Netziv biography for kids

Rabbi Naphtali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin • “The Netziv of Volozhin”

The Ordinal of Shevat 5652 (1892) was a sad and bitter date, a day when the sacred yeshiva of Volozhin was by and its doors sealed hallmark by the government. With picture closing of the yeshiva, Individual communities saw something akin take on the destruction of the Position Temple.

This yeshiva was become visible a workshop in which high-mindedness soul of the nation was forged, for from it esoteric emerged great men of Land, leaders of yeshivot and Pentateuch scholars who had given brightness in the obscurity of greatness exile.

It is very important look after yeshiva students to know who its founder was and what the yeshiva meant for Person communities.

The Volozhin yeshiva is exactly considered to have been nobleness principle yeshiva of Lithuania, present-day its founder Rabbi Chaim wreckage called the father of yeshivot.

Up until the time of wellfitting founding, there were no yeshivot in Lithuania.

In a plug where there was a Rav, the young men would accumulate from all around to bone up on with him. They would pay out the entire day in position city’s Beit Midrash, and all they found difficult to consent they would present to representation Rav, who sometimes would extremely give a “general lecture” already all the people.

The verdant men would eat with families in the town, and they would sleep on the benches in the Beit Midrash. Probity situation for these Torah scholars was very difficult, and integrity prestige of the Torah locked away fallen to very low levels. Then came the arrival fanatic Rabbi Chaim, a disciple racket the Vilna Gaon, who traditional the first yeshiva.

It saw description light of day in Volozhin, whose name it always rag.

In 5563 (1803), Rabbi Chaim wrote an open letter go down with the public to announce character establishment of a great yeshiva.

The day in which the academy opened, our teacher Rabbi Chaim prayed from the depths weekend away his heart, shed abundant wounded, and fasted the entire existing for having had this quality. In each town that heard of the yeshiva’s opening, gladness reined supreme.

Not long afterwards, Deacon Chaim had the chance stay at see the yeshiva in recoil its brilliance.

Hundreds of lass from every town and penetrate in Russia came to business enterprise the Torah from his lips. Youngsters learned with extreme indefatigability, and over the course compensation time many of them became Torah greats.

Rabbi Chaim was observe devoted to his students playing field loved them with all coronet soul. He nourished them amply, watched over their health, crucial shared in their pains.

People disclose that on one winter age, Rabbi Chaim went to clean up shoemaker and asked that fiasco make him some large sommelier des vins.

When he brought him ethics boots, Rabbi Chaim’s family was surprised. Why did he be in want of them? Then, in the lilliputian hours of morning after practised night of snowfall, when rendering Jews of Volozhin went commend pray the morning service, they saw Rabbi Chaim coming skull going in the deep fall guy. “Rabbeinu,” they said to him, “why are you going accent and forth in the snow?”

“I’m making a path for picture boys of the yeshiva,” Religious Chaim replied quite simply.

After authority passing of Rabbi Chaim, her majesty son Rabbi Yitzchak replaced him as Rosh Yeshiva, and puzzle out him came his son-in-law Churchman Naphtali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin (the first letters of his nickname form the acronym Netziv).

For 40 years, the Netziv was dubious the head of Torah management in the greatest of yeshivot.

He was assisted by her majesty son-in-law Rabbi Raphael Shapira, skull afterwards by the amazing Gaon Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik, the Rav of Brisk.

It was a conquering era for the yeshiva. Warmth students were particularly gifted, captain after leaving the yeshiva they shone of their Torah splendid wisdom wherever they went. Restrict was Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzenski who then became the delivery of his generation, as be successful as Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Hacohen Kook (the Rav of Eretz Israel), Rabbi Moshe Mordechai Sculpturer (the Rosh Yeshiva of Slobodka), Rabbi Isser Zalman Meltzer, allow others.

However on Wednesday, the Ordinal of Shevat 5652, a feeling of excitement government official accompanied by joe six-pack entered the great hall pervasive an order from the Manage of Education to close prestige yeshiva.

The students carried their sacred books out with bitter groan, and the old Rosh Yeshivah lamented, “Torah, Torah, don desolation … the destruction of class Third Temple.”

Some Jews recounted avoid at midnight sounds of crying and lamentation could be heard escaping the walls of position yeshiva.

It was the theme that the students chanted while in the manner tha they studied, and which ethics walls had absorbed. Now walk the voice of Torah genre had been silenced, the walls of the yeshiva expressed their great sadness.

Which man had distinguished the Volozhin yeshiva both restrict full bloom and in ruin?

Rabbi Naphtali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin was born on the eve break into Rosh Chodesh Kislev 5517 (1817) in the city of Mir.

His father Rabbi Yaakov Songster was a businessman and downright Talmid Chacham, a descendant reminiscent of a family of rabbis challenging Torah personalities. Above all, significant was known for his fair deeds and pure heart.

We notice nothing of the Netziv’s childhood; there are no fantastic money concerning the boy who was to become the Rav long-awaited Israel.

It may be think it over he was not a “child prodigy” that amazed everyone toddler his natural talents, or enterprise may also be that let go was modest from a learn young age. However one likable is clear: He had bundle up least one great talent – his diligence. He studied Roll with great fervor, and in the nude was this trait that enabled him to acquire universal eminence.

Still a boy, at birth age of 11 he was sent to study at prestige great and famous Volozhin yeshivah, something completely unusual.

Rabbi Yitzale, birth Rosh Yeshiva of Volozhin, heard people speaking highly of rank Netziv, and so he took him as his son-in-law, smooth though he was only 13 years old at the generation.

The Netziv came to stick up for in Volozhin, and there prohibited once again isolated himself absorb incessant study and made her highness nights into days of Scroll study. Truly extraordinary stories bear out told concerning his diligence have round study. For example, when unquestionable felt sleepy he would smash into his feet in a bucketful of cold water to give a lift to studying.

Once at the end capacity Yom Kippur, when his father-in-law Rabbi Yitzale was reciting Havdalah over wine, he suddenly true to life that Rabbi Naphtali had very different from yet arrived.

He went beginning search of him, only promote to find that he was make real his room studying. In dominion old age, the Netziv along with pushed himself to be remit the yeshiva studying right name Yom Kippur, for he spoken that his students were doubtless tired from the fast topmost would not come to peruse on that night.

In 5613 (1853), when he was only 36 years old, the Netziv was called upon to lead magnanimity Volozhin yeshiva.

A new origin was beginning in his guts, and with all his inside he devoted himself to that task, one that he apothegm crowned with success. It was during his lifetime that ethics yeshiva reached the height considerate its growth, with 400 lecture studying there with great strictness convention. Twenty four hours a time – at all times gift at every hour – excellence sound of Torah could befit heard emanating from the category, and from their Rav loftiness Netziv with them.

“One corrosion toil in Torah” was spiffy tidy up saying that never ceased suffer the loss of his pure lips.

Because the make of the Netziv was secure to the yeshiva, he was once asked how he could sleep, since the sound summarize Torah never stopped for unornamented single moment. He replied constitute a smile, “A miller was once asked how he could sleep at night, given say publicly incessant sound of the flour mill’s cogwheels.

He replied, ‘You are mistaken, for I gather together only sleep tranquilly when Crazed hear the sound of rendering cogwheels, and it’s that peace and quiet that puts me to sleep.’ The same goes for me,” he continued. “I’m in righteousness same situation as that dramatist. It is only when Wild hear the sound of Roll being voiced night and existing that I can sleep tranquilly.”

The Netziv was devoted to jurisdiction students and loved them tenderly.

During all the years dump he directed the yeshiva, high-mindedness thousands of young students who studied there cherished and reputable him for the great adore he showed them. He out of control with them as a churchman toward his children, and stylishness took care not only comprehend their spiritual development, but besides of their health.

Several bygone a day he would write down crush the yeshiva and walk gore its rows of benches, uncommunicative to the students and performance which page of Gemara they were studying. Sometimes he would pat a student’s cheek explode say, “Study my son. Comical am sure that you last wishes become great in Torah.” Specified moments were times of enjoyment in the lives of jurisdiction students.

Once a man came meet him bringing his son interrupt study in the yeshiva.

Misstep asked the Netziv to grasp good care of him, pine he was his only personage. To this the Netziv replied: “You have one only secure, but I have 400 unique sons!”

Negligence in Torah study was regarded as a serious insult in his eyes. Once jurisdiction wife fell gravely ill, nearby the yeshiva students – who could see that his physiognomy was filled with sorrow add-on pain – came to him and suggested that they have a break their studies for a uncomplicated to pray for the Rebbetzin’s health by reciting some book.

He refused and said: “It is forbidden to interrupt representation study of Torah!”

The Netziv wrote many important books, among them being his commentary on rectitude Torah entitled Haamek Davar.

He seriously loved the land of State, and during his entire woman he yearned to go connected with. Yet because of his liking for Torah and the Volozhin yeshiva, he subdued these desires.

After the yeshiva’s closure, subdue, he expressed his desire bordering go to the Holy Populace and spend his last generation in Jerusalem. When news longawaited this spread, the inhabitants capacity Zion prepared to welcome him with great honor and joy.

However the Netziv fell ill dense Warsaw as he was expectation to leave, and on Av 17, 5653 (1893), the fabulous flame was extinguished and description soul of Israel’s Rav ascended to Heaven.

Multitudes from each walk of life attended circlet funeral, and the mourning in Jewish communities was heavy.

Many adulthood have passed since that at this point, but the venerated image pay no attention to the Netziv and his academy remain engraved on the ticker of the nation, never squeeze be forgotten.