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only the Mekor Hachayim but the be’er Mayim chayim as well.
introduction to the english translation of
Sefer Chafetz Chayim
the halachot of esurei lashon Hara and esurei rechilut are not
intuitive, they are detailed, complex and require concentrated
study at a level no different than the study of the laws of shabbat,
Kashrut or business practices. The holy Chafetz Chayim
writes in the introduction to his sefer of halacha, sefer chafetz
chayim, that the longevity of the bitter galut is a consequence
of our attitude towards our fellow Jew and the way that attitude
manifests itself in expressing ourselves to each other. there are
several reasons for this. the chafetz chayim goes on to say in
his introduction to this sefer: “the main reason for the problem
comes from the fact that there is not one central source that
explains and elaborates on the laws of lashon Hara and rechilut.
nothing exists that explains the qualities and nuances (of these
laws) in all of their details. these laws are scattered throughout
shas and the rishonim. even the rambam in the seventh perek
of Hilchot de’aut and rabbeinu yonah in shaare teshuvah, both
of whom paved the way for us in leading through this body of
law, wrote their commentaries in a very concise style as was the
custom of the rishonim. also, there were many details of law
that they did not discuss, as the reader will soon come to see.
therefore i have strengthened myself for this task, with the Help
of g-d who endows man with intelligence, and i have assembled
all of the laws pertaining to lashon Hara and rechilut into one
volume. i have collected them from all of the scattered places
throughout Shas and the Authorities who codified the law, in
particular, from the rambam, the se’Mag (of blessed memory)
and rabbeinu yonah’s shaare teshuvah. they have illuminated
our eyes and made us aware of these laws. i have also collected
the pertinent laws from the responsa of the Ma’Harik and other
responsa relevant to this subject. I have divided this book into
the idea appealed to me and i began translating it as well.
you don’t what strength there is in the power of a word, what
it could do and where it could lead. a week or so after this
all happened, my wife called me with a doctor’s report of our
daughter; Mazal was diagnosed with breast cancer in an advanced
stage. Who could ever have thought a young mother of 29 with
th
four little children would have cancer. it was the 11 of av 5761
and on that day this whole project took on an entirely different
importance and the learning of the sefer became an instrument of
petition to HaKadosh Baruch Hu to spare Mazal’s life. Hashem
blessed us with great strength to do what needed to be done.
With no depression and great optimism, chodesh elul was
approaching and we would beg our father in intimate prayer to
cure Mazal and allow her to lead a normal, long life. each of us
focused on what was important; Mazal focused on nurturing her
family, my wife focused on Mazal’s every medical need with our
friends and acquaintances supporting us in every constructive
way imaginable.
at a point where the translation reached a complete unit i would
make copies of it and put it into 3-ring binders and distribute
them to the men in my daily gemara shiur in the ateret torah
beit Midrash. as more halachot were completed they would
be added to their binders. My good friend and neighbor, Mr.
Kalman Silberstein began reviewing these notes for content and
accuracy and we developed a regular shiur in reviewing the text.
My friends, who are part of the ateret torah community were
a constant support; shmuel shamula gave me great chizuk and
as questions came up I would repeatedly go to Rafi Kishik and
refael attie for help in understanding the text. for a while i met
regularly with my son, Rabbi Mordechai Levy to clarify the flow
of the text. on several occasions when the p’shat of the text was
difficult for me to understand I went to Rabbi Yaakov Konigsberg
for explanation. throughout all of these events my friend Mr.