Rabbi Avraham Bornsztain of Sochaczew was born in 5599 (1838) to Rabbi Ze'ev Nachum, author of Agudat Eizov and a Kotzk Chassid, and to his mother, Rebbetzin Dobrish. In the introduction to his book Eglei Tal, he writes: As a child, "my father and teacher, of blessed memory, taught me the ways of pilpul (in-depth analysis), and when I was ten years old, I innovated novel Torah insights." In the month of Av 5613 (1853), at the age of thirteen, he married Sarah Tzina, daughter of Rebbe Menachem Mendel of Kotzk. He lived in his father-in-law's house, who he considered his primary teacher, until 5623 (1863), four years after Rebbe Menachem Mendel's passing. Before his passing, the Kotzker, as he was known, isolated himself from even his closest disciples. But, even then, during his period of seclusion, the Kotzker would ask his son-in-law to share with him his Torah novellae.
In 5623 (1863), he was appointed as the rabbi of Parczew (Poland), where he stayed for several years, and in 5627 (1867) he moved to serve as rabbi in Krushnevitz (Krośniewice). During these years, he traveled to his teachers, the Chiddushei HaRim of Gur and Rabbi Chanoch Henich of Alexander. After the passing of the Rebbe of Alexander, he began serving as a chasidic Rebbe, and in 5636 (1876) he moved again, to serve in the rabbinate of Nasielsk. The local community members there did not look favorably upon his running a Chassidic court alongside his rabbinical duties, and in 5643 (1883) he moved to serve as the rabbi of Sochatchov (Sochaczew), a position he left after several years, and even established a yeshivah there. He passed away on the 11th of Adar I, 5670 (1910), and was succeeded as Rebbe by his son, Rabbi Shmuel.
“I heard from the son-in-law of the Avnei Nezer that once one of the great timber merchants came before him with an urgent problem. He had signed a contract with one of the merchants from Danzig to send him timber on rafts on the Vistula River and that they would arrive on a specific day. And now there was no water on the Vistula River, because of which, the timber would not be in Danzig on the designated day. The merchant feared that he would be left without means of support, because all his wealth and the wealth of other people was invested in this timber that was on the Vistula, and it wasn't moving forward due to the lack of water.
The Avnei Nezer pushed him out with his two holy hands and said to him: "And what do you want from me? That I should also provide water on the Vistula?!" The timber merchant left with a bitter heart. But while he was still in the Rebbe’s courtyard, not far away, the Avnei Nezer ran to him quickly and said: “If you can give six thousand rubles for the Land of Israel, the timber will be in Danzig at the appointed time!” The man did not delay and immediately paid this sum in cash. And afterward, there was an abundance of water on the Vistula until it was full to its banks.
And when the Gaon Rabbi Meir of blessed memory told me this, it seemed to him as if I did not want to believe such a thing. And he answered me: "Is it not stated in the Gemara that the entire world, meaning all of nature, was created only to command this?"
(from Abir Haro’im)
Rabbi Binyamin Mendelson, the Av Beit Din of Komemiyut, once wrote: “When the holy Gaon of Sochatchov, of blessed memory, author of the Avnei Nezer, foresaw through Divine inspiration, several years earlier that it would be impossible to stop the people from settling the Land of Israel under the influence of the spirit of the Zionist movement, God awakened his spirit, and he clarified and ruled as halachah (Jewish law) that the mitzvah to settle the Land of Israel through agriculture, buying lands, commerce, and the like, applies in our time even before the coming of the Mashiach.
Since the day the Temple was destroyed, the Holy Blessed One has nothing in His world but the four cubits of halachah, for halachah determines reality in the world. With this, the holy author of the Avnei Nezer established a firm foundation for settling the Land of Israel several years before settlement driven by the spirit of secular nationalism commenced. If he had not preceded this by clarifying the opinions of the Rishonim and ruling this halachah, that by our settlement in the Land we are fulfilling a mitzvah, we would not have found a place to settle here, what with the atmosphere of sin mixed with heretical ideologies."
(Nifla’ot Hatzaddikim)
Indeed, the Avnei Nezer elaborated in his books on the greatness of the mitzvah of settling the Land and earning a livelihood from it and he practiced what he preached. In 5658 (1898), he sent his son, the author of Shem MiShmuel, who went to the Land of Israel together with his son-in-law. Their goal was to investigate the possibilities of acquiring a plot of land in the Rosh Pinah area, to establish a Chasidic agricultural settlement there, but it did not succeed due to governmental decrees. At that time, special orders were issued to obstruct aliyah (immigration) to the Land, and they prohibited the acquisition of land by Jews.
(from Abir Haro’im)
The Avnei Nezer was known for his ruling that the mitzvah of settling the Land of Israel applies in our time, especially when one earns one’s livelihood from it. But beyond the seemingly "dry" ruling, his words and actions reveal an intense desire and longing for the spiritual value of the Land of Israel. This is also very prominent in the story we brought here. As much as the tzaddik was not eager to perform miracles, his approach suddenly changed due to his love for the Land of Israel, and he went out of his way to perform an open miracle for its sake.
That same desire and will is also reflected in his famous ruling that integral to the mitzvah of Torah study is the enjoyment and desire one derives from engaging in the Torah’s study. "When I was young, there were people with minds like mine," he said later. "But I wanted, I wanted so much! How intensely I wanted...." This triple emphasis reveals how the tzaddik's desire penetrates the three highest levels of the soul: faith, pleasure, and will. The same desire (צָרןֹו) is also found in the essence of the Land (אֶץֶר), as both words can be understood to stem from the same two-letter root. Based on this linguistic analysis, the sages explain the meaning of the word “Land”: “Because it desired to perform the will of its Owner."
Following this approach, let us delve deeper into his quoted words on the virtue of Jewish settlement in the Land:
It is a great mitzvah to lobby the government to grant permission for a group of people to make aliyah. This is certainly of great benefit in several ways:
- Making it possible for others to immigrate freely.
- Residing there with the goal of fulfilling the commandments in general, and especially the mitzvot that can only be kept in the Land, as so many are not familiar with them. And if there are many committed Jews, “each will help his fellow,” etc.
- With regard to the holiness of the Land and its blessings. For through the fulfillment of mitzvot in the Land of Israel, especially the mitzvot dependent on the Land which are called “property obligations,” just as a person strengthens his soul through fulfilling mitzvot, so too the Land increases its holiness through the fulfillment of its mitzvot, and the blessing of the Land depends on its holiness.
These three benefits described by the Avnei Nezer correspond in order to the three dimensions of: Worlds, Souls, and Divinity. These are the three dimensions of reality mentioned by the Ba’al Shem Tov in his letter about bringing the Redemption. In his letter, he explains that these three, “ascend, connect, and unite with one another,” and it seems that each action is particularly related to one of the three aspects, as we will now demonstrate:
Free immigration to the Land of Israel corresponds to the ascent of the Worlds within the Jew. Encouraging a large gathering of Torah-committed Jews in the Land corresponds to the connection of Souls, as each will help his fellow to fulfill the mitzvot dependent on the Land. Finally, God's blessing—His response to the deeds of those who believe in Him and do His will—corresponds to the unification of Divinity in our efforts. In the Land of Israel, holiness and blessing unite, as "the blessing of God is what makes one rich" and "there is no [true] wealth except knowledge." The Avnei Nezer's efforts to settle the Land of Israel with Jews who seek God is, in essence, a striving for “the earth shall be full of consciousness of God as the waters cover the sea.”
