In Dvart, located in this district, a city full of wise men and sofrim [scribes; authors], great Chassidim and excellent scholars, there lived at that time Rabbi Mordechai, a Chassid and a learned man, a wealthy man and a man of good deeds. His wife was Mrs. Sheina Reizel, a righteous woman who grew up in the house of her uncle, the Gaon Rabbi Chaim Auerbach, chief of the rabbinical court of Linschitz [Leczyca].
Rabbi Mordechai had three daughters. The two older of them were married to great scholars who eventually served as rabbis. The first was Rabbi Yosef, chief of the rabbinical court of Kletcheva [Kleczew], and the second the Gaon Rabbi Menachem, chief of the rabbinical court of Kozminka [Kozminek]. For the youngest of his daughters, the talented and outstanding Tziril, Rabbi Mordechai sought an exceptional young man who was known as an outstanding gaon of note. In Sochachew at the yeshiva of the rebbe Rabbi Avraham he found the young Rabbi Meir Dan and took him as the groom for his daughter. Rabbi Mordechai spent much money on the dowry and gifts. In the year 5642 [1882] Rabbi Meir Dan married his bride when he was just fifteen years old. His father–in–law Rabbi Mordechai spent a great deal of money so that Rabbi Meir Dan could acquire a large library and also took care of all his needs. For ten years Rabbi Meir Dan worked at studying Torah and became a great scholar, having no worries about his subsistence or that of his family, being reliant on the support of his father–in–law. In his sefer, Chemdas Yisrael, Rabbi Meir Dan says, “I am morally obligated to mention for good and blessing at the beginning of my book the name of my dear rabbinical, righteous and just father–in–law, who walked a straight path and loved Torah and its students, Rabbi Mordechai, may his memory be a blessing, and my dear and righteous mother–in–law, Mrs. Sheina Reizel, may she rest in peace, who supported me for ten years, when all my needs were dependent upon them in all matters, and I was able to study and teach worthy students.”
The grandfather of Rabbi Meir Dan, his father's father, was an outstanding gaon and Chassid and multi–talented man, named Rabbi Yisrael. He died in the year 5643 [1882–1883] when Rabbi Meir Dan was seventeen. On the day of his death the grandfather called for his grandson, asked him to put his hand on his heart and to swear that he would study with all his heart and soul and that he would cultivate innovative and profound ideas about the Torah. His grandfather's request never left the memory of Rabbi Meir Dan up until his final day. (This information is found in the introduction to his book, Chemdas Yisrael, Volume I, where he adds that he named his book after his esteemed grandfather.)
For a short time Rabbi Meir Dan studied in Dvart by himself. But soon a number of young men came to him, and he began to deliver his lectures to them. From that time on there was never an absence of a yeshiva around him. In the house of his rich father–in–law, surrounded by love and devotion, Rabbi Meir Dan dedicated himself to learning and teaching, day and night. He was always found in the midst of his studies. His yeshiva grew, and it became famous in the surrounding area and beyond. Its students were deeply attached to their teacher, the young gaon, whose name became well known in the entire world of Torah as one of the sharpest minds of his generation, a genius in Halacha and a genius in understanding. He diligently and rapidly went through both of the two Talmuds and the early and later commentators. He was a gaon whose sharpness of mind did not detract from the breadth of his knowledge and whose breadth of knowledge did not diminish his acuity.
Rabbi Meir Dan was a Chassid in every fiber of his being. He adhered to pure Chassidism with all his heart and soul and to his studies with enthusiasm and awe, with holiness and purity. He related to every iota of the Torah with fear and trembling, but also with love and soulful devotion. Study was never for him a matter of pleasure, but rather a holy undertaking. The Torah obligates every part of one's body, not just the mind and intelligence. Therefore he worked in the field of Torah with literally with all his strength. He approached the study of the Torah with a real hunger, as if he had never studied it before. Every day he would set aside time to infuse into his heart the love of Torah. Thus, there was no limit or parallel to his love of the Torah.
