Zeira's arrival in the Land of Israel and his first experiences there have been recorded in various anecdotes. He was small of stature and of dark complexion, for which reason Assi called him "Black Pot", according to an expression current in Babylonia; this name possibly also contained an allusion to his sputtering manner of speech. Perhaps with reference to a malformation of his legs, he was called "the little one with burned legs," or "the dark, burned one with the stubby legs". But a different explanation of this is given in Bava Metzia 85a, where it is said that he fasted in order to merit protection from the fires of Gehenna and that he then tested himself every thirty days by sitting in the fire without coming to harm, until one day the sages distracted him (cast an eye upon him) and his legs were burned. Thus, these nicknames throw light upon Zeira's ascetic piety.