Pesach
1. The Rambam1 writes: "בכל דור ודור חייב אדם להראות את עצמו כאילו הוא בעצמו יצא עתה משעבוד מצרים" ("In every generation a person is obligated to show himself as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt"). (He brings a proof for this from the verse "ואותנו הוציא משם" ("And us He brought out from there"), and from the verse "וזכרת כי עבד היית" ("And you shall remember that you were a slave"), as will be cited below in Section 3.)
Now, the source of this law ("In every generation a person is obligated…") is (as the Maggid Mishneh notes) the Mishnah in Pesachim2. This requires explanation: the wording of the Mishnah (according to our version, and this is also the version in the Mishnah of the Rambam's manuscript3) is "חייב אדם לראות" ("a person is obligated to see4 himself…"). And this difference has a practical legal consequence, for the Rambam's wording, "a person is obligated to show5 himself…", means that it is not enough for a person to see (himself) as if he had gone out of the bondage of Egypt; rather, he is obligated to show this to others as well?
It is even more difficult to understand, for at first glance the Rambam's own words contradict each other: in his version of the Haggadah he writes "In every generation a person is obligated to see himself…", whereas in Hilchos Chametz U'Matzah he writes, as above, "a person is obligated to show himself…"?
The same question applies to the words of the Alter Rebbe: in his version of the Haggadah (and likewise in Tanya6) he writes "a person is obligated to see himself…", whereas in his Shulchan Aruch7 he writes "a person is obligated to show himself…"?
2. There is another change in the wording of the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe from the wording of the Mishnah (and of their Haggadah): in the Mishnah (and in the Haggadah) it says "כאילו הוא יצא ממצרים" ("as if he had gone out of Egypt"), while the wording of the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe is "as if he himself8 had now gone out9 of the bondage of Egypt." Now, at first glance:
The addition of the words "himself" and "now" is, in any case, not a change in the essence of the matter, but only an added emphasis on "as if he had gone out," the meaning being: "as if he himself had now gone out."
[And the reason they do not add this emphasis in their versions of the Haggadah as well is that the passage "In every generation…" in the Haggadah is (a copying of) the wording of the Mishnah (like the passage that follows it, "לפיכך אנחנו חייבים" ("Therefore we are obligated…")), and consequently there is no room to change it.]
But regarding what they wrote, "had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt," this requires investigation: the wording of the Mishnah, "a person is obligated to see himself… as if he had gone out of Egypt," implies that he must see himself as if he had gone out of the land of Egypt, whereas the bondage of Egypt could, and indeed did10, exist also outside the land of Egypt?
3. In the Rambam there, after "In every generation… out of the bondage of Egypt," he concludes as follows: "As it says11, 'And us He brought out from there etc.' And concerning this matter the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded in the Torah12, 'And you shall remember that you were a slave' — that is to say, as if you yourself had been a slave and went out to freedom and were redeemed." This is not understood:
a) The proof in the Mishnah (according to our version) for "In every generation…" is "as it says13, 'והגדת לבנך ביום ההוא לאמר בעבור זה עשה ה' לי בצאתי ממצרים' ('And you shall tell your son on that day, saying: It is because of this that the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt')."
And although in the Mishnah of the Rambam's manuscript (mentioned above), and likewise in his version of the Haggadah, which he copied from the Mishnah14, no proof at all is brought for this law, it nevertheless requires explanation: what is the Rambam's reason that the proof for this law is (specifically) from the verse "And us He brought out from there," and not from the verse "And you shall tell… the L‑rd did for me…" (as in our version of the Mishnah)?
b) Why is the Rambam not satisfied with his proof from the verse "And us He brought out from there etc.," and also brings "And you shall remember that you were a slave"?
c) The law "In every generation…" in the Rambam there is (like all the laws in that chapter) concerned with the obligation of the night of the fifteenth of Nissan [as he continues15: "Therefore, when a person dines on this night…"]. This is not understood: the command "And you shall remember that you were a slave… as if you yourself had been a slave and went out to freedom and were redeemed" has no special time in the year (it is the reason given for keeping Shabbos16, or for "הענק תעניק לו" ("You shall surely furnish him")17), whereas the obligation "to show oneself… as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt" applies specifically on the night of the fifteenth of Nissan?
4. Now, the above law in the Rambam, that in every generation a person is obligated (not only to see but also) to show himself…, is also brought by the Alter Rebbe in his Shulchan Aruch (as cited above at the end of Section 1). However, regarding the source of this law in the Torah (that is, the verse from which this law is learned), the Alter Rebbe changes from what the Rambam writes (even though the Alter Rebbe copied this law (in general) from the Rambam, as noted in the margin there): the Rambam writes (cited above in Section 3) that the source of this law is the verse "And us He brought out from there etc."; whereas the Alter Rebbe writes: "as it says15, 'It is because of this that the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt.'"
Now, the reason for this change is simply understood: the Alter Rebbe holds (as he copies in his version of the Haggadah18) that the (primary) version of the Mishnah (mentioned above) is the version found in most texts: "In every generation… as it says, 'And you shall tell your son on that day, saying: It is because of this that the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt'" (unlike the Rambam's version, in which the Mishnah brings no proof for this law). Therefore he also writes in his Shulchan Aruch that this law is learned from the verse "It is because of this that the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt."
But this itself (that they differ regarding the version) requires a reason.
It also requires investigation: why does the Alter Rebbe bring only "It is because of this that the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt," and omit the words "And you shall tell your son on that day, saying," which are brought in the Mishnah?
One cannot say that the Alter Rebbe's proof is (not for the obligation to show oneself in every generation, but) only for the fact that the reality of the Exodus from Egypt exists in every generation, and that this is why he omits "And you shall tell your son." For (besides it being difficult to understand why he does not also bring the proof for the obligation), according to this he should have brought only "the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt," and omitted the words "It is because of this" as well?
5. There is another change in the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe in comparison with the Rambam: the wording of the Rambam is "And concerning this matter the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded in the Torah, 'And you shall remember that you were a slave' — that is to say, as if you yourself had been a slave…"; whereas the wording of the Alter Rebbe is: "And concerning this matter the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded, 'And you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt' — as if you yourself had been a slave in Egypt…."
And in light of what is known, that the Alter Rebbe was precise in his golden words, in every single word, it seems clear that by (changing from the Rambam's wording and) adding the word "in Egypt" (both in quoting the verse "And you shall remember…" and in the explanation "as if…"), his intention19 is to teach us that the obligation "to show oneself" is (not merely that he should see himself "as if you yourself had been a slave" in general, but) that he should see himself "as if you yourself had been a slave in Egypt" — the slavery of Egypt being a particular kind of slavery, "with crushing labor," etc. [And it can be said that this detail (according to the Alter Rebbe) is even indispensable, so that if he pictures to himself that he was redeemed from slavery in general, he has not fulfilled his obligation.]
This requires investigation: what is the Alter Rebbe's source for disagreeing with the Rambam and establishing a new point, that a person is obligated to show himself as if he had been redeemed from the particular slavery of Egypt20?
We must also understand: the Rambam's wording is "and went out to freedom and were redeemed"21, whereas the Alter Rebbe changes the Rambam's wording and writes "and were redeemed and went out to freedom"?
6. The explanation of all the above:
The law (in the Rambam and in the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe), "In every generation a person is obligated to show himself as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt," establishes several points:
a) The reality. Namely, that the redemption of the Exodus from Egypt is an ongoing act, "in every generation." For "אילו לא הוציא הקב"ה את אבותינו ממצרים הרי אנו ובנינו ובני בנינו משועבדים היינו לפרעה במצרים" ("If the Holy One, blessed be He, had not brought our forefathers out of Egypt, then we, our children and our children's children would still be enslaved to Pharaoh in Egypt"): the fact that we are now in a state of freedom is because the redemption of the Exodus from Egypt continues22 now as well.
b) The obligation. Namely, that [in addition to the mitzvah of remembering the Exodus from Egypt every day (by day and by night)23, a mitzvah which he fulfills even when he mentions (only) the Exodus from Egypt that happened to our forefathers24] there is an obligation upon a person to see (to feel) "as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt."
c) The obligation "to show." Namely, that it is not enough for a person to see (to feel) in himself "as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt"; rather, he is obligated also to show (this feeling).
d) The obligation "to show oneself… as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt" applies not only at the time of reciting the Haggadah, but also in "כל מעשה לילה זה" ("all the actions of this night"). That is, even though he says in the Haggadah "In every generation… as if he had gone out of Egypt" [and before this, too, he says "If He had not brought out… then we… would still be enslaved…"], he has nevertheless not yet fulfilled the obligation "to show" [even though the recitation of the Haggadah is also a telling to another, as will be explained below in Section 8]; rather, he must also "eat and drink… in the manner of freedom," in order to express and show this feeling of "as if he himself…" in "all the actions of this night."
7. On this basis we will understand why the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe needed to bring also "And you shall remember that you were a slave," and are not satisfied with the proof from the verse "And us He brought out from there etc.," or from the verse "It is because of this that the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt": the proof from these verses is only for the reality — that the redemption of the Exodus from Egypt is an ongoing act in every generation. But there is no proof from this that a person is obligated to see himself "as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt." For even though the reality of the Exodus exists in every generation, it can nevertheless be said that the obligation of remembering the Exodus is only to remember the Exodus as it simply happened — to our forefathers.
[And although the words "the L‑rd did for me…" come in continuation of "And you shall tell your son," and likewise "And us He brought out from there etc." comes in continuation of what is said before it25, "And you shall say to your son" — this concerns only the telling and the saying: in the narration of the Exodus one must also say "for me" and "us." But there is no proof from this that a person is obligated to see (to feel) himself as if he had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt; and all the more so, there is no proof from this that a person is obligated to see himself "as if he had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt" also in the other actions of this night, not at the time of reciting the Haggadah.]
Therefore the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe add: "And concerning this matter the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded in the Torah, 'And you shall remember that you were a slave…' — as if you yourself…" The command "And you shall remember…" (especially since it is stated a second time) is (not only to remember the Exodus that happened to our forefathers, but also) "concerning this matter" — concerning the matter of "And us He brought out…" and "the L‑rd did for me…."
And once we know from the verse "And you shall remember…" that a person is obligated to remember (and to see himself) "as if you yourself…," we learn from this that on the night of Pesach this obligation must be not only "to see" but also "to show," and that this obligation applies (not only at the time of reciting the Haggadah, but) also "when a person dines on this night," as will be explained below.
8. Among the additions of the mitzvah of narrating the Exodus from Egypt on the night of the fifteenth of Nissan over the mitzvah of remembering the Exodus every day is "And you shall tell your son" — that is, it is not enough to mention the Exodus to oneself; one must also tell it (to one's son or) to another26.
[This is the reason for what our Sages said27: if he has no son or wife, etc., to ask him, "he asks himself." Since the obligation on the night of Pesach is to narrate the Exodus to another, therefore (when there is no one to ask him) he must ask himself, for by asking himself he becomes "another" in relation to himself; and by answering his own question and narrating to the "other" within himself28, he fulfills thereby the mitzvah of "And you shall tell…".]
And since we find regarding one detail of the overall matter of remembering the Exodus (the narration) that the night of the Exodus adds to it the obligation of "to another" specifically, we learn from this (according to the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe) regarding the entire general matter, also regarding the detail that one must see himself as if he had gone out…, that it must be directed to another specifically — "to show"; and likewise in "all the actions of this night"29.
9. On the basis of the above we will also understand the precision of the golden words of the Alter Rebbe in writing "as it says, 'It is because of this that the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt'" — even though at first glance, as mentioned above, if the proof is for the reality (that the Exodus exists in every generation), he should have copied only "the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt," and not the words "It is because of this"; and if the proof is for the obligation "to show…," he should have copied also the words "And you shall tell your son" (since the fact that on the night of Pesach the obligation is not only "to see" but also "to show" is known to us from the verse "And you shall tell your son," as explained above) —
For by this he emphasizes that the connection of the obligation "to show" to the verse "And you shall tell… out of Egypt" is not to the command (and the detail) of "And you shall tell," but to "It is because of this" — to the general time (concerning which it says "And you shall tell your son," to another): "בשעה שיש מצה ומרור מונחים לפניך" ("at the time when matzah and maror are placed before you")30, every act of remembering the Exodus must be in the manner of "to another."
10. Based on the above — that the obligation "to show…" applies only on the night of Pesach, whereas the obligation throughout the year (learned from the command "And you shall remember…") is only "to see" — the fact is resolved that in the Mishnah, and consequently in the versions of the Haggadah of the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe, it is written "a person is obligated to see…" (even though the obligation is also "to show"). For the intent of this passage is to serve as an introduction and reason for the passage that follows it: "Therefore" (because of what was explained before this) "we are obligated to thank…" (on this night). Its purpose is not to explain the obligations of the night, but the greatness of the Exodus from Egypt — that this going out is "in every generation," without distinction, and on all the days of every generation — and that therefore "a person is obligated to see himself" (always31) "as if he had gone out of Egypt"32.
And the fact that the Haggadah does not mention the obligation "to show" on the night of Pesach is similar to the fact that it does not mention the obligation of the four cups, etc. The simple reason is that one does these things in practice; and this is also the reason regarding the obligation "to show" — for the saying and the telling, etc., to another (as explained above in Section 8) is itself the actual fulfillment of "to show"33.
11. But it is still not understood: the source of the law that "in every generation a person is obligated…" is the Mishnah, and since the wording of the Mishnah (according to the version of the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe) is "a person is obligated to see…," from where in the Talmud do the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe derive that there is also an obligation to show?
The explanation of this:
In the Gemara there: "אמר רבא צריך שיאמר ואותנו הוציא משם" ("Rava said: One must say, 'And us He brought out from there'"). At first glance, what does this add to what is said in the Mishnah — "In every generation… to see himself as if he had gone out of Egypt"?
The explanation of this: the wording "us" (in the plural) indicates that at the time he says it, someone else is present. And this is the meaning of "One must say, 'And us He brought out from there,'" as the Rashbam explains: he must show himself as if he had gone out from there.
It is understood that the law "One must say, 'And us' (in the plural)…" is not a detail of "And you shall tell your son" — for with "And you shall tell your son," even when he speaks in the singular ("and me He brought out"), someone else is present — but rather it is a matter in its own right.
And from this the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe learn the obligation "to show," and that this obligation concerns "all the actions of this night."
12. The explanation of why the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe write that the obligation is to see himself as if he had gone out (only) "of the bondage of Egypt," even though the wording of the Mishnah is (and so they copied it in their versions of the Haggadah) "had gone out of Egypt":
Since the intent of the Mishnah in "a person is obligated to see himself as if he had gone out of Egypt" is (as the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe explain it) that he should see himself as if he had now gone out (that is, that a moment before he was in Egypt, and only now has he gone out from there), it is impossible to say that the intent of "had gone out of Egypt" is that he has (now) gone out of the place, the land of Egypt34, for this is contrary to what is perceived by the senses. [Especially since we have been commanded "לא תוסיפו לראותם עד עולם" ("You shall see them again no more forever")3637 — not to return to Egypt — so that, on account of this command, it is not relevant (and all the more so there is no room for an obligation) that he should see himself as having been in Egypt a moment before38.] Therefore one must say that the intent of "had gone out of Egypt" is the going out of the bondage of Egypt35.
13. The reason for the differences (mentioned above in Sections 4 and 5) between the wording of the Alter Rebbe in his Shulchan Aruch and the wording of the Rambam — (a) the Rambam brings the verse "And us He brought out…," while the Alter Rebbe brings the verse "It is because of this…"; (b) the Rambam writes "a slave" in general, while the Alter Rebbe adds "a slave in Egypt"; (c) the Rambam writes "and went out to freedom and were redeemed," while the Alter Rebbe writes "and were redeemed and went out to freedom" —
It can be said that these differences correspond to the difference between them in the version of the Mishnah:
According to the Rambam's version, the Mishnah does not bring a proof for "In every generation a person is obligated…" from the verse "the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt." And his reason can be explained: it can be said that this verse is to be taken literally, as being said to the generation of those who went out of Egypt.
Therefore, in his work as well, the Rambam brings the verse "And us He brought out from there etc.," for in it is stated explicitly (and we also say this in the Haggadah) "למען הביא אותנו לתת לנו את הארץ" ("in order to bring us, to give us the land…"), and nearly all of those who entered the land were not among those who went out of Egypt.
However, according to the Alter Rebbe's version of the Mishnah, "as it says, 'And you shall tell your son…,'" it is stated explicitly in the Mishnah that the verse "the L‑rd did for me…" is also a proof for "in every generation." Therefore the Alter Rebbe brings this verse (which is cited in the Mishnah) in his Shulchan Aruch.
14. Now, this difference — whether the matter of "in every generation…" is learned from the verse "the L‑rd did for me…" or from the verse "And us He brought out from there…" — it can be said, also has a bearing on the practical law.
The explanation of this: from the verse "And us He brought out from there" we know only that the matter of "He brought out from there" (in general) also applies in the later generations — "us." But there is no proof from this that "us He brought out from there" is in the same manner in which He brought out our forefathers.
Whereas from the verse "the L‑rd did for me when I went out of Egypt" — since it says "for me" and not "for us"39, that is, the verse emphasizes that it speaks of a matter that only the father [who had been in Egypt40] can feel, and not the son — it is proven that the intent is to the very same going out of Egypt that happened to our forefathers. And since the verse also speaks of the later generations (as it says "on that day"41), it is proven that the going out of Egypt in every generation is like "what the L‑rd did for me," in the same manner as it was the first time.
On this basis it is understood why, according to the Rambam, the obligation is to see oneself only "as if you yourself had been a slave" — a slave in general; whereas according to the Alter Rebbe the obligation is to see oneself "as if you yourself had been a slave in Egypt" — the particular slavery of Egypt. For from the verse "And us He brought out from there…" (cited in the Rambam) it is proven only that in every generation there is the matter of "He brought out from there" in general, whereas from the verse "the L‑rd did for me…" (cited in the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe, from the Mishnah) it is also proven that the going out of Egypt in every generation is equal to the going out that took place the first time.
15. On the basis of the above we will also understand why the Rambam writes "and went out to freedom and were redeemed," whereas the Alter Rebbe writes "and were redeemed and went out to freedom." The explanation of this:
In the Rambam, Hilchos Shemitah V'Yovel42, he writes as follows: "From Rosh Hashanah until Yom Kippur, the slaves were not released to their homes, nor were they subjugated to their masters… When Yom Kippur arrived, the court sounded the shofar, and the slaves were released to their homes."
From this it appears that in every going out from slavery there are two matters: (a) going out of subjugation (labor and the like); (b) returning to one's own place and full independence. Only that in the Yovel these two matters are separate also in time, while in redemption from slavery by a bill of emancipation and the like, both matters occur at once. And it can be said that this is so in every emancipation, only that it is not a legal requirement, whereas in the Yovel it is; and the Torah speaks of the usual case: first he is freed, and afterwards he leaves his master's house and returns to his own home.
This is why the Rambam (in Hilchos Chametz U'Matzah there), after "and went out to freedom," adds "and were redeemed" (for it is a mitzvah to narrate and explain at length the Exodus from Egypt): "and went out to freedom" expresses (only) that he is no longer subjugated to his master, and he adds "and were redeemed" — that he was (also) released to his home, for "redemption" (פדות) means separation43, and in our case: separation from the place and domain of the master (that is, that he was released to his home).
16. Now, among the ways in which the slavery in Egypt differed from other slavery is that as long as the slave was in the land of Egypt, it was impossible for him to be freed and become a free man. Only when the slave fled from Egypt and reached "Pi HaChiros" did he become a free man44.
Accordingly, we find that the order of "going out to freedom" and "redemption" in the redemption from slavery in Egypt was the reverse of that in redemption from ordinary slavery: in redemption from ordinary slavery, first comes the "going out to freedom" ("they were not subjugated to their masters"), and afterwards the "redemption" ("they were released to their homes"). Whereas in the redemption from the slavery of Egypt — since as long as the slave was in Egypt it was impossible for him to become a free man — first came the "redemption," that is, the going out from the place and domain of the master, and only after this came the "going out to freedom."
On this basis the difference between the wording of the Alter Rebbe and the wording of the Rambam is understood — the Rambam writes "and went out to freedom (and afterwards) were redeemed," while the Alter Rebbe writes "and were redeemed (and afterwards) went out to freedom." For according to the Rambam, the obligation of "And you shall remember…" is "as if you yourself had been a slave" (a slave in general), and in going out from ordinary slavery, first comes the "going out to freedom" and afterwards the "redemption." Whereas according to the Alter Rebbe, the obligation of "And you shall remember…" is "as if you yourself had been a slave in Egypt"; therefore the order is "and were redeemed (and afterwards) went out to freedom" — for in going out from the slavery of Egypt, first comes "redemption" and afterwards "going out to freedom."
* * *
May it be His will that very soon we merit the freedom of the true and complete Redemption through our righteous Moshiach.
(From the sichos of 11 Nissan and Acharon Shel Pesach 5735)
Notes
1) Hilchos Chametz U'Matzah, ch. 7, halachah 6.
2) 116b.
3) Published by Rabbi Kapach, Jerusalem 5723. This is also necessarily so from the version of the Haggadah in the Rambam, which was copied from the Mishnah — see below, Section 2, that in the version of the Haggadah the Rambam did not change from the wording of the Mishnah.
4) From the Maggid Mishneh here (and see this version also in Dikdukei Sofrim, Pesachim there) it is implied that he reads "להראות" ("to show") in the Mishnah. But in the Mishnah of the Rambam's manuscript [and so it necessarily follows from his version of the Haggadah, as in the previous note] it reads "לראות" ("to see").
5) In several manuscripts of the Rambam (see the Rambam, Frankel edition, Jerusalem 5735) it reads "לראות" ("to see"). But from the fact that the Alter Rebbe in his Shulchan Aruch writes "להראות" ("to show"), it is evident that this is his reading in the Rambam (for the source of the law in the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe there is the Rambam).
6) Beginning of ch. 47.
7) Siman 472, se'if 6.
8) In the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe the word "himself" does not appear.
9) In the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe the wording is "יוצא" (with a vav).
10) For Pharaoh ruled from one end of the world to the other, and he had governors… (Mechilta on Beshalach 14:5).
11) Va'eschanan 6:23.
12) Va'eschanan 5:15. Re'eh 15:15. Teitzei 24:22. And in Re'eh (16:12) and Teitzei (there, 18) with the word "land" omitted. There is further room to distinguish in the interpretation of the verses (see the commentators there); this is not the place to elaborate.
13) Bo 13:8.
14) And since in the version of the Haggadah he did not change from the wording of the Mishnah (as above, Section 2), it is evident that this was his version of the Mishnah.
15) In halachah 7.
16) Va'eschanan there.
17) See there.
18) Especially since the proof that "the L‑rd did for me…" speaks also of the later generations is from "on that day" (Maharsha, Pesachim there).
19) But the fact that the Alter Rebbe omits the word "in the Torah" and the word "that is to say" — it can be said that this is only a change of style. More can be said about this, but this is not the place.
20) One cannot say that the Alter Rebbe interprets the Rambam's intent this way. For since the verse (Va'eschanan and Re'eh there) says "And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt," and the Rambam quotes from the verse only "And you shall remember that you were a slave," omitting "in Egypt" (even though this comes in continuation of what he wrote before it, "as if he himself had now gone out of the bondage of Egypt"), it is evident that the Rambam's intent in this is to hint that the obligation to see oneself is only as having been redeemed from slavery in general.
21) Even though there, in ch. 6, halachah 2, he wrote: "The Holy One, blessed be He, redeemed us and brought us out to freedom."
22) See at length in the Haggadah shel Pesach (with Likkutei Taamim, Minhagim U'Biurim), p. 371 ff. (5739 edition).
23) Rambam, Hilchos Krias Shema, ch. 1, halachah 3. Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe, beginning of siman 67.
24) According to what he explains in Tanya (beginning of ch. 47) as the intent of the Mishnah, the obligation "to see oneself…" also applies "every single day," as will be explained below in Section 10 and note 31. Accordingly, it is reasonable that this is also the Alter Rebbe's view in the Shulchan Aruch — for what compels us to create a disagreement between what is stated explicitly in Tanya and plainly, and what is left unstated in the Shulchan Aruch (and in the Rambam)?! What is written in the main text is for added emphasis — for it can be said that this is a novel point, should a compelling reason for the above disagreement be found; and then it will also be well understood why the obligation to see oneself as if he had gone out of Egypt is not brought in the Rambam and the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe there.
25) Va'eschanan there, 21.
26) See Sefer HaMitzvos, Mitzvah 21, and the sources cited in the above-mentioned Haggadah shel Pesach, p. 15.
27) Pesachim 116a. Rambam, Hilchos Chametz U'Matzah, ch. 7, halachah 3. Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe, siman 473, se'if 40.
28) Through this there also comes a primary addition in understanding the matters clearly and in depth — similar to the statement of our Sages regarding the advantage of one who is learned in the sources and is also a sharp analyst (Yerushalmi, end of Horayos). See also Sifri (on Devarim 1:13, cited in Rashi there): "What is the difference between the understanding and the wise?… The understanding one… when they do not bring him something to see, he brings his own and sees." On this basis, what is cited in several places (Shabbos 145a and elsewhere), "He raises the question and he himself resolves it," will be better understood.
29) Note the discussion whether reclining is a detail and condition of eating matzah and the like, or the reverse: the eating is a detail of the law of reclining. It can be said that there is a practical difference where, after one has eaten without reclining, his teacher arrives, in whose presence one may not recline, and the like. See Likkutei Sichos, vol. 1, p. 14 ff.
30) Mechilta, Parshas Bo. Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe, siman 473, se'if 3.
31) This is why in Tanya (there) he explains the intent of the Mishnah and adds "and every single day," and consequently writes "to see" — the obligation of every day. As for why the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe brought the law "to see oneself…" only in the laws of Pesach and not (as an obligation of the entire year) in the laws of Krias Shema — that is because this is where it is found in the Talmud (as is the case similarly in many places). See also above, note 24.
32) This is similar to the Mishnah "Rabbi Elazar ben Azaryah said: I am like a man of seventy years…," which was arranged in the text of the Haggadah, even though that Mishnah speaks of remembering the Exodus every day.
33) According to those who read "להראות" ("to show") in the Mishnah (and consequently also in its copying in the text of the Haggadah) (as above, note 3) — and accordingly, in their view, the meaning of "in every generation" is on the night of the fifteenth of Nissan — this is similar to the obligation of reciting Hallel, etc., where one states the law that we are obligated to praise, and afterwards: "and let us say before Him…."
34) The fact that the Mishnah says "of Egypt" is because the language of the Mishnah is "concise language" (Rambam's introduction to his Commentary on the Mishnah), but the intent of the Mishnah too is the bondage of Egypt, as in the main text. And since in the version of the Haggadah of the Rambam and the Alter Rebbe this passage was copied from the Mishnah (in its form), the wording in the Haggadah is also "of Egypt." And the fact that in Tanya there, too, the Alter Rebbe writes "of Egypt," even though in Tanya there he adds the words "and every single day" and also the word "today" — this is because the matter of the daily Exodus from Egypt that he explains there is spiritual, "the going out of the G‑dly soul from the imprisonment of the body," which is (not "from the bondage of Egypt," but) "from Mitzrayim" (from the term meitzarim, "constraints and limitations").
35) Whereas "bondage" depends on one's feeling, and one can enslave oneself to many things, etc.
36) Beshalach 14:13. Mechilta there.
37) Even though the command "You shall see them again no more…" stems from the fact that the Exodus from Egypt took place, while the obligation to see oneself as if he had now gone out of Egypt stems from "If He had not brought out…," nevertheless the command "You shall see them again no more…" negates the feeling that a moment earlier he was in Egypt (since that involves a prohibition).
38) This explains why the Alter Rebbe cites the verse (Re'eh 16:12; Teitzei 24:18) "And you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt," and not the earlier verse (Va'eschanan 5:15; Re'eh 15:15) "And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt." More can be said, but this is not the place.
39) Even though the precise wording "for me" is understood as "for me and not for him," this precision relates to the wicked son. Since the verse speaks (primarily) of the son who does not know how to ask (Mechilta there; Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe, siman 473, se'if 42) [only that the verse also contains "a hint of an answer to the wicked son," in the words of Rashi on the verse], it is evident from this that the plain meaning of "for me" is as in the main text.
40) And even though, according to the Alter Rebbe's version of the Mishnah, "as it says, 'And you shall tell…'" [where it is proven from the verse "the L‑rd did for me…" that the Exodus is in every generation], one must say that the verse also speaks of the later generations [and that the intent of the wording "for me" is (not only that he says it in the wording that Moshe Rabbeinu said, but that its intent is) that "he went out of Egypt"], nevertheless, from the fact that the verse says "for me" (and not "for us"), we learn from this precision that the intent is to emphasize (in addition to the emphasis "for me" and not only our forefathers — also "for me" and not "for us," that is:) a matter that relates only to the father and not to the son. And since this distinction applies only in the generation that went out of Egypt — for in that generation the father (who had been in Egypt, unlike the son) felt that he had gone out of the slavery of Egypt — we learn from this that the emphasis "for me" (and not "for us") applies also regarding the later generations, that then too there is the matter alluded to in this emphasis, namely, that they should see themselves as if they had gone out (not only from slavery in general, but) from the particular slavery of Egypt.
41) Maharsha, Pesachim there.
42) Ch. 10, halachah 14.
43) See Va'eira 8:19: "And I will make a redemption (פדות)," and Rashi there: "that He will make a separation…."
44) Midrash Lekach Tov and Sechel Tov, Beshalach (14:2).
Key Lesson
On the night of Pesach it is not enough to feel inwardly that we ourselves have just been freed from the bondage of Egypt; we must also show it outwardly, to others, in all the actions of the night. According to the Alter Rebbe, this means feeling released from the particular, crushing slavery of Egypt — first separated from the master's domain, and only then truly free.