Without a doubt, it was the power of the Rosh Yeshiva’s total immersion in Torah; his contagious Ahavas Torah and his complete belief in the eternity of Torah that enabled him to become the quintessential Rosh Yeshiva and Torah builder. His love of Torah was such that it overcame even the most natural human limitations. Once, during the early years of the Yeshiva at its current campus, a fire broke out in the building where the Rosh Yeshiva lived. Everyone immediately evacuated the building. Suddenly Rav Ruderman ran back into the burning building, exclaiming, “I forgot an absolutely irreplaceable item!” What was the item for which he risked his life? His very rare copy of the sefer Nesivos HaMishpot on Rabbeinu Yeruchem.
His dedication to learning knew no bounds. His encyclopedic knowledge of Talmud Bavli, Yerushalmi, Rishonim, Poskim, Acharonim and teshuvos set a lofty standard for which to strive. The Rosh Yeshiva stimulated lively discussions, thereby deepening interest and broadening horizons, by challenging his students to bring proof from one Gemora to a seemingly unrelated issue.
He constantly focused the attention of his talmidim and their awareness to the breadth and inter-relationship of all of Torah. He was always involved in a kushya. In fact, he would say that he used questions as memory keys with which to remember the Gemora. Therefore, he was always ready with a penetrating query or comment that would lend insight to whatever Gemora one mentioned. He lived with his questions and was constantly seen with his lips moving, as he was totally and consistently absorbed in learning.
Rarely was his sleep at night not disturbed by the kushya with which he went to bed. This total involvement was transmitted to his talmidim.
On par with his love for Torah, was the Rosh Yeshiva’s love for his students. If ever a talmid asked him a good question or related a nice sevora, his face would radiate delight. When one of the talmidim had the good fortune to ask or say something that was new to him, he would be ecstatic. Many talmidim had the fortune to be embarrassed by the Rosh Yeshiva when they would be reminded years later of an insightful Torah thought that they themselves had long since forgotten.
A revealing incident occurred when he was learning in Slabodka and a visitor arrived bearing a copy of the newly published sefer Ohr Somei’ach. The young bochur asked to borrow the sefer but was refused permission as the man planned to continue his journey the following day. Rav Ruderman was undaunted. He borrowed the sefer for one night promising to return it in the morning. Overnight he went through and mastered the sefer in its entirety!
On another occasion, the Rosh Yeshiva was once undergoing a lengthy medical procedure. The doctor, wishing to distract the Rosh Yeshiva from the pain and unpleasantness, engaged him in small talk. Throughout the procedure the Rosh Yeshiva continuously nodded his head in agreement. After leaving the clinic, he explained to the talmid accompanying him a wonderful approach to the sugya that had occurred to him in the midst of the procedure. He then suddenly interrupted himself, “By the way, perhaps you heard what the doctor was saying to me? I nodded to him out of respect, but what did he want?”
The Rosh Yeshiva once complained to his talmid, Rav Yisrael Dov Kaplan, today Rosh Kollel in Bayit Vegan, “Nowadays, people do not learn. When I was fifteen, learning in Slabodka we would get up at five in the morning and go to sleep after midnight. We learned fifty blatt a day, every day!”
Once on a long trip, the Rosh Yeshiva was accompanied by two bochurim from the Yeshiva, who decided to utilize the duration of the journey to go over several pages of Maseches Berochos that they had committed to memory. The Rosh Yeshiva was seated right in front of them and they noticed that he was shifting about in his seat uncomfortably. From time to time he walked around and fixed them with a piercing look. “What kind of Gemora are you using over there – is it a different girsa?” he asked. Scarcely concealing their pride, the bochurim replied, “We don’t have a Gemora, we’re going over what we learned by heart!” The Rosh Yeshiva, with a smile on his face, proceeded to quote the exact language of the Gemora.
When he was already in his eighties, a talmid relates, “I went to daven Mincha with the Rosh Yeshiva and he complained that the strong medicines he was taking for his numerous ailments caused him to forget. The talmid asked, “Has the Rosh Yeshiva forgotten any Tosafos in Shas?” Immediately, the Rosh Yeshiva banged his cane and forcefully said, ‘No! No! No Tosafos. I mean a chiddush in a difficult Rambam that I once said – I have trouble remembering in its entirety.” The talmid related that the way in which he could not even contemplate the horror of forgetting a Tosafos was an indication of Ahavas Torah and devotion to Torah that remained with him forever.
