Eruvin 56a — the Talmud in English

Coarse bread, new beer, and greens!

It is not difficult.

This

where we said that greens are good —

with

garlic

and

a type of vegetable called

leek.

This —

with the other greens.

As it was taught in a beraita: Garlic —

a vegetable,

and it is good.

Leeks —

half a vegetable

and it is bad.

When a radish is seen

on the table —

it appears as a potion of life.

And we challenged this:

But was it not taught in a beraita: When a radish is seen —

it appears as a potion of death!

And we answer:

It is not difficult.

Here —

with the leaves

of the radish; they are difficult to eat.

Here —

with the roots,

with the radish itself; it is a potion of life.

Here —

in the days of heat,

the radish is beneficial, since it cools the body.

Here —

in the days of rain,

it is bad.

Rav Yehuda said that Rav said: Any city in which there are ascents and descents —

the people and animals in it die in the middle of their lives,

because of the exertion involved in ascending them.

And we considered this: Is it possible that

“die” —

could it enter your mind?

Rather, say: They grow old,

their strength failing,

in the middle of their lives.

Rav Huna son of Rav Yehoshua said: These ascents and descents

between the two towns

of Bei Biri and Bei Narash —

made them old.

The Sages taught: If one came to square

the city’s boundaries —

he squares it according to the square of the world: He places its north toward the north of the world, and its south toward the south of the world.

And your sign

for knowing precisely where the directions of the world are, one should orient oneself according to the constellations in the heavens:

the Wagon in the north, and Scorpio in the south.

Rabbi Yosei says: If he does not know how to square it according to the square of the world —

he squares it like the “form of the season.”

For according to the sun’s course during the seasons of the year, one can determine the direction precisely.

How so?

When

the sun rises on a long day and sets on a long day,

in the season of Tammuz — behold, the place of its rising and setting

this is

“the face of the north.”

Since it rises in the northeast, turns southward, and returns and sets in the northwest. Whereas at night the sun “circles” on the northern side, and rises again the next day on the northern side, while each day it moves somewhat northward or somewhat southward according to the changing dates.

When

the sun rises on a short day

in the southeast, and travels only on the southern side,

and sets

in the southwest

on a short day,

in the season of Tevet —

this is

“the face of the south.”

And whereas, in

the season of Nisan and the season of Tishrei —

the sun rises in half

the

east, and sets in half the west.

As it is said concerning the sun [Ecclesiastes 1]:

“It goes toward the south, and circles toward the north.”

“It goes toward the south” —

during the day.

For on every day of the year the sun also travels in the south.

“And it circles toward the north” —

at night,

in the summer days, when the sun rises and sets in the north, behold, at night it is considered to “circle” the north.

“Circling, circling, the wind goes” —

these are the faces of the east and the faces of the west.

At times it travels through them,

for on the long summer days the sun travels from its place of rising in the northeast to the south, and this is travel along “the face of the east”; and likewise it travels from the south to its place of setting in the northwest, and this is travel along “the face of the west.”

And at times it circles them,

on the nights of Tevet, when the sun “circles” on the southern side and returns and rises again on the southern side.

Rav Mesharsheya said: These rules do not hold!

Because

it was taught in a beraita: The sun never rose from the northeastern corner and set in the northwestern

corner. And the sun never rose from the southeastern corner

and set in the southwestern corner.

An introduction concerning the seasons

The solar year is 365 days and six hours.

The solar year is divided into four seasons: the season of Nisan, the season of Tammuz, the season of Tishrei, and the season of Tammuz.

The length of each season is ninety-one days and seven and a half hours.

If we divide the days of the season into weeks, the ninety-one days will be divided into thirteen weeks, and there will remain a difference of seven and a half hours in the hours of the day between one season and another.

If we divide the 365 days of the year and the additional six hours into weeks, we obtain fifty-two weeks plus one day and six hours, and it follows that the difference between one solar year and the next in terms of the days of the week is one day and six hours; and with regard to the hours of the day, the difference between one year and the next is six hours.

Shmuel said: The season of Nisan [the month in which the luminaries were hung in the firmament of the heavens, at the beginning of Wednesday night]

being the month in which the luminaries were suspended in the sky, at the beginning of Wednesday night]

falls [at the beginning]

at its beginning]

only at one of the four quarters of the day.

For, as stated, the difference between one year and the next, with regard to the hours of the day, is exactly six hours.

And since the first season of Nisan began at the beginning of Wednesday night, the season of Nisan will always occur with differences of six hours [quarters of days] from year to year; therefore it will always occur

either at the beginning of the day, or at the beginning of the night, or at midday, or at midnight.

And

since the difference between one season and another, with regard to the hours of the day, is seven and a half hours, it follows that

the season of Tammuz

following the season of Nisan

falls only either at

one

and a half

hours

or at seven and a half hours, whether by day or by night.

Since these times are always seven and a half hours after the time of the season of Nisan.

And the season of Tishrei

following it at a difference of seven and a half hours

falls only either at three hours or at nine hours, whether by day or by night.

And the season of Tevet falls only either at four and a half or at ten and a half, whether by day or by night.

And between one season and another there are only ninety-one days and seven and a half hours.

There are seven “constellations” in the firmament of the heavens, each of which “serves” for one hour, one after the other, and then the cycle repeats.

The seven constellations are: the sun, the moon, and the five planets.

And this is their order:

S

tar,

M

oon,

S

aturn,

J

upiter,

M

ars,

S

un,

V

enus. And your mnemonic is: K-L-Sh-Ts-M-Kh-N.

That is to say, in the first hour of the week, at the conclusion of Shabbat, the constellation

S

tar serves; in the second hour the constellation

M

oon serves; and in the third hour

S

aturn; and so on; and in the seventh hour

V

enus serves. And afterward, in the eighth hour,

S

tar serves again, until in the first morning hour of Sunday the constellation

S

un serves.

According to this calculation, in the first hour of every morning on the days of the week, the constellations serve in the following order:

Sun, Moon, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Star [that is, on Sunday the sun, on Monday the moon, and so on].

that is, Sunday is the sun, Monday is the moon, and so on].

Whereas in the first hour of every night they serve, according to the order of the days of the week:

Star, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, Mars, Moon, Sun.

And

since the difference between one season and another in the hours of the day is seven and a half hours [whereas all ninety-one days are divided into complete weeks], it follows that

no season

“extends” [continues]

continues]

from its fellow

with regard to the cycle of seven hours, during which the seven constellations serve,

except for half an hour.

And Shmuel said: There is no season of Nisan that falls in

an hour in which the constellation

Jupiter serves that does not break the trees.

And there is no season of Tevet that falls in

an hour in which the constellation

Jupiter serves that does not dry out the seeds.

And this is when the new moon was born

of the

moon

of the month of Nisan or the month of Tevet —

either at

a time when the constellation

Moon serves, or at

a time when the constellation

Jupiter serves.