Reb Chaim Halbershtam of Tzanz was a well-known posek and Chassidishe Rebbe, and is known for his work called “Divrei Chaim”. He learned under Reb Naftali of Ropshitz and Reb Tzvi Hirsh of Ziditshov. As Rebbe, thousands of chassidim swarmed to him, and today many chassidic dynasties trace their lineage to him. Reb Chaim passed away on the 25th of Nissan תרל"ו (1876).
When Reb Chaim was a child of four years, he learned of the Rambam’s Sefer Hamitzvos, a complete list of 613 Mitzvos. Reb Chaim learned this list, committing it to memory. When asked why, he responded, “A soldier in the czar’s army needs to know the rules of the army. How could he be a good soldier without knowing the rules? We are soldiers in Hashem’s army and we must know all the rules.”
During his leadership, new styles of women’s clothing reached Galicia and some of the wives of the chassidim adopted the new fashion. This embittered Reb Chaim greatly.
At his tish, Reb Chaim discussed Yitzchok Avinu’s wanting to give his brochos to Eisav. “Why would the tzaddik want to do this?” he asked.
He explained that Yitzchok sensed that Eisav had the potential to be part of the great holiness of the Avos, and wished to reveal this with his brochos. When “Eisav” entered the room to receive the brochos, Yitzchok felt the kedusha coming in and rejoiced in thinking that his wish was accomplished. However, Yitzchok felt that his son’s clothing still contained characteristics of “Eisav.” “The voice is the voice of Yaakov” - inside is Yaakov; but outside, the clothing, is still Eisav. This means there is still work to do.
Reb Chaim concluded that if one dresses in a goyishe manner, even though it is an external matter, it shows that they still have work to do on themselves.
While reciting Krias Shema, overcome with love for Hashem, Reb Chaim would pound his foot on the floor. As time went on, his foot become terribly bruised and sore leaving Reb Chaim no choice but to visit a doctor. Hearing the full story, the doctor inquired, "I understand that you must bang your foot, but why don’t you switch off between your feet?" "Doctor, doctor," he replied with a smile, "If I was able to choose which foot to bang with, then I wouldn’t bang at all..."
Reb Chaim would sleep at night for a very short time. His family members were concerned about this practice. Reb Chaim explained himself: "When I was younger people said that I had a quick head; that which took others an hour to learn took me a few minutes. It is the same with sleeping. I sleep the full amount, I just do it faster."
