Rabbi Tarfon

Rabbi Tarfon or Tarphon (Hebrew: רבי טרפון, from the Greek Τρύφων Tryphon literally "one who lives in luxury" Trifon), a Kohen,[1] was a member of the third generation of the Mishnah sages, who lived in the period between the destruction of the Second Temple (70 CE) and the fall of Betar (135 CE).

Rabbi Tarfon was a resident of Yavneh, but Jewish sources show that he also lived and taught in Lod.

[6] Once, when from his window he saw a bridal procession evidently of the poorer classes, he requested his mother and sister to anoint the bride that the groom might find more joy in her.

[8] Although wealthy, he possessed extraordinary modesty; in one instance he deeply regretted having mentioned his name in a time of peril, since he feared that in using his position as teacher to escape from danger he had seemingly violated the rule against utilizing knowledge of the Torah for practical ends.

On festivals and holy days, he was accustomed to delight his wife and children by preparing for them the finest fruits and dainties.

According to Eichah Rabbah he became one of the Ten Martyrs, but others believe that he fled the country upon the outbreak of the Bar Kochba revolt and died elsewhere.

However, a burial cave was recently discovered on Mount Meron and restored by the "Ohalei Tzaddikim" organization, which claims Tarfon was buried there.

[32] He engaged in halakhic disputes with Rabbi Akiva[33] (however, the two agreed with regard to a tosefta[34]), with Shimon bar Yochai,[35] and R. Eleazar ben Azaryah.

This is the strictest opinion given in the passage; Rabbi Yose said to cut out and bury the names of God while burning the rest of the scroll, while the initial anonymous opinion says such texts may not be saved from a fire on Shabbat (in general, no books other than a valid Torah scroll may be saved from a fire on Shabbat) while saying nothing about burning in general.