Yikhus and the Early Hasidic Movement

Yikhus and the Early Hasidic Movement: Principles and Practice in 18Lh and Early 19" Century Eastern Europe by Glenn Dynner, Department of Jewish Studies, McGiII University, Monireal, August, 1997. A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial filfiIlment of the requirements of the degree of Master of the Arts. @ Glenn Dynner, 1997. 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Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts fkom it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the auuior's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. Preface and Acknowledgments FacuIty regdations for thesis submission are as follows: Candidates have the option of including, as part of the thesis, the text of one or more Papen submitted or to be submitted for publication, or the clearly-duplicated text of one or more published papers. These texts inust be bond as an integral part of the thesis. If this option is chosen, connecting texts that provide logical bridges between the different papers are mandatory The thesis must be writien in such a way that it is more than a mere collection of manuscnpts; in other words, results of a series of papers must be integrated. The thesis must still conform to al1 other requirements of the "Guidelines for Thesis Preparation." The thesis must include: A Table of Contents, an abstract in English and French. an introduction which clearly States the rationale and objectives of the smdy, a review of the literature, a fuial conclusion and summary, and a thorough bibliography or reference list. Additional material must be provided when appropnate (e.g. in appendices) and in sufficient detail to allow a clear and precise judgment to be made of the importance and original@ of the research reported in the thesis. In the case of manuscripts CO-authoredby the candidate and others, the candidate is required to make an explicit statement in the thesis as to who contnbuted to such work and to what extent. Supervisors must attest to the accuracy of such statements at the doctoral oral defense. Since the task of the examiners is made more difficult in these cases, it is in the candidate's interest to make perfectly clear the responsibilities of al1 the authors of the CO- authored papers. Acknowlegements: 1would like to thank my advisor, Rofessor Gershon David Hundert, whose expenise in the history of the Hasidic rnovemerit in particular, and early modem East European Jewish History in general, is tnly inspiring. Professor Hundert has managed to provide me with detailed suggestions while, simultaneously, allowing me to lem a great degree of independence. I am also indebted to several other members of the Jewish Studies faculty, whose classes laid the groundwork for this project, and who occasionally advised me on the work itself. They are: Professor Lawrence Kaplan, Professor Barry Levy, and Professor Eugene Orenstein. Finally, for moral support, which has been crucial, 1 wish to thank rny father, Alan Dynner, my mother, Nancy Dynner, and my sisters, Susan and Karin Dynner. Thesis Abstract Yilhus- the salient feature of the Iewish aristocracy- may be defined as a type of prestige deriving fiom the achievements of one's forbears and living family members in the scholarly, mystical, or, to a lesser degree, economic realms. Unlike land acquisition, by which the non-Jewish anstocracy preserved itself, yikhus was intimately linked with achievement in the above reahs, requiring a continual infusion of new talent from each generation of a particular family. This definition is anived at afier a close consideration of the existing secondary literature and pnmary sources such as rabbinic literature, homiletic literature, ethical wills, memoirs. A question which has yet to be resolved is the extent to which the founders of Hasidism, a mystical revivalist rnovement that swept Eastern European Jewish communities hmthe second half of the eighteenth century until the Holocaust, challenged prevailing notions ofyikhur. The question relates to the identities of Hasidim's leaders- the Zaddikim- themselves. If, as the older histonography daims, the Zaddikim emerged fiom outside the elite stratum, and therefore lackedyikhus, they might be expected to challenge a notion which would threaten their perceived right to lead. If, on the other hand, the Zaddikim were really the same scions of noble Jewish families who had always led the communities, they would probably uphold the value of yikhs. Chapter 1 includes a definition and history of the evolution of the concept, followed by a survey of the secondary literature on yikhus both before and during the rise of Hasidism. It becomes clear that most histonans do not provide a satisfactory explanation ofyikhus. Regarding yikhus and Hasidism, three mistaken views ernerge. First, historians fail to observe that yikhus is a primary characteristic of a Zaddik. Instead, they point to charisma as the exclusive quality. Second, some scholars suggest that the importance of yikhus declined during Hasidism's rise. Finally, other scholars assume that attitudes toward yikhus assured the eventual institution of Hasidic dynasties, which occurred after the mid-nineteenth century. Chapter 2 comprises an analysis of the ideals of the Zaddikim as dernonstrated in early Hasidic literature, most of which is homiletic. One is able to detect, in the second generation, a split between those Zaddikim who cnticize undue pride in yikhur, and those who uphold the value unquestioningly. The third and final chapter considers the Zaddikim themselves. It entails a look at the family origin of twenty-eight major Zaddikim of the first heegenerations, to determine how many wereyikhus possessors. Second, the type of yikhus the Zaddikim possess is considered, i.e., whether or not a Zaddik belonged to a prominent aristocratic family, or merely descended from a scholar or communal leader. Finally, the marriage strategies of each Zaddik for his children are descnbed. In the course of these analyses, it becomes clear that the vast majority of Zaddikim did, indeed have yikhus. And virtually al1 Zaddikim, even those who lacked yikhus, sought to marry their children to yiWrus possessors, thereby consolidating their position within the elite. French Abstract Le yikhus -- aspect clé de l'aristocratie juive -- était une sorte de prestige venant des accomplissements des ancëtres et des membres vivants de la famille dans les domaines intellectuels, mystiques ou, bien que moins, économiques. A la différence de I'acquisition foncière, une stratégie souvent employée par l'aristocratie non- juive, Ie yikhm était troitement lié aux réussites de la famille et nécessitait l'infusion continue de nouveau talents de chaque génération de la famille. Cette définition de yikhus est proposé après I'analyse des sources sécondaires éxistantes ainsi que des sources primaires tel que la littérature rabbinique, la littérature homiletique, les testaments ethiques, et des mémoires. Une question qui n'a toujours pas de réponse défm-tive est celle de savoir à quel point le yikhus a été influencé par le Hasidisme, un mouvement mystique de renouveau qui s'est étendu dans les communautés juifs de l'Europe de l'Est entre la deuxième partie du 18e siècle et le Holocauste. La question s'addresse surtout aux identités des leaders du Hasidisme, les Zaddikim. Si, comme l'on prétend I'ancieme historiographie, les Zaddikim ont apparu en dehors des groupes élites et par conséquent n'avaient pas le yikhus, ils auraient contesté des idées qui mettaient en cause lm statut de leader. Si, par contre, les Zaddikim faisaient partie des mêmes familles juives nobles qui avaient toujours mené les communautés, ils auraient probablement soutenu la valeur du yikhus. Le premier chapitre donne une définition du concept et une histoire de son évolution, suivi par une vue d'ensemble de la littérature sécondaire à son sujet avant et pendant l'essor du Hasidisrne. Il est montré que peu d'historiens donnent des explications satisfaisantes au sujet du yikhur. En ce qui concemce le yikhus et le Hasidisme, trois idées fausses apparaissent souvent. Premier, au lieu de constater que le yikhus faisait partie intégrale de l'identité Zaddik, les historiens mettent souvent l'accent sur I'importance du charisme. Deuxième, certains d'entre eux donnent l'impression que l'importance du yikhus diminuait pendant que le Hasidisme prenait du terrain. Finalement, d'autres supposent que les attitudes envers le yikhus ont assuré l'instauration des dynasties Hasidiques, qui se sont produits à partir de la deuxième partie du 19e siècle. Le deuxième chapitre analyse les valeurs des Zaddikim tel qu'ils sont présentés dans le début de la littérature Hasidique, dont la plupart est homiletique. Il est possible de discerner dans la deuxième génération une scission entre ces Zaddikim qui critiquent la fierté mal placée duyikhus et ceux qui soutiennent sa valeur incontestablement. Le troisième et dernier chapitre parle concrètement des Zaddih. il présente I'ongine familiale de 28 Zaddikim importants des trois premières générations, afm de déterminer le nombre d'entre eux qui possedaient le yikhur. Deuxième, il considère le type de yikhur que les Zaddikim possedaient, cette à dire si le Zaddik appartenait à une famille aristocratique importante ou s'il venait simplement d'une lignée d'intellectuel ou de leader communal.

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