Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, (Hebrew: ר' אליהו בן שלמה זלמן Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman), also known as the Vilna Gaon (Yiddish: דער װילנער גאון Der Vilner Goen; Polish: Gaon z Wilna, Gaon Wileński; or Elijah of Vilna; Sialiec, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, April 23, 1720 – Vilnius, Russian Empire, October 9, 1797), was a Lithuanian Jewish talmudist, halakhist, kabbalist, and the foremost leader of misnagdic (non-hasidic) Jewry of the past few centuries.
He is commonly referred to or by his Hebrew acronym גר״א Gr״a Gaon Rabbenu Eliyahu "Our teacher Elijah the Genius", or in Modern Hebrew as ha-Gaon mi-Vilna "the genius from Vilnius".
Through his annotations and emendations of Talmudic and other texts, he became one of the most familiar and influential figures in rabbinic study since the Middle Ages. Although he is chronologically one of the Acharonim, some have considered him one of the Rishonim.
Large groups of people, including many yeshivas, uphold the minhag (set customs and rites) named after him, and which is also considered by many to be the prevailing minhag among Ashkenazi Jews in Jerusalem today.
Born in Sielec in the Brest Litovsk Voivodeship (now Syalyets, Belarus), the Gaon displayed extraordinary talent while still a child. By the time he was twenty years old, rabbis were submitting their most difficult halakhic problems to him for legal rulings. He was a prolific author, writing such works as glosses on the Babylonian Talmud and Shulchan Aruch known as Bi'urei ha-Gra "Elaborations by the Gra", a running commentary on the Mishnah, Shenoth Eliyahu "The Years of Elijah", and insights on the Torah entitled Adereth Eliyahu ("The Cloak of Elijah"), published by his son. Various Kabbalistic commentaries bear his name, and he wrote commentaries on the Book of Proverbs and other books of the Hebrew Bible later in life. None of his manuscripts was published in his lifetime.
When Hasidic Judaism became influential in his native town, the Vilna Gaon joined the Misnagdim, the rabbis and heads of Polish communities trying to curb Hasidic influence.
While he advocated studying branches of secular education such as mathematics to better understand rabbinic texts, he harshly condemned the study of philosophy and metaphysics.
Elijah was born to Treina and Shlomo Zalman, a rabbi, in the village of Slać near Brisk, now Brest, Belarus, then in Lithuania, part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, on 15 Nisan 5480 AM (April 23, 1720 CE).
His grandfather was Yissachar Dov, the son of Rabbi Eliyahu Chassid, after whom he was named. Eliyahu was the son of Moshe Kramer, rabbi of Vilne (now Vilnius), and his wife was the granddaughter of Moshe Rivkes, also a rabbi.
Until the age of six, he studied under a rabbi. At that age, he delivered a derasha in the Great Synagogue of Vilna that his father had taught him. At the request of Heschel, the Av Beit Din of Vilne, he added his own scholarly discourse to demonstrate his ability to innovate independently. His book Shnot Eliyahu contains an insight he expressed at age 7. At this age, he lived for about three months in Kaidan with the town's rabbi, David Katzenellenbogen, studying under him and Moses Margolies, author of Pnei Moshe on the Jerusalem Talmud and who later served as rabbi of Kaidan. At age nine, he began studying Kabbalah, devoting several hours daily to studying the Zohar and the writings of the Isaac Luria. By age ten, he studied independently and no longer required teachers. During this period, he befriended Aryeh Leib, who later served as the Av Beit Din of Tsechanovitz. From the age of eight, he engaged in astronomy.
As a young man, he married Chana, daughter of Yehuda Leib of Kaidan (1724–1782). His wife took responsibility for managing the household so he could devote himself entirely to study. After she died in 5543 AM (1783 CE), he requested that the following be inscribed on her tombstone: "Chana passed away in 5543, 5 Kislev. She left no equal or comparison / There is no path or way to recount her praise." Later, he married Gitl, daughter of Meir Luntz from Chełm, who was also a widow.
At around age 20, he traveled to Poland and Germany, passing through Leszno and Berlin, and possibly also Amsterdam. He returned to Vilna in 1745. Over the years, he lived in Vilna but consistently refused to hold an official rabbinic position that would interfere with his studies. Nevertheless, the Vilna community, considering it an honor to have him in their city, granted him a small monthly stipend for his livelihood.
The Vilna Gaon became famous for his extraordinary diligence. His sons recount that throughout his life, he slept only two hours a day, divided into four half-hour segments, ensuring he never slept more than "Sixty Breaths". He dedicated all his time exclusively to Torah study. His student, Chaim of Volozhin, described how, when he was preoccupied with a Talmudic difficulty, he would refrain from eating for days until he found a resolution, appearing emaciated and afflicted.
The Vilna Gaon attained an extraordinary and undisputed status during his lifetime. Among the general non-Hasidic public, his standing was considered exceptional. He was perceived as belonging to the ranks of the Tannaim and Amoraim, the sages of the Talmud, or as akin to the Geonim of Lower Mesopotamia.
Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz wrote:
We regard the Gaon of Vilna as belonging to the ranks of Moses, Ezra, Rabbeinu HaKadosh, Rav Ashi, and the Rambam. The Gaon, through whom Torah was revealed as a sanctified figure destined to illuminate that which had remained in darkness until his time, is considered one of the Rishonim. His level of Ruach HaKodesh (Divine inspiration), his toil, and his profound analytical knowledge of the entirety of Torah as we possess it today—these are beyond comprehension.
Due to this reverence, he was referred to by Litvaks simply as "the Gaon."
The Vilna Gaon advocated for a study approach focused on the peshat (literal meaning) and was himself widely knowledgeable and erudite. His in-law, the author of Chayei Adam, wrote, "The entire Torah was laid out before him like a set table, so that if he was asked about any matter, he would answer instantaneously."