What do you think?
Rate this book
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi: A Biography
Few luminaries in Jewish history, particularly in modern times, have made such a lasting and profound contribution to our spiritual heritage as Rabbi Shnuer Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812).
His works embrace the entire spectrum of Jewish thought - mysticism, philosophy, psychology, ethics and law - and represent an expression of unparalled creative genius.
This richly detailed biography traces Rabbi Schner Zalman's life from his childhood and formative years to his trials and triumph as a leader who revolutionized Jewish life. It reveals many hitherto unknown facts, and offers the reader considerable insight into his extraordinary strength of character.
Vilified by many of his contemporaries and arrested by the Czar, Rabbi Schneur Zalman emerged victorious; today his teachings continue to inspire and vitalize Jewish life all over the world.
His works embrace the entire spectrum of Jewish thought - mysticism, philosophy, psychology, ethics and law - and represent an expression of unparalled creative genius.
This richly detailed biography traces Rabbi Schner Zalman's life from his childhood and formative years to his trials and triumph as a leader who revolutionized Jewish life. It reveals many hitherto unknown facts, and offers the reader considerable insight into his extraordinary strength of character.
Vilified by many of his contemporaries and arrested by the Czar, Rabbi Schneur Zalman emerged victorious; today his teachings continue to inspire and vitalize Jewish life all over the world.
- GenresReligion
301 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1999
About the author
Nissan Mindel
96 books4 followersRABBI DR. NISSAN MINDEL was born in Riga, Latvia in 1912 and was educated in European yeshivos, among them the prestigious Torah V’Derech Eretz - of the Shamshon Rafael Hirsch tradition. He received his rabbinic ordination from noted Rabbonim in Manchester, England and served there as associate Rabbi in the Holy Law Congregation.
He studied law and economics at the University of Manchester in England, which he graduated with B.A. and M.A. and also received a degree in Semitic languages. In 1962 he earned a PHD in philosophy from Columbia University in New York, with his groundbreaking translation of the Tanya to English.
Dr. Mindel was associated with the Chabad Lubavitch movement from 1938-1999. During these very productive six decades he merited to serve the two Rabbeim – Sixth Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson and his successor and Seventh Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson – as personal secretary responsible for their correspondence in several languages, as their emissary on numerous missions and as prolific writer of Chassidic literature for young and old. He was also a founding member of the three pillers of Chabad - Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch, Machaneh Yisrael and Agudas Chassidei Chabad.
His writings have spanned the gamut from children’s magazines which he edited for forty seven years to Chabad philosophy for the serious scholar.
Dr. Mindel is perhaps best known for his translation of the Tanya kaddisha to English, an extraordinary achievement which opened the study of chassidus to the world at large. Another translation of his was the Memoirs of the Previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson. Among his many writings are included: monthly children’s magazines - Talks and Tales (English) and Shmuessen Mit Kinder (Yiddish), the Complete Story of Tishrei and the Festival Series, My Prayer, The Storyteller Series, Our People Series (history of the Jewish People), Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi – Biography & Philosophy of Chabad. His works have been translated to many languages and have enjoyed many printings and wide acclaim.
Dr. Mindel’s elegant and lucid writing on many vital topics of Jewish interest has earned him universal appeal and a respected place among the Jewish writers of the twentieth century.
He studied law and economics at the University of Manchester in England, which he graduated with B.A. and M.A. and also received a degree in Semitic languages. In 1962 he earned a PHD in philosophy from Columbia University in New York, with his groundbreaking translation of the Tanya to English.
Dr. Mindel was associated with the Chabad Lubavitch movement from 1938-1999. During these very productive six decades he merited to serve the two Rabbeim – Sixth Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson and his successor and Seventh Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson – as personal secretary responsible for their correspondence in several languages, as their emissary on numerous missions and as prolific writer of Chassidic literature for young and old. He was also a founding member of the three pillers of Chabad - Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch, Machaneh Yisrael and Agudas Chassidei Chabad.
His writings have spanned the gamut from children’s magazines which he edited for forty seven years to Chabad philosophy for the serious scholar.
Dr. Mindel is perhaps best known for his translation of the Tanya kaddisha to English, an extraordinary achievement which opened the study of chassidus to the world at large. Another translation of his was the Memoirs of the Previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson. Among his many writings are included: monthly children’s magazines - Talks and Tales (English) and Shmuessen Mit Kinder (Yiddish), the Complete Story of Tishrei and the Festival Series, My Prayer, The Storyteller Series, Our People Series (history of the Jewish People), Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi – Biography & Philosophy of Chabad. His works have been translated to many languages and have enjoyed many printings and wide acclaim.
Dr. Mindel’s elegant and lucid writing on many vital topics of Jewish interest has earned him universal appeal and a respected place among the Jewish writers of the twentieth century.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 21, 2026
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi: A Biography by Nissan Mindel. 1974.
Schneur Zalman of Liadi (1745–1812) was born in the Vitebsk Voivodeship of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, a region that would later be annexed by the Russian Empire during the First Partition of Poland.
He became a disciple of Rabbi Dov Ber of Mezeritch, the “Maggid of Mezeritch,” who succeeded the Baal Shem Tov and served as the central figure of early Hasidic leadership.
Rabbi Zalman would go on to compose the Shulchan Aruch HaRav, a systematic and highly influential restatement of halachic practice (Jewish law), as well as the Tanya, his seminal work of Hasidic philosophy. The Tanya articulates the intellectual and spiritual foundations of what would become the Chabad movement, presenting a structured psychology of the soul, the nature of divine service, and the path toward inner refinement.
He would later become known as the Alter Rebbe, the first of seven Chabad Rebbes and the founder of the Chabad–Lubavitch dynasty.
This biography of the Alter Rebbe was written by Nissan Mindel, a longtime Chabad rabbi and close aide to Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh Rebbe of the Chabad–Lubavitch movement.
Schneur Zalman of Liadi (1745–1812) was born in the Vitebsk Voivodeship of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, a region that would later be annexed by the Russian Empire during the First Partition of Poland.
He became a disciple of Rabbi Dov Ber of Mezeritch, the “Maggid of Mezeritch,” who succeeded the Baal Shem Tov and served as the central figure of early Hasidic leadership.
Rabbi Zalman would go on to compose the Shulchan Aruch HaRav, a systematic and highly influential restatement of halachic practice (Jewish law), as well as the Tanya, his seminal work of Hasidic philosophy. The Tanya articulates the intellectual and spiritual foundations of what would become the Chabad movement, presenting a structured psychology of the soul, the nature of divine service, and the path toward inner refinement.
He would later become known as the Alter Rebbe, the first of seven Chabad Rebbes and the founder of the Chabad–Lubavitch dynasty.
This biography of the Alter Rebbe was written by Nissan Mindel, a longtime Chabad rabbi and close aide to Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh Rebbe of the Chabad–Lubavitch movement.
February 8, 2017
This was a very good book. It demonstrated how deeply the Alter Rebbe cared about the Jewish people and the situations that he went through to keep the Chabad movement alive. I appreciate the author's use of the Alter Rebbe's letters. It allows the reader to see what was going on in his head. I would recommend reading this book first before reading "The Philosophy of Chabad" by Nissan Mindel. The biography will give the reader much needed background in order to make sense of "The Philosophy of Chabad"
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews