Rav Chaim Meir Hager zt"l
הרב חיים מאיר בן ישראל הגר זצ"ל
Nissan 9 , 5732
Rav Chaim Meir Hager zt"l
Rav Chaim Meir was born on 15 Kislev 5648/1888, the son of Rav Yisrael Hager of Vizhnitz, also known as Ahavas Yisrael.
He became the son-in-law of Rav Zev Twerski of Rachumstrivka, descended from the Czernobyl dynasty.
Rav Chaim Meir was his father’s right-hand man from a young age and they were inseparable. Even after his marriage, when he lived in Rachumstrivka, he often visited his father and eventually the Rebbetzin followed him and they returned to live near the Ahavas Yisrael. His father greatly loved and admired him, calling him a Ba’al Shem Tov’s Yid.
He received semicha from Rav Sholom Mordechai Shwadron, the Maharsham of Brezhan.
He was appointed Rav of Vilchovitch in Marmorosh. Even during this tenure he spent more time with his father than he did in his own city. Nonetheless, he was a successful, bright and smart Rav, whose intelligence led him to establish many successful takonos.
In 5695 he visited Eretz Yisrael along with his brothers, Rav Eliezer of Vizhnitz and Rav Boruch of Seret. They visited many places and he returned with a positive feeling. After his father’s petira in 5696 he became his chief successor. He settled in Grossvardein, where his father had lived and had run his Chassidic court and Bais Medrash. In 5700 his Bais Medrash became a center for refugees fleeing Poland, and all were welcomed, despite the dangers.
Eventually, he went underground and when Grossvardein became too dangerous he fled to Rumania, eventually reaching Arad and Bucharest, where he remained until Grossvardein was liberated and the war ended.
He spent the post-war period reviving, rejuvenating and strengthening his downtrodden brethren and the refugees and survivors, warming their hearts and encouraging them to return to Chassidus and to spread Yiddishkeit from town to town and from city to city.
He decided to move to Eretz Yisrael and traveled from Czechoslovakia to Belgium and England. He arrived in 5708 and established Vizhnitz on the soil of the Holy Land. His brother Rav Eliezer was niftar in Elul 5706. Rav Chaim Meir opened his Bais Medrash in Tel Aviv. Eventually, he established the first Chassidic enclave in Bnei Brak, reopened the Vizhnitzer Yeshiva and began to reestablish Vizhnitz and Chassidic life in post-war Eretz Yisrael.
Rav Chaim Meir was succeeded by his son Rav Moshe Yehoshua, the Yeshuos Moshe. His other son, Rav Mordechai, moved to Monsey and established the Vizhnitz Monsey court.
His daughters were: Hinda, wife of Rav Naftoli Adler, the Rav of Vizhnitz, Netania; Sheva Berocha, the wife of Rav Moshe Ernster, the Rav of Vizhnitz, Tzefas and Bnei Brak; and Tzipora, wife of Rav Yisrael Friedman.
His eldest daughter was married first to Rav Yehuda Horowitz of Dzhikov and then to Rav Yehoshua Greenwald of Chust. After his petira, she married Rav Yitzchok Yaakov Weiss of the Eida Chareidis.
His seforim include: Imrei Chaim on the Parsha and Moadim, as well as Mayim Chaim on Tanach.
Stories of Rav Chaim Meir Hager zt"l
In his younger years, Rav Eliezer sat and studied together with his older brother, the Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz, and their exertion in Torah study was legendary. For two years, the brothers were so engrossed in their studies that they didn’t sleep in a bed. Except for Shabbos, they didn’t even change their clothes from week to week. When they needed a short rest from learning, they simply lay their heads down where they were, while fully dressed – and thus they could use the entire night for Toras Hashem!
Whenever an opportunity presented itself, the Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz would retell this story about Rav Raphael of Bershad's amazing control over his middos. Once after his tisch (the chassidic Shabbos banquet over which the rebbe presides), he shared song, stories, and words of Torah with his devoted chassidim for a remarkable seven hours. The Imrei Chaim, exhausted and weak after the long tisch, walked home in the cold and rain. He arrived at home only to discover that his attendant who had the keys, was nowhere to be found! While waiting a wearisome stretch of time for his gabbai to show up, the Imrei Chaim related this story:
For many years, Rav Raphael of Bershad had a burning desire to acquire pure white wool from the Holy Land to fashion a resplendent, mehadrin tallis katan and tzitzis that would be, befitting such a precious mitzvah.
After great effort, he finally obtained the exclusive wool from Eretz Yisroel! Elated, he passed the wool on to one of his chassidim urging him to take extra special care of the wool and to make with it a tallis katan and tzitzis. The chassid, who realized the great lengths the Rebbe had gone to procure the wool and the importance of his mission, approached the task with great care. All his good intentions and caution notwithstanding, he accidentally folded the tallis katan over twice, so that when he cut the hole in the middle to create the opening for the head, he ended up with two holes instead of one! When he unfolded the garment and held open the tallis katan, instead of one opening for the head, there were now two!
With trepidation he brought the ruined garment before his Rebbe. Rav Raphael had been waiting with great anticipation to see the culmination of his efforts and to fulfill this mitzvah b’hiddur. When the chassid entered the room, the rebbe noticed how crestfallen he looked.
“What is it? What is wrong?” the rebbe asked, beckoning the chassid to come near.
The chassid held out ruined garment ashamedly. He couldn’t lift his eyes to meet the rebbe’s as he waited for the rebbe's anger and disappointment to cascade over him.
What he heard instead was Rav Raphael's delighted voice:
“Why off course this garment needed two holes! Yes, yes, exactly-- one hole just as any tallis katan has for the head; and another hole to teach Raphael to suppress and contain his emotions and not be angry.”
When he concluded the tale, the Imrei Chaim said with great emotion, “Kodesh kadashim! Holy of Holies! From where can we learn such lofty behavior?! This story shakes me up and excites me much, much more than any miraculous tales you could tell me about the tzadik!”
The Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz once heard a beautiful niggun from a chazzan, which prompted his telling the following story:
“Rav Mordechai once passed by a shul and out of the windows, wafted the most delightful and soulful melody. He remarked, ‘Master of the World – Ribono Shel Olam! If only I had such a voice--I would sing and praise You unceasingly with sweet melodies!”
His prayers were accepted on High and from then on, that chazzan lost his voice and Rav Mordechai became the famed Zaslover Chazzan with a remarkable voice, full of power and strength.”
The Imrei Chaim concluded: “If you can use such a sweet voice for avodas Hashem - isn’t that wonderful?”
The Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz once participated in a vacht nacht (a seudah conducted in order to provide protection a baby boy the night before the bris milah, during which, divrei Torah and keriyas Shema are recited). After all those who were present recited keriyas Shema as is customary, the rebbe told over the following:
Rav Pinchos of Koretz once approached Rav Mordechai, the chazzan of Zaslov, and asked him, “You perform at many simchas and recite Shema at many vacht nachts. Tell me, why do we recite keriyas Shema on the night before the bris?”
The chazzan said to Rav Pinchos as follows: “Chazal ask (Berachos 13a) ‘Why does the parsha of Shema precede the parsha of V’haya im shmoa?’
And they answer: ‘Because first, we accept upon ourselves the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven - and only afterwards the yoke of the mitzvos.’
Based on this, we can explain the custom just fine. Since this baby will enter into the yoke of the covenant of mitzvos tomorrow, we need to first accept upon ourselves the yoke of G-d’s Kingship; so, we accept Ol Malchus Shomayim first by reciting Shema on the night before the bris.”
Rav Chaim Meir, the Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz, was very close with his uncle, the Ateres Yeshua of Dzikov, and would often recount stories and teachings from his uncle:
One time, the Imrei Chaim noticed a very arrogant person whose self-satisfied smirk attested to his vanity.
“You think too much of yourself and regard yourself too highly!” the Imrei Chaim berated him. “If you were in the beis medrash of my uncle, the Ateres Yeshua, he wouldn’t even be able to look at you. He so hated ba’alei gaava (arrogant people) that he simply couldn’t spare them a glance without shivering from repulsion. My uncle used to say, “I am waiting and wishing that the winter would pass already, because during the winter all the ba’alei batim are bundled up in fancy coats with fur-lined and velvet collars turned up against the frost. But when they enter the shul and beis medrash, they leave them on so as to feel important– their arrogance knows no bounds!”
Rav Chaim Meir, the Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz, was very close with his uncle, the Ateres Yeshua of Dzikov, and would often recount stories and teachings from his uncle:
The Ateres Yeshua once observed two people having the following conversation. One said to the other, “Why do you allow your son to play with such unwholesome friends?”
“Ah, it’s not so bad!” said the other. “Why are you making such a fuss and a big deal over nothing? He is just a little boy!”
The holy Dzikover turned to the astonished man and remarked, “How do you know that he is just a little boy? Maybe he is an eighty-year-old man who has come back to this world to rectify through tikkun whatever he ruined in a previous gilgul?”
The holy Dzikover turned to the astonished man and remarked, “How do you know that he is just a little boy? Maybe he is an eighty-year-old man who has come back to this world to rectify through tikkun whatever he ruined in a previous gilgul?”
Rav Chaim Meir, the Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz, was very close with his uncle, the Ateres Yeshua of Dzikov, and would often recount stories and teachings from his uncle:
Rav Chaim Meir of Vizhnitz once told the following tale before Kol Nidrei:
“I heard from my holy uncle, the Ateres Yeshua of Dzikov, in the name of the advocate of the Jewish people, the holy Berditchever Rav, Sanegoran Shel Yisroel, who said. “Master of the World! -- Ribbono Shel Olam,” You have a Jewish parliament made up of the sages of Klal Yisroel of that generation. You are required by Your own laws of Torah to ask their permission before You decide to decree anything harsh. If You wish to give them shefa and beracha--bounty and blessings, then You need not seek their approval beforehand. However, if You wish to act, heaven forbid, in a harsh manner with harsh judgments then You cannot do so without their agreement!
This is how the Berditchever explained the verses, Devarim 4:35, “Ata haresa l’daas ki Hashem Hu haElokim, ayn od milvado.” The particular name for Hashem, “Elokim,” alludes to harsh judgements. Therefore, it reads: If You wish to act harshly (with midas hadin hinted at by Elokim) – then “ayn od milvado (You are acting alone) and the parliament does not agree; You cannot decree so without asking them first!”
“For example,” said The Imrei Chaim interrupting his own tale, “You would have to ask the holy Berditchever who always sought the best and advocated on behalf of Klal Yisroel, or my holy father the Ahavas Yisroel of Vizhnitz--You need to ask their advice and have them agree.”
The Imrei Chaim then continued the Berditsheve's peirush: “However (Tehillim 136:4) ‘L’oseh niflaos gedolos l’vado ki l’olam chasdo,’- If Hashem, You wish to do great wonders for us and send us shefa and chassadim (bounty of blessings and kindness) -‘l’vado,’ - You can do so all on Your own.”
Rav Chaim Meir Hagar author of Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz once told his chassidim on the occasion of the Czernobler's Yahrzeit, that the Meor Eynaim, SeMacht Lichtig Der Oigen – It enlightens the eyes! He once told the following story:
During one of the Meor Eynaim's many travels he stayed at a Jewish inn and spent the night. The innkeeper and his wife were simple Jews and when the Czernobler began to recite the Tikkun Chatzos prayers and when the sounds of his loud sighs, moans and crying reached the ears of his hosts they were startled.
“Surely our guest is not feeling well,” declared the innkeeper's wife. “Please go and see to him.”
The innkeeper went downstairs with a candle in hand, and as it cast its light in the darkness he was startled to hear the moaning, groaning, sighing and crying continue to come from the guest room. He knocked and opened the door apologizing, “I am sorry to disturb you, but I overheard your pain, are you not feeling well, how can we help you?”
The Rebbe turned to his host and explained, “Thank G-d I am Baruch Hashem feeling fine, however I was just reciting Tikkun Chatzos.” “Hmmm. . .Tikkun Chatzos?” asked the puzzled innkeeper scratching his head and pulling at his beard, “what's that?” “It is the prayer recited over the destruction of our holy temple, the Beis Hamikdash,” explained the Rebbe patiently. “What is the Beis Hamikdash?” asked the innkeeper. The Czernobler proceeded to explain how all the Jews once dwelled in the holy land, and how Hashem had commanded them to build a temple, and how they had worshipped there before it was destroyed due to our many sins and we were dispersed in the exile. “And soon,” explained the Rebbe with a note of yearning and longing, “Moshiach will come and gather us all in from the exile, bring us back up to Eretz Yisroel, surely you anticipate his coming any day as we all do?”
At this query the simple innkeeper grew even more perplexed, “Hmmm. . .I am not sure. Let me go and ask my wife.” He went back upstairs, told his wife about their guest’s special prayers of the temple, explained to her what he had said and asked her opinion on the matter. “Go and tell our guest,” said the innkeeper's wife, “that we have Baruch Hashem saved some money, here we own a flock of geese, some property and we have a way of life, why should we give all that up and move to Eretz Yisroel when Moshiach arrives?” The innkeeper turned and relayed his wife's words to the Rebbe. “Go and tell your wife that here in galus,” explained the Rebbe, “while we are in exile among the nations, the goyim torture and hurt us making our lives difficult and miserable, in Eretz Yisroel that will all end.”
Nodding his head in understanding the innkeeper went back to his wife and related to her what the Rebbe said adding “Don’t you remember what happened last week when Ivan, our neighbor got drunk and smashed all our windows? In Eretz Yisroel the Rebbe promises we will not have these problems!” he stated. The innkeeper's wife thought a bit and then her eyes filled with a light of understanding and her expression filled with comprehension.
“Aha, I've got it! Go and tell the Rebbe, I have a solution. Here we are comfortable and settled. We own property and the only problem is the goyim. Tell the Rebbe that when Moshiach comes he will solve all our problems by taking the goyim with him to Eretz Yisroel!”
When the holy Czernobler heard the innkeeper's answer, he said “Now I understand the meaning of the verse in Parshas VaEra Shemos 6:6 Hashem says “I will take you out from the sufferings of Mitzrayim,” I will cause you to no longer be able to suffer and endure the exile and then you will want to go out. That is our sin,” exclaimed the Rebbe, “we have become so settled to living in the exile in our complacency we are happy and believe there can be nothing better - how wrong we are!”
The Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz told the following stories about his illustrious forebear, the Toras Chaim of Kosov:
The Toras Chaim once said about the zemer Eliyohu HaNovi recited as part of the Motzo’ei Shabbos Melava Malka zemiros, “We sing ashrei mi shero’a ponov bachalom – happy is he who saw Eliyohu HaNovi’s face in a dream – but who knows what Eliyohu HaNovi looks like? If no one knows what he looks like, how would he be able to recognize him in a dream? I, however, concluded the Toras Chaim, would be able to recognize him if I saw him in a dream because I once saw him when I was awake, with my father the Ahavas Sholom, and this is how it happened:
“When I was a young child,” told the Toras Chaim, “I often used to sleep in my father’s bed. One night, I was awakened from my sleep to the sound of a conversation taking place between my father and someone else in the room. I looked up and was amazed to see an elderly man with a shining countenance sitting on my father’s chair and my father sat at his side. I was upset by this – who dared take my father’s seat at the head of the table? My father said to the guest: ‘Eliyohu, here in bed lies my Chaim’nyu – I would like you to give him a berocha!’
“When I heard that this was none other than Eliyohu HaNovi, I was seized with fear and trembling and hid beneath the covers. Eliyohu HaNovi reached in below the covers, placed his holy hands on my head and gave me a berocha. I took a peek from underneath the covers and saw his holy face!”
“And so therefore I tell you,” concluded the Toras Chaim, “that if I saw him in a dream, I could recognize him because I saw him when I was awake!” (Sarfei Kodesh 429–430)
On the Toras Chaim’s Yahrzeit, the Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz once remarked, “Chai (18th) Iyar is Lag BaOmer, the Yahrzeit/Hillula of Rav Shimon bar Yochai. On one side of that calendar date, a week before, is the Yahrzeit of my Zeide, the heilige Ropshitzer (11th of Iyar) and on the other side is the Yahrzeit of my Zeide, the Toras Chaim (25th of Iyar) – they all grab neshomos and pull them out of Gehinnom! (Sarfei Kodesh p. 451)
It is well known that all year long Rav Chaim Meir, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, lived in a Yom Tov atmosphere. We know that the Parsha read awakens the times and the feelings, and so it was that each Parsha the Rebbe lived the Yomim Tovim mentioned therein. There was no Parsha, Haftora or some connection to the upcoming Yom Tov that he ever missed. Whether it was explicit, hinted at in some gematria or roshei teivos or notrikon, he would always connect his Divrei Torah to Yom Tov, and this would create a holiday atmosphere.
The space in between the Yomim Tovim was for the Rebbe like Chol HaMoed and as soon as one Yom Tov ended, the next Yom Tov commenced with almost no break between them. As winter began he was already preparing for Pesach and at the end of summer the upcoming high holidays of the Yomim Noro’im were already beckoning him and found their way into his every nuance and being. Nissan and Tishrei held hands and embraced as their sanctity permeated one another and spread their ethereal kedusha over all and this poured down and descended upon all who basked in the Rebbe’s light and glory.
When his son printed the third volume of Imrei Chaim and gave it to the Gerrer Rebbe, the Bais Yisrael, telling him that it was Volume 3 on the Moadim, the Gerrer Rebbe remarked, “And do you mean to tell me that the other two volumes are not about the Moadim?” (Meir HaChaim II p. 154)