Yeshivat Nesher Hagadol: June 2022

Sunday, June 26, 2022

Rav Avigdor Miller on Iyun and Bekiyus

Posted on August 8, 2018by Toras Avigdor all credit goes to them

Q:
Why is that in the yeshivos so much time is put into iyun, the slower and deeper method of studying gemara, and not so much on covering more ground?

A:
That’s a very good question, by the way. The truth is that up until recently, in the yeshivos, they used to learn a big part of the mesechta. They used to cover sometimes an entire mesechta, sometimes half of the mesechta. Today however, there is a competition for who can cover less ground. That’s how it is! A boy says, “In my yeshiva we covered only six blatt in Kesuvos this last year.” So the other boy says, “That’s nothing! My yeshiva only covered four blatt.” And it’s a doubtful accomplishment. I don’t know if it is such a good thing.

But I’m not going to criticize. Maybe in the course of time, they’ll see that what they are doing is only for big ba’alei kishronos, those with very good heads. But the majority of the talmidim are left out; they are not capable of too much iyun.

And therefore, although the melamed is a poor man; he’s not getting paid enough, so he thinks, “I might as well make use of this job to shteig myself. I am not making too much money, so at least I want to shteig from it.” That’s what he’s thinking. So we day, “Have pity on your talmidim.” You are shteiging and they’re falling asleep! They’re getting discouraged. So, I do think that it’s a good idea to put in a little more time into covering ground.

However, even when you cover ground, it should be done with chazarah, not just learning. Chazarah, chazarah, chazarah! If you learned even the gemara alone, not with the tosfisen, and you know it well, then you’re a success. You have to know it well however. Learn it until you remember it, talk it over and understand it. If you have time, you can look at meforshim too, but number one, the foundation of learning is to learn the gemara alone and to know it well. Then later, you can learn a little more in depth if you’re capable. It is very important to learn and have a geshmak in your learning by being able to know it well yourself.
TAPE # E-91 (November 1996)

Thursday, June 23, 2022

Why Does the Minhag Require a Man to Marry Before Wearing a Tallis?

Rabbi Avrohom Dovid Waxman
All credit goes to Rabbi Avrohom Dovid Waxman & The Yated June 22, 2022

There is a widespread minhag amongst Ashkenazim that men postpone the wearing of the tallis gadol until after marriage. The Tashbetz (koton, ois 464) and the Maharil (minhagim, Hilchos Nisuin) bring a remez for this custom from Parshas Ki Seitzei, as the posuk of “Gedilim ta’aseh lecha,” which refers to tzitzis, is immediately followed by the posuk of “ki yikach ish isha,” which references marriage. Furthermore, the Magein Avrohom (Orach Chaim, siman 8:3) brings a source for this minhag from the following Gemara (Kiddushin 29b): Rav Chisda told Rav Huna about Rav Hamnuna’s stature as an adam gadol. Rav Huna requested to meet Rav Hamnuna at the next opportunity. When Rav Hamnuna next came, Rav Huna met Rav Hamnuna and noticed that he was not wearing a sudra. Rav Huna asked Rav Hamnuna, “Why aren’t you wearing a sudra?” Rav Hamnuna replied, “Because I am not married.” The Magein Avrohom maintains that the wearing of the sudra after marriage means that Rav Hamnuna refrained from wearing a tallis gadol while a bochur.

Rav Yaakov Emden (Mor Uktzia, Orach Chayim, siman 8), however, suggests that perhaps the Gemara means that Rav Hamnuna refrained from wearing a garment of kavod while still a bochur, but did not refrain from wearing a tallis shel mitzvah. According to the Yaavetz, the Gemara would not be a source for the minhag of waiting to wear a tallis gadol until after marriage. This understanding of the Gemara is suggested by the Be’er Heiteiv (Orach Chaim, sof siman 17), as well.

In addition to the discussion as to the source for the minhag, the Acharonim discuss the halachic ramifications of this custom, as well. The Shiyarei Knesses Hagedolah (Orach Chaim, siman 8, hagahos haTur, ois 2, brought by Mishnah Berurah, siman 17:10) asks: How can the wearing of the tallis be delayed until after marriage when this results in the bittul mitzvas asei of tzitzis?

Shu”t Tzitz Eliezer (cheilek 20, siman 8) suggests that, in fact, the minhag does not result in a bittul mitzvas asei. Although the minhag is to refrain from wearing a tallis before marriage, this specifically refers to the tallis gadol. The tallis koton, however, is worn prior to marriage, as well, and is a fulfillment of the mitzvas asei of tzitzis. He brings evidence to this discrepancy from the Maharil, who writes, “Ein misatfin bitzitzis ad shenosin lohem noshim.” The lashon of ituf refers specifically to the tallis gadol, which requires ittuf, and not to the tallis koton, which is worn. He writes that the Ya’avetz (Mor Uktzia) concurs with this chiluk.

However, the Tzitz Eliezer points out that according to this resolution, the Maharil’s asmachta from Parshas Ki Seitzei, where “gedilim ta’aseh lecha” and “ki yikach ish isha” are juxtaposed in the pesukim, requires explanation. According to the above, “gedilim,” or tzitzis, are indeed worn prior to marriage and not specifically after marriage, as only the tallis gadol is not worn until after marriage.

The Klausenberger Rebbe, in Shu”t Divrei Yatziv (Orach Chaim, siman 44), raises the question of why, indeed, the minhag restricts bochurim from wearing a tallis, and only married men have the chiyuv to wear a tallis. He offers three possible reasons.

Firstly, the Klausenberger Rebbe suggests that since mitzvas tzitzis is merameiz to all taryag mitzvos, as reflected in the posuk of “Uzechartem es kol mitzvos Hashem va’asisem osam” (Bamidbar 15:39), as the tzitzis allude to all the mitzvos (see Rashi, as well as Tosafos to Brachos 18a), the wearer of a tallis presents himself as a person who observes all taryag mitzvos. Since an unmarried person has certainly not fulfilled the mitzvah of peru urevu, and Chazal tell us that his Torah and other aspects of avodas Hashem are lacking without a wife, the minhag does not allow him to wear a tallis until he gets married as a remez that marriage is necessary to achieve taryag mitzvos.

Secondly, Chazal (see Menachos 44a) emphasize that the mitzvah of tzitzis is to protect a person from being oiver on “Lo sosuru acharei levavchem ve’acharei eineichem,” and Rav Huna (Kiddushin 29b) states that a person who reaches age twenty while unmarried is “kol yomov b’aveirah,” the minhag does not allow him to completely fulfill mitzvas tzitzis until he does his part to avoid aveirah by means of marriage.

The third explanation given by the Klausenberger Rebbe is that the Gemara (Menachos 43b) tells us that someone who performs mitzvas tzitzis with zerizus merits to be mekabeil pnei Shechinah. Marriage, as well, has this unique quality, as Rav Akiva famously teaches (Sotah 17a), “Ish v’isha zachu, Shechinah beineihem.” Therefore, the minhag restricts an unmarried person from fulfilling tzitzis in its entirety and thereby meriting Shechinah, to allude to the bochur that proper achievement of Shechinah in a person’s life can only be attained through marriage, as stated in Chazal. (See also Bnei Yissoschor, Tishrei, 13:2, in haga’ah, for an explanation al pi sod.)

Wedding - Without a Groom: The hallucinatory story that excites the world of Chasidim

The split in the Sadigura Hasidism between a number of brothers struggling for the Rebbe's chair, resulted in one of the brothers holding the wedding celebration for the Rebbe's brother this evening in the courtyard - without the presence of the groom himself

Shalom Kopilowitz

21 Sivan 5752 (20/06/22) | 16:25

The younger Rebbe, Yitzhak Yehoshua Heshil Friedman. Photo: David Cohen Flash 90

You may have heard of soap without soap, but a wedding without a groom is definitely a novelty: in Sadigura Hasidism in Bnei Brak, the wedding celebration for the Rebbe's younger brother will be held tonight with the participation of hundreds of followers - but without the groom's participation.

The former Rebbe of Sadigura died nearly two years ago in his fifties after suffering from cancer. He left several sons, but surprisingly decided in his will to appoint one of the younger sons as his successor.

The younger Rebbe, Yitzhak Yehoshua Heshil Friedman. Photo: David Cohen Flash 90

The eldest son did not accept the evil of the decree, and started a war against the appointment of his youngest son, Joshua Heshil, as Rebbe - while his mother, the wife of the previous Rebbe, joined him and announced that after consulting with senior rabbis the community leadership would be divided between the brothers.

Harish the leadership to the younger son. The late Rebbe, Rabbi Israel Friedman. Photo: Yossi Zeliger Flash 90

Most of the Hasidim, who adhered to the will of the previous Rebbe, saw this as a declaration of war on the will of the late Rebbe and the leadership of the youngest son, Joshua Heshil. Thus the will led to a severe split in Hasidism and a split within the family as the mother, the wife of the deceased, waged war against her son who led most of the Hasidim.

The eldest son, Mordechai Shalom Friedman. Photo: David Cohen Flash 90

Tonight the youngest brother in the family gets married, having never gotten married in his father's life. Due to the tension, the younger Rebbe, who is in the family above the groom - Joshua Heshil who was crowned by his father as his successor, was not invited to the wedding organized by the mother - who opposes his leadership and supports the eldest son. , Yehoshua Heshil, to announce that the Hasidim will come to the Beit Midrash to celebrate with their Rabbi the joy of the wedding for his brother, after, as stated, he was not invited to it.