Eleazar Chisma (Ḥisma; , ''"Eleazar Chasma''", or אלעזר בן חסמא, "''Eleazar ben Chasma''") was a tanna (sage) of the second and third generations (2nd century). He was a disciple of

Joshua ben Hananiah Joshua ben Hananiah ( ''Yəhōšūaʿ ben Ḥănanyā''; d. 131 CE), also known as Rabbi Yehoshua, was a leading tanna of the first half-century following the destruction of the Second Temple. He is the eighth-most-frequently mentioned sage in t ...

and

Gamaliel II Rabban Gamaliel II (also spelled Gamliel; ; before –) was a rabbi from the second generation of tannaim. He was the first person to lead the Sanhedrin as '' nasi'' after the fall of the Second Temple in 70 CE. He was the son of Shimon ben G ...

Etymology

He is sometimes referred to as "Eleazar Chisma" and sometimes as "Eleazar ben Chisma"; however, the insertion of the word "ben" seems justifiable.Jewish Encyclopedia
ELEAZAR (ELIEZER) B. HISMA
/ref> "Ḥisma" is not an adjectival

cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; : ''cognomina''; from ''co-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditar ...

(like the similar nickname acquired by

Eleazar ben Shammua Eleazar ben Shammua or Eleazar I (Hebrew: אלעזר בן שמוע) was a rabbi of the 2nd century (4th generation of tannaim), frequently cited in rabbinic writings as simply Rabbi Eleazar (Bavli) or Rabbi Lazar רִבִּי לָֽעְזָר (Y ...

), but an indication of location, the place probably being

Hizma Hizma () is a Palestinian town in the Jerusalem Governorate, seven kilometers from Jerusalem's Old City. The town, mostly located in Area C of the West Bank, borders four Israeli settlements, Neve Yaakov and Pisgat Ze'ev (both officially consi ...

; hence "ben Ḥisma" means "son of "native of"Ḥisma".

Teachings

Several ''

halakhot ''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 (''mitzv ...

'' are preserved under Eleazar's name in the

Mishnah 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 ...

. He takes part in halakhic disputes with

Eleazar ben Azariah Eleazar ben Azariah () was a 1st-century CE Jewish tanna, i.e. Mishnaic sage. He was of the second generation and a junior contemporary of Gamaliel II, Eliezer b. Hyrcanus, Joshua b. Hananiah, and Akiva. Biography He was a kohen who traced ...

and

Rabbi Akiva Akiva ben Joseph (Mishnaic Hebrew: ; – 28 September 135 CE), also known as Rabbi Akiva (), was a leading Jewish scholar and sage, a '' tanna'' of the latter part of the first century and the beginning of the second. Rabbi Akiva was a leadin ...

and with

Eliezer ben Jacob I Eliezer ben Jacob I (Hebrew: אליעזר בן יעקב) was a Tanna of the 1st century; contemporary of Eleazar Chisma and Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, and senior to Judah ben Ilai. Of his personal history nothing is known, except that he had seen th ...

. To him is ascribed the economic rule that the employee is not entitled to a proportion of his employer's produce greater than the amount of his wages. Some ''

aggadot Aggadah (, or ; ; 'tales', 'legend', 'lore') is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, particularly the Talmud and Midrash. In general, Aggadah is a compendium of rabbinic texts that incorporat ...

'' also are ascribed to him. Together with Rabbi Joshua, he gives an allegorical reason for why

Amalek Amalek (; ) is described in the Hebrew Bible as the enemy of the nation of the Israelites. The name "Amalek" can refer to the descendants of Amalek, the grandson of Esau, or anyone who lived in their territories in Canaan, or North African descend ...

's attack on Israel occurred when it did. Citing

Job Work, labor (labour in Commonwealth English), occupation or job is the intentional activity people perform to support the needs and desires of themselves, other people, or organizations. In the context of economics, work can be seen as the huma ...

8:11, "Can a rush grow up without mire? Can the flag grow without water?" he remarks, "Even so is it impossible for Israel to flourish without the Law; and since they had neglected the Law, an enemy was ordered out to war against them." Elsewhere, he cites

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "Yahweh is salvation"; also known as Isaias or Esaias from ) was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. The text of the Book of Isaiah refers to Isaiah as "the prophet" ...

43:22, "But thou hast not called on me, O Jacob," and applies it to those who are not devout in their prayers, but communicate with their neighbors by sign language while reciting 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 ...

Scientific knowledge

Not only was Chizma possessed of wide rabbinic learning, but he was also an adept in the sciences. Joshua, introducing him and

Johanan ben Nuri Rabbi Yochanan ben Nuri (Hebrew: יוחנן בן נורי) was a '' tanna'' of the 1st and 2nd centuries. Biography He initially studied under the watch of Rabban Gamliel of Yavne and senior of Rabbi Akiva, and later took up residence in Beit Sh ...

to the notice of Patriarch

, remarked of them that they could approximately calculate the number of drops contained in the ocean. As they were very poor, Gamaliel appointed them to remunerative offices in the academy. Probably it was here—because the academicians sought from him instruction in secular science—that Eleazar remarked, "The laws concerning birds' nests and those concerning the incipient uncleanness of women are elements of the Law, while astronomy and geometry are only condiments of wisdom".

Pirkei Avot Pirkei Avot (; also transliterated as ''Pirqei Avoth'' or ''Pirkei Avos'' or ''Pirke Aboth'', also ''Abhoth''), which translates into English as Chapters of the Fathers, is a compilation of the ethical teachings and maxims from Rabbinic Jewis ...

3:18;

Avot of Rabbi Natan Avot of Rabbi Natan, also known as Avot de-Rabbi Nathan (ARN) (), the first and longest of the minor tractates of the Talmud, is a Jewish aggadic work probably compiled in the geonic era (c.700–900 CE). It is a commentary on an early form of the ...

27:2

References

It has the following bibliography: *Bacher, Ag. Tan. i. 374; * Brüll, Mebo a-Mishnah, i. 149; *Frankel, Darke a-Mishnah, p. 134; *Geiger, Schriften, iv. 343; *Heilprin, Seder a-Dorot, ii., s.v.; *Weiss, Dor, ii. 122; *Zacuto, Yuḥasin, ed. Filipowski, p. 41b. {{Tannaim Mishnah rabbis 2nd-century mathematicians 2nd-century rabbis