David Luria (1798–1855) was a rabbi, commentator, and linguist, one of the greatest

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

scholars in his generation. He authored commentaries on 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 ...

and Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer.

Biography

He was born to a wealthy family in

Bykhov Bykhaw or Bykhov (, ; ; ; ; ) is a town in Mogilev Region, Belarus. It is located south of Mogilev, and serves as the administrative center of Bykhaw District. In 2009, its population was 17,031. As of 2024, it has a population of 16,349. Histo ...

in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

(now in eastern

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

). His family was descended from

Solomon Luria Shlomo Luria (1510 – November 7, 1573) () was one of the great Ashkenazic ''poskim'' (decisors of Jewish law) and teachers of his time. He is known for his work of Halakha, ''Yam Shel Shlomo'', and his Talmudic commentary ''Chochmat Shlomo''. L ...

(''Maharshal''), which claimed descent from

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki (; ; ; 13 July 1105) was a French rabbi who authored comprehensive commentaries on the Talmud and Hebrew Bible. He is commonly known by the List of rabbis known by acronyms, Rabbinic acronym Rashi (). Born in Troyes, Rashi stud ...

and thence to

King David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Damas ...

. At age 12 he moved to study in

Vilna Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, in connection with an

arranged marriage Arranged marriage is a type of Marriage, marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures, a professional matchmaki ...

which he entered at age 13. At age 18 he returned to Bykhov and contributed to the establishment of a

yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...

there.Daat – Encyclopedia Yehudit
David Luria, Radal
/ref> He was known for his great memory, which allowed him to compose works including comparisons of various textual variants of the

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 Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

and

midrashic ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot' ...

works. At age 40 he fell victim to a libel. Letters from him, and passages in his commentary to Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer, were forged indicating a supposed call to rebellion against the Russian Empire. He was jailed for six months in the

Shlisselburg Shlisselburg (, ; ; ; ), formerly Oreshek (Орешек) (1323–1611) and Petrokrepost (Петрокрепость) (1944–1992), is a town in Kirovsky District, Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located at the head of the Neva River on Lake Ladoga, ...

prison, after which his name was cleared. The motivation for the libel is speculated to be a dispute between various families in Bykhov. He was considered one of the leaders of Eastern European Jewry in the era following the

Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman''), also known as the Vilna Gaon ( ''Der Vilner Goen''; ; or Elijah of Vilna, or by his Hebrew acronym Gr"a ("Gaon Rabbenu Eliyahu": "Our great teacher Elijah"; Sialiec, April 23, 172 ...

, and had extensive involvement in public affairs. In 1846, he met

Moses Montefiore Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, (24 October 1784 – 28 July 1885) was a British financier and banker, activist, Philanthropy, philanthropist and Sheriffs of the City of London, Sheriff of London. Born to an History ...

with the intent of informing him of the situation of Russian Jews at the time. He also denounced

Reform Jews Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its ethical aspects to its ceremonial ones, and belief in a continuous rev ...

of the period for changing certain parts of the prayer service.

Works

* Glosses to the

Mishna The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

;

; the

's commentary to ''Seder Zeraim'' of the Jerusalem Talmud; the ''

Sheiltot She'iltot of Rav Achai Gaon, also known as Sheiltot de-Rav Ahai, or simply She'iltot (), is a rabbinic halakhic work composed in the 8th century by Ahai of Shabha (variants: Aḥa of Shabha; Acha of Shabcha), during the geonic period. ''She'ilto ...

'' of Ahai Gaon; and the

gaonic ''Geonim'' (; ; also transliterated Gaonim, singular Gaon) were the presidents of the two great Babylonian Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita, in the Abbasid Caliphate. They were generally accepted as the spiritual leaders of the Jewish c ...

responsa compilation ''Shaarei Teshuva'' * Commentaries on ''Seder Moed'' of the Jerusalem Talmud;

Tosefta The Tosefta ( "supplement, addition") is a compilation of Jewish Oral Law from the late second century, the period of the Mishnah and the Jewish sages known as the '' Tannaim''. Background Jewish teachings of the Tannaitic period were cha ...

tractate Uktzin; Pirkei De-Rabbi Eliezer; Midrash Shmuel; Pesikta deRav Kahana; Midrash Rabbah; Megillat Esther * ''Nefesh David'' * ''Kochavei Or'' * Responsa
/ref>

References

Bibliography

* ''Encyclopedia Ivrit'', 21:558 * Yonah Frenkel, ''Midrash VaAgadah'', Open University, 3:922–923 1798 births 1855 deaths 19th-century rabbis from the Russian Empire Authors of books on Jewish law People from Bykhovsky Uyezd {{Judaism-bio-stub