A terrible decree has been sweetened now – more comments from the Rav

Shavua Tov!

I am bringing a large chunk of the Rav’s chesped for R Moshe Tzanani, zt’l, who was buried last motzae shabbat.

As well as more of the history and connection between Shuvu Banim and R Tzanani, the Rav also explains that a terrible decree was sweetened by his passing.

Personally?

I am really feeling it. The last few months have been v.v.v. difficult, for so many different reasons, many of them not obvious. Yet this past week has been feeling much, much lighter.

It looks like all the ‘Iran’ stuff got sweetened, and who knows what else, by the passing of Rav Tzanani, zt’l.

Now, over to the Rav, in his own words.

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Extract of Rav Berland’s chesped for R Moshe Tzanani, z’tl.

This is the biggest loss.

He left the university in the middle [of his studies]. He was the most elite [student] in university, Number 1. He left everything.

He saw the light of the Torah, he went to Ginzburg, to Kfar Chabad, and then Moshe Shavilli brought him to Shuvu Banim. From then, he guarded his eyes, he didn’t see anything, he didn’t open his eyes from that moment on, when he arrived.

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He already got here in 5737-5738 (1977).

Simchat Torah, he came into my small room in the Steipler’s apartment, and he entered the small room, and didn’t move.

[He said] I am not moving from here. I want you to open a yeshiva.

I was against opening a yeshiva. I said to Wiesenfeld, to everyone, whoever was with me, Shimon Teichner, I am not prepared to open a yeshiva! I want to learn. A yeshiva means dealing with the tzibbur (community), this is not for me! I want to sit in my corner and learn.

He [Rav Tzanani] forced me. He said, I am not moving from this room.

Everyone knew my small room on Rashbam Street, number 23[1] – this was my room.

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Within a week, there were 20 bochurim in my room.

And then after two weeks, Teichner came to take everyone home with him – and then, his wife conceived. The moment when he took everyone back home with him. There were by him for three months, in the house of Teichner. And then afterwards, in Neve Ahiezer, Shikkun 6.

We rented four rooms there, a canteen room, a room for learning, and two bedrooms where the bochurim could sleep. And so like this, afterwards, we moved to Pardes Katz.

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From the moment that he drew near to Shuvu Banim, he was like Rabbenu himself…

You could see that his every movement, and his every thought, it was only dvekut with Rabbenu. He didn’t miss a single Rosh Hashana [in Uman] his whole life, even with all the most dangerous journeys, when the said they were going to send us to Siberia.

The promised us, they guaranteed us, that the next time [they would send us to Siberia]. When i got there with my Israeli passport, they said we don’t believe you. You have 20 names, but this one [i.e. the Israeli passport] is for sure not the right one.

It was very hard to persuade them. The Russians are stubborn.

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But he [Rav Tzanani] stood up in all the tests, and all the machlokot, in all of the vicissitudes that passed over Shuvu Banim – he passed through it all bravely…

He merited, R Moshe Tzanani, he merited, Moshe ben Yemima, he merited to  chai v’kiyam. He didn’t die at all, it’s forbidden to think that. He is still here with us…[2]

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Now, there was a decree of destruction on Am Yisrael.

He sweetened everything.

Now, we can live another 200 years in Jerusalem, quietly.

Now, everything was sweetened.

Now, there was a terrible gezeira upon Am Yisrael.

Each person who is familiar [with the subject] knows this.[3] They already wanted to totally annihilate us, to totally destroy us.

Even Trump, he’s already gone to the side of the Arabs, he’s already against us.

[But the passing of R Tzanani has sweetened all this.]

In his merit, now we can be in Jerusalem, the Holy City, for at least another 200 years, until the end of the Sixth Millennium [i.e. year 6,000 in the Jewish calendar], and then Moshiach ben David will come.

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He was the soul of Moshiach, of the generation.

The Chatam Sofer says [in Siman 98][4], Choshen Mishpat, that in every generation, there is Moshiach – just, that we don’t see that he reveals himself.

He was Moshiach ben David, the soul of Rabbenu HaKadosh… And he chai v’kiyam. And he will continue to lead the yeshiva, the whole yeshiva, he lead it. I was his student, he was the one running the yeshiva.

He was running everything, he managed the bochurim, the avreichim.

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Just seeing him, a person would make teshuva – that same second!

Like it’s written about R Aharon of Karlin, that he had 80,000 students. When did he speak to 80,000 [people]? [Rather], They just saw him, and then everyone made teshuva.

All the students of Shuvu Banim, are in his merit. Today, there are 10,000 students in Shuvu Banim – everything is in his merit.

He is chai v’kiyam, he is not dead. Each person needs to take upon themselves to decisively guard their eyes, and the ikker is to learn [Torah] 24 hours a day.

Now it’s Shovavim. Each person asks, but what do we do, in Shovavim? We learn! Simply. Rabbenu is just about learning Gemara.

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Translated from Shivivei Or 441.

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FOOTNOTES:

[1] In Bnei Brak. The Rav was direct neighbours with Rav Kanievsky.

[2] See the Gemara, Tractate Shabbat 153a.

[3] The Rav appears to be referring to the small group of kabbalists who can ‘see’ terrible decrees being shaped in heaven, before they manifest in our reality.

[4] See Responsa of the Chatam Sofer, Part 6, Siman 98.