A Gathering and Lesson for Graduates of Yeshivat 'Chochma V'Daat' at the

On Wednesday, the night of the 8th of Iyar, many young men—about seventy in number, graduates of the 'Breslov Chochma V'Daat Yeshiva'—entered the residence of our teacher, the Rav, Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a, for a special chabura (gathering) and shiur (lesson) for inner spiritual strengthening.

Even before the Rav shlit"a entered, the young men sang soulful songs for a long time, and even after our teacher the Rav shlit"a arrived, they continued for several more minutes with songs of emotion and awakening to the service of Hashem (God). Afterward, the Rav shlit"a delivered a shiur (lesson) to the young men for about an hour. Below is a summary of the shiur given to the students.

The Rav shlit"a began the shiur (lesson) regarding the matter of Avraham Avinu (Abraham our Father) marrying Hagar, who was the daughter of Nimrod, citing many Midrashim (homiletic teachings) on the subject. He then moved on to speak about the greatness of those who study the weekly Torah portion along with all the Midrashim. He continued with the topic of Eliezer, the servant of Abraham, who went to find a shidduch (marriage match) for Yitzchak (Isaac), and all the questions he had for Avraham Avinu regarding the matter of the shidduch.

During the talk, he also encouraged traveling to the tziyun (tomb) of the Rashbi (Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai) on Lag BaOmer, despite all the difficult restrictions. Afterward, he spoke about Nadav and Avihu, and the secret of the phrase "When will these two elders die?" and the Midrashim brought regarding this. He also spoke about Esau, who married Mahalath only so that Yitzchak would die of grief over it, allowing him to kill his brother Yaakov (Jacob). During the discussion, he recounted the miracle of the rescue of the holy Tzaddik, Rabbi Amram ben Diwan zy"a (may his merit protect us), at the Me'arat HaMachpelah (Cave of the Patriarchs).

He concluded the shiur (lesson) by returning to the matter of Nadav and Avihu, while encouraging the young men to travel to the graves of Tzaddikim (righteous ones) during their free time, instead of wasting time in other places of which the spirit of the Sages does not approve.