What a sight! The Sanzer Rebbe, shlita, from Eretz Yisrael entered the cavernous Prudential Center in Newark as some 20,000 stood on their feet, craning their necks to see while the phenomenal orchestra played the song, ‘Tzadik Ka’tomor’. As the Rebbe made his way to the large round table in the middle of the dais where the gedolei Yisrael were sitting, the roshei yeshiva and admorim, HaGaon HaRav Malkiel Kotler, shlita, HaGaon HaRav Dovid Cohen, shlita, HaGaon HaRav Yeruchem Olshin, shlita, HaGaon HaRav Aharon Feldman, shlita, HaGaon HaRav Reuven Feinstein, shlita, the Kalever Rebbe, shlita, the Kosover Rebbe, shlita, the Skolyer Rebbe, shlita and so many others, rose as one and walked over to greet him, escorting him to his seat. Meanwhile, the 20,000 Yidden grasped hands and, with profound achdus, began dancing and jumping in an indescribable, spontaneous outpouring of simchas haTorah and kavod haTorah.

Indeed, dry ink on paper simply cannot even come close to encapsulating the feelings of simcha, reverence and ahava, pure love of Torah and gedolei Torah manifest in the Prudential Center and NJPAC where thousands more had gathered, joined by over 100,000 worldwide who joined via livestream. Usually these venues are for sports and other entertainment events but on that night, they became one giant beis medrash of kavod haTorah.

That moment and so many others on Sunday night, 15 Shevat/February 9, at the Prudential Center served as a microcosm of the essence of Dirshu. What IS the essence of Dirshu? It is Torah, Torah and Torah, led and guided by the gedolei hador; it is achdus through Torah as gedolim representing all the myriad shevatim in Klal Yisrael come together under one banner to honor the massive accomplishments of lomdei Dirshu, so many who have become Shas Yidden and all of whom learn and chazer, chazer and learn, reviewing repeatedly to learn Torah with accountability.

The powerful drashos of the gedolim, the special guests from Eretz Yisrael, HaGaon HaRav Dovid Cohen, shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of the Chevron Yeshiva, the Sanzer Rebbbe shlita, HaGaon HaRav Shimon Galei, shlita, the local gedolim, HaGaon HaRav Elya Ber Wachtfogel, shlita, HaGaon HaRav Yeruchem Olshin, shlita, HaGaon HaRav Shlomo Feivel Schustal, shlita, all hailed the accomplishments of the lomdei Torah who have achieved so much and Dirshu, the organization that has facilitated such hasmadah and yedias haTorah. Even more, they expressed how Dirshu and its system of accountable limud haTorah is the antidote to the tremendous yetzer hara and challenges from within and without that Klal Yisrael is experiencing in this difficult galus.

Perhaps the passionate pronouncement of Rav Dovid Hofstedter, shlita, Nasi of Dirshu, encapsulated that message when he exclaimed with great emotion, “Tonight, at this great simcha we sound the battle cry, ‘Mi L’Hashem Eilai, Vayeiosfu Eilav Kol Bnei Dirshu!’”

There was a feeling of tremendous simchas haTorah, pulsing through the hearts and souls of the unprecedented crowd filling the Prudential Center, NJPAC and the unique women’s event at the Newark Symphony Hall as they celebrated the simchas haTorah of their husbands and their integral role in facilitating the Torah accomplishments of their husbands.

HaGaon HaRav Shimon Galei, well known mashpia and Rosh Kollel from Eretz Yisrael, then led the assemblage in the recitation of Tehillim and delivered words of bracha.

Bracha of HaGaon HaRav Shalom Cohen, Shlita, and HaGaon HaRav Shimon Baadani, Shlita

Another important component of Dirshu achdus was the special video wherein two of the Sephardic elder gedolei hador from Eretz Yisrael, HaGaon HaRav Shalom Cohen, shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Porat Yosef,� and HaGaon HaRav Shimon Baadani, shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of Torah V’Chaim, voiced special words of bracha, urging Jews the world over to raise their limud haTorah up a notch by joining a program that encourages chazara through accountability and testing.

Packed NJPAC Location Features Its Own Riveting Program

Meanwhile at the NJPAC venue, Maariv was led by the Skulener Rebbe, shlita, of Lakewood. Rav Yitzchok Zalman Gips, shlita, Rav of Khal Birchas Avrohom, Rav Dovid Olewski, shlita, Rosh Yeshivas Ger, Boro Park both delivered powerful drashos.

At Prudential, HaGaon HaRav Aharon Toisig, shlita, Mashgiach at the Alexander Yeshiva of Bnei Brak, who journeyed from Eretz Yisrael to attend the event, addressed the crowd.

He said, “Rav Meir Shapiro, the founder of Daf HaYomi, came to America in the 1920s to raise funds to build his ‘baby’, Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin. He had a very hard time raising funds and, after spending more than a year in America, returned to Europe very disheartened. Imagine the nachas he would have to see that the Daf HaYomi has been so successful and so many thousands are learning and being tested on Shas, due to the seeds that he planted!”

Rav Dovid Cohen: “Dirshu Yidden Not Only Learn Shas, They Know Shas!”

Rav Dovid Cohen said, “When I come to a siyum such as this, I feel that it is something special and unique. Any siyum haShas is a tremendous simcha! We should not minimize the completion of Shas by anyone. Nevertheless, when a person doesn’t just learn Shas, but chazers, reviews it over and over again, that is the ultimate siyum! Dirshu makes such siyumim! Dirshu Yidden not only learn Shas, they know Shas!”

Rav Yeruchem Olshin: “Dirshu Is Preserving Klal Yisrael in This Galus, by Combatting Shikchas Hatorah”

There was a hush in the hall as the Rosh Yeshiva of Lakewood, Rav Yeruchem Olshin, was called to speak.

The Rosh Yeshiva depicted how Dirshu provides an antidote for the terrible galus in which we live. “We are living in difficult times. Anti-Semitism and sinas Yisrael has come to locales where it wasn’t so strong until now, such as Jersey City, Monsey and others… There is the spiritual galus as well. Rav Elchonon Wasserman wrote that the reason for all travail that Klal Yisrael is undergoing is forgetting the Torah. What has Dirshu done?” thundered Rav Olshin. “Dirshu is preserving Klal Yisrael in this galus by giving us the great weapon and shield to combat the forgetting of Torah!”

Rav Yeruchem then transitioned to English and addressed the Dirshu wives. He cited the pasuk in which, right before Kabbalas HaTorah in Parshas Yisro, Hashem tells Moshe to first address the Bais Yaakov, the women, and only then the Bnei Yisraal, the men. “Rabbeinu Yonah, in his drasha addressed to women that is printed in his sefer Igeres HaTeshuva, asks, ‘Why did the Torah put the women before the men?’ Rabbeinu Yonah answers that noshim hatzenuos are the reason that men are successful in Torah. Yes, women are exempt from the mitzvah of talmud Torah but their ahavas haTorah is the power behind their husbands and empowers their husbands and children to learn.”

“Dirshu Is Not What You ‘Do’; It Is What You ‘Are!’”

Chairman Rabbi Leibish Lish related a story from that very morning in the cheder where he teaches. He saw a boy come to cheder with a white shirt, a shirt worn on festive occasions such as Rosh Chodesh. “I asked him, ‘Why the white shirt?’ and he answered, ‘My father ‘does’ Dirshu.’ Smilingly, I responded, ‘Dirshu is not what you ‘do’, it is what you ‘are’! Your father is a Dirshu Yid, your mother is a Dirshu Yiddeneh and you are part of the Dirshu family!’”

The Sanzer Rebbe: “In Our Generation, There Is So Much Tumah But There Is Also Dirshu!”

As the Sanzer Rebbe slowly made his way to the podium, a profound feeling of yiras hakavod filled the air. As he was speaking, clearly and with such love, the audience was visibly latching onto his every word.

In an emotion-laden voice, the Sanzer Rebbe said, “My heiligeh father would constantly quote the words of Chazal that Yidden will only be redeemed in the zechus of learning. The situation that Klal Yisrael is facing today throughout the world,” the Rebbe continued with great concern, “is terrible! In Eretz Yisrael, different nations want to swallow us up. In chutz la’aretz, it is not much better. It has even reached American shores. Even worse is the spiritual galus! Our youth are being destroyed by the filth of the street that is infiltrating in various ways…

“There is only one solution, only one cure – limud haTorah. There is a concept of zeh l’eumas zeh – Hashem pits one thing against the other. Yes,” the Rebbe emphasized, “in our generation, there is so much tumah but there is also Dirshu!”

HaGaon HaRav Reuven Feinstein, shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of the Yeshiva of Staten Island, was then honored with reciting the Hadran on the entire Shas.

The Kaddish following the siyum was recited by HaGaon HaRav Aryeh Malkiel Kotler, shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of Beth Medrash Govoha, Lakewood.

Rav Shlomo Feivel Schustal: It Is As If We Are in Gan Eden!

Meanwhile at NJPAC, HaGaon HaRav Shlomo Feivel Schustal, shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Tiferes Yerachmiel, explained the significance that the Maharshal attributes to participating in a siyum, based on the words of the Nefesh Hachaim who says that when one performs a mitzvah a tremendous kedusha is created in shamayim as a result of that mitzvah, bringing with it tremendous siyata d’Shmaya… This is especially so at the completion of a mitzvah where the light of the mitzvah becomes increasingly stronger and kedusha envelops the person, raising him to an exalted level of ruchniyus and kedusha. The Nefesh Hachaim says it is literally like Gan Eden!

“Now,” Rav Schustal said with great feeling, “when we are all here at the completion of this great mitzvah of completing Shas, it is as if we are in Gan Eden!”

The Hadran at NJPAC was made by HaGaon HaRav Moshe Mordechai Lowy, shlita, Rav, Agudas Yisrael, Toronto. HaGaon HaRav Shlomo Miller, shlita, Rosh Kollel Avreichim of Toronto recited the Kaddish.

The Skverer Dayan, HaGaon HaRav Yechiel Steinmetz, shlita, was honored with beginning the new machzor of Shas.

Rav Dovid Hofstedter: ‘Mi L’Hashem Eilai, Vayeiosfu Eilav Kol Bnei Dirshu!’

Meanwhile back at the Prudential Center, Rabbi Lish introduced the Nasi of Dirshu, Rav Dovid Hofstedter.

“In Parshas Beshalach we find that Klal Yisrael came to Marah. They were not able to drink the waters there because they were bitter. The Midrash says that they couldn’t taste sweetness in the water because their deeds were bitter. The only way to cure such bitterness is through putting something sweet into the water, by immersing themselves in the sweet waters of Torah.

“In some way, we are all like that. When we start learning Torah on a low level, we often cannot taste the sweetness of Torah. Through our ameilus, we elevate ourselves to taste the increasing sweetness of the water of Torah.

“In our generation there are so many tools to clarify and elucidate the Torah,” said Rabbi Hofstedter. “The tools may have changed but the tachlis, the ultimate purpose of learning, is and has always been ameilus, yegias haTorah and kabbalas ol Torah. If we use these tools just to make our lives easier, we won’t taste those sweet waters.”

Rav Dovid asked, “Are we going to be satisfied with superficial learning, with superficial lives, with bitter waters or will we strive to plumb the depths and transform them into sweet waters?!

“We are being attacked in many ways. Everything that is good and right, dignified, virtuous and proper is under attack. Yiddishkeit and Torah are under attack! We are at war. but we must fight back. We must sound the battle cry of Mi L’Hashem Elai. At that time the bnei Levi gathered around Moshe Rabbeinu with mesirus nefesh. We have the power to be bnei Levi with amal and yegiah.

“So tonight, the night of this great simcha,” Rav Dovid thundered, “we sound the battle cry of ‘Mi L’Hashem Eilai, Vayeiosfu Eilav Kol Bnei Dirshu!’ Let us accept upon ourselves more Torah, more siyumim, more chiddushim, more kavod haTorah and kavod haShechina!”

Rav Elya Ber Wachtfogel: Torah Becomes Absorbed in One’s Very Essence! It Becomes His Essence!

The kabbalas ol malchus shamayim led by the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, shlita, of Monsey, was followed by a beautiful musical interlude in enthusiastic celebration of the simchas haTorah.

HaGaon HaRav Elya Ber Wachtfogel, shlita, was honored with starting the new machzor of Shas. He first gave a remarkable drasha. He said, “When a person constantly reviews vast amounts of Torah, it becomes his essence! That is what learning with Dirshu does. Superficial learning of a daf Gemara does not give you that koach. But learning and reviewing with accountability can enable everyone to know the entire Torah!”

Then, one of the most climactic moments of the night arrived. As the music began to play with all the various singers and bands joining together in achdus, the entire assemblage erupted in song. The gedolei Yisrael were holding hands and dancing. All the mesaymei haShas were invited down to the floor of the Prudential Center to dance with them.

As the circle went around and around, the feelings of simchas haTorah, of true Torah accomplishment, were simply indescribable. Only someone who experienced that simcha can feel what it was like.