“In about six months, the 22nd volume of the Talmudic Encyclopedia will come off the press.” Rabbi Yehoshua Hutner, the executive director of the encyclopedia told us when we visited him recently in his office at Yad Harav Herzog in Jerusalem.
As he has done on similar occasions, be applied to the forthcoming volume, an appropriate verse from the Bible: “Bekha Yevarekh Yisrael” (”With you shall Israel bless .. .” Braishit 48:20. The numerical volume of Bekha is 22). The new volume will contain entries beginning with the letter Yod, from Yediot Mehalkot to Yotze Min HaTame Tame, including subjects such as
Yehareg Ve’Al Ya’avor, Ya’avor Ve’Al Yehareg, Yom HaKippurim, Yom Tov and Yom Too Sheni Shel Goluyot.
Rabbi Hutner also told us that the editorial staff is already working “full steam” on volume 23, whose entries will include subjects such as Yoresh, Yerusha and Yerushalayim.
I had not seen him for about three years. Until not so very long ago, Rabbi Hutner, who has been associated with the encyclopedia since its beginnings more than half a century ago, used to travel widely, visiting Europe and North America to raise funds and to examine manuscripts in public collections. Now he directs all his work from his desk in Jerusalem. He had not changed much since I saw him last and I complimented him that “he looked wonderful”. Though I meant every word, I could not contain himself and told him a “gut vort” I had heard a few days earlier from Herman Wouk.
My wife and I attended the annual dinner of the Shaare Zedek Medical Center, which was held at Jerusalem’s Plaza-Sheraton Hotel. It was a grand affair at which the great achievements of Shaare Zedek, especially of its neonatal department, were described and praised. The honoree of the evening was Herman Wouk, who was awarded the Ot HaNagid “for his writings which have enriched our culture, for his deep love of the Jewish people, and for his special devotion to Jerusalem.”
In his response Wouk related how he was received by his friends in Jerusalem. “You look wonderful,” they told him. He felt very good about it, until he remembered what he had once been told by an old general.
“There are three periods in the life of man — youth, middle age, and when you are told that ‘you look wonderful’ ”
“Wouk is a friend of the encyclopedia,” Rabbi Hutner remarked. “Several years ago, on one of his frequent visits to Jerusalem, the celebrated author who, of course, knew of the encyclopedia, was invited by President Chaim Herzog to visit our headquarters. We showed him around the building, explained to him the scope of the encyclopedia and told him of the great amount of research which goes into the writing of each entry. Wouk was greatly impressed.”
A photograph of the late Rabbi Shlomo Yosef Zevin, the great architect and editor-in-chief of the Talmudic Encyclopedia graces the wall behind the desk of Rabbi Hutner. Rabbi Zevin is “present,” not only in that room, his spirit pervades the entire building of Yad HaRav Herzog. All contributors and editors adhere painstakingly to the guidelines he had established and
follow strictly in the paths he had mapped out. Rabbi Zevin died 16 years ago. Yet not the slightest difference can be detected between the volumes, which appeared under his editorship and those which were published after his death. All excel by their beautiful style, their clear definitions, systematic structure and last, but not least, their comprehensiveness.
The encyclopedia has been a best seller. It is found in the homes of rabbis and scholars, schools and synagogues, Batei Midrash and Yeshivot throughout the world. It had been reprinted time and again. The first volume has gone through ten editions. Altogether 600,000 volumes have been disseminated.
(to be concluded)
The Jewish Press, Friday, October 28, 1994
The twenty-one volumes which have appeared thus far represent nearly one half of the encyclopedia. It should be noted that the published volumes include large sections of articles, which according to the Alef Beth, one might expect to find in later volumes. Thus, for example, a large part of the article on Tefillin was printed in the artide Hanahat Tefillin.
In order to help the student and reader find all the subjects discussed in the printed volumes, in 1984 the Encyclopedia published a special, very detailed index volume. The index, which was prepared by Rabbi Uri Dassberg, lists all the subjects (from Alef to Taf) explained in the first seventeen volumes of the encyclopedia. Some time ago, the encyclopedia published a supplement to the index. It was prepared by Rabbi Ezra Levy and covers volume one to twenty.
Yad HaRav Herzog houses, in addition to the Talmudic Encyclopedia, the Institute for the Complete Israeli Talmud. The Institute, like the encyclopedia, was founded by the late Rabbi Meir Berlin (Bar-Ilan). Rabbi Hutner, who has been associated with both projects since their beginnings also serves as director of the Institute.
The staff of the Institute has collected over the years, variant readings of the Babylonian Talmud from Babylonian manuscripts, fragments of the Cairo Geniza, early Talmud editions and writings of early rabbinic authorities.
The Institute published thus far Dikdukei Soferim HaShalem on the Order of Zeraim and on most of the Order Nashim. The large treasure of variant readings, which has not yet been published is used by rabbis and scholars, who visit the Institute for this purpose. Rabbi Hanokh Vagshal, the publisher of the new Neharde’a Talmud expresses in his edition thanks to the Institute and its director for the help he received from them.
The Institute has also published numerous annotated editions of commentaries on the Talmud by early authorities: Editions of commentaries, which were never published before, as well as improved editions of commentaries which had already appeared in print.
R. Yonah b. Abraham Gerondi, Meiri. R. David b. Levi of Narbonne, R. Meshullam b. Moshe of Beziers and R Isaac b. Melchizedek of Siponto are some of the authorities, works of whom were published by the Institute.
Rabbi Hutner told me at length about one of the Institute’s latest publications in this field; The Pesakim (rulings) of Rabbi lsaiah di Trani, the Elder (Rid), relating to some tractates of the Order of Kodashim.
“In the 1960’s we began to publish the Pesakim of the 13th century rabbi R. Isaiah di Trani, the Elder (Rid), and of his grandson, R. Isaiah di Trani, the Younger (Riaz),” Rabbi Hutner said.
“We had located manuscripts of their Pesakim in relating to many tractates. Rabbi Isaiah di Trani the Elder refers in his writings to his decisions relating to tractates of the Order of Kodashim. Rabbi Chaim Yosef David Azulay says in his Shem HaGedolim that he had seen Rabbi Isaiah’s rulings pertaining to tractates of Kodashim as well as to the tractate of Niddah.
Despite much research, we couldn’t locate any manuscript containing his rulings on Kodashim. Finally we found such a manuscript listed in Senior Sachs’ catalog of Baron David Guenzburg’s collection of manuscripts.” (Baron David Guenzburg was a scion of the wealthy Russian Guenzburgs, who were philanthropists and communal leaders. He was an Orientalist, a patron of Jewish art and active in Jewish affairs. His large library included very rare Hebrew books and invaluable Hebrew manuscripts. In 1908 he founded in St. Petersburg the Jewish Academy. He died in 1910.)
’Following the Russian Revolution, Baron Guenzburg’s library was nationalized and incorporated into what was to become known as V I. Lenin National Library of the USSR,” Rabbi Hutner continued.” During the Communist regime it was extremely difficult to get
copies of Hebrew manuscripts from Soviet institutions ”
(A notable exception were the endeavors of Prof Abraham Isaac Katsh of New York, who visited the Soviet Union several times in the 1950’s and succeeded in receiving microfilms of many manuscripts, preserved in the Guenzburg and in other collections.)
‘Towards the end of 1989, encouraged by the great changes which were taking place in the Soviet Union, Mr. Meir Brachfeld of Jerusalem-Antwerp visited, in our behalf, the V I. Lenin National Library — now called the Russian State Library — and some time later we received microfilms of the unique manuscript of the Pesakim of Rabbi Isaiah di Trani, the Elder, relating to several tractates of the Order of Kodashim,” Rabbi
Hutner said. ‘Last year we published his rulings relating to Zevahim. Menahot and Bekhorot. as volume 13 in our series of the Pesakim of Rabbi Isaiah di Trani, the Elder, and of his grandson. The volume, which was edited by Rabbi Zvi Yehoshua Leitner, will be followed by one featuring the remainder of the manuscript: The rulings of Rabbi Isaiah di Trani, the Elder, pertaining to tractate Hullin.” .
The Jewish Press, Friday, November 4, 1994