We recently read that Rav Adda bar Abba died prematurely (Bava Batra 22a). Various Pumbeditan Amoraim felt guilty for his death. They each recount their encounter with this colorful character.
Thus, Rav Dimi of Nehardea brought dried figs to Pumbedita on a ship. The Exilarch told fourth-generation Rava to find out if this Rav Dimi was a Torah scholar, in which case they should reserve the market for him — that is, either granting him a temporary monopoly or even granting him, an outsider, access to the market. Rava delegated this task to his faithful student, Rav Adda bar Abba, who posed this question: If an elephant swallowed a wicker basket and defecated it out with its waste, what’s the law? Is it susceptible to ritual impurity? Rav Dimi of Nehardea questioned his interlocutor’s identity, “Are you, mar, Rava?” Rav Adda bar Abba hit him with his shoe and said, “There’s a great difference between me and Rava, but I am your teacher, and your teacher’s teacher is Rava.”
They didn’t grant him selling rights, and his figs spoiled. Rav Dimi of Nehardea complained to third-generation Pumbeditan Rav Yosef, who was still alive, even as Rava and Abaye were running their competing academies. Rav Yosef replied, “He (Hashem) who didn’t delay punishing the humiliation of the King of Edom shouldn’t delay punishing your humiliation.” Thereupon, Rav Adda bar Abba died.
Rav Yosef felt guilty, for he’d effectively cursed him. Rav Dimi of Nehardea felt guilty because it was his dried figs (and humiliation) that prompted this. Abaye felt guilty, for Rav Adda bar Abba would recruit for his teacher Rava, saying, “Instead of gnawing on the bones in Abaye’s academy, better eat fatty meat in Rava’s academy.” Rava felt guilty, saying that he punished him, for at the butcher’s, Rav Adda bar Abba would say that they should serve him before Rava’s servant who was also waiting for Rav Adda bar Abba was greater (presumably than the servant).
Finally, another of Rava’s students, Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak, said that he was guilty of causing this death. Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak headed the kallah lectures, and would prepare his lectures each day with Rav Adda bar Abba’s help, then deliver the lecture. However, that day his colleagues, Rav Pappa and Rav Huna b. Rav Yehoshua, had missed the end of Rava’s lecture and delayed Rav Adda bar Abba, asking him to repeat what Rava said. Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak delayed giving his lecture, until the students kvetched at the late hour. “What is Master waiting for?” He replied. “I’m waiting for Rav Adda bar Abba’s casket.” Thereupon, news arrived that Rav Adda bar Abba had indeed passed away. The Talmudic Narrator concludes that it’s reasonable that Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak indeed caused his death presumably because he explicitly mentioned a casket, and because of the proximity to the fulfillment of his words.
There’s another version of this last story, which didn’t make it into the printed Vilna Shas. This version is found in Florence 8-9, Escorial, and in a different hand in the Paris 1337 manuscript. This variant is introduced with ikka de’amrei, with both stories present. To cite the Florence manuscript: איכ’ דאמ’ דרב נחמ’ בר יצחק אשכחיה לרב אדא בר אהבה אמ’ ל’ ליתי מר לפירקה אמ’ ל’ השתא אתינא נגה ליה ולא אתא אדהכי פתח רב נחמ’ בר יצחק ולא איסתייעא ליה מילתא אמ’ יהא רעוא דלישכיב רב אדא בר אהבה ומסתבר’ דרב נחמ’ ענשיה.
That is, Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak asked Rav Adda bar Abba to attend, and the latter promised to do so. Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak waited a while, but eventually gave up and began the lecture. He messed it up, and blamed it on Rav Adda bar Abba’s lack of input. Thereupon, he said, “May it be the Will that Rav Adda bar Abba die.” This is perhaps even clearer for the Talmudic narrator to conclude that it was Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak’s fault.
Longevity or a Doppelganger?
Tosafot in our sugya note that Rabbenu Chananel’s girsa is Rav Adda bar Abba, rather than Rav Adda bar Ahava. After all, in Kiddushin 72, Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi prophesied on his deathbed: “There’s a place called Akma deAgma in Babylonian; there’s a man named Adda bar Ahava there; today he is sitting in Abraham’s lap.” This is a different person in a very different generation.
Tosafot’s explanation in Kiddushin differs slightly. They note Rashi’s explanation of “sitting in Abraham’s lap” as dying, in which case he cannot be the Rav Adda bar Ahava who appears in the Gemara. (This might be because he died later; it might also be because we see the early Rav Adda bar Ahava I interact with second-generation Rav Huna, cursing his wife Chova.) Alternatively, Tosafot write, “sitting in Abraham’s lap” means that he was circumcised; in which case, he lived an exceedingly long time, from Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi’s death until the days of Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak. Finally, the Ri explains that there were two Amoraim named Rav Adda bar Ahava.
In his “Toledot Tannaim vaAmoraim,” Rav Aaron Hyman distinguishes between two Amoraim. The first is the real Rav Adda bar Ahava, and in the Yerushalmi we see his father’s name as the related Achava —related semantically, as in אהבה ואחוה שלום ורעות, and phonologically, since heh and chet are gutturals. The later Amora is really Rav Adda bar Abba, but scribes often confuse his name due to its similarity to the other Amora and change the patronymic from Abba to Ahava. This seems quite likely. Still, it isn’t truly necessary for the later one to be “bar Abba”. There are plenty of Sages, like Rabbi Eleazar I and II or Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel I and II,who share a name, but the Mishna or Talmud doesn’t disambiguate, either because the underlying texts were localized and didn’t consider another, or because the scholastic social circle with whom they interact usually makes it clear. So, it can be Rav Adda bar Ahava I and II.
Is Longevity Plausible?
The long-lived Rav Adda bar Ahava was circumcised at Rebbe’s death, so how old would that make him? Consider that Rav Yehuda HaNasi died in 217 CE. Rav Pappa, who conversed with him above, delaying him, was born in 300 CE, at which point Rav Adda bar Ahava was 83 years old. Give Rav Pappa 18 years to age, and our hero is 101 years old. This could be considered long-lived, without being impossible Methuselah-type longevity. Conversely, do the story dynamics, such as being subservient to Rava, work well with a centenarian?
Some sugyot suggest longevity. In Taanit 20b, Rabbi Zeira’s students — alternatively, Rav Adda bar Ahava’s students — asked him the reason for his longevity. His listed merits include that he never: became angry with his household, walked before someone greater, thought about Torah matters in filthy alleyways, walked four cubits without engaging in Torah / donning tefillin, took even a brief nap in the study hall, rejoiced at his colleague’s mishap or called his colleague by a derogatory nickname. The parallel printed sugya in Megillah 28a only has Rabbi Zeira, but some manuscripts list both Rabbi Zeira and Rav Adda bar Ahava as alternatives.
In Yerushalmi Taanit 3:11, first-generation Rav’s house was in danger of collapse, but didn’t until Rav Adda bar Achava left. Asked in what merit his house was saved, Rav provided a list that overlaps considerably with the above. This supports that it’s Rav Adda bar Ahava, rather than Rabbi Zeira, even though the merit is not for longevity, but rather for Divine protection. Perhaps longevity was just assumed by the redactor or scribes, because other people grouped in the sugya listed longevity merits. Also, perhaps the same issues bothering Tosafot motivated the Talmudic Narrator / scribes to assume longevity in order to explain why Rav Adda bar Ahava interacts with far-apart generations. The same is true for Rabbi Zeira I and II.
Finally, we see an allusion to Rav Adda bar Ahava I’s death in Nazir 57b / Bava Kamma 80a. In Nazir, Rav Huna’s children have specific forbidden haircuts. In Bava Kamma, Rav Huna has small domesticated animals in Bavel, despite Rav making Bavel like Israel regarding prohibiting it. Rav Adda bar Ahava I questions this conduct, and Rav Huna explains that this is via his wife Chova / Chibba, which might make it permitted. Rav Adda bar Ahava expresses surprise that any of Chova’s children survived. The Gemara concludes: “For all of Rav Adda bar Ahava’s days, none of Rav Huna’s sons (according to some girsaot, specifically from Chova) survived.” This implies he had sons after Rav Adda bar Ahava’s death. Thus, Rav Huna (died 290 or 297 CE) outlived him. 297 – 217 = 80 the age of gevurot, but Rav Adda bar Ahava died somewhat earlier. Still, if students, indeed, asked about longevity rather than Divine protection, 70s might make sense, especially if these are third-generation students of Rav Huna speaking to someone born in the transitional Tanna / Amora period. Longevity doesn’t need to mean that he lasted until the fifth-generation.
Rabbi Dr. Joshua Waxman teaches computer science at Stern College for Women, and his research includes programmatically finding scholars and scholastic relationships in the Babylonian Talmud.
