The Life and Legacy of A Torah Great
Rav Joseph Tzvi Carlebach"Oh, blissful world of the yeshivah! Your spicy, invigorating air makes my chest swell, my pulse beat faster. You fortress of Torah with open doors and wide open windows, you great source of comfort to Israel. Who feels in your arena the world's agony, the mendicancy of one's own earthly existence? Who asks about cradle or parental home, about age and status, or name and origin? All differences among people disappear like useless scales, as if the souls enter here naked and are united by your magic, oblivious to external divisions."
"Oh, paradise of joy, where one feels so enriched, so fulfilled, so world transcending, and humanity's great challenges are openly broached. Here only one thing matters the truth. Only one thing spells success study. Only one common goal prevails - understanding. All that is good and noble in man is called upon; neither envy nor covetousness becloud the atmosphere. Only those who study, merge into a harmonious, resounding choir, the song of the waves of the roiling seas of the Jewish spirit. In this chorus, no one voice stands out, yet one hears the all-conquering, all-humbling voice of Moshe Rabbenu, of Rabbi Akiva, of Rambam and Rashi. It still resounds in my ears, that roaring, stormy singsong, like breakers of sound waves upon the rock of Torah, being gripped by longing for that station of life-affirming world oblivion, of those fortunate ones who retreat from the world without loathing, and delight tacitly in the company of the like minded in what others never knew or regarded, that it elucidates and illuminates the labyrinth of the Jewish heart."
Nothing the Rav ever said or did offers a better view into the innermost recesses of his soul than this spontaneous eruption of enthusiasm for unencumbered Torah study, admitting to his own longing to be part of the sublime world of Torah learning. After achieving every possible station in a brilliant career, showered with honors and affection by an enormous circle of disciples and admirers, his soul was thirsting for only one thing total immersion in Torah study, oblivious to the attractions and distractions of the world around him. Here is a rousing testimonial to a soul consumed by ahavat Hatorah, which makes the Rav a worthy follower in the footsteps of the "Sweet Singer of the Psalms," King David, who cries out: "There is one thing that I have asked of G-d, and that I truly desire, to dwell in the house of G-d all my life, to behold the pleasant beauty of G-d and to visit in His sanctuary." (psalm 27)
Excerpt from the Rav's report about the Keren Hatorah's study tour in 1931, with a postscript by his son, the General Editor