Hai Gaon was the head of the Talmudic Academy of Pumbedita during the era of the Abbasid Caliphate, where the modern city of Fallujah, Iraq is located. Pumbedita (sometimes Pumbeditha, Pumpedita, or Pumbedisa) was the name of a city in ancient Babylonia that was a major center of Talmud A caliphate (from the Arabic خلافة or khilāfa) is the political leadership of the Muslim community in classical and medieval Islamic history For other meanings see Fallujah (disambiguation. Fallujah (الفلوجة sometimes transliterated For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics.

Hai ben Sherira, better known as Hai Gaon, was a medieval Jewish theologian, rabbi and scholar who served as Gaon of the Talmudic academy of Pumbedita during the early 11th century. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ Rabbi (pronunciation, although in English usually) in Judaism, means a religious ‘teacher’ or more literally ‘my great one’ when addressing any master Gaon ('Pride ' Late medieval and modern Hebrew for 'genius' may refer to One of the Geonim, that is to say the heads of the two major academies at Pumbedita The Talmudic Academies in Babylonia, also known as the Geonic Academies were the center for Jewish scholarship and the development of Jewish law in Pumbedita (sometimes Pumbeditha, Pumpedita, or Pumbedisa) was the name of a city in ancient Babylonia that was a major center of Talmud He was born in 939 and died on March 28, 1038. He received his Talmudic education from his father, Sherira ben Hanina, and in early life acted as his assistant in teaching. The Talmud ( Hebrew: he תַּלְמוּד is a record of Rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history Rav Sherira Gaon ( Hebrew: רב שרירא גאון) was the head of the Yeshiva in Pumbeditha. ^[1] In his forty-fourth year he became associated with his father as "ab bet din," and with him delivered many joint decisions.

Appointment as Gaon

As a consequence of the calumnies of their antagonists Hai and his father were imprisoned together, and their property was confiscated, by the caliph al-Qadir in 997. The Caliph is the Head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the leader of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah Al-Qadir (القادر (died 1031 was the Abbasid Caliph in Baghdad from 991 to 1031 ^[2] The imprisonment was brief, but shortly thereafter (in 998) the aged and infirm Sherira appointed his son to the position of gaon. Hai's installation was greeted with great enthusiasm by the Jewish population. An old tradition^[3] says that on the Sabbath after Sherira's death, at the end of the reading of the weekly lesson, the passage^[4] in which Moses asks for an able follower was read in honor of Hai. Thereupon, as haftarah, the story of Solomon's accession to the throne was read,^[5] the last verse being modified as follows: "And Hai sat on the throne of Sherira his father, and his government was firmly established. The haftarah or haftorah (also haphtara) ( Hebrew: הפטרה ‎ plural haftarot or haftorahs; "parting" King Solomon ( Ge'ez: ስለሞን Arabic: ar سليمان, Sulayman, all from the Triliteral root S-L-M, "peace" " Hai remained gaon until his death in 1038. ^[6]. He was celebrated by the Spanish poet Solomon ibn Gabirol and by Samuel ha-Nagid. Solomon ibn Gabirol, also Solomon ben Judah ( שלמה בן יהודה אבן גבירול, Shelomo ben Yehuda ibn Gevirol; أبو أيوب سليمان Samuel ibn Naghrela (שמואל הלוי בן יוסף הנגיד Sh'muel HaLevi ben Yosef HaNagid; أبو إسحاق إسماعيل بن النغريلة Abu Ishaq Isma'il ^[7]

Responsa

Hai ben Sherira's chief claim to recognition rests on his numerous responsa, in which he gives decisions affecting the social and religious life of the Diaspora. Responsa ( Latin: plural of responsum, "answers" comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by Legal scholars in response to questions The term Diaspora (in Greek, διασπορά &ndash " a scattering or sowing of seeds " refers any population sharing common ethnic Questions reached him from Germany, France, Spain, Anatolia, the Maghreb, and even India and Ethiopia. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black The Maghreb (المغرب العربي al-Maġrib al-ʿArabī) also rendered Maghrib (or rarely Moghreb) meaning "place of Sunset India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country NOTE This intro is the result of careful NPOV work Please do not make potentially controversial edits to it without first discussing on the talk page ^[8] His responsa, more than eight hundred in number, deal with the civil law, especially the laws concerning women, with ritual, holidays, etc. Many of them contain explanations of certain halakhot, aggadot, and Talmudic matters. Halakha ( הלכה; alternative transliterations include Halocho and Halacha) is the collective body of Jewish Religious law Aggadah ( Aramaic אגדה tales lore pl Aggadot or (Ashkenazi Aggados) refers to the homiletic and non-legalistic exegetical In halakhic decisions he quotes the Jerusalem Talmud, but without ascribing any authority to it. The Jerusalem Talmud or Talmud Yerushalmi (תַּלְמוּד יְרוּשָׁלְמִי often the Yerushalmi for short is a collection ^[9] Many of his responsa may have been written in Arabic; only a few of them have been preserved. Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language ^[10]

Legal Treatises

Hai ben Sherira codified various branches of Talmudic law. He wrote in Arabic a treatise on purchases, translated into Hebrew by Isaac Albargeloni with the title Ha-Meqah weha-Mimkar (1078); Sefer ha-Mashkon, a treatise on mortgage, anonymously translated into Hebrew; Mishpete ha-Tanna'im, a treatise on conditions, also anonymously translated into Hebrew. Isaac ben Reuben Albargeloni (born 1043 was a Spanish Talmudist and liturgical poet born in Barcelona. A mortgage is the pledging of a property to a Lender as a security for a Mortgage loan. These three treatises were published together (Venice, 1604); later editions also contain commentaries by Eleazar ben Aryeh (Vienna, 1800) and by Hananiah Isaac Michael Aryeh (Salonica, 1814). Another anonymous translation of them exists in manuscript under the title "Dine Mamonot. " According to Azulai, Hai also wrote in Arabic Sha'are Shebu'ot, a treatise on oaths. An oath (from Anglo-Saxon āð, also called plight) is either a Promise or a Statement of Fact calling According to another Hebrew source, the original title was Kitab al-Aiman. This treatise was twice anonymously translated into Hebrew: (1) Mishpeṭe Shebu'ot (Venice, 1602; Altona, 1782); (2) Sefer Mehubbar be-Kotzer Min ha-Dinim be-Bi'ur Kelalim we-'liqarim be-Helqe Hiyyub la-Shebu'ah^[11] The Sha'are Shebu'ot were metrically arranged by an anonymous writer, probably of the thirteenth century, under the title Sha'are Dine Mamonot we-Sha'are Shebu'ot, and by Levi ben Jacob Alkalai. Hai's treatise on boundary litigations, "Metzranut," is known only through quotations. ^[12] Hilkot Tefillin, Siddur Tefillah and Metibot are also quoted as his ^[13]

Commentaries on the Mishnah

Hai ben Sherira's philological abilities were directed to the expounding of the Mishnah; of this work only the portion on Seder Tohorot is extant; it was published by T. Tefillin, ( תפילין) also called phylacteries, are a pair of black leather boxes containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with biblical verses Jewish services ( Hebrew: תפלה, tefillah; plural תפלות, tefillos or tefillot; Yinglish: davening See Comparative linguistics for the narrower field of "comparative philology" The Mishnah or Mishna (he משנה "repetition" from the verb shanah he שנה or "to study and review" is a major work of Rabbinic Judaism Rosenberg in "Qobetz Ma'aseh" (Berlin, 1856). This commentary contains especially interesting linguistic notes, Arabic and Aramaic being often adduced for comparison. Aramaic is a Semitic language with The author quotes the Mishnah, the two Talmuds, the Tosefta, the Sifra, Targums Onkelos and Jonathan, the Septuagint, the works of Saadia Gaon, the Sifre Refu'ah, and other anonymous sources. The Tosefta ( Aramaic: תוספתא is a secondary compilation of the Jewish oral law from the period of the Mishnah. Sifra ( Aramaic: סִפְרָא) is the Halakic midrash to Leviticus. A targum ( Hebrew: תרגום plural targumim, lit "translation interpretation" is an Aramaic Translation of the Hebrew Onkelos (אונקלוס is the name of a famous convert to Judaism in Talmudic times (c The Septuagint (ˈsɛptuədʒɪnt or simply " LXX " is the Koine Greek version of the Hebrew Bible, translated in stages between the He also quotes his own commentary on Zera'im (p. Seder Zeraim ( Hebrew: סדר זרעים, lit "Order of Seeds" is the first and shortest Seder ("Order" of the Mishnah, 34) and on Baba Batra (p. Bava Batra is the third of the three tractates in the Talmud in the order Nezikin; it deals with a person's responsibilities and rights as the owner of property 43). These quotations, and many others cited by the 'Aruk, prove that the commentary extended to the whole Mishnah, containing among other explanations historical and archeological notes. Some passages of the commentary are quoted by Alfasi and Hananeel on Yoma, and by Solomon ibn Adret in his Hiddushim. Shlomo ben Aderet ( Hebrew: שלמה בן אדרת) (or Solomon son of Aderet) (1235 — 1310 was a Medieval Rabbi, halakhist ^[14] while Abu al-Walid ibn Janah cites Hai's commentary to Shabbat frequently. Rabbi Jonah ibn Janah ( Hebrew: יונה אבן ג'נאח Arabic: أبو الوليد مروان بن جناح Abu-l-walīd Marwān ibn Janāh, Latin This is about part of the Talmud; for the Jewish day of rest see Shabbat. ^[15] It is uncertain whether Hai wrote commentaries in Arabic on the Bible as a whole or on parts of it. Abraham ibn Ezra, however, in his commentary on the Book of Job quotes several of his explanations. Abraham ben Meir ibn Ezra ( Hebrew: אברהם אבן עזרא or ראב"ע, also known as Abenezra) (1092 or 1093–1167 was one of the The Book of Job ( איוב) is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible.

Hai compiled also a dictionary of especially difficult words in the Bible, Targum, and Talmud, the Arabic title of which was al-Hawi. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin Abraham ibn Ezra translated this title, in his Moznayim, into "Ha-Me'assef," while Abu Bukrat's translation, Ha-Kolel, and Moses Botarel's translation, "Ha-Qemitzah," did not become popular. Moses Botarel was a Spanish scholar who lived in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries Fragments of this dictionary were discovered by Harkavy, and published by him in "Mitzpah" (St. Petersburg, 1886), in Hadashim Gam Yeshanim (No. 7), and in Mi-Mizrah umi-Ma'arab (1896, iii. 94 et seq. ); these show that the work was arranged according to an alphabetic-phonetic plan of three consonants in every group; for instance, s. v. it quotes the permutations . Judah ibn Balaam is the earliest Jewish author who expressly quotes this dictionary. ^[16] Moses ibn Ezra and some North African rabbis of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries also mention it. Rabbi Moses ben Jacob ibn Ezra, known as ha-Sallah ("writer of penitential prayers" ( משה בן יעקב הסלח אבן עזרא, أبو هارون ^[17]

The "Musar Haskel"

Of Hai's poetical writings few have been preserved, and even of these the genuineness is doubted. The didactic poem "Musar Haskel" is generally regarded as authentic, though Dukes expressed some doubts as to its genuineness, as old Jewish authors like al-Harizi and ibn Tibbon do not mention it;^[18] and Steinschneider also regarded it as of doubtful authenticity. Yehuda Alharizi, also Judah ben Solomon Harizi or al-Harizi ( יהודה בן שלמה אלחריזי, Yehudah ben Shelomo al-Harizi, يحيا Ibn Tibbon ( Heb אבן תבון) is a family of Jewish rabbis and translators that lived principally in Provence in the twelfth and ^[19] The first edition appeared about 1505 (see Fano); others were published in Constantinople (1531), in Paris (1559), and elsewhere. Constantinople (Κωνσταντινούπολις Konstantinoúpolis, or gr ἡ Πόλις hē Polis, Latin: la CONSTANTINOPOLIS Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city ^[20] The modern editions are as follows: Dukes, Ehrensäulen, p. 96; Grätz, Blumenlese, p. 27; Steinschneider, Musar Haskel, Berlin, 1860; Weiss, Liqquṭe Qadmonim, Warsaw, 1893; Philipp, Sämmtliche Gedichte des R. Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. Hai Gaon, Lemberg, 1881; a Latin translation by Jean Mercier, Cantica Eruditionis Intellectus Auctore per Celebri R. Lviv ( Ukrainian: Львів, L’viv, Lwów Lemberg Львов L'vov; see also other names) is a major city in western Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Jean Mercier, a Frenchman was known as the father of the bladder-type Hydraulic accumulator. Hai, Paris, 1561; another by Caspar Seidel, Carmen Morale ΣτροφορυΘμον Elegantissimum R. Chai, etc. , Leiptzig, 1638. The "Musar Haskel" consists of 189 double verses in the Arabic meter "rajaz," and it is said to have therefore received the title of "Arjuzah. " If it really belongs to Hai, he was, as far as is known, the first Eastern writer to use an Arabic meter in Hebrew poetry. Every strophe is complete in itself, and independent of the preceding strophe.

Some piyyutim are ascribed to him, as the piyyut beginning with the words "Shema' qoli," preserved in the Sephardic liturgy for the evening of Yom Kippur. See also Religious Jewish music A piyyut (plural piyyutim, Hebrew פיוט pijút and) is a Jewish liturgical poem usually designated Sephardi Jews ( Hebrew: ספרדי, Standard Səfardi Tiberian Səp̄arədî; plural Yom Kippur (יוֹם כִּפּוּר ˈjɔm kiˈpur also known in English as the Day of Atonement, is the most solemn and important of the Jewish holidays Its ^[21]

Many spurious writings have been ascribed to Hai, especially by later kabalists. Kabbalah (קַבָּלָה lit "receiving" is a discipline and school of thought discussing the mystical aspect of Judaism. Among them are a Sefer kol ha-Shem ba-Koah";^[22] Pitron Halomot, Ferrara, 1552; Sefer Refafot, ib. Ferrara is a city in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. ; Perush me-'Alenu; Teshubah, on the thirteen rules of R. Ishmael and on the Ten Sefirot; "A Letter to the Priests of Africa". Sephirot "enumerations" '''Sephiroth''' '''Sefiroth''' (סְפִירוֹת singular Sephirah also Sefirah (סְפִירָה "enumeration" in [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] ^[23] Some of the responsa attributed to him are mere forgeries. Forgery is the process of making adapting or imitating objects statistics or documents (see False document) with the intent to deceive. Others again were falsified or mutilated by later additions and interpolations, as, for instance, the one containing attacks upon Aristotle and his philosophy^[24]

Characteristics

Hai was not only a master of Hebrew lore, but was also familiar with the Quran and the Hadith, with Plato, Aristotle, Alfarabi, the grammarian al-Halil, the Septuagint, the Greek calendar,^[25] Greek history,^[26] and the Persian language translation of Kalilah wa-Dimnah. Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran Hadith ( ar الحديث, pl aḥadīth; lit. "narrative" are oral Traditions relating to the words and deeds of the Islamic Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. TemplateInfobox Muslim scholars --> Abū Nasr Muhammad ibn al-Farakh al-Fārābi ( Nastaliq:) or Abū Nasr al-Fārābi The Attic calendar is the Calendar that was in use in ancient Attica, the ancestral territory of the Athenian Polis. The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca The Panchatantra (also spelled Pañcatantra, in Sanskrit: पञ्चतन्त्र 'Five Principles' or Kalīleh o Demneh He did not hesitate to consult even the Catholicos of the Assyrian Christians in an exegetical difficulty over Psalms cxli. Catholicos (plural Catholicoi) is a title used by the Patriarch (head/regional head Bishop) of any of certain Eastern churches The Assyrians are an Ethnic group whose origins lie in what is today Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria. 5, as the Sicilian dayyan Matzliah ibn al-Basak relates in his biography of Hai. Sicily ( Italian and Sicilian: Sicilia) is an autonomous region of Italy. Mirza Asadullah-i-Khuy ( often referred to as Dayyán, was a Babi follower a religion founded by the Báb in Persia in the mid 1850s ^[27] Hai justified his action by saying that scholars in former times did not hesitate to receive explanations from those of other beliefs. He had an exact knowledge of the theological movements of his time, of which that of the orthodox Ash'ariyyah attracted him the most. Moses ibn Ezra, in his Poetik (fol. 1196), even called him a Mutakalam. Jewish Kalam was an early-medieval style of Jewish philosophy that evolved in response to the Islamic Kalam, which in turn was a reaction against Aristotelian philosophy He was also competent to argue with Muslim theologians, and sometimes adopted their polemical methods. A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion Polemics (pəˈlɛmɪks/ /poʊ- is the practice of disputing or controverting religious, philosophical, or political matters ^[28] Hai was orthodox as regards tradition, and upheld minhag to its fullest extent. Minhag ( Hebrew: מנהג "custom" pl minhagim) is an accepted tradition or group of traditions in Judaism. He established the principle that where the Talmud gives no decision traditional customs must be adhered to. ^[29] He even went so far as to recommend the observance of every custom not in direct opposition to law. ^[30] In many passages of his responsa he warns against deviating from a custom even when the meaning of its origin has been lost, as in the case of the practice of not drinking water during the Tekufot. Tekufot (singular tekufah, Hebrew: תקופות) are the four seasons of the year recognized by the Talmudical writers ^[31] But this did not prevent him from opposing the abuses common to his time. Thus he protested against the practice of declaring null and void all oaths and promises which may be made during the coming year,^[32] and against the refusal to grant an honorable burial to excommunicated persons and their connections^[33]

Hai's conservative standpoint explains the fact that in the study of esoteric sciences he detected a danger to the religious life and a deterrent to the study of the Law. Cherem (or Herem חרם is the highest ecclesiastical censure in the Jewish community He warned against the study of philosophy, even when pursued with the plea that it leads to a better knowledge of God. Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language

Of his own views on religious-philosophical subjects only those regarding the anthropomorphisms of the Bible (expressed in his appeal to a well-known dictum of R. Ishmael: "The Torah spoke in language of men") and one or two other subjects^[34] were known prior to the publication of ibn Balaam's commentary on the Book of Isaiah. The Book of Isaiah ( Hebrew: Sefer Y'sha'yah ספר ישעיה is a book of the Bible traditionally attributed to the Prophet Isaiah, who lived ^[35] A responsum of Hai given in this commentary discloses his opinion on the subjects of divine fore-knowledge and the predestined length of human life. The essence of divine prescience seems to consist, according to him, in a preknowledge of both hypothetical and actual occurrences. In this he shows the influence of Saadia. ^[36]

His attitude toward the Kabbalah is determined by his conservative standpoint. Kabbalah (קַבָּלָה lit "receiving" is a discipline and school of thought discussing the mystical aspect of Judaism. Its elements, as far as they can be traced back to the Talmud, he considered to be true. When the inhabitants of Fez made inquiries regarding the proportions of God,^[37] he answered, as one of the signers of the responsum, that God is above any corporeal qualification and that the Talmud forbids the public discussion of these things. ^[38] His answer to the question regarding the interpretation of the Talmudic tradition that four men entered paradise is interesting, and has caused much discussion. ^[39] He refers to the opinion of various scholars that specially favored persons could attain, by means of castigation and the reciting of psalms, to an ecstatic state in which they might behold the heavenly halls ("hekalot") as vividly as if they really had entered them. Heaven may refer to the physical heavens the sky or the seemingly endless expanse of the Universe beyond Contrary to his father-in-law, Samuel ibn Hofni, gaon of Sura, he followed former scholars in deeming it not impossible that God should reveal the marvels of heaven to the pious while in this state of ecstasy. Sura (sometimes spelt "Surah" ar سورة, plural "Suwar" ar سور is an Arabic term literally meaning "something enclosed or surrounded ^[40] But all the elements of the later Kabbalah not found in Talmudic tradition, as the belief that miracles could be performed with the names of God, he designated as foolishness not credited by any sensible man.

The best characterization of Hai is given by Steinschneider;^[41]: "Certain Kabbalistic pieces were ascribed to him; but in truth he was no mystic in the usual sense of the word. In fact he fought against superstition. He was an orthodox Jew, in possession of general culture, but hostile to deeper philosophical research. "

Legacy

Hai's students included Rabbeinu Chananel and Rav Nissim, the head of the academy at Kairouan. Chananel ben Chushiel or Hananel ben Hushiel (חננאל בן חושיאל was a Rabbi, Talmudist and a student of one of the last Geonim. Nissim Ben Jacob ( Rav Nissim Gaon, 990-1062 Hebrew: ניסים בן יעקב) was a Rabbi and Talmudist best known today for his Talmudic Kairouan ( Arabic القيروان (also known as Kirwan, Al Qayrawan) is a Muslim holy city which ranks after Mecca, Medina

Notes

References

• "Hai Ben Sherira". Jewish Encyclopedia. The Jewish Encyclopedia was an Encyclopedia originally published between 1901 and 1906 by Funk and Wagnalls. Funk and Wagnalls, 1901-1906; citing:

Bibliography: In addition to the works quoted above: Steinschneider, Die Arabische Literatur, § 57;

• Grätz, Gesch. v. 320, vi. 1 et seq. , note 2;
• Weiss, Dor, iv. 174 et seq. ;

• idem, Liqqute Qadmoniyyot, 1873, Introduction;
• idem, in Ha-Asif, iii. 151;

• Winter and Wünsche, Die Jüdische Litteratur, ii. 54 et seq. ;
• Schechter, Saadyana, p. 113;

• idem, Genizah MS. offprint from Festschrift zum 70 Geburtstage A. Berliners, pp. 2 et seq. ;
• idem, Studies in Judaism, pp. 94, 254, 255, 330, 421;

• Jewish Quarterly Review: xiii. Not to be confused with the Jewish Quarterly. The Jewish Quarterly Review ( JQR) is the oldest English-language journal of 52 et seq. E. C. M.

External links

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