The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (2113 page)

see
CHURNING OF THE OCEAN
.

 
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(
c.
11th cent. BCE).
Israelite
prophet
and
judge
. Samuel's activities are to be found in 1 Samuel 1–16. His (traditional) tomb on Mount al-Nabi Samw
l, overlooking
Jerusalem
, was a place of
pilgrimage
in the Middle Ages.

 
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Samuel, Book of
.

The eighth book of the Hebrew scriptures. Originally a single work, it was subdivided in the
Septuagint
and
Vulgate
(which has four Books of Kings).

 
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(d. 1013)
. Jewish
gaon
of
Sura
. Samuel was descended from generations of scholars. He was a prolific writer, although most of his works are now lost. Among his writings mentioned by later authorities were an introduction to the
Talmud
, a book of precepts, and an Arabic translation and commentary on the
Pentateuch
.

 
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c.
1080–
c.
1174)
. Jewish biblical and
Talmudic
commentator. A grandson and student of
Rashi
, Samuel lived in France. He produced a commentary on the Bible which is notable for its preference for the literal meaning of the text (
pesh
t
), even when this opposes
halakhah
. He also supplemented Rashi's commentary on the Talmud and wrote
tosafot
on various tractates. He was a noted composer of
piyyutim
and wrote a grammatical work,
Sefer Daikut
.

 
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Samuel ha-Nagid
(
Isma’
l ibn Nagrel’a
,