“The Rebbe Told Me: Sing!”

“Ech ti zimlak, zatchem-ti tuch-dak…”

Many of the thousands of individuals who approached the Rebbe for kos shel bracha after a yom-tov’s end farbrengen were often greeted by these Russian words.

The voice was that of Chazzan Tzvi Hersh Tsatskis. He was an emigre from Tatarstan, where he grew up under the Communist regime, and he and his family was educated by the underground Lubavitch network. Following over a decade of trying to emigrate without success, a Lubavitcher shliach asked the Rebbe for a bracha for them, and less than a year later, they received the green light. As soon as they arrived in America, Tzvi Hersh and his family came to the Rebbe to express their gratitude. After the farbrengen, the Rebbe began giving out kos shel bracha.

He relates: “I was sitting in the back, debating with myself whether I should join them. I wanted to, but not being a Chabad Chossid, I wasn’t sure if I should, until I saw the line coming to an end. And then, on impulse, I got up and stood at the back of the line. Before long, I found myself in front of the Rebbe holding my cup. The Rebbe gave me a big smile, poured wine into my cup, and I said l’chaim. I started to walk away, but the Rebbe called me back. He motioned for me to come forward.

“So I came back, and he gave me an even bigger smile and poured more wine into my cup. I said l’chaim and then he spoke to me in Russian: “Don’t have any more doubts.” I was so shaken that I almost fainted. Then he said, “Sing!” And I started to sing the Pesach song, ‘Who knows one!’ Except I sang it in the Russian: ‘Ech Ti Zimlak…’”

From then on, Chazzan Tsatskis was a permanent fixture at kos shel bracha leading the singing, often with his trademark song “Ech Ti Zimlak.” When he was present, the Rebbe’s encouragement was stronger than ever.

He would often come with his children. Once, when he came only with his son but not his daughter, the Rebbe immediately asked for her: “Where is she? Where is Tanya?” His son immediately ran to call his wife, and Tanya—a little girl at the time—was immediately brought over. When the Rebbe saw her, he waved to her, and from then on, Mr. Tsatskis would always bring her with him.
Once, during kos shel bracha of Motzei Simchas Torah 5747, Mr. Tsatskis was singing “Ech Ti Zimlak” as usual, and the Rebbe was encouraging the song with one hand as he was distributing the kos shel bracha with the other. His daughter Tanya was singing along into the microphone, and after a few minutes, the Rebbe instructed Rabbi Groner to tell her, gently, that she was too old to be singing in front of men.

When Rabbi Groner returned, the Rebbe looked back at her, and it seemed that he was concerned that she was upset. So in the middle of the song, during the countdown—

Shest knizek mishni….[six sidrei Mishna]
Piat knieznik tur…. [five books of the Torah]
Tchitiri nashich matushki…[four are the mothers]—

the Rebbe put down his becher, turned to face the girl, and started clapping with amazing enthusiasm in her direction. The scene was indescribable. The Chassidim—who hardly knew the refrain of the song, let alone the countdown—joined along, singing aiya-aiya, aiya-aiya, aiya-aiya, faster and faster, long after the countdown was over.

Continue reading the full article in this month’s Derher Magazine, alongside a variety of interesting articles spanning topics like the importance of energy independence for the United States, a look at Jem’s new book “Early Years,” how Yud-Aleph Nissan was celebrated with the Rebbe 40 years ago, and much, much more.

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