The 20th of Av is the yahrzeit of Rabbi Levi Yitzchok Schneerson (known affectionately as "Reb Leivik"). The father of the Rebbe, he was a reknowned and brilliant scholar and kabbalist, and a fearless, devoted community leader.

It was just a few days before Passover, 1939. Thunderous knocking on the apartment door startled Reb Leivik and Rebbetzin Chana. Opening the door, Rebbetzin Chana's heart sank. Their four nocturnal visitors were none other than officers of the dreaded N.K.V.D. (forerunners of the K.G.B.).

One of the officers roughly shoved a search warrant into Reb Leivik's hands. For three hours they searched the entire house, looking for incriminating evidence against Reb Leivik. Finally, they ordered him to come with them.

For five long months, Rebbetzin Chana was frustrated in her attempts to discover the whereabouts of her husband. Then she was officially notified that he was in prison, and she could bring him a package every ten days.

Accused of continuing the "illegal" work of his relative the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok -- teaching Torah and maintaining yeshivas -- he was seen as an enemy of the State. Reb Leivik was exiled for five years to a small village in Eastern Asia, far from any Jews. Rebbetzin Chana was frantic. Her husband was elderly and weak. She petitioned the government, but to no avail. The sentence of exile would be carried out, but she would be allowed to meet with her husband before he left .

At their brief, pain-filled meeting, Reb Leivik asked his wife for her forgiveness for all the anguish and suffering she was enduring on his account.

When, a few weeks later, Rebbetzin Chana received a postcard from Reb Leivik informing her of his arrival in Kharkov, she bought a ticket to Kharkov to meet her husband there. When she arrived at the prison, she was greatly saddened by his appearance. In just a month, his health had deteriorated to the point where she barely recognized him. The next day, he was sent to Alma Ata and then on to Chi'li, a small town distinguished only by its absence of Jews and its miserable climate.

For the next two years, Reb Leivik lived alone, reporting to the N.K.V.D. every ten days. The long walk to the police station was exhausting and debilitating to Reb Leivik and took its toll. But his indomitable spirit was not broken by his terrible exile, and he took every opportunity to extend himself to any Jews with whom he came into contact.

Rebbetzin Chana joined her husband for the last three years of his exile. She cared for him physically and particularly spiritually, ingeniously preparing homemade ink so that he could record his brilliant and voluminous Torah insights on the margins of his precious books.

The years passed slowly and painfully. Finally, the five-year exile was almost over. With great anticipation, they looked forward to resettling in an area with a Jewish community and amenities, making life far more tolerable.

Then, a Jewish worker in the local N.K.V.D. office informed them that since Russia was at war, the government was going to forbid all former prisoners to leave their place of exile until peace was declared. How could they stay indefinitely, when they needed a daily battle of wits to survive?

Two of Reb Leivik's loyal supporters, Hershel and Mendel Rabinowitz proved a great help. They shouldered the responsibility of rescuing Reb Leivik from his predicament. In order to free him, they needed an official document stating that he had completed his term of exile; a statement of support from a relative; a courier to deliver these documents to Reb Leivik in Chi'li; permission from the district commander for Reb Leivik to leave the area; large sums of money to bribe the proper officials all down the line. All of this had to be done before the government in Chi'li received official word that exiles would be forbidden to leave.

Six weeks later, their tremendous efforts were rewarded and the necessary documents were obtained and delivered to Reb Leivik. Immediately after Passover, the Schneersons packed their few belongings and traveled secretly to Alma Ata where, for the first time in five years, Reb Leivik was able to share all his thoughts and accumulated knowledge with his fellow Jews.

But there were to be no tranquil years of teaching and study in his newly adopted city. His illness and years of deprivation took their toll, and he was confined to bed. Though he was ailing, the police continued their harassment.

The people of Alma Ata did all they could to make the ailing Rabbi comfortable. They sent for an expert doctor from Leningrad to examine the Rabbi, and obtained hard to find items, that usually only the very rich could afford. As the summer passed, Reb Leivik's condition worsened slowing.

On Wednesday morning, the 19th of Av, Reb Leivik's voice was inaudible, yet his lips moved incessantly. Towards evening, seeing that there were visitors sitting by his bedside, Rebbetzin Chana decided to take a short rest, to prepare for another long night ahead of her.

A half hour later, Rebbetzin Chana was awakened by her guests' sorrowful crying: Reb Leivik had passed on, and his neshama had found its eternal rest.

Hershel Rabinowitz later said that he bent over to listen to what Reb Leivik was saying and he heard "Your footsteps are not known," and "Oy! The footsteps of Moshiach!"

Excerpted from A Day to Recall, A Day to Remember by Rabbi S. Avtzon