Bidspirit auction | Birchas David by the Rebbe

Birchas David by the Rebbe of Buczacz Lvov, 1845. First Edition. * Chassidic explanations on Sefer Bereishis by the Admor Rabbi Avraham David Wahrman, Av Beis Din of Buczacz. It was printed from the handwritten manuscript of the author himself, with an addition by his student, the publisher. This student had in his possession additional manuscripts on the Torah, which he wished to print; however, the matter did not come to fruition and they were not printed, and they are not known today. Among his words, the author brings chiddushim that he heard in the name of the great Chassidic masters: the Maggid of Zlotshov, Rabbi Chaim of Kossov, the Baal HaTanya, and others. Rabbi Avraham David Wahrman of Buczacz (1771-1841) was a prominent halachic authority and leading chassidic Rebbe of his generation. He was greatly influenced by Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev. His Torah discourses would stretch for hours, and his prayers would go on until midday. Similarly, shalosh seudos would sometimes only conclude close to morning. He authored many sefarim in halacha and aggadah, yet his biggest and most prominent work is the sefer Birchas David on the Torah. In the introduction, the author’s disciple writes: “I heard from his holy mouth, which he related before men of understanding, that Torah taught publicly should be spoken only in one of three manners: either to instruct Hashem’s people in the path of Hashem, or in matters of sweetening the judgments, or to effect holy unifications. And behold, in this sacred composition all of these are found!” Lvov, 1845. First edition. Page Count: [2], 182 leaves. Bluish paper. Condition : Good; paper repairs in the margins of the opening leaves, adhesion on the title page. Fine new binding. Bibliography : Stefansky, Sifrei Chassidus no. 100. -------------------------- The Hidden Printing Operation – The Sefer Brought to Print Under Risk and Hardship It appears that the publisher feared the censor, or the heavy taxes, or other troubles, and therefore acted to conceal the actual time of printing. On the title page he added to the author’s name the designation “נ״י, ” so that it would appear as though the sefer had been printed in an earlier era when the Rebbe was still alive, despite the fact that it is clear that at the time of printing, the Rebbe had already passed away; he passed away, as is known, in 1841. Likewise, on the title page, the printing year is recorded as the Hebrew year of 1805 and the secular year as “1800.” The two dates contradict one another, and of course, neither is accurate. The likely year of printing is 1845, for at the conclusion of the publisher’s remarks on the final page, the words “Tefillah l’Elokei David” are emphasized, and their numerical value is 1845. See: Yaari, The Printing Press of Rabbanit Yehudis Rozanish, Kiryat Sefer 17, p. 107.