Watch: A Special Class by Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a for the Students of the "Chochma V'Daas" Yeshiva

**In a long and fascinating class delivered by Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a to the students of the "Chochma V'Daas" yeshiva, the Rav moved swiftly between Talmudic topics, the secrets of Kabbalah, and chapters of history. Along the way, he shared the story of his own path, from the Ponevezh yeshiva and the Chazon Ish Kollel to Breslov, and revealed what the Sfas Emes conveyed about the "Sipurei Ma'asiyos" (Rebbe Nachman's Tales).** A Special Class for the Students of "Chochma V'Daas" The students of the "Chochma V'Daas" yeshiva merited to sit around Rabbi Berland shlit"a and hear words of Torah from him for a long hour. The class, as is the Rav's way, moved rapidly from topic to topic and from world to world—yet the love of Torah and the encouragement for the students to be diligent in their studies ran through it like a golden thread. From the Weekly Torah Portion to the Expanses of the Talmud Rabbi Berland shlit"a opened with the wonders of creation, and from there moved to the topics of the weekly Torah portion—Korach and the spies, Pinchas and his zealotry—and to deep subjects in the Talmud and Midrashim. In the midst of this, he laid out fundamental concepts in Kabbalah: the four worlds, the ten Sefiros (Divine emanations), and the five Partzufim (Divine visages). "And outside, they do not know that Kabbalah exists," the Rav said. "It is worthwhile to know every day that there is everything from Kesser (Crown) to Malchus (Kingship)." The Rav's Path—From Ponevezh and the Chazon Ish Kollel to Breslov At the heart of the class, Rabbi Berland shlit"a shared the story of his own path with the students: how he arrived in Bnei Brak and was accepted into the Ponevezh yeshiva by the Mashgiach, Rabbi Abba Grossbard zt"l (a student of Rabbi Boruch Ber of Kaminetz); how he learned in the "Chazon Ish" Kollel day and night; and how he merited to be the daily study partner (chavrusa) of the "Steipler" zt"l—author of the "Kehillos Yaakov"—every day from one-thirty, learning Shulchan Aruch and Talmud. "I had a full notebook from the Steipler," the Rav recounted. "It is a pity that I lost it—I could have published many novel Torah insights from it." And finally, "After Volozhin came Breslov"—and thus the Rav entered the Breslov study hall for the first time and opened the "Likutey Moharan." **Watch: The story of the Rav's path in Bnei Brak—from Ponevezh and the Chazon Ish Kollel to Breslov, and his study partnership with the Steipler:** "Sipurei Ma'asiyos" (Rebbe Nachman's Tales)—The Testimony of the Sfas Emes Rabbi Berland shlit"a quoted from the book "Bracha" (by the Schechter family), which brings many unknown stories, including—in the name of the "Imrei Emes" and from the mouth of Reb Zalman Dovid—a rare testimony: Before his passing, the Sfas Emes zt"l commanded to read all of the "Sipurei Ma'asiyos" (Tales) of Rebbe Nachman—and especially "The Seven Beggars" (Di Ziben Bettlers)—and he never opposed anyone who traveled to Uman. **Watch: What the Sfas Emes conveyed about "Sipurei Ma'asiyos":** Stories of Tzaddikim and Miracles Later, Rabbi Berland shlit"a wove together wondrous stories of tzaddikim—including the story of a widow who sold her house and store on the eve of her immigration to the Land of Israel, and suddenly her husband passed away, and the Rav called the buyer and commanded him to return all her money. The Rav also spoke about the four heavenly palaces of the righteous women—Bisyah, Devorah, Yocheved, and Serach bas Asher—that every woman who helped a tzaddik merits a place in those palaces, and about the hand of Hashem that is revealed in the world even through earthquakes and volcanoes. The Rav's Blessing to the Yeshiva Students In conclusion, Rabbi Berland shlit"a encouraged the students of the "Chochma V'Daas" yeshiva to be diligent in their Torah study and in their service of prayer. Photo Gallery from the Class