Raba bar Rav Huna

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Raba bar Rav Huna was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the third generation (died 322). He was the son of Rav Huna, the head of the Academy of Sura. [1]

Talmud Holy Book of Rabbinic Judaism.

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 Jewish cultural life and was foundational to "all Jewish thought and aspirations", serving also as "the guide for the daily life" of Jews.

Babylonia Ancient Akkadian region in Mesopotamia

Babylonia was an ancient Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in central-southern Mesopotamia. A small Amorite-ruled state emerged in 1894 BC, which contained the minor administrative town of Babylon. It was merely a small provincial town during the Akkadian Empire but greatly expanded during the reign of Hammurabi in the first half of the 18th century BC and became a major capital city. During the reign of Hammurabi and afterwards, Babylonia was called "the country of Akkad", a deliberate archaism in reference to the previous glory of the Akkadian Empire.

Amoraim refers to the Jewish scholars of the period from about 200 to 500 CE, who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral Torah. They were concentrated in Babylonia and the Land of Israel. Their legal discussions and debates were eventually codified in the Gemara. The Amoraim followed the Tannaim in the sequence of ancient Jewish scholars. The Tannaim were direct transmitters of uncodified oral tradition; the Amoraim expounded upon and clarified the oral law after its initial codification.

Contents

In the Talmudic Academy

He was a man of true piety [2] and genuine modesty, [3] and was urged by his father to attend Rav Chisda's lectures diligently and to profit by his acumen. At first, however, Rabbah held aloof because matters were discussed which did not appeal to his earnest nature. [4] But later he became closely associated with Rav Chisda, and was appointed judge under him; [5] subsequently the two treated of aggadic subjects together. [6]

Piety virtue

In spiritual terminology, piety is a virtue which may include religious devotion, spirituality, or a mixture of both. A common element in most conceptions of piety is humility.

Rav Chisda was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Kafri, Babylonia, near what is now the city of Najaf, Iraq. He was an amora of the third generation, mentioned frequently in the Talmud.

After the death of Rav Chisda, Rabbah became the head of the Academy of Sura, though he apparently held this position without the approval of the exilarch. His general relations with the exilarchate were by no means friendly, and he declared himself independent of its authority. [7]

Exilarch

The Exilarch was the leader of the Jewish community in Babylon during the era of the Parthians, Sassanids and Abbasids up until the Mongol invasion of Baghdad in 1258, with intermitent gaps akin to political developments. The Exilarch was the equivalent of the Katholikos of the Christian Church of the East (Nestorian), and was thus responsible for community-specific organizational tasks such as running courts, collecting taxes, supervising and providing financing for the Talmudic Academies in Babylon, and the redistribution and financial assistance to needy members of the community. The position was hereditary in a family that traced its descent from the royal Davidic line.

Teachings

A number of his halakhic and aggadic teachings appear in the Talmud, including:

Halakha is the collective body of Jewish religious laws derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandments (mitzvot), subsequent Talmudic and rabbinic law, and the customs and traditions compiled in the many books such as the Shulchan Aruch. Halakha is often translated as "Jewish Law", although a more literal translation might be "the way to behave" or "the way of walking". The word derives from the root that means "to behave". Halakha guides not only religious practices and beliefs, but also numerous aspects of day-to-day life.

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Hiyya b. Abin Naggara was a Jewish Babylonian Amora sage of the fourth generation of the Amoraic era. He was the son of R. Abin Naggara, whose livelihood was a carpenter, and used to observe all the commandments related to lighting a candle. In that conjunction, it is storied that Rav Huna was accustomed frequently to pass the door of R. Abin the carpenter, and when seeing the observamce of Shabbat candles he remarked that "Two great men will issue hence", since it is stated that "He who habitually practises [the lighting of] the lamp will possess scholarly sons", and indeed he had Hiyya and Idi b. Abin Naggara.

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Rami b. Abba (or Rammi b. Abba II; Hebrew: (רמי בר אבא was a sixth generation Amora sage of Babylon. In the Talmud it is storied that he applied to Rav Papa and R. Huna b. Joshua with an Halakhaic question, concerning an Halachic ruling prohibiting one from pulling down a synagogue until he has built another to take its place. The question revolves about a new synagogue Rami b. Abba wanted to build to his fellow-townsmen, by taking bricks and beams from an old synagogue and use them for the new synagogue in a different location and without building a new synagogue in the old location. He was not sure whether he is allowed to pull down the old synagogue in case the whole purpose is to pull down the old synagogue in order to build a new one in a different location. Then he applied to R. Papa who forbade him, and so did R. Huna, who both were in the opinion that the Halachic ruling applies to this case as well, since they were concerned that the old synagogue will be pulled down without any new synagogue being built in its place.

Hananiah ben Akavia was a rabbi of the second century.

References

  1. ↑ Heilprin, "Seder ha-Dorot," ii. 167b
  2. 1 2 Shabbat 31a,b
  3. ↑ Mo'ed Katan 28a; compare Gittin 43a
  4. ↑ Shabbat 82a
  5. ↑ Shabbat 10a
  6. ↑ Pesachim 110a, 117a; Sotah 39a
  7. ↑ Sanhedrin 5a
  8. ↑ Ta'anit 7b
  9. ↑ Nedarim 22b

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Isidore Singer was an editor of The Jewish Encyclopedia and founder of the American League for the Rights of Man.

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