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 ”  62 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE portrayed in A Legacy of Leaders. He was born and raised in Jerusalem, where he studied under Rav Haim Ben Atar, but in 1753 he was appointed as the emissary to travel abroad and raise funds for the struggling Jew- ish community in Jerusalem. Despite his frequent trav- els, the Hid”a nevertheless managed to become one of the most prolific authors in Jewish history, composing over eighty-five works of Torah scholarship (only a portion of which have been preserved). The younger Azoulay mentioned that while he is awed and enamored by all twenty-five Rabbis he researched, he found the life of the Hid”a particularly inspiring. The sage’s scrupulous piety and self-discipline, Yehuda Azoulay explained, combined with his extraordinary memory, make the Hid”a an especially fascinating figure and somebody from whom we all have much to learn. As noted earlier, the Hid”a shunned material excesses so that he could devote all his time, efforts and concentra- tion to Torah learning. Additionally, as told in A Legacy of Leaders, the Hid”a made a point of remaining silent even when jealous adversaries would accost him. Once, a certain ignoramus had the audacity to ridicule Sha’ar Yosef, one of the Hid”a’s more famous works, and not only did the Hid”a not respond, but he even showed the man honor by escorting him as he left the city! Yehuda Azoulay also marveled at the Hid”a’s remark- able literary output, which covered the entire range of Torah literature – Biblical and Talmudic commen- tary, practical halachah, homiletics and Kabbalah. The Hid”a also composed Shem Ha’gedolim, a collection of brief biographical and bibliographical sketches, an invaluable resource that in fact served as one of the sources of information for his descendant’s publica- tion. Astonishingly, this book, which profiles 1,300 Rabbis and 2,200 Torah works, was written in just forty days – from memory! Yehuda Azoulay describes his ancestor’s life as “a fas- cinating mixture of scholarship and adventure filled with Torah,” a living example of how one can achieve greatness even under harsh and difficult conditions, through diligence, devotion and a willingness to forgo physical comforts and luxuries. Lessons in Respect and Reverence Each story in this volume presents the reader with a unique message and reflects a particular aspect of reli- gious greatness. When asked to point to one or two in- cidents which he finds especially significant and mean- ingful, Yehuda Azoulay referred to two episodes that underscore the importance of affording proper respect to great Rabbis and to their authority. The first incident involved a wealthy man who ap- proached Rav Haim Ben Atar to plead for help when the streams in his newly purchased fields suddenly ran dry. The Rabbi offered his visitor a drink, and noticed that he drank without reciting a berachah. Rav Haim explained to the man that if he would begin reciting berachot and encourage others to do the same, then he would enjoy success and prosperity from the streams in his field. Sure enough, the man began reciting berachot and the waters returned. The second story is of Rav Salman Mutzafi (1900-1975), who warned a young man in his community to treat his parents respectfully. The youngster ignored the warning and suffered a dev- astating punishment as a result. Yehuda Azoulay noted that these incidents highlight the theme of Rabbinic authority and convey the mes- sage of adherence to the instructions of our Hachamim. The first story demonstrates how following the words of the Sages brings blessing and success, and the sec- ond serves as a chilling warning against disregarding their authority. In essence, this encapsulates the basic objective of this volume, to recognize and appreciate the greatness of our Rabbis. As Yehuda Azoulay re- marked, “My primary goal is to impress upon people the importance of listening to the Hachamim and giv- ing them the respect and reverence they deserve.” Looking Ahead The overwhelming support and enthusiasm with which this project was received has encouraged Yehuda Azoulay to begin thinking about future projects. “With Hashem’s help, I would like to continue spreading the greatness of our Hachamim so that subsequent genera- tions can learn about our glorious heritage.” With Yehuda Azoulay’s insatiable thirst for knowl- edge, youthful energy and devotion to disseminating information about the Hachamim, combined with the fervent support of Rabbis and laypeople alike, it does not seem at all unlikely that additional works of this genre are on their way. All that remains is for the Eng- lish-speaking Sephardic community to show an inter- est in the history of their Hachamim and call for the expansion of this area of Torah literature. It is the au- thor’s hope that this book will indeed generate such an interest, and whet the public’s appetite for more infor- mation about the great pillars of Sephardic tradition. For more information about A Legacy of Lead- ers, please contact Israel Book Shop Publica- tions at 1-732-901-3009, or visit their website at www.israelbookshoppublications.com . Hacham Haim Yosef David Azoulay - Hida Hacham Yosef Haim - Ben Ish Hai Hacham Shalom Messas Hacham Yaakob Ades Hacham Yaakob Ades Hacham Ben Sion Abba Shaul 