Judah haNasi

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As patriarch (Nasi) and head of the Sanhedrin, Judah wielded almost unlimited authority. He reserved for himself the right to appoint judges and teachers throughout the land. Much of his legislative activity was devoted to the application of the laws of the Sabbatical Year and of the levitical Tithes; both weighed heavily on the overwhelmingly agricultural community, plagued as it was by extortionate taxes imposed by the Roman administration and natural disasters like famine.

Judah's authority was strengthened by his great wealth. He was able to increase the large tracts of land, hereditary in his family, which he farmed intensively, producing corn, wine, and vegetables; he also bred cattle, manufactured wool and linen, and exported and imported commodities in his own ships. Managing his wide-ranging affairs personally, he combined learning, wealth, and political power.

As the effective leader and spokesman of the Jewish community, Judah was recognized as such by the Roman authorities. The intimate relationship between them is reflected in the numerous accounts about the friendship between "Rabbi Judah" and the Roman ruler "Antoninus," which constitute one of the great riddles of talmudic and midrashic literature. Not only is there no certainty as to which member of the Antonine dynasty they refer to, but the Rabbi mentioned may be Judah I or his grandson Judah II. The tales describe personal meetings, correspondence, joint business ventures, and even conviviality between these two representative figures.

Judah assured his historic importance in the field of Torah learning and the preservation and ordering of the vast store of traditions through his Mishnah. There had been previous attempts at arranging the Oral Law and its teachings, the latest having been made in the school of R. Akiva and his pupils. Now Judah made a supreme effort, in cooperation with the leading teachers of his time, each of whom contributed his own store of tradition to compile what was to become the authoritative canon of the Law, containing not only law but also theology, ethics, and historical recollections. The material was classified and organized andthere was much editing and cutting, though the excluded materials were collected by Judah's colleagues and pupils into parallel collections such as the Tosefta (Addenda), or were scattered in the form of beraitot (external Mishnah material). The Mishnah formed the foundation on which the monumental Talmuds, the Jerusalem and the Babylonian, were built.

Judah's opinions are quoted innumerable times, not only in his own Mishnah but in the rest of halakhic literature, in the name of Rabbi, "The Master," for short. No less numerous are his aggadic sayings, usually based on the interpretation of biblical verses. The themes of his Aggadah include the dualism of the good and the evil inclination in man, of the body and the soul, of this world and the hereafter, of the relative importance of the Righteous and the World.

Judah's deep religiosity found expression in a number of prayers, some of which have been received into the daily liturgy, such as the prayer for protection against arrogance, against bad company, and against a hard law case or litigant (Jewish or gentile) (Ber. 16b). His personality was most complex. Though posterity praised his humility (Sot. 9:15), he could be extremely authoritarian as patriarch and head of the Academy. He was very touchy when the dignity of his office was in question and displayed jealousy towards his rival, the Exilarch in Babylon, who had stronger claims than he to Davidic descent (TJ, Kil. 9:4, 32b). For the last 17 years of his life he lived in Sepphoris. In his last will he appointed his son Gamaliel to succeed him in the patriarchate. In his dying hour he lifted both his hands to Heaven, swearing that he had labored in the study of Torah with all his strength but had not benefited from it even with his little finger. Judah was laid to rest in the necropolis of Bet She'arim.

"Rebbi" redirects here. For the title, see Honorifics in Judaism.

Roman province of Judea.

Rabbi Judah haNasi, (Hebrew: יהודה הנשיא‎, pronounced Yehuda haNasi, "Judah the Prince"), also known as Rebbi and Rabbeinu HaKadosh (Hebrew: רבינו הקדוש‎, "Our Holy Rabbi"), was a key leader of the Jewish community of Judea toward the end of the 2nd century CE, during the occupation by the Roman Empire. He is best known as the chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He was of the Davidic line, the royal line of King David, hence the title nasi, meaning prince^[1]; the title nasi was also used for presidents of the Sanhedrin.^[2]

Contents 1 Biography 2 Compiler of the Mishna 3 Talmudic legends 4 References 5 See also

Biography

The Galilee in late antiquity

Judah haNasi was born in 135. According to the Midrash, he came into the world on the same day that Rabbi Akiva died a martyr's death.^[3] The Talmud suggests that this was a result of Divine Providence: God had granted the Jewish people another leader of great stature to succeed Rabbi Akiva. His place of birth is unknown; nor is it recorded where his father, Shimon ben Gamliel II, sought refuge with his family during the persecutions under Hadrian.

On the restoration of order in the Land of Israel, Usha became the seat of the academy and Judah spent his youth there. His father presumably gave him the same education that he himself had received, including Greek language.^[4] This knowledge of Greek enabled him to become the Jews' intermediary with the Roman authorities. He favored Greek as the language of the country over Syriac (Aramaic).^[5] It is said that in Judah's house, only Hebrew was spoken, and even the maids spoke it.^[6]

According to the Talmud (Avodah Zarah 10a-b), Judah haNasi was very wealthy and greatly revered in Rome. He had a close friendship with "Antoninus", possibly the Emperor Antoninus Pius,^[7] who would consult Judah on various worldly and spiritual matters.

The Talmud records the tradition that Judah haNasi was buried in the necropolis of Beit She'arim, in the Lower Galilee.^[8]

Compiler of the Mishna

Rabbinical Eras
Zugot Tannaim Amoraim Savoraim Geonim Rishonim Acharonim

According to Jewish tradition, God gave both the Written Law (Torah) and the Oral Law (additional laws and customs meant to be passed down from teacher to student) to Moses on Mount Sinai. For centuries, only the Torah appeared as a written text. Fearing that the oral traditions might be forgotten, Judah HaNasi undertook the mission of compiling them in what became known as the Mishna. The Mishna consists of 63 tractates codifying Jewish law, which are the basis of the Talmud.

Talmudic legends

Various stories are told about Judah haNasi to illustrate different aspects of his character. One of them begins by telling of a calf breaking free from being led to slaughter. According to the story, the calf tries to hide under Judah haNasi's robes, bellowing with terror, but he pushes the animal away, saying: "Go — for this purpose you were created." For this, Heaven inflicted upon him kidney stones, painful flatulence, and other gastric problems, saying, "Since he showed no pity, let us bring suffering upon him".

The story remarks that when Judah haNasi prayed for relief, the prayers were ignored, just as he had ignored the pleas of the calf. Nevertheless, it goes on to describe him subsequently preventing his maid from violently expelling baby weasels from his house, on the basis that "It is written: 'His Mercy is upon all his works.'" For this, Heaven removes the gastric problems from him, saying, "Since he has shown compassion, let us be compassionate with him".

Rabbi Judah HaNasi also said, "One who is ignorant of the Torah should not eat flesh" — possibly as a result of these experiences.

Before the passing Rabbeinu HaKadosh said: ‘I need my sons!… Let the lamp continue to burn in its usual place; let the table be set in its usual place; let the bed be made in its usual place.” (Kesubbos/Ketubot 103a)

Sefer Chassidim Sec. 1129. (Cf. Kesubbos/Ketubot 103a.) records that after his passing Rabbeinu HaKadosh used to visit his home, wearing Shabbos (Shabat) clothes, every Friday evening at dusk. He would recite Kiddush, and others would thereby discharge their obligation to hear Kiddush. One Friday night there was a knock at the door. "Sorry," said the maid, "I can't let you in just now because Rabbeinu HaKadosh is in the middle of kiddush." From then on Rabbeinu HaKadosh stopped coming, since he did not want his coming to become public knowledge.

References

1. ^ Talmud Yerushalmi, quoted in Tosafos, Sanhedrin 5a.
2. ^ Mishna Chagiga 2:2.
3. ^ Midrash Genesis Rabbah 53; Midrash Eccl. Rabbah 1:10.
4. ^ Sotah 49b.
5. ^ ibid.
6. ^ Megillah 18a; Rosh Hashana 26b; Naz. 3a; 'Er. 53a.
7. ^ A. Mischcon, Abodah Zara, p.10a Soncino, 1988. Mischcon cites various sources, "SJ Rappaport... is of the opinion that our Antoninus is Antoninus Pius." Other opinions cited suggest "Antoninus" was Caracalla, Lucius Verus or Alexander Severus.
8. ^ Babylonian Talmud (Talmud Bavli), Tractate Bava Metzia 85a, Tractate Pesachim 49b; Jerusalem Talmud, Tractate Kelaim 9, 32a-b.

Preceded by Shimon ben Gamliel II

Nasi 165 (Est.) - 220

Succeeded by Gamaliel III

Rabbis of the Mishnah : Chronology & Hierarchy v • d • e

Teacher→Student             Father→Son                                                                                                                       Hillel   Shammai                                                                                       Gamaliel the Elder               Johanan b. Zakai                                                                                                 R. Gamaliel   Jose the Galilean   Eliezer b. Hyrcanus   Joshua b. Hananiah   Eleazar b. Arach   Eleazar b. Azariah                                                                         Elisha b. Abuyah       Akiva   Ishmael b. Elisha   Tarfon                                                                                         Nathan   Meir   Judah b. Ilai   Jose b. Halafta   Shimon b. Yohai                                                                                             Judah haNasi   Hiyya   Oshiah

See also

• Talmud
• Mishna
• Tannaim
• Amoraim

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