Megillah 29a (כט.) — the Talmud in English

The Sages taught:

One interrupts

the study of Torah in order to escort the deceased and to escort a bride.

That is, to accompany her from her father's house to the wedding canopy.

It was said about Rabbi Yehuda, son of Rabbi Ilai, that he would interrupt Torah study in order to escort the deceased and to escort a bride.

When is this statement

that one interrupts Torah study in order to escort the deceased,

applicable? When there are not

enough people

there for all his needs. But

if

there are enough people there for all his needs—

one does not interrupt.

And how many

people are considered

enough for all his needs?

Rav Shmuel bar Inya said in the name of Rav: Twelve thousand men, and six thousand shofar blowers [

who blow the shofar] .

And some say: Twelve thousand men, and among them [

and of them]

six thousand shofar blowers.

Ulla said: For example, when the men form a line from the city gate to the cemetery.

That is, a partition of people from the city gate to the cemetery where he is being mourned.

Rav Sheshet said: Just as at its giving

of the Torah—

so

we require at

its taking away,

that is, at the time of the death of a Torah scholar.

Just as its giving

was

with six hundred thousand, so its taking away—

with six hundred thousand.

And

this applies—

to one who reads and studies. But to one who teaches

to others—

there is no measure .

It was taught: Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai says: Come and see how beloved Israel are before the Holy One, blessed be He, for wherever they were exiled—

the Divine Presence

was exiled

with them .

They were exiled to Egypt—

the Divine Presence

was exiled with them. As it is stated: “I revealed Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt, etc.” .

They were exiled to Babylonia—

the Divine Presence was exiled with them. As it is stated: “For your sake I sent to Babylonia.”

And even when they are destined to be redeemed—

the Divine Presence will return

with them .

As it is stated: “The Lord your God will return your captivity.” “And He will restore” is not stated

in this verse,

but rather, “and He will return.” This teaches that

even

the Holy One, blessed be He,

returns with them from among the exiles.

Where is it in Babylonia?

Where is the Divine Presence found in the Babylonian exile? Abaye said: In the synagogue of Hozal, and in the synagogue of Shaf VeYativ—in Nehardea [ And the explanation of “Shaf VeYativ” is: it was destroyed and rebuilt For this synagogue was built by Jeconiah and his group from stones and earth that they brought with them into exile to fulfill that which is stated: “For Your servants take pleasure in its stones and cherish its dust.” Rashi].

And do not say

that

here and here,

in both places, the Divine Presence is found at one and the same time;

rather, at times

it is found

here, and at times—

here.

Abaye said: I am deserving of reward, for

even

when I was as far as a parasang

from that synagogue, I would exert myself and

enter and pray there,

specifically.

The father of Shmuel and Levi were sitting in the synagogue of Shaf VeYativ in Nehardea. The Divine Presence came; they heard a tumultuous sound. Both

of them

arose and went out.

Rav Sheshet,

who was blind,

was sitting in the synagogue of Shaf VeYativ in Nehardea. The Divine Presence came—

but he did not go out. The ministering angels came—

and began frightening him.

He said before Him: “Master of the universe! The disgraced one

and the one who is not disgraced—which of them should withdraw before the other?”

For I am blind and cannot leave here by myself!

He said to them

the Holy One, blessed be He, to the ministering angels:

“Leave him!”

It is written:

“And I shall be for them a miniature sanctuary.” Rabbi Yitzḥak said: These are the synagogues and study halls in Babylonia.

And Rabbi Elazar said: This is the house of our master [

Rav]

in Babylonia.

Rava expounded: What is the meaning of that which is written: “O Lord, You have been our dwelling place”?

These are the synagogues and study halls.

Abaye said: At first [

initially]

I would study at home and pray in the synagogue.

Once I heard what David said: “Lord, I have loved the dwelling place of Your house” ,

I would study

also

in the synagogue .

It was taught: Rabbi Elazar HaKappar says: In the future, the synagogues and study halls in Babylonia—

will be established in Eretz Yisrael .

As it is stated: “For as Tabor is among the mountains and Carmel comes by the sea.”

We learn from this verse that Mount Carmel crossed the sea and when? At the time the Torah was given.

And is this not a kal va-chomer: If Tabor and Carmel, which came only temporarily in order to study Torah—

are established in Eretz Yisrael, then synagogues and study halls, in which Torah is read and taught—

all the more so

will be established in Eretz Yisrael.

Bar Kappara expounded: What is the meaning of that which is written: “Why do you leap, lofty mountains”?

A Divine voice emerged and said to them

the mountains, which wished that the Torah be given upon them:

“Why do you contend

with

Mount Sinai? You are all blemished in comparison with Sinai!”

And we derive this from

that which is written here: “Lofty,” and that which is written there: “Or one with a blemish or one with a thinness.”

We see that “lofty” is an expression indicating a blemish.

Rav Ashi said: Learn from this that one who is arrogant—

is blemished.

For the Torah was given on Mount Sinai and not on the other tall mountains because Mount Sinai is low and humble.

We learned in our Mishna:

One may not use it as a shortcut.

What is a shortcut?

Rava said: “A shortcut”—

as its name indicates,

that is, according to the meaning of the word.

What does “as its name indicates” mean?

How is this matter implied by the word “shortcut”?

As one who says: “While I go around these rows of houses,

before I circle these rows of houses—

I will enter this one,

I will enter this house standing between the two alleyways, and shorten the route from one alleyway to the other.

Rabbi Abbahu said: If there was

where the synagogue now stands

a path from the outset,

before the synagogue was built—

it is permitted

to use it as a shortcut.

Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said: One who enters

the synagogue

with the intention not to use it as a shortcut,

but for another purpose—

is permitted to use it as a shortcut.

And Rabbi Ḥelbo said in the name of Rav Huna: One who enters the synagogue

in order

to pray—

is permitted

to use it as a shortcut.

As it is stated: “When the common people enter before the Lord on the appointed times, the one who enters by the northern gate to bow—

shall leave by the southern gate.”

We see that they do not need to return to the place through which they entered and go around toward the south; rather, they may shorten the route and leave from the southern side.

We learned in our Mishna:

If grass grew in it, one may not uproot it—

because of the anguish it causes.

And we raise an objection:

But it was taught in a baraita: One may not uproot it and feed it to an animal, but one may uproot it and leave it there!?

And we answer:

When we also taught in the Mishna

that one may not uproot it,

we taught that one may not uproot it and feed it to an animal.

But in truth, to uproot it and leave it is permitted.

The Sages taught: In a cemetery—

one may not conduct oneself there with levity .

And likewise:

One may not graze animals in them, nor conduct a water channel through them ,

and one may not gather grass in them .

And if one gathered it—

he burns it in its place ,

in the cemetery,

because of the honor of the dead.

And we consider with regard to it:

To what

does this statement refer, which teaches “because of the honor of the dead”?

If you say that it refers to the final clause,

which teaches that if one gathered it, he burns it in its place,

since he burns it in its place—

what honor of the dead is there

in this?

Rather,

it must be that it refers

to the first clause,

which says that the reason one may not conduct oneself with levity in a cemetery is the honor of the dead.

Mishna:

When Rosh Ḥodesh Adar occurs on Shabbat—

they read

from the Torah

the portion of Shekalim.

To announce that they should bring their shekels in the month of Adar, so that the sacrifices could be offered on the first of Nisan from the new contribution, as the Gemara will say below .

If

Rosh Ḥodesh

occurs during the week [

during the week]—

they advance

the reading of the portion of Shekalim

to the preceding [

previous Shabbat],

and they interrupt

the reading of a portion from the four special portions

for the

following

Shabbat [

the next one], so that the portion of Zakhor will be read on the Shabbat preceding Purim, because we seek to juxtapose the eradication of Amalek with the eradication of Haman.

On

the

second

Shabbat of the month of Adar [when Rosh Ḥodesh occurs on Shabbat]—they read the portion of

Zakhor .

On the third -

the portion of

the red heifer,

is read, to warn the Children of Israel to purify themselves from their ritual impurity, so that they may offer the Paschal sacrifice in a state of purity.

On the fourth -

the portion of

This month shall be for you,

in which the matter of the Paschal sacrifice is explained, is read.

On

the fifth

Shabbat -

they return to

reading

in their regular order

[as will be explained in the Gemara].

On all these occasions, they interrupt

the reading of the matter of the day, and read about the particular occasion:

on Rosh Chodesh, on Hanukka, and on Purim, on fast days, and on the ma'amadot

[as explained above, on page 25b; see there],

and on Yom Kippur .

The following Mishna will explain which reading is recited on these occasions.

Gemara:

We learned there

[in tractate Shekalim]:

On the first of Adar, they announce

by proclamation of the court

concerning the shekels,