רב אחא בר אביי

Rav Acha bar Abaye was an amora whose words appear in the give-and-take of the Talmud. In the passages preserved in our library he is found addressing his questions to Ravina, sharpening the analysis of the matters under discussion.

In Bava Kamma he challenges Ravina on the dispute between Abaye and Rava, pressing that according to Rava’s view the case ought to be set up differently — asking why it is established as an animal already forewarned (mu’ad) rather than one not yet forewarned (tam). In Shabbat he again turns to Ravina, probing the case at hand and asking what circumstances are intended, whether a matter done unwittingly where the person did not become aware of it. In both places his role is to question and clarify, drawing out the precise terms of the discussion.