Mar bar Rav Ashi () (d. 468) was a

Babylon Babylon ( ) was an ancient city located on the lower Euphrates river in southern Mesopotamia, within modern-day Hillah, Iraq, about south of modern-day Baghdad. Babylon functioned as the main cultural and political centre of the Akkadian-s ...

ian rabbi who lived in the 5th century (seventh 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 would sign his name as Tavyomi (or ''Tabyomi'', ), which was either his first name or his nickname.

Biography

According to

Abraham ibn Daud Abraham ibn Daud (; ) was a Spanish-Jewish astronomer, historian and philosopher; born in Córdoba, Spain about 1110; who was said to have been killed for his religious beliefs in Toledo, Spain, about 1180. He is sometimes known by the abbrevia ...

, he received his personal name (Tavyomi) due to the "good days" (Aramaic: ''tav''=good, ''yomei''=days) which prevailed during his lifetime. However, this tradition is difficult to understand, since the beginning of his official activity was marked by the bitter religious persecution by

Yazdegerd II Yazdegerd II (also spelled Yazdgerd and Yazdgird; ), was the Sasanian King of Kings () of Iran from 438 to 457. He was the successor and son of Bahram V (). His reign was marked by wars against the Eastern Roman Empire in the west and the Kidari ...

. That king died in 457; and his death was ascribed in part to Tavyomi's prayer. The name he is usually known by, Mar bar Rav Ashi, translates to "Master, son of Rav Ashi", as he was the son of

Rav Ashi Rav Ashi () ("Rabbi Ashi") (352–427) was a Babylonian Jewish rabbi, of the sixth generation of amoraim. He reestablished the Academy at Sura and was the first editor of the Babylonian Talmud. The original pronunciation of his name may h ...

. He achieved a reputation for scholarship even during Rav Ashi's lifetime. There is an allusion to his marriage, which took place in his father's house. He was not elected director of the

Sura Academy Sura Academy () was a Jewish yeshiva located in Sura in what is now southern Iraq, a region known in Jewish texts as "Babylonia". With Pumbedita Academy, it was one of the two major Jewish academies from the year 225 CE at the beginning of the ...

until 455 (ד'רט"ו,

Hebrew calendar The Hebrew calendar (), also called the Jewish calendar, is a lunisolar calendar used today for Jewish religious observance and as an official calendar of Israel. It determines the dates of Jewish holidays and other rituals, such as '' yahrze ...

), 28 years after his father's death, when he was chosen under the extraordinary circumstances as described in the Talmud. He held this position until his death, on the 11th of

Tishrei Tishrei () or Tishri (; ''tīšrē'' or ''tīšrī''; from Akkadian ''tašrītu'' "beginning", from ''šurrû'' "to begin") is the first month of the civil year (which starts on 1 Tishrei) and the seventh month of the ecclesiastical year (wh ...

, Motzei (the day after)

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

, 468. He continued his father's work in revising 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 ...

; according to

, he and

Maremar Maremar (Hebrew: מרימר) was a Babylonian rabbi, of the sixth generation of amoraim (late 4th-early 5th centuries). Biography He was close to Mar Zutra. They constructed synagogues together, would both give sermons following the shacharit pra ...

were its final redactors. Few details are known of his official activity. He once issued a ruling about the

kashrut (also or , ) is a set of Food and drink prohibitions, dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to halakha, Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed ko ...

practices of the

exilarchs The exilarch was the leader of the Jewish community in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) during the era of the Parthians, Sasanians and Abbasid Caliphate up until the Mongol invasion of Baghdad in 1258, with intermittent gaps due to ongoing politi ...

. He recused himself from judging Torah scholars, saying: "I love every scholar as myself; and no one can pronounce impartial judgment on himself". The anecdote which relates how he forced a demon into submission is typical of the views both of him and of his time. His authority in halakhah is shown by a rule (probably of saboraic origin) appearing in ''Seder Tanna'im veAmora'im,'' that with two exceptions, decisions are always rendered according to his views.Compare

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 ...

Sanhedrin 29b No aggadic sayings of his have been preserved.

References

Talmud rabbis of Babylonia Rabbis of Academy of Sura {{MEast-rabbi-stub