Bava Kamma 17a (יז.) — the Talmud in English

And

one

said:

said,

seven

days,

and some say,

and there were those who said

thirty

days.

And the Gemara brings another interpretation:

The Sages taught

in a beraita:

“And they accorded him honor at his death”—this is Hezekiah, king of Judah,

as thirty-six thousand men went out before him

before his bier,

with bared shoulders,

men who were

bare-shouldered:

they exposed their shoulders by tearing their garments until their shoulders could be seen. This was the honor they accorded him;

these are the words of Rabbi Judah.

Rabbi Nehemiah said to him:

What greatness is there in this?

For even before Ahab,

king of Israel,

they did so!?

Rather,

the special honor they accorded Hezekiah was

that they placed a Torah scroll on his bier and said: ‘This one fulfilled

the deceased

what is written in this one,’

the Torah scroll!

The Gemara asks:

But nowadays

we likewise do so!?

For even now they do so for the great figures of Israel, so what was the greatness in doing so for Hezekiah?

The Gemara answers:

We do take it out,

indeed, we take out a Torah scroll also for other great figures of Israel, but

we do not place it down;

we do not place the Torah scroll on their biers, and they did so only in the case of Hezekiah.

And another answer:

And if you wish, say

and if you wish, you may give another resolution:

we also place it down;

indeed, we take out a Torah scroll and even place it on the bier of other great figures of Israel, but

“fulfilled

what is written in this one”

we do not say,

and they did so only in the case of Hezekiah.

And the Gemara brings another answer:

Rabba bar bar Ḥana said: I would go with Rabbi Yoḥanan to ask him a halakhic matter;

I accompanied Rabbi Yoḥanan in order to ask him a matter of halakha.

When he entered

when Rabbi Yoḥanan entered

the lavatory,

and came out of it,

and I wished to ask him something,

and I asked him the question,

he would not resolve it for us

he would not answer the question

until he washed his hands, put on his tefillin,

until he washed his hands and put on the tefillin that he had removed upon entering the lavatory,

and recited a blessing

over the tefillin,

and afterward he said to us,

only afterward did he say to us: Nowadays, a Torah scroll is placed on the bier of a great person, and

even

“fulfilled

what is written in this one”

we say,

but

“taught,”

that this deceased person taught others what is written in this one,

we do not say.

And they did so only in the case of Hezekiah.

The Gemara asks: Is “taught” really superior to “fulfilled”?

But the Master said

in a beraita:

“Great is Torah study, for study leads to action.”

Since the importance of study lies in the fact that it leads to action, it follows that action is superior, and if so, “fulfilled” is more significant than “taught”; what is the special praise in saying this only about Hezekiah?

The Gemara answers:

It is not difficult. This

which implies that action is superior to learning refers to

learning

for oneself. But

this,

which Rabbi Yoḥanan’s statement implies—that “taught” is superior to action—refers to

teaching

others.

And now the Gemara explains the verse mentioned at the beginning of the chapter:

Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: What is the meaning of that which is written

that which the verse states [Isaiah 32]:

“Fortunate are you who sow beside all waters, who send forth

the foot of the ox and the donkey”?

This is its interpretation:

Anyone who engages in Torah and acts of kindness merits the inheritance of two tribes.

The Gemara explains where this is hinted at in the verse and what the inheritance of two tribes is:

As it is stated: “Fortunate are you who sow

beside all waters,”

and “sowing” is nothing other than

performing

righteousness, for

it is

stated [Hosea 10]:

“Sow for yourselves righteousness, and reap according to kindness.”

“Sow for yourselves charity, and reap according to kindness.”

And “water” is nothing other than Torah, for

it is

stated [Isaiah 55]:

“Ho, all who are thirsty, go to the waters.”

Thus, “those who sow beside all waters” is an allusion to those who engage in Torah and acts of kindness,

who

merit the inheritance of two tribes,

that is,

they merit a canopy

a bridal pavilion, and this means that they merit children.

Like Joseph,

who is called “an ox,”

as it is written [Genesis 49]:

“Joseph is a fruitful son, a fruitful son by the eye; daughters have climbed over the wall,” and he merits the inheritance of Issachar,

who is called “a donkey,” which refers to wealth,

as it is written

“Issachar is a bony donkey”

there,

and Onkelos translates: “Issachar is wealthy in possessions”

wealthy in property. Another interpretation of the inheritance of the two tribes: There are those who say

that the meaning is that

their

enemies fall before them, like Joseph, as it is written

regarding him [Deuteronomy 33]:

“With them he shall gore peoples, together, to the ends of the earth.”

And he merits understanding, like Issachar, as it is written [I Chronicles 12]:

“And of the sons of Issachar, those who knew understanding of the times, to know what Israel should do.”

We shall return to you, chapter “The Four Principal Causes.”

We have completed the study of you, chapter “The Four Primary Categories.”

Mishnat:

Pervaya Mishna prishla obyasnit to, chto my uchili v Pervoy glave: noga schitaetsya mu'edet s samogo nachala. Eto znachit, chto v nei net storony tam, pri kotoroi nuzhno bylo by platit tolko polovinu ushcherba; no uzhe pri pervom ushcherbe, prichinennom zhivotnym cheloveka ego nogoi, ego vladelets obyazan vozmestit postradavshemu polnyi ushcherb.

Kakim obrazom noga schitaetsya mu'edet?

To est: noga, o kotoroi my uchili vyshe v Mishne [9b] , chto ona mu'edet i ee vladelets platit polnyi ushcherb, k kakomu imenno ushcherbu ona priruchena?

Lomat po puti svoego dvizheniya

— nastupat na sosudy po puti svoego dvizheniya i razbivat ih.

I analogichno

zhivotnoe prirucheno idti svoei obychnoy postupyu i razbivat

sosudy po puti dvizheniya — svoim telom ili gruzom, kotoryi na nem nahoditsya. Esli ono prichinilo ushcherb na territorii postradavshego, ego vladelets platit polnyi ushcherb. No esli ono prichinilo ushcherb v obshchestvennom vladenii, on svoboden ot oplaty.

Ona b ila nogoi

i prichinila ushcherb. Poskolku zhivotnomu ne svoistvenno bit i prichinyat ushcherb, a eto zhivotnoe sdelalo tak s namereniem prichinit ushcherb, eto ne tolad a nogi, a tolad a ker en, i vladelets zhivotnogo platit tolko polovinu ushcherba, kak za tam v sluchae keren.

Ili pod ego nogami razletalis

[melkie kamni]

kamni

po puti ego dvizheniya,

i ono razbilo sosudy

— hotya takoi ushcherb yavlyaetsya tolad a nogi, poskolku prichinen v processe dvizheniya i zhivotnomu svoistvenno prichinyat takoi ushcherb, vse zhe ustnoe predanie, poluchennoe Moshe na Sin ae, ustanavlivaet, chto za ushcherb, prichinennyi razletom kamnei — kotoryi proizosh el tolko pod deistviem ego sily, a ne ego telom, — vladelets zhivotnogo

platit

postradavshemu tolko

polovinu ushcherba.

Obyazannost voznik a et tolko esli ushcherb prichinen na territorii postradavshego, kak v sluchae nogi. No esli zhivotnoe bylo «b i ushim», to est ego deistvie yavlyaetsya toladom ker en, za nego plat yat dazhe v obshchestvennom vladenii, kak za keren.

Ono nastupilo na sosud

po puti svoego dvizheniya na territorii postradavshego,

i razbilo ego, i on upal

razbityi sosud

na sosud

drugoi,

i razbil ego.

Poluchaetsya, chto pervyi sosud byl razbit nastupaniem ego nogi, a vtoroi sosud byl razbit tolko kamnyami, kotorye razletelis ot pervogo sosuda. Poetomu

za

sosud

pervyi,

kotoryi ono razbilo,

platit

vladelets zhivotnogo

polnyi ushcherb,

kak za lyuboi ushcherb nogi,

a za

sosud

poslednii platit

vladelets zhivotnogo tolko

polovinu ushcherba,

kak za kamni.

Takzhe

petuhi

i prochie ptitsy

prirucheny idti svoei obychnoy postupyu i razbivat.

To est oni takzhe s samogo nachala prirucheny prichinyat ushcherb nogi.

Esli na ego noge byl shnur

[verevka ili nitka] privezannyi k noge petuha, i on brosil ego na sosud, i razbil ego,

ili

petuh

priplyasyval

[tants eval] i razbrasyval kamni,

i razbival

[i kamni razbivali]

sosudy, platit

vladelets petuha

polovinu ushcherba,

kak za kamni.