Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev
Ukrainian rabbi and Jewish leader
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Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev (Levi Yitzchok Derbarmdiger (compassionate in Yiddish) or Rosakov) (1740–1809), also known as the holy Berdichever, and the Kedushas Levi, was a Hasidic master and Jewish leader. He was the rabbi of Ryczywół, Żelechów, Pinsk and Berdychiv, for which he is best known. He was one of the main disciples of the Maggid of Mezritch, and of his disciple Rabbi Shmelke of Nikolsburg, whom he succeeded as rabbi of Ryczywół.[1] He is also the great-grandfather of Israeli artist Isaac Frenkel Frenel.[2]
Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev | |
|---|---|
| |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 29 of Iyar, 25 or 26 of May, 1740 Husakiv |
| Died | 5 October (25 of Tishrei), 1809 |
| Signature |  |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Judaism |
| Denomination | Hasidic |
| Jewish leader | |
| Predecessor | Shmelke of Nikolsburg |
| Position | rabbi of Ryczywół |
Levi Yitzchok was known as the "defense attorney" for the Jewish people ("Sneiguron Shel Yisroel"), because he would intercede on their behalf before God. Known for his compassion for every Jew, he was one of the most beloved leaders of Eastern European Jewry. He is considered by some to be the founder of Hasidism in central Poland.[3]
Life
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak was born on the 29th of Iyar of the year 5500, which corresponds to May 25 or 26 1740 CE to Rabbi Meir (who was the Av Beit Din (head of a rabbinical court) of Zamosc) and Sarah-Sasha Ruskov in Husakiv (Ukrainian: Гусаків), now in Yavoriv Raion, Lviv Oblast (region) of Ukraine.[4] In his youth he was known as the Illui from Yaroslav. He married Perel, the daughter of Rabbi Israel Peretz of Levertov. After his wedding, he studied for several years under Dov Ber of Mezeritch.
In 1784, he settled in Berdychiv,[5] Russian Empire, in what is today Ukraine. There, he served as rabbi until the beginning of the 19th century.[5] Nachman of Breslov called him the Peér (glory) of Israel.[6] Levi Yitzchok composed some popular Hasidic religious folk songs, including A Dude'le and "The Kaddish of Rebbe Levi Yitzchok (A din Toyre mit Gott)."
He died on the 25th of Tishrei, 5570 (October 5, 1809) and is buried in the old Jewish cemetery in Berdychiv.[7]
The second of his three sons, Israel, succeeded him as leader of the Hasidic movement.[citation needed] One of Levi Yitzchok's grandsons married the daughter of Dovber Schneuri, the second Chabad-Lubavitch rebbe and the first to live in Lubavitch.[8]
Works
Works by Levi Yitzchak
- The "supreme"[9] Hasidic classic Kedushas Levi:[10] A commentary on Torah—arranged according to the weekly Torah portion—and the Jewish holidays, expanding upon earlier Hasidic philosophy, as well as Talmud and Midrash. In it, Levi Yitzhak discusses various points of Halakha. It was published first in 1798 and has been reprinted numerous times since.[9] An English translation was first published in 2009,[11] and the first complete translation was published by Mitchell Silk in 2023.[12]
- Beis Levi:[13] his commentary on Pirkei Avos.
Secondary works
- Levi Yitzhak of Berditchev: Portrait of a Hasidic Master (Hartmore House, 1974)
- The World of A Hasidic Master: Levi Yitzhak of Berditchev (Shapolsky Publishers, 1986)
- Rav Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev (ArtScroll, 2011)
- Loving and Beloved: Tales of Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev, Defender of Israel (Menorah Books, 2016) ISBN 9781592644735
- Loving and Beloved: Tales of Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev, Defender of Israel (Toby Press, 2016) by Simcha Raz
- Sparks from Berditchov (Feldheim, 2017)
- Defender of the Faithful: The Life and Thought of Rabbi Levi Yitshak of Berdychiv (Blackwell's, 2023) by Arthur Green