Rav Chaim Palagi of Izmir

Early years

Rav Chaim Palagi of Izmir zt"l, known as Chacham Chaim Palagi, was born in Izmir in 1788 to Chacham Yaakov Palagi and Cali Kadin. He began to write at the age of sixteen. In 1807, at nineteen, he married, and in 1813 he received ordination as Chacham Shalem from his grandfather, the Chief Rabbi, Rishon LeTzion, Chacham Raphael Yosef Hazan.

In one of his seforim Chacham Chaim described his own life. From the time he could control his faculties until the age of twenty, he devoted himself single-mindedly to Torah, day and night, with no wasted time and no involvement in worldly matters. From twenty to forty, when his children depended on him, he earned a living as a broker. Even then, whenever he had no work, he did not turn to idle or wasteful things, but returned to his learning.

Torah and leadership

While his father was alive, Chacham Chaim accepted no public position. Only in 1828 did he agree to serve as a dayan on the beis din and as head of the Beis Yaakov Rabi yeshiva in Izmir. In 1837 he was appointed President of the Great Rabbinic Court of Izmir, and in 1857 he became Chacham Bashi, the highest rabbinic office in Izmir.

From the age of forty, when he became a dayan and teacher and took on the concerns of the public, there was hardly a minute when he was not surrounded by litigants or communal business, which came from the city and its surroundings, while decrees of the government also kept him busy with public affairs. He worried that he did not spend enough time learning, and so he forced himself to use the limited time he had for study.

He spoke out for the poor of his community and in his sermons rebuked its wealthy members. He enacted takanos (halachic enactments) and founded charitable institutions, and he worked to establish a Jewish hospital in Izmir, enlisting the support of renowned philanthropists.

His son wrote that his father's conduct with his family, and the excellence of his character in dealing with them, was unique in the world. He never became upset over a household matter and always sought peace. He was never annoyed at the children's noise. Each morning he called them to him to recite the morning berachos, and they said them aloud. Every day, with great patience, he fulfilled the mitzvah of “you shall teach them to your children,” instructing them in the fear of Hashem and never to make fun of any person. Once a member of his household offended someone, and he did not rest until that person was appeased. More than once he even gave money to a person who had been offended.

Teachings and seforim

Chacham Chaim wrote dozens of seforim on a wide range of subjects. They include seven on Tanach, nine on the Gemara, fifteen of Midrash and derashos, three of mussar, and twenty-four on halacha, Kabbalah and responsa. His best-known sefer is Kaf HaChaim on Orach Chaim. His first sefer was Pe'ulas Tzaddik LeChaim, and others include Semichah LeChaim, responsa that he wrote with his grandfather and teacher, Chacham Raphael Yosef Hazan, and Rachamim LeChaim, Artzos HaChaim, Lev Chaim, Chaim LeRosh, Kol HaChaim, Matza Chaim, Tzedakah LeChaim and Ginzei Chaim. His last sefer, Birkas Mo'adecha LeChaim, was published a day before he passed away.

Whenever he completed a sefer, Chacham Chaim held a seudas mitzvah (festive meal), and it is told that he would eat a new fruit and recite Shehecheyanu on it. He distributed his seforim without charge, and never sold them.

On 11 Av 5601 (1841), a great fire broke out in Izmir. It destroyed the Jewish neighborhood and burned fifty-four of his seforim. Over the years Chacham Chaim restored many of his writings and had them reprinted. A small number remained in manuscript.

Later years and passing

Chacham Chaim Palagi passed away on 17 Shevat 5628 (1868). He was buried in the ancient cemetery of Izmir in an official state funeral, attended by Turkish military and government officials and by representatives of foreign countries.

Legacy

Chacham Chaim is remembered for his many seforim, which he restored and reprinted after the fire, and for his devotion to the poor of his community. A traditional hilula is held at his tomb in Izmir.