Even a Ray of Candlelight Was Enough for Torah Study

The deep love for Torah shown by our greatest Torah scholars is something that continues to inspire every generation. Their thirst for Torah wasn’t just about study. It was expressed through learning at every moment, praying from the heart for understanding, and even giving charity to help open their minds to Torah wisdom. These three moving stories show how powerful and personal that yearning can be.

Rabbi Ben Zion Palman: Climbing a Cabinet to Learn Torah by Candlelight

In the sefer Tuvcha Yabi’u, we find a story about Rabbi Ben Zion Palman, the grandfather of Rabbi Ben Zion Palman of Nachalat Moshe in Bnei Brak. In those days, electric lighting wasn’t available in every home. Most people relied on candles to light their homes at night.

One evening, during World War I, Rabbi Ben Zion was learning Torah with his sons when the very last candle in their home went out. There were no new candles to be found. But stopping their learning wasn’t an option. They were deeply immersed in Torah, and this learning gave them life and meaning.

A thin wall separated their home from that of Rabbi Michal Shlepovsky. At the top of the wall was a small window. A faint beam of candlelight shone through from their neighbors' side. Rabbi Ben Zion quickly asked one of his sons to climb up on a cabinet beneath the window and use that small ray of light to read the Gemara.

That spark of light was all they needed. The passion for Torah that burned in their hearts was so strong that even a flicker of light from the neighbors was enough to keep the learning going. That moment showed just how sweet Torah was to them, and how far they would go to stay connected to it.

The Divrei Chaim of Sanz: At Four Years Old, He Knew All 613 Mitzvot

Even as a young child, the Divrei Chaim of Sanz, one of the great Chassidic leaders, was already filled with love for Torah and mitzvot. At just four years old, he had memorized all 613 mitzvot as listed by the Rambam.

His chassidim once asked him why he took the time to memorize them at such a young age. His answer was clear and full of feeling. “Look at soldiers who are about to go on a mission,” he explained. “They are required to know all the orders from their commander. We too are soldiers in Hashem’s army. That means we must know His commands by heart.”

Even as a small boy, he understood that every mitzvah was a command from our King. Learning them wasn’t just study. It was how he prepared to serve Hashem with everything he had.

The Seraph of Brisk: Praying with Tears to Understand Torah

The students of Rabbi Yehoshua Leib Diskin, known as the Seraph of Brisk, shared what it was like to learn with their great rebbe. Whenever he came across a difficult sugya (Talmudic topic) or a question that had no clear answer, he didn’t give up. He would pour every ounce of energy into finding the truth.

He would pace the room, his powerful mind racing with thoughts. He often asked the student beside him to read the Gemara aloud again and again, slowly and clearly, word by word. He wanted to make sure he didn’t miss a single hint.

There were many times when he would suddenly burst into tears, overwhelmed with emotion. The tears would stream down his face as he turned to a quiet corner of the room and whispered a prayer to Hashem. “Please open my heart to Your Torah. Let me understand Your holy words.”

Sometimes he would even give tzedakah to the Rabbi Meir Baal HaNes fund, a well-known custom for seeking merit and salvation. He would continue praying until the answer became clear.

One time, after he gave tzedakah and suddenly found clarity in a difficult issue, his student turned to him and said, “Until now, I thought that to understand a sugya, you needed a kop,” meaning a sharp head. “But now I see that sometimes all it takes is a kopike,” the Yiddish word for a small coin.