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Meet Yaakov Astor
Yaakov Astor is an author, editor, and educator dedicated to strengthening emunah and sharing timeless Jewish teachings with modern audiences. He is the founding Editor-in-Chief of Zman Magazine and has authored or edited 30+ books.
His recent work includes the Awaken Your Emunah series and books based on the teachings of Rav Avigdor Miller, helping readers deepen their faith and character. Through his books, articles, and lectures, he continues to inspire a stronger connection to Jewish tradition.
Meet Yaakov Astor
Yaakov Astor is an author, editor, and educator whose work focuses on strengthening emunah and bringing timeless Jewish teachings to contemporary audiences. He is the founding Editor-in-Chief of Zman Magazine and has written, co-written, or edited more than 30 books along with hundreds of articles on Jewish thought, history, and life.
His recent projects focus especially on the Awaken Your Emunah series and books based on the teachings of Rav Avigdor Miller, helping readers deepen their understanding of faith, character development, and Jewish values.
In addition to these projects, Yaakov’s earlier work includes extensive writing and educational material on Jewish history, Holocaust education, and Jewish life, reaching readers and students across the world.
Through books, articles, videos, and lectures, this site brings together Yaakov Astor’s work—past, present, and ongoing—to inspire learning, reflection, and a deeper connection to Jewish tradition.
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A Fan Writes In
I just wanted to thank you for R’ Avigdor Miller’s books you have so beautifully collected and compiled! I’ve read a couple of them, but the the book on Middos has touched me most. It’s been a real life-changer for me!
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The Blind Man Who Climbed Everest
2019 has already been one of the deadliest years for those hoping to reach the top of the world. The ascent of Mount Everest presents
Sabotaging Hitler’s A-Bomb
2019 has already been one of the deadliest years for those hoping to reach the top of the world. The ascent of Mount Everest presents some incredible challenges, where the difference between life and death is negotiated one step at a time. That makes it all the more remarkable that one particularly brave climber attempted to do something no one had done before – to be the first blind person ever to reach the summit of Mount Everest. This is his inspiring story. Mount Everest is the highest point on Earth at 29,035 feet. Few have ever made it to the summit and about 300 people have lost their lives trying. But in 2001, one man, Erik Weihenmayer, tried to do something no one had ever dared try – become the first blind person to climb Mount Everest.
Me, Myself and I: Ethics of the Fathers 1:14
Hillel is widely recognized as one of the wisest people who ever lived. This Mishna is arguably his most famous aphorism. The first clause of the aphorism roughly translates: "If I am not for myself, who will be for me?"1 The phrase distinguishes between two selves - "I" (ani in Hebrew) and "me" (li). It implies that somehow we can have a self called "I" and a self-called "me." The "I" self is the deepest self. It is our personalized facet of the Divine image. By contrast, the "me" is the persona we develop during life. Elements of the "me" originate from others, from society - from that which is outside "I." The biblical paradigm for successfully wrestling with this identity crisis is Abraham.
A Whale of a Tale
Rashi says the tananim hagedolim (Bereishis 1:21) are the great sea creatures, whales. The Ramban says that these creatures are so unique that they were a special creation (signified by the word bara). By any measure, whales are an especially thought-provoking example of nifla’os haBorei. A sperm whale lies stranded on a beach, close to death. Looking at him now, it is hard to imagine what an extraordinary life he’s led. This is the largest predator the world has ever seen. Adult sperm whales can grow to 60 tons (120,000 pounds or more) and up to 60 feet, although some have been estimated to be 100 feet (such as the one that destroyed a whaling ship in the 1800s and became the basis for the legendary white whale, Moby Dick, of Herman Melville fame). By the end of its life, a sperm whale will have traveled far enough to circumnavigate the globe 40 times! That’s over half a million miles.
Meat-Eating Plants
Plants seem like passive creatures of fate – stuck in the ground, blowing in the wind, soaking in sunlight and serving as food for the insect and animal worlds. It comes as a shock to discover that not only are they eaten, but they also eat. Yes, we’re talking about flesh-eating plants! From Venus flytraps to cobra lilies, the weird world of carnivorous plants is remarkable. The existence of carnivorous plants was not even suspected by scientists until researchers climbed Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia in 1858. There they found an incredible plant that grew leaves formed into the shape of a pitcher with a strange liquid at its bottom. When biologists studied these pitcher plants, they were astounded to find a partially digested rat in one of them. The discovery triggered a sensation. Most European scientists flatly disbelieved the story. A few years later, a world-renowned researcher carried out a study confirming the reality of flesh-eating plants. Now they have identified almost 700 species of carnivorous plants across the globe.
A Womb for the Soul
Imagine twin brothers in their mother's womb. How natural it would seem to be hunched over with one's head between one legs. How commonplace to float all day in fluid. How mundane not use one's nose or mouth, but rather to have air and food sent down a tube that passes directly into the stomach by way of the navel. And how long the "lifetime" of the nine-month gestation period. How unimaginable the existence of a world extending beyond the walls of the womb. Imagine that the two brothers possessed different world outlooks. One accepted by way of tradition that there was a future life beyond the womb. The other was a strict "empiricist," who accepted only that which he could see with his five senses. Accordingly, the latter brother acknowledged only the existence of "this world" alone, the world of the womb. Now, let us imagine that we had the ability to listen in on their conversation.
The Blind Man Who Climbed Everest
2019 has already been one of the deadliest years for those hoping to reach the top of the world. The ascent of Mount Everest presents
Sabotaging Hitler’s A-Bomb
2019 has already been one of the deadliest years for those hoping to reach the top of the world. The ascent of Mount Everest presents some incredible challenges, where the difference between life and death is negotiated one step at a time. That makes it all the more remarkable that one particularly brave climber attempted to do something no one had done before – to be the first blind person ever to reach the summit of Mount Everest. This is his inspiring story. Mount Everest is the highest point on Earth at 29,035 feet. Few have ever made it to the summit and about 300 people have lost their lives trying. But in 2001, one man, Erik Weihenmayer, tried to do something no one had ever dared try – become the first blind person to climb Mount Everest.
Me, Myself and I: Ethics of the Fathers 1:14
Hillel is widely recognized as one of the wisest people who ever lived. This Mishna is arguably his most famous aphorism. The first clause of the aphorism roughly translates: "If I am not for myself, who will be for me?"1 The phrase distinguishes between two selves - "I" (ani in Hebrew) and "me" (li). It implies that somehow we can have a self called "I" and a self-called "me." The "I" self is the deepest self. It is our personalized facet of the Divine image. By contrast, the "me" is the persona we develop during life. Elements of the "me" originate from others, from society - from that which is outside "I." The biblical paradigm for successfully wrestling with this identity crisis is Abraham.
A Whale of a Tale
Rashi says the tananim hagedolim (Bereishis 1:21) are the great sea creatures, whales. The Ramban says that these creatures are so unique that they were a special creation (signified by the word bara). By any measure, whales are an especially thought-provoking example of nifla’os haBorei. A sperm whale lies stranded on a beach, close to death. Looking at him now, it is hard to imagine what an extraordinary life he’s led. This is the largest predator the world has ever seen. Adult sperm whales can grow to 60 tons (120,000 pounds or more) and up to 60 feet, although some have been estimated to be 100 feet (such as the one that destroyed a whaling ship in the 1800s and became the basis for the legendary white whale, Moby Dick, of Herman Melville fame). By the end of its life, a sperm whale will have traveled far enough to circumnavigate the globe 40 times! That’s over half a million miles.
Meat-Eating Plants
Plants seem like passive creatures of fate – stuck in the ground, blowing in the wind, soaking in sunlight and serving as food for the insect and animal worlds. It comes as a shock to discover that not only are they eaten, but they also eat. Yes, we’re talking about flesh-eating plants! From Venus flytraps to cobra lilies, the weird world of carnivorous plants is remarkable. The existence of carnivorous plants was not even suspected by scientists until researchers climbed Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia in 1858. There they found an incredible plant that grew leaves formed into the shape of a pitcher with a strange liquid at its bottom. When biologists studied these pitcher plants, they were astounded to find a partially digested rat in one of them. The discovery triggered a sensation. Most European scientists flatly disbelieved the story. A few years later, a world-renowned researcher carried out a study confirming the reality of flesh-eating plants. Now they have identified almost 700 species of carnivorous plants across the globe.
A Womb for the Soul
Imagine twin brothers in their mother's womb. How natural it would seem to be hunched over with one's head between one legs. How commonplace to float all day in fluid. How mundane not use one's nose or mouth, but rather to have air and food sent down a tube that passes directly into the stomach by way of the navel. And how long the "lifetime" of the nine-month gestation period. How unimaginable the existence of a world extending beyond the walls of the womb. Imagine that the two brothers possessed different world outlooks. One accepted by way of tradition that there was a future life beyond the womb. The other was a strict "empiricist," who accepted only that which he could see with his five senses. Accordingly, the latter brother acknowledged only the existence of "this world" alone, the world of the womb. Now, let us imagine that we had the ability to listen in on their conversation.
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Videos
Mindflex- Evidence For The Jewish View of The...
Project Inspire’s mission is to empower committed Jews to take responsibility to create a vibrant and unified Jewish people…
The Hidden Hand: The Battle of Stalingrad ...
My father’s heartfelt eulogy beautifully captures his life, legacy, and values. Watch this touching tribute on Torah Anytime here.
Life After Death
In 2003, my first book Soul Searching was published. It set out to compare ancient Jewish teachings about the afterlife with modern scientific research into near-death experiences (NDE’s) and reincarnation, and tried to show how time and again the two seemed to be talking about the same reality.
General Audience Books
Check out my blog, “A Taste of Wein,” for class excerpts before and after sessions.
Jewish History
One of the great projects I was merited worked on was the JewishHistory.org website for Rabbi Berel Wein’s organization, The Destiny Foundation.
The JewishHistory.org website is based on a series of lectures Rabbi Wein, zt”l, delivered in the late 80’s under the general title, “Travels in Jewish History.” They quickly became a classic and touched all types of Jews from the very uninformed to the most scholarly.