Rabbi Chanina ben Chachinai רבי חנינא בן חכינאי
a disciple of Rabbi Akiva; one of the Ten Martyrs
One of Rabbi Akiva's disciples. In Avot his words stand short and hard: "He who stays awake at night, who walks the road alone, and who turns his heart to idleness—is liable for his life" (Avot 3:4).
Of him Ketubot 62b tells: he went to the house of study for twelve years without asking his wife. When he returned she was sifting flour; she raised her eyes, saw him—and her soul went out. He said: "Master of the world, this poor woman—is this her reward?"—and prayed, and she lived.
The story stands there among others about what a husband's leaving for Torah costs a family, and the Gemara passes sentence on neither of them.
In the count of the Ten Martyrs he stands seventh. In part of the lists Ben Azzai stands in his place.
On the timeline
Related
Sources
Chazal: Mishnah, Talmud, midrash, Zohar
- Avot 3:4 — the saying on the night, the road and the idle heart
- Ketubot 62b — the twelve years of study and the return
Rishonim
- «Eleh Ezkerah», the Yom Kippur Musaf piyyut — the name in the count of the Ten Martyrs
Basis: Talmud and midrash.