Beautiful Unknown Letter from Rabbi Zeckel Segal Pollack, Disciple of the Chasam Sofer, in Praise of the Grandfather of Rabbi Shmuel HaLevi Wosner!
A lengthy handwritten and autographed letter by Rabbi Yitzchak Zeckel Segal Pollack, one of the greatest disciples and closest confidants of the Chasam Sofer.
In the letter, Rabbi Zeckel expresses great admiration for an exceptionally beautiful and meticulously written Torah scroll which was written by the scribe Rabbi Wolf Wosner, the brother-in-law of the renowned miracle worker the Dayan of Pupa and the grandfather of the leading halachic authority of the past generation, Rabbi Shmuel Halevi Wosner!
He cites an account from a Jew who saw this Torah scroll:
"He saw a wondrous sight throughout the entire scroll – in the sacred Name of Hashem (Y-H-V-H), the first letter ‘Hei’ is visibly broader than the second ‘Hei.’ Undoubtedly, this serves as a reminder of the sanctity of the Divine Name… indicating that it was written with a special intent… And this is a proper practice to follow."
To the best of Zaidy’s knowledge, this interesting letter has never been published. It provides a significant historical discovery regarding the history of the extensive Wosner family, which has produced world-renowned Torah scholars in the last generation.
Rabbi Yitzchak Zeckel Segal Pollack (1813–1891) was known as an exceptional Torah prodigy from his youth and learned together as chavrusa with his teacher the Chasam Sofer every night, from midnight until dawn. By day, he studied with Rabbi Shimon Sofer, Av Beis Din of Krakow (Melitzei Eish, Tammuz, Ch. 246). He also studied by the author of ‘Tiv Gittin’.
Rabbi Pollak resided in Szerdahely and in 1874 he moved to Bonyhád where he assisted his son, Rabbi Moshe Pollack, in managing its renowned yeshiva, which attracted thousands of students. (Introduction to the sefer ‘Birkas Moshe’). Chiddushei Torah of his were printed in ‘Birkas Yitzchak’, published at the end of ‘Birkas Moshe’ by his son Rabbi Moshe Pollack.
His disciple, Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky, describes him:
"Who can measure his love for Torah? Who can express his deep attachment to his teacher, the Chasam Sofer? Every word of his teacher was engraved upon his heart… He would sit in the Beis Medrash all day and throughout the night, immersed in the sounds of Torah…" (Haskama to ‘Birkas Moshe’, Pupa, 1911).
Rabbi Binyamin Ze’ev Wolf Wosner, the scribe mentioned in the letter, was the son-in-law of Rabbi Michael Pupa of Szerdahely, a disciple of the Chasam Sofer, and the brother-in-law of the Dayan of Pupa. He passed away in 1927, and upon his passing, it was written about him that he had completed the entire Shas three times.
His grandson was the towering Torah giant of the past generation, Rabbi Shmuel HaLevi Wosner, son of his son Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Wosner.
Szerdahely, 1868. A full page entirely handwritten and signed by Rabbi Zeckel in Yiddish and Hebrew. Thin bluish paper.
Size: 14.3 × 23 cm.
Condition: Good.
