A vort from the Rebbe on this week's parasha, Parashat Vayigash. In Parashat Vayigash we learn that before Yaakov came down to Mitzrayim with his family, it says, ואת יהודה שלח לפניו אל יוסף להורות לפניו גשנה, that he sent Yehuda ahead to Yosef to Mitzrayim, להורות לפניו גשנה. להורות means to teach, to... but Rashi explains what it means. להורות לפניו, רש\"י says כתרגומו. The first pshat of Rashi is that this is like the Targum says, לפנות לו מקום, to make a place for him, ולהורות היך יתיישב בה, and to show, to teach, to guide how they should settle there. In other words, according to this pshat, he sent Yehuda to make all the preparations for Yaakov's coming to be able to settle properly, etc., etc. So the Rebbe asks, we have to understand, why did he have to send Yehuda to do this? Yosef was there. Yosef was from the leaders in Mitzrayim, he was the משנה למלך. Certainly he could have made sure that all the preparations should be done properly. Why did he have to send Yehuda before they came down?

And the Rebbe explains that the reason he sent Yehuda to Mitzrayim, cuz Yaakov wanted to show that when we're entering the galut, this was the beginning of גלות מצרים, he wanted to show that when we're entering the galut, in truth we are not going to become נתפעל from the galut. We're not going to become excited by the galut and be influenced by the galut. We have to start off our being in galut with a mindset that we have the גאון יעקב, we have the Jewish pride, and when it comes to our spiritual matters, we will not be affected by the galut at all. And that's why it wasn't enough the fact that Yosef was there. Yosef, as great as he was, he was still part of the government of Mitzrayim. He was the leader, he was the משנה למלך, but it was all given to him through Paro. And even after he became the משנה למלך, he was still under Pharaoh. Pharaoh said, רק הכסא אגדל ממך, the chair which means the true leadership, the true control is Pharaoh. And therefore, since Yosef is still under Pharaoh, if Yosef will make all the preparations, it doesn't really express the fact that when we're going to Mitzrayim we will be lechatchilah in such a way that we will not be affected by the Mitzrayim, which is the galus. And therefore, he sent davka Yehuda. Yehuda was the person that represented the strength of Yiddishkeit, because we see that in the beginning of the parashah it says that when there was a question of Binyamin staying in Mitzrayim, Yehuda was the one that spoke to Yosef very strongly and didn't care that he is the melech, because he showed that when it comes to things of being under the control of the galus and we should have a be affected by the galus and have a Jewish child be part of Mitzrayim, he went all the way strong. So he was a person who represents the strength of Yidden when it comes to ruchniyus, not allow the galus to take control, that was Yehuda. And therefore, he sent Yehuda lechatchilah to make the preparations, so the whole preparations, which everything follows the way you start off, he sent Yehuda to show that we are going into galus, that's the truth, that's what's going to happen, but in galus we will have this koach of overcoming the hardships of the galus.

And as the Frierdiker Rebbe said בשעת he was sent to galus Kostroma after he was released from prison and he was still sent to galus, to exile to Kostroma, on the train before he left he said that we should know that when it comes to inyanim ruchniyim, our neshamah things, we are not under the control of the galus. No one's going to control us when it comes to the רוחניות'דיקע matters. And the same thing here, he sent Yehuda ahead to start off the galus in a way that we're showing the koach and the גאון יעקב, the pride of Yiddishkeit, that that no galus will take control.