Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai are the two most famous adversaries in the Jewish oral law. They were both Jewish scholars in the time of the Mishna.
As we know, the rule is that we always side with Beit Hillel’s opinion. As someone who shares a name with Beit Hillel, it’s important to step back and understand what Hillel means. It comes from the root “hallel,” or to praise.
Famously, we know when debates are for the sake of sanctifying G-d and not for the sake of being right, they are preserved – and the famous example of that are the debates between these two great scholars.
In most cases, Beit Hillel is the more lenient opinion of the two, and yet we side with him. This teaches us a fundamental lesson in Judaism, which is that it is not about being stricter, it is about praising G-d and sanctifying His name through his commandments.
We side with Beit Hillel because of his name, which means praise. We praise Hashem through our mitzvot and we don’t just do them for the sake of checking them off a list.
