History of the Jews, Vol. 2 (of 6)

The method of calculating the calendar introduced by Hillel is so simple and certain that up to the present day it has not required either emendation or amplification, and for this reason is acknowledged to be perfect by all who are competent to express an opinion on the subject, whether Jews or non-Jews. The system is based upon a cycle of nineteen years, in which seven leap years occur. Ten months in every year are invariable, and consist alternately of twenty-nine and thirty days; the two autumn months only which follow Tishri (the most important of all the months) are left variable, as being dependent on certain circumstances in astronomy and Jewish law. This and other computations rest, however, on rules so simple, and are so plain and easy, that the veriest tyro is thereby enabled to draw up a calendar for a hundred, or even a thousand years. It has not been ascertained how much of this system was invented by Hillel, and how much he owed to tradition, for it is indisputable that certain astronomical rules were regarded as traditional in the patriarchal house; in any case, Hillel appears to have made use of Samuel's calendar. This calendar and the year of its introduction are now known. It was published in the 670th year of the Seleucidean era, the 359th of the common reckoning.

The oppression which thus fell upon the inhabitants of Palestine, and which gave rise to Hillel's calendar, augmented the importance and influence of Babylonia, and although Christianity could boast of having broken up the academies and destroyed, so to speak, the Temple of the Law in Judæa, the destruction was nevertheless merely local. In Babylonia the study of the Law acquired so vigorous an impetus that the achievements of ancient times were almost eclipsed; the study of the Law was now celebrating the period of its maturity. Two methods of instruction in the traditions especially had developed, namely, that of receiving the authentic terms of the traditions and handing them down in exactly the same words, and that of making a fruitful application of the same, and of further amplifying them. Each of these methods was represented by one of the academies of Babylonia; Sora was receptive, Pumbeditha creative. Altogether Sora can be regarded only as a continuation of the academies of Judæa, as a sort of Babylonian Tiberias; and although the spirit which reigned there underwent a change under the influence of the Babylonian method, still the Soranian school never furthered the cause of study to any appreciable extent. It was Pumbeditha that raised learning to its highest level. The acute scholars of Pumbeditha, produced by Judah ben Ezekiel's Academy, held sway at this period over Babylonia and the dependent countries. The leaders and representatives of this movement formed a triumvirate, consisting of Rabba, and his comrades and disciples, Abayi and Raba. It was these three that gave the finishing touch to the work of completing the Talmud, or rather who raised the study of the Halacha to the rank of an intellectual system of dialectics.

Rabba bar Nachmani (born about 270, died 330) possessed, like the family to which he belonged, certain original qualities. He was of a family from Mamal or Mamala, a city of Galilee, the inhabitants of which were for the most part descendants of Aaron, and members of the family of Eli; they asserted that they participated in the curse with which this house had been visited, and which prevented any of its members from ever attaining extreme old age. Whoever went to Mamala was astonished at seeing so many persons with black hair; a grey-haired man was a rarity.

Rabba had three brothers, whose names were Kailil, Ushaya, and Chananya; all of them lived in the greatest poverty, which misfortune they also ascribed to the curse resting on the house of Eli. Ushaya, the younger, and Chananya, who had returned to Judæa, obtained a precarious living as shoemakers. By reason of the scarcity of customers, they were sometimes obliged to sell their work to prostitutes. Nevertheless, their minds remained so pure and chaste that they were never reproached with a single immodest glance; they were consequently held in high esteem, and were known as the "saints of the land of Israel." These two brothers applied themselves to the Agada, the favorite study in Judæa, while Rabba, their sober brother, who as a child had shown signs of great acuteness of mind, evinced a predilection for the Halacha, in which province his labor was epoch-making. He had determined to remain in Babylonia, and his brothers, unable to quiet their apprehensions concerning his lot, used all their endeavors to persuade him to come to Judæa. "It is not all one," ran their message to him, "whether one dies in or out of Judæa; for the Patriarch Jacob attached great weight to being buried in the Holy Land. Although thou art learned, still it is better to have a master than to educate thyself. And if thou thinkest that there is no teacher of importance to be found in the academies of Judæa, we inform thee that thou wouldst indeed find such a one here." In consequence of this pressing invitation, and contrary to the principles of Judah, his teacher, Rabba emigrated to Judæa. Some time after, however, he returned to Babylonia, probably because he was dissatisfied with the Judæan method of teaching. Rabba's worldly affairs are described as most miserable, and are frequently contrasted with Chasda's uninterrupted happiness.

After the death of his teacher Judah in 299, the Pumbedithan College, which was composed of lovers of dialectics, esteemed Rabba to be the only person worthy of occupying the vacancy thus created in the school. He was therefore offered the honor of becoming Judah's successor, but his exceeding modesty induced him to decline the post. The vacancy was eventually filled by Huna ben Chiya, whose wealth was so immense that he furnished his audience in the lecture-room with gilded seats. Although the greater number of the disciples frequented Sora, the Pumbedithan Academy nevertheless counted 400 students. Both Rabba and his friend Joseph associated themselves with the local academy, and subordinated themselves to the principal, in order to prevent the school from being deprived of the reputation which it had at last succeeded in gaining. When it came to be known in what manner Huna ben Chiya had acquired his wealth, which had been amassed by the farming of tolls, he was given to understand that the dignity of teacher must not be stained by association with that hateful trade, and that he must give up either one or the other. Having abandoned the calling of farmer of tolls, he was recognized by the college, which followed Rabba's example, as a worthy principal of the academy. Joseph was the only person who refused to acquiesce in the appointment. The not altogether spotless reputation of its principal, however, threatened to become a cause of ruin to the Pumbedithan Academy; care was therefore taken after the death of Huna to make a better choice, in order to enlist the sympathy of the people and to attract a numerous audience. Two men appeared worthy to fill this post, Rabba bar Nachmani and Joseph ben Chiya, the one distinguished for Talmudical dialectics, and the other for Halachic erudition. The choice between the two was so difficult that it was determined to take counsel of Judæa, and the following question was accordingly asked: "Who possesses the superiority, Sinai (man of learning), or the remover of mountains (man of acuteness)?" In Tiberias, where the acute method of teaching, although not hated, was nevertheless held in low esteem, the decision was given in favor of the former. But Joseph entertained scruples against accepting this dignity. His nativity had once been cast by a Chaldean, who had informed him that he would obtain a position of great authority, but would not be able to retain it longer than two years and six months, after which he would die. In spite of the legal prohibition forbidding credence to be given to the wisdom of the Chaldeans, the most noted teachers of the Law were unable to free themselves from its influence; daily example was stronger than the Law. Joseph having refused the post thus offered to him, it was conferred upon Rabba (309), and in him the Pumbedithan Academy found its ideal.

Rabba restored anew to the academy its extinguished fame, and attracted to his discourses a crowd of students, amounting at times to as many as 1200. He did not confine his lectures to the practical part of jurisprudence alone, as Judah had done, but treated of all the subjects contained in the Mishna; he sought to reconcile the various contradictions existing in the Mishna, the Boraitas, and the additions made by the Amoraic authorities (Memra), and generally to introduce clearness into the study of the Halacha. He even turned his attention to the remote subject of the laws of Levitical purity, which he succeeded in making comprehensible; but in this branch of study, which had vanished out of every-day life, he stood quite alone, a fact that he frequently lamented. He was distinguished by a desire to enter deeply into the motives not only of the Pentateuch, but also of the Sopheric and Mishnaic laws, and to draw conclusions from them. The formulæ which he employed as an introduction to these investigations ran as follows: "Wherefore has the Law commanded this?" or "Why are such-and-such things prohibited by the teachers of the Law?" His luminous conception and treatment of his subject invested it with life, while the variety which he succeeded in imparting to a dry theme by means of the occasional introduction of an Agadic sentence made it both interesting and captivating. At times he would entertain the students with interesting anecdotes before beginning his discourse, and as soon as he thought that he had put them in a cheerful temper, he would begin to treat of more serious and weighty subjects. His guiding principle was that the soul must be prepared for the reception of serious thoughts, and that this receptivity was best awakened by cheerfulness. Rabba often put catch questions to his pupils, or expressed paradoxical opinions, in order to test their judgment or sharpen their intellect. Rabba holds the same important position among the Amoraim, as Akiba among the Tanaites. He collected scattered and fragmentary subjects under general heads. For this reason the reverence in which he was held by the teachers of the Law equaled that which was entertained for the founder of Babylonian Jewish life. But in proportion as he was beloved by this circle, he was obnoxious to the populace of Pumbeditha. His fellow-countrymen could not forgive this severe censor for the sharp, reproachful words with which, in his honesty and stern morality, he strove to combat their deceits and artifices. Once, on the occasion of a drought, when Rabba had proclaimed a public fast, and had ordered prayers to be offered up, without succeeding in obtaining rain, he exclaimed reproachfully to the populace: "It is not because we leaders of the people are worse than in the time of my master Judah, that Heaven refuses to gratify our wishes; nor is it because we are less diligent in the study of the Law. But what can be done by the representatives of the people when the entire race is degenerate?"

On account of their needy circumstances Rabba and another Amora, Ada, appear to have become the colleagues (Chacham) of Mar-Ukban, a grandchild of Rab, and at that time Prince of the Captivity, at whose expense they were probably supported. While the principals of the Soranian Academy were wealthy, often supporting the entire expenses of the schools, and maintaining a large number of disciples from their own purse, those of Pumbeditha generally possessed but small means. This circumstance necessitated the establishment of an academical fund at Pumbeditha, to which the communities and the Prince of the Captivity probably contributed.

In Rabba's time the Babylonian Jews were the victims of a transitory persecution, which, although insignificant when compared with those which had occurred in the Roman empire, was nevertheless calculated to arouse the sufferers from their feeling of profound safety. It was during the long reign (310–380) of Shabur II, the new king of the Sassanian dynasty, who had been acknowledged as ruler while yet unborn, that the friendly relation in which the Jews had stood to the Persian court became disturbed, and it is possible that they would have been as cruelly persecuted as the Christians, had it not been that Ifra-Ormuzd, the king's mother, was prepossessed in favor of Judaism and the Jews. The account briefly narrates that a body of troops marched into Pumbeditha, whereupon Rabba and Joseph took to flight. A serious charge had been brought against Rabba, the king or his councillors having been secretly informed that, by means of Rabba's discourses during the Kalla months, his 1200 students had been induced to evade the payment of the poll-tax. A royal bailiff was sent out with orders to seize the person of the principal of the Pumbedithan Academy. Being warned in advance, Rabba fled, and in order to escape detection he wandered about in the surrounding country. His death was caused by fright at the rustling of the wind in the trees, which the fugitive mistook for the tramp of advancing soldiery. Abayi and Raba, his most distinguished disciples, together with the rest of the members of the academy, went in search of his corpse, which they eventually found covered over and hidden by birds. They mourned during seven days for this highly esteemed Amora (330). The charge, which was the occasion of Rabba's death, does not seem to have been further prosecuted. The queen-mother, Ifra, even sent a purse of denars to his successor, leaving it to him to make the best and most pious use of it, whereupon he employed it in ransoming Jewish prisoners.

Rabba's successor and friend, Joseph ben Chiya (born about 270, died about 333), was sickly and sensitive, and possessed a passionate disposition. He was aware of his failings and complained that they prevented him from enjoying life. He seems to have been very wealthy, and to have possessed fields, palm-trees and vineyards, from which latter – as he cultivated them more carefully than was generally the case – he obtained better wine than was commonly produced. Upon being afflicted with blindness, he grieved less for the loss of his sight than on account of his being thereby relieved from performing various religious duties.

Joseph was exceptional among the principals of the Pumbedithan Academy, inasmuch as he attached more weight to the acquisition of a knowledge of the Mishna and the Boraïtas by committing them to memory, than to the drawing of ingenious conclusions. For this reason he was known by the title of "Sinai" and "Possessor of Storehouses." Besides studying the Halacha, he turned his attention to the Targum or Chaldaic translation of the Holy Scriptures. The Torah, and probably also isolated portions of the Prophets, which were used for public reading (Haftara), had long ago been translated into the Aramaic dialects – both the Syriac and the Chaldaic. There existed various Chaldaic translations of the Torah for the use of those who were ignorant of Hebrew: one of these, based probably on the favorite Greek version of Akylas, bore the name of Targum Onkelos; the Syrian translation, employed by such of the Jews of Syria and Mesopotamia as spoke Syriac, was called Peshito (the simple). The greater portion of the Prophets, however, had not been translated, and it was Joseph who first took in hand a Chaldaic translation thereof. Some persons believed that this was a work of piety, as Joseph was prevented by his blindness from reading, and was unwilling to recite the Hebrew text by heart, on account of the prohibition against oral quotation of the written Law. He therefore set about translating the Prophets on his own account, in order to be able to quote any desired passage in Chaldaic. Joseph's translation was incorporated in the Targum, and was accepted as a decisive authority on questions relating to the explanation of doubtful words.

He was exceedingly severe in maintaining discipline in his capacity of principal of the Academy; he flogged one of the students – Nathan bar Assa – for journeying on foot from the Academy to Pumbeditha on the second day of one of the festivals. The few years during which he retained his office were in many ways embittered. He was stricken by a severe illness, through which he lost his memory, and it was consequently often necessary for his pupils to remind him that he himself had formerly taught them the very facts which he was then disputing. Although they endeavored to spare his feelings when drawing his attention to his absurd mistakes, nevertheless, in his irritation, he regarded these corrections as a slight, and complainingly exclaimed: "Be indulgent with an old man whom misfortune has caused to forget all he learnt; and forget not that the fragments of the first tables of the Law were preserved by the side of the unbroken tables."

Joseph's hard lot may be considered as typical of the decay of the method of teaching which depended on the power of memory. It heaps up the treasures of learning and tradition, guarding every atom of its hoard as painfully as a miser, and warns off all influences exerted by the employment of the intellect, as if they might obscure its mirror-like purity; but in an unlucky moment the store that has been laboriously collected suddenly vanishes; memory is extinguished, and there remain no means of recovering the lost treasures.

The Soranian school, the home of culture, also began to decline, through neglecting to further the development of the Law. After Chasda's death, the post of principal was held for twelve years (309–320) by Huna's son, Rabba or Rab Abba; but the studious youths were more strongly attracted by the rising star of the Pumbedithan Academy. For this reason Rabba's modesty is the only circumstance in connection with which any remembrance of him is retained. After the death of Rabba bar Huna, the Soranian Academy was deserted, and it was not frequented until half a century later, when it began to regain its lost renown.

After Joseph's death, the college was embarrassed as to whom it should appoint as his successor. There were four who seemed worthy to occupy this post, being all equally esteemed; they were Abayi, Raba, Zeïra II, and Rabba bar Matana. The college accordingly determined to vote for the one who should give the most striking answer, to which no objection could be offered, to a question that was raised. Abayi was victorious in this intellectual tournament, and was chosen as principal. Abayi, whose surname was Nachmani (born about 280, died 338), was an orphan; his father Kailil had died before, his mother immediately after, his birth. A governess took the place of his mother, while Rabba, the sagacious Amora of Pumbeditha, filled that of his father. In after-life, Abayi spoke with gratitude and emotion of his foster-mother, and gave her name to several healing medicaments. To his uncle Rabba, Abayi owed his knowledge of the Law and his skill in Talmudical dialectics. Like Raba, his contemporary Amora, he aroused great expectations during his early youth, and it used to be said of them, "The bud shows what the melon will be." Abayi appears to have possessed but a moderate fortune. Like the majority of the Babylonian teachers of the Law, however, he had a small field of his own, which he cultivated by the agency of a freeman. His character was mild and yielding, and he retained these qualities in his intercourse with the various classes of society. His maxim was: that man should be sagacious in the fear of God, gentle and conciliatory in his speech, and at peace with his brethren, with his relations, in fact, with all the world, even with the heathen abroad, so that he might be beloved and esteemed, and possess influence over his fellow-men. At this time opinions, words, and deeds, were still one and the same. Abayi's integrity was even acknowledged by such of the Samaritans as dwelt in Babylonia. Having once lost an ass which was found by some Samaritans, it was brought back by them to its owner, though he was not able to mention any special mark by which it could be recognized. "If thou wert not Nachmani," said they to him, "we should not have restored the ass even if it had borne some particular mark." Under Abayi's direction of the Pumbedithan Academy (333–338) the number of students diminished to about two hundred, and therefore in remembrance of the crowd of scholars who had flocked thither during the time of his predecessors, Rab and Huna, he called himself an "orphan of orphans." It was not that less interest and pleasure than formerly were now felt in study, but that Abayi possessed a rival in Raba, who had founded a school of his own in Machuza on the Tigris, whither he had attracted many students. Both of these teachers brought the Pumbedithan method to its greatest perfection. Rivaling one another in talent and ingenuity, they discovered answers to questions which Rabba and Joseph had been unable to solve.

The traditions which had been handed down no longer afforded material for discussion, every point which they presented having already been thoroughly elucidated; new themes were therefore propounded and solved by the help of recognized formulæ. These subtle Talmudical dialectics received the names of their most proficient adepts, and were known as the "Havayot (reflections) d'Abayi ve Raba."

Before his death, Abayi heard of the cruel persecutions to which his coreligionists in Judæa were subjected under Constantius. The fugitives who conveyed this sad news to Babylonia, also brought with them new Halachas, from the circle of which Jochanan was the head, and thus inspired the learned students of Babylonia with new vigor.

Abayi died in the prime of life (338). After his death, the office of principal was conferred upon Raba bar Joseph bar Chama of Machuza (born 299, died 352), without any discussion, as if this was expected as a matter of course. Raba was wealthy, talented and acute, but possessed his weak points, which caused him to be considered inferior to his fellow Amoraim, although he surpassed them in acuteness of intellect. He was well acquainted with his own character, and described himself in the following words: "I have always cherished three wishes, of which, while two have been fulfilled, the gratification of the third has not been vouchsafed to me. I desired Huna's learning and Chasda's wealth, and obtained both; but Rabba bar Huna's unassuming modesty was not allotted to me." Although he was superior to the majority of his fellow-countrymen, his character was tainted, nevertheless, with certain peculiarities of the Machuzans; he was luxurious, proud and overbearing, and although his fellow-countrymen did not enjoy the best of reputations in Babylonia, he flattered them to excess. He was exceedingly desirous of winning and retaining their favor. "When I became judge," he relates, "I was afraid that I should no longer retain the attachment of the Machuzans, but as they recognize my impartiality in giving judgment, all must either hate or all love me." Abayi seems to have reproved this tendency of Raba to sacrifice moral dignity for the acquisition of popular favor. "When a teacher of the Law," said he, "is too greatly beloved by his fellow-citizens, it is not because of his great merit, but on account of his indulgence, which causes him to refrain from calling attention to their vices, and from earnestly reprimanding them."

It has already been mentioned that the inhabitants of Machuza were descended for the most part from proselytes, for which reason the aristocratic Babylonian Jews forbore to contract marriages with them. As the Machuzans thus seemed to be at a loss how to obtain wives, Zeïra II declared in a public discourse that it was allowable for them to marry persons who had been born out of wedlock. This permission, however, implying as it did a sort of degradation of the Machuzans, was so offensive to their pride, that they almost stoned him to death with the fruits with which the booths were decorated (the incident occurring during the celebration of the feast of Tabernacles), just as King Alexander Jannæus had once been attacked in the outer court of the temple. Raba could hardly find words severe enough with which to blame Zeïra's candor: "Who would give utterance to so inconsiderate a decision in a community containing so many descendants of proselytes!" In order to enlist the favor of the populace still more strongly on his side, he demonstrated, in opposition to Zeïra's theory, that proselytes might marry even the daughters of priests, and he succeeded by this flattery in charming the Machuzans so greatly that they overwhelmed him with presents of silken stuffs. In after-times Raba attempted to restrict the equality which he had accorded somewhat too freely to the proselytes, probably on account of its having caused displeasure in various circles; at the same time he remarked that proselytes might ally themselves with bastard families. This decision having caused dissatisfaction, Raba appeased his fellow-countrymen with the following words: "I only meant well towards you, and leave you free to act either way."

Another of Raba's failings was that, although exceedingly wealthy, he was not entirely free from covetousness, which he allowed to become apparent on several occasions. A proselyte of Machuza, Issor by name, had deposited with Raba a sum of 12,000 sus (denars), in order to bequeath it to his son, who was being brought up as a student of the Law. Issor having fallen ill, Raba resolved to keep possession of this money as property to which there was no heir, a proselyte being unable to leave his fortune to a son born before his adoption of Judaism, as the Talmudical law does not recognize such offspring as a son. At all events, the principal of the schools – familiar as he was with all the intricacies of the Law – was determined to nullify Issor's disposal of his fortune in favor of his son. Meanwhile, another person who was equally well acquainted with the Law, suggested to the anxious father that, although he was prevented from making over the money in question to his son by will, he was, nevertheless, at liberty to do so by declaring before witnesses that the money belonged to the latter. Raba was greatly incensed at the man who offered this counsel, and complained as bitterly of this secret advice as if he had thereby been deprived of a lawfully acquired fortune. Raba's conduct also violated an accepted Halacha which treats of a similar case. According to this law, although a man is not obliged to hand over to such of the sons as may have become proselytes, the property committed to his keeping by a heathen, of which the latter had not otherwise disposed, an offense is, nevertheless, committed against the higher laws of morality by withholding it from them.

Another example of Raba's selfish conduct is afforded by the fact that he exacted a higher rent from the tenants of his fields than was customary in Babylonia. At times his behavior towards persons of slender means was marked by a harshness which was in glaring opposition to the doctrines of charity and pity, inculcated equally by the Halachas and the Scriptures.

The conduct of his brother Saurim was even more heartless; he posed as a moral censor, and whenever any of the poorer members of the community appeared to him not to be religious enough he made slaves of them, and compelled them to carry him about in his gilded litter. Even to this conduct Raba offered no objection, but sanctioned his brother's arbitrary proceedings by referring to a long-forgotten law, which countenanced the treatment of the Jews as slaves, in case they no longer lived in accordance with the Law.

During this period the simple manners and the honesty which had obtained among the Jews of Babylonia in former times, fell to a low ebb with many of them, and made room for luxury, vanity, and thirst for power. Many a teacher of the Law was clad in gorgeous garments and was carried about in a gilded litter. They no longer felt themselves one with the people from whom they had risen, but constituted a particular caste, a patrician class, who mutually protected and maintained one another's interests, looking down with pride and contempt on the lower orders of the populace. Raba himself admitted that whenever he was called upon to decide a point of law in which a person of the same class of society as himself was concerned, he was unable to sleep until he succeeded in interpreting the law in his favor. If a member of the school brought his produce to market, he was invested with the privilege of being allowed to sell before any one else, in order that he might obtain higher prices. The cause of a member was always heard first in the court. The teachers of the Law of such communities as paid their taxes in a lump sum, were exempt from all imposts. Raba allowed the associates, in places where they were not known, to declare their rank, in order that they might enjoy the advantages attaching thereto. What a contrast to former times, when the Tanaites hesitated, at the risk of their lives even, to derive any benefit from their knowledge of the Law! Raba went to extreme lengths in according privileges to the doctors of the Law. He permitted the associates to pass themselves off as worshipers of fire in order to escape payment of the charag.

The course of conduct thus pursued by the learned classes gradually awoke a dislike of them among the people. The lower classes spoke of them contemptuously as "those scholars." The mockery expressed by this epithet must have been so bitter that on their side the teachers of the Law branded as heretics (Epicureans) all who made use of the expression. Scholarship thus no longer obtained recognition. "What do we profit by the scholars?" the people asked themselves; "all their knowledge is employed for their own benefit." At the head of this opposition to the Rabbis stood the family of the physician, Benjamin of Machuza, which seems to have been possessed of great importance, as Raba paid great attention to its members. "What advantage do we really derive from the teachers of the Law?" said they jeeringly; "they can neither allow us to eat ravens, nor forbid us to eat pigeons?" – meaning that in spite of all their dialectics they were unable to proceed beyond the circle of established customs. Although Raba declared this utterance of Benjamin Assia to be heretical, it does not appear that he excommunicated him, but rather that he treated him with great consideration; it is probable that the latter belonged to the retinue of the Prince of the Captivity.

Meanwhile the zeal for the study of the Law had greatly increased. Disciples crowded in even greater numbers than formerly to Raba's academy in Machuza, neglecting in their ardor their business pursuits. Raba was obliged to warn them against this excess: "I pray you do not come to my school in the spring and autumn months, lest you should neglect the time of the harvest and of the preparation of wine and oil, and so be troubled throughout the year by the cares of life." Raba's discourses were even more popular than Abayi's by reason of the clearness of his explanations, the exactitude of his distinctions, and the boldness of his treatment of the subject-matter of tradition. Raba showed a decided preference for analyzing the Mishna to the bare study of its dry subject-matter. The former method offered a wide field for the employment of dialectical powers, while the Mishna, taken in its simplest sense, became a mere matter of memory. On this account Raba placed the Amoraïm above the Tanaites; the former explained, or explained better, such points as were doubtful to the latter. He was accustomed to say that a grain of pepper (acuteness) was better than a basketful of melons. In contrast to Zeïra I, who was adverse to that method of teaching which encouraged ingenious reasoning, and valued highly the simplicity of the Mishna, Raba declared that "whoso breaketh stones injureth himself thereby (Eccles. x. 9); thus are they characterized who know merely the Mishna; but he who splitteth wood warmeth himself; such are they who are acquainted with the Talmud." The true Talmud, the attractive collection of nice questions, answers, comparisons and distinctions, the lofty flight of thought, which, starting from a point, passes with the quickness of lightning over the intermediate steps of a chain of reasoning, the dialectic form of the Talmud is the product of this period. The triumvirate, Rabba, Abayi, and Raba, were Talmudists in the real meaning of the word, i. e., dialecticians. In this sense the Talmud was the creation of the Pumbedithan and Machuzan schools. In Judæa there was scarcely a notion of it. By reason of his extensive acquirements, his profound intellect, and perhaps also on account of his wealth, Raba remained the sole authority during his continuance at the head of the academy. Questions were referred to him even from Judæa, when the frequent persecutions under Constantius and Gallus involved the Holy Land in the deepest misery.

This period was by no means the happiest for the Jewish subjects of the Persian crown; they were not spared during the obstinate struggle between Rome and Persia. A Persian army was stationed at Machuza, and had to be maintained by the inhabitants of the town. As the population was entirely Jewish, this duty was attended with many inconveniences. Shabur II was no friend of the Jews. In ancient times numerous Jewish families had been transported to Armenia, and now lived there in their own cities; of these, Shabur led an immense multitude (estimated at 71,000) into captivity, and colonized them in Susiana and Ispahan. This latter city, which had formerly been the capital of the Persian empire, received the name of Jehudia, from the many Jews who settled there after the captivity. Shabur appears to have oppressed the Jews of Babylonia in no less degree, for Raba was obliged to expend considerable sums of money in preventing persecution. His friends extolled his good luck in being, to a certain extent, exempted from the misfortunes to which the Jewish people had been predestined, seeing that up till then he had been subjected to no extortions. To these congratulations Raba replied as follows: "You know not how much I am obliged to do in secret for Shabur's court!" On one occasion it was with great difficulty that he managed to escape a personal danger which threatened him in his capacity of principal of the schools. He had ordered a Jew to be flogged for having held carnal intercourse with a Persian woman, and the chastisement had caused the death of the culprit. The case happening to come to Shabur's knowledge, he commanded a heavy punishment to be inflicted on Raba for having exercised the criminal jurisdiction. The latter appears to have escaped the penalty by flight, but his house was pillaged. All further consequences of this occurrence were averted by Ifra, the queen-mother, who is reported to have said to her son: "Do not meddle in any way with the Jews, for God grants them whatever they pray for." In striking contrast with her son, Ifra-Ormuzd entertained a special liking for the Jews, and in particular for the teachers of the Law, to whom at times she vouchsafed a glance into the most secret recesses of her heart. In the same way as she had formerly sent a purse of gold to Joseph, she now forwarded 400 golden denars to Raba. Rami, a contemporary, was of opinion that this present ought to be refused, as it was not lawful to receive alms of the heathens. Notwithstanding this, Raba accepted the money, but distributed it amongst the heathen poor. The queen-mother Ifra also sent an animal for sacrifice to the principal of the school in Machuza, which she requested might be offered up according to the Jewish rites, in order to prove her adoration of the only God. Raba did not live to see either the introduction of the calendar by Hillel, or the short period during which prosperity smiled upon the Jews. He died after holding his office for fourteen years.

After Raba's death the importance of Machuza began to decline, and Pumbeditha, which had unwillingly surrendered the palm to Raba, now occupied its former position. It is remarkable that from this time forward mediocrity began to reign, as if intellectual activity needed recreation after so many exertions. Not one of Raba's successors was sufficiently able to compensate for his loss. The principals of the Babylonian schools, Nachman ben Isaac, Papa, and Chama of Nahardea, were possessed of no conspicuous importance; the Pumbedithan spirit of severe analysis and ingenious dialectics was indeed cultivated, but in nowise advanced.

Nachman ben Isaac (born about 280, died 356) was chosen as the leader of the Pumbedithan Metibta, but merely on account of his advanced age, his extraordinary piety, and perhaps also of his independence. His tenure of office only extended over four years, and was not rendered memorable by any noteworthy feature. During this period a new academy was founded at Nares, in proximity to Sora, situated on the canal of the same name.

The founder of this new academy, of which he became the principal, was Papa bar Chanan (born about 300, died 375). He had early been left an orphan, was wealthy, and by trade a brewer of beer from dates. His friend, Huna ben Joshua, equally wealthy, and his partner in business, became a teacher at this academy. But the two together were not able to fill the void which Raba's death had occasioned. It is true that the members of the Machuzan academy gathered around them; but opportunities soon arose of effecting comparisons, the results of which were anything but favorable to the new chiefs.

The following anecdote will serve to indicate the character of the principal of the Nares academy. Certain of the younger teachers of the Law had come to Nares in order to be present at Papa's lectures. This latter, however, left his subject in so confused a condition, that they secretly began to make signs one to the other. Papa, seeing this, was exceedingly mortified, and said to them: "Let those present depart from here in peace." Another member, one Simaï bar Ashi (father of the Ashi who became famous later on), used to importune Papa with questions which quite exceeded his modest capabilities. Papa, in despair lest he should be put to shame before his pupils, would throw himself down in prayer, and beseech the merciful God to preserve him from the terrible feeling of confusion. Simaï, having been an unobserved witness of this fervent prayer, made up his mind that henceforward he would keep silence, and no longer involuntarily mortify Papa.

In the Halacha, Papa was the representative of a school which was so devoid of self-dependence, that its partisans did not even hold an opinion of their own concerning the views of others. Whenever two or more conflicting opinions left the meaning of a precept of the Law in doubt, Papa would say: "Let us adopt both views, or act according to all these opinions." Papa remained at his post during nineteen years (355–375), and the stupor into which all minds were thrown during this period was only dissipated by his successor. Pumbeditha possessed a principal of equal insignificance in Chama of Nahardea, whose character a single anecdote will suffice to indicate. King Shabur asked him whether the practice of burying the dead was founded on the Torah, or whether it was simply an ancient custom. The question arose from the usage of the Persians, who neither buried nor burned the corpses of their dead. Chama, however, could bring forward no passage of Scripture in support of burial. Acha ben Jacob, a member of the household of the Prince of the Captivity, and therefore privileged to say many things, expressed the following opinion of this principal: "The world is delivered into the hands of fools; why did he not instance the verse, 'And thou shalt bury him on the same day'?"

In the course of the twenty-one years (356–377) during which Chama held office, a change occurred in the Roman Empire which was not without weighty consequences for the communities of Judæa and Babylonia. A nephew of the Emperor Constantius, Julian, effected a revolution which, however, was only temporary. Emperor Julian was one of those masterful characters who impress their names indelibly on the memory of man. It was only an early death and the hatred of the ruling Church which prevented him from obtaining the title of "Great." Although a member of Constantine's family, the fratricidal sword of the Constantines hung over his head, and he was compelled by fear of death to give hypocritical adhesion to the Christian religion, which he hated. Almost by a miracle he was created co-emperor by his uncle Constantius, who hated him from the bottom of his heart, and had already held a council about his death. A military revolt in his favor, and the unexpected death of his enemy Constantius, put Julian in possession of exclusive power. Known in the history of the Church as the Apostate (Apostata, Parabata), Julian made it the duty of his life to realize the ideal, which association with his teachers, Libanius and Maximus, had suggested to him, and which had been further ennobled by his rich mind. His favorite thoughts were to protect the oppressed of all nations and religions, to promote the well-being of all his subjects, more especially by alleviating the burden of taxes, to revive the philosophical sciences, which had been condemned by the Christian emperors, to restore the ancient religion, freed, however, from its most conspicuous blemishes, which had rendered it so contemptible and ridiculous; finally, to confine Christianity, which had gained so much power during so short a period, within its proper limits. Mindful, however, of the persecution to which he himself had been subjected, he refrained from retaliating on the Christians, in spite of their mania for persecution. Still, he was desirous of restraining their encroachments, and therefore deprived them of their influence in civil and scientific matters, and attempted to lower them in the appreciation of the learned classes by the employment of the weapons of the intellect and delicate satire. He called Jesus a Galilæan whom credulity had exalted to a god, and spoke of the Christians by the nickname of Galilæans. For this reason he was all the more friendly toward the Jews, and was the only emperor after Alexander Severus who evinced serious interest in Judaism. He was led by more reasons than one to prefer Judaism. Brought up in the Christian religion, he had become acquainted with Judaism through the Holy Bible, and the more Judaism was hated and persecuted by Christianity, the greater was the reverence with which he regarded it. The emperor even admitted that he had been greatly shocked by the cruel oppression to which the Jews were exposed during the reign of Constantius, when their religion was branded as blasphemous by victorious Christianity. Julian was greatly impressed by the God of Judaism, as described in Holy Writ, and acknowledged him as the "Great God." He refused to believe, however, that beside Him there existed no other gods. He especially admired the benevolence of the Jews, and was astonished that they cared for their poor with such zeal that no beggars existed among them. He was also desirous of deeply mortifying the Christians by the preference which he exhibited for the Jews, for the former were at great pains to prove the superiority of their religion by the abasement of the latter. He entertained a particular predilection for the sacrificial cult, and for this reason he was especially pleased with the Jewish system of sacrifices, with the solemn pomp of the Temple and the priests. The emperor reproached the Christians with having rejected the God and the worship of Judaism, but he particularly blamed them for having discarded the sacrificial service. It was true that the Jews did not then offer sacrifices, but this was only because they no longer possessed a Temple. Finally, the idea may have occurred to Julian to dispose the Babylonian Jews in his favor for the Persian war which now occupied his whole attention. He desired, if not to obtain their active support, at least to prevent them from offering fanatical resistance.

Julian's reign, which lasted not quite two years (November, 361 to June, 363) was a period of extreme happiness for the Jews of the Roman Empire. The emperor favored them, relieving them from oppression, and from the disgrace which the taunt of blasphemy entailed. He called the Patriarch Hillel his venerable friend, and honored him with an autograph letter, wherein he assured him of his good-will, and promised to try and put an end to the wrongs of the Jews. He also addressed an epistle to all the Jewish communities of the empire, and made preparations for rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem, which had become a Christian city since the time of Constantine. The imperial missive, which stands out in glaring contrast with the course of treatment adopted by the first two Christian emperors, is remarkable enough to merit being preserved. The letter (written at Antioch in the autumn of 362 or the winter of 363) ran as follows:

"To the Jewish Congregations. – More oppressive for you in the past than the yoke of dependence was the circumstance that new taxes were imposed upon you without previous notice, and you were thus compelled to furnish an immense quantity of gold to the imperial treasury. I learnt much by personal observation, but still more by the tax-rolls which were being preserved to your detriment, and which I happened to light upon. I myself abolished a tax which it was intended to impose upon you, and thus put a stop to the injustice of attempting to cast such a slur on you; with my own hands did I commit to the flames the tax-rolls against you which I came across in my archives, in order that for the future no one might spread such a charge of blasphemy against you. My brother Constantius, the Glorious, was not so much to blame for this as those barbarians in thought and godless in spirit who invented such a system of taxation. With my own arm have I hurled them to deepest ruin, so that not even the memory of their fall shall remain with us. Being on the point of according you yet greater favor, I have exhorted my brother, the venerable Patriarch Julos (Hillel), to put a stop to the collection of the so-called Apostole from you, and henceforward let no one further oppress your nation with the collection of such imposts, so that everywhere in my empire you may be free from care; and thus, in the full enjoyment of peace, may you address your fervent prayers for my empire to the Almighty Creator of the Universe, who has supported me with His strong right hand. It seems to be the fact, that those whose lives are passed in anxiety are indolent of spirit, and do not dare raise their hands in supplication for the prosperity of their country. But those who are exempt from all care, and are glad with their whole hearts, are able to direct their sincere prayers for the welfare of the empire to the Most High, who can best further my rule as I propose to reign. Thus should you do in order that, on the happy termination of the Persian war, I may be able to visit Jerusalem, the Holy City, which shall be rebuilt at my expense, as you have desired to see it restored for so many years: then will I unite with you in giving praise to the Almighty."

It is not related what impression was produced by this gracious letter, which, more winning even than Cyrus' missive to the Babylonian exiles, came as a drop of refreshing dew after long drought. A single account, which is borrowed from Jewish tradition, relates that the Jews applied to Julian the following verse (Daniel xi. 34): "Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help." Daniel is thus supposed to have prophesied that after the Jewish nation had suffered at the hands of Gallus, Julian would extend help to them by his support and his promise to rebuild the Temple.

Meanwhile Julian did not forget to act upon his promise. Although abundantly occupied with the preparations for the Persian war, he had nevertheless at heart the restoration of the Temple of Jerusalem from its ruins. For this purpose he appointed a special chief overseer in the person of his best friend, the learned and virtuous Alypius of Antioch, and exhorted him to spare no expense during the rebuilding. The governors of Syria and Palestine received orders to aid Alypius with everything that was necessary. The building materials were already prepared, and workmen were assembled in great numbers for the purpose of clearing away the ruins which had lain heaped upon the site of the Temple ever since its destruction, nearly three hundred years before. The Jews do not seem to have interested themselves in the rebuilding of the Temple, for the Jewish authorities maintain a complete silence concerning this fact, and the stories of the ardor of the Jews for the rebuilding which are related by the later Christian reports are purely fictitious. The distant communities are said to have forwarded sums of money toward the restoration of the Temple, and it is even asserted that women sold their jewelry and brought stones in their laps. But all this was quite unnecessary, for Julian had amply provided both building materials and workmen. The Christians also spread the report that Julian only pretended to be kindly disposed towards the Jews in order to entice them into heathenism. Especially spiteful is the story that the Jews destroyed several churches in Judæa and the neighboring countries, and threatened to inflict as much evil on the Christians as they themselves had suffered at the hands of the Christian emperors. The report that about this period the Christians of Edessa massacred the entire Jewish population of that city is more credible. It may be assumed as a certainty that the hope of re-establishing their state, which had occasioned two or three revolutions, and had cost so many victims, was extinguished in the hearts of the Jews. The restoration of their former magnificence was now only expected at the appearance of the Messiah. Without the latter a Temple would have seemed utterly absurd, according to the views which were entertained at this period, and still less would it have been possible for a Roman emperor to be regarded as the Messiah. The opinion was generally accepted that "God had bound the Jewish nation by oath not to climb over the wall (i. e., re-establish the State by force), nor to rebel against the ruling nations, but to bear their yoke patiently until the coming of the Messiah, and not to attempt to bring about that period by violence."

Meanwhile the Christians looked with envious eyes upon the commencement of the work (spring, 363). The indifference of the Jews seems, however, to have contributed more than anything else to the suspension of the rebuilding, on account of the various obstacles which were encountered. On the occasion of the pulling down of the ruins, and the excavation of the foundations, a fire broke out by which several workmen lost their lives. This subterranean conflagration doubtless occurred in the passages which had formerly existed beneath the Temple, and had its origin in the gases which had long been compressed there, and which, on being suddenly released from pressure, ignited on coming into contact with the air above. These sudden explosions occurred repeatedly, and disheartened the workmen, so that they gradually gave up work. If the Jews had interested themselves more warmly in the rebuilding, it is hardly probable that they would have allowed themselves to be discouraged by such an obstacle, which was anything but invincible; ardent enthusiasm shuns no sacrifice. But deprived of the warm participation of the Jews, Alypius also became less enthusiastic, and waited for further commands from the emperor. Julian, however, is said to have accused the Christians of having caused the fires to break out in the underground passages, and to have threatened to build a prison for Christians out of the ruins of the Temple on his return from the war. But this story, which, like most of those relating to this event, is drawn from Christian sources, is utterly untrustworthy. The Christian authorities of the following generation relate the most wonderful tales of the miracles which are said to have happened during this impious rebuilding, the purpose of all of which was to warn the obdurate Jews and to glorify Christ.

The issue of the Persian war – unhappy as it was for Julian – was also calculated to deprive the Jews of their short-lived exultation, and to prepare a new triumph for the Christians. Julian had concentrated the whole of the Roman forces, and had availed himself of every possible expedient in order not to be inferior in strength to his opponent, Shabur II. Shabur on his side had set himself the task of freeing Asia from the Roman rule. Julian, however, was dreaming the golden dream which had lured many a Roman general, from Crassus and Cæsar downwards, to the region of the Euphrates. His ambition was to plant the Roman eagle on the further side of the Tigris.

Once again Europe and Asia stood face to face. The scene of the war was laid, for the most part, in the province of Jewish Babylonia. It is impossible to determine which side was espoused by the Jews. The town of Firuz-Shabur, which contained many Jewish inhabitants, was obstinately besieged for three days, compelled to capitulate, and finally burnt. The inhabitants escaped in small boats by the canals of the Euphrates. The conduct of the Jewish inhabitants of Firuz-Shabur towards Julian therefore remains uncertain. But the town of Bitra (more correctly Birtha), which was inhabited entirely by Jews, and was surrounded by a low wall, displayed a spirit of hostility; it was completely abandoned by its population, and the soldiers, giving vent to their martial passion, burnt it to the ground. The town of Machuza (Maoga-Malka), which was to a certain extent a suburb of Ctesiphon, was held by a Persian garrison; it was most hotly besieged, and offered so determined a resistance that the entire military force of the Romans hardly sufficed to effect its fall. Machuza, the seat of Raba's academy, whose proud Jewish inhabitants rivaled those of the capital in magnificence, fell ten years after Raba's death (363) under the blows of the Roman catapults, and became a heap of ruins. After the war it was again rebuilt. In spite of the progress which Julian made into the enemy's country, he did not succeed in reaching Ctesiphon. He lost not only the fruits of his victories, but even his life, through his rashness. He was struck down by an arrow, said to have been shot by a Christian belonging to his own army. Calmly, and as becomes a philosopher, Julian breathed his last. It is related that a few minutes before his death he exclaimed: "Thou hast conquered, O Galilæan!"

The death of Julian in the neighborhood of the Tigris (June, 363) deprived the Jews of the last ray of hope for a peaceful and unmolested existence. His favor was, however, so far attended with good effect, that the edicts promulgated against the Jews by Constantine and Constantius were not immediately renewed; Julian's ordinances remained in force in so far as they did not affect the privileges of the Jews. Jovianus, Julian's successor (June, 363 to February, 364), was compelled to conclude an ignominious peace with the victorious Shabur; he lived too short a time to be able to effect any changes. He permitted his subjects to freely declare their adherence to any religion they chose, without thereby incurring any disadvantage. Once again the Roman empire was divided between two rulers, Valentinian I (364–375), and Valens (364–378). The latter, who was Emperor of the East, was an Arian, and had suffered too severely from the powerful Catholic party to be intolerant himself. He protected the Jews and bestowed honors and distinctions upon them. His brother, Valentinian I, the Emperor of the West, likewise chose the policy of tolerance in the struggle between Catholics and Arians, and permitted the profession of either religion without political disadvantages being thereby incurred (371). This toleration was also extended the Jews.

CHAPTER XXII.

THE LAST AMORAÏM

Decline of the Roman Empire – Ashi and the Redaction of the Talmud – Jezdijird II – The Jews under the Emperors Theodosius I and his successors – The extinction of the Patriarchate – Chrysostom and Ambrosius – Fanaticism of the Clergy – Jerome and his Jewish Teachers – Mar-Zutra – Fifth and Sixth Generations of Amoraïm – The Jews under Firuz – Jewish Colonies in India – Completion of the Babylonian Talmud – Its Spirit and Contents.

375–50 °C. E

The period during which the Roman empire was approaching a state of complete dissolution marks an epoch of decay and regeneration, destruction and rejuvenescence, ruin and reconstruction, in the history of the world. The storm, which burst in the north, under the wall of China, brought down a black thunder-cloud in its train, and shattered the giant tree of the Roman empire, which, sapless and leafless, had only continued to exist thus far by the force of gravity; nothing now remained but a wreck of splinters, the toy of every capricious wind. The uncouth Huns, the scourge of God, drove before them horde upon horde, tribe upon tribe, whose names the memory refuses to retain or the tongue to utter. The period of the migration of the nations confirms almost literally the words of the prophet: "The earth staggers like a drunken man, and her sins lie heavy upon her; she falls and cannot rise, and the Lord Zebaoth punishes the bands of heaven in heaven, and the kings of earth upon earth." Small wonder indeed that in the Goths, the first wave of the migration of tribes which inundated and devastated the Roman empire, the Jews did not fail to discover Gog from the land of Magog, of whom a prophet had said: "Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou and all thy bands, and many people with thee" (Ezekiel xxxviii. 9).

In this remarkable alternation of disappearance of nations and their formation, the conviction forced itself upon Jewish thinkers that the Jewish people was eternal: "A nation arises, another vanishes, but Israel alone remains forever." The barbaric tribes, the avengers of the long-enslaved nations, settled on the ruined sites of the Roman empire, wild plants only to be cultivated by the master-hand of history, uncouth savages, to be civilized by earnest teaching. In this iron time, when no man could be certain of the next day, the leaders of Judaism in Palestine and Babylonia felt deeply the necessity of placing the treasure which had been confided to their hands in safety, so that it might not be imperiled by the accidents of the day. An epoch of collection commenced, during which the harvest which had been sown, cultivated, and reaped by their forefathers was brought under shelter. The subject-matter of tradition, which had been so greatly augmented, enriched and purified by a long series of generations and the diversity of schools, was henceforward to be set in order. This tendency of compilation and arrangement was represented by Ashi.

Rabbana Ashi (born 352, died 427) was the son of Simaï, and the descendant of an ancient family. He so early gave evidence of complete maturity of mind, that while still a youth he restored the long-desolate Soranian academy to its former place of honor. He was certainly not more than twenty when he became principal of that school. Coming of a wealthy family, Ashi possessed many forests, the wood of which he had no compunction in selling to feed the holy fire for the worship of the Magi. It is remarkable that nothing is known of the history of his youth and education; there is even no indication of the reason which induced him to infuse new life into the half-decayed Soranian academy; probably Sora was his native town. He pulled down and rebuilt the school which had been erected several centuries previously by Rab, and which was already beginning to exhibit signs of decay; and in order that no delay should occur in the rebuilding, he brought his bed on the site, and remained there night and day until the gutters of the house had been put up. The Sora school was built on an elevation so that it might overlook the whole city. Ashi's splendid qualities so impressed his contemporaries that he was regarded as the supreme authority, a position to which no person had been able to attain since Raba's death. Ashi united thorough knowledge of the entire body of the Law, characteristic of Sora, with Pumbedithan dialectics, and thus satisfied all claims. His contemporaries conferred upon him the distinguishing title of Rabbana (our teacher). During the fifty-two years over which his public labors extended, seven principals succeeded each other in Pumbeditha. Nahardea, which had made no figure since its destruction by Ben-Nazar (Odenath), also began to come into some repute again on account of the academy opened there by Amemar (390–420). But none of these teachers really disputed the supremacy with Ashi, and Sora again occupied the honorable position into which it had been placed by Rab. The oldest Amoraim, Amemar and Mar-Zutra, voluntarily subordinated themselves to Ashi's authority, and resigned to him the task of restoring unity. The most distinguished among them, even the two successive Princes of the Captivity of this period (Mar-Kahana and Mar-Zutra I), submitted to his orders. It was in Sora that the Princes of the Captivity now received the homage of the delegates of all the Babylonian communities; this ceremony had formerly taken place, first at Nahardea, and then, during the prime of its academy, at Pumbeditha. This homage was paid every year on a Sabbath, at the commencement of the month of Marcheshvan (in the autumn), and this Sabbath was known as the "Rigle" of the Prince of the Captivity. The extraordinary assemblies of the people, which met at the command of the Prince of the Captivity, were henceforward also held in Sora, and for this reason the Patriarchs were obliged to repair to that town, even though they had fixed their residence in some other place. Ashi had thus made Sora the center of Jewish life in Babylonia, and had connected it with everything of public or general interest. The splendor with which its numerous assemblies invested it, was so great that Ashi expressed surprise that the heathen Persians could be witnesses of it all, and not feel themselves moved to embrace Judaism.

In consequence of this concentration of power in his own person, Ashi was enabled to undertake a work, the consequences of which were incalculable, both as regards the fate and the development of the Jewish people. He began the gigantic task of collecting and arranging the explanations, deductions, and amplifications of the Mishna, which were included under the name "Talmud." The immediate motive which suggested this undertaking was undoubtedly the consideration that the immense accumulation of matter, the result of the labor of three generations, ought not to be allowed to vanish from memory through lack of interest. This would certainly be the case if some means were not provided of impressing it easily upon the mind. Ashi even then complained of the diminution of the power of memory in his time as compared with times gone by, without, however, taking into account that by reason of the accumulation of matter the memory was infinitely more charged than formerly. His successful treatment of this exuberant material was rendered the easier by the fact that he was permitted to work at it for more than half a century. Every year on the occasion of the assembly of all the members, disciples, and pupils during the Kalla months, certain tractates of the Mishna, together with the Talmudical explanations and corollaries, were thoroughly gone into, and thus in about thirty years more than fifty of them were completely arranged. In the latter half of his period of office Ashi went through the whole of the matter which had thus been put in order for the second time. What remained after this double process of winnowing and testing was accepted as of binding force.

This arrangement of the bulky matter of the Talmud was not committed to writing. The conservation in writing of oral tradition, the incarnation, as it were, of what is spiritual, was still regarded as a crime against religion, more especially at this period, when Christendom had taken possession of the Holy Scriptures as its own spiritual property, and considered itself as the chosen part of Israel. According to the views of the times, Judaism was now possessed of no distinguishing feature, except the Oral Law. This thought frequently found expression in a poetical form – "Moses requested permission to commit to writing the Mishna or Oral Law, but God saw in advance that the nations would one day possess a Greek translation of the Torah, and would affirm: 'We are Israel; we are the children of God,' while the Jewish people would also declare, 'We are God's children,' and He therefore gave a token for this purpose: 'He who possesses my secret (mysterion) is my son.' This secret is the Mishna and the oral exegesis of the Law. Therefore did the prophet Hosea say: 'Were I to write the fulness of the Law, Israel would be accounted as a stranger.'"

It is not at all astonishing that this multitude of ordered details could be retained by the memory, for before the time of Ashi they had been retained though not yet reduced to order. By his compilation of the Talmud, Ashi completed the work which had been begun by Judah two centuries previously. But his task was infinitely more difficult. The Mishna embraced only the plain Halacha in artistically constructed paragraphs of the Law. The Talmud, however, gave also the living part of the development of the Law and its spiritual tenor, and this with dialectic exactitude. The first impulse to the compilation of the Talmud marks one of the most important epochs in Jewish history. From this time forward the Babylonian Talmud (Talmud Babli) became an active, potent, and influential element. Ashi, however, did not entirely complete this gigantic task; for, although he directed his ardor wholly to the work of compilation, the creative power was not so completely conquered either in him or his contemporaries, that they were content to entirely restrict their energies to the work of compilation. On the contrary, Ashi solved many of the questions which had been left doubtful, or had been unsatisfactorily answered by the preceding Amoraïm, and his decisions are as forcible and ingenious as they are simple; in fact, one often wonders how they could have been overlooked by his predecessors. About this time the Jerusalem or Palestinean Talmud was compiled and concluded. The name of the compiler is not known. The latest authorities whose names have been preserved are Samuel bar Bun and Jochanan bar Moryah, contemporaries of Ashi.

The period of Ashi's activity falls within the reign of Jezdijird (400–420), a king of the Sassanian dynasty, who was favorably disposed towards the Jews. The Magians gave to this noble prince the surname of "Al Hatim" (the sinner), because he refused to surrender his own will and allow himself to be ruled by them. He was exceedingly well affected towards the Jews, and at the same time favorably disposed towards the Christians. On the days of homage there were present at his court the three representatives of the Babylonian Jews: Ashi, of Sora; Mar-Zutra, of Pumbeditha; and Amemar, of Nahardea. Huna bar Nathan, who, if he was no Prince of the Captivity, must nevertheless have been possessed of considerable influence, held frequent intercourse with Jezdijird's court. This mark of attention on the part of a Persian king, who proclaimed himself the child of the Sun, a worshiper of Ormuz, and the King of the Kings of Iran, may be regarded as a proof of high favor.