Moed Katan 11b — the Talmud in English

Mishna:

One who turned his olives,

the way of those who press olives, who place them, before the crushing in the olive press, in a vessel called a ma'atan, and turn them in it so that they perspire and soften, and if he did so

and mourning befell him

and he became forbidden to work and cannot press them in the olive press.

Or

if

an unavoidable accident befell him.

Or his workers deceived him

whom he had hired for the work of the olive press before the intermediate days of the festival, and they did not do their work, and now he is forbidden to work because of the festival.

They permitted him to

load

only

the first beam

because of the loss involved in leaving them without pressing; he may place them in the olive press and press only once with the beam upon them,

and place it

but he does not press a second time until

after the festival, the words of Rabbi Judah.

Rabbi Yose

disagrees and

says: He pours

he pours the olives onto the olive press

and completes

the pressing and the pressing of the olives,

and closes

the oil barrels when he has finished his work

in his usual manner.

Gemara:

And we raise an objection concerning that which we learned in the Mishna: “And mourning befell him, etc.; he loads the beam and places it until after the festival.”

Apparently,

he began with mourning and concluded with the festival

and it was not explained what the law is for the mourner, whether he too was permitted to load the first beam, as on the festival.

And we answer:

Rav Shisha, son of Rav Idi, said: This means,

that even

matters permitted

on the festival are forbidden

for a mourner to perform

during his days of mourning,

and in truth it is forbidden for a mourner to load even the first beam during his days of mourning.

Rav Ashi,

disagreed and

said

that the inference from the Mishna teaches us the opposite, and

it is not necessary, he says: It is not necessary that during his days of mourning, since it is rabbinic

it is

, and permitted

to load the first beam in the olive press;

rather, even on the festival, when the prohibition of work is from the Torah ,

as we derive in Hagiga, in any event

the Sages permitted

to load the first beam in the interim, in a place of loss.

And the Gemara brings a proof:

It was taught in a beraita in accordance with Rav Shisha, son of Rav Idi: These are the matters that others perform

for

a mourner during his days of mourning,

and they assist him with these tasks, which he cannot perform during his days of mourning

If his

olives were turned

in the ma'atan for the purpose of crushing,

they load them for him

with the first beam in the olive press.

And

if his

barrel was

standing

for sealing

with its lid, they seal it for him,

and

likewise

his flax

that needs

to be removed

from the soaking vat, and

his wool, to be removed from the cauldron,

his fellows remove it for him,

and they sprinkle his field when its season for water arrives,

that is, when the time comes for the mourner to water all the fields in the valley, another performs it in his place.

And all these were permitted because of the loss caused to materials requiring the work of their owners.

And it is explained that all these are forbidden to a mourner, although they are permitted on the festival, including loading the first beam of the olive press, in accordance with Rav Shisha bar Idi.

And the continuation of the beraita:

Rabbi Judah says: They may even sow for him a plowed field,

a field that has already been plowed,

and a field designated for flax,

for if it is not sown now, afterward it will not be suitable for sowing flax.

The Sages said to him

that they may not sow for him even a plowed field or a flax field, for

if you do not sow

the plowed field

early

at the beginning of the season,

you may sow late

—with delay, and he will not suffer a loss because of it. And likewise, with a flax field he will not suffer a loss, for

if you do not sow flax, you may sow another species.

Therefore they may not sow for him during his mourning even these fields.

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: if his

olives were

turned and there is no craftsman there except him,

the mourner; and likewise, if his

barrel is for sealing and there is no craftsman there except him,

or

his flax is to be removed from the soaking vat, and his wool

is to be removed from the cauldron, and there is no craftsman there except him—

he shall do it,

the mourner himself,

privately!

They permitted him the work in a place of loss, but decreed that he should perform it inside his house.

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel said further: If a craftsman

is needed

by the public, and

likewise, if there was

a barber or launderer needed by the public, and the festival season arrived

when the public needed him during those days,

and there is no other craftsman there besides him—

he may perform the work.

Sharecroppers,

who receive fields to sow and cultivate for several years in return for taking half, a third, or a quarter of the increase,

and tenant farmers

who receive fields to guard and work in return for a specified quantity of produce that they receive as payment,

and contractors

who receive a field to guard for a specified period in return for a fixed payment that does not depend on the field's yield—all of these, during their mourning,

may have others perform the work for them.

Donkey drivers and camel drivers,

those who lead donkeys and camels,

and sailors,

those who operate ships,

these

during their mourning

may not perform work,

that is, they may not undertake work and begin it, such as transporting merchandise, since transportation is their occupation.

And if they had been hired out or leased out to others,

such that the absence of their work would cause the owners a loss—

they may perform the work

even during their mourning, and receive payment for work performed for the owners' benefit. Both they and their animals that had been hired or leased to another are permitted to work during the mourning of the person who rented them.

A day laborer,

who hires himself out anew each day,

even if he is

found

in another city

where it is not known that he is a mourner—

may not perform

his work, since he can withdraw from his employment in the middle of the day.

And if

another person's work was in his possession

of the mourner, in his house—for example, they gave him a garment to weave—since he controls when he will finish it, he may not perform it during his mourning,

even though it is work undertaken for a fixed fee.

This reason—that work undertaken for a fixed fee is a reason for leniency—was not understood by the Gemara. Therefore, it asks: What does the phrase

“even though it is work undertaken for a fixed fee”

imply?

“It goes without saying that if it is not work undertaken for a fixed fee,”

he may not perform it.

But

on the contrary, work undertaken for a fixed fee

is a reason to prohibit performing it during his mourning, since

it is considered his own,

whereas when it is not undertaken for a fixed fee, he is working for the owners and on their behalf, so it should be permitted.

We explain:

Rather, say

that another person's work is in his possession

whether it is undertaken for a fixed fee or not, he may not perform it.

The novelty is that even when it is not undertaken for a fixed fee, he may not perform it during his mourning, since he can complete it after his mourning.

If his work

of the mourner was being performed

by others,

and they were

in his house,

the mourner's—

they may not perform it

even the others, because of suspicion: people might say that the mourner is assisting them in the work, or that he hired them initially during his mourning to perform his work; and this is prohibited, as stated above.

But if the mourner's work was in the hands of others who were working for him

in another house, they may perform it.

Maryon, son of Ravin, and Mar, son of Rav Aḥa, son of Rava, had a pair of oxen

that they owned in partnership

with each other.

Something happened to him,

and he became a mourner,

to Mar, son of Rav Aḥa, son of Rava, and he separated his ox from the team,

taking his ox out of the team so that it would not plow the field during his mourning, since a mourner is prohibited from working and, by rabbinic decree, is obligated to have his animal rest from work as well.

He wondered, and

Rav Ashi said:

Why,

would a great man like Mar, son of Rav Aḥa, have done this!?

For

even if he does not care about his own loss

when he causes his ox to rest because of his mourning,

but

the loss

of others,

how

could he not care about it!?

By taking his ox out of the team, he caused Maryon to suffer a loss as well, since he could no longer plow. And since work that one is obligated to perform for others is permitted, it was difficult to understand how Mar caused his animal to rest.

But it was taught in a beraita

that work one is obligated to perform for others is permitted:

“If they had been hired out or leased out to others, they may perform the work!”

Thus, both the mourner and his animal are permitted to work during the mourning period when others would otherwise suffer a loss.

We explain the reasoning of Mar, son of Rav Aḥa:

“And he thought: The law is different in the case of an important person,”

since even work performed for others is prohibited for him.