According to the Jewish Virtual Library, during the reign of King Herod...
Hillel the Elder’s friendly adversary was Shammai, a native of the Land of Israel about whom little is known except that he was a builder, known for the strictness of his views. He was reputed to be dour, quick-tempered and impatient....
A pagan came to Rabbi Shammai and made him a proposition: "I will become a Jew if you can teach me the Torah while standing on one foot." Shammai threw him out.
Then the pagan approached Rabbi Hillel with the same offer. Rabbi Hillel said, "Love thy neighbor as thyself. That is the whole of the Torah. Everything else is commentary." The "School of Hillel" has been the majority strain of Judaism ever since.
Hillel the Elder is best known for one aphorism: "If I am not for myself, who will be? And if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?"
Shammai, on the other hand, is known for "You're fired!"
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