Biography
About רב אברהם יהודה ליב פסין זצ”ל (author of תמורת אי”ל)
Harav Hagaon R’ Avrohom Yehuda Leib Pessin Zt’l was born on the 2nd day Yom Tov Sukkos in (1936) תשצ”ו , on the lower east side of New York City. Rav Avrohom Zt’l was descendant of a family of prominent Rabbanim whose origins were from the area known today as Belorussia (white Russia) in the county of Minsk. His grandfather Harav Yonah Ephraim Pessin Zt’l with whom he lived and learned with until his early teens, had a great deal of influence on his early development. Rav Yonah Ephraim Pessin Zt’l was a well known and respected Rav on the lower east side in NY City, in the pre – WW2 era, and was, on friendly and even intimate terms with most of the great Litvishe and Russian rabbinic leaders in the NYC area of those years. He counted among his friends, Harav Hagaon Rav Moshe Rosen Zt’l the author of the seforim נזר הקדוש, as well as, Harav Hagaon Rav Yaakov Safsal known also as the “Vishkeh Eluy”. He was of course, also close with the Rabbinic leaders on the lower east side of those years Harav Hagaon Rav Yosef Eliyahu Henkin Zt’l, and Harav Hagaon Rav Moshe Feinstein Zt’l.
Even after his grandfather Harav Yonah Ephraim Zt’l was niftar, the young Rav Avrohom Zt’l continued to follow in his grandfather’s ways, and to the best of his ability maintained a connection with all the rabbonim friends of his zaideh. He could often be found spending his free time after and during school visiting and talking in learning with many of these rabbonim. The rabbonim from their perspective, recognized in Rav Avrohom Zt’l, from a very early age not only his obvious, admiration, respect and willingness to emulate those of the previous generations who were our torah teachers and leaders, and our מסורת אבות (which in and of itself was very uncommon amongst teenagers in the U.S. during the 1930’s and 40’s), but they also identified the unique talents and intellectual genius he was to display in his learning for the rest of his life. His absolute clarity of thought, his amazing memory, and most of all his unique ability of intellectual seder or order, that he applied to all his intellectual pursuits.
Once, when he was barely בר מצוה, his mother received a very unexpected phone call. The voice on the other end identified himself as “Moshe Feinstein”. Naturally, Rav Avrohom Zt’l’s mother was very flustered and taken aback. It wasn’t every day that a lady received a phone call from the person whom they looked upon with such reverence as their posek and רשכבה”ג. Rav Moshe Zt’l sensing the shock of Rav Avrohom Zt’l’s mother at receiving such a phone call, hurriedly told her not to worry “he was only calling to tell her, that in his opinion Rav Avrohom Zt’l would become a great מורה הוראה in Klal Yisroel. Even at that relatively tender age, Rav Moshe had seen in Rav Avrohom Zt’l the makings of the Gaon in Psak and in learning he was to become.
Rav Avrohom Zt’l’s yeshiva “career” began in Yeshivas Yaakov Yosef, like that of many young men who lived on the lower east side during that era. There too he was recognized by the Yeshiva staff as a prodigy, and when he graduated high school at age 17 he was sought after, by all the Roshei Yeshiva in the Yeshivas Gedolos in the NY area at that time. He chose to go to the Mirrer Yeshiva in Brooklyn, where upon he was immediately accepted into the Rosh Hayisheva Harav Hagaon Rav Mordechai Ginzburgs Zt’l’s shiur. Rav Mordechai Ginzberg, the author of the Chidushei Rav Ephraim Mordechai, and the son-in-law of the revered Rav Chatzkel Levenstein Zt’l the mashgiach in both the Mir in Europe and the Ponovez Yeshiva in Bnei Brak, immediately took Rav Avrohom Zt’l as a talmid, and their closeness as Rebbe and Talmid really transcended the normal rebbe-talmud relationship.
Rav Avrohom Zt’l was מקיים the mitzvahs chazal of עשי לך רב and totally absorbed everything his rebbe, himself a talmud of the Mirrer Yeshiva in Liteh, as well as a long time talmud of the Brisker Rav in Brisk had to offer. Rav Ginzberg in turn saw the immense ability and potential in the young Rav Avrohom Zt’l, and for the last 5-6 years of Rav Ginzbergs life, they learned בחברותה every morning .טור אוה”ח They managed to complete טור אוה”ח, before Rav Ginzberg was tragically niftar at a relatively young age. Rav Pessin Zt’l began a new chapter in his illustrious life and career when he married his wife Rachel Pinsky אלט”ו who was the niece of Harav Hagaon Rav Avrohom Kalmanovitz Zt’l the מיסד of the Mirrer Yeshiva in Brooklyn, and the daughter of Harav Hagaon Rav Meir Shimon Pinsky Zt’l, and esteemed Rosh Yeshiva and Rav in early communist Russia, who fled the Bolsheviks to the U.S.A in the early 1930’s. Once in America Rav Pinsky became one of the leading poskim in Brooklyn, and served as the Rav of the Beis Medrash in Sefardishe Shul on 14th Avenue, Boro Park for over 30 years. Rav Pessin Zt’l began almost immediately after his marriage to give a shiur in the Mirrer Yeshiva high school, and acted as an understudy and assistant to his father-in-law Rav Pinsky in matters of Psak. Rav Pessin Zt’l’s שימוש “at the feet” of Rav Pinsky Zt’l was substantially augmented by his ongoing שימוש of both Rav Henkin Zt’l and Rav Moshe Feinstein Zt’l throughout the 1960’s. Rav Pessin Zt’l also, received סמיכה in both Yoreh Yoreh and Yadin Yadin (all of שלחן ערוך) from both his father-in-law Rav Pinsky Zt’l and Rav Moshe Feinstein Zt’l.
When Rav Pinsky took ill towards the end of his life Rav Pessin Zt’l would act as his מ”מ in Psak, and when needed, said the daily shiur Rav Pinsky Zt’l gave in Boro Park. After his shver’s פטירה Rav Pessin Zt’l continued paskening שאילות and giving shiurim including a daily דך יומי shiur, in the בית מדרש Bnei Torah that was in Yeshivas Be’er Shmuel on 12th Avenue in Boro Park.
Rav Pessin Zt’l moved to Monsey in 1972, where he was appointed the מורה הוראה of Bais Mayer Chevra Shas and he served there as a רב and דיין for over 30 years. Rav Pessin Zt’l’s genius encompassed so many areas of erudition. For example, his encyclopedic knowledge of most math and science disciplines was truly astounding. His only real love was the learning and teaching of Torah. Not only did he maintain a daily דף יומי shiur for close to 30 years, but all the while he gave shiurim on מסכתית on חומש, הלכה, and השקפה as well. His personal התמדה was legendary. Before he took ill at the later stages of his life Rav Pessin Zt’l, was known to learn and give shiurim between 14-18 hours daily, often sleeping only from 12:30 am to 4:30 am when he arose to once again prepare the דף יומי. His דף יומי was legendary. Many of his Talmidim would tape and review the shiur as if it was anעיון shiur, because he somehow managed to pack in so much content into that one hour שיעור. All his shiurim have a common denominator, in that they were rigorously prepared and that he never compromised on content and דרך הלימוד.
Rav Pessin Zt’l was zoche to be מעמיד several דורות of talmidei chachomim some of whom today are רבנים and מגידי שיעורים in their own right. All of whom speak about how Rav Pessin Zt’l led them to where they are, not by the force of his personality, but by his sterling example of hasmadah and his rigorous intellectual honesty which served to aspire them to a life of תורה and ‘עבודת ה .
Rav Pessin Zt’l left behind this rich legacy of shiurim and talmidim after a long difficult illness, he was called to the ישיבה של מעלה on that bitter first day of תשס”ז ראש השנה.
To preserve and further this legacy, his family and talmidim established the Ayil Institute which has already published a sefer of teshuvos from Rav Pessin Zt’l titled Shailos Utshuvos Tmuras Ayil as well as a sefer on Maseches Megillah. The Ayil Institute is also responsible for the further publication of the sefarim on סוגיות as well as chumash and derashos that they are working on publishing IY”H in the future.