Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin (1749–1821): biography, Nefesh HaChaim and the Volozhin yeshiva
Rabbi Chaim ben Yitzchak of Volozhin (חיים מוולוז׳ין) was the chief disciple of the Vilna Gaon, the founder of the Volozhin yeshiva and the author of Nefesh HaChaim. He was born on January 21, 1749 in Volozhin (today Valozhyn, Belarus) and died there on June 14, 1821, at the age of seventy-two.
Quick facts
| Name | Rabbi Chaim ben Yitzchak of Volozhin (Chaim Itzkowitz) |
| Born | January 21, 1749, in Volozhin |
| Died | June 14, 1821, in Volozhin |
| Teachers | Rabbi Aryeh Leib Gunzberg, Rabbi Raphael HaKohen and the Vilna Gaon |
| Institution | The Volozhin yeshiva, founded in 1803 |
| Works | Nefesh HaChaim, Ruach Chaim, Chut HaMeshulash |
Teachers
He studied with Rabbi Aryeh Leib Gunzberg, author of Sha’agat Aryeh and rabbi of Volozhin, together with his older brother Simcha. Also with Rabbi Raphael HaKohen, author of Torat Yekutiel, later rabbi of Hamburg. Around the age of twenty-five he became a disciple of the Vilna Gaon and, according to the source, restarted his studies with the Gaon’s method. After the Gaon’s death, he “hardly recognized a superior.” See the biography of the Vilna Gaon.
The Volozhin yeshiva
He founded it in 1803 (one source gives 1802), under the name Yeshivat Etz Chaim, to apply the method of the Vilna Gaon. It operated for almost ninety years, until 1892. It began with ten students, supported by him, and came to have about a hundred under his direction. The source calls it “the mother of all Lithuanian-style yeshivot” and mentions Slobodka, Mir, Ponevezh, Kelm, Kletsk and Telz as followers of its approach.
His works
- Nefesh HaChaim (“The Soul of Life”): his main work, an exposition with kabbalistic elements on G-d, prayer and the value of the Torah. It is regarded as the Lithuanian answer to Hasidism, gentler in tone than the criticism of the Gaon and of Rabbi Yechezkel Landau. It was published posthumously, in Vilna and Grodno, in 1824.
- Ruach Chaim: a commentary on Pirkei Avot, published posthumously.
- Chut HaMeshulash: a collection of responsa; many of his responsa were lost in a fire in 1815.
Family
His brother Simcha died in 1812. His son Yitzchak succeeded him at the head of the yeshiva in 1821; a daughter of Yitzchak married Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin, the Netziv. A great-grandson of his belongs to the Soloveitchik family.
Frequently asked questions
Who was his main teacher?
The Vilna Gaon, to whose method he dedicated the Volozhin yeshiva.
What is Nefesh HaChaim?
His main work, on G-d, prayer and the Torah, written in part as a response to Hasidism.
When did the Volozhin yeshiva close?
In 1892, after almost ninety years of activity.
Sources
- Chaim of Volozhin, reference article (English Wikipedia) and the sources it cites
- Cross-checking: OU, “Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin”; Vilna.co.il; Kedem Auctions (first edition of Nefesh HaChaim)
