Rabbi Chanina ben Akashya
Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya
Era of the TannaimRabbi Chananya ben Akashya was a Tanna of the Mishnaic period, most likely of the fourth generation of Tannaim (early second century CE). His exact time is unknown, and in rabbinic literature he appears rarely — once in the Mishnah and once in the Tosefta. Yet his single saying i…
Biography
Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya was a Tanna of the Mishnaic period, most likely of the fourth generation of Tannaim (early second century CE). His exact time is unknown, and in rabbinic literature he appears rarely — once in the Mishnah and once in the Tosefta. Yet his single saying in the Mishnah became one of the most famous and recited sayings in the Oral Torah, and is said at the end of the chapters of Pirkei Avot and after every public Torah study, before the Kaddish. He may have been the brother of Rabbi Shimon ben Akashya, also a Tanna who appears in the Mishnah only once. A medieval tradition identifies his tomb near Kfar Chananya in the Galilee.
Life Story
Childhood
He was born in the Land of Israel in the first century CE, during the Mishnaic period. Details of his origin and family are not known. He may have been the brother of Rabbi Shimon ben Akashya, a Tanna who also appears in the Mishnah only once.
Teachers
His teachers are not mentioned explicitly in rabbinic literature. However, his saying in the Tosefta, which deals with the details of placing the parts of the offering, indicates that he held a halachic tradition from the days of the Second Temple.
Students
His disciples are not mentioned explicitly. Yet his saying was preserved and engraved in the memory of the generations, and so he influenced all Israel more than any disciple of a teacher.
Family
He may have been the brother of Rabbi Shimon ben Akashya. A later tradition mentions his wife, buried with him in the cave at Kfar Chananya.
Key Events
He lived in the Mishnaic period, most likely in the fourth generation of Tannaim. He was versed in the laws of sacrifices and in the tradition of the Temple. His famous saying on the abundance of commandments entered the Mishnah and became the formula recited in public after every Torah study.
Miracles
No miracles are recorded in his name in rabbinic literature. Yet the marker of his tomb near Kfar Chananya became a pilgrimage site, and the burial cave contains some twenty-five burial niches — all graves of the righteous, among them, according to tradition, his disciples.
Influence
The influence of Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya lies not in a multitude of sayings but in a single one, which was engraved in the memory of the generations and became the formula recited at the conclusion of every Oral Torah study. Thus he became one of the Tannaim whose influence is felt in every synagogue and study hall to this day.
Death
He passed away in the second century CE. A medieval tradition identifies his tomb near Kfar Chananya in the Galilee, and the marker there is a pilgrimage site agreed upon by all opinions.
His Way and Views
Torah Study
Rabbi Chananya saw the abundance of Torah and commandments as a heavenly gift to Israel: 'The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to merit Israel, therefore He gave them abundant Torah and commandments.' The abundance is not a burden but a merit — for the more ways there are to fulfill, the greater the chance that each person will find the commandment that is theirs.
Halacha
His saying in the Tosefta deals with the details of the sacrificial laws — where to place the parts of the offering prepared for sacrifice — and attests to his expertise in the tradition of the Temple. Another halachic saying of his appears in Masechet Soferim.
Faith
His faith stood on the kindness of Heaven toward Israel. He saw in every commandment an opportunity for merit, and in the abundance of commandments — a multiplication of opportunities for closeness to God. The Rambam's commentary on his saying explains: a single complete commandment is enough to merit the world to come, and the abundance of commandments allows every person to find their own.
Ethics
His way is to see the good in the abundance of demands — not as a burden but as a privilege. This is a hasidic conception of the commandments, which sees in each of them a gateway to holiness and to merit.
Customs
His saying is bound up with the custom of Israel: it is recited at the end of every chapter of Pirkei Avot, and likewise at the conclusion of every Oral Torah study before the Kaddish. The reason: the recitation of Kaddish Derabbanan is contingent on study that includes aggadah, and this saying — which is an exposition of a verse — completes the study.
Character
He is recalled as a Tanna whose voice is heard after hundreds of years, at the conclusion of every study. His figure is that of a sage who said little but whose saying is for the generations — quality over quantity.
Public Role
He lived in the Land of Israel during the Mishnaic period, and was versed in the tradition of the Temple. He is not recalled in dialogues with other sages, and his words are presented as a stand-alone statement.
Famous Quotes
"The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to merit Israel, therefore He gave them abundant Torah and commandments, as it is said: The Lord was pleased, for His righteousness' sake, to magnify the Torah and give it glory"
Famous Stories
The saying of Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya in the Mishnah is one of the most recited in the Oral Torah: 'The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to merit Israel, therefore He gave them abundant Torah and commandments, as it is said: The Lord was pleased, for His righteousness' sake, to magnify the Torah and give it glory.' The meaning: while the children of Noah are commanded in only seven commandments, Israel is commanded in 613 — and this abundance is not a burden but a merit. The Rambam explained: a single complete commandment in deed and in intention for the sake of Heaven is enough to merit the world to come, and the abundance of commandments allows every person to find the commandment that is theirs.
The marker of the tomb of Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya is found near Kfar Chananya in the Galilee, close to the Halfta junction. The cave contains some twenty-five burial niches, and in the past a stone was preserved that marked the place of his burial and that of his wife. Today no trace of the stone remains, and it is not known in which niche they were buried. Yet all the niches are graves of the righteous — the disciples of Rabbi Chananya — and so it is customary to pray at each niche separately and to study from the teaching of Rabbi Chananya at the entrance of the cave, so as to be surely at his exact marker.
Grave Site
Grave Details
- Grave Name
- Tomb of Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya
- City
- Kfar Chananya
- Country
- Israel
Timeline
Birth in the Land of Israel
Activity in the fourth generation of Tannaim (by conjecture)
His saying enters the Mishnah (Masechet Makkot 3:16)
A tradition identifies his tomb at Kfar Chananya
His saying is recited at the end of chapters of Avot and after Torah study
Legacy
The legacy of Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya is a single saying, yet it is one of the most widespread and recited sayings in Israel. His saying — 'The Holy One, blessed be He, desired to merit Israel' — is recited at the end of every chapter of Pirkei Avot and after every Oral Torah study before the Kaddish, and so became the formula that accompanies Israel in every synagogue and study hall. The Rambam's interpretation — that a single complete commandment is enough to merit the world to come — became a foundation in the conception of the commandments in Judaism. The marker of his tomb at Kfar Chananya in the Galilee is a pilgrimage site.