Rozwój chasydzkiego ośrodka pielgrzymkowego w Leżajsku

Development of the Chassid Pilgrimage Centre in Leżajsk

Summary: The article presents the development of Chassid pilgrimages to the tomb of Elimelech in the aspect of the number of visitors and the organisation of trips. Due to Tzaddik Elimelech, one of the Chassid leaders of the third generation, the Chassid ideology suddenly spread across Galicia. Elimelech settled in Leżajsk in 1772. He formulated the concept of practical tzaddikism. He was known as a teacher and miracle-maker. The fame of Elimelech attracted the Galician Jews who came to Tzaddik asking for his support from God. After the Tzaddik's death, the pilgrimages did not stop. His tomb became a place of worship, and was visited in the greatest numbers on the anniversary of his death - jorcajt. The pilgrimage traffic was inhibited during World War II, and the place of worship was destroyed by the German occupant. Reconstruction and the gradual development of the Chassid pilgrimage centre in Leżajsk occurred after 1963, when Tzaddik's ohel was built. Through the 1990s, small individual pilgrimage traffic was observed. Presently, Leżajsk welcomes approx. 15,000 Chassid pilgrims a year. The appearance of such a great number of pilgrims and cultural differences gives rise to many tensions and conflicts in the town. The main problem is the lack of an institution which could represent the pilgrims before the town's authorities, and the organisation of the pilgrimage route in a manner that would not infringe upon the peace of the people living in the vicinity of the place of worship. Leżajsk is the largest Chassid pilgrimage centre in Poland. The future development of pilgrimages is conditioned by the solving of conflicts between the local community and the visitors.

Peregrinus Cracoviensis, 2006, z. 17, s. 187-196.

Instytut Geografii i Gospodarki Przestrzennej UJ

ISSN 1425-1922

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