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Eretz Yisroel is Acquired Through Yisurim
We are in the midst of that period of the year which has been
historically difficult for our people. Below, we focus on a
space of suffering, a trying period for the residents of
Eretz Yisroel two centuries ago. While the suffering spans
months and years, in reading about it, we are able to
empathize in general with the hardships that often
accompanies settling in Eretz Yisroel, and makes living here
all the more precious and well earned.
Familiar with the street name in Har Nof, Mishkelov? That is
a corruption of Mi-Shklov; it is named after the famous R'
Yisroel from the city of Shklov in Europe, disciple of the
Vilna Gaon. He came to settle with his family and lived both
in Tzefat and Yerusholayim. In his famous work, Pe'as
Hashulchon, which deals with the mitzvos related to the
Holy Land, he mentions his personal tribulations spanning the
years 1813- 1825:
"And so, it is my obligation, as well, to mention the
suffering and troubles which I underwent, those sufferings
which one can expect in relation to settling in Eretz
Yisroel, as it is written, `Hashem did afflict me sorely...
but did not give me over to death.'
"And it happened in the year 5573... that I came in the midst
of a time of troubles and epidemic in the holy Galilee... And
people became like fish in water, and fled in numbers to the
deserts and the forests in organized groups. My family and I
also traveled to the holy city of Yerusholayim, but along the
way, the mainstay of my home, my modest, refined wife of my
youth, the G-d-fearing Henya, passed away, on the fifth of
Sivan. I buried her in the town of Shfaram.
"When I finally arrived with the rest of the family in
Yerusholayim, I also encountered fear, terror, darkness, and
death stalking the windows. My children left me bereft, never
to return. Endeared sons, my heart's favorites. The plague
first claimed my son-in-law, Yoel ben Yeidel, at the age of
seventeen. This tragedy was followed by the death of my pure
and humble daughter, Leah... who left behind a nursing
infant, my beloved grandson, who became the scholarly R'
Elyokim, my precious one. I suffered greatly in raising him
to the age of twenty, when he, too, was taken from me on
motzoei Shvi'is, 5594... Next to depart was my beloved
son and my cherished daughter... and then another favorite
son of pure intellect... And then I heard the evil tidings
from the district of Vilna, Lithuania, that my father and
master, R' Shmuel zt'l, had passed away, as well as my
nurturer and upbringer, my mother, the righteous Malka.
"I felt like one lying in a sea of flames, with my dear ones
so distant from me. I went up to the roof and lay there,
weeping, writhing, praying fervently to Hashem. At this very
time, my young daughter, Sheindel, was ailing critically,
stricken severely, and the tears would not leave my
cheeks...
"Meanwhile, in the Galilee, flocks and flocks of people were
falling away, men of truth, esteemed scholars and members of
our group. Then I made a vow, saying, `If Hashem bestows His
kindness on me and restores me to the ranks of the living, I
will toil to produce a master work on the Order of Zeroim,
Talmud Yerushalmi according to the teachings of my
saintly master, Rabbenu Hechossid Hagaon [of Vilna]
ztzvk'l, whom I was privileged to attend before his
death.'
"And lo, in the very midst of a bout of profuse, exhausting
weeping, I fell into a deep sleep. It seemed to me as if
someone came to me and gently tapped me, rousing me from my
sleep, like one who just wakes up. And he said to me, `You
have been afflicted, but you will be healed.' And from that
moment on, I felt the loving-kindness enveloping me and
saving me and my aforementioned daughter. (She later married
the famous R' Yeshaya Bardaki, a noted esteemed personality
in the annals of Jerusalem history.) Providence also found me
another wife, Yuta Beila, may she live and be well...
"The plague recurred in 5574... Afterwards, I became burdened
with the heavy responsibilities of my holy people, members of
our kollel, with conducting and supporting them. I had
to tend to their various material needs and guide their study
regimen. I suffered greatly from persecution by the gentiles,
the people in power, who closed off the city of Acco (during
the battles of revolution) and cast me into prison, in the
harsh conditions of captivity. I suffered the terrors of
death, but Hashem the Merciful rescued me from all of these
dangers.
"After this, in Adar 5585, there was a terrible landslide and
collapse of the houses in Tzefas, as a result of heavy rains
and fierce storms. Many homes caved in, as did my own home,
on the thirteenth of Adar. My entire family and my neighbors
were inside our respective homes at the time of the cave-in,
but thanks to Hashem, we were miraculously spared..."
R' Yisroel concludes that he saw in this event the hand of
Providence urging him to proceed with speed and complete his
work. We see that his monumental work was indeed published in
Tzefas in 5596, a year before the great earthquake. But his
sufferings were not yet over. The devastating earthquake
buried all of the printed copies in the rubble and he lost
all of his money and his prospects of selling his works
abroad.
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