Rabbi Meir Baal Haness was Rabbi Akiva’s brilliant student during the period following the second exile.
The rule is that all the words of Mishnah quoted without the name of their author, refer to Rabbi Meir.
Over time Rabbi Meir has been given 5 names: Rabbi Nehoray, Rabbi Elazar Ben ‘Arakh, Rabbi Nechemia, Rabbi Micha, Rabbi Meir Baal Haness.
This last, the most famous and the most used of all his names, was attributed to him to remind us that he “enlightened the eyes of the Sages in the Halakha”.
The term “Baal Haness” was added by virtue of the marvelous miracle that took place when a Roman soldier was saved from the gallows after uttering these three words “Elaha DeMeir Aneni”.