ר׳ יוסף חיים מבגדאד

ר׳ יוסף חיים מבגדאד (1835–1909), universally known as the Ben Ish Chai, was the pre-eminent Baghdadi halakhist, preacher, kabbalist and communal teacher of his generation. Born into Baghdad’s rabbinic elite, he studied first in his family and then under his uncle ר׳ דוד חי בן מאיר and the great academy head ר׳ עבדאללה סומך. After his father’s death in 1859 he assumed the central weekly preaching role at Baghdad’s Great Synagogue, though he did not hold a salaried chief-rabbinic office. His sermons joined practical halakhah, aggadah, ethics and Lurianic Kabbalah and reached Baghdadi communities across Iraq, India and Southeast Asia. In 1869 he made a formative pilgrimage to Jerusalem, Hebron and holy sites before returning to Baghdad. He wrote dozens of works, including בן איש חי, the responsa רב פעלים, בן יהוידע and works in accessible Judeo-Arabic. His rulings remain foundational in many Iraqi and Sephardi communities.