Aryeh Löb ben Mordecai Ha-Levi Epstein (''Ba'al ha-Pardes'') (1708 – June 26, 1775) was a

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

born in

Grodno Grodno, or Hrodna, is a city in western Belarus. It is one of the oldest cities in Belarus. The city is located on the Neman, Neman River, from Minsk, about from the Belarus–Poland border, border with Poland, and from the Belarus–Lithua ...

. At first he refused to become a rabbi, preferring to devote himself entirely to study, but in 1739 he was forced by poverty to accept the rabbinate of Brestovech,

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

, and in 1745 he became rabbi of

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

, where he remained until his death. He corresponded with Elijah, Gaon of Vilna, and with

Jonathan Eybeschütz Jonathan Eybeschutz or Eybeshitz (; 1690–1764) was a Talmudist, halakhist, and kabbalist holding positions first as Dayan of Prague and later as rabbi of the "Three Communities": Altona, Hamburg, and Wandsbek. He is well known for his confl ...

, with whom he sided in the quarrel about amulets (see Emden-Eybeschütz Controversy). He is the author of ''Or ha-Shanim,'' on the

613 commandments According to Jewish tradition, the Torah contains 613 commandments (). Although the number 613 is mentioned in the Talmud, its real significance increased in later medieval rabbinic literature, including many works listing or arranged by the . Th ...

( Frankfurt-on-the-Oder, 1754), ''Halakah Aḥaronah'' and ''Ḳunṭres ha-Ra'yot'' (ib. 1754; Königsberg, 1759), ''Sefer ha-Pardes,'' in three parts: (1) on the ''

Shema ''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; , “Hear, O Israel”) is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewish prayer services. Its first verse encapsulates the monothe ...

'' and the observance of

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; , , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the seven-day week, week—i.e., Friday prayer, Friday–Saturday. On this day, religious Jews ...

, (2) sermons, (3) funeral orations (ib. 1759). Several other

Kabbalistic Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal (). Jewi ...

and

halachic ''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is based on biblical commandments ('' mitz ...

works from his pen are mentioned in his own works or by his biographer. A prayer which he composed on the occasion of the dedication of a new synagogue in Königsberg (ib. 1756) is found in the

Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley, it is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second-largest library in ...

. Annotations by him and by his son

Abraham Meïr Epstein Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the covenantal relationship between the Jewish people and God; ...

are published in some of the later editions of the

Babylonian Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewi ...

. He is called " Levin Marcus" in Solowicz's ''Gesch. der Juden in Königsberg,'' Posen, 1857.

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

* Epstein, ''Geburot Ari'',

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, 1870; *

Joseph Zedner Joseph Zedner (10 February 1804 – 10 October 1871) was a German Jewish bibliographer and librarian. After completing his education, he acted as teacher in the Jewish school in Strelitz (Mecklenburg), where the lexicographer Daniel Sanders w ...

, ''Cat. Hebr. Books Brit. Mus.'' p. 241; * Friedenstein, ''Ir Gibborim'', pp. 44, 47, Vilna, 1880;

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Epstein, Arje-Lejb 18th-century Polish rabbis 1708 births 1775 deaths People from Grodno