Horayot 13b — the Talmud in English

Rav Pappa said: Even the handle of a hoe,

the wooden handle of a hoe,

they bite,

they gnaw!

The Sages taught: Five things cause one to forget one’s Talmud:

a.

One who eats

a food that remains

from what a mouse eats,

and from what a cat eats.

b.

And one who eats the heart of an animal.

c.

And one who is accustomed to

eating

olives 5 .

d.

And one who drinks the water left over from washing

6 . e. And one who washes his feet, one upon the other

7 . And some say: Even one who places his utensils

his garments

under his head

when he lies down to rest .

Five things restore the Talmud

[they are beneficial to it]:

bread

baked upon

charcoal

[embers],

and all the more so

one who eats

the charcoal itself!

[According to the version of the Masoret ha-Shas: one who eats wheat bread, and it is unnecessary to say the wheat itself].

b.

one who eats a rolled egg

[soft, partially cooked]

without salt.

c.

And one who is accustomed to olive oil.

d.

And one who is accustomed to wine and spices.

e.

And one who drinks the water of the remnants of dough

that remained from kneading.

And some say: even one who dips his finger in salt and eats!

And that which we learned,

one who is accustomed to olive oil

restores the Talmud,

supports the view of Rabbi Yohanan.

For Rabbi Yohanan said: Just as

eating

an olive causes learning to be forgotten

that had been arranged in a person’s mouth for

seventy years, so olive oil restores learning

that had already been forgotten from him for

seventy years!

And that which we learned, that

one who is accustomed to wine and spices

restores the Talmud,

supports the view of Rava.

For Rava said: Wine and fragrances —

make one clever!

Wine and fragrances cause cleverness. [And the Meiri explained that it is beneficial for memory].

And that which we learned,

and one who dips his finger in salt

is beneficial for the Talmud,

Reish Lakish said —

and

when he dips

one

finger only!

Not everyone agrees with these words of Reish Lakish; rather,

as a dispute between tannaim:

Rabbi Judah says:

specifically dipping

one

finger is effective for restoring the Talmud,

but not two!

Rabbi Yose says: Two, but not three. And your sign is:

to know that their dispute concerns two and three fingers, and not three and four —

the ring finger!

For if a person straightens his four fingers [apart from the thumb], and bends the ring finger [the one next to the little finger], there will be before him three straightened fingers, divided into one finger and two fingers.

That is, when the ring finger is bent and the other fingers are straightened, the fingers divide on the two sides of the bent ring finger: on one side there will be one finger [the little finger], and on the other side there will be two fingers [the middle finger and the finger called “the finger”].

And this division, into one and two, will serve him as a mnemonic: Rabbi Judah says one and not two, and consequently Rabbi Yose, who disputes him, holds two and not three. He will not be uncertain and say: perhaps Rabbi Judah said two and not three, and Rabbi Yose three and not four.

We also learned:

Ten things are difficult for learning,

that one who does them will find hearing difficult, so that understanding will be burdensome for him .

a.

One who passes beneath a camel’s halter, and all the more so

one who passes

beneath the camel itself.

b.

And one who passes between two camels.

c.

And one who passes between two women.

d.

And a woman who passes between two men 13.

e.

And one who passes beneath

[that is, one who walks and smells]

the foul odor of carrion 14.

f.

And one who passes beneath a bridge beneath which water has not passed for forty days.

g.

And one who eats bread that has not been

baked

completely 15.

h.

And one who eats meat

from the spoon with which the pot is stirred, which is called

zohama —

listron,

because with it the zohama is moved to the sides [side, namely “sitr”].

i.

And one who drinks from a water channel that passes through a cemetery 16.

j.

And one who looks at the face of the dead 17.

And some say: even one who reads writing upon a grave 18.

Since the laws of precedence in rescue, redemption, and honor were mentioned here, the Gemara brings further details of laws concerning honor.

The Sages taught: When the nasi enters

the beit-midrash \-

All the people stand, and they do not sit until the nasi says to them, “Sit!”

When the head of the court enters —

they make one row here and one row there,

only those sitting at the ends of the benches on the two sides of the passage remain standing before him,

until he sits in his place 20.

When a sage enters -

one stands and one sits.

Only when the sage passes close to the one sitting is the one sitting obligated to rise before him; and immediately when he has passed before him, he may sit. It follows that all those sitting along his path rise and sit one after another.

The sons of sages and Torah scholars

do not need to have people stand before them. But

when many people need them,

they

step over the heads of the people,

entering during the sage’s lesson and walking and stepping to their place, even though they need to pass among the students sitting on the ground, and it appears as though they stepped over the heads of those sitting.

And if

he went out for a need

to attend to his needs, he has the right to return even though he steps over the heads of the people; therefore

he enters and sits in his place.

The sons of Torah scholars whose father is appointed to provide for the public

23 , when they have the understanding to hear,

they

enter and sit before their father, with their backs toward the people.

But

when they do not have the understanding to hear,

they

enter and sit before their father, with their faces toward the people. Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Zadok says: Even at a banquet they make them

the sons of sages whose father is appointed to provide for the public, as

appendages,

seating them near the elders, because of the honor of their father!

The Master said: He went out for a need

to attend to his needs,

he enters and sits in his place.

Rav Pappa said: They said

that he is permitted to return to his place, despite the fact that he steps over the heads,

only

when he needed to go out

for the lesser need,

because he is compelled in this matter.

But

when he needed to go out

for the greater need—

he does not

enter and sit in his place, because

he should have examined himself beforehand.

Since he did not examine himself before the lesson, he is negligent in this matter, and he has no right to return and step over the heads.

For Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav: A person should always train himself to rise early and to go in the evening

to the privy, so that he will not need to relieve himself during the day, because one who relieves himself during the day must distance himself from the road, so that others will not see him; therefore it is preferable to relieve oneself early in the morning and in the evening,

so that he will not

need

to distance himself.

And nowadays, when the world is weakened, even

if he went out

for the greater need as well,

he enters and sits in his place.

The Master said:

Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Zadok says: Even at a banquet they make them,

the sons of Torah scholars whose father is appointed to provide for the public,

appendages

to the elders.

Rava said:

only

during the lifetime of their father and in the presence of their father

do they accord them this honor.

Rabbi Yoḥanan said: This Mishna was taught in the days of Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel,

which we learned above: “When the nasi enters, when the head of the court enters,” and so on.

And such were the ranks at the time when the distinctions of honor mentioned above were instituted:

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel -

nasi. Rabbi Meir -

sage. Rabbi Natan -

head of the court.

And at first they conducted themselves as follows:

When Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel was there -

everyone would stand before him.

And likewise,

when Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan would enter -

everyone would stand before them!

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said,

who was the nasi: But

do they not need there to be a distinction between me and them?

Therefore

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel instituted

the order of honors detailed in

this Mishna.

That day,

when Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel instituted this order,

Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan were not there.

On the following day, when they came, they saw

Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan

that they did not rise

the entire public

before them as was customary.

They said -

What is this!?

They said to them -

This is what Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel instituted! Rabbi Meir said to Rabbi Natan: I am a sage, and you are the head of the court;

come,

let us institute a measure for him as he did for us,

let us do to Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel as he did to us!

Rav Natan said to him:

What shall we do to him?

Rabbi Meir said to him:

Let us say to him,

let us say to Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel:

Expound

for us

in

the tractate

Uktzin!

And I know

that he does not have it,

that it is not arranged in his possession.

And since he has not completed

the tractate Uktzin and will not be able to answer our request,

let us say to him

the verse

“Who can recount the mighty deeds of the Lord, make all His praise heard” -

Who is fit to recount the mighty deeds of the Lord? One who can make all His praise heard!

That is, only one who knows the entire Talmud may boast, and not one who does not know the tractate Uktzin. And with this claim

let us remove him

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel from the nasiship,

and I will be the head of the court

in your place,

and you

will be

nasi

in place of Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel.

Rabbi Yaakov ben Karsi heard them

concerning this plan of Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan,

and said: Perhaps, Heaven forbid,

if they do this to Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel, asking him to expound in Uktzin and he will not know it,

the matter will come to humiliation,

the matter will reach a point at which Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel will be embarrassed.

Rabbi Yaakov went

and

sat behind the upper room of Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel,

he sat behind the upper room in which Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel was located, and recited Mishna passages from the tractate Uktzin in a loud voice; and he did so as follows:

he explained,

Rabbi Yaakov explained the Mishnayot, and afterwards

he recited

them,

and taught,

and again repeated and recited them, and again

recited and taught.

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel heard this, and

said: What is this

thing

that is happening in front of me!?

What is taking place before me, that Rabbi Yaakov is sitting and studying the tractate Uktzin so that I will hear?

Perhaps, Heaven forbid, there is something in the house of study,

perhaps something is being arranged against me in the house of study.

He directed his attention

to this,

and studied

the tractate Uktzin well.

On the following day, they said to him

Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan to Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel:

Let the Master come and teach us Uktzin!

He opened

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel

and said

his lesson in the tractate Uktzin.

After he had completed his exposition,

after he had finished his words,

he said to them

to Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan:

If I had not studied it, you would have humiliated me!

You asked me for something that I would have been embarrassed by had I not studied it!

He commanded,

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel commanded,

and had them taken out,

Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan

from the house of study. They would write

Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan

questions on a note and throw them there

into the house of study.

Those questions

that were resolved,

which Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel would answer,

were resolved.

However, those questions

that were not resolved

by him,

they would write

their answers,

and throw them,

and cast them inside.

Rabbi Yose said

to the Torah scholars who were inside the house of study:

Torah outside and we inside!?

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said to them: Let us bring them in

to the house of study!

However, let us penalize them

by this,

that we will not state a halakhic teaching in their names!

And from then on,

they attributed the

halakhic teaching of

Rabbi Meir

in the name of

“others”

say,

and Rabbi Natan’s teaching, “some say”!

They showed them

from Heaven, to Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan,

in their dreams: Go and appease Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel!

Rabbi Natan went and appeased Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel.

and appeased Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel.

Rabbi Meir did not go,

because

he said: “Dreams’ words do not raise up and do not lower down!”

When Rabbi Natan went to appease Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel,

to appease Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel,

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said to him:

What entered your mind, to become nasi in my place?

Granted that the kamra benefited you,

the golden sash, which is a symbol of importance,

of your father,

which belonged to your father,

to become head of the court.

But who

also made you

be

nasi!? Rabbi taught Rabban Shimon his son

matters that Rabbi Meir had said, but he did not say them in the name of Rabbi Meir, since he had been fined that they should not be said in his name; rather, he taught them to him in the wording

“Others say.”

And thus he taught him what we learned in tractate Bekhorot: One who stood to count his flock in order to separate from it the animal tithe, and passed them under the rod, and erred and called the one that passed ninth “tenth,” and the one that passed tenth he called “ninth,” and again erred and called the one that passed eleventh “tenth”—all of them are consecrated. And this is their law: The ninth is eaten with its blemish, the tenth is the animal-tithe offering, and the eleventh is offered as a peace-offering and effects temura; these are the words of Rabbi Meir.

Rabbi Judah said to him: The eleventh, which he called “tenth,” is as though he said of it that it is the temura of the tenth. And it is difficult: why does it effect temura? Does a temura effect temura?