narratives of the talmud

Narratives of the Talmud הועתק והוכנס לאינטרנט

www.hebrewbooks.org ע״י חיים תשס״ט

A collection of the narratives recounted in the Babylonian and

Yerushalmi Talmud and tosefta

Written by R. Moshe Basri

translated by R. Avraham Stern

Volume 2

Zerayim

Peah, Demai, Kilayim, Sheviyit, Terumot, Ma'aserot, Ma'aser Shaini, Chalah, Orlah, Bikurim

Published by Haktav Institute

Jerusalem 5755-1995

http://www.hebrewbooks.org

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אביו הרב יצחק בן הרב אשד אנשיל הלו• •ונגר״ז זצ״ל

ולעי״נה בת ר׳ שמעון א אמו ל

ולעי״נ האדמו״ר מלעלובם ד ר ה מ ש הרב מ

בן הרב שמעון נתן גטע בידרמן זצ״ל

יהי רצון שזכות התורה וזבות ספר קדוש זה יגן עליו ועל כל משפחתו היקרה ובכל אשר יפנה ישכיל

ויצליח ברוחניות ובגשמיות

This book is published with the aid of our friends

Mr. and Mrs. Meir Jungreiz in memory of his father, R. Yitzchak,

son of Rabbi Asher Anshel HaLevi Jungreiz, and his mother, Leah, daughter of R. Shimon,

of blessed memory, and in memory of Rabbi Moshe Mordechai son of Rabbi

Shimon Natan Notah Biderman, of blessed memory

May the merit of the Torah and of this work guard over them and their precious family, and may they succeed in all their endeavors

in both the spiritual and physical realms.

Introduction

I wish to express my heartfelt thanks to Hashem for enabling me to complete the second volume of the series, "Narratives of the Talmud," and for meriting me to witness the second publication of the first volume of this series It has already been published in various languages, and widely acclaimed as a great asset to the dissemination of our Jewish heritage.

Although the format of this series has already been outlined in the introduction to the first volume, we wil l add a few points of particular relevance to this second volume:

This book is based on ancient commentaries which have only recently been republished. They cast new light on the various tales and episodes of the Yerushalmi Talmud. Hence, even those familiar with books such as Me'am Loez wi l l find new insights in this work.

It should be noted that great care has been taken to base this work on the most accurate versions of the Talmud Yerushalmi. Our rendition of the text is based on the classic commentators of the ages, such as the fifteenth century work of the renowned Spanish exile, R. Shlomo son of Rav Yosef Sirilio, as well as the commentary of R. Yafe Ashkenazi and of the Vilna Gaon. The commentary of Rabbi Yitzchak Isaac Krassilszkov, which was written in the early part of this century behind the Iron Curtain, is yet another example of the variety of sources we have drawn from in our attempt to present a reliable presentation of the text.

iv Introduction

A l l the narratives in this volume were taken solely from the Talmud Yerushalmi and Tosefta. Even though priority was given to the classic version of the Yerushalmi of R. Sirilio, we have frequently offered a variety of interpretations, when they seemed of particular interest. Apart from the main headings to each chapter, we saw the need to add sub-headings in order to better convey the essential lesson of each tale. There are various prints of the Talmud Yerushalmi, each one dividing the text into halachot differently. We have followed the format of the Vilna edition, and have omitted all page references, since there is no standard edition of the Yerushalmi Talmud.

It should be emphasized that the stories recorded in this book are not mere fantasy ־- they are the words of our holy Rabbis, who weighed every statement, and whose words are like fiery coals. Moral lessons can be derived from every narrative, and careful study of the text wil l undoubtedly inspire the student to serve G-d with more devotion.

In our generation we have witnessed the publication of a massive amount of literature depicting the greatness, holiness and supernatural powers of the great rabbis and righteous people of former years. Unfortunately, the stories and miracles recorded in many of these books are often exaggerated and simply untrue. Hence, it becomes difficult to differentiate between fact and fiction. Worse of all, false accounts grossly distort the true character of the righteous individuals about whom they are about.

There are those who will argue that even i f a story is untrue, it still has what to teach us. However, this is a ridiculous argument, for G-d is Truth and His Torah is Truth. Hence, a misrepresentation of facts regarding a holy man's life must

Introduction v

ultimately detract from divine service. Moreover, false narratives cause us to lose respect of our sages of yore. For instance, after one reads only a few accounts of spectacular miracles that supposedly occured to righteous individuals of recent generations, the Torah's account of how Jacob split the Jordan River with his stick or reached great distances with miraculous speed no longer seems impressive. Elijah the Prophet appearing to an individual becomes almost a mundane event, for almost every modern-day tyadik is purported to have had such a revelation.

This idea was illustrated most poignantly in a story I heard recently. A certain rabbi wrote a letter to a colleague, prefixing his friend's name with numerous titles and extensive praises. When the colleague received the letter, he protested to the sender for having written such gross exaggerations — after all, he was a G-d-fearing individual, but not the greatest saint who had ever walked the earth! The sender of the letter apologized, but explained that had he omitted the list of praises, people would have concluded that he does not regard the rabbi as even being Jewish!

For these reasons, great energy was devoted to obtain the most reliable versions of the original text, and to accurately translate it into English.

It should be clarified that my intention is not, Heaven forbid, to disqualify those books which bring home ethical teachings through elevating fictional stories, for they do in fact bring people closer to the fear of Heaven and divine service. R. Nachman expressly states that such stories are constructive and serve a very important purpose. I only mean to warn the reader of the danger of reading books which

vi Introduction

contain distortions about a particular sage's experiences. Such books can cause people to mimic the lifestyle of a particular sage -- which has been falsely portrayed ־־ and then imagine that they have reached the highest levels of spiritual purity, when in fact that have not even began scraping the surface of what the Creator requires of them.

I wish to express my deep gratitude to all those who contributed to the publication of this work. I give special thanks to my good friend, Rabbi Aharon Weckselstein, whose great efforts and many comments were of great help, and to the especially to R. Shimon Weinstock and R. Josef Bashrian, for their devoted work. May they all be blessed.

I extend my deepest gratitude to my father and mentor, Rabbi Ezra Basri, to whom I owe all my achievements. He has enabled me to devote my life to the study of the Talmud in the study hall of the Keter Shoshanim Yeshiva, which he founded in the holy city of Jerusalem. May HaShem help him to continue his sacred work and grant him much health and happiness. May he merit to publish many more important religious works, and thereby spread the light of the Torah to the four comers of the earth.

May we all merit to learn, teach, practice, and lovingly uphold all the words of our holy Torah. May the merit of the Sages of the Mishnah and Talmud stand in our stead and that of our children, so that neither we nor our descendants ever depart from the teachings of the Torah. May we forever adhere to the words of G־d's holy Torah, as it says in scripture, "When you walk it wil l lead you, when you lie down it wil l guard you, and when you arise it wil l talk with you. Through

Introduction vi i

the Torah your days wil l be increased, and years of life wi l l be added to you. Length of days is in its right hand; in its left hand are riches and honor. May the Lord grant strength to His people; may the Lord bestow on His people wellbeing."

Moshe Basri

TALMUD YERUSHALMI THE ORDER OF ZERAYIM

Contents

Tractate Pe'ah

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg.

1 1 1. A Fifth of One's Income to Charity 1 2. King Monbaz 2

3. Honoring One's Parents 4 Damah Son of Natina * The Extent to Which One Must Honor His Parents * How Rabbi Yishmael Honored His Mother * Merits Depend on Fate* Rabbi Ze'ira * Earning the Garden of Eden by Making His Father Work * The Son Who Refused

to Sustain His Father

4. The Fiery Myrtle Branch 9 5. The Mezzuzah 10 6. The Effects of Lashon HaRah 10

Joseph and His Brothers * The Importance of Shalom * Covert LashonHarah David and Samuel *

The Coals of the Broom Brush

2 4 7. The Transmission From Mt. Sinai 18 3 7(8) 8. Miracles of the Pilgrimage 19

9 9. Visiting the Sick 20 10. The Will 21

4 1 11. Separation of Pefah 22 Because of Danger * The Custom in Beit-Nimer

7 1 12. The Obligation to Leave Shikhchah 24 No Shikhchah [Law of Forgotten Produce] on

Olives * Halachah During Work

Contents

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg. 3 13. The Land of Milk and Honey 25

The Weight of the OVlot * The Shrunken Peach * The Thick Carob * The Decline of the Generations * The Orbelian Seah * Cinnamon - the Food of Goats * Honey [Sap] and Milk * The Grape Cluster that Vanished * The Radishes which were Brought to Rebbi at the End of the Sabbatical Year * A Nest at the Top of the Turnip * Mustard Pods in the Branches of a Fig Tree* Only 300 Times as Much * The Honey which Overflowed * Inferior Honey *

The Luscious Cabbage

1 14. The Law of Leket and Trusting the Poor 31 Income for the Entire Year * Penny and Penny Laid

Up Will Be Many * Gamliel the Barber

4 15. Allotments to the Poor 33 16. Administrator over the Community. 34

Prevention of Slander * The Importance of the Community Administrator* Rejoicing Over One,s

Disgrace * Even if it Entails Being Disgraced

6 17. Giving Charity with Evil Designs 37 18. Leaving Jerusalem 37 19. Charity According to What He Was Used To 38

Hillel the Elder and the Poor Man * The Wonder-Cure for the Impoverished Wealthy Man

Who Loathed to Eat

20. A Special Sabbath Garment 39 8 21. Gratitude -- to Swindlers 40

Dilemma of the Poor: "Silver or Gold Vessels?" * The Man Who Died from Famine with a Bag Full of Coins * A Large Donation to a Regular Meat-Eater

22. Giving Discretely 42 Not Benefitting from Charity * Giving All He Received to Others * Rabbi Chanina's Encounter with the Ruler of Evil Spirits * He Considers the

Poor

Contents

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg. 23. A Year's Sustenance At the Beginning of the Year 44 24. Murdered by Nechemiah 44 25. Nachum Ish Gam Zu Repents 44 26. The Blind Man's Blessing 45 27. Charity For Torah-Laborers or for Building a Synagogue 46

Tosefta Pe'ah

3 13 1. The Forgotten Sheaf- The Unintended Good Deed 47

Tractate Demai

1 3 1. Being Careful with Untithed Produced 49 Tithing Meat and Fish * Not Like Rabbi Pinchas

ben Yair's Donkey

2. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair 51 The Deposit * A Meeting of Mice * Finding the Lost Jewel * A Guarantor for Tithing They Will Pass Through the River on Foot * Saving the Pious

Man's Daugther

3. The Holy One, Blessed Be He, Protects the Rigtheous from Erring 54

Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa and the Table Leg * Rabbi Tarfon's Bread Falls Down

2 1 4. The Kashrut of Raisins 55 3 2 5. Stealing a Chip of Wood 55

36. The Sages Weigh Their Words 56 4 1 7 . The Wise Know How to Question 57

8. Tithing Secretly, So as Not to Put to Shame 57 9. Religious Work Is Serious Labor 58

Contents

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg Tosefta Demai

1. Laying Down the Law in Israel 59

Tractate Kilayim 1. Cross-Fertilization of Plants 60

A Mistaken Lesson * Rabbi Hillel's Notebook * Rabbi Hillel's Notebook *The Students Who

Forbade Grafting

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg 6 2. Mating Different Types of Animals 63

3. like the Saplings of Your Vines 64 2 3 4. Avoiding the Semblance of Wrongdoing 65

5. They Had Plenty of Answers 66 4 2 6. A Practical Ruling 68

A Sabbath Partition and a Kilayim Partition 6 3 This Is Forbidden and That Is Permitted

9 1 7. Kilayim of Clothing: Sha'atnez 69 Burning the Garment * A Shroud for the Dead * A Safeguard to Sha'atnez * Avoiding the Semblance of Wrong-doing * Remove Your Garments and Hand Them Over * The Apron Which Was

Sha'atnez Follow Your Rabbi

3 8. Our Holy Rabbi 73 The Last Will of Rabbi Yehuda the Prince * Preparations for the Resurrection of the Dead * Rebbi's Demise * "His Tender Mercies Are over All His Works" * Elijah the Prophet Assumes the Appearance of Rabbi Chiyya and Cures Rebbi * Rabbi Chiyya and Rabbi Yishmael, Son of Yosi

9. Rabbi Chiyya the Great 82 Fasting to See His Face * The Difference between Learning and Teaching* The Burial of Rabbi Hunna in the Cave of Rabbi * King Solomon's

Scribes

10. "There is None that Can Deliver Out of My Hand" 84

King Solomon's Scribes * Rabbi Reuvens' Two Sons

Contents

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg 11. Death and Burial in the Land of Israel 85

Dying in One's Mother's Arms * Rabbi Meir's Last Will * The Well of Miriam* "And His Land Shall

Atone for His People"

Tractate Shevi'it 4 2 1. Transgression of the Law 88

Working in the Seventh Year * Transgress Rather than Die * Jew Until the End

2. Not to Exalt Oneself with the Crown of the Torah 91 3 3. May the Blessing of the L-rd Be Upon You 92 7 4. They Cherish Her Very Dust 93

6 1 5. A Student's Ruling 94 6. The Student Who Ruled in His Rabbi's Presence 95 7. The Cohen Who Left the Land 96 8. The Purity of Ashkelon 97 9. The Land of Israel and Its Borders 98

The Ultimatums of Joshua, Son of Nun * The Fear of Leaving * Question and Answer* From Babylonia to

Babylonia * Signing the Legal Permission

3 10. Retracting from One's Permission 101 4 11. The Onion which Was in Mourning 102

12. Meat in Place of Vegetables 103 8 5 13. A Sword upon the Loners 104 9 1 14. Rebbi's Maidservant 106

15. Keeping Out of Arguments 107 16. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai Cleanses Tiberias 109

2 17. The King's Advisor and the Deer 111 4 18. Disposal of Shemittah Produce 112

The Way I Saw My Rabbis Act * Humble in Ruling * Rendering Ownerless without Losses

6 19. Happy Is the One Who Gave Birth to Him 114 20. Elijah the Prophet and His Student, Rabbi YehoshuaSon of Levi 116 21. Between Challah and Shevifit 117

10 4 22. Keeping to One's Word 118

Contents

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg. Tractate Terumot

3 1. The Danger of Poison 119 Foods Which Have Been Nibbled At and Uncovered Liquids * Ask the Rabbi * No Calamities in This House * The Snake and Its Taste * The Poor Man Who Saved the Householder * The Pious Man Who Was Forced to Eat on Yom Kippur * Misplaced Trust *Look After Your Health * The Snake's Habits * G-d Guards Those Who Live with

Simple Faith

2. The Butcher Gets His Punishment 130 3. The Danger of Repulsive Food 130 4. The Dog and the Snake -- Two Tales of Faithful Guards 131 5. Honoring the Dog 132

(10) 6. Is This the Teaching of the Pious? 132 7. Saving Lives 134

Prepared to Sacrifice His Life * The Rescue of Rabbi Ze'irah Son of Channina

8. Everything Depends on the Heart, and the Heart Depends on the Pouch 135 9. The Demon Who Saved the Sages of Tiberias 137

Tractate Ma9aserot [Tithing]

2 2 1. Pure and Scrupulous 143 3 1 2 . The Difference between Earlier and Later

Generations 144 2 3. Rabbi Elazar Son of Rabbi Shimon 145

Love of Rebuke 4 The Cup and the Belly

4. Reverting from Scripture to Talmud 147 4 2 5. In Honor of the Sabbath 149

5 3(7) 6. The Gem Under the Pottery Shard 150

Contents

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg. Tracte Ma'aser Sheini (The Second Tithe)

1 1. Redemption of the Tithes 151 3 Exemption from the Fifth 6

2. Various Symbols 156 3. The Interpretation of Dreams 157

The Interpretations of Rabbi Yosi, Son of Chalafta * The Interpretations of Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi The Miser and His Recompense * The Scoffer and His Recompense * The Fulfillment of a Dream Depends on Its Interpretation Rabbi Akiva's

Interpretations

1 4. Clarification of Mishnayot 163 2 5. Hidden Passages 164 3 6. Tithes for the Priests 166

Tithes for Those Engaged in Torah Study * Priests Who Refrained from Accepting Levitical Tithes * Priests Who Refrained from Accepting Levitical Tithes * With Whom to Make Business Deals Rabbi

Akiva's Trick

5 7. Merits -־ Only for Others

Tosefta Ma'aser Sheini (Second Tithe) 171

3 17 1. Redeeming in the Proper Manner 172 5 10 2. Rabbi Eliezer's Vineyard

Tractate Challa 1. Ten Religious Acts Performed with Bread

173

174 Tractate Orlah

1. The Uprooting of Kilayim 175

Contents

Chap. Hal. Aggadatah pg. Tractate Bikurim

1 5 l.TheStrapIsUntiedandtheRestrictionlsRemoved 175 2 2 2. Behold, I Am Like Ben-Azai 177 3 1 3. The Bringing of Bikkurim (the First-Fruits) 178

3 4. "You Shall Arise Before the Hoary-Head" 184 They Watched the Back of Moses * The Torah Does Not Arise in Front of Its Son* Cleaving to the Torah and Its Scholars * There Is No Sitting before Mount Sinai* A Long Life Must Be Justified * Rise

to a Higher Sanctity, But Do Not Descend

5. Ordination and Authority Forgiveness of Sins * Gods of Silver * Ordination

to Judge * The Bread Is Not to the Wise

188

Zeraim - Tracate Pe'ah 1

TALMUD YERUSHALMI

T H E ORDER OF ZERAYIM

T R A C T A T E PE'AH

Chapter I: Halacha 1

1. A Fifth of One's Income to Charity

It has been taught: "These are the precepts which have no prescribed measure: Leaving the corner of a field [for the poor], the first-fruit offering, the pilgrimage [to the Holy Temple], acts of kindness, and Torah study/' [Regarding acts of kindness,] this is only true of acts of kindness which are performed with one's body. Kind deeds which are performed with one's money, however, do indeed have a measurement, as Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said in the name of Rabbi Yosi son of Channina: "In Usha, it was decreed [by the Sages] that a person set aside no more than one-fifth of his assets for the performance of mitzvot."

An incident occurred in which Rabbi Yeshbav gave away everything he owned to the poor. [When he heard of this incident,] Rabbi Gamliel sent him a message: "Have they not said: *No more than one-fifth of a person's assets should be set aside for the performance of mitzvot'\"

But did not Rabbi Gamliel live before [the decree was made in] Usha? [If so, how could he have said, "Have they not said..."? Surely he lived during the period that the Sanhedrin

2 Aggadatah

[the Supreme Rabbinic Court] was situated in Yavne, before it was exiled to Usha. Thus, how could he cite a later edict enacted in Usha!]

Rabbi Yosi bar Bon said in the name of Rabbi Levi: "This [law not to exceed a fifth of one's assets when giving charity] was always the accepted law. However, [over the years] it was forgotten. [Then came] the second generation, the Torah Sages of the Usha Sanhedrin, and confirmed the opinion of the previous generation.

This teaches us that any law which a Beit Din [Rabbinic Court] deliberates over carefully will continue to be observed in accordance with how it was transmitted to Moses on Mt. Sinai.

2. King Monbaz

King Monbaz repleted his and his forefathers' treasure-house granaries during years of drought. [He gave away all their contents to the poor. Although the Sages of Usha decreed that a person should not use more than one-fifth of his assets for the fulfillment of mitzvot lest he become impoverished, this concern is not relevant where kings are concerned. Furthermore, in situations where a Jew's life is endangered, there is no limit to how much of one's money one may give away.]

His brothers and his father's household converged around him and demanded of him, "Your forefathers gathered treasures, adding to the treasures they and their forefathers had gathered. You, however, have repleted your treasure-houses and that of your forefathers!"

"On the contrary!" he answered them. "My forefathers stored [their treasures] beneath, while I have stored them above. My forefathers stored them in the earth, but I have

Zeraim ־ Tracate Pe'ah 3

stored them in the heavens, as it says, Truth wil l spring out of the earth, and righteousness wil l look down from heaven (Psalms 85:12).

"My forefathers gathered treasures which do not give forth fruit, while I gathered treasures which do give forth fruit, as it says, 'Say of the righteous, that it wi l be well with him, for they shall eat the fruit of their actions' (Isaiah 3:10).

"My forefathers stored [their treasures] in a place which can be reached by [human] hands, while I stored them in a place beyond the reach of [human] hands, as it says, 'Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your Throne' (Psalms 89:15) [from which we see that charity is stored underneath the Holy Throne].

"My forefathers gathered currency, while I have gathered souls, as the verse says, 'The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life...' (Proverbs 11:30). [That is, the fruit of charity is the Tree of Life, which gives forth fruit and eternal reward. In addition, charity acquires souls, and sustaining a single Jewish soul is tantamount to sustaining an entire world.]

"My forefathers stored [their treasures] away for others, but I have stored it away for myself, as it says, 'You shall certainly return the pledge to him when the sun goes down...and it wi l l be counted as righteousness to you before the L־rd' (Deuteronomy 24:13).

"My forefathers stored [their treasures] for This World, but I have stored [my treasure] for the Next World, as it says, 'Treasures of wickedness profit nothing, but righteousness delivers from death' (Proverbs 10:2). Obviously, the verse cannot mean to say that [a person who gives charity] wi l l actually not die! Rather, it must mean that such an individual wil l not suffer death in the Next World."

4 Aggadatah

3. Honoring One's Parents Damah Son of Natina

The fulfillment of the following precepts entitles one to enjoy the fruit of his efforts in This World, and eternal reward in the Next:

Honoring one's father and mother....

They asked Rabbi Eliezer, "To what extent must a person honor his father and mother?"

"Why do you ask me?" he replied. "Go and ask Dama ben Natina!"

Dama ben Natina was the Chairman of the City Council. Once, his mother became temporarily insane and began hitting him on the face in the presence of the members of the Council. As she prepared to strike him in the face with her sandal, it fell from her hand. He [picked it up and] gave it to her in order that she should not suffer discomfort.

Rabbi Chezkiah said, "There was a certain gentile from Ashkelon, who was Chairman of the City Council. He would never sit on a particular stone that his father used to sit on. After his father's death, he worshiped that stone as an idol."

It has been taught: Once, it happened that the jasper stone from the High Priest's breatplate, which represents the Tribe of Benjamin, was lost. People began asking, "Who owns such a precious stone?" Some answered, "Dama ben Netina has one."

A group of Sages went to him, [negotiated the price of the stone with him,] and they agreed on 100 dinars. He went up the stairs to bring the stone to them, but discovered that his father was sleeping. Some say that his father held the key to the safe in his hand, while others say that his father's legs were


dangling over the box, making it impossible for him to move it without waking him.

Returning down the stairs to them, he said, " I could not bring it to you." Because he did not want to benefit from his action, he did not tell them the reason why he could not bring them the stone.

The Sages said to each other, "Perhaps he wants more money?" They raised the price to 200 dinars, then to 1000, but he refused to bring the stone. As soon as his father awoke, however, he brought the stone to them at once. They offered him the 1000 dinars, but he refused to accept the money.

"Do you think I would exchange my father's honor for money? I refuse to derive benefit from my father's honor!" he insisted.

How did the Holy One, blessed be He, reward him? Rabbi Yosi bar Bon said, "That same night, his cow gave

birth to a Red Heifer [the extremely rare element essential in certain spiritual purifications in the Temple]. The Jewish People purchased the animal from him, paying him its weight in gold.

Rabbi Shabtai said: "It says, 'The Almighty, He is excellent in power...and in greatness of justice' (Job 37:23) -־ G-d does not withhold the reward [even] of gentiles, when they fulfill Torah precepts."

The Extent to Which One Must Honor His Parents

Once, Rabbi Tarfon's mother went to take a walk in her courtyard during Shabbat. One of the laces of her sandal ripped, but because [it is prohibited to do so on] Shabbat, she could not tie it together. For the same reason, they could not bring her another shoe.

6 Aggadatah

Rabbi Tarfon went and placed each of his hands under one of her feet. She walked on them all the way to her bed.

Once, he became i l l , and the Torah Sages came to visit him. His mother said to them, "Pray for my son, Tarfon! He honors me so much more than necessary!"

They asked her, "What does he do for you?" She told them the incident described above.

"Even i f he does this, and continues to do this a thousand more times, he has still not reached even half the measure of honor the Torah demands a son to have for his parents!" they said to her.

How Rabbi Yishmael Honored His Mother

Rabbi Yishmael's mother came to the Sages and complained about her son, "Rebuke my son Yishmael for failing to honor me!"

As she spoke, the faces of the Sages present turned yellow from embarrassment. "Is it possible that Rabbi Yishmael does not honor his mother?" they said to each other.

"What does he do to you," they asked her. She said, "When he comes out of the Study Hall, I always

ask him to let me wash his feet and drink the water. But he always refuses!"

The Sages said to Rabbi Yishmael, "Since this is her desire, then this is how you must honor her."

Merits Depend on Fate

Rabbi Manna said, "How right those millers are when they say, ' A person's merits depend on his fate.'" [I.e., even the amount of flour produced from a person's wheat depends on his fate. This is cited in reference to the previos episodes


relating to Rabbi Tarfon and Rabbi Yishmaers behavior towards their mothers] Rabbi Tarfon's mother was encouraged to demand the maximum honor from her son, whereas Rabbi Yishmael's mother was encouraged to continue lowering herself to her wise son.

Rabbi Ze'ira

Rabbi Ze'ira used to exclaim with much sorrow, " I f only I would have a father and mother to honor, so that I might earn a portion in the Next World!"

However, when he heard that the Sages said about Rabbi Tarfon, "He has still not reached even half the measure of honor the Torah demands," and that, at the same time, they ordered Rabbi Yishmael to concede to his mother's startling demands, he said, "Thank G־d that I do not have a father or a mother! I would not be capable of doing what either Rabbi Tarfon or Rabbi Yishmael did!"

Rabbi Avin said: " I am exempt from the obligation to honor one's parents."

They say that when his father died, he was still in his mother's womb, and as soon as he was born, his mother died.

Earning the Garden of Eden by Making His Father Work

It has been taught: One person earns a portion in Gehinom by feeding his father the finest fowl, while another earns Gan Eden by making his father work at the grinding wheel.

How does one earn a portion in Gehinom by feeding his father fine fowl? There was a certain man who used to feed his father fattened hens. Once, his father asked him, "My son, from where did you get these [hens]?"

8 Aggadatah

"Old man, old man!" his son answered him, "just eat and be quiet! When dogs eat, they stay quiet!"

Such a person earns a portion in Gehinom even though he serves his father the best foods, for he reveals his i l l feeling at serving him such expensive meals.

And how does one earn a portion in Gan Eden by making his father work at the grinding wheel? There once was a man who earned a living by grinding grains. One day, his very old father received a summons which in effect conscripted him for work at one of the King's mills.

The son said to his father, "Father, you grind instead of me, here at home, and I wil l replace you at the King's mill. I f there is degradation to suffer, I prefer to suffer it in your place. And i f there are beatings to undergo, I will experience them in your place."

Such a person earns a potion in Gan Eden by making his father work the grinding wheel.

The Son Who Refused to Sustain His Father

Rabbi Yonatan and Rabbi Yanai were sitting when a man came and kissed Rabbi Yonatan's feet.

"What kind deed have you done for him?" Rabbi Yanai asked him.

He answered, "Once, he came to me and complained that his son refused to provide him sustenance. I said to him, 'Go and accuse him in a loud voice in the synagogue when services are concluded. At that time, people are milling about the entrance on their way out.' Embarrassing his son in public would surely have the desired effect. Ever since I gave him this advice, he honors me greatly."

"Why did you not coerce the son to support his father by administering lashes to him?" asked Rabbi Yanai.


Rabbi Yonatan responded, "Do you mean to say that a Rabbinic Court may resort to coersion in such a case?"

"Do you mean to say that you have not heard the report that it is indeed permitted to use coersion in such a case?

Rabbi Yonatan retracted, and established the report which Rabbi Yanai spoke of the accepted law.

Rabbi Ya'akov bar Acha said in the name of Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman, who said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan: "A son may be coerced to provide sustenance for his father."

Rabbi Yosi said, " I f only everything else I have learned was as clear to me as this law: that a son may be coerced to support his father."

4. The Fiery Myrtle Branch

Rabbi Shmuel bar Rav Yitzchak used to dance in front of newlywed brides, singing their praises while holding a long myrtle branch. [Others say that he would juggle with three myrtle branches in order to entertain them.]

Rabbi Ze'ira would see him and conceal himself from him. "Look how that old man humiliates us Torah scholars with his lightheaded antics!" Rabbi Ze'ira would say.

On the day Rabbi Shmuel died, there was thunder and lightning for three hours. [This signified the degree of sorrow felt by everyone over Rabbi Shmuel's death.] A Heavenly Voice pronounced: "Rabbi Shmuel bar Rav Yitzchak, the one who performed so many kind deeds, has died!"

When the burial procession began to make its way to the cemetery, a heavenly fire descended, separating the crowd from Rabbi Shmuel's body. [This phenomenon only occurred for one or two righteous individuals of each generation. It was a sign that the congregation was not worthy enough to even approach his body.] The fire took on the shape of a myrtle branch.

10 Aggadatah

People began saying to each other, "Look at that old man! The merit of the myrtle branch with which he danced has endured!"

5.The Mezzuzah

The King of Persia, Artabon, once sent Rabbeinu HaKadosh a magnificent precious stone of great value. He said to him, "Send me back an object of equal value/'

Rabbeinu HaKadosh sent him back a mezzuzah. The King said to him, "What! I sent you a priceless gift, and

in return, you send me an object worth one single prutahl" Rabbeinu HaKadosh answered, "[On the contrary!] Our

combined wealth does not equal the worth of that mezzuzah. Furthermore, you sent me an object which itself must be guarded, whereas I sent you something which wil l guard you, even while you sleep. As the verse says, 'When you walk, it wi l l lead you; when you lie down, it will keep you...' (Proverbs 6:22)."

Immediately after [Artabon received this last message], a demon entered into the body of his only daughter and caused her to become very i l l . A l l the doctors attempted to cure her, but to no avail. However, when Artabon placed the mezzuzah Rabbeinu HaKadosh had sent him on the entrance to his daughter's room, the demon fled instantly. Then, Rabbeinu HaKadosh decided to keep the precious stone.

6. The Effects of Lashon HaRah

Joseph and His Brothers

Concerning Joseph and his brothers, the verse says, "Joseph reported their wicked deeds to their father" (Genesis 37:2).


Now, what exactly did Joseph tell his father? Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Yehudah, and Rabbi Shimon offer

varying interpretatios: Rabbi Meir says: "[Joseph told his father] that they were

suspected of having eaten a limb from a live animal." Rabbi Yehudah says: "That the sons of Rachel and Leah

treated the sons of the servants [Zilpah and Bilhah] disrespectfully, calling them slaves."

Rabbi Shimon says: "That they were looking lustfully at the local women."

Rabbi Yehudah ben Pazi said: "Sheol and destruction are before the L־rd; how much more, then, the hearts of the children of men' (Proverbs 15:11)." [The punishment for one's transgressions are measured on a heavenly scale. Just as there are large and small weights, so, too, one's transgressions are measured according to large and small weights. Man's punishment is always proportional to his sin.]

Joseph said that his brothers were suspected of having eaten a limb from a live animal. In return, the Holy One, blessed be He, said: "Is that so? I will prove to him that even in their lowest state [when they sold Joseph], they still slaughtered an animal prior to eating its meat, as it says, 'and [they] killed a kid of the goats and dipped the coat in the blood' (Genesis 37:31)."

Joseph said that his brothers were treating the sons of the servants as if they were slaves. In return, the verse says, "Joseph was sold for a servant" (Psalms 105:17)."

Joseph said that his brothers were looking lustfully at the local women. In return, the bear enticed him, as the verse says, "...after these things, his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph" (Genesis 39:7). [Potiphar's wife is being compared here to a bear, trembling as it waits to spring on its prey.]

12 Aggadatah

The Importance of Shalom

Rabbi Channina said: "Come and see how harmful is avak lashon harah [indirect tale-bearing] - G-d [even] saw fit to alter a verse in the Torah [to avoid it] for the sake of making peace between Avraham and Sarah.

"The verse says, 'Sarah laughed within herself, thinking, "After having become aged, will I now become rejuvenated...and my master [Avraham] is old?!'" (Genesis 18:12). However, when G-d spoke to Avraham, He omitted Sarah's thought concerning his age: 'G־ d said to Avraham, "Why did Sarah laugh, thinking 'How will I give birth ~ / am old?!"" {Ibid., 18:13)."

Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said: "Come and see how harmful avak lashon harah is - wise men made up imaginary statements in order to make peace between Joseph and his brothers.

"The verse says, 'They urgently sent word to Joseph, saying "Your father commanded before he died, 'You shall say to Joseph: Forgive, I pray to you now, the trespass of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you. And now, we pray to you, forgive the trespass of the servants of the G-d of your father"" (Genesis 50:16-17). However, there is no mention of this report in any other verse. [Therefore, we must assume that Joseph's brothers made this statement in Ya'akov's name, out of fear that he would take revenge against them after their father's death.]"

Covert Lashon Harah

A group of flax merchants was once conscripted to work for one of the King's work details. One of the merchants, whose


name was Bar Chovetz, did not appear at the appointed location, but his absence was not noticed. When the merchants later realized that Bar Chovetz was missing, they became angry with him. They wanted to report his absence to the sentries, but no one was willing to do so explicitly. Instead, they decided to suggest his absence to the sentries surrepticiously.

"What are we eating today?" one of them asked. "Chuvtzin" [cheese, or according to others, lentils] another

one answered. One of the sentries heard them, and was immediately

reminded of Bar Chovetz. "Go and get Bar Chovetz !יי he demanded.

Rabbi Yochanan commented, "This is a covert form of lashon harah"

Hypocrisy and Lashon Harah

The rich and influential citizens of Tzipori were conscripted to one of the King's work details. One of them, whose name was Yochanan, did not appear at the appointed location, but his absence was not noticed. Later, the group of wealthy citizens realized that Yochanan had not come with them, and they became angry with him. One of them said in a loud, sorrowful voice: "Are we not going to visit Yochanan today?"

When one of the sentries heard this, he said, "Bring Yochanan at once!"

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: "This is a hypocritical form of lashon harah, for he pretended to be concerned about Yochanan when, in truth, his only intention was to cause him harm."

14 Aggadatah

David and Samuel

Rabbi Abbah bar Kahana said: "Every Jew in David's generation was righteous, and it was only because of the slanderers amongst them that Jews died when they went to battle. The verse says, 'My soul is among lions, and I lie down among those who are on fire, the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and whose tongues are sharp swords' (Psalms 57:5-6). 'My soul is among lions' refers to Abner and Amsah, who were lions in the study of Torah; ' I lie down among those who are on fire' refers to Doeg and Achitofel, who yearned for lashon harah; 'whose teeth are spears and arrows' refers to Keyila, as the verse says, 'Wil l the men of Keyila deliver me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as Your servant has heard?' (I Samuel 23:11); 'their tongues, sharp swords' refers to the Zifim, as the verse says, ' A maskil of David, when the Zifim came and said to Saul, "Does not David hide himself with us?"' (Psalms 54:2)."

At that time [because of the tale-bearing], David said to the Holy One, blessed be He, "Master of the Universe! What is Your Holy Presence doing on the earth? Withdraw Your Holy Presence from their midst!" This is the meaning of the verse, "Be exalted, O G-d, above the heavens; let Your glory be above all the earth" {Ibid., 57:6). [By removing His Presence from their midst, they would cease to enjoy prosperity and good fortune. This, in turn, would induce them to examine their deeds and realize their mistakes.] In contrast, Ahab's generation, who were idol worshippers, did not lose a single man in combat, because there was not a single tale-bearer amongst them.

This is what Obadiah said to Elijah: "My lord, was it not told, what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the Lord,


how I hid a hundred men of the Lord's prophets, fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water?" ( I Kings 18:13). I f he fed them bread, which is difficult to find in times of famine, then why mention giving them water? Thus, from the question, we may infer that it was more difficult for him to bring them water than bread. [Because in order to find sufficient water, he found it necessary to ask numerous people for directions. He feared that word of his deeds would reach Ahab.]

Elijah announced to the people on Mt. Carmel: " I , above, remain a prophet of the Lord" (Ibid., 18:22). Although all the people who were gathered there were aware of the existence of the other prophets, they did not reveal it to the King. [They did not inform the King Ahab that Obadiah was hiding G-d's prophets in caves, despite the fact that i f the King had found out, he would have held them responsible for withholding this valuable piece of information from him. By Elijah's announcement that he was the only remaining prophet, they inferred that the King was not to know of the existence of the others.]

Why is lashon harah called tlitayi ["the third" in Aramaic]? Because it murders three people: The tale-bearer, the one who believes the rumor, and the subject of the rumor.

In the days of Saul, four were killed: Doeg, who was the tale-bearer, Saul, who believed the rumor, Achimelech, the subject of the rumor, and Abner.

Why did Abner die? Different answers were suggested by Rabbi Yehoshuah ben Levi, Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish, and the Sages:

Rabbi Yehoshuah ben Levi said [Abner was killed] because he made jest of the young men's blood, as the verse says, "Abner said to Yoav, 'Let the young men rise up and play before us'; and Yoav said, 'Let them rise up'" (I Samuel 2:14).

16 Aggadatah

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said [he was killed] because he mentioned his own name prior to David's, as the verse says, "And Abner sent messengers to David on his behalf, saying, 'Whose is the Land? Make your covenant with me, and behold, my hand shall be with you, to bring all Israel to you'" {Ibid., 3:12). He wrote to him, "From Abner to David."

The Sages say [Abner was killed] because he did not allow Saul to make peace with David, as the verse says, "Now, my father, see the corner of your robe in my hand. For by the fact that I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kil l you, know and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in my hand, and that I have not sinned against you. Yet you lie in wait to take my soul" ( I Samuel 24:11). Yet Abner said to Saul, "You want to forgive him because of the corner of robe he brought you? [You are wrong to do so, for] it merely ripped on some thorns, [and David only found it. Now, he uses it as proof that he could have killed you i f he wished.]

But when Saul's group encamped on Givat HaChachilah in the Desert of Zif, they all fell asleep. David then came and took the spear and the water sack. Saul then said to Abner, "Now what wil l you answer, Abner? Regarding the corner of robe, you claimed it ripped on some thorns. Did the thorns also take away the spear and the water sack?"

And there are some who say [he was killed] because it was within his capacity to convince Saul not to murder the priests of Nov, but he refrained from doing so.

The Coals of the Broom Brush

"Sharpened arrows of the mighty, with coals of the broom plant" (Psalms 120:4): A l l [other] weapons strike at close range, but lashon harah strikes even from afar. When all other coals become extinguished from the outside, they are also


extinguished on the inside. When coals of the broom plant become extinguished on the outside, however, they are not yet extinguished on the inside.

They tell that, once, a certain individual left broom plant coals smouldering during the Festival of Sukot. When he came back during the Passover Festival, he found that they had still not gone out! [The same is true of lashon harah -even though one may mollify another individual, the anger remains smouldering in his heart.]

Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman said: "In the future, they wi l l say to the Snake, 4Why does your tongue dangle out of your mouth when you walk?' It wil l answer: 'My tongue has caused me to lick the dirt! I told Eve to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge.' [They wil l ask it,] 'What benefit do you derive from biting [prey] and leaving it behind? The lion kills his prey and eats it, and the wolf kills his prey and eats it. But you, how do you benefit [from killing it and leaving it behind]?' It wil l answer them, " I f the serpent bites and cannot be charmed, then there is no advantage in a charmer" (Ecclesiastes 10:11) — I f it were not that there is a Heavenly decree that commands me, "Bite!", I would not bite!' [They wil l ask it,] 'Why is it that when you bite one limb, all the other limbs in the body feel [the pain]?' It wil l answer them, 'Why do you ask me? Ask those who have the power of speech! Their tongue says [lashon harah] here and slays someone in Rome; it says something in Rome, and it slays in Syria.' [They will ask it,] 'Why is it that you are often located amongst the fences?' It wi l l answer them, 'Because I breached the fence of the world. '"

18 Aggadatah

Chapter II: Halacha 4

7. The Transmission From Mt. Sinai

It has been taught: One who sows his field with one type of seed leaves only one comer of his field for the poor, even if he separates the crop into two heaps. If he sows the field with two types of seeds and gathers the crops into one heap, then he leaves one corner of his field for the poor. However, i f he gathers the crops into two heaps, then he leaves two corners.

Once an incident occurred in which Shimon, from Kfar HaMitzpah, sowed his field with two types of seeds. He came to ask Rabban Gamliel [who lived during the years when the Second Temple still stood] what to do. They went to the Lishkat HaGazit [where the Sanhedrin was situated] and asked [whether Shimon should leave one or two corners of his field for the poor].

Nachum the Scribe said, " I have been taught by Rabbi MeYashah, who heard it from his father, who in turn heard it from the Pairs of Sages [Hillel and Shamai, Shemaya and Avtalion, and the Sages preceding them, until the Great Assembly of Sages], who heard it from the prophets, that this law is part of the Oral Tradition which Moses taught on Mt. Sinai: ' I f he sows the field with two types of seeds and gathers the crops into one heap, then he leaves one corner of his field for the poor. However, i f he gathers the crops into two heaps, then he leaves two corners.'"

Rabbi Ze'ira said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: " I f you hear a certain law and fail to fathom the reasoning behind it, don't disregard it as being unfounded. There are many laws whose logic we cannot understand, but that does not disprove


their authenticity ,since they were handed down from Moses and are recorded in the Mishnayot."

Rabbi Avin exclaimed, "Indeed, you are right! Were it not for Nachum the Scribe, who transmitted the tradition concerning two typesof seed in one field, we would never have known it through any form ofexegesis. Now, it must be adhered to, even though we do not fathom the underlying logic!"

Chapter III: Halacha 7 (8)

8. Miracles of the Pilgrimage

" 'For I will cast out the nations before you and enlarge your borders, nor will any man desire your property when you go up to appear before the Lord your G-d three times during the year' (Exodus34:24). This teaches that your cow will pasture in an open field, yet no beast will harm it; your chickens will go pecking in the refuse, yet no rat will harm them."

There was an incident where a certain individual forgot to take a mound of crops into the barn before he departed on the Pilgrimage. The crops were left lying in an open field. When he returned home, he found a ring of lions surrounding the harvest, protecting it from thieves.

In another incident, a man went on the Pilgrimage and accidentally left the door to his hen-roost open. When he returned, he found slain cats in front of the hen-roost door.

Another person went on the Pilgrimage and accidentally left the door to his house unlocked. When he returned, he found a Snake coiled on the metal rings of the door, preventing theives from entering.

20 Aggadatah

Rabbi Pinchas told the following incident: There were two wealthy brothers who lived in Ashkelon. They had gentile neighbors who plotted against them: "Soon, the Jews wil l leave for Jerusalem. Then, we will take all their possessions ! י,

When the two brothers left for Jerusalem, the Holy One, blessed be He, brought angelic beings to their home who took on their appearance. They walked in and out of the house, just as the two brothers were accustomed to do.

Upon their return from Jerusalem, the brothers sent their gentile neighbors presents which they purchased during their trip.

"Where were you?" the non-Jews demanded from the brothers.

"Why, in Jerusalem!" they declared. "Who did you leave to look after your house/' they asked. "We did not leave anyone!" "Blessed is the G-d of the Jews!" they exclaimed. "They

did not abandon Him, and He did not abandon them!"

Halacha 9

9. Visiting the Sick

It has been taught in a beraita: As long as the disease was not serious from its onset, the custom is that close acquaintances come to visit the sick person immediately, while more distant acquaintances come after three days. [The delay is meant to prevent the one suffering the disease from being officially considered "an i l l person," since it is believed that being regarded as such would have a negative effect on him. There is not such a danger of this occurring as a result of the visits of close acquaintances, however, since there is nothing unusual about their visits. They are accustomed to


come to the sick person's home, even when he is healthy.] However, i f the disease was serious from its onset, everyone comes to visit immediately.

Rabbi Hunah, Rabbi Pinchas and Rabbi Chizkiyahu went to visit Rabbi Assey three days after he became i l l . He said to them, "Do you mean to say that you wanted to apply the beraita to mel [Why, you are my students! You are not considered distant acquaintances!]"

10. The Will

Rabbi Gurion's sister specified in her wil l that Rabbi Gurion be the inheritor of all her possessions. It was written in her wil l that she left him all her possessions "from today until after death." Later, her [other,] older brother appeased her and convinced her to change her will and make him her sole inheritor.

The case was later brought to Rabbi Ami. [The brothers asked him to determine who should inherit their dead sister's possessions.] He said: "A person who is critically i l l may change his mind [and modify the conditions of his wil l . Thus, her elder brother is the rightful heir]."

Rabbi Ze'ira said: "Did Rabbi Yochanan not agree that i f the words 'from today' are written in the wil l , a person who is deathly i l l cannot change his mind?"

Rabbi Avahu came and said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: "[In this situation,] one may not change his mind." Rabbi Eilah came and said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: "[In this situation,] one may not change his mind."

Rabbi Ami then remembered the law and reversed the decision, [and Rabbi Gurion was declared the rightful heir].

22 Aggadatah

Chapter IV: Halacha 1

11. Separation of Pe'ah

Because of Danger

Pe'ah [the corner of one's field] is given only from crops which grow in the ground, as the verse says, "Do not pick the unripened grape clusters in your vineyards; [also,] do not pick up individual [fallen grapes] in your vineyards. [Al l of the above] must be left for the poor and the stranger; I am G־d your Lord" (Leviticus 19:10). Leave it for them, and they wil l gather it. However,pe'ah left on grapevines which grow along the dalit tree, as well as on palm trees, should be gathered and distributed to the poor by the owner of the field, because of the danger. [There is a concern that in their haste to gather the fruits left on the tree, the poor wil l fall off the dalit, which has very weak branches, or off the palm tree, which is of great height.]

Rabbi Shimon says: "The same law applies to trees of soft-shelled nuts, which are extremely slippery."

Rabbi Chananyah said in the name of Reish Lakish: "There was an incident where five brothers died on five soft-shelled nut trees."

The Custom in Beit-Nimer

It has been taught in the name of Rabbi Shimon: "There are five reasons why they said, 4One should not distribute the pe'ah oneself]; rather, it must be left at the end of his field': in order to prevent the field-owner from robbing the poor, in order to prevent the poor from sitting idle, in order to leave no room for swindlers, in order to avoid suspicion, and [of course,]


because the Torah said, 'Do not harvest the corner of your field. '"

How would the field-owners rob the poor? By waiting until no poor person was around, and then telling his own poor relative, "Come and help yourself to the pe'ah!" How would the field-owners cause the poor to sit idle? They would sit by the field all day long and say, "Now he is going to separate pe'ah, now he is going to separate pe'ah." The requirement to leave pe'ah from the corner of his field, however, affords the poor the opportunity to gather pe'ah in other fields, and to return later to this field.

What is an example of a swindler? A land-owner who says, " I have already separated pe'ah," after he has already selected the best crops for himself, leaving those of inferior quality behind for the poor.

What is meant by avoiding suspicion? That people should not walk by and say, "Look! He has harvested his entire field and refrained from leaving pe'ah for the poor!"

And because the Torah said, "Do not harvest the corner of your field."

In Beit-Nimer, they used to stretch out a cord one hundred amah long along the length of the field while harvesting the crops. They would gather crops until the end of the cord, leaving over the last 14 amah for pe'ah.

It has been taught that Abba Shaul said: "They [the people of Beit-Nemer] are talked about favorably and they are talked about unfavorably.

"They talked about them unfavorably because they gave only one percent of their crop to pe'ah, although the Sages decreed that one should not give less than one-sixtieth of his crop to pe'ah.

[On the other hand,] they talked about them favorably because they would leave pe'ah in each row of crops. [In this

24 Aggadatah

way, the poor were not made to wait until the entire field would be harvested before taking their share. Instead, after each row was harvested, they could take their portion. Furthermore, they were also spoken of favorably because they fulfilled a mitzvah with each row they harvested.]

Chapter VII Halacha 1

12. The Obligation to Leave Shikhchah

No Shikhchah [Law of Forgotten Produce] on Olives

"When you reap your grain harvest and forget a sheaf in the field, you must not go back to collect it. It must be left for the foreigner, orphan and widow, so that G-d, your Lord, will bless you, no matter what you do" (Numbers 24:19).

It has been taught that Rabbi Yosi said: "There is no obligation to leave shikhchah while gathering olives."

Rabbi Shimon ben Yakum said, "Rabbi Yosi only said this in earlier years, when olives were not to be found. They were scarce because Adrianus the Wicked came and destroyed the entire Land. Now that olives are plentiful, however, one is obligated to leave shikhchah when gathering them/'

Halachah During Work

Rabbi Oshaya said: "While I was stamping olives with Rabbi Chiya the Great, he said to me, 'Any olive which you can reach for and take is not subject to the law of shikhchah. [Since they were pressing olives, he told him the laws of shikhchah in regards to olives, namely, that i f one notices the


olives on the tree when he can still stretch his arm and reach them, they are not considered shikhchah.'"

Halachah 3

13. The Land of Milk and Honey

The Weight of the OVlot

Rabbi Chiya said, "It once happened that an oVlot [a cluster of "small" grapes] in Tzipori weighed seven litres [327 grams]!

The Shrunken Peach

Rabbi Abahu, Rabbi Yosi ben Chanina and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish were passing by a vineyard together with their donkey's drivers. The share-cropper brought them a peach, from which they all feasted and yet could still not finish! The peach was estimated to be the size of the standard cooking-pot used in the village of Chananya, which holds a volume of about 70 kilograms of barley!

Days later, they passed the same place and were presented with peaches which were so small that two or three could be fitted into one hand. They said to the owner, "We want [peaches] from the original [tree]". He replied, "These peaches were taken from that [same] tree."

On this they cited the verse (Psalms 107:34), "[He turns] the fruitful land to barrenness on account of the evil of its inhabitants" [that is, the fruits of the land have shrunken due to the evil deeds of mankind]. After the destruction of the Temple, we could still sometimes find fruits as big as when

26 Aggadatah

the Temple still stood. Afterwards, however, they shrunk, due to the people's evil deeds.

The Thick Carob

Rabbi Chanina said, "When I went up from [Babylon to the Land of Israel], I took my belt, [attached it] to the belts of my son and my donkey driver in order to surround the circumference of the trunk of a carob tree, [but the three together] were not long enough. I felled a carob tree and filled my entire hand with honey [sap]."

The Decline of the Generations

Rabbi Yochanan said, "A certain little red berry [sifsoof\ which we ate in our youth was superior to the peaches of our old age." During his life, the world underwent a change [causing fruits to shrink].

The Orbelian Seah

Rabbi Chiya ben Abba said, "[In Temple times when sacrifices were still being offered,] one Orbelian [name of a village] seah [around 70 kilogrames of wheat] would yield one seah of 'pollen' [fine flour], one of first-flour, one of cibarium [coarse flour], one of bran flour, one of coarse bran and one seah of wheat husks. But nowadays, the same amount wil l not even yield one seah of all the above types combined!"


Cinnamon - the Food of Goats

Rabbi Chuna said in the name of Rabbi Amin: "Cinnamon was the food of goats, and Israel grew it [that it was found in great plenty and grown as goat fodder]."

Rabbi Chuna said [more] in the name of Rabbi Amin: "The year-old lambs used for the daily sacrifices [in Temple times] were so large, that i f one placed them on the back of a camel, their legs would reach the ground [due to their great size]."

Honey [Sap] and Milk

Rabbi Chuna [said] in the name of Rabbi Iddi: "Someone once tied a goat to a fig-tree and [on his return] discovered a mixture of honey and milk flowing. [That is, the she-goat was so full of milk and the figs with honey that the liquid flowed of its own accord.]"

The Grape Cluster that Vanished

Rebbi said to Rabbi Pedat, "Could you show me a bunch of grapes from your vineyard?" [He had heard that in Rabbi Pedat's vineyard there were particulary large clusters of grapes.] Rabbi Pedat agreed [to show him]. He went to show him and from a distance, Rebbi imagined he was looking at an ox. He asked Rabbi Pedat, "Won't this ox devour your vineyard?"

He answered, "What you imagine to be an ox is really a bunch of grapes!"

On this, Rebbi cited the verse (Song of Songs 1:12): "The King [G-d] has already turned away [His countenance], yet

28 Aggadatah

my nard is still emitting its odor/' [Even after the destruction of the Temple, when G-d's Presence has been removed, yet, we are still blessed with such oderous, luscious produce.]

Immediately afterwards, they searched for [the bunch of grapes], but could no longer find it. [When Rebbi made that statement, the bunch of grapes was instantly swallowed up by the ground and vanished.]

The Radishes which were Brought to Rebbi at the End of the Sabbatical Year

Rebbi was brought two radishes which had been planted between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, and they amounted to an entire camel-load! Rebbi said to those who brought them, "Surely these are forbidden! Weren't they grown in the shemittah [sabbatical] year [and are hence forbidden]?

They answered him, "They were planted at the termination of the New Year [Rosh Hashana, after the Shemittah, and have simply grown very quickly]."

That year Rebbi allowed vegetables straight after the Shemittah [as they could be assumed to have grown afterwards, owing to this Divine blessing].

They asked him, what is the meaning of the verse (Joel 1:17): "The seed shrivels under their clods...?"

He answered them, "In place of collecting honey [from beehives or trees], we collect rotted matter."

A person once had a row of fig trees: He came and found them surrounded by a wall of honey!


A Nest at the Top of the Turnip

Someone once sowed his field with turnips. He would cut off their tops and sell [the congealed juices, there would be so much]!

A fox once made its den on top of the turnips!

Mustard Pods in the Branches of a Fig Tree

It once happened in the [village of] Sichin that they took one of three twigs which had broken off a mustard stalk and made of it a matting to cover a potter's booth. They found that this one twig contained [around 3 1/2 kilograms] of mustard!

Rabbi Shimon ben Chalafta said, " I had a mustard stalk in my field [which thickened so much] that I would climb up it [to gather the upper leaves], just as one climbs a fig tree!"

Only 300 Times as Much

Once someone sowed a seah of peas, and it produced 300 times as much. People said to him, "The Holy One, blessed by He, has begun to bestow blessing on you." He replied, "Go away! A harmful dew has already descended [on the peas. Due to your begrudging me, you have evoked the evil eye]! Had it not been for this dew, the peas would have yielded double [what they did]!"

30 Aggadatah

The Honey which Overflowed

Rabbi Shimon ben Chalafta said: "Rabbi Yehuda once told his son in Sichinin, 'Go and bring me dried figs from the barrel.' He went [lit. went up], stretched out his hand, and found [the barrel] full of honey. He said to his father, 'Daddy, it is honey!' His father replied, 'Stick your hand into the barrel. You wil l be able to take out the "dried figs. '""

Rabbi Yosi once told his son in Tzipori, "Go upstairs and bring me dried figs from the attic." [The boy] went upstairs and found the attic flooded with honey.

Inferior Honey

Rabbi Chananya used to sell bees' honey. He also had an inferior type of honey [not bees' honey].

One time some donkey drivers came to him. Without realizing his mistake, he sold them the inferior honey.

Days later, the drivers passed again, and he told them, " I don't want to cheat you. You should know that the honey which I gave you was of an inferior type." They answered, "Why, that's just the type we want. It is ideal for our work!"

Rabbi Chananya put aside his profits and built the Study Hall of Tzepori [from the money]. [Even though they had told him that he had not overcharged them, he still did not want to benefit personally from the proceeds, lest he had cheated them in the slightest, or, because he did not want to derive benefit from money miraculously earned. For this reason, he contributed the profits towards building a Beit Ha Midrash].


The Luscious Cabbage

Rabbi Elazar ben Rabbi Shimon went to a certain place. They brought him a well-ripened, juicy cabbage. He said to them, "You have added lots of juice [to this vegetable]."

They protested, "We didn't add anything. These are all its natural juices!"

Chapter VIII: Halacha 1

14. The Law of Leket and Trusting the Poor

You shall not gather the gleaning of your harvest. (Leviticus 19:9)

The reference is to the odd one or two ears of corn, which fall during the harvest. (Rashi)

Income for the Entire Year

At what stage is anyone entitled to take the leket [poor man's gleaning] for himself? Only once the last group of [poor] gleaners [lit." removers"] have completed their round. Rabbi Yochanan explained: "Why are they called 'removers'? The answer is that they come after everyone else [and 'remove' all that was left over]"

It was taught Abba Shaul would call them meshushot [lit. "gropers," as opposed to nemushot - "removers." This implied that they were old, weak people using walking-sticks who seemingly groped their way along. Once they had finished their rounds, anything remaining would be free for all to take.]

32 Aggadatah

Rabbi Yochanan ben Nuri would follow these aged poor gleaners around, and that would provide him with his yearly income.

Penny and Penny Laid Up Will Be Many

They [poor people] are believed [if they claim certain produce, such as wheat, to be exempt from tithing, on the grounds that] it is leket [poor-man's gleanings], shikhchah [forgotten sheaves], pe'ah [the corner of the field designated for the poor, provided that their claim is plausible, since these gifts are indeed then] in season. [We believe them even if they are ignorant people not known for their honesty.]...They are believed only about something which people are accustomed to give in this manner [i.e., only if it is in the form in which it is ordinarily given].

What is the maximum amount [about which they can be believed]? Rabbi Channina said: "The amount that could feasibly be gathered in a day. [Then we wil l only believe that they gathered it from the leket, shikhchah or pe'ah left in the fields for the poor, which are consequently free from the obligation of tithing and taking terumah.]

We have learned: Rebbi once believed a group of five brothers who had jointly gathered five kurim [1058.4 kilograms] of wheat. But how could they possibly have managed to gather so much? The answer is that i f one gathers a little from one place and a little from another one, soon he has a whole kur ["Penny and penny laid up will be many."].

Gamliel the Barber

We have learned: The poor are believed regarding raw vegatables [when they claim they recieved it for the


poor-man's tithe]. However, they are not believed with regard to cooked vegetables [because people normally tithe their produce before cooking, not afterwards]. However, concerning small amounts of vegetables, the poor are believed to say that they received them in a cooked state, since a person who forgot to tithe before cooking will subsequently tithe.

[The following story illustrates this point]: Ignorant members of Assi's household cooked vegetables and forgot to tithe them. Gamliel the Barber [who was a local Torah scholar] went and tithed their food from the remains in his pot.

Chapter XV: Halacha 4

15. Allotments to the Poor

The poor person must be given a minimum of half a kab of wheat or a kab of barley. [If someone has alotted the poor-man's tithe in his granary awaiting distribution and many needy people present themselves, then the minimum given to each poor person is the amount one eats in two meals, or, in the case of a dish eaten with bread, the amount of that dish eaten together with bread in two average meals. This is based on the Scriptural verse: "They shall eat in your gates and be satisfied," which instructs us to give the needy enough food to satiate them.

We have learned [the following list of the minimum amounts alloted to a poor person at the granary]:

Rice - 1/4 of a kab Spices 1/8 of a litra

34 Aggadatah

Vegetable — Carobs Wine Oil Nuts Peaches Pomegranates

one litra 3 kabim of a log ־ 1/2

1/4 of a log 10 nuts 5 peaches •- 2 pomegranates

Citron (Etrog) ־- one citron

Chikiyah asked his father, "What are these measurements based upon?"

He answered, "The castle rests on a little pebble." [Just as a castle can depend on a single stone as its foundation, so, too, can five peaches be the basis of a whole person's diet, giving him an appetite to eat properly, or acting as a dessert to make him feel content. Our Sages estimated the above measures to be respectable amounts.]"

Rabbi Chananya was sitting before Rabbi Eyla and whatever reason Rabbi Eyla would suggest for the above measures, he would dispute it.

Rabbi Eyla said, "Rather than refuting me, you ought to embellish my suggestions. [If you would do that, we would come up with valid explanations, since a person succeeds in what he really wants to achieve.]

16. Administrator over the Community. Prevention of Slander

Rabbi Yosi said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: "One should not appoint two brothers as administrators [of community funds, so that people should not suspect them of misappropriating public funds and more, since we have a law


that the judges in a law suit mustn't be related, the administration of communal money is considered equivalent to a law suit.]

Rabbi Yosi dismissed one of the two brothers [from his job as administrator, even though he was well-suited to the job]. Rabbi Yosi came and explained: "Not that [the person I dismissed] had perpetrated any crime, but simply because we have a principal that two brothers cannot be placed as joint administrators [over community funds.]"

The Importance of the Community Administrator

Rabbi Yosi entered the town of Kafir. He wanted to appoint certain members of the community as chief administrators, but no one was prepared to accept the position.

Therefore, he said to them: "Ben Bivoi is in charge of the wicks [of the Menorah in the Temple, ensuring that they burn longer in the long winter nights and shorter in the short summer nights. Since the same amount of oil was always placed in the lamps of the Menorah, the wicks thus had to be adjusted. The mishnah in Tractate Shekalim lists the various appointments in the Temple, such as Mordechai and other great leaders. Amongst them it also lists Ben Bivoi as being in charge of the wicks. Rabbi Yosi continued:] I f one who was appointed in charge of the Temple wicks was deemed worthy of being listed together with the generation's great leaders, you whom I wish to appoint over matters pertaining to life and death, how much more so!"

When Rabbi Chagai would appoint chief administrators, he would make them hold a Torah Scroll [in order that they should appreciate their function and realize that all positions of authority stem from the Torah, as it is written: "Through

36 Aggadatah

Me, kings rule...through Me princes rule and nobles judge righteously" (Proverbs 8:15-16).]

Rejoicing Over One's Disgrace

Rabbi Elazar was in charge of communal affairs. [One day] he came home and enquired [of his family], "What is the latest? [What is the good deed of the day?]"

They answered, "A group of beggars came. They ate and drank and prayed for you/'

He said back to them, "But I do not gain anything [out of that good deed]."

On another occasion he again came home and asked, "What is the latest [good deed] ?יי

They replied, "Another group of beggars came, who ate and drank and disgraced you/' To this he replied, "Now I have gained something, [for even though the guests repayed evil for good, I have succeeded in taking it happily in my stride]."

Even if it Entails Being Disgraced

People wanted to appoint Rabbi Akiva as chief administrator. He told them, " I ' l l ask my family what they think."

They followed him and heard him saying, "Even if it entails being disgraced, even i f it entails being put to shame!"


Halacha 7

17. Giving Charity with Evil Designs

We have learned: Anyone who has 200 zuz [sufficient money to live on for a year] may not take leket, shikhchah, or pe'ah [the various gleanings left for the poor in the field], nor is he entitled to the poor man's tithe. However, i f he has one dinar [the smallest amount] short of 200 zuz, then he may accept even 1000 zuz [any amount], provided it is given to him all at once.

Rebbi once had a student who had 200 zuz minus one dinar. Every third year, Rebbi would give him the poor man's tithe. [The law is that every third and sixth year of the 7-year shemittah cycle, a tenth of one's produce must be given to the poor.] The other students got jealous [of this young man, so on one occasion,] they gave him the missing dinar as charity [to make his income come to 200 zuz, just so that he should not be entitled to the poor-man's tithe.

Rebbi remarked: "[The charity which these Rabbinical students have given him] is pure hypocrisy." He made a signal to his students and they then took their fellow student to a restaurant and made him spend a 1/4 of a dinar, [thereby leaving him with less than 200 zuz]. Rebbi then gave him the poor-man's tithe [as he had previously been accustomed to do].

18. Leaving Jerusalem

There was a certain family in Jerusalem by the name of Antbila, descendants of the famous Arnan, the Jebbusite. On

38 Aggadatah

one occasion, the Sages allotted them 600 golden dinarim, so that they should not be forced to leave Jerusalem. [Life in Jerusalem was hard and prices were high, owing to the influx of pilgrims from all parts of the country. The Antbila family wanted to move out of Jerusalem and find a cheaper place to live, but they were prevented from doing so.] For they would explain: "It says (Deuteronomy 26:12): 'Within your gates, they shall be satisfied.' This tells us that even in Jerusalem [the needs of its inhabitants must be catered for]."

19. Charity According to What He Was Used To Hillel the Elder and the Poor Man

Hillel the Elder once gave a horse to a poor man from a wealthy background [even though the poor man only needed the horse] for recreation. In addition, he gave the man a servant to wait on him.

There is another such story recorded: Every day the inhabitants of the Galilee gave an old man a whole litra of poultry. But surely that is not enough [to feed a whole family and servants? The Torah says that one must make sure that the poor are satiated]] The answer is that this man had no dependents to feed. [This amount was for him alone, and for one person, it is indeed a collossal amount.]

The Wonder-Cure for the Impoverished Wealthy Man Who Loathed to Eat

It has been taught [concerning a person who becomes impoverished and wishes to receive the poor-man's dues] that he is not forced to sell his house or his utensils.


Moreover, we have learned that if, until now, he was using golden vessels, we give him silver ones instead; i f he has been using silver ones, they are exchanged for copper ones; and copper vessels get replaced by glass ones. [In other words, we compel him to sell his expensive vessels and use cheaper ones, before allowing him to receive the poor-man's dues.

Rabbi Manna commented, "[But] vessels which he uses to drink out of, and even articles made of silver or gold [and clothing, do not need to be replaced by cheaper ones. Only furniture, tools and the like.]"

A member of the royal family became impoverished. They started serving him food in earthenware vessels. He ate and vomited, [he was so revolted by the inferior quality of the eating-vessels].

The doctor told him, "Surely all the food you eat is originally cooked in earthenware pots, [so why are you so fastidious]?!"

Thereupon, the man began eating directly from the earthenware pot.

20. A Special Sabbath Garment

If, because of the Sabbath, you "retrain" your foot from pursuing your normal business on my Holy Day, if you call the Sabbath a delight, the Holy Day of the honorable L־rd, and honor it, not doing your own activities.... (Isaiah 58:13)

"And honor it" teaches us that your Sabbath garment must be different from the weekday one. (Sabbath 113a)

Rabbi Chanina said: "A person must have two outer garments - one for the Sabbath and one for the weekday."

What is his reason?

40 Aggadatah

In Ruth 3:3 it says: "You shall wash and anoint yourself, and place your garments upon you." Was she naked then? Rather, we are referring here to her Sabbath garments.

When Rabbi Simlai expounded the above dictum in public, his friends started crying openly. They said to him, "Rabbi! We own only one set of garments, which we wear both on the Sabbath and in the middle of the week." Rabbi Simlai replied, "In spite of that, you must show some difference in your apparel, [such as lowering your garment. Rich people had long, flowing garments, since they didn't need to fear their clothing getting dirty on the ground. These poor people should do the same, and this would not be considered arrogance, since they would be doing it solely in honor of the Sabbath].

21. Gratitude - to Swindlers

Dilemma of the Poor: "Silver or Gold Vessels?"

We have learned that anyone who owns 50 zuz and carries out business transactions with the money, is not entitled to the poor-man's tithe. Anyone who should not be taking, but does, eventually will need to come to others for his livelihood. A person who is entitled to take, but resists, wil l receive the merit of sustaining others [as his property wil l be blessed in his lifetime]. In reference to this, Jeremiah says: "Blessed is the man who trusts in G-d - the L־d will indeed become his stronghold" (Jeremiah 17:7).

One who pretends to be blind or lame or swollen from famine [in order to arouse public pity] wil l not part from this world til l his ruse comes true!


Samuel ran away from his father [possibly because he knew that his father intended to give charity to people whom he knew to be frauds].

Standing between two huts belonging to the alleged paupers, he heard them saying: "In which platters shall we dine today? In silver or in golden platters?"

He went back home and informed his father, who then remarked, "We must be grateful to the frauds!" [for were it not for them, we would be held guilty for each time we were asked to give charity but refused. Now, however, we can justify ourselves by saying that we were not sure i f they were deserving cases.]

The Man Who Died from Famine with a Bag Full of Coins

Rabbbi Yochanan and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish went for a bath in the hot springs of Tiberias. There they met a poor man.

He said to them, "Get your good deed [by giving me charity]!"

They answered him, "We wil l , on our return." When they returned, they found the begger dead. "Since we

did not merit to help him in his lifetime," they said, "let us attend to him now that he has died."

While attending to him [washing him], they found a bag full of money attached to him.

"That is what Rabbi Avahu meant," they remarked, "when he quoted Rabbi Elazar as having said, *We must be grateful to the frauds! For were it not for them, we would be held guilty for each time we were required to give charity and refused.'"

A Large Donation to a Regular Meat-Eater

Abba ben Abba gave his son Shmuel money to divide amongst the poor. [Shmuel] went out and saw a poor man

42 Aggadatah

eating meat and drinking wine. He returned and reported it to his father.

His father said to him, "Give the poor man more! He craves what he is used to. [He is used to a high standard of living and you must cater to his needs.]"

22.Giving Discretely

Not Benefitting from Charity

Rabbi Yaakov ben Iddi and Rabbi Isaac ben Nachman were charity administrators. They would give a dinar to Rabbi Chamma, the father of Rabbi Oshiah. [Even though he himself deserved it,] he would pass it on to others [who were too shy to accept it or had not received all their needs.]

Giving All He Received to Others.

Rabbi Zechariah, the son-in-law of Rabbi Levi, was constantly being slandered by everyone. People claimed that he was not righteous and accepted charity.

After his death, they investigated and discovered [from his diary] that he would always divide out to others all he received.

Rabbi Chanina's Encounter with the Ruler of Evil Spirits

Rabbi Chanina ben Pappa would distribute good deeds at night. [The Yerushalmi always refers to giving charity as "the good deed," since it is the most important act we can do.


Rabbi Chanina would distribute charity in the dark of the night so as not be to spotted and, thereby, cause embarrassment to any poor recipient.]

On one occasion, the Ruler of Evil Spirits met him and said to him, "Surely our Rabbi has taught us: "You shall not interfere with your fellowman's boundary" (Deuteronomy 19:14). [Night is the domain of the spirits and the demons. People have no right to be wandering around at night.]

Rabbi Chanina replied, But surely it says in Proverbs (21:14): "Charity given in secrecy perverts anger." [ I am wandering around by night in order to distribute charity discretely. That has the strength to overpower the evil spirits, known as "Anger and Wrath". You ought to hide yourself from me!]

The spirit was subdued by him and fled [in terror].

He Considers the Poor

Rabbi Yonah said: "4Blessed is he who considers the poor. The L־rd wil l deliver him on the day of evil.' The verse does not read, 'who gives to the poor.' Rather, it reads, *who considers the poor' ־־ he contemplates how best to fulfill this good deed."

How did Rabbi Yonah act [when giving charity]? I f he would see a poor man who had formerly been wealthy [and thus, was too embarrassed to accept even his basic needs], he would tell him as follows: "My son, since I heard that you have inherited a sum of money from some indirect source, take what I am offering you and pay me back later."

Once the poor man had accepted, he would say to him, "[In case you do not receive the inheritance and do not manage to repay me, then what I have given you should retroactively be considered] as a present."

44 Aggadatah

23. A Year's Sustenance ־־ At the Beginning of the Year.

Rabbi Chiya ben Adda said, "Amongst us there were old men who would receive charity. However, they would only accept it between the New Year holiday and the Day of Atonement. After that, they would refuse, claiming, *We have already received our year's quota. [On Rosh Hashanna, it is decided how much money a person wil l earn throughout the year. They would accept charity between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur in order to give people the additional merit of having supported them in these days of penitence.]

24. Murdered by Nechemiah.

Nechemiah from the village of Sichin [in the Galilee] met a Jerusalemite. The Jerusalemite said to him, "Give me that hen of yours as charity."

He answered, "Here is the value of the hen [in money]. Go and buy red meat."

[He bought himself red meat with the money, ate it, and died. This man was not used to red meat, but only to poultry, and the change in his diet caused his death. Nechemiah was very upset that his bad advice had caused such a disaster, even though he had meant it for the man's good, that he should have a more sumptuous dinner. In his anguish, [Nechemiah] proclaimed, "Come and eulogize the man who was murdered by Nechemiah!"

25. Nachum Ish Gam Zu Repents

Nachum Ish Gam Zu was taking a present to his in-laws. [He was known as "Ish Gam Zu," which literally means, "the


man of 'this, too,'" since, at any calamity, he was always known to say, "This, too, is for the best."]

Someone afflicted with boils met him on the way, and he said to him, "Give me some of your wares [as charity]."

[Nachum] answered him, "On my return journey [ I wil l give you]."

When he returned, he found the man dead. Facing the body, Nachum exclained, "The eyes which saw you but did not give you should be blinded! The hands which were not stretched out to give you should be lopped off! The legs which did not run to give you should be broken!

And it was fulfilled. Rabbi Akiva went to visit him. He said to Nachum, "Woe to

me, that I behold you in such a state." Nachum answered, "Woe to me, that I do not see you in

such a state." Rabbi Akiva asked, "What, you are cursing me?!" He answered, "You wish to bear suffering with

stubborness?!"

26. The Blind Man's Blessing

A certain blind man was the Rabbi of the great Rabbi Hoshaiah. Rabbi Hoshaiah would regularly eat by him. On one occasion, Rabbi Hoshaiah had guests and hence didn't go to eat by him.

In the evening, [Rabbi Hoshaiah] went to the blind rabbi and said to him, "My Master shouldn't be angry with me. I had guests and did not wish to disgrace my Creator's honor [seeing that hospitality is greater than encountering G־d's Divine Presence]. That is why I did not eat with you today."

[The blind man] answered, "You have pacified one who is visible but does not have vision. The One Who has vision but

46 Aggadatah

is not visible should accept your pacification." He said to him, "Where have you picked up [such a nice

form of blessing]?" He answered him, "From Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov: A

certain blind man came to the town of Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov. Rabbi Eliezer sat beneath him, so that people should comment that evidently the blind man was a great man, considering that Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov insisted on sitting beneath him.

[Consequently,] the townsfolk gave the blind man much financial support. He asked them, "How come [What made me merit so much assistance]?"

"Because Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov sits beneath you," they answered.

[Upon hearing this,] the blind man prayed the following on behalf of Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov: "You, [Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov] bestowed mercy to one who is seen but cannot see. May the One Who Sees but canot be seen acccept your pacification, and bestow mercy on you."

27. Charity ־־ For Torah-Laborers or for Building a Synagogue

Rabbi Channa ben Chanina and Rabbi Hoshaiah were walking around the synagogues in Lud.

Rabbi Chenna ben Chanina remarked to Rabbi Hoshaiah, "What money my forefathers invested here!"

[His companion] retorted, "How many lives your forefathers invested here! Weren't there Torah-laborers around? [They should have distributed their charity to help maintain those who labor in the Torah, rather than building beautiful edifices]."


TOSEFTA PE'AH

Chapter III: Halacha 13

1. The Forgotten Sheaf -- The Unintended Good Deed.

A certain saintly person forgot a sheaf in his field. He said to his son, "Go and offer up an ox, as a burnt-offering and another one as a peace-will offering on my behalf [to demonstrate my joy at being able to fulfill the precept of Shikhchah [the forgotten sheaf]."

The son asked his father, "Daddy, why do you rejoice over this precept more than over all other precepts in the Torah?"

" A l l other good deeds were Divinely given to us to fulfill at our own volition," his father answered, "whereas this precept comes unexpectedly. Were it not by G-d's Will , the mitzvah would not have come our way." [Since the mitzvah is to leave forgotten sheaves behind for the poor, by definition, it can only come about through our accidental forgetfulness. I f we indeed forget a sheaf, it is a sign of G-d's love for us that through this, he has given us the opportunity of fulfilling yet ranother precept and, consequently, demands our gratitude.]

[The father] said to him, "It says in the Torah, 'When you reap your harvest in your field and you forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not return to take it. Rather, it should be left for the stranger, the orphan and the widow, in order that the L-rd, your G-d, should bless you in all the works of your hands" (Deuteronomy 24:19). The verse has promised him a

48 Aggadatah

blessing. Now, if already a person who had no intention of doing a good deed [such as was the case with the shikhchah], is nevertheless deemed worthy, just as though he had gone out of his way to find some good deed to do, then won't it be true, all the more so, that one who searched for a good deed and indeed performs it [will be held meritorious and worthy of blessing]!

"A similar example of this idea is to be found in Leviticus 5:17-18. There, it reads: ' I f a person sins and transgresses one of G-d's negative commands unwittingly, he is guilty and shall bear his iniquity. He must bring a perfect ram as a sacrifice....' Now, surely [again]: I f already a person who had no intention of sinning but sinned unwittingly is nevertheless considered a sinner, how much more so wil l someone who purposely sins be held responsible for his actions!"

Zeraim - Tracate Demai 49

TRACTATE DEMAI

Chapter I:

Halachah 3

1. Being Careful with Untithed Produced

Tithing Meat and Fish When Rabbi Yochanan would eat even meat or eggs, he

would tithe them [i.e., separate the Priestly and Levitical dues.]

His students questioned him, "Surely, our Rabbi taught us: 'You shall definitely tithe all the produce of your seed' (Deuteronomy 16:22) [which implies that only that which grows from the ground, such as the produce of your seeds, must be tithed, not things of animal origin]!"

However, Rabbi Yochanan was worried about the juices absorbed in the meat and eggs [i.e., lest they were cooked with oil or wine of demai (doubtfully tithed produce). That is why he tithed his meat and eggs.]

Not Like Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair's Donkey

Rabbi Yirmiah sent Rabbi Ze'erah a basket of untithed figs. Rabbi Yirmiah's reasoning was that certainly Rabbi Ze'erah would tithe the food before eating it. Rabbi Ze'erah, however, reasoned, "Surely Rabbi Yirmiah wouldn't possibly send me something untithed!"

In the meantime the untithed produce got eaten. The following day, they met. Rabbi Ze'erah asked, "Was the

basket you sent me yesterday tithed?"

50 Aggadatah

Rabbi Yirmiah answered, " I figured out that Rabbi Ze'erah would never eat anything before tithing it!"

To which Rabbi Ze'erah replied, "And I figured out that Rabbi Yirmiah would never send me anything before tithing it!"

Rabbi Abba ben Zevinah said in the name of Rabbi Ze'erah: " I f our ancestors were angels then we are people. I f they were people, then we are donkeys."

Rabbi Manna said: "At that time, they added the following comment, 'We are not even on the level of Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair's donkey.' [Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair's donkey would sense when something was not tithed, and would refuse to eat it.]

One night, bandits stole Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair's donkey. They stowed it away for three days and it would not eat a morsel. After three days, they decided to return it to its owner, saying, "Let's send it back to its owner before it dies and smells up our cave."

They released it, and it went and stood by the entrance of its master's home and started braying. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair told [his household], "Open the door for this pitiful [animal] ־־ it hasn't eaten a morsel during the last three days!"

They opened the door and let it in. "Bring it some food to eat," he told them.

They brought it barley, but it wouldn't eat. They said to him, "Rabbi, it doesn't want to eat."

He said to them, "Is [the barley] corrected?" [They erroneously thought he was asking whether all

impurities had been removed] and answered, "Yes." He said to them, "Did you tithe it?" [The law states that

produce bought from an uneducated person must be tithed, since it is doubtful whether he tithed it.]

They answered, "Surely our Rabbis taught us: 'Someone who buys fodder for animals from an uneducated person need

Zeraim - Tracate Demai 51

not tithe.'" [Since the odds are that the uneducated person already tithed, the Rabbi exempted animal-fodder as seeds intended for sewing bought from such a person from tithing.]

He answered them, "What should we do for this pitiful [creature] who is over-scrupulous."

They tithed it, and the animal ate!

2. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair

The Deposit

Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair was living in a certain city in the South. Two poor people came there for charity. They had almost fifteen kilograms of barley with them, which they deposited with him. They forgot it there and left. Rabbi Pinchas by Yair sowed their barley yearly, reaped it and threshed it.

Seven years later, they returned and requested their depositback. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair immediately recognized them and told them, "Bring camels and donkeys and come and take your barley which has increased, and take your storehouses!"

A Meeting of Mice

Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair went to a certain place. There, people came to him and said, "The mice are eating our produce."

He decreed that the mice should be gathered together. They assembled and started whistling.

He asked the people, "Do you know what the mice are saying?"

52 Aggadatah

"No," they answered. He told them, "They are saying that your produce is not

tithed, and that is why they ate it ." "Be our guarantor," they said to him, "that from now on we

wil l tithe our produce, in order that [the mice] should no longer eat our grain."

So he undertook to be their guarantor, and the mice stopped eating [the people's] produce.

Finding the Lost Jewel

A jewel belonging to the Ishmaelite King fell, and a mouse swallowed it. [The King] came to Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair [and asked him to retrieve i t ] .

[The Rabbi] answered: "Am I a wizard [who can call the vermin together with his charms]?"

" I came because of your good reputation," the King told him. [ I know that what you decree gets fulfilled.]

Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair then decreed that all the mice should gather together. They obeyed. He noticed one of the mice was squealing as it was coming [alternatively: that it had developed a hunched back].

He said: "This is the culprit!" and he decreed that the mouse should vomit it out, which it did.

A Guarantor for Tithing

Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair went to a certain place. The people came to him and said: "Our spring does not supply all our needs."

"Perhaps you are not tithing your produce properly?" he asked them.

Zeraim ־ Tracate Demai 53

They said, "Be our guarantor." He vouched for them, and the spring began providing ample

water.

They Will Pass Through the River on Foot

Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair was going with his disciples to the Academy. The River Ginai was overflowing its banks [blocking their route]. He said [to the angel appointed over the river], "Ginai, Ginai, why do you prevent me from reaching the Academy?"

The river split before them, and Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair crossed. His students asked him, "Can we cross?" [They feared lest the waters would start flowing again in the middle of their crossing and drown them.]

He answered, "Anyone who feels confident that he never demeaned his fellow-Jew can safely cross over!"

Saving the Pious Man's Daugther

There was a certain saintly person who would dig pits, trenches and caves for wayfarers [so that they should have a constant supply of water]. On one occasion, when his daughter was about to get married, the river swept her away. Everyone went to the man to comfort him, but he refused to let himself be consoled. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair also came to him and tried to comfort him, but he, too, did not succeed.

"This is your saint?!" he demanded of them. [Is he not prepared to come to terms with G-d's justice!]

They told Rabbi Pinchas all the man's pious acts and all that had befallen him. He asked, "Is it possible that one who honors his Creator with water should be punished through water?"

54 Aggadatah

At that very moment, a rumor began spreading throughout the city that the the pious man's daughter had returned. Some say that a branch presented itself which she managed to seize and thereby hauled herself out. Others claim that an angel resembling Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair descended and saved her.

3. The Holy One, Blessed Be He, Protects the Rigtheous from Erring

Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa and the Table Leg

Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa was sitting, partaking of his Sabbath Eve meal. One of the legs of his table cracked and dropped on the floor. He said to those present, "What's gone wrong over here?" [He understood that this was a sign from G-d to stop him from eating.]

They told him, "We borrowed spices from our neighbor [the wife of an unreliable ignoramous] and didn't tithe it."

Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa designated a portion of the food [to be tithed at the termination of the Sabbath], whereupon the leg of the table [miraculously] re-affixed itself in its former position.

Rabbi Tarfon's Bread Falls Down

Rabbi Tarfon was sitting at his meal when his bread dropped. They asked him, "Why did it drop?"

He answered, " I borrowed a hatchet and used it for ritually pure foods." [Rabbi Tarfon was a priest. He borrowed the hatchet from his neighbor assuming that it was ritually pure and used it to cut food. In actual fact it, the hatchet was impure, hence defiling his food. G-d had saved him from eating the food.]


4. The Kashrut of Raisins

A certain person entered the town of Tiberias carrying a truck- load of raisins. Gamliel the barber asked Rabbi Ba, the son of Kahana, [whether the food was definitely tithed and not from the Shemittah Year].

He answered, "The land of Israel does not produce a truck-load of raisins." [But surely Israel produced far more than one truck- load of raisins.] Rather, this is what Rabbi Ba answered, "There is no one place in the whole Land of Israel which produces such big truck-loads of grapes." [Hence the grapes must have been imported, and consequently, are not subject to the laws of tithes or shemittah. It is unlikely that the grapes originated from several places in Israel, so we are entitled to assume they were imported.]

5. Stealing a Chip of Wood

Rabbi Elazar was walking along, supported by Rabbi Shimon bar Kahana. They passed a certain vineyard. Rabbi Elazar said to Rabbi Shimon, "Bring me a wood chip to use as a toothpick." He then retracted, saying, "Don't bring me anything. I f everyone walking past would take a chip of wood from the fence enclosing the vineyard, then there would be no fence left."

Rabbi Ze'irah was walking along, supported by Rabbi Chaggai. Someone passed them with a truck-load of wood. Rabbi Ze'irah said to Rabbi Chaggai, "Bring me a chip of wood to use as a toothpick," but then he said, "Don't bring me anything. I f everyone would do what we're doing, that man would not have any wood left."

Rabbi Ze'irah's motive to refrain from taking the splinter of wood was not that it is forbidden according to the letter of the

56 Aggadatah

law. After all, no one would mind i f someone helped himself to a splinter of wood. Nevertheless, Rabbi Ze'irah wanted to be scrupulous to stress the severity of theft.

6. The Sages Weigh Their Words

Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said, "Rabbi Yosi, the Rebbi, sent me an etrog [citron] and told me, ' I received this from Caesaria.'" ["Rebbi" here was a title given to Rabbi Yosi the son of Chalafta, indicating that he was the greatest in his generation.]

Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel commented that from Rabbi Yosi's statement, he deduced three things: that it was definitely untithed; that it was defiled; and that this was the only etrog which he had received.

He deduced that it was definitely untithed since Rabbi Yosi had said that it came from Caesaria, where all the laws associated with the Land were applicable before Rabbi Yehuda the Prince changed the ruling.

By "defiled," we mean that the etrog had had water sprinkled on it to make it look fresher. The water made it capable of contracting defilement [not that it had actually been defiled].

A l l this was deduced from Rabbi Yosi's stressing that he had received the etrog, implying that he had been cautious to ensure that no one else had handled it apart from himself, and that he had ensured its ritual purity.

His understanding that this was Rabbi Yosi's only etrog was based on logic: Had he had an additional etrog, he would surely have used it to tithe the present one, and would not have sent Rabbi Shimon an untithed one, informing him that it came from Caesaria.


Chapter IV: Halachah 1

7. The Wise Know How to Question

We have learned: I f someone buys fruits from a person who cannot be relied on to have tithed them and the buyer has forgotten to tithe them before the Sabbath, he can ask the unreliable seller [even] on the Sabbath whether it was tithed. [Even an unreliable ignoramous wil l not let himself lie on the Sabbath, due to the awe it inspires.]

How should one question [the ignoramous on the Sabbath, in order not to put him in a position where he feels compelled to lie?]

Rabbi Yonah is consistent here with his own practice. Once Rabbi Yonah bought wheat from a certain villager. He said to the villager, " I am not suspecting you of anything, I am simply nervous, since when I bought the wheat from you, I saw a huge crowd of people standing over you. I was afraid that through the pressure caused by all your customers, you could have mistakenly thought you had tithed the produce when in actual fact you did not."

The villager owned up to his guilt and said, "It's not worth my while to be a cheat in matters of tithing. The truth is, I didn't tithe them!"

Chapter VII: Halachah 1

8. Tithing Secretly, So as Not to Put to Shame

Rebbi and Rabbi Yosi, son of Yehuda, were guests at someone's house. Certain people slandered them by warning

58 Aggadatah

their host that his guests suspected him of not tithing properly and that he should be on the lookout. He sat down and watched his guests to see i f they were secretly tithing his food [because they did not trust him to have done i t ] .

They noticed that he was watching them, but in fact, they did suspect their host of not having separated the tithes. So what did they do? They started throwing the fruits to one another, thereby causing bits of fruit to break, which they then designated as tithes, and their suspicious host...thought the whole thing was one big game.

Halachah 3

9. Religious Work Is Serious Labor

The law states: A man must not plow with his ox by night and hire it out by day; nor may a person work in his own property by night and hire himself out by day; nor may he starve himself or cause himself any self-mortification [when working for others] since all these activities detract from his efficiency when working for his employer.

Rabbi Yochanan went to a certain place, where he saw a children's school teacher dozing off, looking exhausted.

Rabbi Yochanan asked, "Why is the teacher so weak?" They answered, "Because he fasts and indulges in self-

mortification. The fasting drains his strength." Whereupon Rabbi Yochanan demanded of the teacher,

"What you are doing is forbidden! I f a laborer working for his boss is not allowed to indulge in self-denial, since it detracts from his efficiency in his work, then all the more so, when involved in spiritual work [such as a teacher of Torah], one must do one's utmost to be physically healthy and strong."


TOSEFTA DEMAI

Chapter V: Halachah 26

1. Laying Down the Law in Israel

Our Rabbis once assembled in the Cuthean [Samarian] towns by the Jordan River.

People brought them vegetables to eat, and Rabbi Akiva immediately separated all the tithes [including terumah].

[When buying demai -- doubtfully tithed produce — from an uneducated person, the Rabbis obliged us to tithe it again, but exempted us from separating the priestly terumah dues. Since for terumah one need only separate a small amount, the Rabbis do not suspect the ignoramous of being too mean to separate it.]

Rabbi Gamliel said to Rabbi Akiva, "Akiva! How dare you act contrary to the decision of your fellow rabbis? Who allowed you to separate the terumahV

He answered, "Was I laying down the law in Israel? I merely tithed my own, personal vegetables."

Rabbi Gamliel answered, "Tithing and separating terumah from your own vegetables is equivalent to laying down the law in Israel, since people wil l hear of your act and wrongly believe that it represents the law !יי

When Rabbi Gamliel visited them, he treated their grain crops, legumes, and demai [all as tevel and demai, and so, did not separate terumah]. But as for their fruits and vegetables, he regarded them as definitely not tithed, and even separated terumah [since the Cutheans had the mistaken impression that only grain-crops and legumes had to be tithed]. When visiting

60 Aggadatah

them on a later occasion, he noticed that their standards had deteriorated still further. Consequently, he assumed that they were no longer tithing or separating terumah from any of their produce.

TRACTATE KILAYIM

Chapter I:

Halachah 1

1. Cross-Fertilization of Plants

A Mistaken Lesson We have learned in the mishnah: Wheat and zoonin [an

inferior type of wheat, possibly darnel] are not kilayim (forbidden mixtures) [since they are considered as belonging to the same species, and hence may be cross-fertilized].

Rabbi Yaacov bar Zavdi asked Rabbi Yirmiah, "Is the above mishnah following the view of Rabbi Yishmael the son of Yosi? For we have learned: Rabbi Ishmael son of Yosi said in his father name: ' I f one has both wine and wine-vinegar, he may separate the priestly dues from the wine in order to exempt both the wine and the vinegar [since they are considered one type], but not vice-versa [since wine-vinegar is inferior to wine]. However, in the event that he did also separate from the vinegar on behalf of the wine, then he has fulfilled his obligation post-facto.9 "

"'Rebbi, however, held that wine and wine-vinegar are considered two distinct types, and that one cannot separate terumah or tithes from one type for the other.'"

Zeraim ־ Tracate Kilayim 61

[Now, since wine-vinegar and wine can be compared to wheat and zoonin, which are superior and inferior types of the same commodity, the Tanna of our mishnah equated them concerning the Laws of kilayim. Surely this shows that he holds like Rabbi Ishmael son of Yosi, who equates wine with wine-vinegar concerning the laws of tithing, as opposed to Rebbi, who differentiates between them.]

[Rebbi Yirmiya looked with irritation] at Rabbi Yaakov bar Zavdi, [to say that there was a problem with what he had said].

Rabbi Yaakov asked, "Why do you glare at me? [If that's the way you feel,] get a whip and whip me! [How can you react so sternly. Surely we have learned in Ethics of the Fathers (2:5): 'The pedant should not teach'!"

He answered, "The argument of Rabbi Yishmael and Rebbi was limited to laws of tithing. Here we are discussing the laws of kilayim. In our instance, even Rebbi would concede that wheat and zoonin are interchangeable!"

Rabbi Yonah remarked, "Rabbi Yirmiah was justified in glaring at his disciple. Our predecessors already reconciled our mishnah of kilayim and those of tithes [ma'asrot]." [Rabbi Yaakov bar Zavdi ought to have known that. After all, it says in Ethics of the Fathers 4:12: "A mistake caused by forgetting one's studies is considered as a presumptious act of sin."]

Rabbi Hillel's Notebook

"...The broad bean and Nile cow pea, grass pea and red grass pea, white bean and the laxative bean are not kilayim with one another" [i.e., it is permissible to sow them together] (Kilayim, Chapter 1, Mishnah 1)

Rabbi Yosi said in the name of Rabbi Chiyya the son of Va: "The following entry was found in Rabbi Hillel, son of Rabbi Vollow's notebook. [Rabbi Yonah, however, asserted in the

62 Aggadatah

name of Rabbi Chiyya, son of Va, that the entry was not found in Rabbi Hillel's notebook, but rather, on the wall of Rabbi Hillel's house.]

The note [in the notebook, or on the wall] read as follows: Polio, pishono, gilbono, milvoso, sipporvo, phasulta. [These words are an Aramaic translation of the various legumes mentioned in our aforementioned mishnah.]

Now, since the "laxative bean" of our mishnah is translated into the Aramaic as phasulta [which is commonly known as the Egyptian bean], why did our Tanna then call it the "laxative bean"? Rabbi Yonah answered, "Why was it called 'laxative bean?' Because it relaxes the heart and acts as a laxative."

The Students Who Forbade Grafting

The mishnah (Kilayim 1:4) states: "With respect to trees: pears and gallnut peas, quinces and hawthorns are not kilayim with one another. Apples and wild-apples, peaches and almonds, jujube and wild jujube, even though they are similar to one another, are kilayim with one another."

In the market-place of Sepporis, people were grafting pears with galnut pears. A certain student noticed and said to them, "These trees are forbidden to you. [You mustn't keep them, on account of the prohibition of kilayim^

They went and chopped them down. Then they went and asked the Sages in Yavnah [whether the ruling which the student had given them was correct].

The Sages of Yavneh replied, "The student you met was one of Beit Shammai's disciples, [who consider pears and gallnut pears to be two distinct species. However, the law is not like that. You would not have needed to fell those trees.]"

In the vicinity of the village of Ariah, people were grafting apple trees with wild-apple trees. A certain student came

Zeraim - Tracate Kilayim 63

along and said to them, "What you are doing is forbidden." The villagers went and chopped down the trees. They then went and asked the Sages in Yavneh [whether the ruling which the student had given them was correct].

The Sages told them, "What that student told you was correct."

Halachah 6

2. Mating Different Types of Animals

Rabbi Yirmiah reported: "Kahana asked Reish Lakish, 'May one make a crossbreed of two types of sea-monsters, [or is the prohibition of producing hybrids limited to land-animals]?'

"Reish Lakish replied, '[The prohibition of crossbreeding is learned from the Scriptural verse, "...the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the earth after its kind" (Genesis 1:25)." From the words, "after their kind," we learn the prohibition of crossbreeding.] Since, concerning sea animals, the verse likewise states "...and every living thing which the waters brought forth abundantly after their kin<?\ [we learn that the prohibition against crossbreeding applies to them as we l l . ] ' "

Rabbi Acha stated, "This is an incorrect report. [It was not Rav Kahana who asked Reish Lakish], but rather, a general statement in the name of Reish Lakish, that whenever the Torah uses the words 'after their kind' concerning animals, etc., a prohibition of crossbreeding can be deduced."

To which Rav Kahana asked, "But surely, concerning fish [and other sea-monsters], the Torah also uses the words 'According to their kind,' which would imply that one may not crossbreed fish, [which is an impossible assumption]."

64 Aggadatah

Said Rabbi Yosi, son of Boon, "Here, Kahana trapped Reish Lakish [with an unanswerable question]."

Said Rabbi Yonah, " I can answer the question [and 'free' Reish Lakish]: [Reish Lakish was not suggesting a prohibition of mating two types of fish. Instead, he was referring to the prohibition of being drawn along by them, i.e., that one may not bring a cord and attach it to the ear of the white mullet [a type of fish] and to the ear of a green fish in order to let them draw one along [in a small fishing boat, because this is analogous to the prohibition of plowing or being pulled along by an ox and a donkey simultaneously.]"

3. Like the Saplings of Your Vines

It is stated in the beraita: "You must not graft olive trees with a shoot of a palm. [This comes under the heading of] grafting different types of trees."

Rabbi Yudan asked, "Surely this varies with the view of Rabbi Levi, for he stated, 4What is the meaning of the verse: "Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the recesses of your house; your children, like olive plants around your table" [What is the analogy?] Just as olives cannot be successfully grafted [with any other tree], so, too, your children wil l not contain any admixture of worthless matter.' But surely the beraitha implies [that certain grafting can be done with olives, in which case] the admixture of worthless matter to one's children is likewise being suggested!

"The answer is, that the beraitha is not referring to normal grafting. Olives are bitter and date palms are sweet. [The two trees wil l never really mold into one.] The effect is different from normal grafting — it wil l merely sweeten the olives."

In a similar vein, Rabbi Shimon Beribi would water his peach tree with cooked wine, in order to sweeten it.


Chapter II: Halachah 3

4. Avoiding the Semblance of Wrongdoing

It was taught in the mishnah (Kilayim 2:4): " I f a field was planted [with vines] and he decided to sow it [with grains or legumes], he cannot say, '1 wil l sow and afterwards uproot [the vines, in order to prevent kilayim].9 Rather, he must uproot [the vines first], and afterwards sow. I f he wants, he can raze [the vines] til l less than a handbreadth, sow, and afterwards uproot, [razing the vine to within a handbreadth, thereby stunting regeneration. This entitles a person to delay the uprooting until later.]"

We also learned (in the tosefta): "[If, after razing to less than a handbreadth and then sowing,] the vines started sprouting again, [the sprouting vines and grains] may be eaten post-facto. However, [either the vines or grains] must be immediately uprooted."

The following once occurred: Rabbi Shimon ben Yehudah had such a vineyard [which he had cut down to less than a handbreadth, as mentioned above]. He said to his sharecropper: "Go and sow!" [He preferred grains to his vineyard.]

When [the sharecropper] had sown the seeds, the vines started producing shoots again. [Rabbi Shimon] said to [him], "Go and harvest the grain-produce, [since the produce which had grown before the vines sprouted again is now permissible]."

Once he had harvested, the vine tendrils started spreading. He said to the sharecropper, "Go and make a support [of canes around the vines, as is customary in a vineyard/' implying that the vines, too, are permissible, even though they had sprouted!].

66 Aggadatah

Rabbi Ze'ira asked, "Are we to understand that [only a person like] Rabbi Shimon ben Yehuda was entitled to have benefit from the vine in such an instance, since he was certain that he fully renounced ownership of his vines, but that other people, [even after cutting them down to the size of less than a handbreadth,] must nevertheless suspect themselves of not wholeheartedly renouncing ownership? [Since only full-hearted renunciation can make the vines permissble, even though they subsequently start throwing new shoots, must others always suspect themselves of half-hearted renunciation, that perhaps they harbored even subconcious hopes that the vine wil l start sprouting again, which would cause the new growth to be forbidden to them?]"

Afterwards he concluded, " I f Rabbi Shimon ben Yehudah were an exception to the rule, then surely he, too, would have refrained from the new growth, in order to avoid others misinterpreting his actions. [The fact that Rabbi Shimon ben Yehudah did use the new growth is consequently ample proof that others may follow suite.]"

5. They Had Plenty of Answers

[A certain non-Jew once owned a vineyard which also contained vegetables.] A Jew bought the vegetables from the non-Jew [while the non-Jew retained ownership of the vines. The Jewish buyer wanted to know i f he could let the vegetables continue growing, or whether he was required to harvest them right away, because of the prohibition of kilayim.] He went and asked Rabbi Yochanan.

Rabbi Yochanan told him, "Go, harvest [right away] and sell [the vegetables] for whatever price you can get, [since leaving them in the soil any longer would indeed constitute a prohibition of kilayim]"


Rabbi Abahu [challenged this ruling] and asked Rabbi Yochanan, "Surely we have learned in the mishnah, '...and similarly, a place of threshing floors in which there arose many types.' [I.e., wherever plant-growth is undesirable, such as in a granary, we do not obligate him to weed, since it does not constitute kilayim. Since in our case the non-Jew's vines are undesirable to the Jew, why do we obligate the Jew to uproot his vegetables immediately, on account of their presence?]"

Rabbi Yochanan answered, "[There on the threshing floor,] everyone can see that the plants are undesirable [since a surface used for threshing must be smooth, whereas in our instance, the onlooker might not know that the vines belong to the non-Jew, and suspect the innocent Jew of purposely growing kilayim. Hence, we require that he too uproot his newly bought vegetables immediately.]"

But surely an alternative answer could have been given [to differentiate between the threshing floor and our story]: There is a view that whenever any passer-by is legally entitled to pluck weeds growing in someone else's field without being guilty of stealing, that is a sign that the weeds, together with the other plants growing there, are not kilayim. In those instances where weeding or removing plants would constitute theft, however, then that is a sign that the combination is kilayim. In our case, removing the vines would obviously constitute theft, which indicates that the combination is kilayim. Here, removing the vines would obviously constitute theft, because they belong to the non-Jew. Hence, this is a sign [according to the aforementioned view] that the vines with the vegetables do constitute kilayim.]

According to the above, why did Rabbi Yochanan not answer: "Here [in our story], there would be a prohibition of theft, [which is a sign that the laws of kilayim apply], whereas

68 Aggadatah

there by the threshing floor, [plucking the unwanted growth] is not theft. How can you equate a case where there is a problem of theft with a case where there is no problem of theft?" [The fact that we did not give this reply would indicate that we do not accept the above principle.]

No! The principle is acceptable! Rabbi Ami tells us: "[Offering one answer is no proof that another answer is outruled.] The Rabbis had a wealth of answers, [but they preferred the most original one]. Alternately, as Rabbi Nassa used to say, "A person may have two reasons, but he merely suggests one of them." [Hence, we have no proof in either direction as to the validity of the above statement.]


6. A Practical Ruling

A Sabbath Partition and a Kilayim Partition

Rabbi Yehoshua once went to visit Rabbi Yochanan ben Nuri in Nanginar. He showed him a certain field, known as "the House of Birassa" [the family who owned i t ] .

The field [which was surrounded by vineyards] had breeches over ten amot long [about 20 feet] in its partition wall. [These large breeches forbid the planting of vines within 4 amot [about 8 feet] of the fields opposite those breeches, because of kilayim]. He took sticks and forked reeds, with which he closed the breeches, until the gaps were less than 10 amot [thus allowing one to plant opposite]. Then he said, "This is it! [Just as this is now a good partition for kilayim], so, it is also for Sabbath domains."


Chapter VI: Halacha 3

This Is Forbidden and That Is Permitted

It happened that Rabbi Yehoshua went to Rabbi Yishmael in the village of Aziz, and he showed him a grapevine trained onto part of a fig tree.

[Rabbi Yishmael] said to [Rabbi Yehoshua], "May I bring seed under the remainder?"

He said to him, "It is permitted." Then he took him from there up to the house of Maginiyah

and showed him a grapevine trained onto the stump of a sycamore [and on one of the stump's branches. The stump of the sycamore had a number of branches coming out from it.]

[Rabbi Yehoshua] told him, "It is forbidden [to sow foreign seeds under this branch, on account of the prohibition of kilayim with the vine], but it is permissible under other branches of the tree."

Chapter IX: Halachah 1

7. Kilayim of Clothing: Sha'atnez

Burning the Garment

Rabbi Hillel, son of Rabbi Valles, owned a garment which was worth 30,000 dinar. He brought it to Rebbi, who found it to contain kilayim [forbidden combinations of linen and wool] and burned it.

70 Aggadatah

A Shroud for the Dead

Rabbi Mona had a garment which was worth 30,000 dinar. He brought it to Rabbi Chiyya bar Adda.

Rabbi Chiyya said to him, "Did you buy this for the dead? [Have you bought me an object which I can only benefit from after my death? I found kilayim in it, and I fear there is more kilayim in it which I cannot find]."

[He kept the garment and did not sell it further, lest some Jew would buy and wear it.] It remained in his custody till the day of his death, when they shrouded him in it.

A Safeguard to Sha'atnez

Rabbi Chaggai said, "When they would bring a garment from the laundry to Rabbi Shmuel, son of Rabbi Yitzchak, he would employ ten tailors to examine i t" [to ensure that the non-Jewish washerman had not attached any forbidden thread of kilayim to indicate the garment's owner.

Rabbi Chaggai said, "Rabbi Shmuel, son of Rabbi Yitzchak, would instruct the members of his household not to [even] place a woolen garment on a linen one, in order to prevent bits of wool clinging onto the linen garment." [He wanted to make an added measure to guard against transgressing the laws of sha ,atnez.]

Avoiding the Semblance of Wrong-doing

We learned in the mishnah: "Shirayim and kalach are not kilayim, but they are [still] forbidden, on account of their appearance."

By shirayim, we mean silk. By kalach, we mean a coarse silk from Caesaria.


Said Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel, " I enquired from all expert sailors, and they told me that kalach is [what was known to experts as] kilchah [a type of woolly substance which grows on rocks in the Dead Sea, with a golden hue, very soft. It is known as kalach, and is forbidden to be combined with linen, since it looks like sheep-wool, and we take all precautions to avoid any semblance of wrongdoing].

Remove Your Garments and Hand Them Over

It was taught: We do not make inquiries whether there is a dead body [in the Study Hall within 6 feet of someone studying Torah, which would require him to stop his studies], nor whether someone there is [inadvertantly] wearing sha'atnez, [so as not to disturb the study of the Torah].

Rabbi Yosi was once sitting and teaching [his students]. There was a dead body near him. Neither those going out nor those remaining mentioned a word about it. [Had the deceased been versed in Torah, then all would have been compelled to interrupt their studies and show him respect. Since he was uneducated, however, it was sufficient to ensure that there were other people to attend to him, and public studies did not have to come to a halt.]

Rabbi Ami was once sitting and learning. One of his students remarked to his friend, "You are wearing sha'atnez."

Rabbi Ami said to him, "Remove your garments and hand them over to him!" [He was annoyed that his student had unnecessarily disrupted his friend from his studies.]

The Apron Which Was Sha'atnez

Rabbi Yochanan placed an apron on himself [while eating, unconcerned that it was made of sha'atnez].

72 Aggadatah

But surely it is forbidden on account of the laws of kilayiml [Since he merely wore it] to protect his clothing from

getting soiled [and was not interested in it as an article of clothing, his act was permissible].

Said Rabbi Zareykan, "They handed Rabbi Avina a boiling hot egg in a cloth which contained sha'atnez, and he refused to accept it, on account of the mishnaic statement: 'Garment sellers may sell in their usual manner, [carrying sha'atnez garments on their shoulders when taking them to be sold to non-Jews], as long as they do not intend to wear them in the sun [to protect themselves] from the sun, or in the rain [to protect themselves] from the rain. [Since the cloth was intended to protect his hands from getting scorched from the hot egg, he compared it to a garment being worn to protect from the sun or rain.]

Follow Your Rabbi

We learned in the mishnah: A winter-boot [containing a cloth- lining and a woolen stuffing] does not have any problems of kilayim. However, in those localities where they are known to stitch their boots with a linen thread and the boot also contains wool, they are forbidden.

In this vein, we are told that Rabbi Ze'ira instructed Rabbi Abba, son of Emeina, to tell his tanner not to stitch his socks with linen, but with leather instead, [since people sometimes wear woolen socks which cling to the linen thread in the shoes].

Rabbi Ze'irah, however, concedes that woolen belts may be girded on linen ones, since when he girds his loins, the lower girdle loosens and slips.

They asked Rabbi Elya, "May one stitch shoes with linen?" He answered, "Are you referring to Rabbi Ze'irah's ruling,


which forbade it [and you want to see i f I agree with him]?" Rabbi Elya, however, agrees that one may not wear woolen

socks on top of linen ones, since it is impossible to remove the upper socks without first removing the lower ones, [hence, the combination presents a problem of kilayim. On the other hand, in the case of shoes stitched with linen worn on woolen socks, he was lenient, since the linen thread does not protude and wil l not cling to the woolen socks.]

Rav Safra's father asked Rabbi Ze'irah, "May one place money in one's [woolen] turban and tie it closed with a linen thread? Furthermore, may one place money in one's [linen] sheet and tie it with a woolen thread?"

He answered, "Does the Rabbi know Rabbi Hunna?" [are you aware of his being a great man?] Rabbi Hunna held it was forbidden and Rabbi Avina also held it was forbidden, whereas Shmuel said it was permissible. Similarly, Rabbi Yaakov, son of Acha, said in the name of Rabbi Geysa that it was permitted.

Halachah 3

8. Our Holy Rabbi

The Last Will of Rabbi Yehuda the Prince

Shrouds for the dead are not subject to the prohibitions of kilayim, as it says (Psalms 88:6): "...free among the dead." Once a preson has died, he is freed of his duty to keep the commandments.

It was taught: Rebbi left three instructions before he passed away: "Do not remove my widow from my house, do not eulogize me in the cities, and those who looked after me in my lifetime should look after me when I die."

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"Do not remove my widow from my house" — but surely that is already found in a mishnah: "[In the case of a widow who said, ' I 'm not willing to leave my late husband's house,' the heirs may not say to her: 'Return to your father's house and we wil l feed you there.' Rather, they must feed her and provide her with suitable lodgings." [Thus, why did Rebbi need to make a special request for something already obligated by the mishnah?]

Answered Rabbi Derusai, "In order that people should not say: 'I t is the Nasi's [Prince's] official residence, and is pledged to those who occupy the office [and the widow must leave].'" [Rebbi was a descendant of King David, and people were very sensitive to protecting his honor.]

Said Rabbi Elazar, son of Yosi, "Similarly we have learned: ' A woman continues to live in her house [after her husband's death] as though her husband were just [temporarily] overseas. She may use his silver and golden vessels as she would do when her husband was overseas, and she gets sustained as she used to be when her husband was overseas."

[Even though it is the sons who receive their father's inheritance, and not the wife, the children are nevertheless obliged to maintain the widow's standards, as required by her ketubah [marriage document]. But this is only on the condition that she is not interfering with another person's domain. In our case of the Nasi, since her presence would possibly necessitate the new leader to find other lodgings, we would have thought that we are not required to allow her to stay in her old house. Hence, Rebbi had to request it specially in his will.]

"Do not eulogize me in the towns" -־ in order to avoid argument.

[Rebbi died in Sepporis and was transported to Beit She'arim, because he feared that the dwellers of Sepphoris


would complain that they had been deprived of their mitzvah. Others explain that he did not want to be eulogized in the towns, so that the villagers shouldn't say, "Aren't we deemed worthy to eulogize Rebbi?" Therefore, he didn't want to be eulogized either in the towns or in the villages. A third explanation is that i f they would eulogize him in the towns, then many villagers would come from the neighboring villages, and there wouldn't be enough space for them. Since this would consequently cause arguments, instead, they should only eulogize him in the large towns, where there would be space for everyone.]

"Those who looked after me in my lifetime should look after me when I die." Said Rabbi Chananya from Sepphoris: "The reference was to people such as Yosef from Efrat and Yosef from Haifa, whose hearses preceded his, and who were buried before him."

[Rebbi was expressing his wish that they should attend to him by dying at the same time he did, in order to wait on him in the Higher World. In this way, people should not think that the reason they were not priviledged people to be engaged in his burial was because of some slight sin, nor should people erroneously think that the whole reason these great men didn't die in Rebbi's lifetime was merely because of Rebbi's merit, since he needed them to attend to his burial. No! They were righteous and lived in their own merit, and attended to Rebbi both in This World and in the Hereafter.]

Rabbi Chizkiyah added [several other requests] from Rebbi [from before his death]: "Do not bury me with many garments ,remove my coffin's base ;[they'll just cause more worms] ־־[so that my body should be lying directly on the ground, in fulfillment of the verse: Tor you are dust, and you shall return to the dust.'" [An alternative version of this last request was that his coffin should be interred in a burial cave chamber, in order that his body shouldn't get soaked from the rains.]

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Some say that Rebbi was buried in one sheet [without any additional shrouds, since] in the words of Rebbi, "The way a person leaves is not the way he returnes." [The clothes one is buried in are not those which he will wear at the Resurrection of the Dead. Therefore, to be buried in new clothes would be a senseless waste of money.]

We have learned in Rabbi Natan's name: "The garment which clothes a person on his way to the grave wil l return with him. Why? As it says in Job (38:14): 'It is changed like clay under the seal; and they stand as a garment [which means: Man, who is the seal of the Creator, wil l be changed like clay in the potter's hands and will arise at the Resurrection in his original garments] י "

Antoninus asked Rebbi, "What is the meaning of the verse, ' I t is changed like clay under the sear?"

He answered, "The One Who will bring the generation [i.e. who wil l revive them], He will clothe them as well [with new clothing at the time of the Resurrection]."

Preparations for the Resurrection of the Dead

Rabbi Yochanan instructed: "Clothe me in light-blue garments [when I die], not white, nor black, [but rather, somewhere inbetween the two colors,] so that i f I arise amongst the righteous [who are clothed in white,] I won't be ashamed [since, after all, my clothes won't be black,] and i f I arise amongst the wicked [who are clothed in black,] it won't look as though I am giving myself airs, [like a bridegroom dressed in white amongst a group of mourners.]"

Rabbi Joshia instructed: "Clothe me in well-ironed, white garments."


They said to him, "Do you consider yourself better than your Rabbi [i.e., Rabbi Yochanan, who feared that he might not merit arising together with the righteous]?"

He answered them, "What? Should I be ashamed of my actions? [His intention was to arouse his students to the fear of Heaven.]"

Rabbi Yirmiah instructed: "Clothe me in well-ironed, white clothes, dress me with my outer garment, place shoes on my feet and a walking stick in my hand, and place me on my side, so that when the Messiah comes, I wil l be ready [to arise and welcome him]."

Rebbi's Demise

The inhabitants of Sepporis [where Rebbi lived during his last 17 years] declared [just before his death, on account of their great anguish], " I f anyone informs us that Rebbi has died, we will kill him!"

Bar Kapara, his head covered with a mourner's turban and his garments ripped like a mourner, stared in their direction and said, "Mortals and angels seized the Tablets of the Covenant; the angel's have prevailed and snatched the Tablets." [Righteous mortals desiring Rebbi to remain with them are metaphorically represented as holding on to the Tablets of the Covenant, since Rebbi's clarity of the Torah was like one who had recieved it directly from Sinai. The angels, for their part, were trying to draw him to the World to Come. They prevailed, and his soul departed.]

They said to him, "Has Rebbi died?" He said to them, "You were the ones who said it first! [ I

didn't say it, so your vow is not applicable.]" They rent their garments [as is required when the nation's

leader dies], and their cries reached as far as the town of

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Gufafta, a distance of three mil [about 2 miles] from Sepporis. Rabbi Nachman said in the name of Rabbi Manna:

"Miracles took place on that day. It was the eve of the Sabbath. Al l the towns assembled to lament and eulogize him, and they placed him down eigtheen times to be mourned. They then took him from Sepporis [which was on the top of a mountain] to Beit She'arim [in the valley] where they buried him. The sun [miraculously] did not set til l everyone had managed to get back to his own home and fi l l his barrel with water for the Sabbath and light the Sabbath candles. As soon as the sun had set [marking the commencement of the Sabbath], the cock immediately started crowing, [marking the break of day — [the setting of the sun had been supernaturally delayed for most of the night.] The people worried, 'Perhaps we profaned the Sabbath!'

"A heavenly voice was heard, saying: ' A l l those who were not lazy in lamenting Rebbi's demise are assured of their salvation in the World to Come, apart from a certain washer, [who would regularly frequent Rebbi, but was not present at the funeral orations]. On hearing that, the washer went onto a roof-top, threw himself off in anguish, and died. A Heavenly Voice came forth and declared: 'Even the washer [is now welcome in the World to Come].'"

"His Tender Mercies Are over All His Works"

Rebbi lived in Sepporis for seventeen years. In connection with this, he would cite the verse: "Jacob lived in the land of Egypt for seventeen years" (Genesis 47:28) and comment, "and Yehuda lived in Sepphoris for seventeen years." Thirteen of those seventeen years he suffered from toothache. [Neverless, due to his great saintliness, he submitted lovingly to his sufferings and even compared his last years in Sepphoris


to Jacob's last years in Egypt, in which he lived in blissful tranquility.

Said Rabbi Yosi, son of Boon, "Throughout those thirteen years, no woman died in confinement or had a miscarriage throughout the Land of Israel, [since the suffering of the righteous protects the generation]."

Why did Rebbi have this chronic toothache? Once he was walking along, when he saw a calf being lead to the slaugther. The animal bowed and said to him: "Rebbi, save me!" [It tried to seek refuge under Rebbi's garment.]

Rabbi said to the calf, "For that purpose you were created!" [Since Rebbi didn't have pity on the animal, he was punished with toothache.]

What caused Rebbi's final recovery? He saw people killing a nest of mice and said to them, "Leave them alone! It is stated [in Psalms 145:9]: 'His tender mercies are over all his works!'"

[They said in Heaven, "Since he is merciful to creatures, we wil l have mercy on him."]

Elyah the Prophet Assumes the Appearance of Rabbi Chiyya and Cures Rebbi

Rebbi was very humble. He would say, " I ' l l do anything anyone tells me to do, apart from what the elders of Betheira did for my grandfather [Hillel, the Sage]. They resigned from their office as leaders and appointed him Nasi instead. However, i f Rabbi Hunna, Chief of the Babylonian Jews, wil l come up here [to Israel], I will place him above me, because he descends from the Tribe of Juda, whereas I only descend from Benjamin; Rabbi Hunna is a paternal descendant of Juda and I 'm only a maternal descendant." [Paternally, Rabbi Juda descended from Benjamin and maternally from Juda, through Shefatya son of Avital, David's wife.]

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Once, Rabbi Chiyya the Great visited him and said, "Behold, Rav Hunna is outside!"

Rebbi's face turned green [from shame, since he thought that he was now expected to appoint Rabbi Hunna as Nasi in his stead.

Rabbi Chiyya then said to him, "His coffin has come." [This wasn't true, since Rabbi Hunna died after Rebbi and Rabbi Chiyya and his sons. Rabbi Chiyya only said this to relax his Rebbi's anxiety.]

Rebbi then said to Rabbi Chiyya, "Go and take a look who is looking for you outside!"

Rabbi Chiyya went out, but couldn't see a soul. He realized the Rebbi was angry with him [and had politely thrown him out]. For thirty days Rebbi Chiyya did not enter Rebbi's house [as though he had been excommunicated].

Said Rabbi Yosi, son of Boon, "Throughout those thirty days, Rav learned Torah principles from his uncle Rabbi Chiyya." [Rav descended to Babylonia and became the Chief Rabbi of the entire Diaspora. Most of the Talmud Bavli stems from him.]

After thirteen years and thirty days had elapsed [the final cure of Rebbi's toothache was delayed by an extra thirty days in honor of Rabbi Chiyya] the Prophet Elijah appeared to Rebbi, disguised as Rabbi Chiyya, and asked Rebbi how he felt.

He said, "How is my master?" He answered, "One tooth still hurts me." He said, "Show me your tooth." He showed him. Elijah placed his finger on it and it was

cured. The following day, Rabbi Chiyya the Great visited Rebbi.

He said to him, "How is Rebbi? What's the latest with his teeth?"


Rebbi answered, "From the time you placed your finger on it, it has been cured."

He then said, "Woe to you, all confined women in the Land of Israel! Woe to you, pregnant women! [From now on, the sufferings of the righteous Rebbi will no longer be able to protect and save you with the merit of his sufferings.]"

He said to him, "It wasn't I [who placed his finger on your tooth and cured i t ] . "

From that time onwards, [after it was known that Elijah has assumed the appearance of Rabbi Chiyya in his honor], Rebbi would treat Rabbi Chiyya with great respect. When Rabbi Chiyya would enter the academy, Rebbi would say, "Let Rabbi Chiyya the Great sit up front."

Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi, said to him, "In front of me?" He answered, "Heaven forbid. Rabbi Chiyya in front but

Rabbi Yishmael son of Yosi right in front."

Rabbi Chiyya and Rabbi Yishmael, Son of Yosi

Rebbi was singing Rabbi Chiyya the Great's praises to Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi. Once Rabbi Yishmael saw Rabbi Chiyya in the bathhouse, but Rabbi Chiyya [ignored Rabbi Yishmael] and did not show him any signs of respect.

Rabbi Yishmael remarked to Rebbi, "Is this the Rabbi Chiyya whom you are [constantly] praising."

He answered, "What did he do wrong?" He said, "He saw me in the bathhouse but did not humble

himself with respect." Rebbi then asked Rabbi Chiyya, "Why did you behave that

way?" He answered, "May evil befall me [if I was aware at that

time of Rabbi Yishmael's presence]; I was not even aware that I was washing myself[ At the time, I was running through the

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whole Midrash on Psalms [so as not to forget it, and was even oblivious of the fact that I was washing myself.] י,

From then on, two students were charged [by Rebbi] to accompany Rabbi Chiyya wherever he went, so that he should not endanger himself [on account of his preoccupation with his Torah thoughts].

9. Rabbi Chiyya the Great

Fasting to See His Face

Rabbi Yosi fasted for eighty days in order to merit seeing the deceased Rabbi Chiyya the Great. Finally, when he did see him, Rabbi Yosi's limbs trembled and his eyesight dimmed. Now, i f you wil l contend that Rabbi Yosi was on a low level, [then hear the following story]: A certain weaver came to Rabbi Yochanan and told him, " I saw in my dream that the Firmament was falling, and one of your disciples was holding it in position."

Rabbi Yochanan said to him, "Would you recognize him?" He answered, " I f I 'd see him, I 'd recognize him." Rabbi Yochanan let all his students pass in front of the

weaver, and he picked out Rabbi Yosi.

The Difference between Learning and Teaching

Rabbi Shimon, son of Lakish, fasted three hundred fasts in order to merit seeing Rabbi Chiyya the Great [in a dream], but he didn't appear to him. Rabbi Shimon was very upset as a result, and said, "Did Rabbi Chiyya then labor in the Torah more than I did?"

They answered him, "He spread Torah in Israel more than you. Not only that, but he even went into exile for Torah."

He said to them, "But didn't I also go into exile?"


They said to him, "You went into exile in order to learn. He went into exile in order to teach."

The Burial of Rabbi Hunna in the Cave of Rabbi Chiyya

When Rabbi Hunna, Chief of the Babylonian Jews, died, they brought his body to the Land of Israel. They said, "Where should we bury him?"

They decided, "Let's place him next to Rabbi Chiyya the Great, since he came from the same country of origin, [i.e., Babylonia]."

They said, "Who wishes to place him there? [Who is prepared to enter the burial vault of Rabbi Chiyya to bury him?]"

Said Rabbi Chaggai, " I ' l l go in and place him." They said to him, "You are looking for an excuse [to be

able to be buried next to them]. You are old and want to go in [to that cave] so that should you pass away while in there, so that you'd be interred there."

He said to them, "Tie a cord to my legs, and if I don't come out on my own, haul me out."

[So they tied a cord to his legs.] He went in and found three people debating [whether to admit Rabbi Hunna]. He heard a voice saying, "Yehuda, my son, there has never since been anyone like you; Chizkiyah, my son, there has never been anyone like you; Joseph, son of Yisrael, no one has ever since existed who can match you."

[Yehuda, son of Rabbi Chiyya, was sitting to his right; Chizkiyoh, his son, was sitting to his left, and behind Rabbi Chiyya, the righteous Joseph, son of Jacob, the patriach, was sitting. Rabbi Chiyya and his two sons represent the three patriarchs and so it was not fitting for anyone else to sit

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between them. Behind them was sitting the saintly Joseph who was born to Jacob in his old age, and resembled him closely.]

Rabbi Chaggai raised his eyes and stared at the holy group. He was told, "Turn your face, lower your eyes, [lest you come to harm]!"

He then heard the voice of Rabbi Chiyya the Great saying to his son, Rabbi Yehuda, "Make room for Rabbi Hunna [to lie next to you. Since he has already arrived, it is not courteous to refuse him]." Rabbi Chaggai, however, refused to place Rabbi Hunna's coffin between them. He felt it was not respectful to them. [Instead, he left the coffin in an upright position.]

They thereupon said, "Just as [Rabbi Chaggai] would not separate us [by placing Rabbi Hunna between us], so, too, his seed wil l never be separated, [i.e., his posterity wi l l never cease]."

Rabbi Chaggai emerged from the cave. He was aged eighty at the time and was given an additional eighty-year life span.

10. "There is None that Can Deliver Out of My Hand" (Deuteronomy 32:39)

King Solomon's Scribes

Rabbi Yonah said in the name of Rabbi Chama, son of Chanina: "A peron's feet are responsible for placing him where he is destined to die, as it says (I Kings 22:2): 'The L-rd said: "Who shall entice Ahav, so that he may go up and fall at Ramot-Gilead?"' It does not say, 'Let him die in his house,' but rather, in a specific place."

Elichoref and Achiyah were two of Solomon's scribes. The Angel of Death came and stared at them and started gnashing its teeth.


[Solomon understood that the Angel of Death was intent on taking their lives, so he tried to save them.] He said a word [he uttered one of G־d's ineffable Names] and placed them in a hole.

The Angel of Death hauled them out, and then it went and mocked King Solomon [for actually having helped him in his work].

Solomon said to him, "An hour ago you were gnashing your teeth, and now you are jeering?!"

He answered, "The All-Merciful told me to take the lives of Elichoref and Achiyah from them when they would be in that hole. I said,** Who will place them in the place from which I've been sent to take them?' G-d put it in your mind to act as you did, in order that I should be able to fulfill my mission!"

Solomon then went there and attended to them, [i.e., buried them.]

Rabbi Reuven's Two Sons

Two of Rabbi Reuven son of Istrubali's sons were students of Rebbi. Rebbi saw the Angel of Death glaring at them and gnashing its teeth [since they weren't in the place where it was decreed that they would die].

Rebbi said, "Let's exile them to the South; perhaps their exile will atone for them [and save them]."

[He sent them there,] but the Angel of Death went there and took their lives, [since it had been decreed by G-d that they should die in the South].

11. Death and Burial in the Land of Israel Dying in One's Mother's Arms

Ulla would regularly go from Israel to Babylonia [to spread the Torah teachings of the Holy Land]. When his time came to

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die, he was [in Babylonia]. He started crying, [since he felt he would have to give up his life in foreign territory].

They said to him, "Why are you crying? We'll take your body up to the Land of Israel [for burial]."

He answered them, "What wil l I get out of that? I am leaving my gem [i.e., my soul] in a polluted country. One cannot compare surrendering one's soul in one's mother's arms [in Israel] to leaving it in the arms of a stranger!"

Rabbi Meir's Last Will

Rabbi Meir was about to pass away in a Roman town in Asia-Minor. He said, "Tell residents of the Land of Israel, 'Here is your anointed one,' [i.e., inform them of my death, so that they should transport me for burial in the Holy Land]."

Even though he knew his wishes would be fulfilled, nevertheless, he requested, "Place my hearse by the seashore [till they come to collect me]."

This request was based on the verse: "For he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers." The Land of Israel is surounded by seven seas: the Mediterranean Ocean, the Lake of Tiberias [the Galilee], the Lake of Sibkhay [Meiron], the Dead Sea, the Sea of Hulta, the Lake of Shilyath [Eilat] and the Lake of Paneas in the Northern Galilee. [Consequently, all seashores in the world are considered somewhat linked to the shores of the Holy Land. But surely there is an eighth sea,] namely the Lake of Emesa [Huns]. [So why did we only list seven?] This was only an artificial bay made under the reign of Diocletian [not from the original Creation],


The Well of Miriam

Rabbi Chiyya, son of Abba, said, "Anyone who climbs Mount Carmel and notices a sieve-shaped object in the Lake of Tiberias is beholding the Well of Miriam [which accompanied the Jews in the Wilderness and supplied them with water in Miriam's merit]." [It is a round rock with many holes, like a sieve, and can be viewed from the top of the Carmel].

Rabbi Yochanan said, "Our Rabbis figured out that it is directly opposite the middle gate of the ancient synagogue of Serognin."

"And His Land Shall Atone for His People"

Rabbi Barkorya and Rabbi Elazar were walking from one city to another. They saw coffins being brought to Israel from overseas [from people who had died outside Israel and wished to be buried in holy soil].

Rabbi Barkorya said to Rabbi Elazar, "What have these people achieved by that? In reference to them, I cite the verse, 'You have made my heritage an abomination' [by spurning it] in your lifetime, whereas 'when you entered, you defiled my Land' (Jeremiah 2:7) [by arriving only] after your death!"

Rabbi Elazar said to him, "When they get to the Land of Israel, people take a clod of soil and place it on their coffins, thereby fulfilling the verse: 'Their Land shall atone for their people' [for having died in the Diaspora]."

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TRACTATE SHEVI'IT

Chapter IV: Halacha 2

1. Transgression of the Law

Working in the Seventh Year Originally, when the [Roman] government would force [the

Jews to pay a fifth of their produce as taxation, and anyone not tilling his soil would get it confiscated], Rabbi Yannai ruled that they should plow once [in the Sabbatical year, when working on the soil is normally forbidden if it is done to obtain a more copious crop, since it was not considered to be of the utmost necessity].

A certain apostate was working in the shemittah year, [and others started following his bad example]. Rabbi Yannai noticed them plowing twice over. He said to them, "On account of that persecutor, Satto, you were allowed to plow once. But who allowed you to plow over, a second time?!יי

Alternatively: After the persecution was over, Rabbi Yannai passed and saw them plowing the first time over. He said to them, "My intention was never to remove prohibitions; it was only to alleviate your suffering. At the time of the political persecutions, I allowed you to work in your fields so that your enemies should not torment you. Now that the decree has been annulled, however, you have no permission to plow in the Sabbatical Year."

Another version: Once, during a period of political persecutions, a certain apostate passed by [Jewish fields] in the Sabbatical year and saw them gathering and stacking their produce. He said, "You are deviating from the Torah. Since when have you been allowed to plow and stack your produce? It seems that you have totally forsaken your Torah!" [The

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apostate intended merely to cause them anguish, to snicker at them.]

Said Rabbi Yaakov, son of Zavdi, " I asked Rabbi Abahu, Surely Rabbi Ze'irah and Rabbi Yochanan both said in the name of Rabbi Yannai, and Rabbi Yirmiah and Rabbi Yochanban in the name of Rabbi Shimeon, son of Yehotzadak: 'They noted and passed a law in the upper chamber of the house of Nitza that i f a gentile forces a Jew at the peril of his life to transgress any law in the Torah, apart from idol worship, incest, or blod shed, he should transgress rather than forfeit his life, as it says in Scriptures: "You shall live with them" (Leviticus 18:15).

" 'When does this apply? Only in private, but in public, a person should surrender his life, rather than transgress even the most minor prohibition. An example of this is the incident with the two brothers, Pappos and Lulyanos, who were given water to drink in tinted glasses and refused.'" [They were captured by Turnus at the time of the persecutions and were ordered to drink water in red glasses. Thus, a Jewish onlooker would think that they drank forbidden wine and take it as an indication that one may renounce one's religion under pressure. Even though their sin would only have been a semblance of wrongdoing, still, they refused and surrendered their lives. I f so, how could Rebbi allow tilling the soil in the shemittah in public during the persucutions?]

Rabbi Abahu replied, "[Rabbi Yannai allowed the first plowing in the shemittah] since the heathens' intention in the law was not to break their faith, but merely for monetary interests, to collect their taxes." [Hence, submitting to their wishes in these extenuating circumstances is not considered a profanation of G-d's Name.]

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Transgress Rather than Die

Rabbi Avuna Ze'ira was seen driving his loaded donkey by running behind it on the Sabbath [at the behest of some governor, who was using it to transport some load. Rabbi Avuna Ze'ira agreed, [even though what he was doing is forbidden on the Sabbath], since the heathen's intentions were merely for his own interests and not to break the Rabbi's faith].

Rabbi Yonah and Rabbi Yosi permitted baking for Ursicinus [a Roman general in Israel] on the Sabbath, [since the general's intentions were merley to have hot bread for himself and his army, not to break their faith].

Jew -- Until the End

Rabbi Abba, son of Zemima, was tailoring clothing at the premises of a certain gentile in Rome. The gentile brought Rabbi Abba carrion and commanded him, "Eat i t!"

Rabbi Abba said, " I will NOT eat it." "Eat, or else I will kil l you," the heathen demanded. He replied, " I f you wish to kill me, then kill me. I simply

wil l not eat any meat not slaugthered according to our rituals."

The heathen said, " I am herewith informing you that had you eaten, I would have killed you. A Jew must be a proper Jew; a gentile must be a proper gentile, [i.e., he was merely trying to test the sincerity of Rabbi Abba]."

Said Rabbi Manna, "Had Rabbi Abba, son of Zemima, obeyed the words of the Sages [that one should never surrender one's life for any law of the Torah which one is being coerced to transgress in private, other than the three cardinal crimes], then he would have eaten."

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2. Not to Exalt Oneself with the Crown of the Torah

Rabbi Tarfon went down to his field [which was contracted out to others] to eat figs which were lying there to dry, on the understanding that he would not have to reciprocate. This was in accordance with the view of Beit Shammai. [It was the Sabbatical year, when all fruits are deemed ownerless by Divine decree. In the view of Beit Shammai, it is even forbidden to show or accept gratitude for partaking of the fruits, since that is considered to fall under the heading of trading with shemittah produce. For that reason, Rabbi Tarfon did not inform his tenants that he was entering the fields.] The guards noticed [and thought he was a thief], and started beating him.

When he realized the danger he was in, he said to them, "Go and inform Rabbi Tarfon's household that they should prepare his funeral shrouds."

When they heard that [and stared and recognized him,] they prostrated themselves and said to him, "Rebbi, forgive us!"

He told them, "Let [evil] befall me [if what I ' l l tell you now is not true]: I forgave you in advance for each blow which descended on me. [ I realized that I deserved it for not having relied on the ruling of Beit Hillel, who disagreed with Beit Shammai]."

Rabbi Tarfon followed the stricter view of Beit Shammai in two matters and endangered his life. The first was the above story, and the second was [when he was on a journey and purposely stopped still and inclined when] reciting the Shema [in accordance with Beit Shammai's view. He was confronted by armed bandits, thereby endangering his life.]

Said Rabbi Abahu in the name of Rabbi Channina, son of Gamliel, "Throughout Rabbi Tarfon's lifetime, he would

92 Aggadatah

afflict himself on account of the above episode and say, "Woe to me that I exalted myself with the crown of the Torah!" [He was very rich and could have bribed the guards to leave him alone, rather than stopping them by telling them who he was.]

Halachah 3

3. May the Blessing of the L־rd Be Upon You

Rabbi Chinnena, son of Pappa, and Rabbi Shmuel, son of Nachman, passed by someone who was plowing his field in the shemittah year.

Rabbi Shmuel, son of Nachman, said to him, "Keep up the good work!" [since he realized that the farmer was only plowing under coercion of the ruling power and had no wish to transgress the Torah].

[Rabbi Chinnena, however, did not perceive the farmer's motives.] He said to Rabbi Shmuel, "Didn't our Rabbi teach us [the following inference from Tehillim 128:8]: 'Nor do they who go by say, "The blessing of the L־rd be upon you,"' from which we derive that it is forbidden to bless or encourage farmers plowing in the Sabbatical year."

[Rabbi Channina attributed this biblical exposition to his rabbi, to show him deference, even though he had never heard it from him.]

Rabbi Shmuel answered, "You know how to read, but you don't know how to expound. When the verse says: 'Nor do they who go by say...,' it is referring to the non-Jewish nations of the world, who wil l go out of the World [and be lost forever]. [It is not referring to passers-by. Similarly, when the Psalmist writes a few verses earlier: 'The plowers plowed upon my back...,' the reference is not to physical plowing, but rather, to


the nations of the world who plow and scheme evil plans against us]. 'Nor do they who go by say, "The blessing of the L־rd be upon you"' should therefore be interpreted to mean that the nations of the world do not say to the Jews, 'May G-d's blessing be upon you, [i.e., they do not realize that all the prosperity that comes their way is in the merit of the Jewish people]'.

"How does Israel respond? 'We have blessed you in the Name of the L־rd,' implying that not only are you not satisfied that all worldly blessings which come your way are in our merit, and not only do you not invite us to share in the blessings; you even levy heavy tributes, crop taxes, poll-tax and fines!'"

[Rabbi Chinnena understood that Rabbi Shmuel wished to indicate that this farmer was merely working to pay off his taxes [which the Rabbis had allowed], and that was why Rabbi Shmuel had blessed him and even encouraged him, so that he shouldn't become despondent that he had been forced to violate the shemittah.]

Halachah 7

4. They Cherish Her Very Dust

Rabbi Yosi, son of Channina, would kiss the rocks [alternatively: coral stones] of Acco. [Others say that he kissed the arched bridge at Acco, which marks the boundary of the Land of Israel.]

He would say, "The Land of Israel ends here." Rabbi Ze'ira crossed the River Jordan, fully dressed. [He

preferred to soak his garments, so as not to show disrespect to the Jordan.]

94 Aggadatah

Rabbi Chiyya, son of Abba, would roll in the dust in the market place of Tiberias [out of sheer love of its sublimity].

Rabbi Chiyya the Great would weigh the stones [to know whether he had entered the Land. In Israel, the stones are heavier. I f the stones were light, he would say, " I have not yet entered the Land of Israel/' Once he found them heavy, he'd say, "Now I've entered the Land of Israel."]

Rabbi Channanya would level out the streets, so that people should not criticize Israel's streets.

Why did they all go to such extremes? In order to fulfill the words of the Psalmist, "For our servants hold her stones dear, and cherish her very dust (Psalms 102:15).

Chapter VI: Halachah 1

5. A Student's Ruling

Rebbi was in Acco, [the part of Acco which was conquered by those who came back from Babylonia, which makes it an intrinsic part of the Land of Israel, liable therefore to all laws applicable to the Land and to having challah separated from the dough by Torah decree].

Rebbi saw the people there eating bread which had been made from finely-sifted flour. He said to them, "Are you, then, soaking your grains?" [This is the only way such fine flour could be produced, therefore causing him to fear that the grains had been soaked in water, which would have made them susceptible to contract uncleanliness. Seeing they were uneducated, it could be assumed that their vessels were impure, which would have defiled the dough and the challah, which is forbidden.]

Zeraim - Tracate Shevi'it 95

They answered, "A certain student came here and taught us that egg-liquid does not make a food susceptible to uncleanlines. So we boil eggs and soak the grains in the water in which the eggs were boiled."

When the student said egg-liquid, they erroneously thought that he was referring to the water in which the eggs were cooked, whereas in actual fact, he had meant the egg-whites. [The student should have expressed himself clearly so as to avoid error. Egg-white, like pure fruit juice, wi l l not make a food susceptible to contracting uncleanliness, whereas the water in which the eggs are cooked, will.]

Rabbi Yaakov, son of Iddi, said, "From then on they decreed that no student should pass rulings on legal issues."

Rabbi Chiyya, son of Rabbi Chunna, added, " I f a student passes a ruling, even i f it is legally accurate, the ruling has no validity."

6. The Student Who Ruled in His Rabbi's Presence

We have learned: "A student who rules in the presence of his Rabbi is deserving of death." Furthermore, we have learned in the name of Rabbi Eliezer: "The only reason why Nadab and Abihu died, was because they decided a point of law in the presence of Moses, their teacher.יי

It once happened that a certain student decided a religious matter in the presence of his rabbi, Rabbi Eliezer, whereupon the Rabbi said to his wife, Imma Shalom [sister of Rabbi Gamliel], "This man won't survive the week!"

Indeed, before the week was up, he had passed away. His students said to him, "Rabbi, are you a prophet?"

He answered them, " I am neither a prophet, nor the son of a prophet, but I have a tradition: Any student who decides on points of law in the presence of his rabbi, is deserving of death."

96 Aggadatah

We have learned: "A student is forbidden to rule in religious matters in the presence of his rabbi within a radius of twelve mil [about 12 kilometers, or eight miles], the length of the encampment of the Jews in the Wilderness. What is the basis for this? [It is stated in Numbers 33:49]: 'And they pitched by the River Jordan, from Beit Hayeshimot to Avel Hashitim.' How far is this? Twelve mil." [Rabba, son of Rabbi Channa, said that he saw that the distance between Beit Hayeshimot and Avel Hashitim was three parasangs, which is twelve mil. Moses pitched his tent outside the camp, and anyone wishing to know G-d's wishes would go to the Tent of Meeting, outside the camp, where Moses was residing.]

[We see that it is forbidden to rule in the vicinity of one's Rabbi, from the fact that the people had to treck to Moses and couldn't consult local Rabbis.]

Rabbi Tanchum, son of Chiyya, was in Chetter [alternatively, Cheffer, a city in the Galilee, about five kilometers east of Sepphoris, the chief city in the upper Galilee]. They would ask him halachik questions and he would make decisions.

They asked him, "Surely our Rabbi has taught us that a disciple may not rule in halachik matters in the vicinity of his rabbi, unless he is [at least] twelve kilometers away, like the length of the encampment of the Children of Israel. Surely, your rabbi, Rabbi Mona, resides in Sepporis?!"

He answered them, "Let [evil] befall me, i f I was aware [that my mentor was nearby]!"

From then on, he would not make decisions in points of law.

7. The Cohen Who Left the Land

Rebbi was in Acco. He noticed someone crossing the borders of Acco and leaving the country.


He said to him, "Aren't you the son of so and so, the Cohen? Wasn't your father a priest?" [The Rabbis forbade priests to leave Israel in Temple times, since they had decreed that the atmosphere and soil of foreign lands defiles, and a priest must be extra-meticulous to protect his purity.]

The man answered, "My father let himself get carried away [by beauty] and married a woman who was unfitting for him [a divorcee]. They thereby profaned that man." [He was referring to himself, that he had been profaned through his parents' illegal union, and was consequently not bound by the priestly restrictions not to leave the Land of Israel. He spoke in the third person out of embarrassment.]

8. The Purity of Ashkelon

Rabbi Simmon taught in the name of Rabbi Chilfai: "Rebbi and Rabbi Yishmael, son of Rabbi Yosi, and Ben Hakapar jointly ruled that Ashkelon [is within Israel's borders and hence, that its atmosphere does not defile. They based this on the ruling of Rabbi Pinchas, son of Yair, who had said, "We would go down to the Yishmaelite market in Ashkelon, where they sell produce. We'd buy wheat and return to our city and immerse in the ritual-bath [the mikvah] and eat terumah [the priest's share of the crop] in the evening.'" [From the fact that they were prepared to go to Ashkelon, even though they were priests, it is clear that they considered Ashkelon to be part of Israel. The reason they immersed before eating terumah, was because they feared that during their business dealings with the Arabs, one of the Arabs might have contaminated them through contact or through a drop of saliva which may have dribbled onto them from his mouth.]

The following day, a majority ruling was issued [by other rabbis], exempting produce from Ashkelon from being tithed.

98 Aggadatah

[This was based on the assumption that Ashkelon was not within Israel's true boundaries, since Joshua never killed or drove out its inhabitants, but merely subdued them and forced them to pay taxes.]

Rabbi Yishmael, son of Rabbi Yosi, did not second the motion [of exempting Ashkelon produce from tithing. He figured that Ben Hakapar would likewise abstain. [When he saw that Ben Hakapar did back the new ruling of exempting Ashkelon], he asked him, "My son, why didn't you question me as to why I refused to second the motion? I would have told you my reasons [rather than that you should blindly follow them]."

"[Even though all my life] I had assumed Ashkelon to contaminate [like all places outside Israel," said Rabbi Yishmael,] "nevertheless, [yesterday] I declared it [as part of the Holy Land] in all its purity [and thus, permissible for priests. I was basing myself on the testimony of Rabbi Pinchas, son of Yair.] Moreover, I contend that it can possibly be considered by Torah law as having been conquered and an integral part of Israel [owing to its having been subdued by Joshua and forced to pay taxes. So how possible a day later that I resolve the public of their obligation to tithe?]"

9. The Land of Israel and Its Borders

The Ultimatums of Joshua, Son of Nun

Rabbi Shmuel, the son of Nachmani, said, "Joshua presented the Canaanites in the Land of Israel with three ultimatums before entering the Land: Those who wish to leave should leave; those who wish to make peace with us should make peace; those who wish to wage war should do so.

"The Girgasheans evacuated and went to Africa, and believed in the Holy One, Blessed be He. Concerning them, it


says (II Kings 2:18-33): '1 have taken you to a land like your land,' referring to Africa. The Gibeonites made a peace treaty, as it says (Joshuah 10:1): 'The inhabitants of Gibeon have made peace with Israel'; thirty-one kings waged war and fell."

The Fear of Leaving

Rabbi Ze'ira went to the hot springs of Pechel [near the River Jordan, opposite Beit Shean]. He noticed he was sitting beyond the Babylonian palm trees. [These were trees which pilgrims from Babylon had planted on the highways leading to Jerusalem. Even though these streets were outside the boundaries of the Holy Land, they nevertheless did not contaminate priests. Rabbi Ze'ira, who was a cohen, feared that he had walked too far and had become defiled, and would need to be sprinkled with the waters of the red heifer on the third and seventh days of his purification process.]

He sent his question to Rabbi Chiyya, son of Abba. Rabbi Chiyya in turn asked the two sons of Rabbi Evyassar the Daromean, and they told him, "The priests would regularly work up to where he went [i.e., just beyond the palm trees, and hence, Rabbi Ze'ira has nothing to fear].

Question and Answer

Rabbi Shimon, son of Lakish, asked Rabbi Channina, "Someone who buys land in Amnon or Moab, what does he need to do?" [That is, do the laws applicable to the Land apply in these areas which Moses conquered from Sichon?]

He answered, "Al l I heard from Rabbi Chiyya the Great was that from the gardens beyond Ashkelon is outside our borders."

100 Aggadatah

This is hard to understand -- Rabbi Shimon, son of Lakish asked about one area and [Rabbi Channina] answered him about a totally different area.

The reason is that Rabbi Channina would never say anything which he had not heard expressly from his rabbis. So as not to leave Reish Lakish empty-handed, he told him some other information instead, [from which Rabbi Shimon would be able to deduce that Rabbi Channina had no tradition concerning this question. Rabbi Channina was following the practice of Rabbi Eliezer the Great, who likewise would never pass a ruling unless he had a clear tradition].

From Babylonia to Babylonia

Rabbi Shimon, son of Lakish, went to Batzrah [in Babylonia]. The townsfolk came to him and said, "Present us with someone who is suited to be a preacher, a judge, a scribe, a sexton, and who will take care of all our needs/' [They wanted him to send them someone from his mentor, Rabbi Yochanan's academy in Israel, who would be able to manage all the needs of the community.]

Rabbi Shimon saw a Babylonian [who seemed to fit the position]. He told him, " I ' l l show you a good place [where a good position is available for you] — Batzrah."

The [Babylonian] student went to Rabbi Yochanan [to ask if he was allowed to leave Israel and move to Batzra].

He replied, "From Babylonia to Babylonia [i.e., since you originate from Babylonia, you may return there]."

Signing the Legal Permission

Rabbi Chuna wanted to grant permission to Yavlona [to work on their fields in the shemittah. This was the district of


Gablan, to the north of Israel, where they were not accustomed to tithe their produce. Hence, Rabbi Chuna assumed that those who came up from Egypt had not conquered the area and that it was not part of the Land of Israel.]

He went to Rabbi Manna and said to him, "Here is the document! Just sign!" [He wanted him to sign that he agreed to his ruling, but Rabba Manna was not prepared to sign.]

The following day, Rabbi Chiyya, son of Madya, got up and said to Rabbi Manna, "You were quite right in not signing. Your father, Rabbi Yonah, used to say that Antoninus had given Yavlona to Rebbi as a tenancy for two thousand hantz, [which the share-croppers would have to pay yearly, as well as keeping Rebbi supplied with food]/'

[These fields belonged to gentile kings, and hence, they were not subject to the prohibition of "spontaneous growths" of the Sabbatical year (s'fichim), nor did the fruits have the sanctity of shemittah produce, even though it was forbidden to till the soil in the Sabbatical year, since it had been conquered by the Jews under Joshua.]

"Therefore, fruits and vegetables of Yavluna needn't be tithed, just like Syrian produce; nor are the fruits of the Sabbatical year bound by any limitations, like all fields belonging to gentiles. Still, the land must not be tilled."

Halacha 3

10. Retracting from One's Permission

Rabbi Abahu came to the town of Arbel and was hosted by Abba, the son of Benjamin. People came along and asked his opinion concerning certain onions [which had been uprooted

102 Aggadatah

in the seventh year and replanted in the eighth and had continued to grow]. They wanted to know i f the onions were forbidden [because of their shemittah growth]. He ruled in accordance with Rabbi Ze'ira י s opinion [that the onion was permissible if its eighth year growth exceeded its seventh year growth].

[Rabbi Abahu] noticed that they were relying on him in practice and said to them, " I only allowed them if their stems had been twisted [to prevent additional growth. But if, in spite of that, they continued to grow in the eighth year against the grower's wishes, only then wil l they be permitted, as the eighth year growth will then annul the growth of the seventh year]."

Said Rabbi Yehudah, son of Pazzi, " I know the whole story, from beginning to end. [The true reason why Rabbi Abahu retracted from his permission was because he was not aware that other opinions differed with Rabbi Ze'ira.] When he heard that Rabbi Eyla and Rabbi Ammi argued [and forbade the onions], he retracted from his ruling [as he then realized that there was a majority against Rabbi Ze'irah, and when there is a minority against a majority, we follow the majority].

11. The Onion which Was in Mourning

It was taught: Originally, vegetables were forbidden [straight after the Sabbatical Year, not only within Israel, but even] in the towns just beyond the border, [for fear that they came from within the borders and had grown during the shemittah year]. The Rabbis then decided to allow vegetables [straight after the shemittah] in these border towns, but forbade vegetables to be imported to Israel [till the new eighth-year crop had grown, for fear that it would lead people


to erroneously eat seventh-year Israeli produce]. Subsequently, they allowed one to import vegetables to Israel, but they still required care so as to not buy Israeli-grown vegetables straight after the shemittah year, [till the new crop became available].

Rebbi allowed vegetables to be bought straight after the shemittah, apart from porrets [leeks with heads, which take longer to grow and, therefore, could not be assumed to be post-shemittah produce].

What did the inhabitants of Sepporis do? They clothed porrets in sackcloth and ashes [as though the porrets were in mourning] and brought them before Rebbi.

They said to him, "In what way has this vegetable sinned more than all other vegetables?!"

He then permitted even these porrets [to be eaten straight after the shemittah, since they proved that even the porrets grow rapidly and can be assumed, straight after the shemittah, to be post-shemittah produce]. [In any case, Rebbi held that strictly speaking, the criterion for deciding to which year a vegetable appertains is when it gets plucked, not when it grew.]

12. Meat in Place of Vegetables

Ulla, son of Yishmael, related in the name of Rabbi Channina: "Rebbi and Rabbi Yosi, son of Yehudah went to Acco and were hosted by Rabbi Mona.

"They said to him, 'Prepare us a dish of cooked vegetables.' [The underlying reason behind their request was because the Sabbatical year [shemittah] had just terminated and Rebbi wanted to do an act to emphasize that, in his view, one could buy vegetables without restricitons, as soon as the shemittah was over].

104 Aggadatah

"Rabbi Mona prepared them a meat-dish instead. [He feared that the vegetables were still subject to shemittah restrictions.]

"The following day they [again] requested, 'Make us a vegetable dish.'

"He prepared them chicken. "Rebbi commented, 'It is clear that our host is from the

School of Shmuel, [who held that restrictions on vegetables continued beyond the termination of the shemittah].9

"Rabbi Yosi, son of Yehudah, said to him, 'He [our host] is not even from the School of Shmuel. So then why is he so stringent? Because he is one of Rabbi Yehudah's disciples [and has to follow his rabbi]. Rabbi Yehudah said, 'Vegetables are forbidden in the border towns of the Land of Israel [and Acco is by the border].'

"When Rabbi Mona subsequently visited Rebbi, Rebbi reminded him of the whole episode and said to him, 'You ought to have been lenient like us [and not argue with me, thereby becoming guilty of spreading dissension in Israel].'"

Chapter VIII: Halacha 5

13. A Sword upon the Loners, and They Shall Become Fools

"Convene and listen, O, Israel." Make many groups and occupy yourselves with the Torah, because the Torah can only be acquired through group-learning. This is in accordance with the statement of Yosi, son of Rabbi Channina, who used to say: "What is the meaning of the verse (Jeremiah 50:36): 'A sword upon the loners, and they shall become fools'? A sword should be


upon the enemies of the Sages, who sit alone studying the Torah [rather than forming groups]. Moreover, they will become fools. [The same word for 'becoming fools' is used in the above verse in Jeremiah and also appears in Numbers 12:11, where Aharon says, 'For we have done foolishly.' Moreover, these loners are sinning, as it says [in the above verse in Numbers]: 'and we have sinned.'"

Tractate Berachot 63b

Yehudah from Hutzey hid himself in a cave for three days, because he wanted to fathom out the following: "Whence did our rabbis derive that the needs of the locals of a town take precedence over another town, [i.e., that when a spring originates in one town and its waters flow on to a second town, but there is not sufficient water for both, the law is that the members of the town where the spring originates may place a damn to ensure all the water for themselves] ? י,

[After failing to find a source for this law in the Scriptures,] he came before Rabbi Yosi, son of Chalafta, [to pose his question].

Rabbi Yosi, son of Chalafta, said to him, "Where have you been?"

He answered, " I was hidden away in a cave for three days trying to figure out the source of the law, as to why the needs of the local town take precedence over the next one/'

Rabbi Yosi called Rabbi Vardimas, his son, and said to him, "Tell him the reason why the needs of the locals of one town take precedence over another one."

He answered, "[It says in Joshuah 21:40]: 'These cities should be, each city, and their open spaces round about...' [which is to be interpreted]: 'Each city should live' ['to be' and 'to live' have almost identical spellings in Hebrew], and only then, 'its open spaces round about' [should be catered for]."

[R. Yosi] asked [Yehuda], "What caused you [not to know this yourself]? Because you didn't learn together with your

106 Aggadatah

friends! [Had you come to the Beit HaMidrash and learned with your friends, discussing the finer points of learning with them, then you would have immediately known the answer to your question]."

Chapter IX: Halacha 1

14. Rebbi's Maidservant

It was taught: The rue [a vegetable] and the asparagus, the wild asparagus and the chalaglogot need not be tithed, and can be bought from anyone in the shemittah, [i.e., even from a person concerning whom we have doubts as to whether he adheres to the shemittah laws]. The reason for this leniency is because these vegetables are left to grow wild [and can be assumed to be ownerless].

Rabbi Chaggai said, "The Sages were doubtful about three things: What is the meaning of the word serugin [in the mishnah in Megillah it is stated that i f the Megillah was read b'serugin, one has fulfilled one's duty]; what is the definition of chalaglogot [in our mishnah]; [when visiting a dignitary,] should the oldest enter first or the wisest? [They knew that at a scholarly session in the Academy the wisest always takes precedence, but did not know what the procedure was at a social visit].

"They decided that there was a need for clarification. "They said, 'Let's go and inquire by the members of Rebbi's

household.' "They went up to ask. Rebbi's maidservant came out and

said to them, 'File in, according to your ages [letting the eldest go first].'


"They said, 'Let so-and-so enter first [since he is the oldest], and so-and-so after him.'

"They started going in, but only little by little. [The wisest Sages didn't want to enter directly behind those older than them in years, but inferior in knowledge, since they felt it somewhat demeaning, so they paused a little before entering].

"The maidservant said to them, 'Why are you entering serugin, serugin!" [Their first and third questions had now been solved: serugin means 'with pauses,' and in social visits, the eldest enters first].

"A member of Rebbi's household was carrying purslane plants in his garment and they fell from him. She said to him, 'Rabbi, Rabbi, your chalaglogot have just got scattered!' [They now knew that chalaglogot referred to the purslane plant].

"She then said to her friend, 'Bring me matate,' and her friend brought a broom. They now knew an additional thing that they had not previously known, that when it says in Isaiah 14:2: T wil l sweep it with a matate,' it means that G-d wil l 'sweep' with the Broom of Destruction."

[From here we see that they used to express themselves in a very learned, sophisticated Hebrew in Rebbi's house.]

15. Keeping Out of Arguments

Rabbi Yehudah says: "S'fichim of mustard is permissible in the shemittah year, since we need not take precautions on account of transgressors."

[The Torah forbade planting and tending one's produce, but spontaneous growth is permitted by Torah-law. However, when the Rabbis noticed that people would sow their fields and pretend that the crop was merely spontaneous growth, they extended the law and forbade spontaneous growth as

108 Aggadatah

well. According to Rabbi Yehudah, mustard was an exception. Since it grows in abundance of its own accord, he held that there was no danger that people would be tempted to plant it themselves in the shemittah.]

The Sages say, however: "Al l spontaneous growth is forbidden, [including mustard]".

Rabbi Shimon, son of Lakish, was in Chukok, [a town in Israel, conquered both under Joshua and subsequently, under Ezra]. He noticed that mustard was growing there in abundance, and that the people were tending and eating it. Someone dropped some mustard seeds and didn't even trouble to pick them up. [Mustard seeds are very small, and gathering them once they have fallen is very difficult.]

He said, " I f anyone brings me mustard [which grew spontaneously in the shemittah], I will rule in accordance with the ruling of Rabbi Yehudah." [He noticed that due to its abundant spontaneous growth, it was not valuable to them, and hence, there was no reason to take precautionary measures to prevent them sowing it in the shemittah.]

Rabbi Abba, son of Zavda, said, "Rabbi Chunya of Chivran ruled in the house of Chivran like the above ruling of Rabbi Yehudah. Rabbi Channina ruled to the Sepphorites concerning the mustard growth, as well as concerning eggs, like Rabbi Yehudah."

[In our mishnah, Rabbi Yehudah allowed the mustards' after-growth, as opposed to the Sages, who forbade it. I f an egg gets laid on a Sabbath which is directly followed by a Yom Tov, Rabbi Yehudah forbids eating it, even on the Yom Tov, as opposed to the Sages, who allowed it.]

Rabbi Yochanan entered and expounded like the Sages [both on the issue of the mustared and of the eggs].

Rabbi Abba, son of Zemina, said in the name of Rabbi Yitzchak: "On account of these two halachik disputes, Rabbi


Yochanan left Sepporis and went down to Tiberias. He said, 'Why do you come to me [with your halachik questions], when you can ask [Rabbi Channina who is] a greater sage than me and also lives here, [and differs both with regard to the mustard and to the eggs]!"

Said Rabbi Abba: "The case came before Rabbi Yeissa and he wanted to rule like Rabbi Yochanan, [who forbade the mustard and allowed the eggs]. When he heard that both Rav and Rebbi Channina argued, he retracted [and refused to rule in either direction, not like Rabbi Yochanan, his mentor, nor like the rabbis who disagreed]."

16. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai Cleanses Tiberias

[Note: This story appears here in a summarized form, as related in the Gemara Yerushalmi, ad hoc. For an extended version, see

Tractate Shabbat, Story 13.]

Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai was hidden in a cave for thirteen years together with his son, Elazar. They would eat only a very inferior type of carob. Eventually they got a skin disease.

After thirteen years he said, "Shouldn't I go out and take a look at what is going on in the world?"

[Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai] went out and sat by the entrance to the cave.

He saw a bird-hunter spreading his net. [When a bird approached, he would hear a heavenly voice.] I f the voice would say "MERCY," the bird would escape, whereas i f the voice would say "MURDER," the bird got trapped.

He remarked, " I f a bird will not perish without a Divine decree, all the more so, a mortal."

They went out. When he saw that danger had passed, [because the Roman emperor had died and his decree had

110 Aggadatah

been annulled], he said, "Let's go down and bathe in the hot waters of the Tiberias."

[Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai] said, "We must bestow some favor [on the generation, for not having revealed our secret hide-out to the ruling power all these years,] as our forefathers did (Genesis 33:18): 4[Jacob] did an act of grace before the city' - he arranged that they should have markets and sell cheaply [making a special market-day, so that the villagers would come and do commerce with the city residents, thereby enabling prices to be lowered to provide a sustenance for everyone].'"

His son said to him, "Tiberias has provided us with so much good [they had been relieved and cured by its warm fountains]. Shouldn't we cleanse it in return?" [There were many places in Tiberias where there was a possibility of dead bodies being buried, and the priests had to constantly circumvent these places, on account of the doubt].

Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai said, "Let us cleanse Tiberias." He took lupines, removed them from their pods, scattered

them and uttered G-d's ineffable Name. Wherever a dead body was buried, it would rise to the surface of the ground. [He thereby identified clearly exactly where the dead bodies were lying, so that the priests would now know clearly where they could or could not walk].

A certain Samaritan was watching him. He said to himself, "Wouldn't it be a good idea i f I went and made a mockery of that Jewish Sage?"

Taking a dead body, he buried it in a place which Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai had already purified.

Then [this rascal] went to Rabbi Shimon and said to him, "Didn't you already purify that place?"

"Yes I did," he answered. He said to him, "There still is a dead body there. [Your

work is useless.] I ' l l get it out for you."


He said to him, "Haul it up and show it to me." Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai percieved with his supernatural

powers that the Samaritan had placed it there himself, so he said, " I decree on the upper one to sink, and on the lower one to rise," [i.e., that the Samaritan should sink to the ground and die, and that the dead body which he hid should rise to the surface]. And that is exactly what happened.

[Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai] passed by the turret of the dyers. He overheard the voice of a schoolteacher [one of those who voted together with other rabbis when the decision was made to purify Tiberias]. The schoolteacher was saying, "Does this Bar Yochai really claim he has cleansed Tiberias? They say that they found a dead body there!"

Rabbi Shimon said to him, "May evil befall me i f I didn't hear [from G-d] that Tiberias is going to be purified. Apart from that, weren't you with us when the vote was passed to purify it? You have torn down the fence of the scholars, [who said that after a verdict has been given by court by the majority-rule, no judge may reveal, ' I acquitted, but my friends found him guilty']. Concerning the likes of you, it is stated (Ecclesiastes 10:8): The one who breaches the fence shall be bitten by a snake.'"

[The teacher] immediately turned into a pile of bones!

Halacha 2

17. The King's Advisor and the Deer

Rabbi Chama, son of Ukba, said in the name of Rabbi Yosi, son of Chaninna: "[The Sages] estimated that a wild animal whose native habitat is in the highland wil l not breed in the lowland, nor wi l l a lowland animal breed in the highland,

112 Aggadatah

[since the atmosphere and the vegetation differ]." Diklityanos [the Roman emperor] opppressed the town of

Paminios [in the Galilee, by levying high taxes]. The townsfolk said to him, "We'll desert the land [and it

wi l l remain desolate]." His advisor said to him, "They're not going to leave, but i f

they do, they'll come back again. I f you want a proof, bring deer and coat their horns with a silver coating, [so that you wil l always be able to identify them], and send them to a distant land. You'll see that eventually they'll all return."

He brought deer, coated their horns with silver, and sent them to Africa. Thirteen years later they returned. [They could not adjust to a different climate, even though the conditions for them there were as good as in Israel. His advisor implied that the same principle applies to people as well.]

Halacha 4

18. Disposal of Shemittah Produce

The Way I Saw My Rabbis Act

[In the shemittah year, the law dictates that whenever a particular type of vegetable or fruit is depleted in the fields, the householder must then divide up any stock which he owns between his friends, or remove them from his house and declare them ownerless.]

Chizkiyah commented, "Once he has started a barrel of pickles, it is considered as being disposed of, [i.e., as long as the barrel was started before the fields were depleted of their produce, he is not subsequently required to disown i t ] . "

A case came before Rabbi Yeissa [of a barrel which had been started before the deadline]. He ruled like Chizkiyah and added, "Not that I personally hold like him, but that is the way I have seen my Rabbis act."


Humble in Ruling

Rabbi Yitzchak, son of Rediffa, had a case brought before him [of a person who had unopened barrels of pickles in his possession when the deadline arrived]. Rabbi Yitzchak, in turn, asked Rabbi Yermiya [if there was any way of salvaging this man's pickles].

Rabbi Yermiya said to him, "Why are you coming to me? The lions are before you and you ask the foxes!" [I.e., There are far greater Sages than me around, so why ask me? He spoke that way out of modesty].

He went and asked Rabbi Yoshiah. Rabbi Yoshiah said to him, "Get hold of three friends and render it ownerless in their presence." [Being that they are your friends, you can rest assured that they won't want to deprive you of your food. They'll leave it there and you'll be able to take possession of it again.]

Rendering Ownerless without Losses

Some impetuous Sepphorites [who had no friends due to their rash behavior, or, alternatively, some Capadocians living in Sepphoris who were regarded as foreigners by the locals and consequently had no friends] asked Rabbi Ammi, "Since we have no friends or people who are interested in our welfare, how should we act? [Surely i f we declare our produce ownerless, the Sepphorites wil l immediately sieze our goods!]"

He answered them, "When you can clearly hear people's footsteps [in the middle of the night, when everything is quiet and no one is around, when footsteps can clearly be heard], take your produce out of your houses to the market-place and

114 Aggadatah

declare it ownerless; then take it back again. [Since you are taking it out of your domain, you do not need three people present when declaring it ownerless]."

Rabbi Chaggai would take out his bottles [of wine and oil] one by one [when declaring them ownerless], so that i f any outsider would come to seize that which he had already renounced, he would have forfeited only one little bottle, and he could still go and renounce ownership of his other bottles in another place].

Rabbi Chizkiyah went up to Rabbi Yermiyah and said to him, "Take ownership of my stone." [He had a stockl of shemittah fruit in his home, and he wanted to renounce ownership in the presence of Rabbi Yermiyah so that Rabbi Yermiyah would take possession of his whole stock. He knew that Rabbi Yermiyah would then return it all to him.]

Rabbi Yermiyah said to him, "Take these coins [which I 'm giving you]. With them, your whole storeroom has been rented out to me [and now your fruits have automatically entered into my possession]." Then he continued, "Well, now I've gotten rid of all your fruits for you [by taking possession of your storeroom]. You can go back and take new possession of them!" [It is as though you removed them from your house and received them back.]

19. Happy Is the One Who Gave Birth to Him

Rabbi Chizkiyah was standing in the market-place of Caesaria, and he saw someone loaded with forbidden produce. [He] turned his face, so as not to see the man, [since it is forbidden to look at the face of a wicked person]. The man


then set his burden down [on account of Rabbi Chizkiyah's silent rebuke], and wouldn't pick it up until all sorts of animals had trampled on it and ruined it.

Why all this fuss? [Surely Rebbi exempted Caesaria from the laws of the shemittah, since it was not reconquered when the Jews returned under Ezra. Admittedly, Rebbi's leniency was not universally accepted, but surely the man's act was not worthy of such condemnation.]

Chizkiyah wanted to assert his authority [so that people should not become lax in religious matters].

Others explain that the person was transporting forbidden shemittah produce on his donkey. When it fell and he needed to reload his donkey, Rabbi Chizkiyah looked away, so as not to see him and be obliged to help.

Yet others explain that the donkey owner wished to unload his donkey, [since his donkey was overloaded and suffering under the excess burden]. Even though Rabbi Chizkiyah would have had a double reason to aid the man, firstly to help him, and secondly, to help releive the suffering donkey, nevertheless, he refrained. Why go so far? I f the owner sinned, why is the animal to blame?

Rabbi Chizkiyah wanted to stress to all that the produce was forbidden on account of the shemittah produce, and that he felt the Caesarian Jews were being overly lax in their adherence to mitzvot. Or, possibly he wished to stress that Caesaria had to be treated as a part of the Land of Israel, since Rebbi's lenient ruling had not been fully accepted by other halachik authorities.

Others explain that Rabbi Chizkiyah wanted to make it known that people shouldn't purchase the man's goods, or that they shouldn't learn from his ways. Rabbi Chizkiyah promulgated this law that the produce of Caesaria was governed by shemittah laws. Moreover, he wished to ensure

116 Aggadatah

that he himself should not be influenced from having seen such laxity in mitzvot.

Rabbi Yaakov, son of Acha, heard the whole story. [Praising Rabbi Chizkiyah], he said, "This man's [Chizkiyah's] mother gave birth to an [ideal] son!" [He congratulated the worthy mother of such a fine son, and wished that all women would have such fine offspring.]

20. EIyah the Prophet and His Student, Rabbi Yehoshua Son of Levi

Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi instructed his student, "When you buy me vegetables, buy only from Sissera's garden." [Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi lived in Lod, which is within Israel's boundaries. Normally in the shemittah year, he would buy his produce from Gaza, beyond the halachik borders. Now, however, he was passing through Beit Shean, concerning which there was a great halachik dispute: According to Rebbi, it was not governed by the shemittah restrictions and one could freely buy any vegetables there. This was indeed the prevailing custom of the inhabitants, who would til l their soil in the shemittah. Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi argued, however, and hence, insisted on getting his produce from gardens which he believed belonged to the biblical Sissera, which had never been included in the conquest of the Land.]

Elijah appeared [to Rabbi Yehoshua's student] and said to him, "Go and inform your rabbi that this garden does not belong to the biblical Sissera. It once belonged to a Jew. A non-Jew [who happened to be called Sissera] came along and murdered him and seized his garden. I f you yourself wish to be stringent [and not rely on Rebbi's ruling, then you had better not eat from that garden either]. However, you cannot


forbid [the fields of Beit Shean] to others, [since the law is in accordance with Rebbi]."

Alt. reading ־־ Elijah's message was: "Don't act differently from your friends. [If you wish to be scrupulous, be scrupulous instead in your good manners: make sure you are not the odd man out."

21. Between Challah and Shevi'it

There was a man who profaned the shemittah year laws [by working his field]. [His wife was kneeding dough, and he said to her, "Separate challah [the priestly due from one's dough]!"

She replied, "That man [using the third person out of respect for her husband] transgresses shemittah laws, and yet you tell me to separate challah! V9

Others explain that this worthless fellow would retain and eat shemittah fruits after the time when they should have been removed from his domain (see Aggadatah 18). When telling his wife to separate challah, she remarked that the whole dough was forbidden in any case, since it was made from shemittah produce which should have been disposed of. Why should he suddenly become scrupulous? After all, shemittah is of biblical origin, as compared to separating challahl

He answered her that, to the contrary, challah is of biblical origin, while eating fruits which have passed the date when they should have been removed is only rabbinical, according to Rabbi Gamliel and his associates. [Even when the Temple stood and the disposal of the fruits (when supplies were no longer found in the fields) was of biblical origin, the eating of the fruits which had been sinfully retained was possibly not forbidden by the Torah.] Thus, this man was only interested in adhering to what was expressly required by the Torah, whereas he ignored rabbinic edicts, even though we have a

118 Aggadatah

dictum that anyone who profanes or transgresses a decree of the Sages deserves to die.

Chapter X: Halachah 4

22. Keeping to One's Word

Anyone who keeps to his word is regarded favorably by the Sages.

A man once made a down-payment so that he should be supplied with a certain quantity of salt. Before he actually received the salt, however, its value rose [the seller now wished to back out of the deal]. They went to Rav, and he decided, "The seller must supply him with salt [at least] for the value of his down-payment. [If he refuses,] then he should be taken to the Beit Din, and they should curse him for his dishonesty." [The Beit Din would call on G-d to avenge the evil of the one who did not keep to his word, althogh they could not actually force him to supply the salt.]

At any rate, according to Rav, he only needed to supply salt for the value of the down-payment, but could back out of the rest of the deal. Yet surely Rav was known to have said about himself, "When I tell the members of my household to give someone a present, I never back out." So how could he allow the salt dealer to back out of the remainder of the supplies?!

When ruling for others, [Rav] ruled according to the letter of the law, whereas in his own home, he would go beyond the letter of the law.

Zeraim ־ Tracate Terumot 119

TRACTATE TERUMOT (The Priests' Share of the Crop)

Chapter VIII: Halachah 3

1. The Danger of Poison Foods Which Have Been Nibbled At and Uncovered

Liquids.

Three liquids are forbidden when left uncovered: Water, wine and milk. [The Rabbis forbade these liquids i f left uncovered, because in that time, it was common for a snake or some other vermin to drink from and poison them.] Other liquids were permissible, however, [since snakes did not care for them]. How long would the liquid have had to be left open to become prohibited? Enough time to allow a poisonous reptile to come forth [from someplace nearby and drink].

Figs and grapes in which a hole had been bored must be disposed of [lest a poisonous reptile had nibbled at them, leaving behind its poison; someone might unwittingly eat from them]. If, however, a person did not dispose of them, and in the meantime the figs dried out into edible dried figs and the grapes became raisins [rather than just rotting], then this is a sign that they are not poisonous and are permissible.

The daughter of Rabbi Chiyya the Great would bore holes in figs in order that her father's associates should not eat them. [Seeing the holes, they'd fear that the figs contained venom.] But surely her act was forbidden? [After all, it says in Proverbs 3:27: "Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due"! Besides, perhaps Rabbi Chiyya wanted them also to partake of the fruits?]

120 Aggadatah

She did it with [her father's] full knowledge. [However, he did not tell her explicitly to do so, in order that he should not be considered stingy.]

But surely, even so, what she did was forbidden! Haven't we learned: " I f someone saw a bird pick at a fig or a mouse nibble at a watermelon, the fig and watermelon may not be eaten, [for fear they nibbled at an already existing hole which had been made by a snake, and thus would present a hazard to life? Similarly, i f a person bores a hole in a fruit and then leaves it unattended, he is taking a risk: perhaps a snake wil l come along and leave its venom in the hole which the person made. I f so, how could Rabbi Chiyya himself eat the fruits after his daughter had made holes ־־ perhaps they had subsequently become poisoned?!]

[The answer is that] his daughter guarded them [from the time she made the hole until they were safely locked away].

Others have another version of the narrative: In Rabbi Chiyya the Great's locality, they would purposely bore holes in figs, thereby preventing people from partaking of them, for fear that a snake had left its poison in the hole. [However,] Rabbi Chiyya's father would eat these figs, since he knew that the holes had been made artificially. The reason he did not fear lest a snake had subsequently nibbled at the already existing holes was that, after making the holes, the fruits were guarded from snakes and other venomous reptiles.

Yet others explain that Rabbi Chiyya would eat them, since they were not forbidden, in his opinion, even though there was a case of someone who ate and subsequently became dangerously i l l . Still, Rabbi Chiyya allowed them. [To this, the Talmud finally concludes] that he only ate them when he knew they had been guarded.]

Still others explain that in the locality of Rabbi Chiyya they would purposely puncture the fruits, as a trick, so that it


shouldn't be noticed i f a snake bit into them. As a result, they could eat the fruits and assume that all the holes were made by the owners. Rabbi Chiyya was aware of this practice, but did not forbid it. On the contrary he would also eat such fruits.

Rabbi Yehoshua son of Zidal had boiled wine which had been left unattended in a gentile's home. He asked Rabbi Yannai son of Yishmael [whether the wine was forbidden, for fear that the gentile had used it as a libation to his heathen worship].

Rabbi Yannai answered, "This is what Reish Lakish said: ' [ I f the wine has already been] sweetened [through boiling], it no longer becomes forbidden if left uncovered, nor does it become prohibited if handled by a heathen.'"

Ask the Rabbi

Rabbi Yannai son of Yishmael became sick. A group of scholars went to visit him. [The group consisted of] Rabbi Ze'irah, Rabbi Oshaya, Rabbi Bon son of Kahana and Rabbi Channanya. They saw Rabbi Yehoshua son of Zidal sitting in the room, [and recalling their question concerning cooked wine,] they said, "Here is the halachist with his legal traditions and here is the one who received the ruling!" [Rabbi Yannai was referred to here as "the halachist with the legal traditions" since he had ruled in Reish Lakish's name that cooked wine left by a gentile was permissible, and Rabbi Yehoshua son of Zeidal had received that ruling when he had left his wine unattended in a gentile's house. The group of scholars were happy that now they could clarify their doubts on this issue.] They asked Rabbi Yannai exactly what he had ruled.

He answered them, "This is what Rabbi Shimon son of Lakish [Reish Lakish] said: ' I f the wine has sweetened [owing

122 Aggadatah

to the cooking process], it is no longer subject to the laws of uncovered wine or wine left by a heathen.'"

Rabbi Ze'irah answered them, "Perhaps Reish Lakish never meant this ruling to be followed, since he meant some rulings seriously and others were mere suggestions."

Rabbi Yannai answered, "No! He meant it seriously, and you should rely on the ruling."

When they left [the attic of Rabbi Yannai son of Yishmael], Rabbi Elia met Rabbi Bon son of Kahana and said to him, "You enjoy relating Amoraic traditions, but you should know [that the ruling of Rabbi Yannai is already implicit] in a beraita taught by Rabbi Chiyya: 'Why is cooked wine, produced by heathens forbidden? Because it was wine to begin wi th . ' " [I.e., the non-Jew made the wine and then boiled it. From this, we can infer that Jewish-made wine which was boiled and subsequently handled by a non-Jew would remain kosher.]

No Calamities in This House!

Rabbi Ammi had guests. He said to them, "Had my boiled wine not been left uncovered, I would have given it to you to drink."

[To this,] Rabbi Bevai replied, "Bring it in, and I ' l l drink it!" [He held like Reish Lakish, that uncovered boiled wine was permissible, whereas Rabbi Ammi held like Rabbi Yochanan, that it was forbidden and dangerous.]

Said Rabbi Ammi, "Anyone who wants to die should go and die in his own home!"

The Snake and Its Taste

Bar Yudani's spiced wine was left uncovered. He went and asked the Rabbis, and they told him it was forbidden. But


surely Rabbi Yitzchak said in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi, "Spiced wine, bitter wine or sweet wine do not become prohibited when left uncovered."

Our Rabbis of Caesaria answered in the name of Rabbi Chiyya son of Titus, "Uncovered spiced wine is only permitted i f the ratio of ingredients is a third [wine, a third peppers and a third honey, whereas Bar Yudani's concoction didn't have the right proportions and possibly wasn't sharp enough to deter the snake from drinking i t ] . "

They asked Rabbi Abahu, "How do we rule concering boiled wine which was subsequently left uncovered?"

He answered them, " I f Rabbi Yochanan already had his doubts concerning Kareina wine [a naturally sweet wine], all the more so a normal wine which was merely boiled should be forbidden."

He went and asked Rabbi Yitzchak, who answered that it was forbidden. [In the meantime], Rabbi Abahu recalled that Rabbi Yochanan had expressly forbidden [uncovered boiled wine].

Bar Netoza's vat of wine was once left uncovered. He went and asked Rabbi Abba son of Mamal what was the law, and [Rabbi Abba] answered him, " I f people were going in and out of the room where the wine sat, then it is permissible, [since any snake other than an adder wil l not enter a room when people are around, and adders were not commonly found in their locality]."

The Poor Man Who Saved the Householder

Rabbi Yaakov son of Acha reported that Rabbi Ammi had said in the name of Rabbi Elazar: "Even a sleeping person [will deter a snake from approaching and tampering with the wine], and hence, the wine wil l be permissible."

124 Aggadatah

Rabbi Channina and Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi [argued in regard to whether a sleeping person wil l deter the snake]. One of them ruled that [if the person guarding the wine was] sleeping, the wine was permissible, and the other ruled that it was prohibited. It was not known who said what; however, in all probability, Rabbi Channina was the lenient opinion, since we find that Rabbi Eliezer would always support Rabbi Channina's opinion. [Since Rabbi Elazar permitted such wine, it can therefore be supposed that Rabbi Channina would also allow it.]

Rabbi Yosi related the following story: "There was a certain woman who loved performing good deeds, whereas her husband [was mean and] hated them. Once, a certain poor man came to their home, and she served him food. He had just finished eating, when she noticed that her husband was coming up the steps. [Fearful of her husband's reaction to her generosity], she hid the guest in the attic room.

She served her husband his meal, and he ate [part of it] and dozed off. [While he was asleep,] a snake came along and ate [from the remains] of his portion. The poor man observed what had occurred [from the attic]. Her husband awoke, got up, and wanted to continue eating his portion. The fellow in the attic decided he had to warn the householder not to partake of the food, even though it entailed revealing himself. So he told him to refrain from eating it.

We see from here that a sleeping person does not deter the snake. How could Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Channina allow the wine in such circumstances?

[The answer is that the snake in our story was not a common snake.] It was a type which lives in the fields [and isn't acquainted with people or scared of their presence. The

Zeraim - Tracate Terumot 125

average snake which lives in inhabited areas is fearful even of a sleeping person. Since the field snake is rare, the Rabbis did not see the need to pass legislation on its account.]

[Now, i f her husband was G-d-fearing, how could he remain married to his wife after finding she had been alone with this poor man. Why wasn't he suspicions that she may have become defiled?] Surely she should have been forbidden on account of being alone [with the poor man]?

[The answer is,] since [the guest] showed no interest in the husband dying, we do not suspect him of illicit relations, as it says in Ezekiel (23:37): "They have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands." [Had the poor man been guilty of adultery, he would not have wanted to save her husband.

The Pious Man Who Was Forced to Eat on Yom Kippur

A certain saintly person would sneer at the laws concerning uncovered wine. [He would even drink it.]

On one occasion, he got a high fever [from poisoned wine]. He was seen sitting and lecturing on the Day of Atonement with a bottle of water in his hand. [He was so dangerously i l l that he was forced to break this most serious fast.]

Misplaced Trust

A man's barrel of wine was left uncovered, and he went to pour it out on the day preceeding Yom Kippur.

Someone saw him and said, "Bring it to me « I ' l l drink it!" He protested, "But surely it's been left uncovered [and you

wil l be endangering your health]!" "Bring it to me!" he answered. "The One Who commanded

us to fast [and to eat a lot on the day before Yom Kippur] wi l l protect me."

126 Aggadatah

He had barely started drinking, when the poison had already spread throughout his whole body. His soul departed and he died. He ought not to have relied on a miracle to save himself from the danger.

Look After Your Health

Rabbi Ze'irah sat down to have his supper [others say he was measuring wine], and he started dozing. He placed his hand on the measuring flask [of wine] so as to notice if a snake would attempt to drink. While he was dozing, he sensed that the lights had gone out. He asked his family to rekindle the lights. They lit them and found a tiny adder, resembling a thread of hair, wound [around the flask].

Rabbi Ze'irah said [to the snake], "You wicked one! Had I not been so heedful, [you would already have made your way into the wine]."

Said Rabbi Yosi son of Boon, " A l l human sweat is poisonous, apart from facial sweat."

When they asked Rabbi Yonatan [if it was true that facial sweat was not harmful], he answered, "Can I take responsibility for your lives?", [thereby implying that he saw a hazard even in facial sweat].

Rabbi Yannai said, "When a person is alive, he'll live a life of soot [i.e., he'll take risks as though his life were worthless], yet when he dies, a gem is lost" [i.e., his family wi l l terribly bewail losing him].

Others interpret it as follows: " I f you partake of uncovered liquids, what you stand to gain is the mere food-value of what you've drunk: a little bit of soot; whereas what you stand to lose is a gem: your own life!"

Rabbi Shimon son of Lakish said, "Had you sold yourself to cannibals, you would have demanded an exhorbitant price;


whereas now [in your daily life], you risk your health for pennies."

The Snake's Habits

Shmuel said, "What can that wicked one [the snake] do to me?! I only drink hot liquids [and a snake won't drink hot beverages]."

Rabbi Channina said, "This wicked one is very fastidious. He won't even drink hot liquids which have cooled down."

The following case came before Rebbi: Someone saw a snake uncover a vessel and replace the lid. Rebbi remarked, "Should we disqualify lids just because of this wicked one?" [I.e., we do not yet have sufficient grounds to legislate that lids have to be sealed.]

Rabbi Manna commented, "The whole story is unlikely. I f it did happen, however, then in that case the liquid would be forbidden, [on account of the venom which the snake may have deposited]."

We have learned that there are three types of venom: venom which sinks to the bottom; venom which floats on top; and venom which is suspended [in the middle of the liquid. The younger the snake, the more poisonous is its venom and the more it wil l sink.]

During Rabbi Yirmiya's lifetime, the tubs of the great teacher [who would review the studies with the students] were once left uncovered. The first group [of students] drank and survived; the latter ones died. The reason was that the venom had sunk to the bottom, [so that only the liquid which the latter students drank was mixed with poison].

128 Aggadatah

There were workers in a field. A jug of water was left uncovered. The first group drank and survived; the next group died from it. The reason was that the venom had sunk to the bottom.

We have learned: "Five liquids may be left uncovered: fish oil, brine, vinegar, oil, and honey. Rabbi Shimon forbade uncovered [honey]. I f the honey has holes bored into it, then the Sages concede to Rabbi Shimon."

[Rabbi Shimon said, " I saw a snake drink brine in Sidon." They [his fellow rabbis] answered, "It was a crazy snake,

and one can't bring proofs from crazies."] Rabbi Channina son of Pappa was holding a flask of

uncovered honey. Before he had the chance to ask [whether honey was amongst the liquids from which a snake wil l drink], the whole honey disintegrated [due to the venom which was mixed with i t ] .

Rav and Shmuel both said, "The ground has received permission to split before it [the snake; therefore it wi l l be found successfully tunnelling through even the most solid ground], whereas a vessel was not authorized to split before it, [therefore a snake wil l not penetrate even the weakest of vessels with the weakest of lids].

Rabbi Chiyya the Great and Rabbi Shimon son of Rebbi were sitting in a house of solid marble. They wondered: "Could the snake penetrate [even such an edifice]?"

Suddenly, [the snake] appeared! They remarked, "Blessed be the One Who distinguished

between [the Rabbis] and their teaching, as it is said, 'The ground has received permission to split before them, whereas a vessel was not authorized to split before them.'"


G-d Guards Those Who Live with Simple Faith

Rabbi Yannai was very scared of the sheffifon [probably a type of adder]. He would place the legs of his bed in four buckets of water [to prevent the snake from getting into his bed]. On one occasion, [while lying in bed,] he stretched out his hand and discovered the snake by his side. He said, "Remove them [the buckets of water]! [For it says in Psalms (116:7): 'G-d guards the simple9 [i.e., He guards those who live with simple faith, taking precautions where possible, but not going to ridiculous extremes, and that is why the snake has come]."

Wine in its first stage of fermentation does not come under the law concerning liquids left uncovered. How long is this first stage? Three days.

A snake was once found next to a pit of wine [in its first stage]. The legal case was presented before Rabbi Yehudah, and he permitted the wine to be drunk.

As long as a spring of water is flowing, it does not come under the law concerning uncovered liquids, [since any poison wil l get washed away]. Rabbi Yishmael son of Rabbi Yochanan son of Beroka related: "Rabbi Yochanan son of Nuri once visited my father, Rabbi Yochanan ben Beroka, in the town of Beit Shearim. He showed him a trench in which there was about one litre of water, and the rain was drizzling down into the trench. He stooped and drank [from the trench] and remarked, 'In this trench there is no problem with the uncovered water [since the snake doesn't leave its den in the rain because it fears getting dirty in the mud]. '"

A man was transporting a load of poisoned cucumbers [others say that it was punctured watermelons poisoned by

130 Aggadatah

snakes,] and was trying to sell them. He fed ten people with his poisoned merchandise, all of whom died from it. The poison then spread [from the cucumbers/watermelons] over to him, and split him in half.

2. The Butcher Gets His Punishment

There was once a certain butcher in Sepphoris, who would feed his Jewish customers treifah meat. On one occasion he drank [a lot] on the eve of the Day of Atonement [and got drunk]. He went up to the roof, fell down and died. The dogs started sapping up his blood.

People went [on Yom Kippur] and asked Rabbi Channina, "May we remove the dead body [to save it from the dogs, even though it is muktseh and normally forbidden to be handled on a festival]?"

He replied, "It says in Exodus (22:30): 'Neither shall you eat any meat that is torn of beasts in the field. You shall cast it to the dogs.' This man deprived the dogs of their due, feeding it to his fellow Jews. Leave the dogs ־־ they are eating what is rightfully theirs."

3. The Danger of Repulsive Food

There was once a person who hated mutton. On one occasion, when he was eating meat, someone passed by and remarked, "That's mutton!" His food turned over in his stomach and he died.

Some donkey drivers were in an inn. They asked the innkeepers [for something to eat], saying, "Could you serve us lentils?"


They were served with lentils [which they found very tasty], and asked for a second helping, which they were given.

[The donkey drivers] then said to the innkeepers, "The first helping you served us tasted better than the second/'

The inkeepers replied, "We found the backbone of a snake in the first batch. [It could be that that is what enhanced its taste, but we didn't want to give you another portion from that pot."

The food turned over in their stomachs [as they felt so sickened by the thought that they had eaten such an unclean, loathesome creature] that they died.

4. The Dog and the Snake -- Two Tales of Faithful Guards

It is stated in Proverbs (16:7): "When a man's ways please the L-rd, He makes even his enemies at peace with him." Rabbi Meir says, "This [his enemies] refers to the dog." Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi said, "It referred to the snake."

Some shepherds milked [their cows], and a snake came along and drank from the milk. Their dog was looking on. When they were about to drink [from the milk], the dog started barking [to warn them not to drink]. They took no notice. [When the dog saw that its warning had not been heeded and that they would endanger their lives,] it drank [from the milk] itself, and died [purposely sacrificing its life to save them].

[The shepherds buried the dog and erected a monument over its grave, which is known as the "Monument of the Dog" ti l l this day.]

A man prepared ground garlic in his house, and a mountain-snake came along and ate from it. A local

132 Aggadatah

house-snake was looking on. When the members of the household were about to eat it, the local snake started scattering dust [all over the garlic and on them, to indicate that they should not eat it, since it contained the poison of the mountain- snake]. They paid no attention. So the house-snake threw itself into the ground garlic.

[Now the nature of a snake is to hate people, so why did this snake want to exert itself to save them? The answer is, "When a man's ways please G-d, He makes even his enemies [i.e., the snake] at peace with him," and even the snake wil l go out of its way to save a person from danger.]

5. Honoring the Dog

A man invited a sage and placed his dog by the sage's side. The sage said to him, "Why do you disgrace me?" " I am merely repaying the dog for its goodness," his host

answered. "Once some captors came to the city, and one of them entered my house and tried to seize my wife. At that point, this dog of mine castrated him. [That is why I feel I owe it gratitude. I can assure you, I didn't have the slightest intention of insulting you; I merely wanted to honor my dog.]"

6. Is This the Teaching of the Pious?

We have learned: I f a group of [Jewish] people were walking along and encountered non-Jews who said to them, "Hand one [of your group] over for us to murder, or else we'll murder the whole lot of you!", [the Jews] must all let themselves be (massacred), rather than handing over even one fellow Jew. If, however, the gentiles specified that they


wanted a particular person, such as Sheba ben Bichri [who rebelled against King David (as recorded in I I Samuel 20)], they should hand him over, rather than letting themselves be killed.

Rabbi Shimon son of Lakish [Reish LaKish] and Rabbi Yochanan had variant explanations. Reish Lakish understood that only someone who was himself worthy of death, like Sheba ben Bichri [could be surrendered, if he was specified by the non-Jews], Rabbi Yochanan understood, on the other hand, that even i f he wasn't liable to the death penalty, [anyone could be handed over to save the others, so long as he was singled out by the heathens].

Ulla son of Koshar was being sought by the rulers [who wished to execute him]. He fled to Lod, and came to Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi [for refuge].

The [King's] soldiers came and surrounded the city. They said, " I f you don't hand [Ulla] over, we'll destroy the city!"

Rabbi Yehoshua went to him and tried to persuade him to surrender himself, [telling him, "Isn't it better i f only you get killed, rather than the entire city, on your account?" The man agreed to let himself be handed over,] and so, he was surrendered.

Elijah, of blessed memory, would frequently reveal himself to Rabbi Yehoshua son of Levi. After this incident, he no longer appeared. Rabbi Yehoshua fasted numerous fasts t i l l [the prophet] reappeared.

Elijah asked him, "Why should I appear to a traitor [who surrenders people to the authorities]?"

He answered, "But surely I followed the law [stated expressly in the beraita, that i f the non-Jews specified a particular person, he should be surrendered],"

"Is this the teaching of the pious?" Elijah answered. [You

134 Aggadatah

shouldn't have gotten involved in the whole episode, a saintly person like you. Rather, you should have left it to the others, or tried to drag the incident out by attempting to pacify the rulers, rather than handing him over immediately. G-d may yet have had mercy and saved him!

7. Saving Lives Prepared to Sacrifice His Life

Rabbi Issei was arrested [under some pretext] in the town of Safsufa. [He was in great danger.] Rabbi Yochanan said, "Let the dead man be wrapped in his shroud." [Some explain Rabbi Yochanan's statement to mean that there was no hope for Rabbi Issei, and he could start preparing his own shrouds. Others explain that he meant that he should use his own shroud rather than someone else's, i.e., others should not endanger themselves in their endeavor to save Rabbi Issei from his danger.]

Reish Lakish said, " I am going to kill or be killed — I wi l l save him at all costs!"

He went and pacified [the kidnappers], and they returned Rabbi Issei. [Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish] said to them, "Come to our old sage, and he will pray for your welfare."

[The kidnappers] came to Rabbi Yochanan, whereupon he told them, "What you had planned to do to [Rabbi Issei] should befall your whole people!"

Not one of them made it even as far as the crossroads by the market. [They were suddenly stricken by a fatal disease and dropped dead.]


The Rescue of Rabbi Ze'irah Son of Channina

Ze'irah son of Channina was arrested in the town of Safsufa. Rabbi Ammi and Rabbi Shmuel went there to [try and] appease the rulers [and persuade them to release him].

Zanavia, the Queen, said to them, "Surely your Creator performs miracles on your behalf!", and she thereupon demanded a very high ransom.

Just then, an Arab wheat trader was passing by, girded with a sword. He said to them, "With this sword, [the famous bandit,] Bar-Netzar, murdered Rabbi Ze'irah's brother." [The Queen thereupon took pity on Rabbi Ze'irah for the suffering he had already suffered by the loss of his brother, and released him. Thus,] Rabbi Ze'irah son of Channina was spared.

Alt. version: Zenavia was the head of a gang of bandits and was mocking Rabbi Ammi and Rabbi Shmuel, saying, "Why have you come to save Ze'irah? Surely your Creator is accustomed to perform miracles for you, so why don't you leave it to Him to save your friend?" Just then, an Arab entered and said, "This sword of mine used to belong to Bar-Netzar, the head of another gang of bandits. With it, he murdered your brother, Zenavia!" Zenavia feared for his life, and started figuring out how best to escape, leaving Rabbi Ze'irah alone.

8. Everything Depends on the Heart, and the Heart Depends on the Pouch

Rabbi Yochanan once lost his wallet and said, "[Today] I ' l l curse and ruin all tradesmen, [till I track down the one who found my wallet but didn't return i t ] ! "

136 Aggadatah

He went to the Academy [of the Sages]. Rabbi Shimon son of Lakish asked him [halachik issues], but he simply didn't reply, [because he was preoccupied with the loss of his wallet. Reish Lakish couldn't understand why Rabbi Yochanan was so oblivious to what was going on.] So, he said to him, "What's the matter?"

[Rabbi Yochanan] replied, " A l l limbs depend on the heart, and the heart depends on the pouch."

[Reish Lakish did not understand this reply], and asked him again, "What's the matter?"

" I lost my wallet," he replied. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said, "Then what are you doing

here? [Why are you in the Academy? What have you done to retrieve it?]!"

He answered, "I've already cursed the tradesmen [that they should lose their profits. Once they feel my curse, they'll return it.

[Reish Lakish] then said to the Sages, "Show me the place, [where you think it got lost."

He went into the street, and they showed him. From a distance, he could see people [bartering with the fellow who found the wallet]. When Rabbi Yochanan started storming at them, they answered, " [ I f the loser of the wallet] is Rabbi Yochanan, then we'll have to return half of its contents to him."

He said to them, "By your lives, I ' l l take the whole lot!", [at which point,] he took it all back.

[Others explain the episode as follows: People from the village, Ba'alei Keinya robbed Rabbi Yochanan of his money. 'Others say they were bandits known as Ba'alei Keinya.']

Rabbi Yochanan went to the Talmudic Academy. There, Reish Lakish asked him questions of halachik issues, but [Rabbi Yochanan] did not reply. He asked him again, but he


still didn't reply. So Reish Lakish asked him why he did not respond.

[Rabbi Yochanan] answered him, " A l l limbs depend on the heart, since it is the life-force of the person, and the heart depends on the pouch." This is a play on words. He meant that the heart is as dependant on the money pouch as it is on its own pouch, which houses the blood. That is why one takes it so much "to heart" when he suffers a great financial loss.

"What do you mean?" Reish Lakish asked him. He answered, "Don't you know, haven't you heard?" He

then told him how he had been robbed by the Ba'alei Keinya. Reish Lakish said, "Show me in which direction they

went." He went out and showed him. When Reish Lakish spotted the robbers from the distance, he yelled at them and threatened them that he'd take vengeance.

They said, " I f the money is Rabbi Yochanan's, then we'll return half, i f it is yours, then we'll return it all."

He said to them, "By the life of your heads, I ' l l take the whole lot". They got scared of him, because they knew that he had once been the chief bandit before Rabbi Yochanan had "brought him back to the flock." So they returned all that they had taken.

9. The Demon Who Saved the Sages of Tiberias [Shortened Version]

Diklut was a swine herdsman. The children of Rabbi Yehudah, Head [of the Great Sanhedrin in Jerusalem], would hit him. Diklut subsequently became King. He went to Banias, [and from there,] he sent letters to the Sages which stated, "You must come to me [at my palace], immediately after the termination of the Sabbath." He went on to tell his messenger,

138 Aggadatah

"Deliver these letters on the eve of the Sabbath at sunset, [so that they won't have any possibility of making it here in time. When they don't arrive in time, I wil l have a pretext to kill them."

Rabbi Yehudah, the Chief Rabbi, and Rabbi Shmuel son of Nachman were on their way to bathe in the hot springs of Tiberias.

Argintin, demon of bathhouses, appeared to them. Rabbi Yehudah wanted to ban him, but Rabbi Shmuel said, "Leave him alone! He may be an omen of a miracle."

The demon said to them, "What are our Rabbis doing?" They told him what had happened, and he said to them,

"Wash yourselves — your Creator wil l perform miracles for you."

At the termination of the Sabbath, the demon carried them and placed them by the gate of Banias [where the King was residing].

The King was then told, "Behold, the Sages are waiting outside." He said, "They may not behold my face until they bathe."

The bathhouse had been stoked for seven days and seven nights [and was sizzling hot]. A certain demon suddenly appeared and cooled it off with cold water in their presence. The rabbis went in and bathed, and then came and stood before the King. He said to them, "Just because your Creator performs miracles for you, does that give you the right to disgrace the King?!"

"We disgraced Diklut, the swine herdsman; we never disgraced Diklitianus, the King," they protested.

He said to them, "Even so, never disgrace even an insignificant Roman or Persian [since the rulers have connections with all their compatriots]."


[Longer Version, based on other textual readings, midrash and commentators]

In his youth, the Roman oppressor, King Diklitianus, who ruled over the Land of Israel, was a swine herdsman near Tiberias known as "Diklut". Whenever he would pass near the Academy of Chief Rabbi Yehuda [grandson of Rabbi Yehudah the Nasi, compiler of the Mishnah] in order to disturb the studies, the small children who had been listening to the lecture would come out and deride, disgrace and hit him.

Not long after, "Diklut" rose to greatness and was appointed to be King in Rome, [and his] dominion reached as far as the Land of Israel. He left Rome, the city of his sovereignty, and settled in Banias in northern Israel, near the source of the River Jordan.

Diklitianus wanted to take revenge against the Jews for the way they had disgraced him in the past, so he sent a summons to the Sages of Tiberias, requiring that they leave immediately on the termination of the Sabbath to appear before him in the morning of the following day [Sunday]. In order to create a pretext for bringing charges against them, he sent the summons on the previous Thursday evening, but secretly ordered the messenger not to hand over the summons to the Sages till just before the commencement of the Sabbath, so that they would not be able to arrive in time.

The messenger came to them on the eve of the Sabbath and handed the summons to Rabbi Yehudah, the Chief Rabbi, just before sunset. Rabbi Shmuel son of Nachman was going to wash himself in the hot springs of the Tiberias. He saw the Chief Rabbi standing in front of the Great Academy, looking sick with anguish and worry.

"Why is your face so drawn?" he asked him.

140 Aggadatah

"Because I received a written summons from the King," he answered.

Rabbi Shmuel then said to him, "Come, let's bathe in honor of the Sabbath. Place your trust in your Creator, that He will perform miracles for us."

They went into the water to bathe. A certain demon which frequents bathhouses, called Arginiton [or Antigris], appeared and started laughing and dancing before them.

Rabbi Yehudah the Chief Rabbi wanted to rebuke it, but Rabbi Shmuel son of Nachman said to him, "Rabbi, leave it alone! Sometimes it reveals itself to mortals for their sakes, in order to perform wonders for them."

Rabbi Shmuel then said to the demon, "Your Rabbi is suffering, and you are standing around playing and dancing!"

"What's troubling you?" the demon asked. So they told him the whole story. He told them, "Go, eat and drink and enjoy your Sabbath,

and I will be at your service [first thing] Sunday morning." So, at the termination of the Sabbath after the conclusion of

the service [and Havdalah, the demon] took them and placed them by the gates of the town of Banias. The King's servants came before [the King] and told him, "Those [rabbis] are standing by the gates of the city!"

The King commanded them, "Close the gates!" [He wanted to prevent them from coming in time, at all costs, so that he would have a pretext to punish them.]

The demon then took them and lifted them over the city wall and placed them in the middle of the square. The King's ministers entered and told him that the Jewish sages were standing in the town square.

He said, " I decree that they may not behold my countenance until they have washed themselves!" [This Diklityanus, the former swine herdsman, once constantly filthy with mud, now


made himself out to be impeccably clean, requiring that the Jews wash off their dirt and cleanse themselves before appearing before him!]

They had no choice. They had to enter the bathhouse which had been stoked for the last seven days and seven nights [in order to scorch them to death]. Others say that he had instructed that the bathhouse be heated for the last three days, and that the Sages should go into these boiling waters and then come to him. [He wanted to repay them measure for measure: since they had derided him for being filthy, he would let them burn to death in the sizzling waters.]

A bathhouse demon came and poured cold water into the bath in their presence and cooled it off. Then they washed and came before the King. He was now forced to accept them as they stood before him.

He said to them, "Because you know that your Creator constantly performs miracles for you, it entitles you to do whatever you like and denigrate the sovereignty without fearing the consequences?! י,

[The Sages understood that he intended to falsely accuse them of denigrating the sovereignty, because he bore a grudge against them for what they did when he was a swine herdsman. They also understood that he would not want to mention that period in his life, however, and so he preferred to accuse them of having disparaged him once he was already a king.]

They said to him, "We disparaged a certain Diklitianus who is a swine herdsman; but we are fully subservient to King Diklitianus." [I.e., "You were probably informed that we despised 'Diklitianus.י But that was another Diklitianus, a swine herdsman. Whoever overheard must have mistakenly thought we were talking against the King, but far be it from us to do such a thing!" They expressed themselves in such a

142 Aggadatah

manner so that they were not denying his words, yet implied that they knew the cause of his allegation and his hatred towards them. Furthermore, they implied, it was not fitting for him to take revenge for what they had done to him when he was still a swine herdsman, now that he was King. They could not explain things to him outright, since they feared that mentioning his past publicly would only prompt him to accuse them even further of having derided the government by mentioning his past once again, implying that he was not fit to be King.]

He answered them, "Even so.... Always take heed not to scoff either a young Roman [if he's a child of the ruling power], or even an inferior servant." [Alt. explanation: not to scoff a student or a young army attendant], since they may yet assume sovereignty and avenge their disgrace.]

Rabbi Channina expounded: "[At his birth, Esau is described as being] 'like a hairy cloak all over9 (Genesis 25:25), [which can be interpreted to mean:] "Every one [of the Roman people] is fit for the purple [Emperor's] cloak." That is, any descendant of Esau [the Roman people] can potentially become Emperor of the mighty Roman Empire — and spill innocent Jewish blood!

Zeraim ־ Tracate Ma'aserot 143

TRACTATE MA 'ASEROT [Tithing]


1• Pure and Scrupulous

We have learned: Rabbi Yehoshua was once walking behind Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai to B'rur Chayil [the name of Rabbi Yochanan's hometown. Rabbi Yehoshua, his disciple, was following him to learn from him on the way. They passed by certain towns.] The townsfolk brought them figs to eat. [These figs had been bought from an uneducated man, and it was doubtful whether he had tithed them. The Rabbis wanted to encourage hospitality, and so allowed guests to be served with doubtfully tithed produce obtained from unreliable people.]

The other disciples asked Rabbi Yehoshua, "Do we need to tithe these fruits?"

He answered, " I f we spend the night here, then we have to tithe them; but i f not, we needn't do so." [Spending the night there would give them the legal status of permanence, while only one who was passing through was exempt from tithing. This statement of Rabbi Yehoshua is posed as a question to a previous statement in the Yerushalmi Talmud, that even i f a guest spends the night in a particular place, he does not lose his legal status of "guest" and is consequently still exempt from tithing.]

Rabbi Ze'irah commented, "Rabbi Yehoshua is particularly scrupulous [in the performance of mitzvot].99 Rabbi Manna said to him, "[But surely, i f that is the law, then those not abiding by it would not be merely unscrupulous]; rather, they

144 Aggadatah

would be fools! No! Rabbi Yehoshua [had different circumstances than other people], since he constantly had an entourage surrounding him. [Being a sage who would never be left to go anywhere alone, he could find lodgings in any given place. Consequently, any town could be considered his home.] Therefore, he said that spending the night in the place removes his status as guest and requires him to tithe; whereas other people without a constant escort [who cannot choose exactly where they wil l spend the night on their journeys,] retain their transient status of "guest" and need not tithe [even if they spend the night in a particular place.]

Chapter III: Halachah 1

2. The Difference between Earlier and Later Generations

Rabbi Ulla son of Yishmael said in the name of Rabbi Elazar: "Rebbi and Rabbi Yosi son of Yehudah would bring their baskets of fruits into the house via the back garden. [They did this so that the fruits should not face the front of the house and thereby become liable to being tithed, since any produce which has not faced the front of the house may be partaken of as a snack, without having to be tithed.]

"Rabbi Yehudah son of Illai saw them and said to them, 'Look at the difference between you and previous generations! Rabbi Akiva would buy three types of fruit for a perutah [about a cent], in order to be able to tithe each type separately. [He was very poor, but nevertheless wanted to fulfill the mitzvah of tithing. So he bought three fruits for one perutah, a little from each type, in order to fulfill the precept of tithing three times over,] whereas you purposely take your


baskets throught the back-garden [to get out of the mitzvah]!' [The reason why Rabbi Yosi took them through the

backgarden, although he actually holds that they are likewise exempt from tithing i f eaten as a snack, even i f taken through the yard to be eaten on the roof- tops, was in deference to Rebbi, who held that they were totally forbidden unless tithed, once having been in the yard.]

' A certain old man saw them and said, 'Would you be willing to give me [a little bit of your fruits as a present]?'

" 'Yes,' they answered. "He said to them, "You would not give to your Father in

Heaven, but to me you are willing to give!'" [Some say it was the prophet Elijah, of blessed memory, who came to rebuke them, saying, " I f you are so willing to give me, why do you resort to all sorts of loop-holes in order to get out of tithing your produce in accordance with the Will of your Father in Heaven!"]


3. Rabbi Elazar Son of Rabbi Shimon

Love of Rebuke

Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon was eating in the market. Rabbi Meir observed him and said to him, "What, you're eating in the market-place?!"

[Strictly speaking, it is only prohibited to eat bread in the market, whereas Rabbi Elazar was merely eating fruit. Nevertheless, a sage should not be seen eating anything in the

146 Aggadatah

market-place, and] Rabbi Elazar immediately [accepted his rebuke] and stopped eating.


The Cup and the Belly

Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon went to his father-in-law, Rabbi Yosi son of Lokunia. His father-in-law poured him a cup of wine and he drank it; then he poured him another cup of wine which he also drank. [He drank both cups of wine in one gulp.]

His father-in-law said to him, "Didn't you hear from your father [Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai] in how many gulps a cup of wine is supposed to be drank. [According to the Jewish laws of etiquette, quaffing a cup of wine in one shot is ill-mannered, let alone two in one shot.]"

He answered him, "Undiluted wine may be drunk in one gulp. I f diluted with cold water, then [according to the laws of etiquette] one should drink it in two gulps, while i f tempered with hot water, then in three gulps. Moreover, the Sages were not referring to such tasty wine as yours, nor to your small goblets or my massive belly!"

Rabbi Yehoshua son of Korcha scolded him fiercely, "You vinegar son of wine, [in your youth your behavior was as praiseworthy as a good wine, where as now, you have deteriorated and gone sour like vinegar]!"

"Why are you scolding me like that?" he asked him. He answered, "Because you chose to go to Ludkia." [There are two versions: The first version is that the king

appointed Rabbi Elazar to catch thieves and bandits, most of


whom were Jewish. After carrying out his orders for some time, under criticism of the other Sages, he had finally run away to Ludkia, ashamed of his own actions.]

[Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korcha continued criticizing him, to which] he replied, "[After all,] I was only uprooting uprooted thorns [i.e., I was merely handing over evil people who already deserved death]/'

[To this,] Rabbi Shimon ben Korcha replied, " [ I f you had not engaged in this work in the first place,] you would never have had to flee to the other end of the world [to Ludkia]. You should have left the weeding of the thorns to the owner of the vineyard [to G-d]."

[According to the second version of the story, Rabbi Elazar had not fled to Ludkia. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korcha criticized him, saying that he ought to have fled. When Rabbi Elazar asked Rabbi Yehoshua why he was yelling at him, he replied, " [ I ' l l shout at you] t i l l you'll flee [from the Ruling Power] and go to Ludkia [and stop handing over your brothers to the authorities]."

[To which] Rabbi Elazar replied, " I have only been uprooting detached thorns, [i.e., evil people, deserving of death]."

Rabbi Shimon ben Korcha answered, "Surely you should rather go to the other end of the world and let the Owner of the vineyard [G-d] come and destroy His thorns."

4. Reverting from Scripture to Talmud

Rabbi Yirmiyah asked Rabbi Ze'irah [a question in the laws of tithing produce]: " I f a tree is growing in a person's garden but its branches are overshadowing his front yard, wi l l a person standing in the garden with a long tool which extends to the yard be liable to tithe the fruits which he thereby reaps

148 Aggadatah

from the branches overshadowing the yard?" [Fruit growing in a garden is normally free from tithing if eaten in small amounts, as opposed to fruit growing in a front yard.]

[When Rabbi Yirmiyah asked this question], Rabbi Abba son of Kahanna and Rabbi Levi were also present. Rabbi Ze'irah was criticizing the lecturers of Aggadah [homiletics], calling their discourses, "Magic tricks!" [He was upset that they would interpret scriptural verses to fit the particular idea they were trying to convey, thereby entrancing the audience like wizards.]

Rabbi Abba, son of Kahanna, said to him, "Why do you chide them? Ask them [to explain a verse to you and you'll see] that they answer you [accurately]."

He said to him, "What is the meaning of the [enigmatic] verse in Psalms (76:11): "For the anger, man wil l acknowledge You, and You will limit the rest of the anger?'"

He answered, " "For the anger, man wil l acknowledge You' means that i f a person acknowledges happily the suffering meted out to him through G-d's anger in this world, then "You [G-d] wil l limit the rest of the Anger [and diminish or withhold punishment for his sins] in the World to Come.'" [I.e., in reward for a person accepting his suffering gratefully in this world, returning in penitence and not complaining about his bad lot, G-d wil l withhold or diminish whatever punishment was still due to him in the World to Come.]

He [Rabbi Ze'irah] then retorted, "[But surely you could interpret the verse the opposite way around,] as follows: "For the anger, man will acknowledge You ~ in the World to Come - and You will limit the rest of the anger in this world. '" [I.e., when the righteous, termed "Man" here, see the greatness of Your anger which You suppress in the Next World, thereby withholding punishment in this world, they thank You that You limited and suppressed Your anger at their behavior.]


Rabbi Levi said, " [ I hold the verse should be interpreted in the reverse order]: "When Your anger gets kindled against the wicked, the righteous see what You are doing to them, and they thank You. ' " [I.e., the righteous see that when Your anger gets kindled and You gird Your sword, You pour out Your wrath on the other nations of the world, but not on the Jewish People. According to this interpretation, the ending of the verse is not that G־d limits the remainder of His anger, but rather, that He incites it.]

Rabbi Ze'irah thereupon exclaimed, "Each one twists the verse in some other direction, leaving us without any clear interpretation [and without any enlightening information]! Yirmiyah, my son, keep involved in Halachah [rather than Aggadah], such as your question concerning the tithing. [It is better for you to be involved in Talmud than to get involved in homiletical interpretations of scriptural verses.]"


5. In Honor of the Sabbath

Rabbi Chiyya, Rabbi Ammi and Rabbi Yosi were sitting together. Someone passed by carrying a basket of figs.

"Sell us [some of those lovely figs]," they said to him. He answered them, "My supply of fruits for the Sabbath is

not for sale. [ I plucked them from a tree which I've designated for the Sabbath on account of its luscious figs, and I 'm not prepared to sell them, even for a high price.]"

150 Aggadatah


6. The Gem Under the Pottery Shard

A certain woman had yarbuzin seeds [possbily asparagus] which were terumah [priestly dues] in her basket. [Yarbuzin is a vegetable with inedible seeds.] Some of the seeds [inadvertantly] fell down in to the garden and took root. [The question now was whether or not the vegetables growing from these inedible seeds were also deemed terumah and, therefore, only permissible to priests who would have to eat them in purity.]

The case was presented before Rabbi Yochanan, and he was lenient.

Rabbi Chiyya son of Abba said to him, "Surely your ruling is already to be found in a mishnah? [We already learned: "Even though the original plant is terumah, they [the new growths] may be eaten'!" Rabbi Yochanan answered, "You Babylonian! [Rabbi Chiyya was from Babylon.] Once I removed the pottery shard, you found the gem! And now you say, 'Surely it is already to be found in the mishnah9 — [You never would have understood the mishnah, had you not heard my ruling!]" [Rabbi Yochanan was comparing the scenario to a gem on the sea-bed covered by pottery shards. One has to dive deep down to find the gem under the rubble. Similarly, had it not been for his diving deep and immersing himself in the depths of the Talmud in order to then elucidate the law, Rabbi Chiyya would not have fathomed the gem — the true meaning of the mishnah he otherwise would definitely have misinterpreted.]

Zeraim ־ Tracate Ma'aser Sherd 151

T R A C T E MA'ASER SHEINI (The Second Tithe)


1. Redemption of the Tithes

You shall truly tithe all the increase of your seed that the field brings forth, year by year. You shall eat before the L־rd, your G-d, in the place which He shall choose to place His Name there, the tithe of your corn, of your wine, and of your oil, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks; in order that you may learn to fear the L-rd, your G-d always.

If the way is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry it, because the place which the L־rd, your G-d, shall choose to set His Name there, when the L־rd, your G-d has blessed you is too far from you; then you shall turn it into money, and bind up the money in your hand, and shall go to the place which the L-rd, your G-d shall choose. You shall bestow that money on all that your heart desires: on oxen, or sheep, or wine, or strong drink, or whatever your soul requires. Then you shall eat there before the L-rd, your G-d, and you shall rejoice, you and your household. (Deuteronomy 14:22-26)

And if a man will at all redeem of his tithes, he shall add the fifth part of it to it. (Leviticus 27:31)

Rabbi Channanya said: "Rebbi would take the first cucumbers to ripen [as a present] to King Antoninus [who adhered to Torah justice and used to learn with Rebbi]. Rebbi would designate the second tithe towards the stems of each cucumber, [rather than separating one whole cucumber from every ten. He did this because separating from one cucumber for other ones could be very problematic. Some cucumbers are very bitter and, according to Rebbi, cannot exempt the sweeter cucumbers.] He imagined that he had already cut off the ends,

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[then redeemed them by estimating their value before they were cut off from the fruit. I.e., A tenth of a cucumber is worth less once cut off from the cucumber than when still part of the whole. Thus, when Rebbi redeemed the tithe, he redeemed the value of a tenth of an uncut cucumber.]

Rabbi Shimon, son of Rebbi, objected to the disrespectful way the Jews of Southern Israel [would separate the second tithe. In order to redeem the tithes cheaply, rather than separating whole fruits as the tithe, they would cut off little pieces, which are almost worthless when they are redeemed.]

Bar Kappara took them to task. He chopped up fruits into little pieces in their presence and demanded of them, "Have these pieces any use whatsoever? [Are they worth anything now that they are cut up? Similarly, it is wrong of you to cut up the tithes, thereby lowering their value, since that is tantamount to slighting the mitzvahl]"

We have learned: The second tithe should not be redeemed by mere estimation. Rather, where the value is clearly known, it may be redeemed by one person. However, i f the value is not clear-cut, it must be redeemed by three people. Examples of unclear values are wine which formed a film, fruit which has started rotting, or coins which have become rusty [and have thereby depreciated in value, now requiring expert evaluation]."

Rabbi Nachman, son of Yaakov, would show a wicker-work basket of dates to an expert [called Nagari; others explain that he was a manufacturer of wicker-work baskets and so knew the exact capacity of each basket]. Rabbi Nachman would rely on Nagari's assessment when redeeming his fruits.

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Rabbi Yannai would show a quart of wheat to [someone called] Chatunya, [who was a wheat-expert; others says he showed it to a wheat wholesaler whose prices were below the market price; according to a third reading, he'd show his wheat to a wheat grinder].

Rabbi Simmon would ask Rabbi Chizkiah to estimate his fruit, saying, "Estimate according to what the customer pays, [which is more than the price to the retailer]." [Rabbi Simmon feared that Rabbi Chizkiah did not know the price to the retailer.]

Rabbi Chizkiah thereupon said to him, "Rabbi Chilkia said in the name of Rabbi Simmon: "One may not redeem the second tithe by the assessment of fools.' [In other words, when we learned that on occasion it suffices to consult only one opinion, that was with the understanding that he is an expert who knows all the prices. Hence, I can estimate according to the the retailer's price, since I know the prices clearly.]"

Rabbi Pinchas showed his fruit to a wheat pounder and asked him to estimate according to the price of the retailer to his client.

The wheat pounder said, "Rabbi Chizkiah said as follows in the name of Rabbi Simmon: "The second tithe is not redeemed by the assessment of fools.'"

[How is this lower price estimated?] Rabbi Shammai said, "It is equivalent to the price of a wheat dealer at midday on the summer solstice, [when the heat is so intense] that the clothes which the washerman has wrung out dry instantly, even before being hung up to dry. At that time, the wheat dealer wi l l be willing to sell with a small margin of profit, in order not to have to remain in the sun for long.] Money is brought to the above value, and the fruits are redeemed."

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Rabbi Yirmiyah said, "One may redeem the produce according to the low rate which a person is willing to pay on Friday afternoons, shortly before the Sabbath, to the [farmers'] wives, who are busy braiding and combing their hair [in honor of the Sabbath. Since they are in a rush, they sell very cheaply at that time.] Only a person going out of his way [to find a bargain will turn up at such an hour to buy from them.]"

Rabbi Yadun, son of Guria, said: "[If] Rabbi Yaacov, son of Bon, [would obtain fruit shortly before the commencement of the Sabbath and not have enough time left to redeem the second tithe onto money,] he would leave the redemption of the fruit t i l l just after the termination of the Sabbath, even though he knew that, in the meantime, some of the fruit would shrivel." [At the termination of the Sabbath the going rate for fruit is also low, since often people don't have their money readily available yet.]

Rabbi Manna had oil [which he had previously designated as the second tithe]. He brought it [from his home in the village of Beit Ma'akeh] to [the town of] Acco.

Rabbi Chiyya son of Adda said to him, " I f that oil of yours which you brought from Beit Ma'akeh is still around, now is the ideal time to redeem it, since the price of oil has dropped to below a sixth [of its usual price]."

Exemption from the Fifth

[The second tithe of a person's produce had to either be eaten in Jerusalem in purity, or to be redeemed onto money which was to be used to buy food in Jerusalem which was then eaten in purity. I f the owner of the produce was redeeming it onto his own money, then he had to add an additional fifth of the principal. However, i f someone else redeemed his produce

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onto their money, then the fifth did not need to be added. Thus, people searching for loop-holes to get out of the additional fifth would purposely give their produce or their money to a second party as a temporary "present," in order to release the produce from the additional fifth.]

Rabbi Yehoshua, son of Korcha, said: "Originally, they would give their money [to a second party to relieve them of having to add on a fifth, relying on their friend's integrity to subsequently return the money.]

"However, [some] people started running off with the money without returning it. Thus, it was instituted instead that the actual produce should be given [to the second party, who would redeem it onto the owner's money, thereby still exempting it from the additional fifth.]

"However, [some] people [without integrity] would take the produce and consume it themselves, [rather than having the decency to return it to the original owner]. So, it was fixed that the owner should make the second party take possession of the produce by dint of a small amount [lit., a tenth] of his immovable property. [By this mode of acquisition, the second party would acquire the produce without it actually being physically handed over to him, and hence, the danger of him stealing it was eliminated.]"

Rabbi Innya, son of Sissi, went to Rabbi Yonah, who said to him, "Should I redeem your produce onto this coin?" [lit. sela. He was suggesting that Rabbi Inna should give him a coin which he would subsequently return.]

"Yes," Rabbi Innya answered. "Moreover, you can subsequently keep the coin for yourself."

Rabbi Yonah redeemed it, and Rabbi Innya accepted the coin back.

Rabbi Yonah commented, " I only returned the coin to him because I assessed that he would not have objected had I kept

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it for myself. [Had I sensed that he had not given me the coin wholeheartedly, I would have felt that the whole procedure was just a ruse.]"


2. Various Symbols

We learned in the mishnah: I f someone finds a vessel [containing money] with the letter "()"written on it, he can assume the money had been designated for an Offering. I f the vessel [contained fruits] and the letter "T" was written on it, he could assume the contents were someone's Tithe. The letter "D ' implied D ,mai [fruit about which there is a suspicion as to whether the tithes have been properly taken]; " U " would imply Untithed edibles which are forbidden, pending the separation of the various dues; "P" would mean Priest's share of the crop. [In the mishnah, the code is of course in Hebrew; we have tried to give an English equivalent.]

This code was used in times of religious persecution ־־ they would then write "P" to indicate the priestly share, etc.

Rabbi Yosi said: "[One mustn't rely on these codes,] since they might just be the initial letters of someone's name." [He] added, "Even if someone found a barrel filled with fruit with the words "Priestly dues' written out in full on it, he must nevertheless fear that the fruit is not sacred, but that the sign had merely been left on the barrel from the previous year's useage, instead."

Rabbi Yona and Rabbi Yosi were partners in some barrels. Rabbi Yona passed away [without informing his son which

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barrels were his. Rabbi Manna, son of Rabbi Yona, wanted to divide up the barrels with Rabbi Yosi in order to take possession of his inheritance.]

Rabbi Manna said to Rabbi Yosi, "Any barrel which has the name "Rabbi Yona' inscribed on it is mine, [since I've inherited it from my late father]."

"Last year it would have been a sign that it is yours," Rabbi Yosi answered. "This year, however, it is mine. [Last year we were careful to mark every barrel with the name of its owner. However, this year, the barrels got interchanged, but the names were not removed. Those barrels with your father's name on them are mine.]"

3. The Interpretation of Dreams

The Interpretations of Rabbi Yosi, Son of Chalafta

A certain person came to Rabbi Yosi, son of Chalafta, and said to him, " I had a dream in which I was told, "Go to Kapod Kiya, and you'll find property belonging to your late father.' "

Rabbi Yosi said to him, "Did your father ever in his life go to Kapod Kiya?"

"No," he answered. He said to him, "Go and count ten beams in your house, and

you'll find your father's property [under the tenth beam]." [In Hebrew, Kapod Kiya can be split into two words: kappa and dika.] Kappa in Persian means "beam," and dika in Greek means "ten." [Thus, you were being informed in your dream that you have money under the tenth beam of the ceiling.]

A certain person came before Rabbi Yosi, son of Chalafta, and said to him, " I had a dream in which I was wearing a wreath of olive leaves."

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He said to him, "The portent of the dream is that you wil l rise to great heights."

Some time later, someone else came along and said to him, " I had a dream in which I was wearing a wreath of olive leaves."

He said to him, "It's a sign that you'll be smitten." The man said to him, "To the other person you forecast that

he'd rise to great heights, but to me you say 'You'l l be smitten?!'"

He answered, "The first person had his dream at a time when the olive trees are in blossom, [which is a sign of grandeur and honor], whereas you dreamt at the harvest time, [when the olives get beaten off the trees and fall to the ground]."

The Interpretations of Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi

A man came before Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi, and said to him, " I had a dream in which I was watering olive trees with olive oil."

He said to him, "May the person's spirit be blown away, [i.e., may you drop down dead]! This fellow had relations with his own mother! [A child vis-a-vis his mother is comparable to the olive in relationship to its oil.]

A man came to Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, " I saw in my dream that one of my eyes touch the other."

He answered, "May that person's spirit be blown away, [i.e., may you drop down dead]!" He had relations with his sister! [Both his eyes and his sister's stem from the same womb and the same body, hence, the analogy.]

A man came to Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, " I saw three eyes in my dream."

He replied, "You are a manufacturer of ovens. Two of the eyes you saw were symbolic of your own eyes, and the third


was the "eye" of the oven. [The opening for the escape of the smoke, which may be closed to retain the heat, and resembles an eye]."

A man came before Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, " I saw in my dream that I had four ears."

He replied, "You fi l l waterflasks. Two of the ears were your own, and the other two were the handles [lit., the ears of the vessels]."

A man came before Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, " I had a dream in which people were running away from me."

He replied, "Because you carry thorns around and everyone runs away from you [for fear of tripping over them]."

A man came before Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, "In my dream, I saw myself carrying a ledger with twelve pages. [They used to engrave their accounts with a needle on boards of the ledger or pinax and erase and re-engrave.]"

He replied, "The man's robe has twelve patches. [Alt.version: The pack-saddle of your donkey has twelve patches.]"

A man came before Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, "In my dream, I saw myself swallowing a star."

He replied, "May that person's spirit be blown away [i.e., may he drop down dead!] He murdered a fellow Jew!" [A star is symbolic of a Jew] as it says, "A star has stepped forth from Jacob" (Numbers 24:17).

A man came before Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, " I had a dream in which many lettuces started sprouting forth in that man's vineyard. [He was referring to his own vineyard, but feared to say so expressly.]"

He replied, "That man's wine will turn into vinegar, and you'll be dipping lettuce leaves in the vinegar [to season

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them]. Others explain that Rabbi Yishmael said that his] י,wine would turn out so sweet that he'd have to immerse bitter lettuce leaves in the wine just to temper its sweet taste.]

The Miser and His Recompense

A man came before Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi and said to him, " I had a dream in which I was told, "Your finger is descending.'"

He replied, "Pay me for the service, and I ' l l interpret your dream."

[The man refused to pay and left without receiving the interpretation of his dream. He returned some time later.]

He said to [Rabbi Yishmael], " I had a dream in which I was told, "There will be a swelling in your mouth.'"

Rabbi Yishmael replied, "Pay me for the service, and I ' l l interpret your dream".

[The man again refused to pay and left without hearing the portent of his dream. Some time later, he returned once again to Rabbi Yishmael.] He said to him, " I had a dream in which I was told, "Your finger is upright.'"

He replied, "Didn't I tell you [each time you came], 'Pay me for the service, and I ' l l interpret your dream'? [In your first dream,] when you informed me [that your finger was descending,] it was an omen that there was a leak in your roof, and that the water was jeopardizing your wheat. [The finger was pointing out to you to fix things up, so־to־speak.] When you were shown the swelling [in your mouth, it was indicative of the wheat, which you had planned to eat with your mouth,] becoming inflated [from the rain-water.]

[Your latest dream,] in which you've been informed [of your upright finger,] means that that wheat has sprouted [and is now totally ruined]."


The Scoffer and His Recompense

A certain Samaritan said, " I ' l l go along and make a mockery of that old Jewish sage, [i.e., Rabbi Yishmael, son of Yosi, who claims he can interpret dreams. I ' l l invent a whole dream and see what interpretation he gives.]"

He went to him and said, "In my dream, I saw four ceder trees, four sycamore trees, a bundle of feathers, a hide and a cow, and that man [referring to himself] was sitting on all of them and excreting."

Rabbi Yishmael replied, "May that person's spirit be blown away, [i.e., may he drop down dead]! You never had any such dream! [Your intention was to make a mockery of me!] But I won't let you go empty-handed! The four cedars [in your dream] mean the four posts of your bed; the four sycamore trees mean the four legs of your bed; the bundle of feathers means the feather bolster at the end of the bed; the hide refers to a hide stuffed with straw [used as a pillow]; the cow refers to the mattress [which is made out of a stuffed cowhide], and the man sitting on all of them excreting refers to this man, [i.e., you], crouching on the bed neither alive nor dead, [too sick to get out of his bed even to ease himself]."

And so it came to be! [The prediction came true, and the fellow thereby received full recompense for his insolence.]

The Fulfillment of a Dream Depends on Its Interpretation

A woman came before Rabbi Eliezer and said to him, " I had a dream in which the pillar of my house broke." He said to her, "That means you will give birth to a son. [The pillar on which the house is supported is a symbol of her womb, which houses the embryo and which bursts open at birth.]"

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She went away and gave birth to a son. Some time later, she was looking for him again. His

students said to her, "He is not here. What do you need him for?"

She answered, " I had a dream in which the pillar of my house broke/'

They said to her, "It means, that woman's [i.e., your] husband will die. [The husband supports the house like a pillar]."

When Rabbi Eliezer came, they told him the whole story. He said to them, "You have murdered! Why? After all, the fulillment of a dream depends entirely on its interpretation, as it says (Genesis 41:13): *It came to pass just as he had interpreted to us.'"

Rabbi Akiva's Interpretations

A man came before Rabbi Akiva and said to him, " I saw in my dream that one of my feet had shrunk."

Rabbi Akiva explained, "It means that the Pilgrim Festival wil l come around, but you won't have any meat to eat." [In Hebrew, the three Festivals are termed "foot-festivals," because people would come on foot on a pilgrimage to the Temple. Thus, the "shrunken foot" was indicative of the limited food supply on the festival, and that he wouldn't be able to afford meat.]

Another person came to him and said, " I saw in my dream that my foot was enlarged."

He replied, "The Pilgrim Festival wil l come around, and you'll have plenty of meat."

One of Rabbi Akiva's students was sitting before him with a very sullen expression.


Rabbi Akiva said to him, "What's wrong with you?" He answered, " I had a dream in which I was given three bad

tidings: "You wil l die in Adar; you wil l not see Nissan, and you wil l not harvest what you sow.'"

To which Rabbi Akiva replied, " A l l three are good tidings! You wi l l be raised through the glory of the Torah [till the day of your death]; you wil l not go through trials in life [alt.version: you wil l not require miracles to save you, since you won't get sick, etc.]; and "you wil l not harvest what you sow" means that your children wil l not die in your lifetime, and hence, you wil l never bury your offspring." [This interpretation is based on a Hebrew pun which cannot be conveyed properly in English.]


4. Clarification of Mishnayot

Zuga, the barber, asked Rebbi [Rabbi Yehudah the Nasi, compiler of the mishnayot], "When our mishnayot [in this chapter] discuss the laws of the fruit of a tree in its fourth year, are they referring merely to the product of a vineyard, or to any fruit-bearing tree?"

[Rebbi] replied, "Go and ask the great Rabbi Yitzchak, since I clarified all the mishnayot with him."

They went and asked him, and [Rabbi Yitzchak] replied, "The first two mishnayot refer to the product of the vineyard only, while the latter mishnayot refer to all fruit-bearing trees."

Rabbi Ze'irah criticized the Sages who lived at the same time as the great Rabbi Yitzchak for not having clarified all

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obscure points in the mishnayot with him, [considering that Rabbi Yitzchak was the expert of his generation, having received full training from Rebbi],


5. Hidden Passages

Nakai was an attendant in Migdal HaTzabaim [lit., the dyers' turret]. Every Friday afternoon, after preparing and lighting his candles, he would go to the Temple [in Jerusalem] to spend the Sabbath there. [Even though some believe that he lived over a day's journey away, he would make it in no time at all. On account of his great desire to be near G־d in His Holy Temple, Nakai's journey would be miraculously shortened each time he went.]

Others say that Nakai was a barber. Every Friday afternoon he would go to the Temple to read the week's reading of the Law, twice in Hebrew and once in Aramaic [as we are commanded], and then return home, still arriving in time for the Sabbath. [Some interpret the text that he was a teacher of young children, and he would teach children the portion of the Law for that week in the Temple every Friday afternoon and still be able to return home.]

Tartiroi, from the village of Mahalool, would spend every Sabbath in the Holy Temple [in Jerusalem, and would make it back home on the Sunday morning with such speed that] he always managed to be the first to harvest his figs.


Zephorite women would spend the Sabbath in the Holy Temple [and make it back home with such speed] they always managed to harvest their figs before anyone else.

Women from Lud would knead their dough, go to the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, pray, and still manage to make it back home before their dough had risen.

A man was in the middle of plowing with his ox, when [the bands of the yoke snapped and] his ox stopped plowing and escaped. He chased after his ox til l he found himself in Babylon.

The people there asked him, "When did you leave [your hometown]?"

"Today," he answered. They asked, "What route did you take, [because Babylon is

normally considerably more that a day's journey by foot from Israel]?"

"That route," he replied. They asked him, "Show us where it is." He went and tried to retrace his footsteps, but he could no

longer find the route he had taken, because he had come through underground passages which were hidden away [after the destruction of the Temple, Therefore, it was almost impossible to find these short-cuts anymore.] They cited the verse (Lamentations 3:9): "He has enclosed my ways with hewn stone; He has made my paths crooked."

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6. Tithes for the Priests

When Ezra the Scribe decided to return to Israel from the Babylonian exile, the Levites did not want to return, [apart from a small number of Levites who were so patriotic, that when Nebuhadnezzar asked them to "Sing to us the song of Zion," they refused, saying, "How can we sing the song of the L-rd on foreign soil," and cut their own thumbs off in protest.] Ezra was so annoyed with those Levites who had no wish to return, that he penalized them: From then on, the first tithe [normally allotted to them] should be given to the Priests, instead. [In the days of Rabbi Yehoshua, son of Levi,] the subject was brought up again, and there were those who wanted to reinstitute the giving of the first tithe to the Levite, once again.]

Indeed, we do have a principle that an edict passed by an earlier Beit Din cannot be uprooted by a subsequent Beit Din, unless the latter's members are superior to its predecessors, both in learning and in numbers. Nevertheless, i f the original enactment had never been universally accepted by the majority of the Jewish People, then it may be repealed by a subsequent Beit Din, even if they do not meet the above requirements.

At the time of Rabbi Yehoshua, son of Levi, it was contended that Ezra's penalty had not been accepted by the bulk of the people. Moreover, it was suggested that Ezra himself had never intended his ruling for future generations. There were consequently variant opinions amongst Rabbi Yehoshua's contemporaries as to whether to endorse the act or to reinstate the Levites with their former rights.]


Those [in favor of reinstating the Levites] said, "Whom can we call [to the Study Hall to support the motion]? Surely, Rabbi Yehoshua, son of Levi! [Being a Levite himself,] he wil l certainly support the Levites' cause."

He entered and supported the Kohanim [priests], saying, "We find twenty-four instances in the Holy Scriptures where the Priests are referred to as Levites. One of them is, "And the priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok...' (Ezekiel 44:15)."

[Zadok was a priest, yet his children are termed "Levites," indicating that the Priests also fall under the heading of "Levites," since they also stem from the tribe of Levi. Hence, according to the letter of the law, they, too, have a right to accept the Levitical dues. Thus, Rabbi Yehoshua, rather than supporting the cause of the Levites to get Ezra's act repealed, had in effect strengthened it, by proving that there was no scriptural basis to oppose the edict.]

Tithes for Those Engaged in Torah Study

Rabbi Yonah gave the Levitical tithes to Rabbi Acha, son of Ulla, not merely because he was a Kohen, but also because he was engaged in Torah study.

What was his basis? Because it says (II Chronicles 31:4): "He instructed the

people who dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of the Priests and the Levites, so that they might adhere firmly to the Torah of the L-rd." [Hezekiah's command implies that the Levitical tithes should be given specifically to those laboring in the study of the Torah and upholding it.]

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Priests Who Refrained from Accepting Levitical Tithes

Rabbi Hunna would not accept the tithes, nor would Rabbi Acha. [Even though they were Kohanim and entitled to accept according to Ezra's decree, and were also Torah scholars, nevertheless, they did not want to benefit from the portion of the Levites.]

Rabbi Chiyya, son of Abba [a Kohen] decided to emigrate from Israel, in order to avoid receiving tithes. [Some explain that people were trying to force him to accept the tithes. He emigrated to avoid the problem. Others explain that he was not managing financially, and emigrated rather than agreeing to accept the Levitical tithes which would have helped him make ends meet.]

A man [a priest] asked Rabbi Shmuel, son of Nachman, who in turn asked Rabbi Yonatan, "May a priest accept the tithes?"

He replied, "Accept itl Anything which your tribe [i.e., the tribe of Levi] is entitled to, you are also entitled to accept."

With Whom to Make Business Deals

Rabbi Yannai instructed his relatives: "When you hire a field for a fixed, annual rental, payable in kind, rent only from religious, G-d fearing people," [and not from those Kohanim who might retain the tithes for themselves, which was not permissible in Rabbi Yannai's view. Others explain that the reason he advised his relatives to rent only from G-d fearing Jews was because he felt that in their merit, the field would yield a good crop.]

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Rabbi Akiva's Trick

Rabbi Bo related the following episode: Rabbi Elazar, son of Azaria, [who was a Kohen] would

regularly accept the Levitical tithe from a certain man's garden. Now, that garden had two entrances. One opened onto a cemetery, [which Kohanim could obviously not use,] and the other entrance opened onto a ritually clean area.

Rabbi Akiva came to the garden owner and told him, "Open the one entrance [which opens onto the cemetery] and close off the other entrance." [He wanted to prevent Rabbi Elazar, son of Azaria, from being able to enter the garden to obtain the Levitical tithes, because he held the Kohanim were not entitled to take the tithes. So, in order to prevent Rabbi Elazar, a Kohen with a lineage tracing back to Ezra, from getting the tithes, Rabbi Akiva said to the garden-owner, "It says in Leviticus (18:31): "You shall eat it anywhere, you and your household.'" The repetition of the word you comes to exclude a messenger. I f the priest sends a messenger, rather than coming to the field in person, then the owner is not obligated to give. Consequently, should Rabbi Elazar send a non-Kohen on his behalf, you wil l be perfectly entitled to refuse him.]

Rabbi Elazar, son of Azaria, [who was Rabbi Akiva's teacher,] heard [what his disciple had done] and said, "The penetrating acumen [lit., awl] of Akiva, son of Yosef, has been here." [Alt. version: He said, "The whip of Akiva, son of Yosef, [with which he whips and rebukes us] has been here."

Whereupon Rabbi Elazar, son of Azaria, returned all the tithes that he had taken!

Rabbi Yitzchak, son of Elazar, commented, "The cup must be full during the meal." [This was an allegorical way of saying that even though Rabbi Akiva was then still a powerless student, nevertheless, he was on the alert to strike

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when the opportunity presented itself, in order to defend the ruling of Rabbi Elazar's contemporaries, who had decided that Ezra's edict was no longer in effect, and hence, that Kohanim were no longer allowed to accept the Levitical tithe.]

[Rabbi Yitzchak commented further], "The woodworm is formed in the wood" [and then consumes i t ] . [I.e., Rabbi Akiva, who was Rabbi Elazar's student, overpowers his own teacher.]

"Strike while the iron's hot" [lit., "A coal which does not burn in its time, will never burn."] [There are several interpretations of what he meant by this allegorical statement: That i f a student isn't sharp in his youthful days, he'll probably never be sharp in his studies. Thus, Rabbi Akiva was sharp at the offset of his studies, and his sharpness endured. Alternatively, had Rabbi Akiva let Rabbi Elazar continue eating from that garden, later on he never would have found an opportunity to stop him.]

Another version of Rabbi Yitzchak's statement is that he said, "The beam which needs filling, take a splinter from it ." [i.e., " I f the beam of a building has a crack, remove a splinter from it as a reminder to fix it up." According to this version, he then added, "A coal which does not glow right away, wi l l subsequently die out." That is to say, i f one does not blow it into a flame, then the flame wil l never be rekindled. Similarly, here: as soon as Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria was made to understand that he should not accept the tithes, he immediately returned all the tithes he had ever received, before allowing himself time to change his mind or forget.]

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7. Merits — Only for Others

Rav had flax which became wormy. He asked Rabbi Chiyya the Great, "Is it permissible to slaughter a bird and mix the blood [which drips at the time of the shechitah] with flax seed [to ward off the worms which cannot tolerate the blood of poultry, or is one obliged to cover the blood with earth, as specified in the Torah?]"

Rabbi Chiyya answered, "Slaughter it in a faulty way, [thereby rendering it legally unfit for consumption and exempt from the laws requiring its blood to be covered]."

Now, why did Rabbi Chiyya not advise [Rav] to mutilate [the bird], thereby rendering it t'reifah!

The answer is that Rabbi Chiyya held like Rabbi Meir, who ruled that the blood of a t'reifah still requires covering after shechitah.

But surely Rabbi Ami said in the name of Rabbi Shimon, son of Lakish: "Since they returned from the exile, their flax did not go wormy nor did their wine turn into vinegar. They attributed this to the merits of Rabbi Chiyya the Great and his sons." [Surely Rav was Rabbi Chiyya's nephew, so how could his merits not have protected his flax?]

Rav, however, was modeling himself on the verse in Isaiah (46:12): "Listen to me, you noble-hearted ones, who keep yourselves far from charity." Rabbi Abahu informs us that Rabbi Yochanan and Reish Lakish differed as to the interpretation of this verse.

One of them explained it to be saying that all people survive merely by the Attributes of G-d's Charity and Mercy, whereas the "noble- hearted" servants of G-d survive in their own merit.

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The other one explained the verse to mean that all good happenings and consolations with which mankind is blessed come in the merit of the "noble-hearted" righteous, whereas they themselves do not wish to benefit from the reward of their merits. For example, Mar Zutra would pray for others and be answered, whereas when praying for himself, he would not be answered.

[Rav held like the second opinion: Even though the entire world was blessed in his merit, he himself did not want to derive any benefits from the merit of his good deeds.]

TOSEFTA MA'ASER SHEINI (Second Tithe)


1. Redeeming in the Proper Manner

Rabbi Shimon, son of Gamliel, Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Yosi were once visiting a certain householder in Keziv. They said, "How can we know whether the householder makes his produce legally fit for use by separating the Priestly and Levitical dues properly?"

When he noticed their misgivings, he went and brought a bag of gold coins [on which he had redeemed his second-tithe fruits] to Jerusalem. [If he wants to save himself the trouble of taking his ma'aser sheini fruits to Jerusalem each time, he can redeem them onto money and spend the money on food in Jerusalem at his leisure.]


They said to him, "Show us how you tithe and redeem your fruits."

" I say as follows," he answered: " "The second tithe in this produce should be redeemed onto this coin.'"

They said to him, "Go and eat your money; you have gained money but lost souls!" [One must first separate or designate the tithe, and only then can he redeem it onto money. Throughout the time that he was redeeming his fruit, the fellow saved the expense of transporting the fruits to Jerusalem, but lost Jewish souls by causing himself and his family to eat untithed produce.]


2. Rabbi Eliezer's Vineyard

Rabbi Eliezer had a vineyard [in its fourth year] next to the village of Turi, to the east of Lud. [The village was situated close to Jerusalem, towards the West.] He wanted to renounce his ownership of the field. [This was because the Sages had decreed that everyone living within a day's journey of Jerusalem had to bring the actual second-tithe fruits to Jerusalem, rather than redeeming them and bringing the money, instead. They made this decree so that the markets of Jerusalem should be decorated with fruits. Rabbi Eliezer found it a hardship to bring the fruits, so he renounced ownership in order that the poor people should glean the fruits and take them to Jerusalem, eating them there in purity.]

His students said to him, "You don't need to renounce ownership! Your friends have already taken a vote and repealed the act." [Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai had repealed

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the act after the destruction of the Holy Temple, since there was no need to decorate the markets of Jerusalem with fruit any more. Hence, even those living in towns bordering on Jerusalem were now allowed to redeem their fruit on money, rather than bringing their actual fruit to Jerusalem.]

TRACTATE CHALLA

Chapter I: Halachah 6

1. Ten Religious Acts Performed with Bread

A person performs ten religious acts before he wil l actually eat his bread:

(1) You shall not plough [with an ox and ass together]. (2) You shall not sow with diverse types of seed. (3) You shall not muzzle an ox when it is threshing. (4) Leket [leaving that which falls during the harvest for the

poor]. (5) Shich'choh [leaving forgotten sheaves for the poor]. (6) Pe'ah [leaving the corner of the field for the poor]. (7) Terumah [giving a fiftieth of the crop to the priest]. (8) "Ma'aser Rishon" [giving the first tithe to the Levite]. (9) "Ma'aser Sheini" [separating the second tithe, eaten in

Jerusalem]. (10) "Challah" [separating the priests' share of the dough]. Whenever Rabbi Yitzchak would pick up his bread [to

break a piece off and say the HaMotzi blessing], he would purposely clasp it with all his ten fingers, saying "Behold, I have fulfilled ten precepts!"

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TRACTATE ORLAH (Fruit in the First Three Years)


1. The Uprooting of Kilayim

A certain man sowed his field with barley and turnips [which are) kilayim, a forbidden combination]. Chanin Gufta passed by and uprooted them.

The case was brought before Shmuel and he praised Chanin [for his action. An alternate version says that Shmuel fined Chanin. According to this version, the episode took place outside the Land of Israel, where one is not dutibound to uproot the diverse mixture post facto, but is permitted to eat from it. Thus, he should have sought permission from the owners before uprooting the plants.]

TRACTATE BIKURIM

(First Fruits to be Offered)

Chapter I: Halachah 5

1. The Strap Is Untied and the Restriction Is Removed A certain priest married the daughter of proselyte parents.

The case was brought before Rabbi Abahu and he ordered [the priest] to be laid down on a bench [to receive lashes].

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Rabbi Bevai said to him, "Didn't our teacher teach us that the law follows Rabbi Yosi, [who ruled that the daughter of a male and female converts may marry a priest, provided she was conceived after they both converted to Judaism]?"

Rabbi Abahu replied, "But surely the priests decided to guard their dignity [by abstaining from marrying anyone whose parents were both proselytes], in accordance with the ruling of Rabbi Eliezer son of Yaakov.

Rabbi Bevai then asked, "Is a mere custom punishable by lashes then?"

" I f you feel that way [that he shouldn't receive corporal punishment]," Rabbi Abahu replied, "then beg him to forgive me for his embarrassment, and I wil l discharge him."

Once the priest had gotten up again, Rabbi Bevai remarked, "Since the restriction has been removed by our decision not to give him lashes [and wil l obviously gain publicity], I am likewise permitted to marry her." [Rabbi Bevai was himself a priest and remarked that now he, too, would be allowed to marry the daughter of proselytes.]

[Others explain that Rabbi Abahu asked Rabbi Bevai, "Put on a public show that you are pacifying me to relent from giving him lashes." According to this version, it was the priest, not Rabbi Bevai, who remarked to Rabbi Abahu that now that the restriction had been removed, he could remain with his wife, since post facto we rule like Rabbi Yosi: Once one married such a woman, he needn't divorce her.

A further version of the story is that when Rabbi Bevai asked Rabbi Abahu, "Is a mere custom punishable by lashes then?", he replied that it was, and asked Rabbi Bevai to persuade the priest to divorce his wife. Only then he would pardon him and agree to forgo the lashes. The priest argued that i f according to the strict letter of the law there was no prohibition, however, then he wanted the Sages to allow him to be lenient and not have to keep the priestly custom.]



2. Behold, I Am Like Ben-Azai

Rabbi Yochanan went to a certain place, where he announced, " I am the local Ben-Azai !יי

[Ben-Azai was an ardent student who had fathomed all the deepest secrets of the Torah. On one occasion he even remarked, " A l l Jewish scholars appear to me like the husk of garlic, apart from...". In subsequent generations, when scholars would arrive in some town and wished to stress their efficacy in halachik matters, they would announce, "We are like Ben-Azai in the market-place of Tiberias," (Ben-Azai's hometown). In that way, they would make known that they were available to accurately answer even the most intricate questions in the greatest depth, similar to their predecessor, Ben-Azai.

When Rav came to Babylon, he also announced, " I am the Ben-Azai of Babylon!" A certain sage then came to him with all sorts of questions. Similarly, on one occasion when Abaye was in a cheerful mood, he announced that he was available in Pumbedita to answer questions with the same sharpness and depth as Ben-Azai.

Rava likewise once made such a declaration. People then came along and asked him questions concerning the laws of the eruv. In our present story, Rabbi Yochanan was making this same declaration about himself, that he was the local Ben-Azai.]

A certain sage came along and asked to reconcile an apparent contradiction between two mishnayot. Rabbi Yochanan answered him, explaining how each mishnah was referring to a different situation. The sage then proceeded to

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disprove Rabbi Yochanan*s answer from an explicit mishnah. Rabbi Yochanan was unable to answer him, and the sage remarked, "The local Ben-Azai has departed !יי

[Rabbi Yochanan] then went and asked Rabbi Yannai, [his teacher, to answer the question he had been posed]. Rabbi Yannai explained to him how it had been answered during the discussions in the Academy.]


3. The Bringing of Bikkurim (the First-Fruits)

It shall be, when you come in to the land which the L-rd, your G- d, gives you for an inheritance, and you take possession of it and dwell therein, that you shall take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which you bring from your land that the L-rd, your G-d gives you, and you shall put it in a basket and shall go to the place where the L-rd, your G־d, will choose to place His Name.

You shall go to the priest who will be in those days and say to him, "I profess this day to the L-rd, your G-d, that I have come to the country which the L-rd swore to our fathers to give us."

The priest shall take the basket out of your hand, and set it down before the altar of the L-rd, your G-d.

Then you shall speak and say before the L-rd, your G-d, "An Aramaean was my father. He went down to Egypt and sojourned there, few in number, and became a great, mighty and populous nation there. The Egyptians dealt badly with us and afflicted us, and laid hard bondage upon us. When we cried to the L-rd, G-d of our fathers, the L-rd heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labor and our oppression. And the L-rd brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm and with fearful revelations, with signs and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. So now, behold, I have brought the first fruits of the land, which You, O L-rd, have given us."

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You shall set it before the L-rd, your G-d, and worship before the L-rd, your G-d, and you shall rejoice in every good thing which the L-rd, your G-d, has given you and your house ~ you and the Levite and the stranger who is amongst you.

(Deuteronomy 26:1-12)

Such was the order of the bringing of the first-fruits to the Temple [lit. House] of our G-d (may it be built speedily in our days):

How would one separate the first-fruits? When a man descends into his vineyard and sees the first fig which has begun to ripen, or the first cluster of grapes that has started to ripen, or the first pomegranite that has started to ripen, he ties reed-grass around it and says, "Behold these are first-fruits."

Rabbi Shimon adds, "Nevertheless, he should again declare them to be first-fruits after they have been plucked from the soil." [That is to say, as soon as a fig, etc., has started ripening, he would attach some mark of identification to it, such as a string of reed-grass. Once the fruit had fully ripened, he would pluck it and protect it from ritual impurity. Only dates from a valley would be brought as bikkurim, since these were fruits of a superior quality. Other fruits would be brought specifically from the highland for the same reason.]

How did they take the first fruits up to Jerusalem? A l l the various members of the post (ma'amad) assembled in the town of the leader of that post and lodged for the night in the town square. They did not enter the houses. Early in the morning, the leader would say, "Arise and let us go up to Zion, to the House of the L-rd, our G-d" (Jerimiah 31:5).

[There were twenty-four divisions of priests and Levites for duty in the Holy Temple. The divisions would take turns, each one on duty for a full week each half-year. Corresponding to these divisions of priests and Levites, the Israelites were also divided into twenty-four groups, who acted as representatives for their fellow Jews. They stood by and recited prayers during

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the sacrificial ceremonies, so that G-d should accept their worship favorably.

When the time came for the bikkurim to be brought, rather then each individual going on his own, all the members of the Israelite division would assemble in the town of their division chief, so that they could come in a collective gathering to Jerusalem, as it says in Proverbs (14:28): "The glory of the King is in a multitude of people." The superintendents of the synagogues would accompany them, spending the night in the streets rather than entering the houses, for fear of being [ritually] defiled. The chief of the Israelite division would rise early in the morning and wake up his brethren [saying, "Arise and let us go up to Zion, to the house of the L-rd, our G-d."]

Those living near [Jerusalem] would bring fresh figs and grapes [as first-fruits], while those who came from far away would bring dried figs and raisins, [since these would endure the long journey]. An ox went before them, its horns overlaid with gold and a crown of olive leaves on its head. [The ox was intended as a peace-offering, and the crown of olive leaves on its head was for a number of reasons: Firstly, in order to show that the bikkurim were brought specifically from the seven fruits listed in the Torah, being the pride of the Holy Land. (The Torah indicates that amongst the fruit-bearing trees, the olive is the most significant of the seven.) Secondly, because it is aesthetically the most beautiful of all the Holy Land's native trees. Thirdly, because priests and kings would be anointed with the oil of the olive, hence it is only fitting to make a crown of glory from its foliage.]

The flute played before them until they drew near to Jerusalem. [The flutist marched at the head of the procession, the sound of his flute resounding all around.] While marching to Jerusalem, the people would recite the verse (Psalms 122:1): " I rejoiced when they said to me, *Let us go to the

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House of the L-rd. '" On arrival in Jerusalem they would say, "Our legs would stand in your gates, O Jerusalem" (Ibid., 122:2). They would march to Jerusalem for two-thirds of the day. In the evening they would halt the procession in order to take precautions that their first-fruit should not get defiled.

When they arrived near Jerusalem, they sent messengers before them [to announce their arrival]. They then adorned their first-fruits [by placing the freshest, most luscious fruits on top: fresh figs would be placed above dry ones, and grapes on top of raisins, to adorn them]. The priestly wardens, the Levitical wardens and the treasurers or the Temple funds went out to meet them. According to the importance of those who were coming, they would go forth to meet them. [Every Jew is important, and worthy of honor. The meaning here is that the number of people who went out to meet the arrivals depended on the number of the latter.] A l l the craftsmen in Jerusalem stood before them and greeted them saying, "Our brothers, who come from such and such a place, may you have a peaceful stay."

The flute would [continue to] be played before them, [even within the streets of Jerusalem], until they reached the Temple Mount. When they reached the Temple Mount, even King Agrippas would take his basket on his shoulder and go in, until he reached the Temple Court. [The law dictates that upon reaching the Temple Mount, everyone must carry his own basket of fruits, which he subsequently presents to the functioning priest. Thus, even the powerful king had to humble himself and personally carry his own basket. At this stage of the procession, they would recite Psalm 150 saying, "Praise the L-rd, praise G-d in his holy place...", t i l l they reached the Temple Court, where they would recite the concluding words of the psalm, "The entire soul should praise the L- rd. Praise the L-rd!"]

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When the Temple Court was reached, the Levites would sing the psalm (30:2): " I will extol You, O G-d, for You have raised me up and have not made my enemies rejoice over

יי

me. The young pigeons which were hung at the back of the

baskets were for burnt-offerings. [The pilgrims would attach them as an adornment to the baskets of the first-fruits, but not on top of the fruits, so as not to sully them.] What was in their hands [either other pigeons not attached to their baskets, or possibly a reference to their bikkurim], they handed to the priests.

While the basket was still on [the donor's] shoulder, he would recite from Deuteronomy 26 [as quoted in full above]: " I profess this day to the L-rd, your G-d..." until he finished the whole passage. Rabbi Yehudah says, "[He would recite until the verse] 'An Aramaean was my father.' [At that point,] he would set the basket down from his shoulder and hold it by its rim. The priest would then place his hand under it and wave it, reading from 'An Aramaean was my father...' until he had completed the whole passage. He would then place it by the side of the Altar [to the south of the south-western corner], prostrate himself, and leave.

Originally, all those capable of reciting [the passage of the first-fruits in Hebrew] would recite it [by themselves], and i f anyone did not know how to recite, they would recite with him, [i.e., the words of the passage would be recited and the donor would repeat them]. [However,] those [who were incapable of reading unaided] refrained from bringing, [from embarrassment], and so they instituted that all should be made to repeat, whether they were capable of reciting on their own or not.

The wealthy people used to bring their first-fruits in baskets overlaid with silver and gold and the poor used to bring them


in wicker baskets of peeled willow branches, [since peeled willow looks nicer than unpeeled]. Both the baskets and the first-fruits were given to the priests. [The priests would keep the poor people's baskets together with their first-fruits, whereas the valuable baskets of the rich would be returned.]

Rabbi Shimon son of Nanas said, "They would decorate the baskets of their bikkurim with different types of fruits, not only with the fruits of the seven species." Rabbi Akiva said, however, "They would only adorn their bikkurim with fruits of the seven species."

It is meritorious to bring the bikkurim in seven baskets, [each species in a different basket]. I f they were all brought in one basket, however, the donor had still fulfilled his duty. [Still, i f he did bring them all in one basket, he must nevertheless keep each species distinctly separate, dividing one type from another with leaves or other things.] How would he then position the various species? He would place the barley at the bottom, then place leaves or whatever as a partition. He would then place the wheat, with something on it, as a separation. Next would come the olives, likewise covered by a layer of leaves or the like, followed by dates, pomegranites, figs, and finally grapes on top. Each species was on top of the lower one and separated by a partition. The whole array was surrounded by a bunch of grapes.

Rabbi Yehudah said, "They may only be given to a reliable associate priest, [who can be counted on to eat them only in a state of ritual purity] as a free-gift." [The recipient priest may, however, express his gratitude to his benefactor]. [In contrast,] the Sages maintain that the bikkurim must be given to the priestly guard, who share them amongst themselves, as they do with the [other] holy sacr

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Temple court, dangers of defilement by unreliable priests were eliminated. No priest would feel indebted to any particular benefactor, and all the bikkurim would be consumed in purity and holiness in Jerusalem.

"Happy is the nation who is thus favored!"

Halachah 3

4. "You Shall Arise Before the Hoary-Head"

They Watched the Back of Moses

We have learned: " A l l craftsmen should stand up before them,[i.e., before those bringing the bikkurim]" But surely we have also learned that in the verse in Leviticus (19:32): "You shall rise up before the hoary-head and honor the face of the old man,יי applies only when no financial loss is involved. [So why in the case of the bikkurim are the craftsmen obliged to stand up and interrupt their work?]

The answer is that since the opportunity to stand for this mitzvah comes only once a year, we do not allow people to miss the occasion.

Rabbi Yosi son of Bon said in the name of Rabbi Hunna son of Chiyya, "Come and behold how important are those engaged in mitzvot: For a sage, work does not get interrupted, but for those engaged in a mitzvah, it does!"

Rabbi Yosi son of Bon said, "When people stand up because a dead body is being carried past them, they are not actually standing up in honor of the deceased, but rather, in honor of those engaged in the mitzvah of taking care of the deceased/'

There is a dispute amongst Amoraim concerning the interpretation of the following verse (Exodus 33:8): "It came

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to pass when Moses went out to the tent, that all the people rose up and stood, every man at his tent door, and looked after Moses." One Amora explains that "they looked after him" for positive reasons, whereas the second Amora explains that they looked to find fault. The first [Amora], who interprets it positively, says that their purpose was to watch the saint and try to emulate him, whereas the Amora who interprets it negatively, says they were remarking [impudently], "Look at his [thick] legs; look at his [fat] thighs! He feeds off his fellow Jews; he drinks from his fellow Jews; everything he has is from his fellow Jews." [Thus, according to this opinion, they would stare at him in order to find fault and speak disparagingly of him.]

The Torah Does Not Arise in Front of Its Son

Rabbi Elazar said, "The Torah is not expected to stand up in front of its son." [I.e., the rabbi is not expected to arise in front of his disciple.]

Shmuel said, "One needn't stand up in the presence of an associate."

Rabbi Hilla and Rabbi Yaakov son of Iddi were seated. Just then, Shmuel son of Bo walked past, whereupon they stood up in his honor.

[In response,] he said to them, " I have two criticisms of what you just did. Firstly, I 'm not an aged scholar, and secondly, 4The Torah is not expected to arise for its son.'"

Cleaving to the Torah and Its Scholars

Rabbi Ze'irah said, "Rabbi Acha would interrupt his studies and stand up [for a sage or an aged person, in accordance with the scriptural verse: 'You shall stand up for a hoary-head....' In

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his opinion, being engaged in religious studies did not grant any exemption from the mitzvah.] He based himself on the beraita in which we learned: 'Scribes of sacred books, tefillin and mezzuzot should interrupt their work to recite the Shema, but not for the Shmoneh Esrey.

"Rabbi Channanya son of Akavya said, however, 'Just as one stops one's work for the recital of the Shema, so, too, for the Shmoneh Esrey, putting on tefillin, and for all other mitzvot in the Torah [which cannot get delayed].'"

Chizkiya, the son of Rabbi Chiyya the Great, [had a very sublime practice]. Whenever he was too exhausted to continue his religious studies [and felt he required a short break], he would go and sit at the entrance of the religious academy, in order to see the scholars and stand up in their honor.

There Is No Sitting before Mount Sinai

Yehuda, the son of Rabbi Chiyya the Great, would visit his father-in-law, Rabbi Yannai, every Friday afternoon and enquire after his welfare. Rabbi Yannai would sit on a raised platform, in order to spot his son-in-law from a distance and stand up for him as soon as he came into sight.

His disciples said to [Rabbi Yannai], "Surely our Rabbi has taught us that one does not stand up for a sage i f he is over four amot [about eight feet] away!"

He replied, "In front of a [walking] Mount Sinai, one doesn't remain seated." [I.e., a man who is so great that he can be compared to Mount Sinai, on which the Torah was given, warrants one to stand up as soon as one notices him.]

On one occasion, [Yehuda was delayed] and didn't turn up [at the usual time]. Whereupon, Rabbi Yannai remarked, "Is it possible that my son Yehuda should change his normal practice? He couldn't possibly be sick, since such a saintly

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body would never be afflicted. Rather, our great Yehuda is probably no longer amongst us!" [Others say that Rabbi Yannai remarked without thinking, "Turn over the beds!", which is the practice when someone dies. His casual remark acted like "an error which proceeds from the ruler" (Ecclesiastes 10:5), and Yehuda son of Rabbi Chiyya passed away.]

A Long life Must Be Justified

Rabbi Meir would stand up even in honor of an aged ignoramus. He explained that there was surely a [profound] justification for the man's prolonged life.

Rabbi Channina would strike anyone who did not stand up for him, and say to the person, "Do you want to profane the Torah?!"

Rise to a Higher Sanctity, But Do Not Descend

We have learned: "When the Nasi [Chief of the Great Sanhedrin] enters, everyone present must stand. No one is allowed to sit down again until he tells them to be seated.

"When the Head of the Beth Din enters, the people must stand up and form lines for him as he walks past. Sets of double rows are formed, and he walks through the rows of his choice. [However, those not in his vicinity may remain seated.]

"When a Torah scholar enters, anyone whom he walks past must stand up in his honor until he reaches his seat and sits down, [but no lines need be formed]."

Rabbi Meir would go regularly to the Talmudical Academy. Crowds of people would watch him and stand up for him,

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[even at a distance]. When they heard the [above] beraita [that when a Torah scholar passes, only those whom he walks past need stand up], they decided to act accordingly.

Rabbi Meir got annoyed and went out and said to them, " [ I have heard that] 'One rises to a higher degree of sancity, but does not descend'!" [These Tannaim and Amoraim were not searching for their own honor, Heaven forbid; they were merely anxious to preserve the honor of the Torah, and wished to imbibe the people with a deep respect for Torah scholars.

5. Ordination and Authority

Forgiveness of Sins

Rabbi Ze'irah was urged to assume rabbinic leadership. He did not want to accept the position, however, until he heard that the beraitha states that "A scholar, a bridegroom, or a Nasi who rises to distinction, thereby gains atonement for his sins" -- he accepted the appointment.

[From where does the beraitha derive that] a scholar [rising to distinction is forgiven for his sins? It is based on the juxtaposition of the verses in Leviticus (19:32-33)]: "You shall rise before the hoary-head and honor the face of the Torah scholar," and the next verse opens with the words: "And i f a stranger sojourns with you in your land..." [From the textual proximity, we learned that] just as a proselyte is forgiven for his sins, so, too, does a scholar who rises to distinction.

[The same applies to] a bridegroom, [based on the verse in Genesis (28:9)]: "And Esau went to Ishmael and took Mahalath the daugther of Yishmael...as a wife." Now, surely her name was not Mahalath [Machalat in Hebrew, resembling


the word mechilah, which means forgivenness"]. Rather, her true name was Basemath [see Genesis 36:10]. She was nicknamed Mahalath, however, to indicate that at marriage, all sins get pardoned.

[That one assuming the position of] Nasi [is forgiven, is based on the verse in I Samuel (13:1)]: "Saul was reigning at the age of one year." But surely he wasn't one year old?! Rather, the meaning is that all his sins were forgiven, like a year old child.

Gods of Silver

Rabbi Mana belittled those people who had been ordained for money [rather than for being qualified for the job].

In connection with this, Rabbi Ami cited the following verse (Exodus 20:20): "You shall not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold".

Rabbi Oshirah remarked, "The rabbinic garb on those people is like a pack-saddle on a donkey."

Rabbi Ze'irah was seated together with another scholar when one of those who had been ordained for money walked past. The other scholar said to Rabbi Ze'irah, "Let us appear to be totally engrossed in our studies, [so that he should think we didn't notice him], so that we shouldn't have to stand up for him.

[Rabbi Yaakov, from the village of Giboraya, had the job of orally translating and proclaiming the lectures of the Rabbis. [On one occasion, he was supposed to proclaim the lecture of a certain rabbi who was really an ignoramous, but who had been ordained by the Nasi for money. The "Rabbi" couldn't think of anything to say,] so Yaakov from Giboraya started his

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own lecture. He proclaimed, "[It says in Habakkuk (2:19-20)]: 'Woe to him that says to the wood, "Awake," to the dumb stone, "Arise." It can teach?!' Does he know how to teach? 'Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver.' Wasn't he appointed with silver? 'Nor is there any breath at all in it . ' As he is void of knowledge! You wish to appoint someone? Surely it says, 'But the L-rd is in his Holy sanctuary.' Rabbi Yitzchak son of Elazar is in the synagogue in Sha'ar Kesarin. [He is a true Torah scholar, who sits in the synagogue, G-d's miniature sanctuary, and takes his studies seriously. Surely he is more worthy of appointment than someone as void of Torah as a dried stick and a mute stone, merely acting as Rabbi because he is 'overlaid with silver and gold.']"

Ordination to Judge

[Note: The reference here is to a special type of ordination which only empowered the rabbi to decide certain types of law suits which could only be judged in Israel.]

Rabbi Ami asked Rabbi Simmon, "Did you hear that they are ordaining scholars outside the Land of Israel?"

" I heard that they do not ordain scholars outside Israel," he answered.

Rabbi Levi said, "But surely the verse states expressly in Ezekiel (36:17): 'Son of man, when the House of Israel sat in their own land....' This implies that we should only "sit" — to judge judicial matters ~ when we dwell in our Land!"

Our Rabbis in Caesaria said: "One may only ordain scholars in the Diaspora [outside Israel] i f they intend returning to Israel to practice there."

Rabbi Yitzchak son of Nachman was in Gaza. They ordained him, on condition that he'd return to Israel to practice there.


Rabbi Zemina was in Tyre. They ordained him on condition that he'd return to Israel.

Rabbi Yonah was on the list [of those deserving ordination]. He refused the title, saying that he did not want to be ordained before his Rabbi. [His Rabbi was Rabbi Ze'irah. As we learned previously, Rabbi Ze'irah refused ordination, until he learned the beraita which states that those who rise to distinction gain atonement for their sins. Thus, Rabbi Ze'irah finally accepted ordination, and then subsequently,] ordained his disciple, [Rabbi Yonah].

Rabbi Chama said, "Rabbi Yehudah son of Titus was in Rome and was ordained, on condition that he would return to Israel."

The Bread Is Not to the Wise

Shimon son of Vav lived in Damascus. Athough people on a lesser calibre were ordained, he was not. [The wheel of fortune was not in his favor, since he lived in the Diaspora.]

In spite of the fact that Shimon son of Vav was a talented craftsmen who could cut and polish diamonds and knew all trades, he nevertheless was so poor that he didn't even have a loaf of bread to eat. Rabbi Yochanan described his state with the verse in Ecclesiastes (9:11): "Neither do the wise have bread." He said, "Anyone who wants to have an idea of the rigtheous acts of the patriarch Abraham should observe this man's [Rabbi Shimon's] acts. He wil l thereby come to an appreciation of his forefather's acts."

[In spite of his great acts, Rabbi Shimon son of Vav still was not ordained.]

Shimon son of Vav was in Damascus. Rabbi Abahu sent sim a letter, in which he enclosed some of the grey hairs [from his beard], implying, "You, too, are already going grey and

192 Aggadatah

aging. Get up and come to Israel! [There you wil l be ordained and be given the opportunity of judging all sorts of judicial matters.]

"Who wil l remove the dust from your eyes?! Surely Rabbi Yochanan! Abahu, who is far inferior to you [and used to sit at the feet of Rabbi Shimon son of Vav when attending Rabbi Yochanan's lectures], has already been ordained, while Shimon, who deserves donning the rabbinic garb, has not yet been ordained!"

narratives of the talmud

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