[Avodah] Beis Shammai vs Beis Hillel, general approaches

[Lisa Liel]

On 10/5/2011 1:29 PM, Micha Berger wrote:
> The best known and best established such approach is al pi Qabbalah, that
> BH is based on midas haRachamim, whereas the Shamutim founded their pesaq
> on midas haDin.
What kabbalah is this?  Do you have a source for it?
> A second and pretty successful approach is that of R' Zevin in LeTorah
> uLeMo'adim, opn ner Chanukah. He says that BH pasqens based on what /is/,
> whereas Beis Shammai pasqens based on potential.
According to R' Nachman Cohen in /Mirrors of Eternity/ and /Esther's 
Plea/, the basic distinction between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai is a 
"mystical" vs. "practical".  Similar in a way to the potential vs. 
actual dichotomy, descriptions in Midrash of Adam HaRishon as a giant 
striding the world are attributed to talmidim of Beit Shammai, while 
descriptions of Adam as a human being are Beit Hillel.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0006RT1DO/
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1877650013

In those two books, he goes through the midrashic machlokot of R' Yehuda 
and R' Nechemia, and between R' Yehoshua and R' Eliezer HaModa'i.

What I found fascinating about that explanation is that this is similar, 
in a way, to the divide between Hasidim and Mitnagdim.  At least as 
they've developed.  With Hasidim taking what's basically a more Beit 
Shammai position.  Which in turn made me think of the statement that in 
the future, the halakha would be like Beit Shammai.  And in many ways, 
this has started to come true, in large if not in every particular.

Lisa

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