Nehunya ben ha-Kanah
Encyclopedia
Nehunya ben ha-Kanah was a Tanna
of the 1st and 2nd centuries. It appears from B. B.
10b that Neḥunya was a contemporary, but not a pupil, of Johanan b. Zakkai. He was the teacher of Ishmael b. Elisha. Neḥunya was rich and had a large retinue of servants; but he was distinguished for his meekness and forgiving nature, to which he attributed his attainment of great age (Meg. 28a); two short prayers composed by him exhibit the same qualities (Ber.
iv. 2; Yer. Ber. iv. 2).
According to the statement of R. Johanan (Shebu. 26a), Neḥunya interpreted the entire Torah
by the hermeneutic
rule known as the "general and particular" ("kelal u-feraṭ"), which rule has also been adopted by his pupil R. Ishmael in eight of his 13 hermeneutic rules. Neḥunya is frequently mentioned in the Talmud
; in Ḥul. 129b he is referred to as the antagonist of Eliezer and Joshua in regard to a halakah (comp., however, Eduy. vi. 2). He said that the Pharaoh of the Exodus
was rescued from the Red Sea
, that he repented, that he afterward reigned in Nineveh
, and that it was he who in the time of Jonah
exhorted the inhabitants of Nineveh to repentance (Pirḳe R. El. xliii.). Neḥunya is known also for his ethical saying: "Whoso receives upon him the yoke of the Torah, from him is removed the yoke of royalty and that of worldly care; and whoso throws off the yoke of the Torah, upon him is laid the yoke of royalty and that of worldly care" (Ab. iii. 6; Ab. R. N. recension B, xxxii. [ed. S. Schechter, p. 68]).
As Ishmael b. Elisha, Neḥunya's disciple, is regarded by the kabalists as their chief representative, Neḥunya is considered to have been Ishmael's teacher in mysticism also. He is generally supposed to have been the author of the daily prayer beginning אנא בכח, the initials of which form the forty-two-lettered name of God. He is also supposed by some to have been the author of the Bahir
and of the Sefer ha-Peli'ah.
Tannaim
The Tannaim were the Rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 70-200 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also referred to as the Mishnaic period, lasted about 130 years...
of the 1st and 2nd centuries. It appears from B. B.
Bava Batra
Bava Batra is the third of the three tractates in the Talmud in the order Nezikin; it deals with a person's responsibilities and rights as the owner of property. It is part of Judaism's oral law...
10b that Neḥunya was a contemporary, but not a pupil, of Johanan b. Zakkai. He was the teacher of Ishmael b. Elisha. Neḥunya was rich and had a large retinue of servants; but he was distinguished for his meekness and forgiving nature, to which he attributed his attainment of great age (Meg. 28a); two short prayers composed by him exhibit the same qualities (Ber.
Berakhot (Talmud)
Berachot is the first tractate of Seder Zeraim, a collection of the Mishnah that primarily deals with laws relating to plants and farming...
iv. 2; Yer. Ber. iv. 2).
According to the statement of R. Johanan (Shebu. 26a), Neḥunya interpreted the entire Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
by the hermeneutic
Talmudical Hermeneutics
Talmudical Hermeneutics is the science which defines the rules and methods for the investigation and exact determination of the meaning of the Scriptures, both legal and historical...
rule known as the "general and particular" ("kelal u-feraṭ"), which rule has also been adopted by his pupil R. Ishmael in eight of his 13 hermeneutic rules. Neḥunya is frequently mentioned in the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
; in Ḥul. 129b he is referred to as the antagonist of Eliezer and Joshua in regard to a halakah (comp., however, Eduy. vi. 2). He said that the Pharaoh of the Exodus
The Exodus
The Exodus is the story of the departure of the Israelites from ancient Egypt described in the Hebrew Bible.Narrowly defined, the term refers only to the departure from Egypt described in the Book of Exodus; more widely, it takes in the subsequent law-givings and wanderings in the wilderness...
was rescued from the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
, that he repented, that he afterward reigned in Nineveh
Nineveh
Nineveh was an ancient Assyrian city on the eastern bank of the Tigris River, and capital of the Neo Assyrian Empire. Its ruins are across the river from the modern-day major city of Mosul, in the Ninawa Governorate of Iraq....
, and that it was he who in the time of Jonah
Jonah
Jonah is the name given in the Hebrew Bible to a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th century BC, the eponymous central character in the Book of Jonah, famous for being swallowed by a fish or a whale, depending on translation...
exhorted the inhabitants of Nineveh to repentance (Pirḳe R. El. xliii.). Neḥunya is known also for his ethical saying: "Whoso receives upon him the yoke of the Torah, from him is removed the yoke of royalty and that of worldly care; and whoso throws off the yoke of the Torah, upon him is laid the yoke of royalty and that of worldly care" (Ab. iii. 6; Ab. R. N. recension B, xxxii. [ed. S. Schechter, p. 68]).
As Ishmael b. Elisha, Neḥunya's disciple, is regarded by the kabalists as their chief representative, Neḥunya is considered to have been Ishmael's teacher in mysticism also. He is generally supposed to have been the author of the daily prayer beginning אנא בכח, the initials of which form the forty-two-lettered name of God. He is also supposed by some to have been the author of the Bahir
Bahir
Bahir or Sefer Ha-Bahir סֵפֶר הַבָּהִיר is an anonymous mystical work, attributed to a 1st century rabbinic sage Nehunya ben ha-Kanah because it begins with the words, "R. Nehunya Ben Ha-Kanah said"...
and of the Sefer ha-Peli'ah.
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography
- W. Bacher, Ag. Tan. i. 54-56;
- Z. Frankel, Darke ha-Mishnah, p. 99;
- Rabbi Jehiel ben-Szlomo Heilprin, Seder ha-Dorot, ii.;
- Moritz SteinschneiderMoritz SteinschneiderMoritz Steinschneider was a Bohemian bibliographer and Orientalist. He received his early instruction in Hebrew from his father, Jacob Steinschneider , who was not only an expert Talmudist, but was also well versed in secular science...
, Cat. Bodl. cols. 2056 et seq.
External links
- Jewish Encyclopedia article for Nehunya ben ha-Kanah, by Wilhelm BacherWilhelm BacherWilhelm Bacher was a Jewish Hungarian scholar, rabbi, Orientalist and linguist, born in Liptó-Szent-Miklós, Hungary to the Hebrew writer Simon Bacher. Wilhelm was himself an incredibly prolific writer, authoring or co-authoring approximately 750 works in an unfortunately short life...
and M. Seligsohn.