Berakhot 30a (ל.) — the Talmud in English

A person should always include himself

in his prayer

with the community,

and he should not pray for himself in the singular. For when he includes himself with the many, his prayer is heard.

The Gemara explains:

How should one say

the traveler’s prayer in the plural?

He should say:

“May it be Your will before You, Lord our God, that You lead us in peace,”

and he should not say, “Lord my God, that You lead me in peace,” in the singular.

The Gemara discusses:

When does he pray

the traveler’s prayer?

Rabbi Yaakov said that Rav Ḥisda said: From the time that he sets out on the road!

And how far

may he travel and still recite it?

Rav Ḥisda said: Until

he has traveled

a parasang,

but not after he has already traveled a parasang.

And how does he pray

the traveler’s prayer?

Rav Ḥisda said:

He recites it

while standing,

and not while he is walking.

And Rav Sheshet said:

He recites it

even while walking,

and need not stop walking.

Rav Ḥisda and Rav Sheshet were traveling on the road. Rav Ḥisda stopped and prayed

the traveler’s prayer.

Rav Sheshet said

[who was blind]

to his attendant

[his servant]:

What is Rav Ḥisda doing?

He said to him:

Rav Ḥisda

is standing,

having stopped walking,

and is praying

the traveler’s prayer.

He said to him

Rav Sheshet to his attendant:

Stand me up as well,

stand me up too,

and I will pray—

I will pray the traveler’s prayer, since the two of us have said [Bava Kamma 81b]:

“Since it is good

do not call

it bad”!

That is, since I am able to pray while standing [which is a superior manner], and since my companion is standing in any event, I, too, will pray while standing, so that people will not call me “bad.” Although it is permitted to pray while walking, nevertheless, prayer while standing is preferable to prayer while in motion.

The Gemara discusses:

What

differences in law

are there between

the prayer

“Grant us understanding”

and

the short prayer?

The Gemara specifies:

a. When one recites

“Grant us understanding,” he must recite the first three

blessings,

the initial

three of the Eighteen Benedictions,

and three

blessings,

the concluding ones,

and in the middle he says, “Grant us understanding.”

b.

And

after he has prayed,

when he arrives home,

he need not return

and

pray

the Eighteen Benedictions, since he has already prayed a version corresponding to the Eighteen Benedictions.

But

b.

one who is traveling in a place of danger, who prays

the short prayer, need not recite either the first three

blessings

or the final three. And when he arrives home, he must return and pray

the Eighteen Benedictions, since he has not yet prayed any part of the Eighteen Benedictions, nor even a prayer corresponding to the Eighteen Benedictions.

The Gemara concludes:

And the halakha is,

the prayer

“Grant us understanding”

is recited

while standing,

and

the short prayer

is recited

either while standing or while walking.

We learned in the Mishna:

If one was riding on a donkey,

he should dismount and pray.

The Sages taught in a beraita: If one was riding on a donkey and the time for prayer arrived—

if he has someone who can hold his donkey

while he prays,

he should dismount and pray below. But if not, he should sit in his place

on the donkey

and pray.

Rabbi says: In either case,

even if he has someone who can hold the donkey—

he should sit in his place and pray,

and not dismount from the donkey,

because his mind is not settled,

since the delay on the road is difficult for him; his mind will be distracted by it and he will be unable to concentrate.

Rava said, and some say Rabbi Yehoshua ben

Levi:

The halakha follows Rabbi.

The Sages taught in a beraita: A blind person

who stood to pray but does not know in which direction Jerusalem lies,

and

likewise anyone

who does not

know and is not

able to determine the directions—

he should direct his heart toward his Father in Heaven. As it is stated [I Kings 8:44]:

“And they shall pray to the Lord.”

One who can determine the directions—if

he was standing outside the Land of Israel, he should direct his heart

toward the Land of Israel,

as it is stated [there, verse 48]:

“And they shall pray to You by way of their land.”

”.

And if

he was standing in the Land of Israel, he should direct his heart toward Jerusalem, as it is stated [there, verse 44]:

“And they shall pray to the Lord by way of the city that You have chosen.”

And if

he was standing in Jerusalem, he should direct his heart toward the Temple,

as it is stated [II Chronicles 6:32]:

“And they shall pray toward this House.”

And if

he was standing in the Temple, he should direct his heart toward the place of the Holy of Holies,

as it is stated: [I Kings 8:35]

“And they shall pray toward this place.”

And if

he was standing in the Holy of Holies, he should direct his heart toward “the House

of the Curtain”

that was above the Ark!

And if

he was standing behind the House of the Curtain [in the area of eleven cubits that lay between the back of the western wall of the Holy of Holies and the western wall of the Temple courtyard],

[in the area eleven cubits wide between the rear wall of the Holy of Holies on the west and the western wall of the Temple courtyard],

he should envision himself as though

he were standing

before the Curtain!

Even though he turns his face toward the east, where the House of the Curtain is located.

It follows that one standing east

of the Land of Israel, or of Jerusalem, or of the Temple, or of the House of the Curtain,

turns his face west

[in the direction of all these places] and prays.

But one standing

west

of all these places

turns his face east

and prays. And one standing

south

of them

turns his face north

and prays. And one standing

north

of them

turns his face south

and prays.

Thus, all Israel direct their hearts toward one place

at the time of their prayer.

Rav Avin said, and some say Rav Avina: What is the verse

that teaches that from every direction one must turn toward the Temple? — As it is stated: [Song of Songs 4:4]

“Your neck is like the Tower of David, built for talpiyyot,”

and the explanation of “talpiyyot”

is: a mound toward which all mouths turn.

a mound toward which all mouths turn.

The father of Shmuel and Levi, when they wished to set out on a journey, would rise early and pray

the morning prayer before daybreak because on the road they would be unable to direct their hearts properly, and in a pressing circumstance it is permitted to pray the morning prayer before daybreak.

But they did not recite the morning Shema at that time, because its time had not yet arrived,

and when the time for reciting the Shema arrived

[shortly before sunrise],

they recited

it.

In accordance with whom

did they act?

In accordance with this tanna, as it was taught in a beraita: One who rises early to set out on a journey,

they bring him a shofar and he sounds it, a lulav and he waves it, a scroll and he reads from it

even before sunrise! Although all mitzvot whose time is during the day should ideally be performed from sunrise, after the fact one fulfills them once dawn has risen.

And when the time for reciting the Shema arrives

which is shortly before sunrise,

he recites

it.

One who rises early to sit in a wagon or on a ship should pray

before he sets out, and he should not pray while on the road, because due to fear of the water [or because of the movements of the wagon], he will be unable to stand and direct his heart.

And

afterward,

when the time for reciting the Shema arrives, he recites it.

Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar says: In either case, he recites the Shema and

afterward

prays

while walking, and he should not pray before reciting the Shema —

so that he may juxtapose

the blessing of

redemption

following the Shema

to prayer.

The father of Shmuel and Levi, who advanced prayer before the Shema and did not insist on juxtaposing redemption to prayer, followed the view of the first tanna.

The Gemara explains:

Over what do

the first tanna and Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar

differ?

One

the first tanna

holds that prayer while standing is preferable to juxtaposing redemption to prayer, because when one prays while standing he concentrates more than when he prays on the road.

And the other —

Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar —

holds that juxtaposing redemption to prayer is preferable

to praying while standing.

Marimar and Mar Zutra would gather

[people]

into a quorum of ten

for a minyan

on the Shabbat before a Festival

[the Shabbat preceding the Festival],

and they would pray

the morning prayer with the congregation before going to the beit-midrash

and afterward go out to deliver the discourse.

They were the preachers in their city. All the people would recite the Shema when its time arrived, and afterward the preacher would deliver his discourse. In the middle of the discourse, the people would slip away and pray, each person individually.

Therefore, Marimar and Mar Zutra would recite the Shema, juxtapose redemption to prayer, and pray with the congregation before they went to deliver the discourse.

Rav Ashi

was head of the academy in Mata Meḥasya and delivered a discourse there. He did not pray before leaving for the beit-midrash. Rather, he would recite the Shema and juxtapose redemption to prayer, and

pray along with

the congregation while he was delivering the discourse to the

public —

individually,

while

seated!

Their custom was that the preacher would whisper part of the discourse to the interpreter standing before him, and the interpreter would make it heard to the public. When the time for reciting the Shema arrived, Rav Ashi would whisper a lengthy matter to the interpreter, and while the interpreter was conveying it to the public, Rav Ashi would recite the Shema and pray privately while seated, because he did not wish to trouble the public to stand for him.

And when he would arrive at his home

after the discourse,

he would again

pray

again

while standing

because his prayer before the public had been while seated, and he could not concentrate during it as he could while standing.

The Sages said to

Rav Ashi: Why does the Master act this way?

Let the Master do as Marimar and Mar Zutra did,

who recited the Shema and prayed before going out to deliver the discourse.

He said to them,

Rav Ashi:

It is burdensome for me,

to wait until the time for reciting the Shema and to delay my arrival at the beit-midrash until after my prayer.

They said to him:

Let the Master do as the father of Shmuel and Levi did,

who advanced their prayer before the Shema and did not insist on juxtaposing redemption to prayer, and then he would not have to pray twice.

He said to them: I have not seen our elders, who were greater than we, act in this manner,

praying before reciting the Shema! And therefore I waited until the time for reciting the Shema, and once I recited the Shema, I must pray immediately, in order to juxtapose redemption to prayer.

And since I pray seated during the discourse, and my mind is not settled, I therefore pray again in my house.

Mishna:

Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya says: The additional prayer is recited only with the congregation of the city

[the congregation] of the

city!

For they instituted it only for the public, but an individual does not recite it.

And the Sages say:

One recites the additional prayer both

with the congregation of the city

and

without the congregation of the city!

For they instituted it for an individual as well.

Rabbi Yehuda says in his name

of Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya:

Wherever there is a congregation of the city, an individual is exempt from the additional prayer,

as will be explained in the Gemara.

Gemara:

We learned in the Mishna: Rabbi Yehuda says in his name: Wherever there is a congregation of the city, an individual is exempt from the additional prayer.

The Gemara asks: For what

Rabbi Yehuda

said in the name of Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya

is

the same as the statement of the

first tanna

of the Mishna.

For the first tanna also said that according to Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya, “The additional prayer is recited only with a congregation of the city”; what is the difference between the statements?

The Gemara explains:

The difference between them is an individual who is not

in a place where there is a

congregation of the city.

The first tanna holds that according to Rabbi Elazar, an individual

is

exempt

even in a city where there is no public that recites the additional prayer.

And Rabbi Yehuda holds that Rabbi Elazar’s opinion is that only where there is a public is an individual exempt, because the prayer leader exempts him; but when there is no public, even an individual

is

obligated.

Rav Huna bar Ḥanina said that Rav Ḥiyya bar

Rav said: The halakha is in accordance with Rabbi Yehuda, who said in the name of Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya,

that only where there is a congregation of the city is an individual exempt from the additional prayer.

Rav Ḥiyya bar Avin said to

Rav Huna:

You have stated well!

For that is the halakha;

for

indeed

Shmuel said: In all my days I have never prayed the additional prayer individually -