Early Life
Bender was born in the town of Grodzisk, Poland, as the tenth of 12 children. At the age of 17 he traveled to Uman without his parents' permission. Afterwards he sent them a letter to let them know where he was. Although they were angry, they allowed him to stay and eventually made peace with his decision.
In Uman, Bender began learning under Rabbi Abraham Chazan, the son of the closest disciple of Nathan of Breslov (Reb Noson), who was in turn the closest disciple of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov. Although Chazan had immigrated to Jerusalem in 1894, he returned each year to Uman for Rosh Hashana. During World War I he was unable to leave Russia. Bender and others were able to learn under Chazan continuously until the latter died in Uman in 1917.
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