Eleazar ben Shammua or Eleazar I (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

: אלעזר בן שמוע) was a

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 ...

of the 2nd century (4th generation of

tannaim ''Tannaim'' ( Amoraic Hebrew: תנאים "repeaters", "teachers", singular ''tanna'' , borrowed from Aramaic) were the rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 10–220 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also refe ...

), frequently cited in rabbinic writings as simply Rabbi Eleazar (Bavli) or Rabbi Lazar רִבִּי לָֽעְזָר (Yerushalmi). He was of priestly descent and rich, and acquired great fame as a teacher of traditional law.

Biography

Eleazar ben Shammua was a student of

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 ...

, but was not ordained by him due to the

Hadrian Hadrian ( ; ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. Hadrian was born in Italica, close to modern Seville in Spain, an Italic peoples, Italic settlement in Hispania Baetica; his branch of the Aelia gens, Aelia '' ...

ic persecution. After Akiva's death, however,

Judah ben Bava Judah ben Bava was a rabbi in the 2nd century who semikha, ordained a number of rabbis at a time when the Roman government forbade this ceremony. The penalty was execution for the ordainer and the new rabbis. Rabbi Judah ben Bava was killed by Had ...

ordained Eleazar, together with

Rabbi Meir Rabbi Meir () was a Jewish sage who lived in the time of the Mishnah. He was one of the Tannaim of the fourth generation (139–163), and a disciple of Rabbi Akiva. He is the second most frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah and is mentioned ...

Jose ben Halafta Jose ben Helpetha, commonly known as Jose ben Halafta () was a tanna of the fourth generation (2nd century CE). He is the fifth-most-frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah. Yose Ben Halafta is the one of two rabbis called Rabbi Yose in the Tal ...

Judah bar Ilai Judah beRabbi Ilai (Mishnaic Hebrew: יהודה בר' אלעאי), usually known as Rabbi Judah or Judah bar Ilai, was a rabbi of the 2nd century (fourth generation of Tannaim), and a disciple of Rabbi Akiva. Of the many Judahs in the Talmud, he ...

, and

Shimon bar Yochai Shimon bar Yochai ( Zoharic Aramaic: , ''Šimʿon bar Yoḥay'') or Shimon ben Yochai (Mishnaic Hebrew: ), also known by the acronym Rashbi, was a 2nd-century tanna or sage of the period of Roman Judaea and early Syria Palaestina. He was one ...

, at a secluded spot between Usha and

Shefa-Amr Shefa-Amr or Shefar'am (; ) is an Arab citizens of Israel, Arab city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. In it had a population of with a Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslim majority and large Arab Christians, Christian Arab an ...

. The ordainer was detected in the act and brutally slain, but the ordained escaped, and eventually became the custodians and disseminators of Jewish tradition. Mention is made of a controversy between Eleazar and Rabbi Meir at Ardiska. He also maintained halakhic discussions with Judah bar Ilai and

, and quite frequently with Shimon bar Yoḥai; but he never appeared with them at the sessions of the

Sanhedrin The Sanhedrin (Hebrew and Middle Aramaic , a loanword from , 'assembly,' 'sitting together,' hence ' assembly' or 'council') was a Jewish legislative and judicial assembly of either 23 or 70 elders, existing at both a local and central level i ...

at Usha. Hence it may be assumed that he did not return to the scene of his ordination. Wherever he settled, he presided over an academy to which many students were attracted, including Joseph or Issi ha-Babli and

Judah ha-Nasi Judah ha-Nasi (, ''Yəhūḏā hanNāsīʾ‎''; Yehudah HaNasi or Judah the Prince or Judah the President) or Judah I, known simply as Rebbi or Rabbi, was a second-century rabbi (a tanna of the fifth generation) and chief redactor and editor of ...

. Thus, while his name does not appear in rabbinic lore as often as the names of his colleagues at the ordination, Eleazar had a significant influence on the development 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 ...

Abba Arikha Rav Abba bar Aybo (; 175–247 CE), commonly known as Abba Arikha () or simply as Rav (), was a Jewish amora of the 3rd century. He was born and lived in Kafri, Asoristan, in the Sasanian Empire. In Sura, Arikha established the systematic st ...

styles him "the most excellent among the sages", and

Johanan bar Nappaha :''See Johanan (name) for more rabbis by this name''. Johanan bar Nappaha ( Yoḥanan bar Nafḥa or Napaḥa), also known simply as Rabbi Yochanan or Johanan bar Nafcha (180–279 CE), was a leading rabbi and second-generation '' Amora'' duri ...

expresses unbounded admiration for his large-heartedness.

His nickname

The following story concerning Eleazar is twice told in the

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

: R. Eleazar visited a certain place where he was invited to lead the people in prayer, but he said he was unable to do so. "What!" cried the astonished people; "is this the celebrated R. Eleazar? Surely he deserves not to be called 'Rabbi'!" Eleazar's face colored with shame, and he returned to his teacher

. "Why are you so crestfallen?" inquired Akiva; whereupon Eleazar related his unpleasant experience. "Does my master wish to learn?" asked Akiva; and, on receiving Eleazar's affirmative answer, Akiva instructed him. Later, Eleazar again visited the scene of his embarrassment, and the people again requested that he lead them in prayer. This time he readily complied with their request, whereupon the people remarked, "R. Eleazar has become unmuzzled" (איטחסם, from חסם = "to muzzle"), and they called him "Eleazar Hasma". The protagonist of this story is Eleazar ben Shammua, and not (as is often assumed) Eleazar Ḥisma. The latter was never Akiva's pupil. Indeed, he was Akiva's senior, and in the account of a

halakhic ''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 ...

discussion between him and

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 Akiva, his name precedes that of Akiva. In contrast, Eleazar ben Shammua was an acknowledged disciple of Akiva, and the Midrashim explicitly state that he "went to Akiva, his teacher."

Teachings

His disciples once requested that he tell them how he merited unusual longevity, when he replied, "I have never converted the

Synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

into a passageway or the sake of convenience have never trodden over the heads of the holy people .e., come late to college and stepped between the rows of attentive students; compare Abdan], and have never pronounced the priestly blessing before offering the benediction preceding it." When asked what merits will save man from the tribulations which are to precede the Messianic epoch, he replied, "Let him engage in the study of the

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

and in deeds of benevolence." According to Eleazar, children as well as pious adults share in the glory of God. He also taught that the world rests on a single pillar, the name of which is Righteousness, as the Bible says, "The righteous is the foundation of the world".

Quotes

*"Let the honor of your student be as dear to you as that of your colleague; that of your colleague, as the reverence of your master; and the reverence of your master, as that of the Most High." *Even a fox, if it is his hour, bow down before him!

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eleazar Ben Shammua Mishnah rabbis Jewish martyrs