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Lot 134:
Letter of the great well renowned makubal Ba’al Ha’Leshem, to Rabbi Naftali Hertz about the Kabbalistic teachings of the Gaon of Vilna
A letter of the Ba’al Ha’Leshem Rabbi Shlomo Elyashiv. Written during the time that he he lived in Lithuania, to his friend the mekubal, Rabbi Naftali Hertz of Jaffa and author of Sha’ar Naftali on the siddur Ha’Gra. This letter is part of an extensive correspondence between them regarding the secret of tzimtzum and other topics in kabbalah belonging to the teachings of the Gr"a. The letter explains the prohibition of interpreting Kabbalah according to one’s intellect, – The greatness of the Gra and his teaching in Kabbalah.
Rabbi Shlomo Elyashiv (1841-1926) was, according to the Chazon Ish, the last mekubal. He was the greatest Lithuanian mekubal of the pre-holocaust generation. Born in Lithuania and a talmid of Ilana D’Chay. After his marriage, he was the Dayan in Shavil. He then went to the yeshiva in Telz for about ten years and became a student of the Rogatchover Gaon in chochmas ha’sod. He was known throughout Europe as a great mekubal. The Chofetz Chaim once commented to his talmid Reb Elya Dushnitzer, who was going to pass the town of Shavil, "Make sure to visit the Leshem since it is not certain that one will be able to see him in the next world". In 1924, he moved to Jerusalem and lived there until his passing. He is famous for his Sefer Leshem, which describes the esoteric secrets of the creation, and his commentary on the sefer Eitz Chaim (by Rabbi Chaim Vital)
Rabbi Naftali Hertz Halevi Segal (1853-1902) AB”D of Jaffa, a mekubal and Gaon, was born in Bialystok (Poland), immigrated to Eretz Yisrael in 1886. He moved to Meah Shearim. In 1886, the Ashkenezim founded a kehilla in Jaffa, and Rabbi Naftali Hertz was appointed AB”D by Rabbi Shmuel Salant and the Mahari"l Diskin. In 1891, he was appointed Rav by all the kehillos of Jaffa. He fought the assimilated who tried to influence the residents of Jaffa. He threatened not to do kiddushin at marriages of those who try to break the protective walls of our nation. He dealt extensively with the teachings of the Gra, particularly in Kabbalah. He published Sidur Ha’Gra with his annotations Sha’ar Naftali and Imri Shefer. He also wrote the commentary "Kesef Mishnah" on the "Mishnas Chasidim authored by Rabbi Emanuel Chai Riki and more.
2 Handwritten Pages
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