Our Teacher, Rabbi Berland shlit"a, Enters the Tziyon of Rebbe Nachman in Uman After Five Years — "The Rebbe Chopped Off All the Tentacles of the Octopus"

Our holy teacher, the Gaon and Tzaddik, Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a arrived at the holy tziyon (tomb) of Rebbe Nachman in Uman — after five years during which the path was closed to him, in his own words. On the 14th of Elul 5786, Rabbi Berland shlit"a entered the holy tziyon of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov zy"a (may his merit protect us). The joyous news reached the community of followers in Israel and around the world within hours, and in Jerusalem, they immediately broke out in dancing.

Eight days earlier, on the 6th of Elul, a mass prayer and crying out gathering was held at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron with the participation of Rabbi Berland shlit"a. The entire gathering focused on a single request — that the gates be opened and Rabbi Berland shlit"a would be able to reach Uman. And the prayer was answered.

For the first time, a recording also arrived from Rabbi Berland shlit"a himself, directly from Uman, in which he describes the miracle in his own words. Below is a transcript of his message.

"The Rebbe chopped off all the tentacles of the octopus"

Rabbi Berland shlit"a opened with words of thanksgiving, describing the obstacles as an octopus with a million tentacles:

"We must give thanks and praise for the great miracle that we merited to chop off the tentacles of the octopus that has a million tentacles. Rebbe Nachman chopped off all the tentacles of the octopus. The Rav entered after five years of not being in Uman. They closed the holy tziyon (tomb) to the Rav, all sorts of opponents, all sorts of wicked people — and now Rebbe Nachman has defeated them all. No one can be prevented from coming to Rebbe Nachman."

The octopus with a million tentacles represents all the obstacles that blocked the path for five years — the opponents, those who caused delays, and all those hands that grabbed from every direction simultaneously. Just as an octopus is not stopped by severing a single tentacle, removing just one obstacle was not enough. Rabbi Berland shlit"a attributes the miracle to Rebbe Nachman, who chopped off all of them at once. Immediately after entering the tziyon, he sent this recording describing the miracle.

"The mountains skipped and danced like rams"

Rabbi Berland shlit"a described the magnitude of the miracle with an image full of awe — Uman is situated between high mountains, and the miracle was that the mountains themselves moved from their place:

"And this is the greatness of the miracle — that all the mountains connected. Uman is located between great, towering mountains, and the mountains simply connected, just as Rashi writes in Parashas Chukas that the mountains connected and became the pouring of the streams... At the Yam Suf (Red Sea), the sea split, but it remained the same sea. Here, the mountains moved; they danced like a groom toward a bride, like a maidservant toward her mistress. The mountains skipped and danced like rams, skipping toward the Jewish people as they entered the Land."

From there, he proceeded to quote a verse that Rabbi Berland shlit"a repeated twice:

"'The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This is from Hashem; it is wondrous in our eyes.' Wondrous — it is impossible to understand this wonder."

The Instruction: To Dance — In Uman and in Israel

Rabbi Berland shlit"a did not settle for merely describing the miracle; he gave an immediate instruction to the public in both locations simultaneously:

"Everyone who is able to dance while you are dancing, everyone who has arrived in Uman — should start dancing right now. And those in Israel — they should start dancing there. Recite Nishmas (the prayer of thanksgiving) and Hallel HaGadol (the Great Hallel) without a blessing; they should say Hallel HaGadol, just without a blessing."

He further elaborated on the level of joy required at this time: "We need to dance twenty-four hours a day until the end of Yom Kippur," and "We must rejoice on this day... dancing that does not stop for a single second."

"And the Light Pushes Away All the Darkness"

And alongside the joy — an instruction in character refinement (avodas hamidos):

"And it is forbidden to quarrel with anyone. If someone insults you — do not answer and do not explain, there is no need to explain anything. The dawn has broken, the day is seen, the light is seen — and the light pushes away all the darkness."

"We come to the Rebbe — not to the Rav"

A significant portion of the recording was dedicated to instructions on how to behave at the Tziyon, and they all revolve around one foundation: everything is with Rebbe Nachman.

"And do not stand on the benches to see the Rav, and do not shout 'HaRav, HaRav'. And do not submit any requests — the Rebbe sees everyone, all the requests are with the Rebbe... We do not replace the Rebbe with the Rav. The Rebbe is the Rebbe. We come to the Rebbe — not to the Rav."

And Morinu HaRav shlit"a added that no names should be mentioned before him at all — not of a woman giving birth, not of a woman having difficulty in childbirth, not of a bride, and not of a groom: "No name is mentioned, everything is with Rebbe Nachman. Rebbe Nachman sees everything, hears everything, knows everything."

He also attributed the protection of the Land of Israel to Rebbe Nachman: "Only Rebbe Nachman performs all the miracles and wonders, so that no missile will fall on any settlement in the Land of Israel."

Credits

Footage of the holy Tziyon in Uman: N. Yeshurun · Hitchadshut. Footage of the dancing in the prayer hall: Shimon Shavi Acharei HaTzaddik — "Tzaddik HaDor" group. Our thanks are given to them for allowing us to share these moments with the public.