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Week 13 - Thursday - 24 Feb. 2000

ERUVIN: CHAPTER 3: MISHNA 9

Rabbi Dosa ben Harkinas says: "The person who passes before the Ark on the holiday of Rosh Hashanah says, 'Strengthen us, 0 Lord our God, on this day of Rosh Hodesh, if today, if tomorrow.' And on the following day he says, 'If today, if yesterday,'" but the Sages did not agree with him.

Kehati

This mishnah continues to teach the laws referring to the two days of Rosh Hashanah.

Rabbi Dosa ben Hariunas says: The person who passes before the Ark - i.e., the Reader, on the holiday of Rosh Hashanah says - in the Rosh Hashanah prayer, - for Rosh Hashanah is also Rosh Hodesh [the first day of the month of Tishrei]. And the Reader adds, "if today - is Rosh Hashanah, strengthen us today, and if tomorrow" - strengthen us tomorrow. And on the following day - the second day of Rosh Hashanah, he - the Reader, says - in the prayer,"Strengthen us,""If today, if yesterday" - since there is a doubt as to which day is Rosh Hodesh Tishrei, Rabbi Dosa ben Harkinas holds that on the first day of Rosh Hashanah the Reader must say, "If today, if tomorrow,"and on the second day, "if today, if yesterday," so that he would not appear to be lying in his prayers (Rabbi Yonatan of Lunet), but the Sages did not agree with him - with Rabbi Dosa ben Harkinas, for they hold that there is no need to mention Rosh Hodesh on Rosh Hashanah. The Gemara explains that their reason is that saying in the prayers, "This memorial day,"this refers to both Rosh Hashanah and to Rosh Hodesh, for it is written, regarding Rosh Hashanah, "a memorial proclaimed with the blast of horns" (Lev. 23:24), and regarding Rosh Hodesh, "and in your new moons...and they shall be to you for a memorial" (Num. 10:10). The Sages also hold that the stipulation "If today, if tomorrow" is not to be made in the Rosh Hashanah prayer because the two days have one sanctity, as explained in the preceding mishnayot. A further reason is lest the uneducated treat the two days lightly on hearing that there is a doubt regarding them; if, however, the prayer is recited without any stipulation, the two days are established as having one sanctity.

ERUVIN: CHAPTER 4: MISHNAH 1

If a person was taken out by non-Jews or an evil spirit, he has only four amot. If they brought him back, it is as though he had not gone out. If they took him to another city, if they put him in a dir or a sahar Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah say, He may walk in all of it. But Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Akiva say he has only four amot. It once happened that they came from Brundisium and their ship set out to sea, Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah walked throughout the whole but Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Akiva did not move beyond four amot, for they wanted to be stringent with themselves

Kehati

As has already been explained, a person who lives in an urban settlement may walk on the Shabbat throughout its entire area and outside it up to 2,000 amot in any direction. If a person went beyond his Shabbat bounds (without preparing an eruv), he may walk only in the four amot around him. This measure of four amot is learned in a baraita quoted in the Gemara (Shah. 48a), from the verse, "abide you every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day" (Ex. 16:29): "abide you every man in his place" how much is "in his place"? Four amot: three amot for his body, and one amah in order to stretch his hands and his feet. This mishnah teaches that even if a person was taken on the Shabbat outside his Shabbat bounds against his will, he may walk only within a distance of four amot from his location.

If a person was taken out by non-Jews - on the Shabbat, outside the Shabbat bounds, against his will; or by an evil spirit - that entered him, i.e, he became insane, and went outside the Shabbat bounds; and when he was outside the Shabbat bounds, the non-Jews released him, or he regained his sanity, he has only four amot - around him in which to walk (see the introduction to this mishnah). If they - the non-Jews, brought him back - to within the Shabbat bounds, by force, or he returned while still insane, it is as though he had not gone out - and he once again is as the people of his city, and he may walk throughout the entire settlement, and outside it up to 2,000 amot in any direction. This law applies only if they took him out and returned him against his will. If, however, he went beyond the Shabbat bounds of his own volition, even though they returned him against his will, or if they took him out against his will and he returned of his own volition, he may walk only in his four amot (Gemara). If they - the non-Jews, took him - against his will, to another city - which is surrounded by partitions (Rashi, Hameiri, Bartenurd), or if they put him in a dir - an area fenced off for the flock, so that they will fertilize it, or a sahar - a fenced-off area in which the flock is guarded,
Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah say : He may walk in all of it - since they are surrounded by partitions, they are considered as the area of four amot.
But Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Akiva say: He has only four amot - since he did not establish his Shabbat station there when the Shabbat entered, the partitions are of no avail to him, and he may therefore walk only within the four amot. According to another explanation, the prohibition of his walking beyond four amot is an extension of the prohibition of walking in a place not surrounded by partitions (Gemara, Ramban).
It once happened that they - the Sages, came from Brundisium - a port in southeastern Italy, and - after their ship had anchored in the port on Shabbat eve, their ship set out - on the Shabbat, to the - sea beyond the Shabbat bounds Rabban Gamliel and Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah walked throughout the whole - ship, following the law regarding the person who was taken out by non-Jews and whom they put in a dir or asahar, for the ship is surrounded by partitions; Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Akiva did not move beyond four amot, for they wanted to be stringent with themselves - they do, however, hold that the ship if different from a dir or a sahar, for it moves constantly to other four amot, and a person never remains within any one area of four amot, furthermore, since they had established their Shabbat station on the ship during the day on the Shabbat eve. Therefore, even in their view they were permitted to walk throughout the entire ship. However, they wanted to be stringent with themselves; Tosefot Yom Tov explains that they imposed this stringency upon themselves so that people should not think that one may also walk throughout a dir or a sahar.

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