In the short time remaining between Rosh Hashonoh and Yom
Kippur, it is fitting to study the ways of our mentors, who
illumine the generations, the geonim vetzaddikim. Let
us examine their behavior during the holy day of Yom Kippur,
and perhaps by doing so we will learn something that we can
adopt so as to influence our own behavior on Yom Kippur.
It is told about the Noda BiYehudah, "On Yom Kippur, from
beginning to end, he did not move from his place. But he
neither rested nor did he stand silently; his eyes did not
close; he would constantly entreat Hashem with a loud outcry"
(Introduction to Drushei HaTzlach). The Radal cried so
profusely that for several days after Yom Kippur his eyes
still ached (Toldos HaRadal, note no. 9).
The spiritual avodoh of the gedolei Yisroel
during Yom Kippur was amazing, and also frightening. They
would weep endlessly, with terrifying cries, clinging
devotedly to Hashem. We will give a brief sketch of the
behavior of these tzaddikim, as it is recorded in
Uvechein Tzaddikim (chap. 27):
The Aderes: "Even since my youth, during the seder
HoAvodah and Ve'eileh ezkeroh (about the asoro
harugei malchus) my heart melts as I say the
piyutim, and in the abundance of my anguish the tears
pour like water" (Nefesh LeDovid).
"People far away were able to hear the roar of the Brisker
Rov's davening on Yom Kippur during the avodoh
of Musaf — all the way to the Zichron
Moshe neighborhood" (Toras Zeev, p. 30).
People have testified that although R' Tzvi Hacohen of
Rimenov was naturally bold-hearted and not inclined to cry,
yet on Yom Kippur during the avodoh he would cry
excessively, in an indescribable fashion, before the entire
congregation.
Before Ne'ilah, R' Yitzchok Blazer zt'l (R' Itzeleh of
Petersburg) was accustomed to say, "Even those people whom
Heaven has decreed culpable can do teshuvoh at the
last minute and change their sentence!"
The Aderes writes in Nefesh Dovid (p. 132),
"During Ne'ilah, from the beginning of Kaddish,
I was always heartbroken and tears overflowed from my eyes. I
felt exceptionally chagrined and many times I achieved
complete repentance."
"Maran R' Eliyahu Lopian zt'l would remind us not to
forget to take kabbolos upon ourselves during
Ne'ilah. It is impossible to go through the Day of
Judgment safely without taking upon oneself some sort of
determination to improve one's deeds, so that they will be
better than those of the previous year. He was accustomed to
advise people, in the name of the Alter of Kelm, to take on a
kabboloh during Ne'ilah to the effect that any
kabboloh made during the entire year will be
retroactively included in his kabboloh of Yom Kippur
at Ne'ilah. By this tnai one insures that any
kabboloh made during the whole year will have the
kedushoh of Yom Kippur attached to it. During the
year, when R' Eliyahu Lopian would speak for the
va'adim (small groups gathered for more individual and
intensive mussar guidance) about takonos and
kabbolos, he would always remind us to be aware that
our kabbolos have Yom Kippur's power of
kedushoh" (Lev Eliyahu, I, intro., p. 36).
Maran R' Yechezkel Levenstein zt'l, the
mashgiach of Yeshivas Ponovezh, would say, "It is
known, on the authority of the gaon R' Yisroel
Salanter zt'l, that during all of Yom Kippur one must
constantly seek ways to uphold the kabbolos taken upon
oneself during Yom Kippur" (Or Yechezkel, Sichos Elul,
p. 123). In addition he said (Ibid.), "I know that the
Alter of Kelm zt'l used to say that taking on the
determination to learn mussar is a good way to
remember, during the year's mussar study, all the new
kabbolos taken on during Yom Kippur."
About R' Tzvi Shapira it is attested (Tzvi LeTzaddik,
p. 40) that "during the days when our judgment is being
passed (Aseres Yemei Teshuvoh) he would adopt
preventive safeguards to his conduct. It is evident from his
holy writings that he would decide during the Aseres Yemei
Teshuvoh which safeguards to take on. When he wrote them
down he alluded to them in hints so that the next year he
would be able to consider whether he had in fact succeeded in
holding tightly to his kabbolos" (from Pirkei
Hashonoh).
Eat Your Bread Joyously
There is a special halocho, cited in the Ramo (chap. 24),
teaching us how to act directly following Yom Kippur: "We eat
and are joyous on Motzei Yom Kippur, since it is a
kind of yom tov." This is based on the
midrash, which tells us, "A Bas Kol goes forth
on Motzei Yom Kippur and says to man, `Go and eat your
bread joyously, for Hashem has accepted your deeds.'" In
addition, the Shulchan Oruch writes (Ibid.) that those
who are meticulous about their deeds start immediately on
Motzei Yom Kippur to build a succah, in order
to let one mitzvah lead directly on to another one, as
written, "they go from one strength to another"
(Tehillim 84:8).
*
Here are some anecdotes showing the customs of gedolei
Yisroel immediately following the conclusion of Yom
Kippur.
The Aderes once said, "In the last several years I
cried excessively during Ma'ariv of Motzei Yom
Kippur. My heart melts like wax when I remember that I am
departing from this sacred place and day, where for an entire
day we cling to avodas Hashem. Yom Kippur is the
ultimate, out of the whole year, of unlimited spiritual
delight in enjoying Hashem's closeness, and now we have to be
separated from it for a full year!" (Nefesh Dovid, p.
132).
It is told about the Netziv zt'l, "On Motzei Yom
Kippur he returned to his studies [immediately] after the
night meal" (Eitz Chaim, p. 237). In Toldos
HaRadal (sec. 9) much the same is told of the Radal:
"When he returned from the beis haknesses he ate a
little after havdoloh and slept about an hour.
Afterwards he compelled himself to get up and study Torah as
was his custom."
Of R' Yitzchok Elchonon zt'l, the Rav of Kovno and
eminent poseik, it is reported, "Who can possibly
imagine his rejoicing and happiness of soul on every
Motzei Yom Kippur? His countenance gleamed, gladdening
all members of the house. In the fullness of his heart he
would repeatedly say: How precious are the moments of this
Holy Day; how fortunate we are on this distinguished day! He
was fortified with pleasure in Hashem, and seemed as if
dancing before Hashem in abundance of happiness" (Toldos
Yitzchok, p. 15).
About the Brisker Rav is written (Chukas Olam, p. 32),
"Whoever did not see his happiness on Motzei Yom
Kippur never saw happiness in his life."
R' Eliyahu Lopian was accustomed to request the yeshiva
students, on the day following Yom Kippur, to sit down and
learn a little before their trip back home, so as not to
allow the Satan the opportunity to complain to Hashem that
after He annuls their sins they just run away from the
yeshiva without learning. He alerted them to this by saying
that we should not forget that the "Days of Justice" continue
until after Hoshanoh Rabbah, and the decree can, chas
vesholom, be changed during these days. He explained that
these are times when Hashem tests man to see if he really was
sincere in what he promised when asking forgiveness. If he
does not fulfill his promises, it is possible that the
forgiveness will be canceled and the decree will be changed.
He used to tell the famous story about Maran the Chasam
Sofer, who said on the night of Simchas Torah of the year
when he died that he had gone through Rosh Hashonoh and Yom
Kippur well, but on the night of Hoshanoh Rabbah they
threw him out of the celestial community" (Lev
Eliyahu, I, intro., p. 43).
How can a person know whether he has merited forgiveness on
Yom Kippur? R' Yitzchok Blazer used to answer: "Our sages
said `Sin stupefies a man's heart' (Yoma 39). If so,
when sin is removed, obviously man's spiritual stupor will
also disappear. If, therefore, a man feels himself clean,
without spiritual stupor, that is a sure sign that his sins
were forgiven. But if, choliloh, his heart remains as
it was before, with the same stupor, then it is obvious that
his sins were not absolved (Kochevei Or, p. 266).
