House of Hillel

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"Beit Hillel" redirects here. For the moshav in northern Israel, see Beit Hillel (moshav).

The House of Hillel (also Beit Hillel or the Academy of Hillel), founded by the famed Hillel the Elder, is a school of Jewish law and thought that thrived in first century Jerusalem. The House of Hillel is most widely known for its hundreds of disputes with the Beit Shammai, founded by Shammai, a contemporary of Hillel's. Most of the disputes between the two schools involve Halakha (Jewish law); however, some involve arguments of Jewish philosophy. The final law almost always coincides with Beit Hillel because they constituted the majority; indeed, sometimes it is considered improper, according to Jewish law, to follow the views of Beit Shammai.

Although Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel have hundreds of disputes in the Talmud, Hillel and Shammai themselves only have three recorded disputes. Indeed, the Talmud notes that, with the advent of Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel, "nasseh hatorah kishtei toros" -- the Torah (Jewish law) became like two Torahs. In general, Beit Shammai law is strict, while Beit Hillel law is lenient.

It is important to note, however, that although the schools fought bitterly over matters of Jewish law, they got along pretty well. The Talmud even records that the constituents of the two schools intermarried -- despite the fact that they argued over specific cases relating to the laws of marriage and divorce.