Rav Hamnuna Saba (Hamnuna the Elder) was a Babylonian rabbi (second generation of

amoraim ''Amoraim'' ( , singular ''Amora'' ; "those who say" or "those who speak over the people", or "spokesmen") refers to Jewish scholars of the period from about 200 to 500 CE, who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral Torah. They were p ...

). He was one of several amoraim named

Hamnuna Hamnuna (Hebrew: המנונא) is the name of several rabbis from the period of the Talmud, among them: * Hamnuna Saba ("the elder"). Second generation Babylonian amora (mid third century CE). A pupil of Rav. After Rav, he became the head of t ...

. He is not to be confused with the Rav Hamnuna Saba mentioned in the

Zohar The ''Zohar'' (, ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work of Kabbalistic literature. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material o ...

, who is said to have been a tanna.

Biography

His primary teacher was

Rav ''Rav'' (or ''Rab'', Modern Hebrew: ) is the Hebrew generic term for a person who teaches Torah or is a Jewish spiritual guide or a rabbi. For example, Pirkei Avot (in the Talmud) states (1:6) that: The term ''rav'' is also Hebrew for ''rabbi ...

, but he also learned from Rav

Adda bar Ahavah Adda bar Ahavah or Adda bar Ahabah (רב אדא בר אהבה) is the name of two Jewish rabbis and Talmudic scholars, known as Amoraim, who lived in Lower Mesopotamia, a region known in Jewish texts as "Babylonia". The amora of the second gene ...

and Rav Yitzchak bar Ashian Once Rav's students ate together on Friday afternoon, and asked Rav Hamnuna Saba to tell them when

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 ...

began so that they could remove the table and reset it for the Shabbat meal. Rav Hamnuna Saba replied that this was unnecessary, since according to Rav one must only recite

kiddush Kiddush (; ), , is a blessing recited over wine or grape juice to sanctify the Shabbat and Jewish holidays. Additionally, the word refers to a small repast held on Shabbat or festival mornings after the prayer services and before the meal. S ...

and then may continue with the meal as a Shabbat meal. According to tradition, he is buried in a cave just south of Meron, at the road bend.קבר רב המנונא סבא
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References

{{amoraim Babylonian people