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{{Short description|10th century gaon of the Academy of Pumbeditha}}
'''Sherira bar Hanina''' ([[Hebrew]]: שרירא בר חנינא) more commonly known as '''Sherira Gaon''' ([[Hebrew]]: שרירא גאון; c. 906
==Life==
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Sherira officiated first as chief judge. While in that office, he refused to recognize the election of [[Nehemiah ben Kohen Tzedek]] as gaon in 960. On Nehemiah's death in 968 C.E., Sherira was elected gaon of the Academy of Pumbedita, soon after which he appointed his son, [[Hai Gaon|Hai]], chief judge in his stead.<ref>Sherira, l.c. i. 41</ref>
In 997, he and his son were maliciously denounced by enemies to the [[caliph]] [[al-Qadir]], though the nature of the accusation is unknown. He and his son were imprisoned and deprived of their property, even of the necessaries of life. Though the incarceration was brief, Sherira was now in very bad health. Sherira resigned the gaonate in 998 C.E., appointing his son as his successor.<ref name=Daud /> Sherira died soon after, circa 1006 C.E.<ref>Abraham ibn Daud, "Sefer ha-Ḳabbalah," in [[Adolf Neubauer]], "Medieval Jewish Chronicles" (Oxford, 1887) {{ISBN|1-145-09335-3}}, i. 66-67, according to Weiss's emendation in "Dor," v. 174</ref> He was the alleged father in law of [[Elijah ben Menahem Ha-Zaken]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=ELIJAH BEN MENAHEM HA-ZAḲEN - JewishEncyclopedia.com|url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/5662-elijah-ben-menahem-ha-zaken|access-date=2020-09-12|website=www.jewishencyclopedia.com}}</ref>
==His
As director of the academy he sought to reach pupils both near and far, and many of his [[responsa]] have been preserved in the geonic collections and in the works containing the earlier decisions. His responsa are similar to the geonic responsa in general, a majority of them dealing with questions of religious
Indeed, his literary activity was confined to Talmudic and to related subjects. He was not greatly interested in Arabic literature, although he knew enough Arabic to be able to write in that language those of his decisions that were addressed to communities in Muslim countries. Generally he preferred to use Hebrew or Aramaic for that purpose.
Sherira was noted for the nobility and seriousness of his character. As a judge he
Sherira is thought by some to have been a student of [[Kabbalah|kabbalistic mysticism]]; but when asked about the mystical works "[[Shi'ur Komah]]" and "Hekalot" and whether they represented ancient traditions (originating with [[R. Ishmael]] and [[Rabbi Akiva|R. Akiva]]), he replied in a responsum<ref>"Sha'are Teshubah," No. 122</ref> that the passage in "Shi'ur Ḳomah" ascribing human organs to God embodies profound mysteries, but must not be taken literally. Sherira wrote a work on the Talmud, under the title "Megillat Setarim." In this work he seems to have discussed the importance of the [[aggadah]];<ref>Aboab, introduction to "Menorat ha-Ma'or"</ref> but the portion of the work containing his opinions on this subject has been lost.
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==His circular letter==
{{Main|Iggeret of Rabbi Sherira Gaon}}
Sherira's seminal work for which he is most renowned is his Epistle, or ''Iggeret'', written to Rabbi [[Jacob ben Nissim]] of [[Kairouan]], and where he addressed the question of how the [[Talmud]] was formulated, and brings down a chronological list of the ''[[geonim]]'' who officiated in Babylonia during the period of the [[Exilarchs]] (''Resh Galutha''). This ''Iggeret'' is considered by many to be one of the classics in Jewish historiography.<ref>{{cite book | last = Gaon |first = Sherira |author-link=Sherira Gaon |title=The Iggeres of Rav Sherira Gaon |translator=[[Nosson Dovid Rabinowich]] | publisher=Rabbi Jacob Joseph School Press - Ahavath Torah Institute Moznaim|date=1988 |location=Jerusalem|page=Preface |language=en|oclc=923562173
==See also==
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==References==
{{reflist}}
{{JewishEncyclopedia|url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=617&letter=S&search=sherira|title=SHERIRA B. ḤANINA}}
*Brody, Robert, ''The Geonim of Babylonia and the Shaping of Medieval Jewish Culture'', Yale University Press 1998, repr. 2012: {{ISBN|978-0300189322}}
*David J. E, “‘As it was Written in the Book of Adam’ The Chronology of the Halakhah and the Mythical Perception of History in the Late Pumbeditian Thought” Tarbitz, 74:2 (2006).(Heb.)
==External links==
* [http://jewishhistorylectures.org/2013/10/27/rav-sherira-gaon-the-jews-of-babylon-next-week-saadia-gaon/ Lecture on Rav Sherira Gaon] by [[Henry Abramson|Dr. Henry Abramson]]
* Lecture, {{YouTube|bw_vJ5WpJv8|Henry Abramson: Letter of Rav Sherira Gaon (First Person Accounts in Jewish History)}}, Jan 2020.
* ''[
* [http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/112507/jewish/Rav-Sherira-Gaon.htm Chabad.org Rav Sherira Gaon]
{{S-start}}
{{Succession box
| title = [[Gaon (Hebrew)|Gaon]] of the [[Pumbedita Academy]]
| years =
| before = [[Nehemiah ben Kohen Tzedek]]
| after = [[Hai Gaon]]
|