Kalonymus Kalman Halevi Epstein ( he, רבי קלונימוס קלמן אפשטיין;
Nowy Korczyn
Nowy Korczyn is a small town in Busko County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, in south-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Nowy Korczyn. It lies in Lesser Poland, approximately south of Busko-Zdró ...
(Neustadt), Poland, 1753 –
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
, 1825) was a
rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
and
Kabbalist, one of the great leaders of the
Chassidic movement, known as the ''Maor Vashamesh'' (מאור ושמש) after his
sefer Sefer may refer to:
* Sefer (Hebrew), a term for a book
People with the surname
* Franjo Šefer (born 1905), Yugoslav tennis player
* Bela Šefer, Yugoslav footballer playing in 1924
People with the forename
* Sefer Reis, Turkish privateer and Ot ...
.
Biography
Born in 1753, Epstein, known as "Kalmish," was the son of Aaron Halevi Epstein and an alleged descendant from the Prophet
Samuel
Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...
and
King David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
. Epstein's early years were lived in abject poverty in Neustadt, Poland, one of 10 children, before his father moved the family to
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
to seek a better life when Epstein was five years old. In Kraków, he became known as an
Illui
''Illui'' ( he, עילוי or עלוי also ilui; pronounced plural: ''illuim'') is a young Torah and Talmudic prodigy or genius. The Hebrew term and title is applied to exceptional Talmudic scholars among Orthodox Jews. It is used among Engli ...
(young prodigy). As a child, after selling
bagel
A bagel ( yi, בײגל, translit=beygl; pl, bajgiel; also spelled beigel) is a bread roll originating in the Jewish communities of Poland. It is traditionally shaped by hand into a roughly hand-sized ring from yeasted wheat dough that is first ...
s baked in the home of his parents to assist in his family's support, Epstein would sneak into the ''
beth midrash
A ''beth midrash'' ( he, בית מדרש, or ''beis medrash'', ''beit midrash'', pl. ''batei midrash'' "House of Learning") is a hall dedicated for Torah study, often translated as a "study hall." It is distinct from a synagogue (''beth kness ...
'' and listen to the Torah sermons given by Krakow scholars, including Yitzchak Halevi, Chief Rabbi of Kraków. One day following one of the sermons, Mordechai Gutgold, one of the wealthiest Jews in Krakow, asked Epstein in jest to repeat the sermon that he had just heard, which he did, word for word. In response, Gutgold agreed to support Epstein and fund his
Yeshiva
A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are s ...
education, provided that his father agreed to the marriage of Epstein and Gutgold's daughter as soon as Epstein reached
Bar Mitzvah. At the age of 13, Epstein married Gutgold's daughter, Milka Raidel.
After being deeply impressed by the Hassidic leader
Elimelech of Lizhensk
Elimelech Weisblum of Lizhensk (1717–March 11, 1787) was a rabbi and one of the great founding Rebbes of the Hasidic movement. He was known after his hometown, Leżajsk ( yi, ליזשענסק, translit=Lizhensk) near Rzeszów in Poland. He was ...
during his visit to Krakow, Epstein traveled to
Lizhensk hoping to study
Torah
The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the s ...
and
Chassidut under the direct tutelage of Elimelech, against his father-in-law's wishes but with the support of his wife. Upon Epstein's arrival in Lizhensk, Elimelech sent him to study under
Yechiel Michel of Zlotchov. After less than two weeks at Yechiel Michel's home, Epstein returned to Lizhensk with a message from Yechiel Michel to Elimelech that "you will not find others like Kalmish."
Epstein went on to become the most favored of Elimelech's students, also acting as the rabbi's personal "shamash" (assistant). In recognition of Epstein's aptitude, Elimelech sent him, in 1785, to assume the
Chassidic leadership of Krakow.
Upon his arrival in Krakow, Epstein was met with great opposition by the ''
misnagdim
''Misnagdim'' (, "Opponents"; Sephardi pronunciation: ''Mitnagdim''; singular ''misnaged''/''mitnaged'') was a religious movement among the Jews of Eastern Europe which resisted the rise of Hasidism in the 18th and 19th centuries. The ''Misna ...
'', opponents of the Chassidic movement, but eventually they came to respect him. His reputation as a holy leader began to grow throughout Western Galicia, and Jews began visiting him over far distances to seek his counsel and guidance and to receive his blessings. Epstein managed to raise the profile of Chassidut throughout Western Galicia, and became a friend of Yitzchak Halevi. During a visit to Lizhensk, Elimelech, who was close to death, requested that Epstein succeed him and assume the mantle of leadership in the city of Lizhensk, which he declined.
Among Epstein's contemporaries as leading students of Elimelech were the
Chozeh of Lublin
Yaakov Yitzchak HaLevi Horowitz ( he, יעקב יצחק הלוי הורוביץ), known as "the Seer of Lublin" (), ''ha-Chozeh MiLublin''; (c. 1745 - August 15, 1815) was a Hasidic rebbe from Poland.
"Rabbi Yaacov Yitzchak, the Chozeh of Lublin, ...
, the
Maggid of Kozhnitz
Yisroel Hopstein (1737–1814), also known as the Maggid of Kozhnitz, was the founder of Kozhnitz Hasidism, and a noted ''hasidic'' leader in Poland during the late 18th and early 19th century. He was a student of both the Magid/Dov Ber of Meze ...
, Rebbe
Menachem Mendel of Rimanov
Menachem Mendel Torem of Rimanov also known as Mendele Rimanover (Alt. spellings: ''Riminov'', ''Rimanev'') (1745–May 29, 1815) was a famous Hasidic Rebbe and one of the first five distributors of the Hasidic movement in Poland and Galicia ...
and the
Apta Rebbe. Epstein referred to all of them as "Rebbe," as he called all of the Chassidic leaders of his generation, as a mark of respect.
Toward the end of his life, Epstein instructed his younger son Aharon to gather together all of his writings and sermons, which was later published as the ''
sefer Sefer may refer to:
* Sefer (Hebrew), a term for a book
People with the surname
* Franjo Šefer (born 1905), Yugoslav tennis player
* Bela Šefer, Yugoslav footballer playing in 1924
People with the forename
* Sefer Reis, Turkish privateer and Ot ...
'' ''Maor Vashemesh'' - the title by which he later became known. The kabbalistic commentary of the ''Maor Vashemesh'' is still studied by Chassidic and non-Chassidic Jews today, and some Chassidic leaders have referred to the ''Maor Vashemesh'' as the "
Shulchan Aruch
The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in Is ...
" of Chassidut. Epstein died on the second day of Rosh Chodesh Tamuz in 1825 at the age of 72.
Family
Epstein and his wife had two sons and several daughters. His younger son Aharon became the Rebbe of the Krakow community when his father died and became known as "Reb Oron" after the ''Oron Hakodesh'' (Holy Ark). His older son Yosef Baruch became known as the "Guhter Yid" (the Good Jew) or the "miracle worker of Neustadt." His great-great grandson was
Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira of Piaseczna.
Sources
From the ''
Encyclopaedia Judaica
The ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' is a 22-volume English-language encyclopedia of the Jewish people, Judaism, and Israel. It covers diverse areas of the Jewish world and civilization, including Jewish history of all eras, culture, holidays, langua ...
'' articles:
* ''Kalonymus Kalman Epstein''
* ''Maor Vashemesh''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Epstein, Klonimus Kalman
Hasidic rebbes
18th-century Polish rabbis
1753 births
1825 deaths
19th-century Polish rabbis
Clergy from Kraków