The Komarna Rebbe of Manhattan, Rabbi Yehoshua Safrin, a distinguished link to the prewar Komarna dynasty and a longtime supporter of Torah institutions, including Chabad mosdos in Crown Heights, passed away over Shabbos. He was 91.

According to Yeshiva World News (YWN), Rabbi Safrin was one of the last surviving talmidim of Rabbi Reuven Grozovsky at Bais Medrash Elyon and represented a living connection to the generation that helped establish and rebuild Torah life in America before and after the Holocaust.

Rabbi Safrin was the son of the Komarna Rebbe, Rabbi Chaim Yaakov Safrin, a noted talmid chacham and mekubal who served as the Komarna Rebbe in New York and later in Yerushalayim.

Rabbi Chaim Yaakov was renowned for his mastery of both Nigleh and Nistar and played an important role in rebuilding the Komarna dynasty following the devastation of the Holocaust.

The Safrin family arrived in the United States in 1938, after Rabbi Chaim Yaakov recognized the growing danger facing European Jewry. His Chassidim subsequently established Bnei Yaakov Anshei Komarno for him on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, YWN reported.

It was in that environment that Rabbi Yehoshua grew up, immersed in the distinctive Komarna mesorah of Torah, avodah and Toras Hanistar.

The Komarna dynasty traces its roots to Rabbi Alexander Sender Safrin and his son, Rabbi Yitzchok Eizik Yehuda Yechiel Safrin of Komarna, known as the “Heichal Habracha,” one of the prominent Chassidic and Kabbalistic figures of the 19th century.

Rabbi Yehoshua was a son-in-law of Reb Moshe Menachem Rosler.

Alongside carrying on his family’s Komarna mesorah, Rabbi Safrin worked extensively to preserve and disseminate the Torah writings of his father. According to YWN, he helped publish manuscripts left by Rabbi Chaim Yaakov, including volumes of “Pri Chaim” and “Poras Yosef,” ensuring that his father’s Torah would remain accessible to future generations.

Rabbi Safrin was also a generous supporter of Torah and Jewish institutions. He maintained a close connection with Chabad mosdos in Crown Heights and supported institutions including Bais Rivkah and the Crown Heights Kollel.

In Eretz Yisroel, Rabbi Safrin devoted significant resources to preserving his father’s legacy, including the renovation and restoration of the historic Komarna Bais Medrash on Rechov Malchei Yisrael in Yerushalayim’s Geulah neighborhood.

Those who knew Rabbi Safrin remembered him as a Yid of an earlier generation, known for his warmth, ready smile and ability to offer an encouraging word to those around him.

The levaya took place Sunday at 11:00 a.m. at Shomrei Hadas Chapels, 3803 14th Avenue in Boro Park.

Following the New York levaya, the aron is expected to be flown to Eretz Yisroel for kevurah. The family will be sitting shiva in Manhattan.

Baruch Dayan Ha’emes.