Žymiosios Žemaitijos ješivos Kelmėje bei Telšiuose ir jų musaro mokyklos

LTKelmės ir Telšių ješivos, įsteigtos XIX a. pabaigoje, pasižymėjo dviem išskirtinėmis savybėmis - buvo ne tik tradicinių rabiniškų studijų institucijos, prisitaikiusios didžiųjų lietuviškų ješivų modelį, kurį pirmasis XIX a. pradžioje Valažine buvo įdiegęs Vilniaus Gaono mokinys Chaimas iš Valažino, bet ir {vedusios modernių naujovių - šiuose studijų namuose studentams nebuvo draudžiama, netgi laikyta pageidautina, būti susipažinusiems su bent kai kuriais pasaulietiniais mokslais. Telšių ješivoje buvo įvestas pakopinis studijavimas ir XX a. pradžioje sukurtas ištisas įvairaus lygio mokymosi tinklas, kuriame mokėsi tiek abiejų lyčių vaikai, tiek ir vyresni. Ir abiejose ješivose (Telšiuose po tam tikro pasipriešinimo) buvo įvestas musaro studijavimas ir praktikavimas. Pastarasis - labiausiai išsiskiriantis šių ješivų elementas - straipsnyje interpretuojamas, remiantis buvusių su šiomis ješivomis susijusių rabinų raštais ir pasakojimais apie juos, siekiant suvokti tiek apskritai musaro vietą žydų tradicijoje (kuri tam tikra prasme yra prieštaringa), tiek ir šio, „žemaitiško“, musaro savitumą. Reikšminiai žodžiai: musaras, musaro judėjimas, ješiva, Halakha, Kelmės ješiva, Telšių ješiva, mašgiachas, lietuviškos ješivos. [Iš leidinio]

ENStudies of the Lithuanian Musar movement in the world are not as abundant as those of Chassidism or Kabbalah, nor are the studies concerning the major yeshivas of Žemaitija (those of Kelmė and Telšiai) especially numerous. The present article, based on sparse historiographic research and published texts of the Musar movement related to the above mentioned region of Lithuania, sought to reveal the distinctiveness and uniqueness of the Musar movements teachings. Although traditionally the term Musar is understood as the equivalent of moral teachings or ethics in Judaism, however, as explained by the authors of the Musar school texts, e.g. Rabbi Moshe Rosenstein, Musar is primarily concerned with the transformation of soul and heart. That means not simply adherence to an acceptable moral code or teachings about the nature and the virtues and values of the good, but also a tool of transformation, often underestimated by those who study the most subtle Kabbalistic teachings or other rabbinic texts that require tremendous intellectual efforts. The concept of Musar as an inner tool of transformation appeared in the region as a novelty which faced opposition from the party which observed the curriculum of the traditional rabbinic studies and argued that classical texts and practices themselves could help man to seek moral perfection.However, the answer could be the traditional concept of jecer ha-ra (propensity to evil) used by Musar teachers, according to which that was the will to whatever was related to human nature, i.e. the natural element in a human being, natural instincts, desires, and appetites. That just existed in man, as well as external evil performed by humans. The problem was confronting that evil and dealing with it, especially in non-standard situations, the most extreme of which was the presence of death during the Holocaust. Despite the differences in teachings and personalities (the most prominent figure being Rav Simcha Zissel Broide Ziv (Saba from Kelmė), who could simply be considered the true father of the Musar movement because of the fact that his disciples and the disciples of his disciples introduced Musar to various yeshivas, even though he himself was a disciple of Rabbi Israel Salanter), it was common for all of them to emphasise the divide between the natural mind, which could know the subtlest and the deepest things, yet never reached the core of true humaneness - the overcoming of nature. That was hard and painful work with oneself, which might be one of the reasons why Musar had not become as popular as Chassidism or Kabbalah. Moreover, perhaps that was what could somehow be considered the most ‘Žemaitijan’, i.e. y. related to fundamental things or, speaking metaphorically, to the ‘soil’ of the human heart. [From the publication]