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Today is the Yartzeit of the Kotzker Rebbe ZY”A. He was known for his short and sharp comments that went right to the heart of the matter. One example: There is a minhag not to eat an egoz (type of nut) on Rosh Hashana because egoz is the same gematria as cheit. So the Kotzker said “cheit is also gematria cheit”. If anyone knows any Torah of the Kotzker please post here. It will be L’iluy Nishmaso and a zechus for all of us.
“Hashem lives wherever you let him in”.
Poshut a Gemorah/Halacha regarding “Komah Zekufa”.
“If I am I because I am I – and you are you because you are you, then I am I and you are you. But if I am I because you are you, and you are you because I am I, then I am not I and you are not you.”
I think it was the Kotzker who once said “Litvaks serve the Shulchan Aruch. Chasidim serve G-d.”
“What Yisro heard, others heard as well.But there are those who hear but do not listen,since the words don’t penetrate their ears,hearts,and minds. Yisro’s attribute was that he heard and he knew what he heard!”
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.They must be felt with the heart.”
“some people say they have seen the ushpizin.I don’t see them,but I believe they are in my sukkah.And believing is greater than seeing!”(Torah Tavlin)
optimusprime: Wasn’t it: “chaasidim fear Hashem and litvaks fear the Shulchan Aruch” I have seen this before too.
From Revach.net
Rav Menachem Mendel of Kotzk: A Chassidic Renaissance?
His whole life he waged a war for the truth. The external and internal truth. This was the essence of Rav Menachem Mendel Morgenstern better known as the Kotzker Rebbe. The word Kotzk has become synonymous with a burning and piercing kind of truth. A truth so hot it singes anyone who dares to delve deep enough to uncover it.
The Kotzker was born in 5547/1787 and lived at a time when Chasiddus was making great inroads into the mainstream of Jewish society. He felt that Chasiddus needed to be tuned up by correcting some of its basic flaws. Chasiddus had become too Chassidishe for him. He wanted to restore torah as the focal point of all Avodas Hashem and get people to become more self reliant and not subjugate their God given minds to the Rebbe. A person, he felt, needed to take responsibility for his life, his ways, and develop his own personal relationship with Hashem.
He left no seforim, no tales of miracles, and no biography. He did not seek honor, fortune, or fame. He sought to raise Chasiddus to a movement for the elite. He longed to metamorphis Chasiddus into a movement with truly inspired Avodas Hashem and intense Torah learning as its cornerstone. His lone legacy is his short sharp sayings that he became famous for, to the world outside of Kotzk.
When the Kotzker was asked why he does not want to write a sefer he said that in Kotzk they work hard all week. The only time to read his sefer would be Friday night after the meal. Then however a person is tired from the entire week and will lay down on the couch with it. He will shortly thereafter fall asleep without reading anything and the sefer will fall on the floor. So why should I write a sefer whose only use will be to lie on the floor in shame? Such was the Kotzker truth.
He was born into a family of a Misnagdim and eventually became a talmid of the Chozeh of Lublin and then later leaving Lublin for Peshischa where he became a Talmid of Rav Simcha Bunim of Peshischa. After Rav Simcha Bunim’s petira most of his talmidim who were peers of Rav Menachem Mendel, including the Chiddushei HaRim the founder of the Gerer dynasty, chose to follow Rav Menachem Mendel and make him their leader. His other main talmid was Rav Mordechai Yosef Leiner who eventually broke away and founded the Izhbetza Chasiddus. Rav Laibele Eiger, the grandson of Rebbi Akiva Eiger, was also attracted to Kotzk much to his father’s great dismay. The Kotzker’s son in law was the Avnei Neizer and he was succeeded by his son Rav Dovid.
The Kotzker was niftar in 5619/1859. He spent the last 20 years of his life in seclusion frustrated by his inability to create the flock of his ideals while refusing to play the role of the ideal Rebbe as the Chasidim wished.Yehi Zichro Boruch!
“some people say they have seen the ushpizin.I don’t see them,but I believe they are in my sukkah.And believing is greater than seeing!”(Torah Tavlin) “
This is so interesting – it was the exact story I was going to tell over. But I heard a slightly different version from a Rov giving over a shiur. His version was that R’ Mendel was giving a shiur and suddenly asked his talmidim, Who here believes that the Ushpizin come to their sukkah?” All the hands went up. He then said, “Well, I do NOT believe it!” Everyone looked around, dismayed and confused. “I do not BELIEVE it,” he went on to say, “because when I am sitting in my sukkah, I KNOW they are there. I can feel them all around me!”
Whatever version is the accurate one, that story has had a profound impact on me even to this day. The Kotzker Rov ZT”L was a gevaldig man, and his neshama should have an aliyah today.
Litvaks serve the Shulchan Aruch. Chasidim serve G-d.
chaasidim fear Hashem and litvaks fear the Shulchan Aruch
Although these lines from the first glance seem like they are mocking Litvaks, I think it sounds like he is just reiterating one of the original machlokesin between litvaks and chassidim. Namely if “lishma” means “lishem HaShem” or “lishem HaTorah”.
I thought it said “holly Klotzer”, then I opened the thread to read it and it’s about a REBBE!!!! oy yoy yoy yoy yoy!!! LOL!!!
longarekel
Member
“Today is the Yartzeit of the Kotzker Rebbe ZY”A”
Interesting to note that His Yartziet is a day after Rebetzin Chaya Mushka, (THE lubavitcher Rebbe’s Wife).
the kotzker rebba used to seclude himself in his room for hours on end just learning. once, a talmid wanted to see him (i think this is how the story goes but eitherway, its the punchline that matters) so he went right outside and listened through an open window… a few minutes in without even looking up, the rebbe said “farmacht de fensters, dem velt shtenk” close the windows, the world stinks.
more,
“Interesting to note that His Yartziet is a day after Rebetzin Chaya Mushka, (THE lubavitcher Rebbe’s Wife).”
how is this interesting? (and relevant?)
He said that R’ Yehuda HaChassid should have written the Aseres Hadibros in his tzava’a.
when I saw HOLY KOTZKER, I thought it was another yiddish swearword!
chaim aruchim to any descendants reading this
yitzchokm
‘how is this interesting? (and relevant?)’- Why are you being critical?
“when I saw HOLY KOTZKER, I thought it was another yiddish swearword!”
it’s sounds like holy cow! LOL!!! aside for the fact that they don’t serve coffee in India…..LOL
more,
critical?
Im trying to understand your “train of thought”.
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