Hasids are called Jews, followers of Israel Besht, the creator of the religious mystical teaching in Judaism - Hasidism. There are usually many different rumors and misinterpretations around them.
Where did the Hasidim come from
Hasidism originated in the townships of Podillya, on the territory of modern Ukraine. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the Jewish community of the Rzecz Pospolita was recovering from the so-called Khmelnytsky region - the Cossack war of liberation, which was accompanied by numerous pogroms of the Jewish population, when a quarter of the entire community died at the hands of the Cossacks and the famine that followed the pogroms. At the same time, representatives of the Messianic Jewish movement Sabbatians fled to Podillia, named after the Kabbalist Shabtai Tzvi, who declared himself the messiah, but was then captured by the Istanbul Pasha and converted to Islam. This was the impetus for the birth of a new teaching. Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, better known as the Baal Shem Tov, aka Besht, is considered the founder of Hasidism. The teacher emphasized the personal experience of the deity and personal righteousness, hence the name - "Hasid", which means righteous. The new trend quickly spread among the Jews of the Commonwealth, but was met with hostility by representatives of Orthodox Judaism. The Hasidic teachings were almost secret, which served as the basis for various rumors, but today all information about the teachings can be easily found even on Wikipedia.
The chief rabbi of Russia today is a Hasidic rabbi. This is US citizen Berl Lazar, who represents the interests of the Jewish community in our country.
Hasidism split into many currents and developed consistently. It is by far the richest Jewish community in the world today. Its leader is the so-called Lubavitcher Rebbe, whose court is usually inherited.
The current state of the community
Most of the Hasidim live in the United States. They try to strictly and fanatically observe Jewish rituals, focusing on the rituals of the Besht times. In everyday life, Hasidim use a strict dress code, but each Hasidic group has its own special accessories, which can be used to determine their belonging. The most distinctive feature of the Hasidim is the shtreiml, a fur hat that they wear on Saturdays, even in the summer in Jerusalem, when the temperature rises to forty. On ordinary days, the Hasidim wear black hats from under which sideways always hang - never shaved hair on the temples. Ties are usually not worn by Hasidim because they resemble the shape of a cross. It is common among married Hasidic women to shave their heads and wear wigs.
Every year for the Jewish New Year, Hasidim from all over the world come to Uman to attend the grave of Rabbi Nachman. This Ukrainian small city then receives up to thirty thousand Hasidim, who traditionally celebrate the holiday vividly.
The number of children in a Hasidic family usually reaches six or eight. They usually speak the language of the country in which they live, to read prayers and the Torah, children in religious schools study Hebrew. Also important in the Hasidic community is the language spoken by Besht - Yiddish.