Ethical Will

Elijah ben Solomon Zalman (Eliyahu ben Shelomoh Zalman) was born, probably in Vilna, into a rabbinical family. He mastered Jewish scholarly texts at a young age, lived in Poland and Germany for a time, and returned to Vilna in 1748. Despite the fact that he held no formal position in Jewish communal affairs, his followers recognized him as ha-ga’on he-ḥasid, a genius, a sage, and an authority on Jewish legal matters; he was additionally called upon to offer opinions on scientific and educational issues. The Ga'on was a foe of the early Enlightenment, but he opposed Hasidism even more, wanting to excommunicate its adherents.