About the great gaon Rav Pinchas Hirschprung [and the Lubavitcher Rebbe] whose yahrtzeit is today: Here is a sefer about him. Not long, easy to read. Good stories and mussar. One highlight of many - on his plane trips to Eretz Yisrael he would learn all of Bava Basra [!!] from beginning to end.
Rabbi Pinchas Hirschprung, Chief Rabbi of Canada,
Rosh Yeshiva in Yeshivas Tomchei Temimim Lubavitch of Montreal, Born 5672
[1912], Niftar 5758 [1999]
RABBI PINCHAS Hirschprung zt'l was born in the town of Dokla to 5672 (1912). His father, R' Chaim was son-in-law to the Av Beis Din the gaon R Dovid Zvi Zehman zt’1. He learned Torah with his grandfather (who was also the teacher of the Klausenberger Rebbe zt’l) and then became the outstanding talmid of the great gaon R' Meir Shapiro ztz"l of Lublin. At that time his Rebbe testified that he knew 2200 dafim of Gemara by heart! (For a fascinating account of R' Shapiro's life, see 'A Blaze to the Darkening Gloom" –Feldheim.)
When he was bar mitzva he published his first refer 'Pri Pinchas", and then he began editing the monthly Torah journal "Ohel Torah' which contained the chiddushei Torah of the talmidei chachamim of the time. After Rabbi Shapiro's passing, R' Pinchas became the bochein (one who tests) of the new talmidim who came to Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin.
In order to appreciate the incredible bekius (breadth of knowledge) which a bochein in the Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin had to have, we have to have some background information about the origin of the yeshiva. Poland at that time was a stronghold of Chasidus, lamdanus and yiras shamayim, but people were impoverished and establishing a large yeshiva was out of the question. Along came R' Meir Shapiro with a dream: he declared that a yeshiva would soon be built which would look like a palace. After tremendous effort, he managed to raise the huge requisite sums and built a yeshiva which indeed, looked like a palace.
Not everybody who wanted to attend was accepted in this yeshiva. Only the best and the brightest could get in. The entrance exam consisted of being tested on 400 folio of Gemara with commentaries, by heart! If this is what prospective talmidim had to know, then you can only imagine what the bochein who decided who would get accepted to the yeshiva knew! Even in Poland before the war, R' Pinchas was considered head and shoulders above the rest.
During the Holocaust he managed, with Hashem's loving kindness, to successfully cross the border from the Soviet zone to Lithuania. From there he traveled via Siberia and ended up in Shanghai. In 5701 (1941) he arrived in Canada. He described his travails in a memoir he published in 1945. He became Rav of the "Adas Yeshurun" community in Montreal and was Rosh Yeshiva of "Mercaz Torah". Later he became the director of the Vaad HaRabbanim and head of the Rabbinical Court of Montreal, Canada as well as Chief Rabbi of Canada.
Rabbi Hirschprung was one of the sole survivors of the gaonim of Poland, and was considered one of the greatest bekiim in our generation in Shas and Poskim which he knew by heart. This was in addition to his acuity in learning which found expression in the depth of his lectures and in his chiddushei Torah. With all that, he was a humble man who took no credit for himself. He pursued peace, was a baal chesed, and was loyally involved in the needs of the community.
RABBI PINCHAS Hirschprung zt'l was born in the town of Dokla to 5672 (1912). His father, R' Chaim was son-in-law to the Av Beis Din the gaon R Dovid Zvi Zehman zt’1. He learned Torah with his grandfather (who was also the teacher of the Klausenberger Rebbe zt’l) and then became the outstanding talmid of the great gaon R' Meir Shapiro ztz"l of Lublin. At that time his Rebbe testified that he knew 2200 dafim of Gemara by heart! (For a fascinating account of R' Shapiro's life, see 'A Blaze to the Darkening Gloom" –Feldheim.)
When he was bar mitzva he published his first refer 'Pri Pinchas", and then he began editing the monthly Torah journal "Ohel Torah' which contained the chiddushei Torah of the talmidei chachamim of the time. After Rabbi Shapiro's passing, R' Pinchas became the bochein (one who tests) of the new talmidim who came to Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin.
In order to appreciate the incredible bekius (breadth of knowledge) which a bochein in the Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin had to have, we have to have some background information about the origin of the yeshiva. Poland at that time was a stronghold of Chasidus, lamdanus and yiras shamayim, but people were impoverished and establishing a large yeshiva was out of the question. Along came R' Meir Shapiro with a dream: he declared that a yeshiva would soon be built which would look like a palace. After tremendous effort, he managed to raise the huge requisite sums and built a yeshiva which indeed, looked like a palace.
Not everybody who wanted to attend was accepted in this yeshiva. Only the best and the brightest could get in. The entrance exam consisted of being tested on 400 folio of Gemara with commentaries, by heart! If this is what prospective talmidim had to know, then you can only imagine what the bochein who decided who would get accepted to the yeshiva knew! Even in Poland before the war, R' Pinchas was considered head and shoulders above the rest.
During the Holocaust he managed, with Hashem's loving kindness, to successfully cross the border from the Soviet zone to Lithuania. From there he traveled via Siberia and ended up in Shanghai. In 5701 (1941) he arrived in Canada. He described his travails in a memoir he published in 1945. He became Rav of the "Adas Yeshurun" community in Montreal and was Rosh Yeshiva of "Mercaz Torah". Later he became the director of the Vaad HaRabbanim and head of the Rabbinical Court of Montreal, Canada as well as Chief Rabbi of Canada.
Rabbi Hirschprung was one of the sole survivors of the gaonim of Poland, and was considered one of the greatest bekiim in our generation in Shas and Poskim which he knew by heart. This was in addition to his acuity in learning which found expression in the depth of his lectures and in his chiddushei Torah. With all that, he was a humble man who took no credit for himself. He pursued peace, was a baal chesed, and was loyally involved in the needs of the community.
YOU ARE FAMOUS FROM
ONE END OF THE WORLD
TO THE OTHER
The gaon zt'1 served as a model of absolute bittul [self negation] to the Rebbe . He would regularly visit the Rebbe, discuss Torah topics with him and participate in farbrengens. His first connection by letter we find in the "Igros Kodesh" (letter # 2977) dated Chol Hamoed Succos 5715. The gaon had sent the sefer "Minchas Solles" on Sefer HaChinuch which his grandfather had written, to the Rebbe - and the Rebbe responded with amazing notes which displayed impressive bekius and depth in nigleh and nistar.
Rabbi Meir Plotkin, R' Hirschprung's talmid, tells of his mentor’s first yechidus (private audience) with the Rebbe as his mentor described it to him:
His first meeting with the Rebbe took place in 5717 (1957). At that time, Rabbi Hirschprung did not have a real connection with Chabad, but this didn't stop him from arranging a yechidus with the Rebbe, whom he had heard so much about.
Upon entering the Rebbe's room, before he opened his mouth or handed the Rebbe his pan (pidyon nefesh) or even identified himself - the Rebbe stood up and asked, "Are you Akiva ben Yosef who is famous from one end of the world to the other?" After a slight pause, the Rebbe continued and said, "Indeed, you are like "Akiva ben Yosef” for "you are famous from one end of the world to the other."
When the gaon zt'1 exclaimed, chas v'shalom… the Rebbe smiled and asked: Why 'chas v'shalom"? Isn't it an explicit Gemara?… to which R' Pinchas humbly replied: Chalila to say that I am like Akiva ben Yosef…
And so, despite his greatness and his bekius, the likes of which could scarcely be found in our generation - he considered himself a simple person, and derived no enjoyment from the titles which always accompanied his name.
I NEVER SAW
ANYBODY WHO CAME
CLOSE TO THE REBBE
IN GAONUS
Before I tell you the end of the story, R' Pinchas continued, I will give you some background to that yechidus. You know that Rabbi Hirschprung can learn a little bit … and so before the war, I had the zechus to talk to all the Torah greats in Poland. After the war I spoke with the Lithuanian greats, and then in America I spoke with all those greats who had survived the war. There was only one person I hadn't managed to talk to - the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Even when I had yechidus with him, he directed the conversation to communal matters and disseminating Yiddishkeit, and I didn't manage to talk to him "in learning."
I wrote the Rebbe that I wanted to talk to him in learning. I added that I knew that the Rebbe's time was precious, yet I was still requesting that the Rebbe give me a little of his time, for a conversation such as this was more precious to me than all the world's treasures. The Rebbe consented.
R' Hirschprung went to the yechidus and said that since he had attended yeshivos, he had a number of difficult questions which he had asked all the Torah greats, which none of them had been able to answer. There were a few who "weakened the questions, but I never found anyone who could give me a true answer to these questions. It greatly disturbs me and I would like to ask the Rebbe and hear his solutions."
The Rebbe looked at me warmly and said in surprise, all the gaonim you mentioned couldn't answer your questions, and I can?
R' Pinchas answered confidently: yes, tonight the Rebbe will answer them all!
The Rebbe nodded his head to indicate that R' Pinchas could begin with his questions. The questions weren't ordinary ones. They were on one of the most difficult sections in Talmud Yerushalmi. In order to understand the question you needed to be a genius. To Rabbi Hirschprung's surprise, it didn't look as though the Rebbe was concentrating much. He was sitting in so relaxed a manner that R' Pinchas wondered whether the Rebbe was listening to what he was saying.
If I wasn't aware of the Rebbe's gaonus, I would have stopped speaking and excused myself by saying, these questions aren't for you. Since I had heard of the Rebbe's genius, I continued talking.
When he had concluded, the Rebbe said: according to what you say - it's truly difficult, but it's not the Yerushalmi's fault, but your fault since you didn't learn the topic properly. If you learned the Yerushalmi correctly, there wouldn't be any questions.
Without opening a sefer, the Rebbe began lecturing on the topic in the Yerushalmi as though he was reading it from the sefer. He explained it and showed him that by learning it properly, his question was no question at all.
R' Pinchas was shocked and amazed by this. After all, he had presented his questions to the greatest of the great and not one of them had thought there was no basis to his questions. And here the Rebbe, by learning the topic properly, had proved that the question came from not knowing how to learn the Yerushalmi right in the first place.
I had never encountered such depth in learning in my life, said R' Pinchas. I have seen giants in my lifetime, but I have never met anyone who came close to the Rebbe in gaonus.
BORUCH HASHEM I
HAVE A REBBE, AND
THE REBBE SAID YOU
ARE WELL
The following story will demonstrate his hiskashrus and faith in what the Rebbe said. It is told by one of his talmidim:
A few years ago, R' Pinchas' wife became sick. Upon being examined, the doctors told her that a cancerous growth had been found and that she would have to undergo an operation to remove it: The doctors said the situation was critical and it was doubtful whether the operation would help.
R' Pinchas was broken by the news. His friends were shocked by the change the news wrought in him within a few days. He had changed from an active, energetic person to an enervated, lifeless man. He stopped coming to pasken and didn't speak to anyone at the yeshiva. The only thing he didn't neglect was the general shiur he gave, but even that was given without his usual enthusiasm.
A few months later, his wife was well again and we forgot the story. One day I met his daughter and in the course of our conversation she said, 'You know what? My father is a great Chasid of the Lubavitcher Rebbe!' When I didn't react, his daughter continued and said, 'You should know that not only is he a Chasid, but he is also mekushar heart and soul with the Rebbe, and I don't know if you can find a greater Chasid than he!'
At this point I said that she seemed to be exaggerating to which she replied that even though her father did not follow the Chabad customs or daven nusach Ari ? She was sure there was no Chasid and mekushar like her father. As proof she told me the following story:
'When my mother's health was precarious, my father's state of mind was terrible. It got so serious that we, the children, sat and cried about our mother who lay in bed and about our father who sat near her so despondently.
'One day I was home alone with my parents when a letter from the Rebbe came in the mail. My father was sitting and learning and when I told him that a letter had arrived from the Lubavitcher Rebbe, he got up, went to the kitchen to wash his hands, put on his hat and jacket and then stood and read the Rebbe's letter.
'I stood off to the side and watched. Suddenly he hurried to my mother's room while I followed close behind. I will never forget what I saw:
'He stood at her bedside and said: I just got a letter from the Rebbe. The Rebbe wrote the letter in lashon ha'kodesh but I'll translate it into Yiddish.
'It was a general/personal letter at the end of which the Rebbe added a few handwritten lines which said: regarding what you wrote about your wife - it is only the advice of the yetzer hara who wants to weaken you. Therefore, don't pay any attention to this, for it isn't true at all, but the claim of the yetzer, and he and his wife will merit length of days and good years.
'Father stood near mother, called her by her name and said, Boruch Hashem there's a Rebbe, and the Rebbe said you are well. Therefore, you are well, and there's nothing to worry about.
I, who was standing off to the side, couldn't believe my eyes. In an instant, my father had changed from one extreme to the other. It was literally a turnabout of 180 degrees. He simply got back to himself, and became the enthusiastic, active, lively person he had been before.
In the weeks that followed until my mother's full recovery - things were upside-down. We were the worried ones, while you couldn't tell from my father that his wife wasn't exactly in the best of health. Even on the day of the operation, when they wheeled my mother into the operating room, and we were all so concerned - he didn't have a care in the world. He simply didn't understand why we were worried. "The Rebbe said that she's healthy," he repeated.
'Even when the doctors said that they didn't find any growth and we jumped for joy, he didn't understand what the commotion was about. He had always known she was well…
'Now, you tell me,' said his daughter to the talmid, 'is there another Chasid like him? Is there anyone more mekushar than he?'
And here I thought, said the talmid, that I knew him. I realized that I didn't have a clue as to the depth of his hiskashrus to the Rebbe.
