by G-d condensing His Essence in a way that allows us to relate to Him. This doesn't mean that we don't see actual G-dliness; rather, the condensing, or "tzimtzum" as it's referred to, is also part of G-dliness. So whatever seemingly watered down version we are able to access, at the end of the day we can access it because G-d wants us to. So instead of viewing this as a deficiency, it is to be seen as G-d's greatest gift to us. He allows for His most sublime Essence, which is infinitely beyond anything we can imagine and relate to, to become part of our lives. This isn't a secondary exposure to G-dliness, it is the actual ray of G-d's Light right there, even when all we think we see is darkness. This was the Rebbe's mission from his first day as leader of Chabad—to remind us that everything we see around us is G-dliness, and therefore every interaction we have with a fellow Jew must be with the goal of increasing the Divine revelation wherever we are. This will be fulfilled in its complete form with the ultimate redemption and the coming of Moshiach, may it happen in our times! Shabbat shalom, | 
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