Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum – the "Yismach Moshe"

Rabbi Moshe bar Tzvi-Hirsh Teitelbaum – "Yismach Moshe" (1759-1841) — founder of the Sighet-Satmar dynasty, spiritual leader of Hungarian Chassidim. Yahrzeit – 28 Tammuz Burial place – Ihel - Hungary, Sátoraljaújhely (Sátoraljaújhely Jewish Cemetery); Address – Sátoraljaújhely, Pataki u. 2, 3980 Hungary; Rabbi Moshe was born in Galicia to Rabbi Tzvi Hirsh and Chana. He studied Torah under his uncle, Rabbi Yosef of Kolbasov, and Rabbi Aryeh Yehuda HaLevi of Strizov. At the age of 25, Rabbi Teitelbaum was appointed Rabbi of Sieniawa in Galicia, and later became Rabbi of Ihel in Hungary. Already at a mature age, he studied under outstanding Chassidic sages — the Maggid of Kozhnitz, the Chozeh of Lublin, and Rabbi Avraham Yehoshua of Apta. Tradition tells that Rabbi Moshe joined the Chassidic movement because of his son-in-law, who had become a disciple of the Chozeh of Lublin. In response to Rabbi Moshe's reproaches, the son-in-law agreed to abandon the Chassidic path of service — but only if Rabbi Moshe would visit the Chozeh's "court" together with him. "If, even after meeting the Chozeh, you remain of your own opinion, I will carry out your wish immediately," the son-in-law promised. However, upon visiting Lublin, Rabbi Moshe himself became a devoted disciple of the great tzadik (Gedolei HaDorot). According to Leopold Löw, he signed his name "Tamar," which is the equivalent of Teitelbaum, meaning "palm tree" in Yiddish. A follower of the Polish Chassidic Rebbe, the Chozeh of Lublin, as well as of Rabbi Shalom Rokeach of Belz, Rabbi Teitelbaum played an important role in spreading Chassidic Judaism throughout Hungary. The title of his main work "Yismach Moshe" is taken from the fourth blessing of the Shacharit Amidah for Shabbat: "Yismach Moshe bematanat chelko" (Moshe rejoiced in the portion granted to him). "Yismach Moshe" first served as rabbi in Przemyślany, and then in Ihel, where he was called in 1808. In Ihel he established a Chassidic community that was independent of the Galician leaders. In 1822 he was suspected of supplying amulets to certain Jewish criminals imprisoned for slander, to help them escape. When he was called to justify himself, he stated that the amulets in question served merely as a substitute for a mezuzah, and that their sole purpose was to protect their owners from demons. Teitelbaum enjoyed an enviable reputation, and even Rabbi Moshe Sofer paid him tribute. His descendants became leaders of the Sighet and Satmar communities, known as the Satmar Chassidim, and his name "Moshe" inspired the series of books "Vayoel Moshe," written by his descendant, the Rebbe Yoel Teitelbaum of Satmar. It is said that he identified his three previous gilgulim (reincarnations), stating that in his first gilgul he was a sheep in the flock of Yaakov Avinu, in his second incarnation he lived in the time of Moshe Rabbeinu, and in his third incarnation he lived at the time of the destruction of the First Temple. Out of humility he did not reveal the nature of the third incarnation, but his followers asked another Rebbe, who identified it as the prophet Yirmiyahu. As for the first gilgul, he taught his followers a song that, he said, Yaakov used to sing while shepherding his flock. This is the song "Yankel hut eine kleine Lamm." Once he was studying Parashat Korach with his grandson, the Yetev Lev (Rav Zalman Leib Teitelbaum of Sighet), and the Yetev Lev remarked that he could not understand Korach, who rebelled against Moshe. At that moment the "Yismach Moshe" cautioned him, saying that we do not understand the greatness of Korach. In fact, the "Yismach Moshe" added, he himself had been a gilgul from the "Dor HaMidbar" (generation of the desert) and had not been certain which of the two greatest men of that generation to follow. His grandson then asked him: "If so, what did you do, and how did you save yourself?" The "Yismach Moshe" answered: "My child, you cannot imagine what an esteemed man Korach was. He was held in great regard by many important people and had many followers. And on the other side stood the holy leader Moshe Rabbeinu! I decided that the best way to deal with such division was to stay out of it. Throughout the entire dispute, until Moshe and his brother Aharon the Kohen Gadol were confirmed as leaders, I remained in my tent. I did not go out even once. And you, my dear grandson, must do the same. Learn this lesson for life: when there is division, stay away. Lock yourself in your house if necessary, so that you are not forced to join one side or the other!" His followers taught about his previous gilgul as Yirmiyahu and how this affected his present life. In his final days he yearned so deeply for the coming of Mashiach and the rebuilding of the Temple that he wore his Shabbat clothing throughout the week, awaiting Mashiach's arrival. Rabbi Moshe headed the community of the Hungarian town of Ihel. He was the universally recognized spiritual leader of all the Chassidic communities of Hungary — thousands of Chassidim came to him for blessing and guidance. His analytical notes on Scripture and the aggadot (narratives) of the Talmud were gathered into the book Yismach Moshe (Moshe Will Rejoice), which achieved wide popularity. This book contains profound spiritual insights he received in dreams. The book "Tefilah LeMoshe" (Prayer of Moshe) contains his commentaries on Tehillim (Psalms of David). His numerous responsa and halachic rulings are collected in the volume Eshiv Moshe (Moshe Answered). His great-great-grandson was one of the spiritual leaders of American Jewry, Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum (the Satmar Rebbe). Among his students were: his son Rabbi Elazar Nissan, Rabbi Yoel Ashkenazi, author of "Melo HaRoim," Rabbi Menachem Mendel Panet of Dej, and Rabbi Tzvi Hirsh of Liska. Rabbi Teitelbaum passed away on 28 Tammuz 5601 (1841) and is buried beside his wife.   Sipurei Tzadikim - Joy and Sorrow When the Yismach Moshe was studying the ways of Chassidism, the Chassidic custom of always being joyful puzzled him. After all, in Rebbe Moshe Teitelbaum's own Code of Jewish Law, "Satmer 219," it is explicitly written: "It befits every God-fearing person to grieve and be troubled in his heart over the destruction of the Holy Temple!" Before one of his journeys to his mentor, the Chozeh of Lublin, the Yismach Moshe prayed to G-d: "You know my thoughts and the depths of my heart... Help me, so that when I come to the holy tzadik, he will answer my question." When he entered the Chozeh's room, the latter immediately said to him: "Why do you look so weak today? True, it is written in the Code of Jewish Law that 'it befits every God-fearing person...' But the sage (in 'Duties of the Heart' by Rabbi Bachya ibn Pakuda, 1050-1120) already said: 'Rejoicing is on my face and mourning is in my heart'"… speaking of G-d Himself, as in the words of Jeremiah: 'And if you will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret (mistarim) for your pride, and my eyes shall weep bitterly and run down with tears, because the L-rd's flock has been taken captive.' In the Talmud (Chagigah 5:2), the sages explain this verse as follows: 'The Holy One, Blessed be He, has a place called mistarim ("secret," as in the verse above) [and it is there that He weeps]. What does "for your pride" mean? Rabbi Shmuel bar Yitzchak said: for the pride of Israel, which was taken from them and given to the nations. Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman said it refers to the pride of the Kingdom of Heaven. And is there weeping before the Holy One, Blessed be He? Rabbi Papa said there is no sorrow before the Holy One, Blessed be He, as it is said: "Majesty and splendor are before Him, strength and delightful joy are in His place!" This is not a difficulty — one place refers to His inner chambers, and the other to His outer chambers.' In G-d's inner chambers, in the secret place called "mistarim," He, as it were, enters His own inner self and weeps over the destruction of the Temple and the humbled state of His beloved children. But outwardly, where He reveals Himself to His creations, He shows a smiling face of "strength and delightful joy." This corresponds to the description of the Chassid who has "rejoicing on his face and mourning in his heart." Outwardly he fulfills the commandment: "Serve G-d with joy" (Psalms 100:2), and as a true "joyful Chassid" he never for a moment sinks into lethargy or laziness. Yet inside, his heart is broken. In the sanctuary of his soul he weeps bitterly over all his own shortcomings and over the sorrow of the Shechinah. Rather than feel the full depth of exile, he is overcome with mourning. (The Hebrew word for "exile" — "galut" — has the same numerical value as "avelut," meaning "mourning.") Such a Chassid is a fitting "vessel" for the revelation of the secrets of the Torah. His "heart was troubled within him," yet "rejoicing was upon his face." Nevertheless, we might still think that there is a kind of "division of labor": the joy is only outward, while in truth, in the deepest recesses of the soul, the heart is irreparably broken, without a drop of joy. Is that the true state of affairs? Is all this joy nothing more than an act? Is serving G-d with joy not itself true and sincere? The Chozeh of Lublin continued: "Believe me, I recite the Midnight Lament with tears and sorrow. And yet, all of it is done with joy. This is exactly what our holy Rabbi, Rabbi Shmelke of Nikolsburg, taught us. There is a parable of a king who was taken captive and exiled to a distant land. The king rested after his long journey in the house of one of his loving subjects. When the subject saw the king in captivity, he wept uncontrollably. Nevertheless, he was happy that the king had remained with him. And the moral of this story is clear, for the Shechinah is with us…" These words of the Seer completely calmed his disciple, who from then on clung to his holy rabbi. (Perhaps this is why he was called "Yismach Moshe," meaning "Moshe will rejoice," after he merited to learn the secret of joy.) This secret is recorded in the holy Zohar: "On one side of the heart there is sorrow and anxiety, and on the other, vigor and delightful joy, happiness and rejoicing. Both exist in the heart at the same time." May the merit of the tzadik protect our people!   (From a trip to Kivrei Tzadikim with Yeshiva "Yodei Bina" to Hungary, Poland, Slovenia; https://inner.org/rebbe-moshe-teitelbaum-of-satmer-happiness-and-sadness-simultaneously-in-the-heart/; https://dailyzohar.com/tzadikim/865-Rabbi-Moshe-Teitelbaum)