What are the most suitable torahs from the esh kodesh to learn on tisha b'av?

Torah Teachings from the Esh Kodesh for Tisha B'Av

The Esh Kodesh (Holy Fire), written by Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira — the Piaseczner Rebbe — contains some of the most profound and relevant Torah teachings for Tisha B'Av, as it was literally composed during the Holocaust in the Warsaw Ghetto between 1939–1942. The teachings that most directly address suffering, destruction, churban (devastation), and faith under fire are the most suitable for the day.

Key Takeaways

The Esh Kodesh was composed inside a churban, making it uniquely resonant for Tisha B'Av.
The Rebbe's teachings on God weeping with Israel directly parallel classical Tisha B'Av themes of Divine grief (Eikha).
His derasha on Parshat Devarim (the Shabbat before Tisha B'Av) addresses communal suffering and faith.
The Rebbe distinguishes between individual suffering and communal catastrophe — a critical theological framework for Tisha B'Av.
His final teachings show a shift from consolation to raw theological wrestling, mirroring the progression of the Nine Days.

Background: Why Esh Kodesh for Tisha B'Av?

The Esh Kodesh is unlike any other sefer in Jewish literature. Rabbi Shapira composed these drashot (sermons) while surrounded by death in the Warsaw Ghetto, burying the manuscript in milk cans before the final deportations. It was recovered after the war.

Tisha B'Av commemorates the destruction of both Temples and all subsequent Jewish catastrophes. The Esh Kodesh speaks from within such a catastrophe — making it perhaps the most authentic Tisha B'Av text ever written.

Most Suitable Teachings by Theme

1. 🔥 God's Suffering With Israel — "The Shekhinah in Exile"

The teaching from Shabbat Chazon 5700 (1939) — the Shabbat immediately before Tisha B'Av of the very first year of the war — is perhaps the most important single teaching to study.

The Rebbe develops the classical Talmudic idea from [Megillah 29a] that "the Shekhinah went into exile with Israel" — but pushes it further: God does not merely observe our suffering from above; He suffers within it alongside us.

This resonates directly with Eikha (Lamentations), the central text of Tisha B'Av, where God Himself seems to mourn: "אֵיכָה יָשְׁבָה בָדָד הָעִיר" — "How does the city sit in solitude" [Lamentations 1:1].

2. 😢 The Weeping of God — "Bechiyah shel Ma'alah"

In multiple teachings, the Rebbe draws on the famous aggadah in [Chagigah 5b] where God weeps in the "hidden chambers" (chadrei chadarim):

"וְיֹרֵד עַיִן דְּמָעָה" — "And He sheds a tear" [Jeremiah 13:17, as cited in Chagigah 5b]

The Rebbe uses this to argue that Israel's suffering is not abandonment — it is a form of terrible intimacy with the Divine. This is a core Tisha B'Av theological question: Where is God in destruction?

This teaching is especially powerful to study before or after Kinnot (the lamentation poems).

3. 💔 Individual vs. Communal Suffering — A Critical Distinction

One of the Rebbe's most important theological contributions — developed across several 5700–5701 (1940–1941) teachings — is his distinction between:

Yissurin shel yachid — individual suffering, which classical sources say can be understood as mussar (rebuke/refinement) [Berakhot 5a]
Yissurin shel rabbim — communal catastrophe, which cannot be explained by the same framework

The Rebbe states with striking honesty that the traditional explanations for suffering do not apply to what he was witnessing. This intellectual courage makes the Esh Kodesh especially meaningful on Tisha B'Av, when we confront the destruction not of individuals but of entire communities.

4. 📖 The Derashah of Shabbat Chazon 5702 (1942)

This is the Rebbe's last recorded teaching — delivered on the Shabbat before Tisha B'Av 5702, just weeks before the mass deportations from Warsaw to Treblinka.

In it, he wrestles with whether Israel can still find the inner spiritual resources to survive this darkness. He references the Haftarah of Shabbat Chazon from Isaiah 1 — "Chazon Yeshayahu" — and asks: is the prophet's vision of rebuke or of hope?

This teaching is extraordinarily moving because we know, reading it today, what happened next.

5. 🕍 "Entering the Flames with Joy" — Sanctification of God's Name

The Rebbe's teachings on Kiddush Hashem (sanctification of God's Name) are essential Tisha B'Av learning. He discusses how the martyrs of the Holocaust — like those of previous destructions described in the Kinnot — faced death with emunah (faith).

This connects directly to the Kinnot poems about the Ten Martyrs (Asarah Harugei Malkhut) recited on Tisha B'Av morning.

Suggested Learning Schedule for Tisha B'Av

| Time of Day | Suggested Teaching | |---|---| | Evening (after Maariv/Eikha) | Shabbat Chazon 5700 — God's suffering with Israel | | Morning (after Kinnot) | The teaching on communal vs. individual suffering | | Afternoon | The final teaching, Shabbat Chazon 5702 | | Before Mincha | Teachings on Kiddush Hashem and martyrdom |

A Note on Accessible Editions

The Esh Kodesh is available in a beautiful English translation by J. Hershy Worch (published by Aronson).
Nehemia Polen's The Holy Fire: The Teachings of Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira provides excellent scholarly commentary and is highly recommended as a companion text.

Note: The specific passages quoted above draw on my training knowledge of the Esh Kodesh and related Talmudic sources. For the deepest engagement, I recommend learning the original Hebrew alongside a translation. For guidance on structuring your Tisha B'Av learning, consult your local rabbi or posek.