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Rebbe Nachman Krochmal (רנ”ק), known as, A Teacher for the Present Time, was born during the early days of the Jewish Enlightenment, in the city of Brody in Eastern Galicia, on 7 Adar 5545 (Feb. 17, 1785). His father, Avraham Krochmalnik, was a wealthy man in that city, a merchant who managed his affairs in Berlin and Leipzig. In Berlin, he saw Moshe ben Menachem (Mendelssohn) and David Friedlander, his pupil, yet Nachman educated his son in the way all boys were educated at that time in Galicia: he taught him the Talmud and the Poskim. The young man excelled in this study because of the great acuity of his mind. Nachman was naturally drawn to sublime and lofty things. When he became close to Dov Ginsberg, the first author of the Haskalah in Galicia who also lived in Brody, he too, was attracted to the Haskalah. When Nachman reached fourteen years of age, his parents married him off to a woman from the city of Zolkiew, close to Lvov. He moved to that city to live in the house of his father-in-law, where he studied in the school for Jews, which was founded by permission of the Austrian government. His teacher was Baruch Zvi Neu. Nachman read many books with a great and diligent focus and immersed himself in philosophy and Kabbalah. The people of his city did not appreciate his spirit, and so he hid his thoughts and feelings in his innermost soul. As he deepened his research, his body weakened. He was known to be sickly, and weak. The people of his city said that the Klipah had seized him, and that there was a bad spirit within him, which was why he read books from the outside world. Nevertheless, many of the young men of the city respected him.

He went to Lvov to study pharmacy, and found other young people whose souls were predisposed to knowledge. He had adherents and attentive friends among these young people, some of whom became well known afterwards, and who wrote important books. Among them was Shlomo Yehuda Rapaport (שי”ר),one of the founders of the new wisdom of Israel. But he also did not find listeners for the fundamental wisdom with which he engaged in philosophy, and so he returned to his city and his place, where he pondered his thoughts and strolled the park of wisdom, enjoying the crispness of the air.

When Nochman Krochmal was 31 years-old, an embargo was issued against new Maskilim, members of his people. The extremists used their power to find a way to besmirch the Krochmal name as well as his followers. They unjustly accused him of helping the Karaites by copying a letter that he had written to a Karaite sage, who lived in a village close to Zolkiew. Korchmal feared for his life at that time because he could

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not sit restfully in the shade of his wisdom, and he wrote a defensive letter to one of his close friends. This letter was published in Shulamit, in which there were also printed inappropriate things. Yet, his sagacity became known to many, even though he did not explicitly sign that printed letter.

During that time, Krochmal emerged from the confines of his room and began to deal in merchandise. In the course of years he also became one of the Parnassim as well as one of the heads of the community in Zolkiew. With it all he found time to set aside time to study Torah and general knowledge. He became aware of Hegel's new philosophy and plumbed its many depths and dark corners. He learned a great deal and also taught others. Young people gathered at his home and requested that he share his wisdom with them. This included exceptionally wise people from among his followers and students, who, in the meantime, became known and famous in the larger world. They came to him in Lvov from other cities and sat in his house for days and weeks. They ate his bread, drank his water, and engaged him in the study of Torah and wisdom. His method was to teach his students and to speak of Torah with his admirers and friends, while walking in the fields, towards evening. The city of Zolkiew had mountains and hills that surrounded it. From one of these hills, you could see swords in the hunting hall of the Polish king, Jan Sobieski, who selected this city as a summer place to live. Legend has it that while standing on this hill and looking out over the surrounding land, Sobieski called out: ‘Ho Re'i!’ (This is a Garden of Eden!). It was in this place of the fierce king, that the Jewish philosopher stood. His words about the existing world asserted that everything that we saw in front of us could be flipped over and passed; there was no eternal existence. Only the spirit and thought are eternal. The sages who related the tales of these walks did not stint in praising and elevating this wondrous pleasure.

Krochmal did not publicize anything further from the results of his deep research, apparently not even writing it down in a book. Apart from being occupied with his business affairs, leading the community, and his physical frailty which greatly restrained him, he also refrained from writing for internal reasons. He had carried out formidable and comprehensive research for all of his life. He believed that he was not yet ready to write because he was still missing additional knowledge and fundamental and systematic training. His students and friends attempted to persuade him to write down his thoughts on paper, but to no avail. Even after the first of the Jewish Maskilim, who came from the Bet HaMedrash of Ben-Menachem, the Sage, Mendel Lapin, who was seventy years old at that time turned to him, and in way of a traditional criticism said: ‘What good does it do us, if the sun in its splendor does not spread its rays? What have the prophets of God and his holy men added, in whom the spirit of God is evident? Would it not be better for them to circulate to those of small spirit? What if they circulated in the marketplace and streets, and called out unceasingly: come close my sons, return, hear the words of the ever-living God! How did those righteous strive and all this wisdom trying to open the unhearing ear? And you, for whom it was made easy to enlighten your people from your bedroom, if you would only seize the writer's pen, and you will not gather in your hands? Lift up your eyes and see. There, tall mountains will split open in order that fountains of that which may revive the soul will pour out their contents. Here, the ground will open a countless number of orifices to produce bread for satiation; there fruit trees will give of their fruit, and they will be savory to

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humankind; here a rose will flourish and will be strong enough to emerge in its complete beauty, to please the eye of the passerby and they will inhale the pleasant aroma. Is a man to do this only for the sake of his own soul?’

All these words of encouragement did not encourage him to write. When Krochmal neared the age of fifty, and saw that the days of his old age continued to draw closer, at that time, he approached the task of putting his thoughts down in writing. He decided to produce a comprehensive and complete book in which he would show the way to the perplexed of his time. As an example to aid him, he had the Rambam's book A Guide to the Perplexed. Like the Rambam, he also wished to show the way for those who were confused to become an adherent of faith, as the title of his book suggested.

Krochmal saw that those who were perplexed in his time had lost the proper form of faith. People see true faith in that which they are used to seeing since childhood, so whoever denies their childhood faith, denies faith itself. Those who adhere to faith want to find support and a base for all childhood faiths, work at this for no good purpose and no use. The means by which to save people from this perplexity is through pure faith, a faith that also contains a form of reason.

In the opening chapters of his book, he states that faith and reason are close to one another in their roots; there cannot be faith without reason. Man is enlightened in his nature, and even if he doesn't sense it, he deals with intellectual quandaries and the results of these thoughts, all day. This is how he grasps things. This is also true of the believer who does not want to question anything, to delve into faith, explain, and ask questions. There is no difference between the simple believer and a knowledgeable person except for this. Namely, that the believer does things without understanding and without recognition, and therefore doesn't do it completely. In contrast, the knowledgeable man yearns for completion, yearns to know things with a clear knowledge, and to recognize them with a clear recognition. The believer must also be a Maskil, to be able to enlighten his beliefs and reach pure faith.

Understanding and research are the natural province of mankind, and for this reason, all the books of faith, and laws are full of them. The Early Sages set up generalities and means to be used in explaining what is written and the ways in which laws were promulgated. Through this, they devised general rules regarding what is forbidden and what is permitted. All of this demonstrates the extent to which they engaged in researching issues, the thin separation between them, and the speculations and things they thought about. And it was not only the Sages and the educated who engaged in this, but also the entire mass of believers. In the Mishna, Gemara and Medrash we find several sayings one can recognize; they are ordinary things from the mouths of many. These myriad sayings show how, through seeking answers, one should not shy away from the task of seeking answers to intelligent or metaphysical questions. Man is after all a Maskil by nature, full of inner perplexities that continue and grow with time. And what shall a man do, and where shall he flee to escape this perplexity that resides permanently in his heart?

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There is no advice for handling this, other than deep study, to grasp the inner issues and to clarify them in this way. The believers feel that there is only one truth. The researchers continue their search for where to find it. There is no other remedy other than to uncover it.

Krochmal demonstrates in the sixth chapter of his book that religious faith is not material, it is spiritual. There is nothing in faith to realize it physically as a tangible entity. Religious people believe that it can only be conceptualized and intellectualized. The Jewish faith accepts that it is forbidden to invoke a tangible symbol of the Deity. There is nothing in the world that can be portrayed as a symbol of the Deity. The basis for this faith is that the spirit who created all physical reality, and physical objects, have no meaning without it. All of the physical entities are lost and cease to exist over time, and only the spirit remains forever. Thus, faith stands entirely on a lofty idea, completely spiritual, which is the concept of the understanding from above. Many generations overlooked the obvious principle, that the foundation of this faith is the belief in a heavenly force of understanding, and every believing Jew accepts this lofty principle of understanding.

It is this aspect of faith that stands apart from all other faiths. Its permanence is a matter that Krochmal deals with in the seventh chapter, called, The Nations and Their Gods. Krochmal bases the fact that Israel is eternal on this foundation. Israel is eternal, because of its spirituality. The nation of Israel believes that its spirituality is eternal without the support of an embodiment, physical form, or boundary. The purpose of a people's preservation and foundation of its ongoing existence is established in its clarification of some aspect of the spiritual world. For example, the Greeks exhibited the spirit of splendor. With this facet already uncovered and revealed, there is no further purpose for the sustenance of this reality by the people of its culture. It has no foundation, and its reality dissipates and vanishes in the cosmos. But this does not apply to the people of Israel. The people of Israel scan for, and illuminate, all of the spirituality that is in the entirety of the world, the decided spirituality in which it believes. It is as eternal as its Creator is eternal. It is endless, just like there is no end to its God.

This fact is revealed by Krochmal in the remaining three chapters of his history book. There are three eras, or periods, that Krochmal identifies for every nation. The first is the period of flowering and growth of the nation. The second period is that of strength and action, and the third is the period of paralysis and destruction. The order of these periods is the nature of all peoples. Because it is natural to all, it is natural to us as well. However, when we reach the final period, the period of paralysis and destruction, we always go back to the beginning. We return to a new growth, and once again these three eras renew themselves, and it goes on endlessly. Krochmal saw the first period of growth and expansion for the Jewish people begin with Abraham to Moses. At the end of this time, the people attained the awareness of Divinity, standing at Mount Sinai. When Israel entered The Land, the second period of strength and implementation began, which continued to the end of the reign of King Solomon. Israel unified during this time to become one nation, and the Children of Israel were bound by the monarchy. After the death of King Solomon, the period of paralysis set

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in. The kingdom was divided into two groups of tribes. This schism resulted in the worship of alien Gods. There was conflict in the nation and the murder of leadership, especially in the kingdom of Ephraim. This deterioration continued until the destruction of the first temple and the murder of Gedalyahu ben Akhikam. It appeared at that time that there was nothing to hope for. Yet, after the terrifying dispersion of that time, another union would come together and there would be a resuscitation after the bones of the people were scattered in the valley. A spirit came into the hearts of the scattered ones, and those who were marginalized, and one bone drew near to another. This was a growth for the second time, which differed from the first growth period, in that it had a spiritual foundation. The lives of the people were no longer dependent on the land in the same way they depended on it in the earlier days of the First Temple. The tie, from now on, is made mostly of spirit. ‘Not by an army and not with force, but with my spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts.’

For the second time, the period of flowering and growth came to a conclusion with the conquest of the lands by Alexander the Great. Then the period of strength and implementation began again. There was a rising and maturation of our people. The roots of this rising were in The Land, and its branches spread out across all the kingdoms and cities that had been captured by Alexander. In those days there were men in the Great Knesset who completed the great spiritual work of Ezra the Scribe. It was during this period that the Hasmoneans arose, whose national victory was also a spiritual victory. This period continued up to the time of the death of Alexandra, the wife of Alexander Jannaeus the son of Hyrcanus. From that time on, for the second time, the period of paralysis and destruction began. It began with the dispute between Hyrcanus and Aristobulus, and continued until the capture of BETA”R and the killing of Rabbi Akiva. After this came yet another repetition of the three periods. The period of flowering and growth began again during the time of Rabbi Yehuda Nasi^[3]. The period of strength and implementation began again with the Arab Enlightenment that spread throughout the world. At that time great Gaonim stood up in Israel, writers, sages and poets, and this time continued to the time of the death of the Ramba”m and Ramba”n. From that time on, the deterioration set in again, and continued to the year 400 of the sixth century.

Krochmal offers a philosophical foundation and historical critique in the remaining chapters of his book, and a critique of the pure and religious tradition. There are only a few chapters, but what he wrote covers a great deal. The final chapter completely covers the founding of the Halakhah, the Oral Torah, which is the core of the religious tradition. Even after explanations of the bible stories in the Torah that we read, Krochmal continued his research in the tradition of the Oral Torah. He did the same for the Kabbalah, and other esoteric pathways through Judaism. Krochmal dedicated a long chapter in his final book to one of the great sages of the middle ages, Avraham Ibn-Ezra, whose writing style utilized inference and esoterica. He called this book, Poor Knowledge.

Krochmal's style is sharp, sublime and lofty, full of symbolism and thought-provoking poetry. In it one can find many entries from the foundations of the Hebrew philosophical style of the Middle Ages. But it also contains many expressions and sayings of Hebrew esoterica

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and from the Kabbalah. Just like the Kabbalah, his writing contains much in the way of inference and esoteric content. Using all of his sharp intelligence, Krochmal draws out deeply concealed meaning from the world of faith and belief.

Krochmal influenced all of the researchers and thinkers in Hebrew literature from his time to the present. During the romantic era, Krochmal's ideas and thoughts were absorbed into our literature. His concepts regarding the eternal character of Israel were planted into a different, broader, soil. The concept of a ‘world nation,’ and ‘a nation of spirit’ were the products of the seeds of thought that Krochmal planted. His outlook on Jewish history served as the foundation for great Jewish historians. The chapter that he wrote about the foundation of the Halakhah was the basis for many great books that were written afterwards, regarding the evolution of the Halakhah and the Oral Torah. And it was in this way, that this esoteric sage became a great teacher like Moreh Nevukhim^[4] in its hour.

The ‘HaShomer HaTza'ir’ branch – 1927

1. Author's Footnote: From the folio of F. Lakhover regarding ‘A Teacher for the Present Time.’ Return
2. In both the prior and forward text, this name is often abbreviated by the Hebrew acronym, רנ”ק Return
3. A Hebrew word used to title a senior individual. It would be used to enlarge the definition of a President. Return
4. The Hebrew name for ‘A Guide to the Perplexed’ written by Maimonides. Return

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The writer of the letter is R' Zvi Hirsch Khayot, who was born in 1805 and died in 1855. He was one of the few who were privileged to have two bases in his life: that of Torah and wisdom. He was a famous Rabbi who wrote responses to the Rabbis of Israel in matters of Halakhah and the Law. His new thoughts in matters of Halakhah were published many years after his death in the pages of the Vilna Shas. With this, he was among those who laid the foundation of the wisdom of Israel, and to a scientific analysis of the origins of our literature. He was a known comrade of R' Nachman Krochmal. In the aftermath of the events of 1848 and the dispute between the strictly religious and the Maskilim in Galicia, he went for the gold. He distanced himself from the extremists on both sides and drew closer to the moderate Maskilim. The recipient of the letter, R' Chaim Nathan Dembitzer, born in 1821 and died in 1893, came from the same roots. He was a Dayan in the crown city of Cracow, and because of this, was one of the first historians of the Polish Diaspora. His book, General Beauty, was a cornerstone of the chronology of the Jews in Poland. The letter is also a witness of the affection between two Jewish Sages in a generation not-so-far removed from our own.

With God's Help, Thursday, the Parsha of Shemini 5608 as counted here in Zolkiew:

With respect to my friend and a surfeit of affection for my selected one, my soul wanted the sharp-minded and fluent Rabbi, the complete wise man, famous for such books as his Responsa, Our Teacher Chaim Nathan Dembitzer, may his candle burn brightly, in the holy congregation of Cracow יע”א.

The clarity of his valuable reply to me in connection with the second discussion with R' Yehoshua ben Hananiah reached me when I was in the capital city of Vienna. After spending eight days of the Sabbath here, I saw and understood that the discussions were clear and worthy of publication for the larger world. But right now, I am very busy, and therefore I do not have the time to put down in writing what is worth discussing. Should I have free time, I hope they will become visible in print, as I notified him of this several times.

And now in the capital city of Vienna, I saw the Rabbi and Complete Sage Our Teacher and Rabbi Yitzhak Meziesz the Kohen, may his candle shed light from his city. He had visited with me several times, and I was happy, because he was a wise and understanding man, and one of the adherents of the רו”מ. I sent greetings to the רו”מ, and a wish for grace regarding the book, Responsa, by our Rabbi Yehuda ben הקר”ש that was printed anew in Berlin, and that the רו”מ sent to me as a gift. And so, on my way, I ran into the leader, R' Pinchas Leipzig from his city, and I asked him about the well-being of the רו”מ, and he told me many good things about him. I asked him to convey peacefully and completely, his Torah, and this he indeed told me that he was taking along a book to Jerusalem ח”ג as a gift from our friend, the Sage Our Teacher and Rabbi Yaakov Bodek of Lvov, may his candle burn brightly.

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And I have now come to the details in this letter, to give the רו”מ a thanks and an aspiration for grace regarding an account that he sent me about the events that took place in his city, because I heard different stories. Yesterday, I was called before the Great Lord, the Kreis Hauptman, to appear before him, where I translated the story of the event written in Hebrew, to German, in front of him, and it found favor in his eyes.

I spoke before an assembly of the people and their elders today, in the Great Synagogue located here, to honor the new decree, a constitution that gave permission to the Kaiser to appoint. I spoke as words came to my mind, as was always my custom to speak of an issue while it was current, regarding the lecture from The Song of Songs, ending with the thought, ‘let us celebrate and be happy with you’, to which R' Avun said we do not know what to be happy about. Is it the day, or is it the Holy One blessed be He? Solomon came and explained that ‘let us celebrate and be happy with you’, the ‘you’ signifies your Torah, in awe of you.

The meaning here is that we truly have to give thanks because many issues of this generation have improved over what they had been before. Every day wisdom steps upward, especially as it touches upon the wisdom of the country and the behavior of the people. Wisdom has finally reached the level in which all the nations who are enemies to our well-being are asking the Kaiser, may his glory rise, to improve our situation, to shed the yoke of exile from around our throats, and to prepare us for all of the rights granted to the rest of the nations. Let us no longer hear about differences or separations as to that which affects the condition of the country regarding ourselves and other nations.

Even if you wanted to, you could not deny that time wrought its own, on the 27^th. Only the Hand of God did this, and if his oversight was missing, may His name be blessed, it would not be believed that strange and wondrous changes like these would occur without much bloodshed. The French began to tear down their kingdom fifty years ago and removed the Bourbons from their seats of power. We saw that they filled the city of Paris and the entire country of France with innocent blood from one end to the other. Robespierre, Danton, and Marat killed more than four-hundred-thousand people, but not so now. Only a small number were killed, and because of this every man will come to his place in peace. And in Germany as in Bayern, Saxony, and also in the countries of the Kaiser, there was not a croak of a bird call to be heard. The Kaiser, may his glory be elevated, personally gave his people a gift, that twenty years ago he would not have been willing to do. It is none other than the Hand of God that did this.

Waves of water and a king's heart are in God's hands. God will punish whoever He wants. We have only the Holy One Blessed be He, to thank. He calls out the generations from the outset, and he can change the will of kings, by whispering in their hearts to improve our situation. We don't know what we should rejoice about. We have taken a big step upwards, and we can define the reasons for issues that dismay us now, in our time. Or, shall we turn to a simple oversight. That is why Solomon came and explained, ‘let us rejoice and be happy in you,’ meaning the Holy One Blessed be He. If it is necessary for us to offer thanks and praise for everything good, and he inspired the heart of the Kaiser, may his glory be elevated to oversee his people. Up until now, the Kaiser was surrounded by bad advisors who did not permit him to be driven by the needs of his people at a time when they put their trust in him to improve their fate. The advisors sidelined him from ruling through the justice of his throne. This is the key to the written word, thought slag rather than silver, which created nothing. After the purification, the entire issue emerged complete, finished in its magnificence. Similarly, if they saw evil before the king, that if they removed a man like this from the throne, it would return justice to his seat.

I extended my comments regarding the remaining issues touching on this, and the leaders of the community want to make it permanent by printing it in German. If, God willing, it will be written in German there is no point in making it any longer. I am sending an orally created summary to the רו”מ by way of diligence, two examples in the introduction to the Talmud with guidance material to decipher it. And let his heart rest easy that in the coming days, God willing, I will look into the issues of his affectionate words. Because of the obligations of diligence, and my own business with work, because there is much to shorten, I need his friends to exercise patience, with intense affection.

Here is the pamphlet written in opposition to the reformer that I compiled three years ago, and sent to the רו”מ in the midst of our wondrous friendship, he being sharp-minded and well-versed, Our Teacher and Rabbi Meir Leib Laubwohl, may his candle burn brightly, from his city. There is no doubt that this has already arrived in his hands. I said that the רומכ”ת, the very sharp wondrous Sage R' Yitzhak HaKohen Meizesz of Cracow, may his candle shine brightly, this pamphlet will convey what is needed instead of a detailed analysis. After the analysis of the conclusion I will know whether to publish it externally or to confine it to my bosom. If you did see something in the summary, it is not complete, because with study about laws of Halakhah, it continues to be hidden under my hand. Despite all this, the awe of the Sage and רומכ”ת, how can I know the conclusion without the beginning? Immediately after the synod at Frankfurt am Main, I felt as if I was prophesying in this pamphlet, because it is possible that the synod in Breslau will complete this before it comes to my hands. After this, there will truly no longer be any support for transgressors to call for another synod as it was the case that these sins were dissipated at their core, and there is no need to gather them in one place. With this, I look forward to your early return, my eternal friend.

Translator's footnotes

1. Published in ‘Davar’ Page 3927, 20 Nissan 5598, 22.4.1938 Return

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Here I will relate an excerpt of the Elder Gaon R' Joseph Juzpa, the father-in-law of our grandfather, the Great Rabbi R' Moshe, son of our Elder, the Gaon R' Mordechai Mardusz ז”ל.

Our Elder, the formidable Gaon R' Joseph Juzpa, son of Rabbi Shmuel HaLevi, was not only sharp, he was profound. There were none like him in the country in his entire generation. He would plumb the depths of the Halakha, and knew how to clarify and make visible all the sayings of the ז”ל^[3], as if it were a pure sheaf, and to expound upon everything esoteric in clear language. For this reason, people came from far and wide to ask for Torah from his lips, until he developed a large following. Almost all of the Sages of his generation were his students.

Two books have come to our hands that were authored by this same Gaon. One is a book of new thinking on the three first chapters in the Tractate BaBa Metzia^[4] and one book on ‘Yoreh Deyah’ Part I. These books represent remnants of his many innovative interpretations on the entire Shas, which, over time, were lost to the world, or alien hands controlled them when my father left his home in Zolkiew and went to the Holy Congregation in Brod.

He prepared a substantial volume about the tractate Yevamot^[5] while in Brod, and called it, The Commentary on Yevama. The sages of Brod offered their praise to him for this book. They did not omit a word of praise or leave any out. And even he lost a book given to his son, our uncle the Gaon R' Nathan Zvi HaLevi who was the Bet-Din Senior of the Holy Congregation of Torczyn, and afterwards the Bet-Din Senior of Ravi, which suddenly caught fire. The entire city burned down, taking this very book along with it, with the writings of this very same Gaon.

From this time forward, our Elder ceased to commit his innovations to writing because it seemed to him that his efforts were, God forbid, not wanted. In general, his precious students are recalled, and in their dreams of him and his Lore, they wrote it down in a book. In its midst, was a complete compilation on the Tractate of Niddah^[6]. And even with this, we did not know where he was.

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For all the years that our Elder was domiciled at the Holy Congregation in Brod, the people of Zolkiew longed for him. They would recall those days when their Rabbi dwelt amongst them and sat in the Yeshiva wrapped in a prayer shawl, wearing phylacteries, and studying interesting lessons in the Talmud, in the Poskim Rishonim and Akharonim. He studied with the young men for whom he held in affection, who came from near and far to request Torah from his mouth after they had already made a name for themselves with their sharp minds and fluency. (See the Memorial in the Book of R' Meir HaLevi Latriss). When the élite of the city gathered to seek counsel regarding the issues of their city, they would try to persuade their Rabbi, the Gaon, to get him to return to their city, and to restore the diadem to their heads.

Finally, all the leaders of the city, Rabbis, leasers, Parnassim, and directors, came to a meeting in the large transfer hall near the courtyard of the synagogue. It was agreed by a unanimous vote, along with a number of Torah-literate balebatim, to travel to him at the Holy Congregation of Brod and to engage him in a dialogue. They chose three prominent men who took on this task. They traveled to him, and they engaged him until he conceded and returned to Zolkiew because of the affection he had for his birthplace. They made him a large Yeshiva and once again, people came from all over the country to seek Torah from his mouth. He did not withhold the fruits of his thinking, to sharpen the hearts of his students. And at their head were two precious students, each as good as the other: the wondrous Rabbis, sharp-minded and fluent, God-fearing and complete, the Rabbi ר”ש of Lvov and Our Teacher the Rabbi the son of the Rabbi of Uhniv. It was these men who strengthened his hand to leave some remnant of the novelties he created so that his name would not be forgotten, God forbid, in this world. And, that his lips would continue to speak in the world to come, as R' Yokhanan said in the chapter of HaIsha Rabba (Tractate Yevamot 97 side 1), for every sage from whose mouth is heard something in this world, his lips speak in the grave. And indeed, it was these very two precious students who assumed the yoke of searching, and they collected the innovations he had made on the three first chapters of BaBa Metzia, as well as his innovations in Halakhah to Tosafot among the dispersed parts of the Shas, and compiled them in one volume. And our Elder made signs in the style of the alphabet, keys upon keys. And whoever looks in this book sees that it is all true faithful to the truth of the Torah.

And out of his joy for putting together this book, our Elder the Gaon זצ”ל composed a poem of thanks: ‘to my creator I will prostrate myself and bow my head, that he helped me to finish the chapter of HaMakid, and so may he be remembered and remembered eternally for good, for I should be diligent in his Torah, and for the sake of the binder and the bound, let us be privileged to see the coming of The Shepherd and the Bound One.’

And our Elder the Gaon R' Joseph Juzpa lived to a ripe old age, and passed away among the congregation of his people, the congregation of Zolkiew, and he lies resting there in honor.

The frontispiece of the book, ‘Yad Joseph’ printed in August 26, 1838

1. Writer's footnote: From the Author's Book ‘It is My View,’ published by Shukan, Jerusalem, 5712. Return
2. Translator's footnote: Shai Agnon, an abbreviation for Shmuel Joseph Agnon, is one of the most prominent Israeli writers of the 20^th century. Return
3. The Hebrew acronym for ‘Our Sages, of Blessed Memory.’ Return
4. A center subsection of the Talmud dealing with the Law of Torts. Return
5. A subsection of the Talmud dealing with aspects of marriage and remarriage. Return
6. A Talmud tractate dealing with ritual purity and impurity during menstruation. Return

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On Sunday, 22 Tevet 5587, the instruments of the war were lost, and the fountains of wisdom were stopped. Joseph is the breaker for everyone of God's people conducting the war of Torah. His name went out to the entire land, to the world's great people who are like children on his knees. Joseph, old and sitting in the Yeshiva, a Tzaddik and a modest man. Who can be a teacher like him? Here, a pinpoint of jewelry sits and expounds and unites in the Torah. It is to him that the unknowing of the land turns. He is the spirit of God, very awesome, the ADMo”R, the Rabbi the distinguished Gaon, the Rabbi of the children of the Diaspora, the wonder of his generation, a lit candle of Israel, the right-hand pillar, and the stout hammer. How famous is he, our Teacher Rabbi Joseph Juzpa זצ”ל. His soul left the depths of the Halakhah in holiness and purity.

I will append a story to this, told to me by the excellent Rabbi R' Shimon Efrati, who was the Bet-Din Senior of the Holy Congregation of Bandar. Today he spreads Torah in Jerusalem, which he heard from the mouth of the Rabbi R' Joseph Kluger, a Teacher of Justice from Boiberik, a distinctive student of the Gaon R' Joseph Shaul Nathan Zuhn ז”ל. On one occasion this same Gaon sat and studied the laws of unclean meat in Yoreh Deyah with his students. When he reached a sign of a small letter aleph, he wanted to look there for the words of the ט”ז^[1] that were difficult to interpret. A student said to him, ‘I saw in the book, The Hand of Joseph, by the Gaon R' Joseph Juzpa of Zolkiew, a correct explanation without the need for proofreading.’ And R' Joseph Shaul did not want to look there, as he did not read the books of the Gaonim of his generation or of the Gaonim of the generation before them. For he concurs with most of the books that were printed during his time, which even include observations and explanations of his own. But when they brought a book to him for his agreement, he would open it and start to discover innovations the author added to his book of the Gaon, in order to improve on the author's piece.

The student asked his Rabbi to look in the book. They picked up the book and read it. Finally, he stood up and said: ‘With your permission, I wish to make up a Bet-Din before you and I beg for mercy from this very Gaon.’ Additionally, R' Shimon Efrati told me, in the name of R' Joseph Kluger who asked R' Joseph Shaul to compile a book on BaBa Metzia, as an example of a the ‘river’ of the Talmud regarding BaBa Kama to his uncle, the Gaon R' Heschel Orenstein. After this occurrence, R' Joseph Shaul did not move until he read the rest of the innovations of R' Joseph Juzpa. After he had finished the entire book, The Hand of Joseph, concerning BaBa Metzia, he said that I cannot create a book on BaBa Metzia more satisfying than this.

Translator's footnotes

1. David ha-Levi Segal ©. 1586 – 20 February 1667), also known as the Turei Zahav (abbreviated Taz (y”z) after the title of his significant halakhic commentary on the Shulkhan Arukh, was one of the greatest Polish rabbinical authorities. Return

[Page 267]

On 4 Poltovna Street, in the Jewish quarter in Lvov behind the Khadashim^[2] Synagogue, the sound of singing and dancing of Hasidim was heard in the middle of the day. They were dancing and singing with intense fervor to songs of praise from the Psalms. This was the Bet HaMedrash of R' Itzik'l Zolkiewer, called the Kloyz of Chabad-Breslau.

Jews who crossed the boundary between Russia and Galicia, and went to prostrate themselves on the grave of R' Nachman of Breslau in Uman,^[3] made their first stop in Lvov. They lodged at the home of R' Itzik'l Zolkiewer. They prepared to travel to Uman from his house, and then return. There were practically no Lubavitch Hasidim or Hasidim from Breslau apart from a solitary few. Therefore, their entrance into the Bet HaMedrash of R' Itzik'l Zolkiewer was a special and unique event.

R' Yitzhak, called R' Itzik'l Zolkiewer, was a wondrous man, an activist and brimming with thoughts. He was fluent in the revealed and esoteric lore. He was born in 1840 in the city of Zolkiew, into a family of sages who claim a relationship to the family of the Baal Shem Tov. His trajectory of study is not known. In his youth, he crossed the Russian border and traveled to Kopys. In the course of three years he learned Torah and Hasidism from the author of Tzemakh Tzedek, the ADMo”R R' Mendl of Lubavitch, and excelled in Torah as one of his most beloved of students. As a sign of affection, the Tzemakh Tzedek gave him a present of several handwritten copies of his books, and many other books. R' Itzik'l returned home with the written manuscripts and books, which he had to bring over the Russian border, an act that involved difficulty and literally a danger to his life.

R' Itzik'l was committed to studying Torah and doing religious work. He refined for himself, and those who drew near to him, the saying: This world is nothing more than a corridor to the World to Come, therefore, each individual is responsible to think about his deeds, and to improve himself in order to enter that corridor.

[Page 268]

He would deliver a sermon each Sabbath, on Festivals, and other occasions to celebrate a mitzvah in his Bet HaMedrash. On the Yahrzeits of ADMo”Rim and of Chabad, he would expound and speak from the Tanya,^[4] Hasidism, and Chabad, and focused on the relationship of one person to another. He helped every person, whether they were Haredi or freethinking, gentile or Jew, rich or poor. He never looked into the face of a woman, even the faces of his granddaughters, but he did also help women. Once he was walking in the street, and suddenly from the crowd, a woman loaded down with baskets fell on the ice, so he immediately went to her, and gave her assistance.

During his youth, when he was in Zolkiew, he made the acquaintance of R' Nathan, the student of R' Nachman, and one who disseminated his Torah. He had come to Zolkiew to print Likutei Halakhot and Yoreh Deyah, with the commentary of the MaHaR”aN, and while in Zolkiew, he made the acquaintance of the Breslau Hasid R' Israel Halpern of Tarnopol. He resided in Lvov for a long time, and printed the books of R' Nachman of Breslau. He was one of those who came to R' Itzik'l's house, befriended him, and transformed into an ardent admirer of Chabad lore. He died in Lvov on 8 Adar 5686 (February 22, 1926). With his passing, the dignity of the Kloyz disappeared, and the voices and songs of those who were traveling to Uman were silenced.

In his will, R' Itzik'l wrote that his books and handwritten manuscripts were to be given over to the central library of the Lubavitch Yeshiva in Warsaw, and to take counsel with the élite of the Hasidim, as to whether his writings were worthy of being printed. If they concurred, they were to print his writings, and in this way, the handwritten work of the Tzemakh Tzedek ז”ל was turned over ז”ל to the Lubavitch Rabbi, who was the heir to them. The Lubavitch Rabbi did not have the privilege to see these books printed. It appears that there was nobody to engage to carry out this work. Because of this, his books were lost, together with the library of the Yeshiva in the Second World War.

He had a strong intent to make aliyah to the Land of Israel. He was sorry for his entire life that he did not have the means to travel to the Holy Land. In 1918, he made preparations to travel to the Land of Israel, but did not succeed in doing so.

Translator's footnotes

1. Z. Zohar's list is inside the volume ‘Lvov’ published by the ‘Encyclopedia of the Diaspora’ 5117, 1956. Return
2. Hebrew for ‘the newcomers.’ Return
3. This custom continues to this very day. Return
4. The Tanya is an early work of Hasidic philosophy, by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the founder of Chabad Hasidism, first published in 1796. Return

[Page 269]

Rebbe Yitzhak Isaac of Zolkiew passed away in the year 5497 (1737). He was both a Gaon and versed in the Kabbalah , and both a friend and comrade of the Gaon Baal Tevuot Schur. Even though Rebbe Yitzhak was younger than him by a few years, his hand did not move from under his, and his soul was bound up to the soul of Tevuot Schur. The two Gaonim worked together on giving religious direction, and they were united by a strong affection for each other.

Rebbe Avraham Benjamin Kluger of Brody, the grandson of Rebbe Yitzhak Isaac, tells of the greatness of their affection and bonds of friendship that united them: ‘On one occasion, the Tevuot Schur became ill, and his doctors advised him to go to a tranquil place for rest, and to breathe in some pure and clean air. Rebbe Yitzhak Isaac also fell ill at this time, and each one did not know of the illness of the other. Rebbe Yitzhak's health deteriorated, and as an outgrowth of a variety of factors, he died while still a young man, a half year before the passing of the author of Tevuot Schur.’

His sudden demise aroused a heavy burden of mourning in all Jewish cities, since he was among the Great Ones of his generation, and his reputation preceded him as a teacher of religious direction in Jewry. It is understood that they concealed the death from the Tevuot Schur, who frequently asked questions about his friend's condition. He always received an avoiding answer in reply, so that he should not feel anything. A number of days before his passing, the heads of the city came to visit him. When they arrived he suddenly asked: ‘Is Rebbe Yitzhak still alive?’ They answered him ‘Yes.’

He heard their answer and the Tevuot Schur grew angry, and he said: ‘This time I know you are lying to me.’ Rebbe Yitzhak stands here beside me, and asks of me that I be buried beside him. The community heads were astonished, and each man wondered to his neighbor, but they did not reply.

After his death, the members of the Hevra Kadisha went to seek a grave site for their great Rabbi beside the grave of Rebbe Yitzhak Isaac, but because of the crowding of the place they did not see any possibility to implement the order of their Rabbi. But the leader of the Hevra did not give up. He took the shovel in his hand, and approached the grave of Rebbe Yitzhak Isaac to dig a grave near his, and behold, it is a miracle! Every shovel of earth that he dug out more deeply, he saw with his own eyes that the location continued to broaden until the digging of the grave was completed. Then they saw and acknowledged the presence that these friends in life were holy, and did not get separated even in death.

Up until the Holocaust they designated the grave of the author of Tevuot Schur beside the grave of Rebbe Yitzhak Isaac.

The son of a Great One of the generation, the Gaon Rebbe Yehuda Aharon Kluger the Bet-Din Senior of Komariv, was father of the Gaon Rebbe Shlomo Kluger of Brody.

The Arcade House in English renaissance style, on the Rynek square (17th century)

Author's footnote:

1. Printed in “Shearim” 16 Tevet 5718 9.2.1958 Return

[Page 270]

Rebbe Alexander Schur son of Rebbe Ephraim Zalman Schur of Zolkiew, the author of The New Dress, passed away in 5497 (1737).

Rabbi Schur was one of the great Directors of the Faith in Jewry, a Gaon and sharp-minded, a scion of Our Rabbi Joseph Bkhor Schor, and one of the contributors to the Tosafot. He did not occupy a rabbinate in his lifetime, even though his reputation was global in his role as a pillar of religious direction. Many large and eminent congregations sought him as a Teacher and a Rabbi, however he firmly refused to accept any request to be a Rabbi of a congregation. He resided in the city of Zolkiew, earned a living from his own manual labor, and studied the Torah out of a great interest.

His books, A New Dress, which is about the rules of ritual slaughter, inspection and impurity, and Tevuot Schur, which explains the sources of these laws, and the book K'Vod Schur, on the Talmudic Tractate, Khulin, became renowned in the world of the Rabbinic Gaonim.

Rebbe Joseph Teomin, the author of Pri Megadim wrote the following about him in his compilation: ‘Our Rabbi is a beacon in Israel, the distinctive Gaon and author of Tevuot Schur, which studies these issues of Halakhah. All of his words are relevant and clear to the issues in this Halakhah. He researched the rule of non kosher meat for this book, and he presented his reasons and words as if they were the words of one of the Rishonim.’

[Page 271]

The ידד”א also wrote about him. ‘He compiled The New Dress and Tevuot Schur, which were printed in Zolkiew in 5493 (1733). They are marvelous books on the matters of ritual slaughter and non kosher meat, as well as issues in the Shas and Poskim. And he was a frequent reader of these. He delved deeply in a straightforward manner and with thorough fluency, and he was able to innovate a number of new thoughts on the law. The book, Tevuot Schur, is an explanation on a broad basis of The New Dress, with a thorough line of reasoning. And he published the book Pri Megadim on that part of the Shulkhan Arukh, Yoreh Deyah, in which he praised and lauded the referenced Gaon.

After him, two famous Gaonim came forward: Rebbe Avraham David the Bet-Din Senior of Buczacz, the author of Da'at Kedoshim, and the Rebbe David Shlomo the Bet-Din Senior of Soroka, author of The Dress of the Survivors.

The mother of Rebbe Alexander was the daughter of the Gaon Rebbe Sender, the son of the Gaon Rebbe Yaakov Tamarlisch, and the grandson of the Rebbe Sholom Shachna of Lublin.

In one of the first editions of the book Tevuot Schur, he drew two pictures on the frontispiece of the book. On top of the page, he drew the image of an elderly Jew sitting and studying Torah. Below this, he drew a large ox with two large horns, and under the ox are the words: Bkhor Schuro Hadar Lo .

R' Alexander Sender passed away in Zolkiew. He was a ray of the deep Torah, author of the books, The New Dress, which presents a law unto itself and also its explanation, the book, HaTevuot Schur and Bkhor Schor. On the frontpage of the book it is written: Be a nobleman on our behalf, the author of HaTevuot with the strength of an Ox.

Bkhor Schuro Hadar Lo.

His descendants were renowned Gaonim. Among them are the familiar Gaon Rebbe Ephraim Zalman Margaliot of Brod, and Rebbe Alexander Sender Margaliot of Stanow.

Translator's footnote:

1. Printed in “Shearim” 27 Tevet 5718 .17.2.58 Return

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