Liske (Hasidic dynasty)

Liske is the name of a Hasidic dynasty founded by Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Friedman (Frishman). It takes its name from the Yiddish name for Olaszliszka, a village in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, Hungary.

The first Lisker Rebbe, Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Friedman (Frishman), also known as Hershel Lisker, lived a very frugal life. He was born Tzvi Hersh Frishman, but changed his last name to Friedman to avoid being drafted to the army. Even though the community enjoyed great prosperity, he would not allow its leaders to raise his salary from one forint, which he received when first appointed to the position. He was a disciple of the Divrei Chaim of Tsanz. His Torah sayings are collected in Ach Pri Tevuah (Hebrew: אך פרי תבואה‎‎) and Hayoshor veHatov (Hebrew: הישר והטוב) (2 vols).

The money that he accrued from the people coming to seek his advice was distributed to the poor and to further the various programs he instituted. For himself he built a humble home so as to accommodate the multitude of people who came to see him and ask his advice.

Among his major accomplishments was the building of the synagogue. The synagogue was built in a grandiose manner and able to accommodate 500 people. It was one of the largest of his time in Hungary. The Synagogue was built without a foundation to commemorate the Destruction of the Temple — as a testimony to the temporary state of the Diaspora.

To the community and his followers he left the following dictum:

"Rely on the ancient tradition, to observe and uphold the conservative life-style, to hand it down from generation to generation."

The death of Tzvi Hersh Friedman (Frishman) in 1874 heralded the end of prosperity in the Jewish community of Liske. To this day, on the day of his yahrzeit, the 14th day of Av, thousands still converge to pray at his grave.

At the death of Hershel Lisker in 1874, the mantle of leadership fell to his son-in-law, Rav Chaim Friedlander (born 1840 in Kisvárda), who at that time was Rav of Erdőbénye. Hershel Lisker had no surviving son. Rav Chaim Friedlander was a descendent of the 14th Century Torah luminary, the Maharsha as well as of Rabbis Judah Loew ben Bezalel, David HaLevi Segal, Joel Sirkis, Isaiah Horowitz, and Naphtali Cohen. He himself was a Torah scholar and orator with a mellifluous voice. Among his writings were the Tal Chaim—a homiletical explanation of each parsha, Tal Chaim Uverocho a glossary on the Talmud.

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