Page "Asher ben Jehiel" Paragraph 3

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.