במדבר 32:41
וְיָאִיר בֶּן־מְנַשֶּׁה הָלַךְ וַיִּלְכֹּד אֶת־חַותֵיהֶם וַיִּקְרָא אֶתְהֶן חַות יָאִיר׃
Jair son of Manasseh went and captured their villages, which he renamed Chavot Yair.
A Book Named for Bubbe
Yair Chaim Bachrach (?1639-1702) was an important rabbinic figure who lived for most of his life in Worms and Mainz. He had married Eva, the granddaughter of the Maharal of Prague, but he was also deeply influenced by his own grandparents, especially his paternal grandmother Chava. In fact, Chava had such an influence over Rabbi Yair that he named his book after her.
Chavot Yair, introduction.
Aside from this, there is another reason that I chose to call this [book Chavot Yair]. It is in memory of my pious grandmother Chava, the mother of my late father Shimon, and this is most fitting…For my grandmother was the granddaughter of the Gaon Rabbi Leib Prague…She was very learned and unique among her peers in her knowledge of Torah, she learned Midrash Rabbah which had no commentaries using her own approach and insights. And in many places she improved on the commentary [to the Midrash Rabbah called] Matnat Kehuna [by Yissachar Katz], and her own commentary was such that anyone who read it would understand that hers was superior. In many places I have quoted her insights in her name, for example in my commentary on the Machzor and on selichot and on Rashi’s commentary on the Bible…in many places the leading figures of our generation could not provide an explanation, until she came along and provided a solution.
She had outstanding penmanship and used beautiful language. She was also widely recognized for her piety, and it is simply not possible to describe all of her qualities. She was widowed at the age of only thirty…in 1650 she moved with my father to Worms when he became rabbi there, and stayed with him for about a year. Then she tried to travel to Israel, but she died in Sophia and the respect that was given to her there after her death was remarkable, for she was well known there and had an impeccable reputation…it is also impossible to overstate the respect that her two brothers showed to their sister.
As Zeev Zuckerman notes in his impressive five volume Otzar Piloas Hatorah (best described as a sort of Ripley’s Believe It or Not on the Torah,) there are other examples of rabbinic works named for women. Rabbi Yechezkel Landau (1713-1793) who served as chief rabbi of Prague, wrote a commentary on Pesachim called צל׳ח – ציון לנפש חיה. It was named for his mother, Chaya, as he described in his introduction.
Seven years ago, I was worthy to call my work נודע ביהודה (Nodah B’yehudah, lit. Known in Judah), named for my father…and now I am able to fulfil my vow for “my mother in wisdom,” my modest and righteous mother. I am calling this new book [ציון לנפש חיה “A sign for the soul of Chaya”], to remember her pure soul.
A Book named for Mom
Megilat Esther - the biblical book - is of course named for a woman. But there is another Megilat Esther named for another Esther. It was written by Yizhak DeLion (c.1495-c.1545) and is a commentary on Maimonides’ Sefer Hamitzvot. DeLion gave two reasons for the book’s name. First, it was a defence of Maimonides from criticisms of his work made by Nachmanides. The author had uncovered hidden reasoning in Maimonides, and to emphasise this, the name of the book is a play on the root ס–ת–ר meaning hidden.
The second reason was somewhat more personal.
It is to allow me to remember each and every day of my life the sadness of having lost my wise and saintly mother, Esther, may her sould be in Eden. For while I was busy writing this and another book, she was taken from me and called before the King of Kings, the Holy One, Bleesed be He. So I decided to call this book Megillat Esther for these two reasons.
הקדמא מגילת אסתר על ספר המצוות
וקראתי שם זה הספר מגלת אסתר. וזה לשתי סבות. האחת כי בו יגלו ויתפרסמו הסתר סברות הרב בי"ד שרשיו אשר יסד בבואו למנות המצות. והשנית לזכר לי כל ימי עולם עניי ויגוני מפטירת הצדקת המשכלת הורתי מרת אסתר נפשה עדן, כי בהיותי טרוד בעיון שני ספרים אלה לוקחה מעמי ונקראה לבא אל המלך מלך מלכי המלכים הקב"ה, לכן אמרתי לקרות לחבורי זה מגלת אסתר לשתי אלה הכונות אשר בזה השם נכללות
The introduction to many early Hebrew books are gems that should be more widely read. They introduce us to the author’s methods and goals, and often tell us about people who would have otherwise been forgotten. And so we say to Chava, grandmother of Yair Chaim Bachrach, Chaya, mother of Yechezkel Landau of Prague and Esther, mother of Yizhak DeLion, you are not forgotten, and your memory lives on through the scholarship of your children.
יהי זכרן ברוך
