To mark 3 Tammuz, the yahrzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Hasidic singer Shmicha Friedman has released a new rendition of the tune "Shamil." The melody is one of the songs closely associated with Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, and the new performance uses words adapted from remarks he made in 1951, when he assumed the leadership of Chabad-Lubavitch, nearly 75 years ago.
The words added to the tune are: "And we will merit to see the Rebbe here below, in a body and below ten handbreadths, and he will redeem us." The Hebrew phrase was originally said by the Rebbe in reference to his father-in-law, the previous Lubavitcher Rebbe, and was translated in the article as: "And we will merit to meet the Rebbe here below in a body, and below ten handbreadths, and he will redeem us."
The lyrics were adapted to the melody by Baruch Binyamin Tahler, who is identified with a memorial honorific in the source. Over time, Chabad Hasidim adopted the phrase as an expression of longing for the Rebbe and hope for the revelation of redemption.
According to the project’s creators, the new performance is meant to express the ongoing yearning of Chabad Hasidim to meet the Rebbe again and their belief in the imminent redemption, ideas that are reflected in words that have become part of Chabad life.
