Shimon bar Yochai

" are attributed to him. In the Mishnah, he is often referred to as simply "Rabbi Shimon."

His son, Rabbi Eleazar ben Simon was also a noted scholar.

Critic of Rome

According to the Talmud, Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai criticized the Roman government and was forced to go into hiding with his son for thirteen years. They sheltered in a cave in nearby Peki'in where tradition states that next to the mouth of the cave a carob tree sprang up and a spring of fresh water gushed forth. Provided against hunger and thirst they cast off their clothing except during prayers to keep them from wearing out, embedded themselves in the sand up to their necks, and studied the Torah all day long. [Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat, 33b]

According to historian Heinrich Graetz, Rabbi Shimon's anti-Roman sentiments led to his condemnation by Varna c. 161 CE. He escaped this doom and dwelt for some years in a cavern. Emerging from concealment, Rabbi Shimon settled in Tiberias and in other Galilean cities.

Works and legends

He acquired a reputation as a worker of miracles, and on this ground was sent to Rome as an envoy, where (legend tells) he exorcised from the emperor's daughter a demon who had obligingly entered the lady to enable Rabbi Shimon to effect his miracle.

This rabbi bore a large part in the fixation of law, and his decisions are frequently quoted. To him were attributed the important legal homilies called Sifre and Mekhilta, and above all the Zohar, the main work of the Kabbalah.

The fullest account of Rabbi Shimon's teachings is to be found in W Bacher's "Agada der Tannaiten", ii. pp. 70-149. When the Talmud attributes a teaching to Rabbi Shimon without specifying which Rabbi Shimon is meant, it means Shimon bar Yochai.

Yahrzeit

" (the anniversary of the death). Some dispute this.

Unlike other "Yahrzeit"s, this one is widely known as a "Yom Hillula", a day of celebration. This is based on the original text of "Shaar HaKavanot" by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzato, which refers to the day as "Yom Simchato" ("the day of his happiness"), rather than "Yom SheMet" ("the day that he died"). There is thus a very widely observed custom to celebrate on his "yahrzeit", at Meron, the burial place of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and his son, Rabbi Eleazar ben Simon. With torches, song and feasting, the "Yom Hillula" is celebrated by tens of thousands of people. This celebration was a specific request by Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai of his students. It is a custom at the Meron celebrations, dating from the time of Rabbi Isaac Luria, that three-year-old boys are given their first haircuts (called upshirin), while their parents distribute wine and sweets.

While it is widely accepted that Rabbi Shimon and his son were buried somewhere on Mount Meron,citation the building generally accepted as being his grave is an arched structure typical of crusader architecture, which is clearly shown in the photo of the building interior.

References

ee also

*Baqashot
*Bar Yohai, a community in northern Israel named after him

External links

* [http://www.rashbimeron.org All about Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai] Ohel HaRashbi Meron
* [http://www.chabad.org/search/keyword.asp?kid=1417 Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai] chabad.org
* [http://machonshilo.org/component/option,com_docman/task,doc_download/gid,67/Itemid,64/ Audio Lecture Disputing that Lag Ba'Omer is Rashbi's Yahrzeit] on MachonShilo.org

* [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=774&letter=S SIMEON BEN YOḤAI] in the Jewish Encyclopedia