The Yanuka — Rav Shlomo Yehuda

“There is nothing greater than this: to do teshuvah and to pray before the Holy King.”

“The more we pray and prepare more vessels, we will be worthy of the redemption.”

“Prayer was compared to water: 'Pour out your heart like water before the face of Hashem'.”

“The Torah is sweetness, it is light, it is good, it is joy, it is hope.”

“Joy flows from within. 'His heart carried his feet' - when a person feels true happiness and joy.”

“If everyone has this outlook, this unity, this respect, this joy, suddenly you will see - Mashiach comes.”

“There is nothing above this. People cry out about everything, but when a person has no love of his fellow Jew, that is the greatest flaw in the soul.”

“If a person understands that the moment he is in Torah is worth more than anything — there is no price for it.”

“One who writes down words of Torah is counted among those who bring the many to righteousness.”

“There is no such thing as a Jew who is alone and not connected to the geulah.”

“Real teshuvah before the Holy One, blessed be He, is that this sin comes your way and you don't do it.”

“There is no such thing as overcoming a desire or a sin without learning and effort directed at it.”

“Hashem, blessed be He, wants us to hear His word, His Torah.”

“If a person has a sum of money, then he trusts in it; he does not trust in Hashem.”

“When a person does not learn the Torah, he has plenty of questions.”

“The Torah says that success is exactly the opposite of what the world says.”

“The Torah teaches us that we must give respect to all created beings.”

“There is no arrogance at all; it has no place for a person in the world.”

“Hashem, blessed be He, guards one who learns the Torah lishmah like the apple of His eye.”

“The Holy One, blessed be He, made no distinction in His Torah of who you are, what you are.”

“If a person honors the Shabbos with garments and delicacies that are fine, choice and excellent, that is more than a thousand fasts.”

“True teshuvah is when a person can grasp a little of before Whom he stands.”

“A person must always do teshuvah, draw close to Hashem, ask Hashem for salvation, for mercy, be more truthful, be more pure.”

“The Holy One, blessed be He, will redeem us, Mashiach will come, and this is not a legend.”

“The Holy One, blessed be He, has nothing in the world but the Torah.”

“Whoever truly wants the salvation of Hashem: do Tikkun Chatzos, ask for the Beis HaMikdash.”

“When a person draws close to tzaddikim, he receives light in order to reveal his soul.”

“The more you learn the Torah, what should shine in you is the will of Hashem.”

“The more a person learns the Torah and knows it, so his closeness to the Holy One, blessed be He, will be greater.”

“The Torah is meant to awaken the whole Jewish people, to awaken all the souls of Israel.”

“Hashem loves the intention and the heart; that's it — 'the Merciful One wants the heart.'”

“Whoever thinks he has true knowledge and that the truth is with him - it is certainly not with him.”

“A person for whom the Torah is not the first thing - it will never help him.”

“When a person looks at the heavens, suddenly he sees the heavens, his heart opens; mercy is aroused before Hashem.”

“The Torah is love, it is compassion, and it is not hatred and it is not war.”

“There is nothing more exalted and precious and glorious than a heart that loves the Creator, blessed be He.”

“A person needs to have faith, and to have a desire in order to bestow on others.”

“When a person has a tallis over his head, it humbles his heart.”

'Unique and singular in our generation, master of the entire Torah. A vessel for receiving Torah about whom one can say, as Rabbi Levitas of Yavneh said: Be exceedingly humble of spirit.'

He is like a 'living Torah scroll.'

'Full of wisdom and understanding in Torah and Halacha, whose fear of Heaven precedes his wisdom, possessing correct opinion and outlook, like our own rabbis.'

'A soul of such a Torah scholar — this is a great salvation for Israel.'

The student quoted his late teacher Rabbi Sarya: 'We need someone great who will unify all parts of the holy Torah, and due to our many sins we have no such orphaned figure in our generation.' The student then said: 'And now we have merited such a gift. A Torah scholar who knows every part of the Torah in all its branches, and connects all of the Torah and all the great figures of Israel and their teachings from every stream. This is an immense wonder and marvel that Hashem has given us as a gift.'

Chazzan R' Chaim Eliezer Herstik, age 70 at time of interview, world-renowned cantor who over the years had been close to many great figures of Israel, regularly attends the Yanuka's shiurim. Forty years separate them; Herstik defers to Rabbi Shlomo as a student before his master. 'When I first arrived at the Yanuka's shiur — a sight I had never witnessed unfolded before my eyes. I imagined I had gone back hundreds of years. I saw before my eyes an image that we only knew from books. The fear of Heaven and the grace that suffused his face made my heart skip a beat.' On the shiur: 'He began to deliver a Torah lecture woven together from hundreds of sources, from every part of the Torah, quoting the precise source by heart. When asked various questions on diverse topics — he answered immediately and fluently, citing sources and precise references relevant to the topic from every corner of Torah.' 'This wonder captured my heart. Since then I make sure to attend his shiurim as one among thousands, and I experience a spiritual experience that is hard for me to put into words.'

Among great Torah scholars seen attending his shiurim before he turned 30: Member of the Council of Torah Sages Gaon Rabbi Shimon Baadani; Gaon Rabbi Moshe Mordechai Karp; Kabbalist Rabbi David Batzri; other rabbis, judges, and heads of yeshivot. Some of them recited the blessing 'who has given of His wisdom to those who fear Him' upon him.

After the Mishpacha interview concluded, his study partner Rav Ben Tzur — who had been present the whole time — admitted: 'I have never heard the Rav speak like this.'

'We've heard of child prodigies with beautiful voices whom people come to hear; but a Torah teacher astounding in his genius, with elderly Torah scholars gathering around him as students before their master — this, it seems, is a phenomenon taken from the history books.'