Background
He was born before the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem sometime before 70 AD to a family of a rich Jew.
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He was born before the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem sometime before 70 AD to a family of a rich Jew.
It is not easy to decide as to his exact attitude towards Judaism. That he refused to accept the current rabbinical views is certain, though the Talmud cites his legal decisions. Most authorities believe that he was a Gnostic; but while it is certain that he was not a Christian, it is possible that he was simply a Sadducee, and thus an opponent not of Judaism but of Pharisaism.
His disciple, the famous Pharisee Meir, remained his steadfast friend, and his efforts to reclaim his former master are among the most pathetic incidents in the Talmud.
In later ages Elisha ("Other One, " as he was named) was regarded as the type of a heretic whose pride of intellect betrayed him into infidelity to law and morals.
Without much appropriateness Elisha has been sometimes described as the "Faust of the Talmud. "
