A very special memory

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 Today is a very emotional day for me.  It is Rosh Chodesh Kislev, the beginning of the month of Kislev, and it brings back memories from the year 1977.  I was studying in Brooklyn at the time, at the Rebbe’s Yeshiva in 770 Eastern Parkway.  At the Hakafot (dancing and celebrating) on Shemini Atzeret, the culmination of the holiday of Sukkot when we dance with the Torah, I witnessed the Rebbe suffering a serious heart attack.  


The Synagogue was packed with thousands of people squeezed together enjoying one of the most joyous and ecstatic days of the year.  It is impossible to describe the electricity in the Rebbe’s presence at Simchat Torah celebrations, and it is safe to paraphrase the Talmud relating to the Sukkot celebrations in the Temple, “whoever did not see this joy has not seen joy in their lives.”


It was so packed that it was impossible to move around.  A mass of people stood on the floor in the center, and on bleachers built from tables and benches around all the walls.  Except for a small clear area in the center of the room where those carrying the Torahs managed to dance in a circle, everyone else sang and jumped up and down in place.  It felt as if the whole room was moving together.  Leading all of this was the Rebbe himself, who stood majestically on a platform at the front of the room and danced and clapped and encouraged everyone to greater and greater heights.  I still feel and experience this now when I think back to it.


Right in the middle of all this, I was watching the Rebbe and feeling all the excitement, and suddenly the Rebbe’s face turned white and he struggled to barely clap his hands.  We realized that there was something seriously wrong, so we all immediately left the Shul so that the Rebbe would have air to breathe.  It turned out that the Rebbe had had a massive heart attack.  You can learn more about it here.  (The video will give you a taste of the dancing and joy.)


The Rebbe did not go to the hospital.  Instead, his office was turned into a hospital room and doctors tended to him there.  His recovery was truly miraculous, and slowly the Rebbe started briefly attending private services that were held for him with a minyan.  For many weeks the Rebbe did not leave his office at 770.  The students would come to Yeshiva every day, hoping to see the Rebbe fully recovered.  It was a very tense time.  Besides each of our personal feelings for the Rebbe, he was the leader of Jewry and we needed his guidance and leadership.  The love of the Rebbe to his Chassidim and to all Jews, and the love we felt for him, moved us to pray every day and yearn to see him well.


On the first day of Kislev, the Rebbe went home for the first time.  The joy that erupted that night is indescribable.  Although we knew that the Rebbe was slowly recovering, this was a sign that he was “out of the woods” and ready to resume his regular schedule.  We sang and danced and thanked Hashem for the great miracle.  The Rebbe amazingly continued to lead the Jewish world for many years after that, growing the activities and reaching every corner of the world with light and love.  (His impact continues to grow to this day.)  Everyone involved in  his medical care said it was nothing short of a miracle.  


This event is etched onto my memory, as it is in the memory of anyone who experienced it, and in fact we celebrate the miracle as a holiday to this day.

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