Rav Safra (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

: רב ספרא; around 280-338) was a

Babylonian Babylonian may refer to: * Babylon, a Semitic Akkadian city/state of ancient Mesopotamia founded in 1894 BC * Babylonia, an ancient Akkadian-speaking Semitic nation-state and cultural region based in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq) ...

rabbi, of the fourth generation of amoraim.

Biography

Safra studied under R. Abba,

Babylonian Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) 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 cen ...

Pesahim Pesachim ( he, פְּסָחִים, lit. "Paschal lambs" or "Passovers"), also spelled Pesahim, is the third tractate of '' Seder Moed'' ("Order of Festivals") of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. The tractate discusses the topics related to the Jew ...

51b then went abroad with two colleagues, R. Kahana and R. Huna the son of R. Ika. He debated

halakha ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical comm ...

with

Abaye Abaye ( he, אַבַּיֵי) was a rabbi of the Jewish Talmud who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the fourth generation. He was born about the close of the third century, and died 337 CE. Biography His father, Kaylil, was the brother o ...

and

Rava Rava may refer to: Biographical * Bishnu Prasad Rabha, multifaceted artist and revolutionary singer of Assam * Abba ben Joseph bar Ḥama (born 280), a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, always known by the honorific name ''Raba,'' ''Rava, ...

, and was probably a disciple of Rava, who would sometimes impose various tasks upon him. He had a brother named Dimi. He engaged in trading, and in his business would go in dangerous places. One of his business partners was Issur Giora (Issur the proselyte), father of Rav Mari bar Rachel, and the son-in-law of

Samuel of Nehardea Samuel of Nehardea or Samuel bar Abba, often simply called Samuel (Hebrew: שמואל) and occasionally Mar Samuel, was a Jewish Amora of the first generation; son of Abba bar Abba and head of the Yeshiva at Nehardea, Babylonia. He was a teache ...

. However, Safra was sufficiently dedicated to his Torah studies that he would only engage in business to the minimal extent necessary to support himself, and not even to support other people such as his brothers. He was known for his honesty. Once a buyer offered a certain price for Safra's merchandise. Safra mentally agreed to the price, but was unable to answer immediately as he was reciting the

shema ''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; he , שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Šəmaʿ Yīsrāʾēl'', "Hear, O Israel") is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewi ...

. The seller took this as a rejection, and offered a higher bid. However, when Safra was able to answer, he insisted on taking the price first offered. He would take care to perform some of the cooking for Shabbat, even though this could have been done by other members of his household. Rav Safra was single most or all of his life.

113a

External links

SAFRA
Jewish Virtual Library; Article

References

{{authority control Talmud rabbis of Babylonia