ACHER

The Other, Elisha Ben Abuya, one of four sages from the Tannaitic period who entered Pardes (Paradise, The Garden). He is called ‘the other’ because of his apikorsus (heresy).

Ben Azzai died, Ben Zoma lost his mind, Ben Abuya started whacking at everything with pruning shears (which is taken to mean that he lost his faith), and Akiva "entered in peace, and left in peace", allegedly going on to write what may be the oddest little book ever – the Sefer Yetzirah (the Book Of Creation).


Now note that ‘other’, or ‘one other’, is also a way of referring to the evil one. It is no coincidence that the realm of impurity is also ‘other’ (sitra achra: the other side).
But another account (in the Talmud, Meseches Kiddushin) relates that Elisha Ben Abuya once saw a boy on a ladder raiding a bird's nest as he was instructed to do by his father. The boy removed the mother bird, then accidentally fell from the ladder and died. This caused Elisha to doubt scripture, because it is written that one who obeys his parents, and one who removes a mother bird before taking her young (so that she does not suffer the sight of her children being taken) will both enjoy long life.


------Notes excerpted from 'Likutei ha Rabam'
[Yeshiva Chipas Emes Publishing and Dry-cleaners]



All of this pursuant an unreadable book discovered by e-kvetcher (http://search-for-emes.blogspot.com/) who mentions it here: http://search-for-emes.blogspot.com/2008/01/rabbi-yishmael-acher.html

I do not know what e-kvetcher is looking for precisely, but I can hazard a pretty loose guess. No matter..... He keeps discovering interesting things.