Daf Yomi

This would, no doubt, turn into a massive page during the project going through the entire cycle. What I’m going to do is put the section of whichever tractate I’m currently going through on this page, and as I finish them during the cycle, I’ll move the finished one onto a separate linked sub-page. I’m going to organize it as an outline so it’s reasonably easy to follow. I’m also, while well aware of the deep spiritual stuff that’s going on in each discussion, not going to go down that path – there are a zillion websites and commentaries that already do that. In general, I find the idea of a glimpse of a historical culture from what amounts to transcripts of conversations between spiritual and secular leaders to be fascinating, and not surprisingly, for me, I’m particularly drawn to topics that relate to food and wine, sexuality, and comedy.

  • Seder Zeraim – “Book of Seeds”
    • Berakhot – “Blessings” – Blessed things, actions, and events
      • I hit a momentary “WTF?” when Berakhot finished and we didn’t move on to Pe’ah, the next tractate in Zeraim. Apparently the remaining ten tractates in Zeraim do not have Gemara commentary in the Babylonian Talmud, just the Jerusalem Talmud, which the Daf Yomi doesn’t cover. Despite living in a predominately agrarian society, the Babylonian rabbis apparently had nothing to say on agriculture and related subjects like tithing, offerings, and challah bread. Though now I get “Book of Seeds”, I do feel a bit cheated and I want to know if there’s a good challah recipe in there. My plan is to at some point read through the various tractates throughout the Talmud that aren’t included in the Daf Yomi, just out of curiosity. I’ll put those in a different color so that they stand out.
    • Pe’ah – “Corner” – Pay it Forward
    • Demai – “Doubtful” – Provenance and Taxes
    • Kil’ayim – “Mixed Species” – Mixing it up in the Fields
    • Shevi’it – “Seventh” – Taking a Sabbatical from Life
    • Terumot – “Donations” –
    • Ma’aser Rishon – “First Tithes” – 
    • Ma’aser Sheni – “Second Tithes” – 
    • Challah – “Dough” – 
    • Orlah – “First Fruits of Trees” – 
    • Bikkurim – “First Fruits” –
  • Seder Moed – “Book of Festivals”
  • Seder Nashim – “Book of Women”
  • Seder Nezikin – “Book of Damages”
    • Bava Kamma – “The First Gate” – Who’s Responsible?
    • Bava Metzia – “The Middle Gate” – Who Owns the Truth?
    • Bava Batra – “The Last Gate” – You’re Responsible, and Here’s Why
      • With great… property… comes great responsibility. Pre-diving-in that seems to be the message we’re about to delve into. And we’re in for quite a ride. Bava Batra is the longest tractate in the entire Talmud, coming in at 176 pages, so it’s going to occupy us for the next six months. This is also one of the few tractates that is not an exposition on a section of the Torah, and is instead a codification of Jewish oral law around the rights and responsibilities of property owners.
      • 11/12/24, Chapter 9, Page 140 – We contradiction to page 127, where it was decided that tumtums and androginos, inherited as if they were daughters, the rabbis re-discuss. On one side, Rabbian Shimon ben Gamliel says that since they are neither sex, they inherit nothing. On the other, Rava, who says they are both, and inherit as both – a portion of the estate, plus, being supported until the reach the age of majority, i.e., 12 years and 6 months old.
      • 11/13/24, Page 141 – Much ado over tumtums, those of indeterminate sex. Abaye advocates that they be treated as sons for inheritance… on paper… but not in reality, because “they’re not really sons”. Rava advocates for them to be supported as daughters… on paper… but not in reality, because “they’re not really daughters”. Yehuda points out that it may be a mitzvah to support one’s daughters until marriage, but halakhically you aren’t obligated to feed, clothe, or support them after age six.
      • 11/14/24, Page 142 – Let’s just say that after numerous arguments over various scenarios, the Talmud determines that a fetus is not a person and cannot inherit property or be given a gift. You have to wait until it’s born and lives for one day. This has come up before, and is part of why, in Judaism, questions around abortions are particularly thorny, as there are disagreeing portions of the Torah and Talmud as to when someone becomes a someone.
      • 11/15/24, Page 143 – The discussion is off on a tangent about donkeys’ inheritances (which don’t exist and therefore invalidate entire wills), but I’m off on my own after the out of the blue description of a cucumber. Yes, a cucumber, which, according to the rabbis is sweet on the outside and often bitter and inedible on the inside. What? Isn’t that backwards? What kind of cucumbers were you eating? Enquiring mind wants to know.
      • 11/16/24, Page 144 – A father offers his son one of his properties for he and his new bride to live in. Does this mean the young couple now own the home? It’s easy, say the rabbis. If the father has cleared out everything that is his, personally, then the house belongs to the youngsters. If he has left anything of his in the house, say, a sandal, a jug of oil, a “jug of fried fish”, then it is obvious that this is simply a temporary arrangement and not a transfer of ownership. I mean, you could just ask.
      • 11/17/24, Page 145 – Brothers and sisters beware. Those of you with me since the early days of this project may remember the whole levirate marriage thing, where if a husband childless, one of his brothers must marry his widow. However, if he dies during the first week after the wedding, be it noted that the brother who takes his place has to return all the wedding gifts, he can’t claim them. On the other side, if the new bride of a priest is raped, rendering her “unfit” for sleeping with her priestly husband, she doesn’t get her dowry back, since the priest can obligate her sister to take her place in the marriage.
      • 11/18/24, Page 146 – Causation or just correlation? The Talmud suggests that those who study the Torah and Talmud deeply are empathetic and impatient and will be paupers, while those who simply learn, and follow, the Torah rules are cruel and patient, and will be well-off. There is no explanation as to how this all comes about, nor do they discuss in-between options, like empathetic and patient, or cruel and impatient, nor relate those to study habits or financial status.
      • 11/19/24, Page 147 – Meteorological-Agricultural tangent time. East winds are always beneficial (to crops), west winds are always bad. North winds are good for wheat but bad for olives, south winds the reverse. A clear day can be cloudy at times as long as it is clear most of the day and the winds are blowing the clouds along. Cloudy days can be clear at times as said winds move groups of clouds around. Please write that all down.
      • 11/20/24, Page 148 – If a person who is ostensibly on his deathbed gifts his entire property to someone because he believes he is dying, but then miraculously recovers, he can retract the gift. If, however, he gifted only part of his property to someone, reserving a portion for himself “just in case I recover”, then he cannot later retract that gift as it is clear that he did not fully believe he was dying.