Yahrzeit/Hillula of Rabbi Shmuel Darzi - Rosh Yeshiva

Rabbi Shmuel ben Yitzchak Darzi (1922 - 2006) was a Gaon, Rosh Yeshiva, kabbalist, mohel, and one of the pillars of Kabbalah. He drew many hearts closer to our Father in Heaven. He secretly helped many people and arranged marriages for many orphans. He lived in Kiryat Shaul for about 84 years.

His rabbis were Rabbi Yosef Rabia, Chacham Sasson Mizrachi, Chacham Efraim HaCohen, and Rabbi Yehuda Fetaya.

His Torah study partners (chavrutas) were Chacham Salman Mutzafi, Rabbi Yaakov Mutzafi, Rabbi Yehuda Tzadka, Rabbi Yitzchak Kaduri, and Rav Sasson Levi - each name a symbol of unique holiness.

At the start of his career he worked in a wholesale market in Iraq, later rising from bookkeeper to a position in the Iraqi Ministry of Finance. Following the events that took place in Baghdad, his parents established a yeshiva and synagogue in their home, from which Torah was disseminated. In 1950, at the age of 28, he immigrated to Israel via Persia, despite pressure and tempting offers to remain in Iraq. In 1953 he married Latifa Yaffe, and together they had five sons and two daughters.

He would listen to the kabbalist Rabbi Yehuda Fetaya even while sitting on a windowsill, and at a young age he served as an attendant to the sages of Babylon, among them the sage Rabbi Nissim Kaduri. At the age of 15, he joined the study circle of Gaon Yosef Rabia and Chacham Sasson Mizrachi, through whom he became acquainted with the wisdom of Kabbalah.

For 7 years he studied every Shabbat with the son of Chacham Efraim HaCohen, studied with Rabbi Chaim Sofian from Monday night through Friday at the "Tveeg" synagogue, and studied with Rabbi Yaakov Mutzafi at the "Shemesh Tzedaka" synagogue. He was also chavruta with Rabbi Yehuda Tzadka for many years.

For 21 years he studied under Rabbi Yitzchak Kaduri at the "Dor Yesharim" yeshiva.

In his youth he studied at the "Bnei Tzion" seminary in Baghdad, in a building that the kabbalist, Gaon and Chacham Rabbi Salman Mutzafi had designated for the yeshiva. It was there in the Beit Midrash that they met. When Rabbi Salman Mutzafi was appointed head of the yeshiva, Rabbi Shmuel Darzi began giving shiurim.

Witnesses recounted that once, until morning, in the presence of about 100 students, after the Tikkun Chatzot prayer, Rav Darzi gave an extraordinary lesson. Those present later testified that every night they could feel the Temple being destroyed.

His son, Chacham Yitzchak Darzi, related that whenever his father woke up at night, at any hour, he would immediately get up quickly to serve G-d, saying: "A person wakes up at night, but it is a sign from Heaven that G-d is waiting for his Torah study and his prayer, and it is possible that at that very moment he is saving the entire world."

Rav Darzi was the first to publish the Kavanot of the Rashash.

Once, while the rabbi was in the middle of praying, a mentally unstable man entered the synagogue and began to beat him violently. The rabbi did not notice at all, because he was completely absorbed in prayer. After the prayer he innocently asked, "What was that noise here?" He did not ask about the beating at all, because he had not even felt that he was struck.

For 40 years he went regularly to the Western Wall every single day, regardless of the summer heat or the winter cold - even during snowstorms, when reaching it required tremendous effort.

Ruach HaKodesh

Once, on his way back from praying at the Western Wall, he, as usual, told the driver to stop, and immediately pointed to a taxi across the way, saying firmly: "Know that there are terrorists in that taxi, on their way to carry out an attack in Jerusalem."

His students, knowing of the Rav's Ruach HaKodesh, immediately called the police and reported that there were terrorists in the taxi. The police found explosives and prevented a major terrorist attack.