Mahar’m Shapira's Secret to Greatness: Hidden on a Rooftop

When people speak about Rabbi Meir Shapira—known by the acronym Mahar’m—they speak with awe and warmth. He wasn’t just a great Torah scholar. He was a visionary who changed Jewish learning forever. Born in Poland, Mahar’m Shapira created the Daf Yomi program—where Jews across the world study the same page of Gemara (Talmud) each day. It was his way of uniting the Jewish people through Torah, no matter where they were. He also founded Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin, a groundbreaking yeshiva that gave students not only Torah learning but also food, lodging, and dignity.

Though he had no children of his own and passed away young—at just 46—his impact continues to this day.

Years after his passing, something extraordinary happened. Rabbi Tzvi Aryeh Frommer, who became the head of Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin after Mahar’m, shared that he once saw his predecessor in a dream. He asked him a bold question: “Where is your place in Gan Eden (the Garden of Eden)?”

Mahar’m answered, “In Heaven, they aren’t impressed by grand acts. It’s decided by the teaching of Rabbi Levitas of Yavneh.” He was referring to a teaching from Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers), where Rabbi Levitas says, “Be very, very humble.” That was the key: not how much he built or accomplished—but how deeply he lived with humility.

This deep humility was something Mahar’m lived by, even during the biggest moments of his life. One story, shared by Rabbi Chizkiyahu Mishkovsky at a Siyum HaShas event (a celebration for completing the Talmud), brings it to life in a touching way.

It happened during the laying of the cornerstone of Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin. It was a day of great joy. The biggest rabbis and leaders of Polish Jewry came to celebrate. It was a moment of honor, and all eyes were on Rabbi Meir Shapira—the man whose dream was becoming real before their eyes.

But just when the excitement was at its peak, Mahar’m disappeared. People looked around for him but couldn’t find him.

One guest, wanting to get a better view of the magnificent new yeshiva building, climbed to the top floor. There, he heard a voice—a familiar, soulful voice—quietly singing verses from the book of Devarim (Deuteronomy):

"And you may say in your heart: My strength and the power of my hand made this wealth for me. But remember Hashem your G-d, for it is He who gives you strength."

That voice belonged to Mahar’m Shapira.

While everyone below celebrated him, he had slipped away to remind himself that it was all from Hashem (G-d), not from his own hands. In that private moment on the rooftop, he taught a lesson that no speech or celebration could ever teach: true greatness is built on humility.

Today, Mahar’m’s legacy lives on. Every time someone opens a volume of Gemara to learn the daily Daf Yomi, they’re walking in his footsteps. But perhaps even more than the learning, it’s his spirit of humility, vision, and faith that continues to inspire us.