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In Hebrew. 142 pages. 315 x 202 mm. Stained soiled. Title page's blank bottom margin cut. With Rosh's commentary and around it Sha'ar Asher (commentary), and Gevul Asher (new interpretation] both by Rabbi Yaakov Leib, Judge of Jewish Court in the community of Roistitz in Mahren (now in Czech Republic), son of Rabbi Mordechai Madil Ashkenazi, the chief judge in the Jewish court of Dreznitz. Rabbi Asher ben Jehiel (Yechiel, sometimes Asheri) was an eminent rabbi and Talmudist best known for his abstract of Talmudic law. He is often referred to as Rabbenu Asher, ?our Rabbi Asher? or by the Hebrew acronym for this title, the ROSH. Born 1250 or 1259, probably in Cologne. Died October 24, 1327 (9 Khesvan) in Toledo, Spain. He was an eminent rabbi and Talmudist best known for his abstract of Talmudic law. He is often referred to as Rabbenu Asher, ?our Rabbi Asher? or by the Hebrew acronym for this title, the ROSH (literally "Head"). His father was a Talmudist, and one of his ancestors was Rabbi Eliezer ben Nathan (the RaABaN). Asher had 8 sons, the most prominent of whom were Judah and Jacob, author of the Arba'ah Turim, a code of Jewish law. His primary teacher was the Tosafist Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg, then in Worms. In addition to his studies, ROSH worked in money lending, and according to his own statement, was independently wealthy. In 1286, Emperor Rudolf I (Holy Roman Empire) began new persecution of the Jews, and Rabbi Meir left Germany, but was captured and imprisoned. The ROSH raised a ransom for his release, but Rabbi Meir refused it because it would have encouraged the imprisonment of other rabbis. The Rosh assumed Rabbi Meir's position in Worms, but was forced to emigrate (probably as a blackmail victim of the government, which sought his fortune). He first settled in southern France, and then in Toledo, Spain, where he became rabbi on the recommendation of Rabbi Solomon ben Abraham Aderet (RaShBA). Rabbenu Asher's son Judah testified to the fact that he died in poverty. His known surviving children were said to have been killed in the ensuing persecutions that affected Spain in 1392. Rabbenu Asher possessed "methodical and systematic" Talmudic knowledge, and was distinguished for his ability to adumbrate long Talmudic discussions. The ROSH, influenced by his teacher Rabbi Meir, was averse to lenient decisions in halakha, even when theoretically justified. (Several of his rulings which may appear lenient, are actually strictures: his decision against praying more than three times a day is, in fact, limiting. Similarly, his assertion that the phrase halacha le-Moshe me-Sinai -"an oral law revealed to Moses on Sinai" -does not always bear a literal meaning but often signifies a universally adopted custom, is not usually taken as a liberal interpretation.) The ROSH was, however, known for his independent legal reasoning: "We must not be guided in our decisions by the admiration of great men, and in the event of a law not being clearly stated in the Talmud, we are not bound to accept it, even if it be based on the works of the Geonim." (For instance, the ROSH ruled that the liturgy of the Geonim was not subject to the Talmudic rule against change in the prayers.) Rabbenu Asher was opposed to the study of secular knowledge, especially philosophy. He held that philosophy is based on critical research, whereas religion is based on tradition and the two are thus "incapable of harmonization". He said that "none that go unto her may return" -in fact, he thanked God for having saved him from its influence, and boasted of possessing no knowledge outside the Torah. He attempted to issue a decree against the study of non-Jewish learning. One effect of this attitude was to limit his influence on secular Spanish Jewry. At the same time, within rabbinic circles, "he transplanted the strict and narrow Talmudic spirit from Germany to Spain", and this, in some measure, turned Spanish Jews from secular research to the study of the Talmud.
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