Menachem Mendel of Premishlan
Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Premishlan was among the disciples of the Baal Shem Tov.
Biography[edit | edit source]
He was born around 1726 to Rabbi Eliezer. A disciple of the Baal Shem Tov, he was also a close friend of the Maggid of Mezeritch and of Rabbi Yechiel Michel of Zlotchov. Among his own disciples were Rabbi Baruch of Kosov and Rabbi Meshulam Feivish Heller of Zbarazh, who described him as possessed of ruach hakodesh — a spirit of divine inspiration.[1] The classic collection Shivchei HaBaal Shem Tov records several stories attesting to his stature and the special regard in which the Baal Shem Tov's circle held him.
Aliyah to the Land of Israel[edit | edit source]
In 5524 (1764), Rabbi Menachem Mendel made aliyah to the Land of Israel together with his son Rabbi Dovid, as part of a caravan of some thirty souls. On the way, the group passed through the home of Rabbi Yaakov Yosef of Polnoye, who received him with extraordinary hospitality — despite his guest's young age, he delayed the caravan for several days until after Shabbos, altered his own established order of prayer, and praised Rabbi Mendel's davening warmly. He gave him his personal room and moved himself to the sukkah, sleeping there "even though it was still cold." In the town of Konstantin-Yeshen as well, "all the townspeople went out to greet him" — apparently out of reverence for his personal stature and out of the special honor accorded to one ascending to the Holy Land.[2]
On the 27th of Tammuz they reached the shores of Constantinople, and two months later, on the 18th of Elul, they boarded the ship for Eretz Yisrael — joining many pilgrims from among the Jews of Turkey and the Balkan lands. On Erev Rosh Hashanah 5525, they arrived at the port of Jaffa. The members of the caravan remained aboard ship through the holiday, and on Tzom Gedaliah set sail toward Acre. Due to a storm at sea, they reached their destination only nine days later, on the 12th of Tishrei. On the 13th of Tishrei they departed Acre, traveling by donkeys and mules, and arrived in Tiberias.
In a letter from Eretz Yisrael to his brother Rabbi Tzvi of Zlotchov, he wrote:
How long will you sit in the Diaspora and listen to those who speak disparagingly of this Holy Land, before which all the pleasures of the world count for nothing? One must pray many prayers to accustom oneself to its holiness — and then one will come to know, from within oneself, that one is walking with G-d.
Rabbi Nachman of Horodenka did not live long in Tiberias, passing away in 5525 or 5526 (1765–66). Rabbi Menachem Mendel's signature first appears on a letter of recommendation issued by the Ashkenazic community of Tiberias in 5528 (1768), addressed to the community of Metz. His exact year of passing is unknown, but by the time Rabbi Meshulam Feivish Heller composed his treatise Yosher Divrei Emet in 5537 (1777), he refers to Rabbi Menachem Mendel as one who had already departed this world.[4] Further evidence is the absence of any record of a meeting between him and Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk, who made aliyah in 5537 (1777).
Works[edit | edit source]
His short treatise Darkhei Yesharim ("Ways of the Upright") was enormously popular and went through many printings. It was likely composed before his aliyah in 5524 (1764), which would place it among the earliest works of Chassidic literature. An approbation bearing his signature appears in the work of his disciple Rabbi Baruch of Kosov, Yesod HaAvodah Nechmad VeNaim. His disciple Rabbi Meshulam Feivish Heller of Zbarazh quotes his teachings — as he heard them "from his holy mouth" — in Likutim Yekarim.
Among the Holy Fellowship[edit | edit source]
It appears that Rabbi Yaakov Yosef of Polnoye called upon him to come and console the members of the inner circle following the passing of the Baal Shem Tov — a testament to the special standing he held in that world. This is evident from the following letter, preserved in the Kherson Genizah:[5]
To that great, beloved, and holy man, master of Torah, the great Kohen, sage and holy one, our teacher Rabbi Yaakov Yosef, may he live, of the holy community of Polnoye.
May the Almighty console us. Yaakov Avinu did not die — and Israel lives on, enduring and awesome, a holy and sacred place. I am prepared to come to Mezhybizh to console the holy fellowship over the passing of our Rebbe, the Baal Shem Tov, of blessed memory, within a matter of days.
Written in tears, Menachem Mendel of Premishlan, among the disciples of the Rebbe, of blessed memory.
Customs[edit | edit source]
He had a distinctive practice of donning his gartel — the belt worn to separate the upper and lower body during prayer and sacred moments — specifically before meals, rather than before prayer. When once asked about this custom, he replied: "That prayer requires preparation so that it be 'for G-d alone' — even a simple farmer knows this. But that a meal must also be conducted entirely for the sake of Heaven — not everyone knows. And for that, special preparation is needed."
External links[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Meshulam Feivish Heller, Likutim Yekarim, 23b.
- ↑ Ch. Shteiman-Katz, Reishitan shel Aliyot HaChassidim, Yad Ben Zvi, p. 11. The descriptions are drawn from Shivchei HaBaal Shem Tov.
- ↑ Baruch HaKohen Kahana, Chibat HaAretz, folio 72b.
- ↑ Reishitan shel Aliyot HaChassidim, p. 27.
- ↑ Letter 188.
- ↑ Perhaps the original reads: within two days.