The Classic Mussar Work on Faith, Trust and Character Perfection by Rabbi Avraham Yeshayahu Karelitz zt”l

The Chazon Ish’s Sefer Emunah U’bitachon has always been regarded by the Torah world with a certain sense of reverence. The immense stature of its author, the profundity of its messages, and the magnificence of its language all contribute to the unique respect accorded to this sefer. In it, the Chazon Ish outlines the prerequisite for emunah, the definition of bitachon, the proper approach to mussar, and many other fundamental concepts.

But despite being treasured by the Torah world since it was first published in 5714/1954 (a few months after the passing of its legendary author), the sefer has remained a virtually closed book for many, due to the Chazon Ish’s poetic style, his penchant for coining new phrases/words, and the breathtaking depth of his ideas. With this new translation by Rabbi David R. Nakash, we have endeavored to make Sefer Emunah U’bitachon accessible to a broader Torah audience, without compromising on the depth of its ideas.

For the most part, the translation provided is phrase-by-phrase and largely literal. At times, due to the aforementioned unique nature of the sefer, certain poetic expressions, phraseology, and allusions to Talmudic terms have been transposed to English in a slightly looser manner, lest their meaning become lost in translation. However, upon consultation with gedolei Yisrael, the translation represents as accurately as possible the Chazon Ish’s original intention.

Translated by Rabbi David R. Nakash