On the Rebbe’s Yahrzeit, a Personal Account of Guidance and Faith

In a personal essay published on the 3rd of Tammuz, Dana Varon reflects on the Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch and says his teachings have shaped her life for years. She writes that before finding him, she was a baalat teshuva with no father’s home, no family tradition to revive, and no heritage to hold onto, and that the Rebbe gave her a clear roadmap, faith, and a sense of mission that still guide her through difficult moments.

Varon says that when people would ask, “But didn’t he die?”, she did not answer from theology so much as from lived experience, saying that what mattered to her was whether she was living in a way that reflected his teaching. She describes the Rebbe as someone whose views, in her words, addressed nearly every issue and proved to be “the most accurate” and farsighted guidance she had encountered.

She says Chabad Hasidic practice, along with the teachings of the Alter Rebbe and the book Tanya, gave her a structure for life, fixed the gaps she felt in her background, and even turned her from a housewife and mother into a media professional with a clear and uncompromising mission. She adds that the Rebbe taught her that she is not the main point, and that ego should not obstruct the mission.

The essay frames the day as one of light, connection, and spiritual opportunity. Varon urges readers to find their own path toward “a life of light and redemption,” and sees the anniversary as a chance to reconnect with the Rebbe’s influence even without seeing him physically.