Eight poems never published before, in the handwriting of the great poet Zelda, the cousin of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, One of the most prolific and influential artists of recent generations. Five of them are from the 1940s, and the rest are probably later.
The early songs appear without titles, the later songs titles: “Motzaei Yom HaMenuchah”, “Loneliness”, and “Tevel”.
The poems reflect well the inner world of the poet with the deep and sublime soul. There is a song that was probably written during the Yamim HaNoraim:” “הבוקר יאיר חשכי / גורל לאומים יקבע / מי ל… ומי ל… / שכינה תומיך גורלי / יחדש בטובו רעננה / חיה יחידה”.
Likewise appears a sublime song that opens with words:”אור בוהק שגרה צולח” . Another song deals with the human spirit: “וכבוקר יאיר תקווה תבוא / אלי אנוש ימים יספור / להחיות עצמות, לדשן עפר / צלם אדם לבלי גבול”.
In one of the longer poems entitled “Tevel” – “World” and deals with creation, Zelda writes, among other things: “אוי תבל המסוימה / בינתיים קיומה על בלימה / יומה יבוא תפנה מקומה / אלי שלימה מושלמה / נפשי סדוקה, נפש בוהקת / רוח אותה להחיות קמה…”.
a poem entitled ‘Evening of the Day of Rest’, the poet describes her sublime feelings on the evening of Motzaei Shabbat. The song ‘Loneliness’ reflects sadness on the one hand and hope on the other. One of the early songs also expresses joy and sadness and opens with the words:”בצהרי היום ילדות נשחקת / אנה פנה אדם לחייך… שירת נעורייך איה היא…”, .
Another song surrounded by an apocalyptic atmosphere opens with lyrics: “אולי יבוא, אלי יבוא מבשר שברון רוח להחיות…”..
The eight songs appear here for the first time. They were never published above any stage, nor were they published in the poet’s poems which came into print.
The Poet Zelda (Sheina Zelda Schneerson-Mishkovsky 1914-1984): Born in the city of Yekaterinoslav in the Russian Empire to an important family of Chabad rebbe. Her father was a descendant of the “Tzemach Tzedek” Rebbe of Chabad, and the brother of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson, the father of the seventh and last Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. Zelda grew up in a Chabad court and over the years maintained close contact with her cousin. It is known about several letters that Zelda received from the Rebbe.
On May 17, 1925, when Zelda was 11, she immigrated to Eretz Israel with her family and settled in Jerusalem. According to her stories, her childhood years in Jerusalem were dismal. In Jerusalem she taught in the “Ruhama” and “Hevrat HaYeled” schools.
In 1950, she married Rabbi Chaim Aryeh Mishkovsky, the son of Rabbi Hezekiah Yosef Mishkovsky and the grandson of Rabbi Yitzchak Blazer (Rabbi Izaleh’), one of the leaders of the Mussar movement. He was a graduate of the Hebron Yeshiva, who worked as a clerk and accountant. The couple was childless. The two lived in Jerusalem, in a modest apartment in the Kerem Avraham neighborhood – in the old stone house, about which she wrote a number of poems. After a long illness, her husband died (on the 22nd of Nisan, 1970). In 1976, after the death of her husband, Zelda moved to “HaClir” Street, in the “Shaarey Chesed” neighborhood of the city.
She wrote her first poem when she was 8, still in Russia. In the early years after immigrating to Eretz Israel, Zelda’s poems began to be published little by little on various stages, such as in literary sections of newspapers in Israel. She used to recite songs from her memory to her guests. It was only when she was 53 years old, after 35 years of work – in 1967, that her first collection of poems, “Pnai” (published by Kibbutz Hameuchad) was published as a meteor, and immediately gained unprecedented public sympathy and interest, giving Zelda a status of honor among composers and lovers of Hebrew poetry. This collects poetry has been printed in 14 editions and thousands of copies. Then her song began to published one by one. In addition to the six poetry files that published during her lifetime, Zelda has published on various literary platforms. Zelda was characterized by openness to the wider world. Her home was open to lovers of Hebrew literature for generations, to young people who came to take an interest in her work, including many Religious as secular friends. Her home became Tel Talpiot not only for lovers of poetry, but also for many who came to enjoy from Ziv Hodah and her deep personality. She died in Jerusalem in 1984.
Singer Hava Alberstein sang some of Zelda’s songs, including “Everybody Has a Name” to the tune of Hanan Yuval and other songs composed by Shefi Yishai. Singer Shuli Natan composed and sang some of her songs, including “Black Rose”, “I Cried All Night” and “Don’t Throw Me Ahead”. The author Amos Oz admirably describes in his autobiographical book “A Tale of Love and Darkness” his relationship with Zelda, who was his elementary school teacher, Zelda greatly influenced him, and even sent him to visit his cousin Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson in New York. Many books and studies have been written about Zelda’s work, and interest in her character and poetry has intensified over the years. In 2014, a book of her poems and paintings was published called “Bird of Magic”, and an important documentary called “Zelda, a Simple Woman” (“The Hebrews” series, directed by Yair Kedar, 2015) see here
Eight poems in [8] written pages. The first five songs were written on notebook pages with lines: 20.5 cm, the three later songs smooth pages: 21 cm. Few stains. condition good – very good.
