Bidspirit auction | Unpublished Chassidic Manuscript – Commentaries

Unpublished Chassidic Manuscript – Commentaries on Psalms, Teachings on Prayer, Faith, and Kabbalah – Rabbi Yisrael Pesach Wettstein, Av Beit Din of Novoselitsa – Sadigura, 1861–1862 - A manuscript containing commentaries, explanations, and teachings in the Chassidic tradition, by the Gaon and Chassid Rabbi Yisrael Pesach Wettstein, Av Beit Din of Novoselitsa. Sadigura, 1861–1862. The manuscript contains a partial commentary on the Book of Psalms, explanations of the wording and mystical intentions of the prayers, discussions of faith and Kabbalah, and collections of teachings on various subjects. Throughout the manuscript are Chassidic and Kabbalistic interpretations, explanations of biblical verses, reflections on the service of God, prayer, and spiritual attachment to the Divine (Devekut), as well as discussions of the future Redemption and the state of the world upon the coming of the Messiah. On one leaf, the author presents an interpretation in the spirit of the teachings of the Great Maggid of Mezeritch, referring to him in elevated language: ”In accordance with what was written by the divine rabbi, upon whose head rests the crown of God, our master Rabbi Dov Ber the Great, of blessed memory.” At the end of the manuscript appear two additional short works by the author. The first bears the title Sefer Laylah KaYom Ya'ir (”Night Shall Shine Like Day”) and discusses the mystical intentions of the evening prayer and other practices associated with the nighttime hours. This is followed by another work, entitled by the author Sefer Hatznea Lechet (”Walk Humbly”), dealing with the conduct and spiritual practices of the righteous. At the beginning of the manuscript appears the heading: ”With God's help, Sunday, Parashat Noach, 1862, Sadigura.” Additional sections of the manuscript are dated 1861. The manuscript was therefore written in Sadigura during 1861–1862, in the early period of the leadership of the first Rebbe of Sadigura, Rabbi Avraham Yaakov, son of the holy Rabbi Yisrael of Ruzhin and founder of the Sadigura Chassidic dynasty. The manuscript is of particular documentary importance because of its place and date of composition. Manuscripts written in Sadigura during these early years are not known, and to the best of our knowledge, no other manuscripts from the town dating to this period have survived. In the Chassidic periodical Beit Ruzhin, Issue 17, Kislev 2021, a photograph of the first page of the present manuscript was published under the heading: ”Commentaries on the Book of Psalms by the Gaon and Tzaddik Rabbi Yisrael Pesach, of blessed memory.” The manuscript was attributed there to the Gaon and Chassid Rabbi Yisrael Pesach Wettstein, Av Beit Din of Novoselitsa. The complete manuscript has never been published. Presented here is a Chassidic and Kabbalistic work, the greater part of whose contents has remained in manuscript form to this day. The Gaon and Chassid Rabbi Yisrael Pesach Wettstein, son of Rabbi Shalom Shachna, was among the leading rabbis and Chassidim of the Bessarabia and Bukovina regions. He initially served as a rabbinical authority (Moreh Tzedek) in Boryslav, and from 1895 served as Av Beit Din of Novoselitsa, near Sadigura. He was renowned for his profound scholarship in both the revealed and mystical dimensions of Torah and was a devoted Chassid of the Ruzhin–Sadigura dynasty. He maintained scholarly and halachic correspondence with leading rabbinic authorities of his generation. Responsa addressed to him were published, among other works, in Shu”t Maharsham and the writings of the Sdei Chemed. His letters and notes served as sources for sayings, traditions, and Torah teachings of the Rebbes of the Ruzhin dynasty. Portions were published in Kedushat Aharon and other Chassidic publications. He passed away in 1919. According to Otzar HaRabbanim, Rabbi Yisrael Pesach was born in 1859. However, this information is inconsistent with the present manuscript, which is explicitly dated 1861–1862. The manuscript therefore constitutes an important primary historical source for establishing his biography, and the commonly accepted year of his birth requires renewed examination. An important and previously unknown Chassidic manuscript, directly associated with the early center of Sadigura Chassidism, containing unpublished biblical commentary, Chassidic teachings, and Kabbalistic material. Approximately [128] written pages. 16 cm. Good to very good condition. Clear and legible handwriting. Simple binding.