The Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center with the support of VTB Bank presents the exhibition: Heart Service. Hasidism: tzaddiks, relics, books.
The exhibition fr om the funds of the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, the Russian State Library and the Museum of the Jewish History in Russia.
Hasidism which appeared in the second half of the 18th century within the territory of modern Ukraine introduced into the religious traditions of the Jewish religion the idea of joyful service of god and shaped a new type of a public leader – a tzaddik who accepted the responsibility to help ordinary Jews and to open the way of Torah and commandments to them. The knowledge was conveyed both orally – from a tzaddik to his followers – and with the help of books.
These books shaped the institutional, intellectual and ethical image of the Hasidic movement and became widespread among the Jews immediately after they had been written. They were mainly printed in the Jewish printing houses of Eastern Europe. Such printing houses in multitude existed exactly in the places wh ere Hasidism had appeared (Volhynia, Galicia and Podolia). The mystic character of Hasidism determined the special sacral significance which was attached not only to the books written by the tzaddiks and their followers but also to those which were stored in their libraries. A bright example of such Hasidic library is the Schneerson Library collection, some books from it are exhibited at this exhibition.
Together with the most prominent Hasidic works collected by the Schneersons the elements of Hasidic costumes, portraits of tzaddiks, charms and other Hasidic relics from the collection of the Museum of the Jewish History in Russia are presented at this exhibition. Special attention is paid to the history of the Jewish printing houses; several exhibit items and documents connected with the troubled past of the Schneerson collection itself which was nationalized during the post-revolutionary years and are now kept in the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, the Russian State Library department, are also part of this exhibition.
The Exhibition Partners: