Rabbi Shlomo Luria, the Maharshal (1510-1573), was one of the greatest Talmudists of Poland and a leader of sixteenth-century Ashkenazi Jewry. He headed yeshivot in several Polish cities, including Lublin, which under his leadership became one of Europe's great centres of learning.

His major work, Yam Shel Shlomo, examines halachic rulings by going straight back to the Talmud rather than to the codes. His Chochmat Shlomo, brief emendations and explanations of the Talmudic text, are printed in every edition of the Talmud; both works are considered cornerstones of commentary on the Babylonian Talmud. He also left responsa, still cited, and glosses on earlier texts.

Later generations ranked him among the greatest of his time, alongside Rabbi Yosef Karo and the Rema. The chronicler David Gans wrote of him: "Rabbi Shlomo Luria of Ostroh is the great luminary, the crown of Israel, the wonder of the age… he raised many disciples and surpassed all the men of his generation." A descendant of Rashi, he carried on a famous correspondence with his cousin the Rema, debating halachic questions with frankness and mutual respect.

He passed away on 12 Kislev 5334 (1573).