Rabbi Elazar ben Shimon was a Tanna of the 2nd century CE and the son of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. As a young man he hid with his father in a cave for thirteen years, studying Torah with him, and he is a central figure in the Zohar.
The Talmud (Bava Metzia 83b–84b) tells that he later served the Roman authorities by identifying thieves, a role his colleagues criticised and that he deeply regretted, accepting great suffering upon himself in atonement. He was also a close colleague of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi. According to the Talmud he died in the village of Akbara, and in the end was brought to Meron and buried beside his father.
