[Avodah] R. Chaim Volozhiner and Putting on Rabbeinu Tam T'fillin

[Elazar M. Teitz]

<<<< Someone sent me the following:
 A famous story about R. Chaim Volozhiner, when asked why he didn't put on
 Rabbeinu Tam t'fillin: "The din says that unless one is a chosid, he
 shouldn't, because it's mechazei k'yuhara....">>>>

<<< Does this mean the Gra, who his talmidim (including RCV) called "HaGaon
 haChassid" (sometimes "haGaon haChassid haAmiti", in true misnagid style),
 *did* wear Rabbeinu Tam tefillin?>>>

<< Certainly his talmidim called him a chassid, but what makes you think he 
 would not have hesitated to call himself a chasid?>>

<My point was that RCV thought his rebbe was a chassid, and that it's
appropriate for chassidim to wear R"T tefillin. It would therefore be
consistent if he actually saw the Gra in R' Tam tefillin.

<BTW, it's not RCV's chiddush, it's the SA OC 34:3. It must not only be
a chassid, but someone well known to be one -- "mi shemuchzaq umfursam
bachasidus".>

      Of course the halacha is not RCV's chiddush -- he _quoted_ the halacha ("The din says . . .").

<Lemaaseh, further CD Rom search turned up that the Vilna Gaon held that it
was pointless to wear R' Tam tefillin (Biur haGra 34:1 "uminhag"). Keser
Rosh (#13), R' Chaim Tiktiner's notes of things he learned from RCV (his
rebbe), repeats that the Gra said this was because there are numerous
different machloqesin about how to make tefillin (and something like
2^n possible combinations of opinions). Why stop at two pair?

<Which means that RCV might have disagreed with the Gra about whether the
machloqes Rashi vs R' Tam is unique. Thus, haGaon haChassid miVilna not
wearing them was not a statement for those who hold there was a specific
"runner up" for meaningful-but-not-yotzei tefillin.>

     That's reading too much into a simple sentence. RCV, for the reason he gave, would not have worn RT t'fillin in any event; thus, any conclusion as to whether or not it he held it was a unique machlokes is unwarranted.  In point of fact, it is indisputable that there are other machlokos.  For one, the Shimusha Rabba's opinion is that the order of the parshios is a mirror image of Rashi's regarding left-to-right orientation.

EMT


Tir'u baTov!
-Micha



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