leading authority on halakha. Like his brother-in-law Kanievsky, Karelitz "held no official position but nevertheless became a recognized worldwide authority on many matters relating to Jewish law and life." He declined to participate in any of the religious-political movements which were very active prior to, and during, the formation of the State of Israel in 1948. Yet, he had an immense influence on Haredi Judaism in Israel, whose formative period coincided with his years in Israel. He maintained an anti-Zionist viewpoint and begrudgingly accepted the existence of the Israeli state. In recognition of his deep insight and interest in many fields of study, many sought his guidance on social and political issues. David Ben-Gurion, the prime minister of Israel, and Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, who became the second president of Israel, visited him once to discuss political-religious issues. Karelitz cited one of a pair of metaphors from the Talmudic discussion (Sanhedrin 32b): one is about two camels which meet on a narrow mountain pass as a metaphor. A camel without goods was expected to defer to a camel laden with goods; similarly, Karelitz contended secular society should defer to religious society, which bore the "goods" of tradition. Chazon Ish etrog There is a variety of Balady citron in his name, which he certified for use as an etrog for the four species. After one Sukkot, Karelitz handed Michel Yehuda Lefkowitz a packet of seeds taken from the etrog he had used for the festival and instructed him to plant them in his yard. Lefkowitz, who had no agricultural experience, followed his mentor's instructions to plant and water it, and the tree grew and bore fruit. Every year Karelitz came to select his etrog for the holiday from the tree, as did his brother-in-law, Kanievsky, and other senior rabbis. Lefkowitz also allowed etrog growers to take cuttings from the tree to grow entire orchards of etrogim certified as kosher by Karelitz. Halachic and philosophical positions He believed that a halachic position taken by the Shulchan Aruch could not be reversed based on the new discovery of manuscripts of which the Shulchan Aruchs author was presumably unaware. This position is sometimes misunderstood to mean that no evidence from manuscripts may be used in the halachic process. Published works In 1911, he published his first work on Orach Chayim and other parts of the Shulchan Aruch in Vilna, anonymously under the title Chazon Ish, meaning