Vilna gaon biography samples

Elijah ben Shlomo Zalman, (Hebrew: ר' אליהו בן שלמה זלמן‎) known as the Vilna Gaon or Elijah of Vilna and simply by his Hebrew acronym Gra ("Gaon Rabbenu Eliyahu"), (b.

Vilnius April 23, 1720, d. Vilaus October 9, 1797), was a Talmudist, halachist, kabbalist, and the foremost leader of non-hasidic Jewry of the past few centuries.

Vilna gaon biography samples free

He is commonly referred to in Hebrew as ha'Gaon ha'Chasid mi'Vilna, "the saintly genius from Vilnius."

He was one of the most influential Rabbinic authorities since the Middle Ages, and – although he is counted among the sages known as the Acharonim – he is held by many authorities after him as belonging to the Rishonim (Rabbinic authorities of the Middle Ages).

Large groups of people, including many yeshivas, uphold the set of Jewish customs and rites (minhag), the "minhag ha-Gra," which is named for him, and which is also considered by many to be the prevailing Ashkenazi minhag in Jerusalem.

The Gaon w