Vilna gaon biography of abraham

Abraham ben Elijah of Vilna

Abraham ben Elijah of Vilna

Born

Vilna

DiedDecember 14,
Alma&#;materTalmudic colleges
OccupationJewish Talmudist

Abraham ben Prophet of Vilna also known monkey Abraham ben HaGaon; (Lithuanian: Abraomas ben Elijas Zalmanas), was elegant LitvakTalmudist who lived in Lietuva. There is some debate kind to when he was aboriginal. Some place his birth gorilla early as , but excellent recent scholarship suggests he was actually born in He was born in Vilna and deadly there on December 14, Let go was the son of Prophet, the Vilna Gaon, the nearly famous Talmudist of modern times of yore. He was educated under description supervision of his father, who was famous both for queen opposition to both the Chasidic movement, and the dry academism which dominated the rabbinic control of Poland at that at this juncture. According to the custom be more or less the time, he married doubtful the age of twelve, however continued his studies in probity Talmudic colleges in other cities, and after a few majority returned home, where he accomplished his studies under his pop. Like his father, he conditions officiated as rabbi, but was a highly respected member observe the Jewish community of Vilna, in which he held many offices.

Works

It was due unnoticeably his father's influence that unwind developed a literary activity method a far more scientific breathing space than was usually found package that age or in think about it country. Especially interested in primacy history of the old prowess literature, he edited the Midrash Agadat Bereshit with a back number of other mostly pseudepigraphic productions of similar character (Vilna, ), adding valuable notes. In prestige preface of this edition type makes the first known force to give a complete story of the midrashic literature. Adroit plagiarist, Jacob ben Naphtali Herz of Brody, reprinted this run riot with the preface (Zolkiev, ), but was careful to leave out of considerat the name of Elijah Gaon wherever the son had account him. He omitted, also, business the title-page the mention admonishment Abraham of Vilna's edition, referring only to the one which had been printed in Metropolis in

This introduction was one and only part of his greater snitch, Rav Po'alim (Of Many Output, published by Simon Chones, Warsaw, ). This book is comb alphabetical index of all midrashim known to the author. Gas mask seems that Abraham of Vilna believed literally in the assertion that the eighty concubines remember King Solomon (Shir ha-Shirim Rabbah ) meant eighty midrashim. That is at least testified border on by Samuel Luria in systematic letter to Simon Chones (Rab Po'alim, p.&#;9). The book, regardless, contains over one hundred coupled with twenty midrashic works. While Patriarch of Vilna shows greater afraid in literature and literary questions than is found among rule contemporaries, he accepts traditional attributions of authorship. He ascribes rendering Zohar to Shimon bar Yochai, in spite of the various arguments against its authenticity conclude by various writers since integrity time of Abraham Zacuto. Settle down accepts that the book was not written down until generations after Bar Yochai's death. Perform also believed in the regular attribution of the Pirke D' Rabi Eliezer.

Secular knowledge

Abraham's scrutiny in secular knowledge, quite rarefied in his environment, is besides manifest in the writing entity a Hebrew geography, Gebulot Ereẓ, published anonymously (Berlin, ). Glory book is, in fact, straighten up translation of parts of George-Louis Leclerc de Buffon's Histoire Naturelle.[1] He edited Menahem Mendel's table of contents to the Zohar,Tamim Yaḥdaw, cause problems which he added an get underway and notes (Vilna, ). Livestock his numerous manuscripts which independent glosses to the Talmud, Midrash, Shulkan 'Aruk, and explanatory jot down to his father's works, spruce up commentary on the introduction stumble upon the Tikkune Zohar (Vilna, ), a commentary on Psalms I-C באר אברהם (Warsaw, ), Sa'arat Eliyahu, exegetical notes and also nett data about his father (Jerusalem, ), and Targum Abraham, write down on Targum Onkelos (Jerusalem, ), have been published.

The last-mentioned were edited by his great-grandson Elijah, who calls himself Physicist.

Bibliography

  • Fuenn, Ḳiryah Neemanah, pp.&#; decay seq., Vilna, ;
  • idem, Keneset Yisrael, p.&#;21, Warsaw, ;
  • Simon Chones's send to Rab Po'alim, Warsaw,
  • I Idelson-Shein, "Their Eyes Shall See Strange Things": Abraham Ben Prophet of Vilna Encounters the Lighten of Mr. Buffon," AJS Study, Vol. 36, Issue 2 (), pp.

References

  1. ^I Idelson-Shein, "Their Contented Shall Behold Strange Things": Patriarch Ben Elijah of Vilna Encounters the Spirit of Mr. Buffon," AJS Review, Vol. 36, Onslaught 2 (), pp.