Elisha Ben Abuyah (spelled variously, including Elisha ben Avuya) was a Jewish heretic born in Jerusalem sometime before 70. At one time the Rabbis were proud to recognize him as of their number; but later their opposition to him grew so intense that they even refrained from pronouncing his name, and referred to him in terms used to designate some vile object (dabar aher, literally "another thing"). The Jewish Encyclopedia (1901-1906) writes that "It is almost impossible to derive from rabbinical sources a clear picture of his personality, and modern historians have differed greatly in their estimate of him. According to Grätz, he was a Karpotian Gnostic; according to Siegfried, a follower of Philo; according to Dubsch, a Christian; according to Smolenskin and Weiss, a victim of the inquisitor Akiva." Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the ‘catholic’ or orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... Jerusalem (31°46′ N 35°14′ E; Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם Yerushalayim; Arabic: القدس al-Quds; see also names of Jerusalem) is the capital of Israel and an ancient Middle Eastern city of key importance to the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. ... For other uses, see number 70. ... brendan is gay ... The Jewish Encyclopedia was an encyclopedia originally published between 1901 and 1906 by Funk and Wagnalls. ... Gnosticism is a blanket term for various mostly mystical religions and sects most prominent in the first few centuries A.D. // General characteristics The word gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνῶσις), referring to the idea that there is special esoteric knowledge, a key to transcendent understanding, that... Philo (20 BCE - 40 CE) was an Hellenized Jewish philosopher born in Alexandria, Egypt. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life, teachings, death by crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ... Rabbi Akiva (or Rebbi Akiva) was a famous Jewish rabbi of the 2nd century. ...

In his recent book, The Sinner and the Amnesiac: The Rabbinic Invention of Elisha Ben Abuya and Eleazar Ben Arach, Alon Goshen-Gottstein argues that Rabbinic stories should be read as literature rather than as history:

They construct stories that are then integrated into larger ideologi­cally motivated literary units in such a way as to impart particular ideologi­cal messages. The sources do not necessarily relate the historical facts about the heroes but they do illustrate the cultural concerns that find expression in the stories told about them ... All this leads to the realization that the significant unit for presentation is not the life of the sage; it is the stories about sages. These stories are not formulated in an attempt to tell the life of the sage. They are told because the sage, as part of the collective culture, has some bearing on the common cultural concerns. Various anecdotes are coupled into a larger story cycle.

Rabbinic Judaism was based on vigorous and often contentious debates over the meaning of the Torah and other sacred texts. The challenge facing the Rabbis was to maintain the limits to which a sage could be wrong, without being considered a heretic. Elisha and Eleazar represent two extremes in attitudes towards the Torah; actual rabbis and their debates had to occur somewhere in between these two limits. Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the...

Youth and Activity

Little is known of Elisha's youth and of his activity as a teacher of Jewish Law. He was the son of an esteemed and rich citizen of Jerusalem, and was trained for the career of a scholar. The only saying of his recorded in the Mishnah is his praise of education: "Learning in youth is like writing upon new paper, but learning in old age is like writing upon paper which has already been used" (Pirkei Avoth 4:25). Elisha was a student of Greek; as the Talmud expresses it, "Aher's tongue was never tired of singing Greek songs" (Jerusalem Megillah 1:9), which, according to some, caused his apostasy (Hagigah 16b, below). Bacher remarks that the similes which Elisha is reported to have used (Avoth d'Rabbi Nathan 24.) show that he was a man of the world, acquainted with wine, horses, and architecture. He must have acquired a reputation as an authority in questions of religious practise, since in Mo'ed Katan 20a one of his halakic decisions is recorded: the only one in his name, though there may be others under the names of different teachers. The Babylonian Talmud asserts that Elisha, while a teacher in the bet ha-midrash, kept heretical books (sifre minim) hidden in his clothes. This statement is not found in the Jerusalem Talmud, and if at all historical, may possibly mean that he also studied the writings of the Sadducees, who, owing to changes made by the censors, are sometimes called minim. The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, Repetition) is a major source of rabbinic Judaisms religious texts. ... Pirkei Avoth (Hebrew: Chapters of the Fathers, פרקי אבות ) or simply Avoth is a tractate of the Mishna composed of ethical maxims of the Rabbis of the Mishnaic period. ... The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... Apostasy (Greek απο, apo, away, apart, στασις, stasis, standing) is the formal renunciation of ones religion. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... Simile is an Italian musical term meaning similarly; it indicates that the performer should continue to apply the preceding directive, whatever it was. ... A glass of red wine Wine display at the Mt Markey Winery This article is about the beverage. ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The Horse (Equus caballus) is a sizeable ungulate mammal, one of the seven modern species of the genus Equus. ... Architecture (in Greek αρχή = first and τέχνη = craftsmanship) is the art and science of designing buildings and structures. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... Halakha (הלכה or Halakhah, Halacha, Halachah) is the collective corpus of Jewish rabbinic law, custom and tradition. ... The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ... The Jerusalem Talmud (In Hebrew Talmud Yerushalmi, in short known as the Yerushalmi), also known as the Palestinian Talmud, (not related to current Palestinian issues at all!), was written in the Land of Israel at the same time of the writing of the the Babylonian Talmud, (which is known as... The sect of the Sadducees (or Zadokites and other variants) - which may have originated as a Political Party - was founded in the 2nd century BC and ceased to exist sometime after the 1st century AD. Their rivals, the Pharisees, are said to have originated in the same time period, but...

The Four Who Entered Paradise

The oldest and most striking reference to the views of Elisha is found in the following baraita (Hagigah 14b; Jerusalem Talmud 2:1): Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... The Jerusalem Talmud (In Hebrew Talmud Yerushalmi, in short known as the Yerushalmi), also known as the Palestinian Talmud, (not related to current Palestinian issues at all!), was written in the Land of Israel at the same time of the writing of the the Babylonian Talmud, (which is known as...

"Four [sages] entered "pardes" —Ben 'Azzai, Ben Zoma, Aher, and Akiva. Ben 'Azzai gazed and died; Ben Zoma gazed and went insane; Aher entered and cut the root (became an apostate); Akiva entered, and exited in peace." Elisha Ben Abuyah (spelled variously, including Elisha ben Avuya) was a Jewish heretic born in Jerusalem sometime before 70. ... Rabbi Akiva (or Rebbi Akiva) is one of the most central and essential contributors to the early Oral Torah, mainly the Mishnah and the Midrash Halakha. ...

This baraita works through a pun. "Pardes," composed of the four consonants PRDS, is an acronym for the four rules for Biblical exegesis:

• "Peshat" = "simple;" the plain meaning of the text in its immediate context, understanding each word in terms of its common usage. According to Shabbat 63a, a verse never loses its simple meaning.
• "Remez" = "hint;" generalizing the meaning of a verse, so that it functions metaphorically or allegorically.
• "Drash" = "conceptual;" a more detailed exposition or interpretation of the peshat or remez (often by juxtaposing different verses to elicit new meanings), often to make a moral point.
• "Sud" = "hidden;" an esoteric or mystical reading of the text.

Thus, this baraita could be read to mean that these four sages together sought to achieve an absolute, perfect understanding of the Torah in all its complexity, on all its levels. Some kabbalists see these four methods as stages through which a mystic can use Biblical interpretation to fathom the depths of reality until one has a direct encounter with the divine truth. Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... The tree of life. ...

"Pardes" is also the Hebrew word for paradise. According to the Jewish Encyclopedia the journey of "the four," like the ascension of Enoch (in the pre-Christian books of Enoch) and of so many other pious men, is to be taken literally and not allegorically. "Entered the Garden of Eden" (another term for paradise) was a common expression (Derek Erez Zuta i.; Avoth d'Rabbi Nathan 25.) designating moment of ecstasy in which the sage beholds the interior of heaven. In the case of Elisha ben Abuya, however, the consequence of this experience was that he destroyed the plants of the heavenly garden. Look up Paradise in Wiktionary, the free dictionary The word paradise itself comes from the Persian word of pardees, paradeisos (same word latinized), and firdows (same word arabicized). ... In the Book of Genesis, Enoch or Hanoch (חֲנוֹךְ Initiated; dedicated; disciplined, Standard Hebrew Ḥanoḫ, Tiberian Hebrew Ḥănôḵ) is a name shared by two individuals named in the Genealogies of Genesis and subsequent Jewish, Christian, and Islamic writers. ... The Book of Enoch is a pseudepigraphal apocryphal work attributed to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah. ... This article is about the Biblical location. ... Ecstasy, from the Greek ekstasis, to be outside oneself, is a category of trance or trancelike states in which an individual transcends ordinary consciousness and as a result has a heightened capacity for exceptional thought or experience. ... The heavens are the sky, the celestial sphere, or outer space. ...

The Talmud gives two different interpretations of this last phrase. The Babylonian Talmud says:

"What is the meaning of 'Aher cut the root'? Scripture refers to him (Ecclesiastes 5:5, Avodah Zarah 6) when it says: "Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin." What does this signify? In heaven Aher saw Metatron seated while he wrote down the merits of Israel. Whereupon Aher said: 'We have been taught to believe that no one sits in heaven, . . . or are there perhaps two supreme powers?' Then a heavenly voice was heard: 'Turn, O backsliding children (Jeremiah 3:14), with the exception of Aher.'" Ecclesiastes, Kohelet in Hebrew, is a book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Avodah Zarah (meaning idolatry - lit. ... An early Christian portrayal of Metatron Metatron (alternate spelling: Metraton, sometimes referred to as the latin Metator) is the name of an angel in Judaism and some branches of Christianity. ... The Book of Jeremiah, or Jeremiah (יִרְמְיָהוּ Yirmiyahu in Hebrew), is a book that is part of the Hebrew Bible, Judaisms Tanakh, and later became a part of Christianitys Old Testament. ...

According to R. Tsadok HaKohen of Lublin, ben Abuya became a heretic because after having had a direct encounter with God, he believed he no longer needed to obey the law (this story may thus be a rebuke to Christian claims that grace relieves one of the obligation to obey the law).

The Talmudic Explanation

The dualism with which the Talmud charges him has led some scholars to see here Persian, Gnostic, or even Philonian dualism. The Jewish Encyclopedia says that "They forget that the reference here to Metatron—a specifically Babylonian idea, which would probably be unknown to Palestinian rabbis even five hundred years after Elisha—robs the passage of all historical worth. The story is of late origin, as is seen from the introductory words, which stand in no connection with the context, as they do in the parallel passage in the Jerusalem Talmud." However, the Jewish Encyclopedia's claim fails to account for the activity of sages who would regularly travel between Palestine and Babylonia to collect and transmit scholarly teachings. Furthermore, it should be noted that the concept of Metatron has been dated by some to no later than the second century CE, well before the redaction of the Babylonian Talmud [1]. The first page of the Talmud, in the standard Vilna edition. ... Persia and Persian can refer to: the Western name for Iran. ... Babylon Confusion is a later name given to the city of Babel. ... The Jerusalem Talmud (In Hebrew Talmud Yerushalmi, in short known as the Yerushalmi), also known as the Palestinian Talmud, (not related to current Palestinian issues at all!), was written in the Land of Israel at the same time of the writing of the the Babylonian Talmud, (which is known as... Palestine (Latin: Syria Palæstina; Hebrew: פלשתינה Palestina, ארץ־ישראל Eretz Yisrael; Arabic: فلسطين Filasṭīn) is the region between the Mediterranean Sea and the banks of the Jordan River, plus various adjoining lands to the east. ... Babylonia was an ancient state in Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... (1st century - 2nd century - 3rd century - other centuries) Events Roman Empire governed by the Five Good Emperors (96–180) – Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius. ...

This latter makes no mention of Elisha's dualism; but it relates that in the critical period following the rebellion of Bar Kokba, Elisha visited the schools and attempted to entice the students from the study of the Torah, in order to direct their energies to some more practical occupation; and it is to him, therefore, that the verse "Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin" (Ecclesiastes 5:5) is to be applied. In connection with this the Biblical quotation is quite intelligible, as according to another haggadah (Shabbat 34b; Ecclesiates Rabbah 5:5) "flesh" here means children—spiritual children, pupils—whom Elisha killed with his mouth by luring them from the study of the Torah. The Babylonian amoraim must have known this story, from which they took the concluding part and attached it to another legend. Simon bar Kokhba was a Jewish military leader who led Bar Kokhbas revolt against the Romans in 132 CE, establishing an independent state of Israel which he ruled for three years as Nasi (prince, or president). His state was conquered by the Romans in 135 CE following a two... Torah, (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or especially law. It primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or the Five Books of Moses, but can also be used in the general sense to also include both the... Ecclesiastes, Kohelet in Hebrew, is a book of the Hebrew Bible, known to Jews as the Tanakh and to Christians as the Old Testament. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... Midrash (pl. ...

The Jerusalem Talmud is also the authority for the statement that Elisha played the part of an informer during the Hadrianic persecutions, when the Jews were ordered to violate the laws of the Torah. As evidence of this it is related that when the Jews were ordered to do work on the Sabbath, they tried to perform it in a way which could be considered as not profaning the Sabbath. But Elisha betrayed the Pharisees to the Roman authorities. Thus, writes the Jewish Encyclopedia, it is probable that the antipathy of Elisha was not directed against Judaism in general, but only against Pharisaism. The reason given for his apostasy is also characteristic. He saw how one man had lost his life while fulfilling a law for the observance of which the Torah promised a long life (Deuteronomy 22:7), whereas another man who broke the same law was not hurt in the least. This practical demonstration, as well as the frightful sufferings of the martyrs during the Hadrianic persecutions, strengthened his conviction that there was no reward for virtue in this life or the next. These statements of the Jerusalem Talmud are no doubt based on reliable tradition, as they are also confirmed by the Babylonian Talmud (Kiddushin 39b). Bearing in mind what is said about Elisha, there can be little doubt that he was a Sadducee. Emperor Hadrian Publius Aelius Traianus Hadrianus (January 24, 76 - July 10, 138), known as Hadrian in English, was Roman emperor from 117 - 138, and member of the gens Aelia. ... For the observance of a seventh day of rest in religions other than Judaism see Sabbath. ... The Pharisees (from the Hebrew perushim, from parash, meaning to separate) were, depending on the time, a political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews that flourished during the Second Temple Era (536 BCE–70 CE). ... The Roman Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Ancient Roman polity in the centuries following its reorganization under the leadership of Octavian (better known as Caesar Augustus). ... Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Historically, a martyr is a person who dies for his or her religious faith. ... Nashim (Women) is the third order of the Mishnah (also of the Tosefta andTalmud), containing the laws related to women and family life. ...

Elisha an "Epicurean"

The harsh treatment he received from the Pharisees was due to his having deserted their ranks at such a critical time. Quite in harmony with this supposition are the other sins laid to his charge; namely, that he rode in an ostentatious manner through the streets of Jerusalem on a Day of Atonement which fell upon a Sabbath, and that he was bold enough to overstep the "tehum" (the limits of the Sabbath-day journey). Both the Jerusalem and the Babylonian Talmuds agree here, and cite this as proof that Elisha turned from Pharisaism to heresy. It was just such non-observance of customs that excited the anger of Akiva (Sotah 27b). The Jewish Encyclopedia writes that the mention of the "Holy of Holies" in this passage is not an anachronism, as Grätz thinks, for while it is true that Eliezer and Joshua were present as the geonim par excellence at Elisha's circumcision—which must, therefore, have occurred after the death of Johanan ben Zakkai (80)—it is also true that the "Holy of Holies" is likewise mentioned in connection with Rabbi Akiva (Makkot, end); indeed, the use of this expression is due to the fact that the Rabbis held holiness to be inherent in the place, not in the building (Yevamot 6b). Yom Kippur (יום כפור yom kippūr, day of atonement) is the Jewish holiday of the Day of Atonement. ... Nashim (Women) is the third order of the Mishnah (also of the Tosefta andTalmud), containing the laws related to women and family life. ... The Tabernacle in the Wilderness The Most Holy Place also known as the Holiest of Holies is a location within the inner tabernacle of Moses. ... Geonim (also Gaonim) (גאונים) (Singular: Gaon [גאון] meaning Genius in Hebrew) were the rabbis who were the Jewish Talmudic sages who were the generally accepted leaders of the Jewish community in the early medieval era. ... Circumcision is the removal of some or all of the prepuce (foreskin). ... Yohanan ben Zakkai was a Jewish sage of the first century of the common era, and a primary contributor to the core text of rabbinic Judaism, the Mishnah. ... For other uses, see number 80. ... Nezikin (The Order of Damages) is the fourth order of Mishna (also the Tosefta and Talmud). ... Nashim (Women) is the third order of the Mishnah (also of the Tosefta andTalmud), containing the laws related to women and family life. ...

The same passage from the Jerusalem Talmud refers to Elisha as being alive when his pupil Rabbi Meir had become a renowned teacher. According to the assumption made above, he must have reached his seventieth year at that time. If Elisha were a Sadducee, the friendship constantly shown him by Rabbi Meïr could be understood. This friendship would have been impossible had Elisha been an apostate or a man of loose morals, as has been asserted. Sadducees and Pharisees, however, lived in friendly intercourse with one another (for example, Rabban Gamaliel with Sadducees; Eruvin 77b). Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ...

For legends concerning Elisha see Johanan ben Nappaha; Rabbi Meir; compare also Gnosticism. Gnosticism is a blanket term for various mostly mystical religions and sects most prominent in the first few centuries A.D. // General characteristics The word gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνῶσις), referring to the idea that there is special esoteric knowledge, a key to transcendent understanding, that...

Jacob Gordin play

Jacob Gordin wrote a Yiddish play, Elisha Ben Abuyah; it was played unsuccessfully in New York City during Gordin's lifetime, and more successfully in numerous productions after his death; the title role was written for Jacob Adler, the only actor ever to play it. In the 1911 production after Gordin's death, the fallen woman Beata was played by Adler's wife Sara, Ben Abuyah's faithful friend Toivye Avyoini was played by Sigmund Mogulesko, and his daughter (who, in the play, runs away with a Roman soldier) by the Adlers' daughter Frances; in some of the last performances of the play, toward the end of Jacob Adler's career, the daughter was played by Frances younger, and eventually more famous, sister Stella. Jacob Gordin, circa 1895 Jacob Michailovitch Gordin (1853–1909) was a Ukrainian-born Russian Jewish playwright active in the early years of Yiddish theater. ... Yiddish (ייִדיש, Jiddisch) is a Germanic language spoken by about four million Jews throughout the world. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York and abbreviated NYC) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... Categories: People stubs | Jewish film and theatre | 1855 births | 1926 deaths ... 1911 is a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... Sara Adler (1858–April 28, 1953) was a Ukrainian Jewish actress in Yiddish theater who made her career mainly in the United States. ... Sigmund Mogulesko (December 16, 1858 – February 4, 1914) — Yiddish: מאָגולסקאָ, זעליג, first name also sometimes given as Zigmund, Siegmund, Zelig, or Selig, last name sometimes spelled Mogulescu — was a singer, actor, and composer in the Yiddish theater, originally from Zlata Pole/Zlatapolia or Kalarash/Kaloraush, Bessarabia. ... Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress, and for decades was regarded as Americas foremost acting teacher. ...

Gordin's Ben Abuyah is clearly a surrogate for Gordin himself, and to some extent for Adler: an unbeliever, but one who thinks of himself, unalterably, as a Jew, and who rejects Christianity even more firmly than Judaism, a man who behaves ethically and who dies haunted by a vision of "terrible Jewish suffering", condemned by the rabbis generally, but lauded as a great Jew by his disciple Rabbi Meir. [Adler, 1999, 254-255 (commentary)]

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain 1901-1906 Jewish Encyclopedia. Please feel free to update it like any other article.
  • Ginzberg, Louis, "Elisha Ben Abuyah", Jewish Encyclopedia. That, in turn gives the following bibliography:
    • Grätz, Gnosticismus und Judenthum, pp. 56-71
    • P. Smolenski, Sämmtliche Werke, ii. 267-278
    • A. Jellinek, Elischa b. Abuja, Leipzig, 1847
    • I. H. Weiss, Dor, ii. 140-143
    • M. Dubsch, in He-Haluz, v. 66-72
    • Siegfried, Philo von Alexandrien, pp. 285-287
    • Bacher, Ag. Tan. i. 432-436
    • Hoffmann, Toledot Elischa b. Abuja, Vienna, 1880
    • S. Rubin, Yalk., Shelomoh, pp. 17-28, Krakow, 1896
    • M. Friedländer, Vorchristlich. Jüd. Gnosticismus, 1898, pp. 100 et seq.
    • Bäck, Elischa b. Abuja-Acher, Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1891. Compare also M. Letteris' Hebrew drama Ben Abuja, an adaptation of Goethe's Faust, Vienna, 1865;
    • B. Kaplan, in Open Court, Aug., 1902
• Adler, Jacob, A Life on the Stage: A Memoir, translated and with commentary by Lulla Rosenfeld, Knopf, New York, 1999, ISBN 067941351. 254-255 (commentary).