[6] Then Samuel's father, who was himself a prominent teacher of the Law, recognized as such even by Rav,[7] undertook to instruct the boy.
As he seems to have been unequal to this task he sent him to Nisibis to attend the school of the rabbi who had predicted the boy's birth, that he might there acquire a knowledge of the Law.
On his return to Nehardea he studied under Levi ben Sisi, who was in Babylonia before the death of Yehuda Ha-Nasi,[9] and who exerted a great influence on Samuel's development.
As he was especially well versed in civil law, the exilarch Mar Ukva, who was his pupil, appointed him judge of the bet din at Nehardea, where he was associated with his friend the learned and clever Karna.
Young men taking up the study of the Law there were no longer obliged to go to Israel, since they had the foremost teachers at home.
[17] The Academy of Nehardea was now the only one in Babylon, and its director, Samuel, who survived Rav about ten years, was regarded as the highest authority by the Babylonian Jews.
They were taken to Tzippori, in Israel, where they were ransomed by coreligionists, but both died at an early age after having been married successively to a relative.
Thus, although the Jews had their own civil courts, Samuel thought that the Persian law should be taken into account and that various Jewish regulations should be modified according to it.
[22] Due to his loyalty to the government and his friendship with the Sassanid king, Shapur I, Samuel was called Shabur Malka.
[23] Fürst[24] and Rapoport[25] refer, each differently, the name of Aryok, given to Samuel,[26] to his close relations with the Neo-Persians and their king.
[27] As a man, Samuel was distinguished for his modesty, gentleness, and unselfishness, being always ready to subordinate his own interests to those of the community.
[45] Samuel did much to elucidate the Mishnah, both by his textual explanations[46] and by his precise paraphrasing of ambiguous expressions and his references to other traditions.
[47] Samuel seems to have possessed a thorough knowledge of the science of medicine as it was known in his day; this is evident from many of his medical maxims and dietetic rules scattered through the Talmud.
[50] He claimed to possess cures for most diseases,[51] and was especially skillful in treating the eye;[52] he discovered an eye-salve which was known as the "killurin [κολλύριον] of Mar Samuel," although he himself said that bathing the eyes with cold water in the morning and bathing hands and feet with warm water in the evening were better than all the eye-salves in the world.
From the scattered references in the Talmud it is impossible to determine exactly his proficiency in astronomy; but he knew how to solve many mathematics problems and how to explain many phenomena.
[57] Samuel devoted himself especially to that branch of applied astronomy that deals with calendric science, which he taught to his colleagues and pupils.
His studies of the moon enabled him to predict the beginning of the month as it was determined in Israel, and he claimed to be able to remove the necessity of celebrating double holy days in the Diaspora.
[58] He also computed a Hebrew calendar for sixty years, which he subsequently sent to R. Yohanan, the head of the Israeli teachers, as a proof of his knowledge.
On one occasion Samuel even made his love for his own people subsidiary to his loyalty to the Persian king and to his strict view of the duties of a citizen; for when the news came that the Persians, on capturing Mazaca, had killed 12,000 Jews who had obstinately opposed them, Samuel refrained from displaying any sorrow.
Therefore, those Jews who fought on the side of the Roman Emperor Julian were prolonging the exile and not worthy of being mourned.
[65] Samuel declared that "There will be no difference between this world and the messianic age, except for [the ending of] subjugation [of Israel] to [foreign] kingdoms".