Amdur (Hasidic dynasty)

Amdur Synagogue.

Ohel of Rabbi Chaim Chaykl in Indura.

Amdur (Yiddish: אמדור) was an early Hasidic dynasty originating from the town of Indura, Belarus, where it was founded by Rabbi Chaim Chaykl of Amdur (1730-1787). The court of Amdur was among the earliest Hasidic dynasties and was known for its fiery and passionate nature, which often put it into direct conflict with local Misnagdim. After the death of the second Amdurer Rebbe, Rabbi Shmuel of Amdur (d. 1799), the majority of the dynasty became absorbed by Chabad Hasidism, yet small fractions of Amdur Hasidism continued to exist in small communities in Belarus and Poland.

Lineage[]

• Grand Rabbi Chaim Chaykl of Amdur - Reb Cheika Amdurer (1730-1787), first Amurer Rebbe. A leading disciple of Dov Ber of Mezeritch, in 1773 he founded the Amdur Hasidic dynasty in Indura, Belarus where he faced fierce opposition from local Misnagdim. Despite this, Reb Chaim Chaykl would go on to lay the foundation for several important Hasidic principles. His Divrei Torah was posthumously published in 1891 in Warsaw under the title "Chaim V'Chesed", which is now an important Hasidic work.^[1]
  • Grand Rabbi Shmuel of Amdur (d. 1799), second Amurer Rebbe. Son of Reb Cheika Amdurer, and son-in-law of Rabbi Aharon Shotek of Zelechov (d. 1778). He was a student of his father and Rabbi Aharon of Karlin. After his father's death in 1787, Reb Shmuel succeeded him as Amdurer Rebbe, and subsequently became engrossed in a public debate with which also included Rabbi Mordechai Twersky and . Nearing the end of his life Reb Shmuel became a devout follower of Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, whom most of his followers accepted as their Rebbe after Reb Shmuel's death.^[1]
    • Grand Rabbi Moshe Aharon of Vileika - Maggid of Vileika (ca. 1780–ca. 1846), Vileiker Rebbe. Son of Reb Shmuel of Amdur, and son-in-law of (1742 - 1810). After his father's death in 1799, he established a small Hasidic court to Vileika, and was known for his powerful sermons and stories.^[1]
    • Grand Rabbi Chaim Chaykl of Grodno (ca. 1784–ca. 1839). Son of Reb Shmuel of Amdur, and son-in-law of Rabbi Moshe of Shershov (d. 1826). After his father's death in 1799, he established a small Hasidic court in Grodno, which soon became a local centre of Hasidism in Belarus.^[1]
  • Grand Rabbi Dov Ber of Shedlitz (d. 1816). Son of Reb Cheika Amdurer. After his father's death, he moved to Shedlitz, where he died young without any sons. He reportedly had tense relations with his brother Reb Shmuel, and Reb Shmuel once wrote to him asking Reb Dov Ber to "remove every obstacle between us.. and also forgiveness is greater than wisdom".^[1]
  • Grand Rabbi Nosson of Makov (d. 1825), Makover Rebbe. Son-in-law of Reb Cheika Amdurer. In his early years, he travelled to Lublin, where he became a disciple of the Chozeh of Lublin. It was under the Chozeh's instruction that he travelled to Kurów, where he became the leading disciple of Rabbi Shmuel of Karov. During the time in which Reb Chaim Chaykl was still alive, with the help of his father-in-law Reb Nosson established a Hasidic school and court in Makov, in order to fight against Misnagdism in Poland, which had a strong base in Makov. After the death of his teacher, Reb Shmuel of Karov in 1820, Reb Nosson became a disciple of Rabbi Simcha Bunim Bonhardt of Peshischa.
    • Grand Rabbi Yitzchak Heller of Makov (d. 1841), Makover Rebbe. Son-in-law of Reb Nosson of Makov. After Reb Nosson's death, he succeeded him at his post in Makov.
      • Grand Rabbi Fischel Heller (1821–1874). Son of Reb Yitzchak Heller of Makov, and son-in-law of Rabbi Avraham Moshe Bonhardt, 3rd Peshischa Rebbe (1800–1828). He married the granddaughter of Simcha Bunim of Peshischa, and it was in Peshischa, that he for many years served as a prominent Hasidic figure alongside his brother-in-law Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Mordechai Bonhardt of Peshischa-Vurka. He under the instructions of his father-in-law, married all his children of to simple Jews, as he believed that the mantle of leadership was too stressful, and after that stress led his father-in-law to die at a young age.

References[]

External links[]

• Rabinowicz, Tzvi M. (1996). The Encyclopedia of Hasidism. Jason Aronson. ISBN 9781568211237.
• Elior, Rachel (2010). Ḥayim Ḥaykl of Amdur. YIVO.
• Gellman, Jerome (2006). "Hasidic Mysticism as an Activism". Religious Studies. Cambridge University Press. 42 (3): 343–349. doi:10.1017/S0034412506008468. JSTOR 20008659.
• Grossman, Rabbi Levy (1943). Sefer Shem v-Sharit. hebrewbooks.org.

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