Questions tagged [talmud-gemara]
The Talmud is a central text of Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, metaphorical stories customs, and history.
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Does Changing "Beitza" to "Beiah" Really Acoomplish Anything?
There are legitimate sources that talk about calling masechet "Beitza" by the name "Beiah" because the Hebrew word "beitza" can also refer to a testicle. See answers here ...
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Why is the last chapter in masechet pesachim called ערבי פסחים in the plural, which does not match the girsa of the mishnah?
The mishnah begins ערב פסחים in the singular, yet the chapter is called ערבי פסחים in the plural. Chapter titles in the gemara almost always match the first words verbatim, very rarely skipping a word ...
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Source for Story about Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi Collecting Teachings from All the Tanaim
Someone recently mentioned to me a story that in the days of the Tannaim most people learned from a single teacher and learned a single derekh or set of halakhot. Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi was unusual in ...
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Where does the gemara say not to say "I heard it already"
I remember hearing many years ago that there is a story in the gemara in which one amora says "I will make a feast if anyone can tell me a teaching from my rebbi that I have never heard before&...
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Refuting Sanhedrin Maimonides etc on 57a
Following on from my question here:
Clarification on quotation sources around Sanhedrin 57a
All citations (that I can find through Jewish resources linked in the original question) that claim to ...
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Four counted as dead & Agunot
Nedarim 64b relates of the Gemara: "it was taught in a baraita: Four are considered as if they were dead: A pauper, and a leper, and a blind person, and one who has no children."
Could one ...
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A List of כל אתין and their interpretations
In Pesachim, 22a, the following braita is cited:
כִּדְתַנְיָא: שִׁמְעוֹן הָעַמְסוֹנִי, וְאָמְרִי לַהּ נְחֶמְיָה הָעַמְסוֹנִי, הָיָה דּוֹרֵשׁ כׇּל ׳אֶתִּים׳ שֶׁבַּתּוֹרָה, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהִגִּיעַ לְ״אֶת ה׳...
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What is the proof and reasoning that Rabbi Yitzchak and Rabbi Elazar are NOT arguing in Megillah 29a
B"H
In a kuntress that the Rebbe gave out towards mid 5752 about the "house of our Rebbe in Bavel", it starts out with a chidush in Megillah 29a that Rabbi Yitzchak and Rabbi Elazar are ...
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Why did שמואל הנביא need permission to save his own life?
In יבמות ס״ה,ב׳ it brings the story of when Hashem told שמואל הנביא to go and anoint דויד, and שמואל asked Hashem what he should do in order not to arouse Shaul’s suspicion, thereby endangering his ...
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The Maharsha accusing Rav Pappa!
The Gemara Shabbos 140b states the following..
וְאָמַר רַב פָּפָּא: הַאי מַאן דְּאֶפְשָׁר לְמִישְׁתֵּי שִׁיכְרָא וְשָׁתֵי חַמְרָא — עוֹבֵר מִשּׁוּם ״בַּל תַּשְׁחִית״. וְלָאו מִילְּתָא הִיא — ״בַּל ...
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your Masechta to enter the world to come
I found in one of the works of the great gaon Rav Moshe Greenwald (1853-1910 Chust-Hungary, known famously for his responsa sefer ערוגת הבושם), a sefer written as his 'final will' called- הכנה דרבה (a ...
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Rabbi Meir's yeshiva
We learned in the Daf (Nazir 49b also Keddushin 52b) that Rav Yehuda instructed his Talmidim not to accept into his Yeshiva any Talmid of Rav Meir because they just ask questions to annoy and confuse (...
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Differences between Birur and הנהגה
How do the techniques of הנהגה and בירור work in Halacha? Is the difference that the latter needs proof, and the former is based on a חזקה?
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Why would contradicting Tosafot be an issue if there were multiple authors?
Often, Rabbis will question why different Tosafot (even in different Mesechtas) disagree with each other, finding a way to make them congruent.
If Tosafot was written by multiple authors (at least 100 ...
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How did the Magic (Kishuf) applied on the Tanaim?
It is mentioned in Yerushalmi (Sanhedrin, 87, Halacha 13) that a magician/ witch (Mechashef) applied his magic on three Taanaim: Rabbi Yehoshua, Rabbi Lazer and Rabbi Akiva in a public bath house. How ...
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Why does the recitation of Tehillim 145 three times a day secure one a place in Olam Haba?
It is stated in the Talmud (Brachos 4b) that one who recites "T'hila L'David" three times a day secures their place in Olam Haba. Why is this? What is so special about this psalm that it ...
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Caret for an intentional Sin punishable by Death when there are no witnesses
We know that Sins punishable by death are punished when there are witnesses and warning. We also know that when there are no witnesses, but the sin is made intentionally, the punishment is Caret (1). ...
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Encyclopedia Talmudit - Early Volumes
Where can one find the early volumes of Encyclopedia Talmudit for purchase? It seems that very few stores carry the early volume.
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Numeric coincidence between Rava and Tosefta?
Nazir 13b:
Rava asks: If one said: I am hereby a nazirite after twenty days, and I am hereby a nazirite from now for one one hundred days, what is the halakha?
The next page resolves the question:
...
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When is a Talmudic statement considerd aggadah?
When is a statement in the Talmud considerd aggadah (and thus not necessarily to be taken litteraly, but rather teaches us a lesson) and when is a statement in the Talmud acctually literal? (i.e that ...
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When did The Talmud first become available to the readers as a written document?
What was the probable earliest time, when some Jewish readers could get a hold of a document that contains any material that belong to the material that is found in Talmud Sanhedrin?
What was the ...
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Can a golem become human?
If a righteous sage creates a golem, like Rava did in Tractate Sanhedrin, can it become human, and since it is created by a Jew, can it become Jewish?
Secondly, I don't know if they could or could not,...
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Meaning of the word בר in Proverbs 31:2
I'm a ben Noach. I was studying the use of the word בר in the Mishlei Shlomoh and I noticed that many important translations translate Proverbs 31:2 as follows:
"What, my son? and what, son of ...
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Medrashim which seem to go against logic
I am giving a speech this week. I would like to include examples of Medrashim which seem implausible that it ever happened or could have ever happened.
Can any of you provide examples of medrashim ...
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Usage of אמר מר and גופא [duplicate]
The Gemora sometimes wants to discuss a side point from a previous text. It will introduce this as אמר מר or גופא for example the first page of Brachos says: אֲמַר מָר: ״מִשָּׁעָה שֶׁהַכֹּהֲנִים ...
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Traditional Text of the Gemoro Yerushalmi Maseches Peah online
Where on line can I find the text of the Gemoro Yerushalmi Maseches Peah, laid out according to the traditional dappim. Sefaria is excellent but lacks the traditional layout. I am following an online ...
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Litigation vs out-of-court settlement
If I understand correctly, Batei Din encourage litigants to compromise / settle out of court rather than go to trial.
Where in Gemarah is this stated explicitly?
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Meaning of וש"נ
Often the Mesuras HaShas in the top corner of each Amud of gemara will quote the source or other places a certain concept or sugya can be found. Sometimes, when there are a lot of other places one can ...
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Source for Hardest Masechtos
I once saw that the hardest Masechtos in Shas are alluded to in "כל ימי -עני- רעים" (Mishlei 15:15), with ע standing for עירובין, and נ for נדרים (alternatively I've seen נדה or נזיר), ...
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Why did Rav Yaakov snap back at his adoptive father?
It says in Sotah 49a that
רַב אַחָא בַר יַעֲקבֹ אִיטַּפַל בֵיהּ בְרַב יַעֲקבֹ בַר בְרַתֵּיהּ כִי גָּדַל א״ל אַשְקְיָין מַיָּא אָמַר לוֹ לָאו בְרִיךְ אֲנָא
Rav Acha bar Yaakov reared Rav Yaakov, his ...
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Is it true that Simeon ben Shetach was summoned to a diplomatic meeting between Parthians and King Alexander Jannaeus by Queen Salome Alexandra?
There is a story on wikipedia for Simeon ben Shetach at this link.. After the civil war between the Pharisees and King Alexander Jannaeus the Judeans are meeting with Parthians. The Parthians asked ...
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Why does the Gemara reference R' Yaakov in an odd way?
In Sotah 46a, it says the following:
אָמַר לְהוּ הַהוּא מֵרַבָנָן ור׳ יַעֲקבֹ שְמֵיהּ לְדִידִי מְפָרְשָא לִי מִינֵּיהּ דְרַבִי יוֹחָנָן מְשִיכַת עוֹל לְרָחְבוֹ טֶפַח
One of the rabbis said to them, ...
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Purpose of Learning Gemara
Disclaimer: I am Jewish. Don't get thrown off by the Arabic name. I can't login into my original stackexchange account. This is a pseudo twitter login account I use here.
I am wondering if someone can ...
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Where can I download a complete text file of the Talmud Bavli?
I am writing a tool in python to analyze the Talmud (e.g. word counts, how many times a specific phrase is used etc.) and I need a free downloadable text file of the Gemara, preferably with Rashi and ...
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Is insincere idolatry permitted?
The Talmud reports the following view about Gentiles who live outside Israel:
דאמר רבי חייא בר אבא אמר רבי יוחנן גוים שבחוצה לארץ לאו עובדי עבודה זרה הן אלא מנהג אבותיהן בידיהן
These sages seem to ...
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Between Sanhedrin 108b & Sanhedrin.38b
According to Sanhedrin 108b:
Rav Ḥana bar Leva’ei says that Shem the Great said to Eliezer, servant of Abraham: When the four great kings of the east and the west
came upon you to wage war with ...
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Why does Maseches Shabbos focus so much on Hotza'ah/Carrying?
There are 39 Melachos on Shabbos, yet by far the most discussed in the Masechta is Hotza'ah/Carrying.
Is there a reason why so much focus is placed on this one Melacha vs. all the others?
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7 most handsome people alive Gemara?
Was watching a shiur and the rabbi mentioned a Gemara that states the 7 most handsome people alive and Rabbi Yishmael Kohen Gadol was one of them. Anyone know where I can find this Gemara?
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Did ALL the Jews at the time of the closing of the Talmud accept the Talmud as binding?
The Rambam states in his introduction to Mishna Torah that the Talmud Bavli is binding because;
כל אותם הדברים שבתלמוד הסכימו עליהם כל ישראל.
What is the definition of the word "ישראל" in ...
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What is the SOURCE of the rules/protocols [for dealing with machlokes] within the Oral Law?
As far as I am aware, there are 3 major categories of Torah She’baal peh;
a) Known via direct Mesorah.
b) Known via interpretation (following the RULES of interpretation [eg
hermeneutic laws and s’...
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Madir vs Mudar vs Noder
What are the roles of מדיר / מודר / נודר when it comes to נדרים?
Originally I thought the Madir is the one who makes the Neder that makes an item forbidden,
The Mudar is the subject to whom the item ...
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Why is the halachic equinox at a different time?
The Artscroll in Taanis 10a note 42 states that
...according to halachah September 21 is not reckoned as the day of the equinox. Rather, the equinox occurs (in this century) on October 7th or 8th.
...
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Demon reproduction?
How do demons reproduce?
"In three ways they are like ministering angels: They have wings like ministering angels; and they fly from one end of the world to the other like ministering angels; ...
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Can one who died at the age of seventy five be considered to have died with a "Misas Neshikah"?
The Gemara in Moed Katan 28a says that if one dies suddenly it is called a "מיתה חטופה", but if he has reached the age of "Gevuros", which is eighty, than it is called a "מיתת ...
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Are there any opinions of a deadline for Moshiach later than the year 6000?
As discussed on this question, there are Talmudic opinions (e.g. in Rosh Hashana 31a and Sanhedrin 97a) that Moshiach must be here by the year 6000 AM (whether stated explicitly about Moshiach or ...
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Why pray for David before praying for prayer?
The Talmud explains the arrangement of the Amidah benedictions in Megillah 17-18. The rationale for placing the prayer for prayer after the prayer for David is given there as follows:
וכיון שבא דוד ...
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What's the spiritual difference between the Temple vessels and the utensils?
For ease of reference, I'll refer to the main ten kli hamikdash as the vessels and the 93 klei sharet as the utensils. Per the Zohar, the ten vessels represent the ten sefirot:
The Menorah - chesed
...
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End of Redaction of the Mishnah and the Gemara
The Talmud has three layers, the Mishnah, the Gemara and the comments (mainly Rashi for Bavli and others for Yerushalmi, who are well known).
What is the estimate timeline for the end of redaction
of ...
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Where can I find tzuras hadaf of the yerushalmi?
Daf Yomi Yerushalmi starts tomorrow. As I don’t own a set, I would like to find somewhere online I can see the daf (PDF or otherwise) to follow along with a shiur - similar to the Tzuras haDaf you can ...
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Was music considered to be a part of forbidden Greek philosophy?
Starting with Pythagoras (c.500BCE) and Plato (c.400BCE) music was considered wisdom and as such, an integral part of Greek philosophy (see "Music of ancient Greece and philosophy WIKI").
On ...
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