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Yaakov Elman z"l (1943-2018)

Yeshiva University, Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies, Faculty Member

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*Professor Elman passed away on July 29, 2018. This account is maintained by his students.*
Yaakov Elman z"l was a Professor of Talmud at Yeshiva University's Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies where he held the Herbert S. and Naomi Denenberg Chair in Talmudic Studies.

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Papers by Yaakov Elman z"l (1943-2018)

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “Digestion as a Means of Purification in Fourth and Fifth-Century Sources: A Rabbinic Conundrum and an Avestan Problem,” in Aaron Koller and Daniel Tsadik, eds., Iran, Israel, and the Jews: Symbiosis and Conflict (Eugene, OR: Pickwick; New York: Yeshiva University, 2019), 59-107

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “The Hērbedestān in the Hērbedestān: Priestly Teaching from the Avesta to the Zand,” Irano-Judaica, vol. 7 (2019): 267-294

Pr ie stly Te a ching fr om the Av e sta to the Z a nd 267

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “Samuel’s Scythe-handle: Sasanian Mortgage Law in the Bavli,” Irano-Judaica, vol. 7 (2019): 129-143

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “The Torah of Temporary Marriage: A Study in Cultural History,” in Almut Hintze, et al., eds., A Thousand Judgements: Festschrift for Maria Macuch (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2019), 83-107

Yaakov Elman (z”l) and Mahnaz Moazami, “Some Aspects of Ancient Legal Thought: Functionalism, Conceptualism, and Analogy,” in Michael L. Satlow, ed., Strength to Strength: Essays in Honor of Shaye J.D. Cohen (Providence, Rhode Island: Brown Judaic Studies, 2018), 405-420

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “Dualistic Elements in Babylonian Aggadah,” in Geoffrey Herman and Jeffrey L. Rubenstein, eds., Aggadah of the Bavli and its Cultural World (Providence: Brown Judaic Studies, 2018), 273-311

Yaakov Elman and Mahnaz Moazami, “The Quantification of Religious Obligation in Second Temple Judaism-And Beyond,” in Binyamin Y. Goldstein, et al., eds., HĀ-'ÎSH MŌSHE: Studies in Scriptural Interpretation in the Dead Sea Scrolls in Honor of Moshe J. Bernstein (Leiden: Brill, 2018), 96-135

Yaakov Elman and Mahnaz Moazami, “PV 5.1–4 in the Context of Late Antique Intellectual History,” Bulletin of the Asia Institute 27 (2017): 13-41

Yaakov Elman, “Rav Isaac Hutner's Pahad Yitzhak: A Torah Map of the Human Mind and Psyche in Changing Times,” Stuart Halpern, ed., Books of the People: Revisiting Classic Works of Jewish Thought,” (Jerusalem: Maggid Books, 2017), 301-343

Yaakov Elman, “Some Aspects of Interreligious Polemic in the Babylonian Talmud,” in Isaac Kalimi, ed., Bridging between Sister Religions: Studies of Jewish and Christian Scriptures Offered in Honor of Prof. John T. Townsend (Leiden: Brill, 2016), 175-194

Yaakov Elman and Shai Secunda, “Judaism,” in Yuhan Vevaina and Michael Stausberg, eds., The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Zoroastrianism (Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2015), 423-435

Yaakov Elman, “Shopping in Ctesiphon: A Lesson in Sasanian Commercial Practice,” in Markham J. Geller, ed., The Archaeology and Material Culture of the Babylonian Talmud (Leiden: Brill, 2015), 225-244

Yaakov Elman, “Pahad Yitzhak: A Joyful Song of Affirmation,” Hakirah 20 (Winter 2015): 25-64

In his own lifetime Rav Yitzhak Hutner ‫זצ" ל‬ (1906-1980) was considered something of a paradox ... more In his own lifetime Rav Yitzhak Hutner ‫זצ" ל‬ (1906-1980) was considered something of a paradox and he was certainly an anomaly; he was a Lithuanian rosh yeshiva who in his personal life, at least in his later years, adopted ḥ asidic garb. But he was an anomaly and paradox in a number of other ways. Known as the "Varshaver illuy" even in his youth, and a masterful lamdan at a relatively young age, he published his first sefer with the approbations of the Gedolei Hador at age 26. At the same time he was also a poet and master of prose, an original thinker who produced a theological/psychological system that incorporates elements of many strands of Jewish thought, enriched with insights both from his own preternatural understanding of human nature and behavior, and from that of other sources. Perhaps most of all, he was a consummate educator, who quickly assessed the capabilities and the needs of his students, and nurtured them.

Prods Oktor Skjaero and Yaakov Elman, “Concepts of Pollution in Late Sasanian Iran: Does Pollution Need Stairs, and Does It Fill Space?” ARAM 26:1-2 (2014): 21-45

Dealing with the inevitability of death and its earthly detritus-the remains of the deceased-are ... more Dealing with the inevitability of death and its earthly detritus-the remains of the deceased-are not only universals in human existence, but were also almost certainly the original impulses to religious development. Though all religions deal with death and its aftermaths-funerals, mourning-only some of them elaborate the rituals surrounding death with a scholastic discourse that eventually develops into a labyrinthine scholastic superstructure of purity and pollution.

Yaakov Elman, “Contrasting Intellectual Trajectories: Iran and Israel in Mesopotamia,” in Uri Gabbay and Shai Secunda, eds., Encounters by the Rivers of Babylon: Scholarly Conversations Between Jews, Iranians and Babylonians in Antiquity (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2014), 7-105

Yaakov Elman, “Striving for Meaning: A Short History of Rabbinic Omnisignificance,” in Sheldon Pollock, Benjamin A. Elman, and Ku-ming Kevin Chang, eds., World Philology (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2014), 62-91, 343-345, 394-398

Yaakov Elman, “Autonomy and Its Discontents: A Meditation on Pahad Yitshak,” Tradition 47:2 (Summer 2014): 7-40

Yaakov Elman, “Saffron, Spices, and Sorceresses: Magic Bowls and the Bavli,” in Kimberly B. Stratton and Dayna Kalleres, eds., Daughters of Hecate: Women and Magic in the Ancient World (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014), 365-385

three important collections of Babylonian magic bowls have been published in the last few years, ... more three important collections of Babylonian magic bowls have been published in the last few years, thus adding to our collection of published texts, and it seems an appropriate time to revisit the question of the relationship of the Sasanian rabbinic elite to the use of amulets and (perhaps) magic bowls, and to investigate yet another issue which has not yet been settled in any definitive way: the question of whether women were involved in the production of these bowls.

Yaakov Elman, “Commercial Law in Rome and Ctesiphon: Roman Jurisconsults, Rabbis and Sasanian Dastwars on Risk,” in Ronit Nikolsky and Tal Ilan, eds., Rabbinic Traditions between Palestine and Babylonia (Leiden: Brill, 2014), 250-283

Mishnah: Fraud is constituted by [an overcharge of] four silver [ma'ahs] in twenty-four, which is... more Mishnah: Fraud is constituted by [an overcharge of] four silver [ma'ahs] in twenty-four, which is a sela, [hence,] a sixth of the purchase. Until what time is one permitted to revoke [the sale]? Until he can show [the article] to a merchant or a relative. Rabbi Tarfon ruled in Lod that fraud is constituted by eight silver [ma'ahs] in twenty-four, which is a sela, [hence] a third of the purchase, at which

Yaakov Elman, “Levirate Marriage, Sturih and Zikkah in the Talmuds,” in Arnon Atzmon and Tzur Shafir, eds., Ke-Tavor Be-Harim: Studies in Rabbinic Literature Presented to Joseph Tabory (Alon Shvut: Tevunot, 2013), 139-163 (Hebrew)

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “Digestion as a Means of Purification in Fourth and Fifth-Century Sources: A Rabbinic Conundrum and an Avestan Problem,” in Aaron Koller and Daniel Tsadik, eds., Iran, Israel, and the Jews: Symbiosis and Conflict (Eugene, OR: Pickwick; New York: Yeshiva University, 2019), 59-107

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “The Hērbedestān in the Hērbedestān: Priestly Teaching from the Avesta to the Zand,” Irano-Judaica, vol. 7 (2019): 267-294

Pr ie stly Te a ching fr om the Av e sta to the Z a nd 267

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “Samuel’s Scythe-handle: Sasanian Mortgage Law in the Bavli,” Irano-Judaica, vol. 7 (2019): 129-143

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “The Torah of Temporary Marriage: A Study in Cultural History,” in Almut Hintze, et al., eds., A Thousand Judgements: Festschrift for Maria Macuch (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2019), 83-107

Yaakov Elman (z”l) and Mahnaz Moazami, “Some Aspects of Ancient Legal Thought: Functionalism, Conceptualism, and Analogy,” in Michael L. Satlow, ed., Strength to Strength: Essays in Honor of Shaye J.D. Cohen (Providence, Rhode Island: Brown Judaic Studies, 2018), 405-420

Yaakov Elman (z”l), “Dualistic Elements in Babylonian Aggadah,” in Geoffrey Herman and Jeffrey L. Rubenstein, eds., Aggadah of the Bavli and its Cultural World (Providence: Brown Judaic Studies, 2018), 273-311

Yaakov Elman and Mahnaz Moazami, “The Quantification of Religious Obligation in Second Temple Judaism-And Beyond,” in Binyamin Y. Goldstein, et al., eds., HĀ-'ÎSH MŌSHE: Studies in Scriptural Interpretation in the Dead Sea Scrolls in Honor of Moshe J. Bernstein (Leiden: Brill, 2018), 96-135

Yaakov Elman and Mahnaz Moazami, “PV 5.1–4 in the Context of Late Antique Intellectual History,” Bulletin of the Asia Institute 27 (2017): 13-41

Yaakov Elman, “Rav Isaac Hutner's Pahad Yitzhak: A Torah Map of the Human Mind and Psyche in Changing Times,” Stuart Halpern, ed., Books of the People: Revisiting Classic Works of Jewish Thought,” (Jerusalem: Maggid Books, 2017), 301-343

Yaakov Elman, “Some Aspects of Interreligious Polemic in the Babylonian Talmud,” in Isaac Kalimi, ed., Bridging between Sister Religions: Studies of Jewish and Christian Scriptures Offered in Honor of Prof. John T. Townsend (Leiden: Brill, 2016), 175-194

Yaakov Elman and Shai Secunda, “Judaism,” in Yuhan Vevaina and Michael Stausberg, eds., The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Zoroastrianism (Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2015), 423-435

Yaakov Elman, “Shopping in Ctesiphon: A Lesson in Sasanian Commercial Practice,” in Markham J. Geller, ed., The Archaeology and Material Culture of the Babylonian Talmud (Leiden: Brill, 2015), 225-244

Yaakov Elman, “Pahad Yitzhak: A Joyful Song of Affirmation,” Hakirah 20 (Winter 2015): 25-64

In his own lifetime Rav Yitzhak Hutner ‫זצ" ל‬ (1906-1980) was considered something of a paradox ... more In his own lifetime Rav Yitzhak Hutner ‫זצ" ל‬ (1906-1980) was considered something of a paradox and he was certainly an anomaly; he was a Lithuanian rosh yeshiva who in his personal life, at least in his later years, adopted ḥ asidic garb. But he was an anomaly and paradox in a number of other ways. Known as the "Varshaver illuy" even in his youth, and a masterful lamdan at a relatively young age, he published his first sefer with the approbations of the Gedolei Hador at age 26. At the same time he was also a poet and master of prose, an original thinker who produced a theological/psychological system that incorporates elements of many strands of Jewish thought, enriched with insights both from his own preternatural understanding of human nature and behavior, and from that of other sources. Perhaps most of all, he was a consummate educator, who quickly assessed the capabilities and the needs of his students, and nurtured them.

Prods Oktor Skjaero and Yaakov Elman, “Concepts of Pollution in Late Sasanian Iran: Does Pollution Need Stairs, and Does It Fill Space?” ARAM 26:1-2 (2014): 21-45

Dealing with the inevitability of death and its earthly detritus-the remains of the deceased-are ... more Dealing with the inevitability of death and its earthly detritus-the remains of the deceased-are not only universals in human existence, but were also almost certainly the original impulses to religious development. Though all religions deal with death and its aftermaths-funerals, mourning-only some of them elaborate the rituals surrounding death with a scholastic discourse that eventually develops into a labyrinthine scholastic superstructure of purity and pollution.

Yaakov Elman, “Contrasting Intellectual Trajectories: Iran and Israel in Mesopotamia,” in Uri Gabbay and Shai Secunda, eds., Encounters by the Rivers of Babylon: Scholarly Conversations Between Jews, Iranians and Babylonians in Antiquity (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2014), 7-105

Yaakov Elman, “Striving for Meaning: A Short History of Rabbinic Omnisignificance,” in Sheldon Pollock, Benjamin A. Elman, and Ku-ming Kevin Chang, eds., World Philology (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2014), 62-91, 343-345, 394-398

Yaakov Elman, “Autonomy and Its Discontents: A Meditation on Pahad Yitshak,” Tradition 47:2 (Summer 2014): 7-40

Yaakov Elman, “Saffron, Spices, and Sorceresses: Magic Bowls and the Bavli,” in Kimberly B. Stratton and Dayna Kalleres, eds., Daughters of Hecate: Women and Magic in the Ancient World (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014), 365-385

three important collections of Babylonian magic bowls have been published in the last few years, ... more three important collections of Babylonian magic bowls have been published in the last few years, thus adding to our collection of published texts, and it seems an appropriate time to revisit the question of the relationship of the Sasanian rabbinic elite to the use of amulets and (perhaps) magic bowls, and to investigate yet another issue which has not yet been settled in any definitive way: the question of whether women were involved in the production of these bowls.

Yaakov Elman, “Commercial Law in Rome and Ctesiphon: Roman Jurisconsults, Rabbis and Sasanian Dastwars on Risk,” in Ronit Nikolsky and Tal Ilan, eds., Rabbinic Traditions between Palestine and Babylonia (Leiden: Brill, 2014), 250-283

Mishnah: Fraud is constituted by [an overcharge of] four silver [ma'ahs] in twenty-four, which is... more Mishnah: Fraud is constituted by [an overcharge of] four silver [ma'ahs] in twenty-four, which is a sela, [hence,] a sixth of the purchase. Until what time is one permitted to revoke [the sale]? Until he can show [the article] to a merchant or a relative. Rabbi Tarfon ruled in Lod that fraud is constituted by eight silver [ma'ahs] in twenty-four, which is a sela, [hence] a third of the purchase, at which

Yaakov Elman, “Levirate Marriage, Sturih and Zikkah in the Talmuds,” in Arnon Atzmon and Tzur Shafir, eds., Ke-Tavor Be-Harim: Studies in Rabbinic Literature Presented to Joseph Tabory (Alon Shvut: Tevunot, 2013), 139-163 (Hebrew)