Mini-interview with the editor of the Ohr Avigdor Series

Rabbi Yitzchok Kirzner of Brooklyn has been behind the scenes at Simchas Hachaim Publishing, but his influence has been felt across the Jewish world through the landmark Ohr Avigdor series on Chovos Halevavos that he has edited.

In this mini-interview, he discusses his involvement and the upcoming volume, Shaar Bitachon.

How did you get involved in the Ohr Avigdor project?

I was brought into the project by my dear nephew, Reb Yaakov Engel of Monsey. Reb Yaakov had participated with Rabbi Yehuda Brog (executive director of Yeshiva Gedolah Bais Yisroel) in developing a new mussar library based on the shiurim [lectures] of Rav Avigdor Miller. He thought I might be a good fit, in light of my experience as a freelance editor and translator for Artscroll.

Are there any special challenges working with this material?

The raw material for the project consisted of unedited transcripts of the Rav Miller’s shiurim on Chovos Halevavos. This presented a unique challenge largely because of the natural differences between an unrehearsed spoken talk and the structured text of a book.

An editor working from the spoken material needs to fill in unspoken content that is not available to the reader, while still conveying a sense of the speaker’s presence, and introducing stylistic techniques that are available to written communication, but are not to speakers.

What are your personal feelings about working on a landmark series by one of the Gedolei Yisroel [sages]?

I feel highly privileged to be so intimately involved in the thought processes of a gadol such as Rav Miller, a man whose trademark personal style involved candid frankness and brutal honesty. I have learned a great deal from this exercise and I find that Rav Miller’s perspective on life now affects my own thinking throughout the day.

Can you tell us a little about Shaar Bitachon and what to expect?

Shaar Habitachon is perhaps the most down-to-earth section of Chovos Halevavos. It answers the questions we all face every day about the inherent difficulty of reconciling the hishtadlus [efforts we need to take to achieve practical results] and the bitachon [trust in Hashem] we need to have in Hashem’s total control over everything that happens to us.

We must exercise sincere hishtadlus as though it is what makes the difference, because that is what Hashem wants us to do. However, sincere hishtadlus must always be tempered by the awareness of its limited role in the scheme of things. We must make sure not to overdo our practical efforts and we must always give priority to the spiritual purpose of our lives.

Rav Miller was very conscious of the unique challenge presented by the mitzvah of bitachon and he gave his listeners extensive guidance using many examples taken from daily life. All of this will be found in his interpretation of Shaar HaBitachon.

Look for Ohr Avigdor Shaar Bitachon this winter from Simchas Hachaim Publishing.