KAGAN, YISRAʾEL MEʾIR (c. 1838–1933), also known as Ḥafets Ḥayyim, was a rabbi, ethical writer, and Talmudist. Born in Zhetel, Poland, Yisraʾel Meʾir Kagan (or ha-Kohen) revealed his scholarly abilities at an early age, and his father decided to devote his life to developing the talents of his son. He took the ten-year-old Yisraʾel to Vilna; there the boy studied Talmud and came under the influence of the Musar movement, which sought the revitalization of the ethical life within the framework of traditional Judaism. After his marriage at the age of seventeen (which was normal for his circle), he moved to Radun, the hometown of his wife. At first he devoted himself to study while being supported by his wife, who ran a grocery store. For a short...