The 7th day of the Hebrew month of Cheshvan, is when the Jews in Israel begin "to pray for rain; fifteen days after the festival of Sukkot. In the times of the beit hamikdash during Sukkot, the entire Jewish people were in Jerusalem. By the seventh of Cheshvan, even the pilgrim who had the greatest distance to travel back home from Jerusalem had already returned home. It was then that the prayer for rain commenced, so that no one would be inconvenienced by the rain that was now being prayed for.
The delay of the prayers for rain until the last pilgrims reached their homes, is the concept of Jewish unity.
The Rebbe points out that despite the millions of acres of fields, orchards, and vineyards in need of these rains, the thousands of farmers passed up on their own desires, their livelihood – all until one Jew, the last one, finally returns home. The Rebbe teaches us a tremendous lesson. The fact that the Jewish People don’t ask for rain doesn’t mean that they’re all suffering just for the sake of one Jew who hasn’t come home yet. The benefit of that Jew is for my benefit! This is the true benefit of every Jew, passing up his own personal interests to the point that it becomes to his benefit that this Jew will return home without being inconvenienced by the rainfall.
The needs of another Jew are my needs!
The unity expressed by the seventh of Cheshvan relates to us as individuals.
Understandably that during the pilgrimage festivals, the essential unity of the Jewish people is expressed, however the 7th of cheshvan teaches us that Jewish unity remains even after each Jew returns to his own home and his individual lifestyle.
May we continue to work on Jewish unity in every way possible until the ultimate revelation of total Jewish unity and the unity of G-d and the entire world with the coming of Moshiach, NOW!
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