Yeshivat Nahar Shalom

A historic Kabbalistic yeshiva in the heart of Jerusalem, dedicated to Torah study, spiritual growth, and community support.

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Yeshivat Nahar Shalom

6 Shilo Street (corner of Agrippas Street)

Jerusalem, Israel

For mail:

P.O. Box 1884

Jerusalem 9102701, Israel

02-622-2560 / 02-622-3001

Fax: 153-775001874

m6222560@gmail.com

Sun–Thu, 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM

© 2026 Yeshivat Nahar Shalom. All rights reserved.

Donations from the United States are received by Friends of Nahar Shalom Inc., a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN 27-2007035), which supports Yeshivat Nahar Shalom in Jerusalem. All donations are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

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  • The Special Pidyon Nefesh on the Day of the Hilula of the Kabbalist, the Man of G-d, Rabbi Mordechai Sharabi

  • Shabbat Breishit in Meron, 5787 At [the site of] the man of G-d, the Tanna, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai

    On Shabbat Breishit, a large public gathers in Meron from all over the country for a Holy Shabbat under the leadership of our teacher and rabbi, the Kabbalist Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, may he live for good and long days, Amen.

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 23rd of Tishrei - Isru Chag

    As Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai teaches: "Whoever makes a binding for the festival [Isrui Chag] through eating and drinking, Scripture accounts it to him as if he built an altar and offered a sacrifice, as it is said: 'Bind the festival offering with cords up to the horns of the altar.'"

  • The Holy Ark has been taken, Rabbi David Shalom Batzri

    With a broken and aching heart, we announce the passing of the righteous leader, unique in his generation in sanctity and his level of mourning over the Divine Presence and the entire Jewish people, who all his days was bound in a strong connection with Hashem, Blessed be He, and in His holy Torah

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 12th of Tishrei - Preparation for Sukkot

    Through these mathematical relationships, the word Sukkah directly hints at Noah’s Ark. Consequently, the Sukkah possesses that same protective spiritual force—expressed in the prayer "Spread over us the shelter of Your peace"—wherein a person is sheltered inside from all harsh external spiritual forces.

  • Ma'ot Ushpizin – Charity for the Poor on the Holiday of Sukkot

  • Invitation to the Simchat Beit HaShoeva Celebration at Nahar Shalom Yeshiva 16 Tishrei 5787 (Sept. 27, 2026)

    "He who has not seen the celebration of Simchat Beit Hashoeva has never seen celebration in his life"

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 11th of Tishrei

  • Pidyon Nefesh on Hoshana Rabbah

    Beating the Willow (Chavtat HaAravah) On Hoshana Rabbah, the Four Species are set aside, and the willows (aravot) alone are taken. Our Sages explain that the willow specifically—symbolizing one who possesses neither learning (taste) nor good deeds (scent)—demonstrates the power of every Jew to draw close, be included in the collective of Israel, and ask for heavenly salvation.

  • Not To Make A Mistake About The Task by Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva

    Says the Chafetz Chaim: The Holy One, Blessed be He, did not give the verse "Almighty G-d, merciful and gracious, slow to anger" just for you to read. Rather for you to do! So that you too will be gracious, you too will be merciful, you too will be slow to anger, you too will be abundant in loving-kindness! You need to do, not read! Why read? Do!

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 5th of Tishrei

    However, for transgressions between a person and their fellow human being, Yom Kippur does not atone. If a person shames or hurts another, no forgiveness is granted from Above until he personally approaches his neighbor and appeases him.

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 4th of Tishrei

    The Gemara notes that since the destruction of the Holy Temple, an iron wall of sin separates us from Hashem. However, as the Rokeach explains, on the Sabbath all spiritual fog and accusers clear away. The worlds ascend, allowing prayer and Torah study to shine a thousand times brighter. Because the Sabbath represents the King's palace, desecrating it is akin to rebelling against the King inside His own home. If this is true of the Sabbath, it is doubly true of Yom Kippur—the "Sabbath of Sabbaths"—which resembles the World to Come. The Kabbalists and the Ari teach that a supreme light begins descending upon the world even on Erev Yom Kippur.

  • The power of a righteous person for every single individual

    And right now, the repentance of an individual person— it is like the repentance of an entire congregation; so, writes the Rambam (Maimonides). The Rambam writes that the repentance of an individual is accepted during the Ten Days of Repentance just as when a whole congregation stands and cries out. Just like when the greatest righteous man (tzaddik) stands and cries out. Right now, during the Ten Days of Repentance!

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 3rd of Tishrei and Remembering the Passing of Rabbi Ephraim Cohen

    Once, on a Sabbath eve, Rabbi Efraim was warned in a dream that the Chamin (Sabbath stew) prepared for his family contained non-kosher meat and that he should not consume it. Perplexed, Rabbi Efraim noted that he had purchased the meat from a scrupulously righteous butcher. Upon investigating, it was discovered that a woman had secretly purchased non-kosher fat from an outside vendor and added it to the pot to enhance the flavor. Heaven intervened directly to preserve his spiritual purity.

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Preparing for the Day of Judgment through True Repentance and Chizuk for the 26th of Elul

    The Chatam Sofer explained that this represents people who fall into the trap of the evil inclination. In the month of Elul, instead of performing genuine soul-searching to clean their lives and escape their problems, they attempt to partake in spiritual "delicacies" while remaining in a musty, unrepentant state. A person cannot properly repent while leaving his spiritual home in such decay. The evil inclination entices people to stay put, which is why a person must engage in daily soul-searching, morning and evening, to truly return.

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: The Day of the Creation of the World and Chizuk for the 25th of Elul

    It is critical on Rosh Hashanah to avoid anger. While anger is forbidden throughout the year, getting angry on Rosh Hashanah is particularly damaging. A person is judged according to his state at that precise moment (just as was stated regarding Ishmael, "where he is"). If a person worked on himself all year but exhibits anger on Rosh Hashanah, that moment negates his previous conduct. One must overcome the Evil Inclination on this day by avoiding anger, unnecessary speech, and all traces of sin.

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: The Sanctity of Elul, the Days of Kindness, and the Legacy of the Chafetz Chaim and Chizuk for the 24th of Elul

    Regarding spiritual struggles, the Chafetz Chaim taught that a person must never despair or delay spiritual growth by waiting for a more convenient time. Commenting on the verse, "The place on which you stand is holy ground," he explained that a person must not say, "Right now the struggle is too difficult; I will wait for a better time or higher spiritual state." The exact place and circumstance in which a person currently finds himself is the holy ground where he must serve Hashem and succeed.

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 22nd of Elul

    They made an agreement, and he took it upon himself not to lie, but to speak only the truth. That was all. Then something miraculous happened. In the evening, his companions came and said to him, "Listen, we have targeted a wealthy person; we tracked him, and today there is a huge loot there. Come with us." He thought to himself and told them, "Listen, I pledged to speak only the truth. Now, if we get caught, I will have to reveal the truth, and all of you will be caught!" They said to him, "Get away from us immediately! Do not come with us." They asked, "Did you swear?" He said, "Yes, to speak only the truth."

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 21st of Elul

    Standing on the storm-tossed ship, the young man cried out his confession: "What is my sin? For two full years, I lied to my mother every day, telling her that I had already eaten at school so that she would give my portion of food to my younger brothers and sisters! For two years I lied to her! That is the sin I am confessing!"

  • Rabbi Benayahu Shmueli, Head of the Yeshiva: Chizuk for the 20th of Elul

    We see this explicitly with King Menasheh. Menasheh engaged in every severe idolatry imaginable. The Talmud (Sanhedrin) notes that he erected massive idols requiring a thousand men to hold, crushing many in the process, and he erased Divine Names from Torah scrolls to write the names of pagan deities. Yet when he was placed inside a copper cauldron by his captors to be burned, he called out in repentance. Although the ministering angels tried to block his prayers, the Holy One, blessed be He, dug a secret tunnel beneath His Throne of Glory to accept Menasheh's repentance, miraculously delivering him.

What's New

Rabbi Shmueli, Shlit"a – A Hilula for three great righteous leaders: Rabbi Eliyahu Lopian, Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman (the Rosh Yeshiva of Ponevezh), and Rabbi Avraham Monsa on the 20th of Elul ,5784

By Yeshivat Nahar Shalom Staff•August 17, 2026
Rabbi Eliyahu LopianRabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman zt"lRabbi Avraham Monsa zt"l20th of ElulHilula and Yahrzeit

Donors once promised a large sum if students in his yeshiva studied without skullcaps (kippot). The Rav agreed and signed the contract, accepting a heavy penalty clause if any student wore a kippah. He then used the funds to establish the "Ohr HaChaim" girls' institution. When the donors arrived demanding to see students learning without kippot, he showed them thousands of young women studying—none of whom wore kippot!

Rabbi Eliyahu Lopian zt"l: Humility and Eternal Vigilance

Rabbi Eliyahu Lopian was widely known to possess the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh). When he was just ten years old, his parents immigrated to the United States. Young Eliyahu refused to join them so he would not neglect his Torah study. He stayed behind to learn in Lomza and later moved to the great yeshiva in Kelm, studying under his primary master, Rabbi Simcha Zissel. Following his marriage, he served as a teacher at the Kelm Yeshiva. In 1948 (5708), he immigrated to the Land of Israel, where he became the Mashgiach (spiritual supervisor) of the Kamenitz Yeshiva and later the revered Mashgiach of Kfar Chassidim.

He was extraordinarily fluent in the entire Talmud (Shas) and the Six Orders of the Mishnah. He also studied Kabbalah under the author of the Leshem Shevo Ve'achlama (the grandfather of Rabbi Elyashiv). In his youth, he met the author of the Sfat Emet, who told him: "You do not need my blessing". Rabbi Eliyahu was also blessed with a revelation of Elijah the Prophet (Gilui Eliyahu) and authored the monumental work Lev Eliyahu.

Despite his greatness, he was exceptionally humble. While serving as Mashgiach in Kfar Chassidim, a student arrived late in the middle of the night with nowhere to sleep. Not wanting to disturb the other students, the Rabbi hosted him in his own room, covered him to keep him warm, and stayed up. The student overheard the Rabbi repeating a single verse hundreds of times: "And you shall not bring an abomination into your house..." (Deuteronomy 7:26). The young student wept, mistakenly thinking the Rabbi was calling him an abomination.

The next morning, after prayers, the student broke down in tears before the Rabbi. Rabbi Eliyahu reassured him: "Heaven forbid! When I enter the yeshiva, 500 young men stand up out of respect for me. Pride is the ultimate abomination! Therefore, I repeat this verse hundreds of times to remind myself not to allow pride into my heart. It had nothing to do with you".

To further ease the student's mind, the Rabbi offered a parable:

Imagine a bomb sitting in the corner of a room. Decades pass, hundreds of people walk by, and it never explodes. Does that mean the danger has disappeared? No, a bomb is still a bomb! The trait of pride is the most dangerous bomb of all, which is why I must constantly guard myself against it.

Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman zt"l: Rebuilding from the Ashes

Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, the Ponevezher Rav, arrived in Israel after the Holocaust broken and shattered, yet determined to rebuild. He traveled extensively to collect funds, save children, and construct institutions. Notably, he established the "Batei Avot" homes in Bnei Brak to rescue and shelter orphaned children, including the Teheran Children. Recently, while comforting a grieving family in Ramot whose son was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident, it came to light that two brothers of the deceased were currently studying at Batei Avot in Bnei Brak. The institution continues to raise good Sephardic students, and the entire yeshiva came to offer comfort to the family.

The Ponevezher Rav was renowned for his sharp wit and clever solutions in raising funds for Torah:

  • The Benefactress's Portrait: A wealthy woman offered a large donation on the condition that her portrait be hung inside the study hall (Beit Midrash). The Rav replied: "In the study hall? No, I want your picture hung in my private office right next to me". She agreed, gave the donation, and later came to inspect it. The Rav had placed the picture off to the side in his office where he would not stare at it, cleverly fulfilling the agreement while preserving the sanctity of the yeshiva. (He also famously placed an Israeli flag on the yeshiva roof).
  • The "Bareheaded" Yeshiva: Donors once promised a large sum if students in his yeshiva studied without skullcaps (kippot). The Rav agreed and signed the contract, accepting a heavy penalty clause if any student wore a kippah. He then used the funds to establish the "Ohr HaChaim" girls' institution. When the donors arrived demanding to see students learning without kippot, he showed them thousands of young women studying—none of whom wore kippot!

Rabbi Avraham Monsa zt"l: Holiness Amid Devastating Poverty

Rabbi Avraham Monsa was a holy Kabbalist who taught esoteric Torah and prayed with deep mystical intentions (kavanot). He often served as a cantor (chazzan) at the famous Beit El Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

He was the son of Rabbi Yaakov Monsa and the uncle of Rabbi Yaakov Chaim Sofer. His family lived in the same courtyard in Jerusalem as my mother's family, next to the family of the Kaf HaChaim Sofer and the Toledano family. My mother and the neighbors still recalled my parents' wedding taking place right inside that courtyard.

Rabbi Avraham authored the beautiful biographical work Pedeh Et Avraham, detailing his origins in Aleppo and Damascus, and the family's life in the Bukharim neighborhood. After his mother passed away, his father remarried, and the children were raised by their grandmother. He and his older brother, Rabbi Yosef Monsa (who became the head of the ritual slaughterers in the Old City), grew up in extreme poverty:

Their father had only a single slice of bread to offer. He would tell young Avraham and Yosef:

"If you studied well today, I will give you the slice of bread and I will go hungry. But if you did not study well today, then I will eat it".

The brothers would study with intense diligence, competing over who had learned best to earn that single slice of bread. Often, they went to sleep on empty stomachs, hoping their father might bring home a piece of dry bread, only to find there was none. Out of that profound poverty and ultimate sacrifice grew world-class Torah giants.

Concluding Prayers

May this study and remembrance serve for the elevation of the soul (Le'ilui Nishmat) of Shalom ben Simcha—may the Spirit of the Lord grant him rest in the Garden of Eden.

And also for the elevation of the soul of Dona Dina bat Serira. May their memories be a blessing.