The publication of the first volume of Divrei Boruch,
mussar discourses that were delivered in the Slobodka
Yeshiva in Bnei Brak, by its rosh yeshiva HaRav Boruch
Rosenberg zt'l, is doubtless a noteworthy event. These
shmuessen were presented during the years 5748-
5764/1988-2004 and were written down by the Rosh Yeshiva
himself.
HaRav Boruch Rosenberg zt'l was zocheh to
bestow the tools of profound analysis of gemora and
poskim and to convey concrete principals of Torah
knowledge to thousands of talmidim throughout the
world. He was widely recognized and esteemed as being one of
the prominent Torah disseminators in our times. The Rosh
Yeshiva's mesirus nefesh was discernible to everyone
who heard his shiurim and shmuessen. It was
apparent to all that his heart, thoughts and pureness of soul
played an active part in preparing and presenting them.
In addition, his care to always quote precise excerpts from
pesukim, sayings of Chazal, basic moral guidelines of
the Rishonim and Acharonim, and to project what he wanted to
transmit to his beloved talmidim with painstaking
exactness was unmistakable. Everything was endlessly weighed
and evaluated beforehand, and Rabbeinu never said anything
that he did not regard as being a truth that a person could
grasp intellectually and actually follow.
His words were intended not only to cleanse the souls of his
listeners; he was also teaching himself how to attain still
greater spiritual achievements. Indeed it was apparent that
the Rosh Yeshiva reached all of the lofty levels of
spirituality that were incorporated in his shmuessen,
and that element of tireless self-refinement was part and
parcel of his uniqueness.
For more than fifty years, almost from the day of his
wedding, HaRav Boruch Rosenberg was mainly occupied in
preparing shiurim on the masechtos studied in
the yeshiva, but he was also immersed in intensifying his own
yiras Hashem and improving his avodas
Hashem.
He constantly emphasized reaching a level of lishmoh,
that everything should be done only for Hashem without
ulterior motives, and that one should disregard worldly
matters entirely and set one single aim for oneself: carrying
out Hashem's will, and in that way be zocheh to
Olom Habo.
Rabbeinu was a truly self-effacing person. Although he was a
leading rosh yeshiva for so many years, he treated even those
far his stature as equals. His parents and grandparents
zt'l, who were gedolei Torah and enjoyed a
close acquaintance with the rabbonim of Brisk, were his first
mentors. Later Maran HaRav Yechezkel Levenstein, the
mashgiach of the Mirrer Yeshiva, instilled in him undeviating
emunah and bitochon, depth of tefillah
and a deep aspiration to refine his character traits.
Afterwards, when he lived in Eretz Yisroel, he became close
to the Brisker Rov, Maran the Chazon Ish, Maran HaRav Shach
and Maran HaRav Yechezkel Abramsky, all zt'l, who all
enriched him in Torah and yiras Shomayim.
In addition to his harbotzas Torah in the Slobodka
Yeshiva of Eretz Yisroel for more than fifty years, he also
delivered mussar shmuessen in the yeshiva after the
petiroh of the Yeshiva's mashgiach HaRav Moshe
Tikoczinsky in 5748. These shmuessen revealed his
marvelous competence also in this vast Torah discipline.
Rabbeinu would not only repeat what he read or heard. He
would be mechadesh in yiras Hashem and would
disclose new and profound explanations and clarifications of
sayings of Chazal in the same way that he did in his
shiurim on gemora. Just like he was a rosh
yeshiva in Torah, so was he a rosh yeshiva in mussar
and yiras Shomayim.
He once mentioned that the effort he put into his
mussar discourses was even greater than for his
regular shiurim. Gedolei Torah advised his son
HaRav Avrohom Rosenberg, an eminent Torah scholar of Bnei
Brak, to publish his father's discourses. His son left the
text of his father's discourses with almost no changes or
revisions, but added useful references and a detailed index
arranged according to Tanach, Gemoras, Rishonim and
Acharonim.
Anyone who peruses this marvelous sefer will quickly
realize that such a wealth of pure hashkofos has not
appeared in print for many decades. This is a mussar
sefer that presents shiurim on mussar in the same
manner as shiurim on gemora: by presenting a
yesod and giving a teirutz that resolves all
the difficulties that were raised.
The first printing of Divrei Boruch was quickly sold
out. We hope that we will be zoche to the publication
of the rest of the Rosh Yeshiva's shmuessen and
shiurim. This inestimable treasure will unquestionably
benefit the Torah World in Eretz Yisroel and everywhere
else.
Divrei Boruch can be purchased in Eretz Yisroel from
Sifrei Or HaChaim, 03-5799052; in the UK at Lehmann, 191-4300-
333; and in the USA from Moznaim, 718-438-7680.
