Shela was a Babylonian teacher of the latter part of the tannaitic and the beginning of the amoraic period, and head of the school ("sidra") at Nehardea

Nehardea

Nehardea or Nehardeah was a city of Babylonia, situated at or near the junction of the Euphrates with the Nahr Malka , one of the earliest centers of Babylonian Judaism. As the seat of the exilarch it traced its origin back to King Jehoiachin...

 (Yoma

Yoma

Yoma is the fifth tractate of Seder Moed of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. It is concerned mainly with the laws of the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur, on which Jews atone for their sins from the previous year...

 20a; Letter of Sherira Gaon

Sherira Gaon

Rav Sherira Gaon was the head of the Academy of Pumbeditha. He was one of the most prominent Geonim of his period, and the father of Hai Gaon, who succeeded him as gaon.Sherira was born in 906 and died in 1006. Rav Sherira Gaon (Hebrew: רב שרירא גאון or R. Sherira ben Ḥanina Gaon, Hebrew: רב...

, in Neubauer, M. J. C. i. 28). When Abba Arika

Abba Arika

Abba Arika was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the 3rd century who established at Sura the systematic study of the rabbinic traditions, which, using the Mishnah as text, led to the compilation of the Talmud...

 (Rab) visited Babylon

Babylon

Babylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...

, he once officiated as an expounder (amora) for R. Shela at his public lectures (Yoma l.c.). The school at Nehardea was named in honor of Shela; and its scholars were accordingly known as "Debe R. Shela."

With the exception of a mishnaic interpretation (Yoma 20a), none of Shela's teachings is known, although some of the sayings of the students of his academy, the Debe R. Shela, are mentioned in the Talmud

Talmud

The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....

 (Pes. 39b; R. H. 23b; Giṭ. 52b; Ḳid. 43a).

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

• Weiss, Dor. iii. 746-747;
• Halevy, Dorot ha-Rishonim, ii. 223-225;
• Bacher, Ag. Bab. Amor. p. 35.