The Six Sidrei Mishnah in One Volume – Amsterdam, 1713 – With Zera Yisrael in the Handwriting of the Author Rabbi ...

The Six Sidrei Mishnah in One Volume – Amsterdam, 1713 – With Zera Yisrael in the Handwriting of the Author Rabbi Yisrael Lifschitz Author of Tiferet Yisrael – Many Variations in Comparison to the Printed Version
Mishnah, with the Kav V'Naki commentary. Part 1 – Zera'im Moed Nashim, and Part 2 – Nezikin Kodshim Taharot [in one volume]. Amsterdam, [1713]. Printed by Shlomo Proops.
The Six Sidrei Mishnah in one volume. Pocket edition. Separate title page for Part 2.
This volume of Mishnah belonged to Rabbi Yisrael Lifschitz, author of the Tiferet Yisrael commentary on the Mishnah. It contains thousands of marginalia in his characteristic, small, handwriting and his composition Zera Yisrael – a short concise commentary on the six Sidrei Mishnah as it was first written on the sheets of this volume. The composition was first printed in Vilnius in 1854 in the lifetime of the author. This is the original composition with many variations in comparison to the printed version.
Several leaves in his handwriting appear at the beginning of this volume, with various rules for Talmudical laws [the titles of these leaves have the customary addition of Rabbi Yisrael Lifschitz, the initials of "With G-d's help, Open my eyes so I can see wonders of your Torah, Amen”. See Kedem catalog, Auction 33, Item 345]. These rules were printed with variations, under the name Pa’amonei Zahav at the beginning of the printed editions of the Zera Yisrael commentary.
On the last leaf, Rabbi Yisrael Lifschitz wrote the dates he began and ended study of this volume of the Mishnah. Among other inscriptions: “I have concluded Taharot Bet on the 15th of Adar on the yartzeit of my father” [Rabbi Gedalya Lifschitz, died on the 17th of Adar Aleph 1826].
On the reverse side of the title page, is a dedication from 1809: “My signature below is a testimony… that I have given the Mishnah… to the youth Zalman Dessau… Tamuz 1809 Eliyahu son of R’ Yaakov Zvi of Berlin”.
Rabbi Yisrael Lifschitz (1782-1861), was known for his phenomenal composition Tiferet Yisrael on the Six Sidrei Mishnah which was embraced throughout the Jewish Diaspora and printed in hundreds of editions. Son of Rabbi Gedalia Lifschitz author of Regel Yeshara and grandson of Rabbi Yisrael Lifschitz Av Beit Din of Kalov. Exalted Torah genius, a great leader of Ashkenazi Jewry who studied Torah all day wrapped in his tallit beneath his coat and donning tefillin. Known for his holiness and fear of Heaven, he served in the rabbinate of Dessau, Danzig and other cities for over fifty years. Rabbi Yisrael Lifschitz published several of his father’s works, adding his own comments. Apart from his famous commentary on the Mishnah, he wrote many other works, some remained as manuscripts and were lost. In addition to Tiferet Yisrael, he also wrote another short commentary on the Mishnah named Zera Yisrael included in this manuscript.
Zera Yisrael is a short concise composition on the Six Sidrei Mishnah and as written on the title page of the printed edition: “Short adequate commentary which contains a summary of all the commentaries of Rabbi Ovadia of Bartenura, the Tosfot Yom Tov and the Vilna Gaon etc, in an amazing shortened form and precise language, in small letters and notes, each in its appropriate place”. This composition is not an abridgement of Tiferet Yisrael but an original composition. In the introduction to his commentary, the author notes several advantages of this composition: a. “For beginners who have not yet attempted to study Torah… to study the complete Torah on one foot... b. For Torah scholars – The composition shall serve as a reminder for things that they already know. c. For travelers...”.
The author highly commended this work and in his testament he instructed his sons to study it regularly: “My sons… Be careful to study at least one leaf of Mishnah with our composition Zera Yisrael each morning and review it in the evening…”. He also writes there that the edition printed in Vilnius was dominated by the “evil” censor: “Some mistakes and omissions crept into my book by the evil censor in Vilnius, therefore each of you should readily copy my corrections of the errors and omissions in the book Zera Yisrael from which I study…” [A clear example of this are the opening sections of Chapters 1 and 2 of Tractate Avodah Zara, which are clearly censor additions and do not exist in this manuscript].
Two parts in one volume: Part 1: Zera’im, Moed, Nashim. 134 leaves. Part 2: Nezikin, Kodshim, Taharot. [1], 136-325, [4] leaves. 12 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains. Wear at margins. Some glosses are cutoff, blurred or faded. New binding.