The person who made me aware of this clip yesterday morning intended for me to see how the Ribnitzer Rebbe was a great Ohev Yisroel and didn't make much to do of himself. How he cared for every Jew at his own expense, and despite the fact that he was אין די הימלען. Literally. I do not dispute that. But am I wrong for thinking that despite the fact that he was very friendly and approachable, צוגעלאזען בל"א, that those around him seem to be taking advantage of his good naturedness here? That this half hour video looks more like a hippie commune than the home of a Tzaddik? (OK, it wasn't his home, it was apparently a visit to LA) [which proves that he was basically told where and when to go...] I can understand this to be the case back in Chernovitz in the 1950s, when those who surrounded him knew no better, but in 1981? What a זלזול! I would not believe it had I not seen it! Do I see Berel Weisz there? Who's the guy with the guitar and the limited music repertoire?
Thanks to a reader we now know that the guitar player is Mr. Neil Seidel. A quick Google search found this picture on his FB page.
the man with the guitar is named Neil Seidel. Neil became shomer Shabbos because of the Ribnitzer. He played music with Shlomo Carlebach for many years.
ReplyDeleteThe holy ribnitzer planned on staying in LA permanently. He lived in the home of R SM Shwartz for several months. Some baalei batim decided that he should live in his own place, so the bought/rented him a home. He was left virtually homeless when they sold it due to neighbors complaints about noise etc.
ReplyDeleteSo was heard from a yid who took him fishing on erev shabbos on the Pacific.
did he ask to go fishing? or was it decided so for him?
ReplyDeleteLa Punk
ReplyDeleteWasnt he also staying by Sam Tiechman?
He asked to go fishing for shabbosdike fish. He would look in the eyes of the fish that they caught and keep some and throw others back...
ReplyDeleteIt is unfortunate that this film surfaced and went viral.
ReplyDeleteThis clip was taken when the Rebbe zt"l was in the begining of his sickness and was suffering from dementia.
All who knew the Rebbe can testify to this.
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ReplyDeleteThe Ribnitzer was in LA the last years? I thought he was in Monsey only?
is this not some purim koton seuda?
I got bored after 11 minutes, so I haven't seen the whole thing, but I don't see anything wrong.
ReplyDeleteYou cant apply Hungarian and/or Chabad ideas of what a rebbe is to a Ukrainian Rebbe.
And again we have your fixation with a guitar somehow being a "hippie" instrument. You want a violin, of course - that would be truly chassidish! Please explain how a guitar is any less "chassidish" than the "holy" violin!
There's no hocking ungarishkeit out of an ungarisher, I see!
a Yid
ReplyDeleteit seems like the Hungarians there had no problem with it, so don't blame the Hungarian in me! And besides, if it was a violin it would like a gypsy party... Seidel was an ex-hippie, hence the "hippie commune" bit. And I don't mean that in a bad way!
As I understand from those who were there, the R' Rebbe's house in Monsey was even more meshige. Also, this was shot on Pirim, so it was of course more pirimdik.
ReplyDelete-- ZIY
Hirshel
ReplyDeleteI can not say that I knew the Ribnitzer well, but I saw him alot in action after his arrival in the USA. He definitely was not full fledge on our planet.His mind was totally detached from his surroundings, when he laughed it wasnt always in a response to the joke that was told.
LA punk said...
ReplyDeleteThe holy ribnitzer planned on staying in LA permanently. He lived in the home of R SM Shwartz for several months."
The first time he came to LA, he lived in R' Yisroel Meir Schwartz's house. MBD hung around in those days, and as a kid, it was amazing to watch him parver seudas shabbos after we finished havdalah. This video seems to be from the second or 3rd time, when physically he was much weaker.
Like many gr8 people, the gabboyim around him were lowlifes, & they used him for their own needs vidal.
is Schwartz in the video? There's a guy standing on the left, with a platchiker biber hat, is that him?
ReplyDeleteshwarts doesnt wer a placthike hit
ReplyDeleteboigen hit
hirshel,
ReplyDelete@ 2:10 it looks like berel weiss standing next to the car.
at the end in the airport, someone is walking with him, and i can't figure out who it is, doesn't look like R' YMS at all.
seems everything is open to discussion on this blog.innuendo;dark hints;skvereh inner workings.
ReplyDeletebesides off cour__se for the "elephant in the blog"; a subject the blogmeister would be familiar with.lubavitch and its issues.thats something that is off free speach limits
I used to go to him when he lived in BP, He was an עובד ד' בדביקות ובּמס"נ ממש 365/24/7 Must of all he was in controll of hes destiny! I used to talk with him and his rebetzin ע"ה she rold me stunning stories of his young age So did he, However when he re-married Things changed it seemed that others got a hold of 'him' They sustained him Physically but i don't think they had a clue! of his התעלות בּחסידות ופּרישות בּדביקות עילאה unfortanetly, but hey what do i know!
ReplyDeleteI remember one succos it was pouring all 8 days! he never stepped out of the succoh, he even slepped there covered with a plastic head to toe! He was reading by himself משנה־תורה also covered with plastic himself with they torah! it was a seen that was מבהיל את הרעיון even to watch But didn't diturb him a bid!
עה"פּ: סמכוני באשישות רפדוני בתפוחים כי חולת אהבה אני
ובמדרש, באשישות בשני אשות! של מטה ושל מעלה
He went there to enliven the עצמות היבשות of LA But i would say בא ללמד ונמצא למד He felt their spirit and it enlivened him to!
ReplyDeleteכל המקיים נפש אחת מישראל, כאילו קיים עולם מלא
:מזכרוני
ReplyDeleteהרמב"ן בפּ' כּ' למה פּקד משה באחרונה גם שבט נפתלי הלא כבר פקד כל השבטים והמספר שנשאר הוא המספר של שבט נפתלי! אלא שמשה רצה "כי ישימו עליהם עינם לטובה יבקשו עליהם רחמים" עיי"ש
So it seems it's more important that a צדיק אמת sees us! Than we to see 'them'!
Therefore even that moshe knew the tally of שבט נפתלי he still counted them so that he can see 'them' with his eyes and blessed them indiviually!!
Please all of you a little DERECH ERETZ is in order here you have no idea about whom we are so non chalantly speaking may he forgive us all for our foolish comments Hashem Yeracheim Good Shabbos
ReplyDeleteהירשל ציג said...
ReplyDeletedid he ask to go fishing? or was it decided so for him?
רבא מלח שיבוטא Did his wife asked him to do it? or did he do it on his own?
Every time I read or watch the Ribnitzer, I get goosebumps. Its amazing how a person can work on himself and his relationship with the Eibishter to be so shleimusdik.
ReplyDelete"Its amazing how a person can work on himself and his relationship with the Eibishter to be so shleimusdik."
ReplyDeletedid the alter of solobodka say something on the ribnitzer's shleimus ?
The Ribnitzer was like a tzaddik from 500 or 1000 years ago or even longer. There's a biography about him(around 200 pages)written about 10-12 years ago.The sefer is written in very easy hebrew and is absolutely MIND-BLOWING.A MUST READ.its called "Halichos Chaim"(a blue sefer).its hard to find,but people who have read this sefer have had tremendous hisorerus from the Rebbe's AWESOME mesiras nefesh.AGAIN, IT'S A MUST READ
ReplyDelete>>did the alter of solobodka say something on the ribnitzer's shleimus ?
ReplyDeleteI don't believe they ever met. But others did. I went through Halichos Chaim, but there are so many first-hand stories about his avodas hashem. Its really inspiring.
We posted this video and then removed it per the request of the Ribnitzer Rebbetzin.
ReplyDeleteShe told me these were private videos she had herself recorded. She had them locked in a box which was subsequently - some ten years ago - broken into and the videos stolen by an unknown thief who still has not returned some of the stolen goods.
The rebbe was in LA twice. Each time for a couple of months. The first time he left LA was when Reb Yoel, the Satmar Rav was Nifter. The entire time of his stay in LA (both times), he stayed at 522 N. Sycamore, the home of R' Yisrael Meir Schwartz A"H. THE VIDEO ISN'T OF HIPPIES- IT WAS ON פורים!! The home purchased for him was never occupied by him due to him choosing not to. I heard all this from my Zeide, R' Yisrael Meir Schwartz A"H.
ReplyDelete