Commentators:R. Chayyim b. Atar (Or HaChayyim)/0

R. Chayyim b. Atar (Or HaChayyim)

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Or HaChayyim

Name	R. Chayyim b. Moshe ibn Atar ר' חיים בן משה אבן עטר
Dates	1696-1743
Location	Morocco / Eretz Yisrael
Works	Or HaChayyim on Torah
Exegetical Characteristics
Influenced by
Impacted on

Background¹

Life

• Name – 
  • Hebrew name – ר' חיים בן משה אבן עטר²
  • _ name – 
• Dates – 1696–1743
• Location – Born in Salé, Morocco, moved to Meknes, Algiers, Leghorn, Acre, and Jerusalem. Traveled extensively throughout Italy.³
• Occupation – After studying Torah in his youth, R. Chayyim entered a business partnership with family members, while also studying and teaching Torah. After moving to Leghorn on his way to Eretz Yisrael, he attracted many students and preached to large audiences.⁴ In Eretz Yisrael, he established yeshivot at Akko and Jerusalem. He gained renown as both a powerful intellect and an exceedingly pious and holy individual.⁵
• Family – R. Chayyim had two wives, one of whom was the daughter of R. Moshe ben Shem-Tov ibn-Attar, his great uncle's son, who was a wealthy businessman.
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• Notable events

Works

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  • Talmudic novellae – 
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  • Responses to the works of others – 
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• Jewish thought – 
• Commonly misattributed to – 

Torah Commentary

Characteristics

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Methods

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Themes

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Textual Issues

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• Textual layers – 

Sources

Significant Influences

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Occasional Usage

Possible Relationship

Impact

Later exegetes

Supercommentaries

¹ This section incorporates information from E. Touitou, רבי חיים בן-אטר פירושו אור החיים על התורה (Jerusalem, 2012), and the Encyclopedia Judaica entry Attar, Hayyim Ben Moses.

² The word "attar" is Arabic for "apothecary" or "spice-dealer." It was used (sometimes in conjunction with "ibn") as a surname for a prominent North African Jewish family, as well as for Sephardic families in other communities. The name variously appears also as Benatar, Abenatar, and Abiatar. See Jewish Encyclopedia entry Attar, Ibn.

³ In an attempt to convince Jews to move with him to the Land of Israel.

⁴ In Leghorn, R. Chayyim achieved a popularity and renown that he never achieved in his home country. Scholars proffer various theories as to why he never achieved great prominence in Morocco. Y. Toledano (נר המערב (Jerusalem, 1911): 154) is of the opinion that conflicts within his family and among others regarding money matters prevented him from gaining recognition. E. Touitou (רבי חיים: 16) surmises, based on R. Chayyim's Torah commentary and other writings, that R. Chayyim's preaching style involved sharp criticism - even of leaders and Torah scholars - and thus may have won him too many opponents.

⁵ R. Chayyim displayed a propensity for asceticism (he is reported, for example, to have fasted for three consecutive days before Purim (see Toledano, נר המערב: 155), and a tendency toward strict interpretation of Halakhah (he took controversial positions against most Moroccan rabbis regarding certain kashrut practices. According to R. Reuven Margoliot, his abundant criticism of Peri Chadash was due to the latter's tendency to rule leniently (see R. Margoliot, תולדות רבנו חיים בן עטר (Lemberg, 1928): 30, note 14).