There’s something fascinating about the nostalgia when recalling the days in “Pardes.” It was actually the Tel Aviv Chabad yeshiva which moved to Lud, where it was situated in an orchard, hence its name.

I don’t think there’s a talmid who spent his days and years in Pardes who doesn’t miss the atmosphere that prevailed there at that time, a homey, chassidic atmosphere. There was an enthralling blend of factors. You could sit in the zal and smell the intoxicating fragrance of oranges, and see the green branches peeking in the windows. This gave an otherworldly feeling, the sense that one was learning in Gan Eden!

The spiritual atmosphere was enhanced by the presence of the renowned mashpiim, Rabbi Shlomo Chaim Kesselman and Rabbi Avrohom Maiyor-Drizin, both men of stature, and there’s no doubt that this contributed to a greater diligence in learning, and a desire to increase and learn and be strengthened in the ways of chassidus.

In order to get a sense of what it was really like in the yeshiva in Pardes, we spoke with four people, each one fascinating in his own right. They agreed to talk to us about their yeshiva days, though they emphasized that there is far more to say than what they said, “because those were incredible times and it is difficult to express it in words.”

Rabbi Avrohom Sosonkin: Many people said that the atmosphere in Pardes was “like in Lubavitch.” The T’mimim were immersed in learning nigleh and chassidus, in t’filla with avoda, and in the avoda of iskafia. The isolation allowed us to focus our thoughts on ruchnius. And this was despite – or because of – the difficult physical conditions. We all felt we had to sacrifice somewhat in order for the yeshiva to develop. Nobody looked for luxuries or an easy life. So for example, we had to hike to the mikva, which was at the edge of Ramle. It wasn’t easy but who thought to complain?

Rabbi Yaakov Zohar: The yeshiva had a special atmosphere of rare unity among the T’mimim. The mashpia, R’ Shlomo Chaim Kesselman, who was the spirit of the yeshiva, united all the T’mimim into one family. It’s important to point out that he behaved the same with all types, as in the Rebbe’s horaa to learn chassidus even with those from eidut ha’mizrach – meaning the young Teimanim (Yemenites) like myself. The Rebbe added that Teimanim and Sephardim who learn Kabbala have emunas tzaddikim, and it is easier to learn chassidus with them. Thanks to him, my friends and I who are Teimanim, established chassidic families, and we have children and grandchildren who are Lubavitchers and mekusharim to the Rebbe.

But beyond that, I want to say that we felt a deep connection to the yeshiva. We didn’t try to find excuses to go home. Even when we had a vacation, R’ Shlomo Chaim would guide us as to what to learn and how to behave at home.

Rabbi Nachum Kaplan: We were immersed in learning and avoda, not only during the time for learning but during the breaks, too. Nobody left to buy anything as talmidim do today, going to stores and kiosks near their yeshivos. Anyway, the nearest kiosk was at the train station, quite far from the yeshiva.

Some talmidim lived in Lud, including me, but we didn’t know what it meant to “drop in at home.” In the morning we went to yeshiva and we returned home late at night. The hanhala was extremely particular about showing up on time. For all these reasons, we were isolated from the world throughout the day, and were immersed in an atmosphere of learning and chassidus.

By the way, I must mention the niggunim at the farbrengens or during the seider ha’niggunim. When the T’mimim would sing niggunim with R’ Shlomo Chaim, it had a singular flavor and a unique atmosphere. Those who learned in Pardes have fond memories till this day of those hours of niggunim.

Every Shabbos towards evening, we’d have a seider niggunim, which ended with the recitation of a maamer. If one of the T’mimim tried to start the niggun for the maamer, the others would shush him and begin singing something else so as not to rush the Shabbos.

Rabbi Avrohom Meizlich: We were in yeshiva all year. There was no such thing as traveling home or a “free Shabbos.” Those who had to travel, traveled, but it wasn’t something official.

The mashpia R’ Shlomo Chaim Kesselman accompanied us not only within the walls of the yeshiva, but also outside of it. Before we went home he would tell us: “When you go to your parents, you are going to your parents’ house, but your home is here in yeshiva.” This was the atmosphere in yeshiva. Our entire lives revolved around the yeshiva. We didn’t think about anything else. The only place we went to was the mikva, which was at the entrance to Ramle. We walked through the orchards until we came to the entrance to Ramle, where the mikva was in a little house. Sometimes the mikva was closed and then the T’mimim would walk until the center of Ramle where they toiveled in the rainwater mikva in the yard of Rabbi Bamberger.

It’s important to emphasize that mikva before chassidus was a matter of fact. No Tamim dreamed of learning chassidus before going to the mikva.

In the chassidic guidance we received, the emphasis was placed on avodas Hashem, on t’filla with avoda, and the abstention from all things that had no connection to a Tamim.

It seemed that R’ Shlomo Chaim’s entire existence was about avodas Hashem. His influence left its mark and in the yeshiva you could find many ovdim, among them Rabbi Moshe Naparstek, Rabbi Meir Tzvi Gruzman, Rabbi Berel Shaykevits, and others.

A lot of the atmosphere could be attributed to the fact that R’ Shlomo Chaim lived in the yeshiva. Along with the sense of yiras ha’kavod that one felt in his presence, there was also a family atmosphere. R’ Shlomo Chaim was both the father and the mother of the T’mimim. If in the morning, for some reason, they forgot to bring mezonos before davening, he would go to his room and bring out a cake his wife had baked, or something else, and put it down for us and say that T’mimim need to eat before davening and not fast.

Another thing I remember is from Motzaei Shabbasos. It happened often that T’mimim would spend Shabbos in Mizrachi yeshivos in order to spread chassidus. There wasn’t always perfectly kosher wine there, and they would make Kiddush on challos. But they couldn’t make Havdala on challa, and when they returned late after Shabbos, the kitchen was closed and R’ Shlomo Chaim would bring them to his room and give them a bottle of wine for Havdala.

Rabbi Sosonkin: The fact that R’ Shlomo Chaim lived in the yeshiva with his wife gave us the feeling that he was part of the yeshiva. He ate what we ate and slept in the rooms of the yeshiva, and he was completely involved in the yeshiva. He was a personal example for us T’mimim.

Rabbi Nachum Kaplan: R’ Shlomo Chaim would approach the T’mimim every so often, slap them lovingly on the back and ask if they lacked anything or if they had any problems. I still remember him going through the rooms at night to see if any yarmulkes had fallen off. That’s how he knew who needed to work more on yiras Shamayim ...

Rabbi Meizlich: Credit for the atmosphere also goes to the rosh yeshiva, Rabbi Boruch Shimon Schneerson, z”l, who lived in the yeshiva three days a week. He was a special person who gave the yeshiva an atmosphere of learning, and it was he who gave us foundations in learning and in understanding sugyos.

Rabbi Sosonkin: The rosh yeshiva, R’ Boruch Shimon Schneerson, was certainly a figure worthy of emulation. He conducted himself with utter bittul and was very close with the T’mimim. He was very open with us and included us in issues pertaining to the yeshiva. You could sense the chassidus in him. You could feel the chassidus he learned.

I understand that he placed a great emphasis on t’filla with avoda.

Rabbi Zohar: There were many T’mimim who davened with special avoda on Shabbasos, among them I remember Rabbi Gershon Mendel Gorelik who is a shliach in Italy today, Rabbi Maishke Naparstek of Kfar Chabad, and greatest of all: Rabbi Meir Tzvi Gruzman.

Rabbi Meizlich: In yeshiva they would say that each Shabbos they had to look hard to find a minyan of T’mimim who didn’t daven at length so there would be a regular minyan.

I remember quite well the Shabbasos of special days like Yud-Tes Kislev and Yud-Beis Tammuz. R’ Shlomo Chaim would finish davening at three in the afternoon. Most of the T’mimim davened at length and finished at one or two in the afternoon. They all learned chassidus or finished reviewing the sidra with Targum, and at three they sat down to farbreng and make Kiddush.

How did R’ Shlomo Chaim instill t’filla with avoda in the T’mimim?

Rabbi Zohar: During farbrengens, R’ Shlomo Chaim would latch onto the chevra who were suited for t’filla with avoda, yet did not daven properly at that time. He would talk to them at length about the greatness of t’filla with avoda. During conversations with talmidim (which we called yechidus) he would talk a lot about avoda and iskafia, the very essence of his existence.

I remember that one of the T’mimim (who is in the U.S. today) before going to R’ Shlomo Chaim to get direction in avoda from him, spoke with me about it. He said that he agreed to daven with avoda but refused avoda with iskafia. I told him that R’ Shlomo Chaim wouldn’t allow him to daven with avoda without his working on his middos. And so it was. With time, that Tamim progressed tremendously in avoda and iskafia.

Rabbi Sosonkin: The theme of the farbrengens was t’filla at length and iskafia. That’s what R’ Shlomo Chaim’s farbrengens were about, and he instilled in the T’mimim the awareness that davening must be done at length.

Rabbi Meizlich: T’filla with avoda doesn’t come just like that. R’ Shlomo Chaim worked on it a great deal. Aside from talking about t’filla with avoda at farbrengens, he would receive bachurim in his room every Thursday night. Whoever wanted to speak to him did so. Generally, his conversations with the boys were about t’filla with avoda. Naturally, the rest of the T’mimim sat and learned chassidus all night Thursday night.

In order to understand what sort of t’filla with avoda was demanded of a Tamim in those days, I’ll tell you an incident that occurred with one of the T’mimim. R’ Shlomo Chaim once asked a Tamim, “With which maamer do you daven with during the week?” The boy answered, giving the opening words of a certain maamer.

R’ Shlomo Chaim took out a pocket watch and put it on the table and told him, “Think through the maamer from beginning to end.” The Tamim began thinking and R’ Shlomo Chaim shuckled opposite him, as if he was learning.

When the Tamim finished thinking through the maamer, R’ Shlomo Chaim told him, “I finished thinking through the maamer before you, so in addition to thinking of the maamer, you had to be thinking about other things, which is why it took you that much longer to finish.”

We trained ourselves to think of a maamer as long as possible without losing our train of thought from the inyan in chassidus we were thinking of then.

We didn’t learn chassidus from beautifully bound s’farim like they do today, but from stencil copies. One of the T’mimim got a hold of a maamer, and someone would type it, and they would copy the maamer and distribute it to the T’mimim.

I remember that I had decided to take a maamer from R’ Avrohom Pariz which was said in 5703. I traveled to where he lived in Petach Tikva, and he looked for it and finally found the Hemshech of Rosh HaShana 5703.

He asked for a deposit, but I had no money. I offered my identity card, but he smiled and said he would rely on me to return it. We copied the maamer and distributed it among the T’mimim.

Rabbi Kaplan: R’ Shlomo Chaim would farbreng on special days until around five in the morning. You could never see any signs of tiredness on him; he was always alert. Sometimes the T’mimim would farbreng amongst themselves, sitting under the palm trees which surrounded the yeshiva. They would drag a table and bring some farbaisen (edibles) and farbreng all night.

How was hiskashrus expressed?

Rabbi Meizlich: We wrote to the Rebbe, and in those years we got many answers. We spoke about hiskashrus at farbrengens and at every opportunity. A trip to see the Rebbe was what every Tamim yearned for, although only very few were able to travel every year. Traveling in those days entailed many difficulties which are hard to understand in light of the conditions nowadays.

The first obstacle was getting permission from the army to leave. The army was very particular about those who sat and learned not leaving the country, no matter the reason for going. T’mimim who managed to get permission to go anyway had to exert themselves to obtain a visa, a challenge unto itself. The embassies made it very difficult to obtain visas.

After managing to overcome these two obstacles, you had to buy a plane ticket which cost many times more than an average salary, and T’mimim didn’t work, so where would they have money from? Very few managed to get together the required sum of money from their parents and relatives.

We hardly ever got sichos from the Rebbe. Once in a long time someone would send us excerpts from this sicha or that one. In general, we barely knew what the Rebbe said in his sichos since phone calls to the U.S. were no simple matter. It’s hard to understand this today, but at the beginning of the 50’s, in order to call from Yerushalayim to Tel Aviv, you had to call via the telephone exchange, and forget about calling abroad, which cost a fortune.

What were the physical conditions of the yeshiva like in those days?

Rabbi Meizlich: Today, in nearly every yeshiva, there are air conditioners. In our day, in the early years, we didn’t even have electricity! The building we were in had belonged to Arabs and the building had no electrical wiring. For a number of years we learned by candle light and for Shabbos we lit kerosene lamps.

Even after they put in wiring, the electric company refused to connect us to electricity. The hanhala bought a generator and that’s how we had electricity, but even then, who dreamed about fans or heaters?

In those years, ‎5709-5720‏ (1949-1960), the country experienced a period of shortages in which food was purchased with coupons. The economic situation was terrible. It was very hard for yeshivos to obtain food for the bachurim, and therefore the Joint Distribution Committee of the U.S. and Canada sent care packages with food. This followed the strenuous efforts of Rabbi Efraim Wolf, the menahel of the yeshiva, who did his best to take care of the boys.

You spoke about iskafia as well as a period of shortages when there wasn’t much to eat. So what was there to do iskafia on?

Rabbi Zohar: There wasn’t much, but we weren’t hungry. Personally, I lacked for nothing since I had come from Yemen, where there really wasn’t anything to eat, and so relative to the situation in Yemen, it was good for me.

As far as iskafia, of course we ate, but we trained ourselves not to be into our food. There were, for example, T’mimim who didn’t eat bread with jam because jam is sweet and is considered a taava.

Rabbi Sosonkin: Iskafia was done by eating slowly, not gobbling food. Some left over a bit on their plate, etc.

Rabbi Kaplan: R’ Shlomo Chaim strongly instilled in us the idea of iskafia – to the point that we were afraid not to do iskafia ... The iskafia in yeshiva didn’t just center on food. I’ll tell you a story that is etched in my memory:

In the first days of the war in Sinai, one of the newspapers had a second edition since the news at night from the front was different than the news of the morning. We in yeshiva were cut off. We certainly didn’t have a radio, and there was a debate among the T’mimim whether it was permissible to read a newspaper that was completely devoted to covering the war. It didn’t take long to conclude that it was , and we continued to learn diligently, and as far as what was going on at the front, we had to be satisfied with what we heard.

We spoke about mikva in the morning. Let’s end with your memories of Krias Shma at night.

Rabbi Kaplan: The avoda of Krias Shma at night was special. We always said it in either the zal or one of the classrooms, and we wore a hat and jacket. We devoted a great deal of time to it. I especially remember Yisroel Dubruskin (may Hashem avenge his ) and Rabbi Moshe Naparstek.

Rabbi Meizlich: If you went into the zal late at night you could hear quiet singing from the T’mimim who were saying Krias Shma.

Rabbi Zohar: Some T’mimim found hiding places, whether in the area of the pool which was in the courtyard of the yeshiva, or in side rooms. The T’mimim said Krias Shma at night with kavana, and some even cried. Everybody wanted to hide this from the others, so they tried finding some corner to hide in.