Spiritual Tools-Yad Yehudah-Definition of a Rebbi

The 22nd of Shevat is the Yahrtzeit of Rav Yehuda Leibish Landau of Sadigura (1900). Author of Yad Yehuda. I was astounded to see the Ramah (Yoreh Deah 242) in the name of the Maharik that a Rebbi is not the one who teaches the majesty of pilpul, but the one who teaches the law in a straight forward and clear manner.

I have determined to study and teach focusing on clarity and simplicity, for it is only with these qualities that we can live as we should.

This has important implications for determining who is a person’s rebbi; is it the person who trains the student in thought or the one who provides clear and straightforward direction.

It seems to me that in our generation that is so distant from the great teachers of the past, that the primary responsibility and definition of a Rebbi is the one who gives over Torah with clarity. (Introduction to Yad Yehudah)

Personal Note: My father zt’l held that the definition of a Rebbi is the one who gives his student independence in study and thought.