Moed Katan 27b (כז:) — the Talmud in English

And the

the

poor

who were alive

were embarrassed.

They instituted that everyone should take out

their dead

in a bier, because of the dignity of the poor.

At first, they would place incense,

they would put a vessel containing spices on coals,

beneath those who had died from intestinal illness,

to dispel the foul odor rising from them.

And those with intestinal illness

the

living were embarrassed

because they knew what awaited them after death: that they would emit a foul odor, and that incense would be placed beneath their beds to remove their foul odor, thereby making everyone aware of their stench.

They instituted that they should place

incense

beneath everyone,

even beneath those who had not died from intestinal illness,

because of the dignity of the living who had intestinal illness.

At first, they would immerse vessels over dead menstruating women.

That is, vessels used by menstruating women during their lifetimes, which had become impure through contact with them, were immersed to purify them after the women died,

and living menstruating women were embarrassed

by the fact that specifically the vessels of menstruating women were immersed, while this was not done for other dead women.

They instituted that they should immerse vessels over all women,

that is, they would immerse all vessels belonging to dead women, even vessels belonging to women who died while pure, whose vessels were pure,

because of the dignity of living menstruating women.

At first,

they

would immerse

vessels that women had used during their lifetimes

over dead zavim.

And living zavim were embarrassed.

They instituted that they should immerse vessels over everyone, because of the dignity of living zavim.

At first, taking out the dead

from his home for burial

was difficult for his relatives,

because they had to purchase expensive shrouds, and this expense was difficult for them,

more difficult than his death, to the extent

that

his relatives would abandon him and flee,

so that they would not be forced to spend a great deal of money to bury him with dignity.

Until Rabban Gamliel came and conducted himself

as though

he was treating himself lightly, and went out,

ordering that after his death he be taken for burial

in linen garments.

And

from then on,

all

the

people followed him and went out

only

in linen garments.

Rav Pappa said: But nowadays, the world follows the practice

of taking out the dead

even in

shrouds of

carda,

made of hemp,

worth one zuz,

which is purchased for only one zuz.

We learned in the Mishna:

One may not leave the bier in the street.

Rav Pappa said: A Festival

does not prevent

a student

who has died from being eulogized; it is permitted to eulogize him.

And all the more so

that he may be eulogized if he died on

Hanukkah or Purim,

as their status is not as stringent as that of a Festival.

And

indeed,

this statement applies

only

in his presence,

when the deceased Torah scholar is lying before us [this is the Gemara’s present assumption, in its initial understanding].

But when he is not present, they did not

permit eulogizing him.

And we raise an objection:

Is that so? But

we find that

Rav Kahana eulogized Rav Zevid of Neharde’a in Pum Nahara

during the intermediate days of the Festival.

Thus, even elsewhere it is permitted to eulogize a Torah scholar during a Festival, and even when he is not present.

And we answer:

Rav Pappi said:

Rav Zevid’s eulogy took place on

the day of the report,

and therefore

it is considered as being in his presence

and it was permitted to eulogize him [since Neharde’a and Pum Nahara were nearby, and they heard of Rav Zevid’s death that same day, it was considered a eulogy in his presence].

Ulla said: “

Eulogy”

means that the eulogizer beats

upon

the

heart,

and the source for this is:

as it is written: “

They beat upon the breasts,”

and the breasts are over the heart. “

Hand-clapping,”

which women perform when lamenting, is

with the hand,

when they strike palm against palm in grief. “

Stamping” means

with the foot,

when one stamps on the ground out of great grief.

The Sages taught: One who stamps should not stamp

with his foot wearing

a sandal

made of hard leather,

but

should stamp only when his foot is wearing

a shoe

made of soft leather,

because of the danger,

lest the sandal turn over and break his foot. With a soft shoe, he takes care to stamp properly.

Rabbi Yohanan said: Once a mourner has nodded his head

and it is evident that he has been comforted and no longer needs additional consolation [see Bach, Yoreh De’ah 326:1],

the consolers are no longer permitted to sit with him.

And Rabbi Yohanan said: Everyone is obligated to stand before

the honor of

the Nasi

of Israel who passes by,

except a mourner and a sick person,

because there is no honor in their standing.

And Rabbi Yohanan said: To all

who stand before the Nasi,

they say “

Sit,”

except a mourner and a sick person,

since they stood without cause, as they are not obligated to stand, as stated above; it is obvious that they may sit without permission.

Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav: A mourner,

on

the first day

of his mourning,

is forbidden to eat bread of his own,

but must eat food provided by others.

From the fact that the Merciful One said to Ezekiel,

when his wife died, “

You shall not eat the bread of men,”

for He made him a sign for Israel: just as he would not mourn for his wife, so Israel would not mourn for their dead, who would greatly increase in number. It follows that only he was not to eat “the bread of men,” meaning that of others; but other mourners must specifically eat the “bread of men” of others.

Rabba and Rav Yosef exchanged their meals with each other,

so that each gave the other, who was a mourner, food from his own supply.

This is permitted even when both of them are mourners.

And Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav:

When there is

a dead person in a city, all the inhabitants of the city are forbidden to perform work,

so that they will attend to the needs of the dead person.

Rav Hamnuna happened to come to Daromata and heard the sound of a shofar

announcing

that someone had died

in the city.

He saw certain people engaged in work

and not interrupting their work, even though they had heard that someone had died in the city.

He said to them: Let these people be under a ban!

He placed them under a ban because they were transgressing the words of the Sages and not interrupting their work.

And he said to them: Is it possible that

there is no dead person in the city!?

They said to him,

the people engaged in their work: There is no need for us to attend to the dead person, since

there is a burial society in the city,

and each society buries its dead and attends to their needs.

He said to them: If so, you are permitted,

the ban is lifted from you, and you may engage in work until they take out the dead person to accompany him to his burial.

And Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav: Anyone who grieves excessively over his dead,

crying over him for more than three days, as stated below, will eventually

weep over another dead person.

And so it happened with a certain woman who lived in the neighborhood

of

Rav Huna: she had seven sons; one of them died, and she wept excessively

with excessive crying

over him.

Rav Huna sent her a message: Do not act this way!

She paid no attention to him

and continued to cry over her son.

He sent her: If you obey,

if you listen to my words and stop your crying,

good.

But if not, prepare shrouds for another dead person,

prepare shrouds for another dead person!

And since she did not stop crying, so it happened:

all of them died

—her seven sons—and she did not stop crying.

In the end, he said to her: Prepare shrouds for yourself,

prepare your own shrouds,

and she died.

And the Gemara brings a source establishing the measure of how much one may cry over the dead:

As it is written: “

Do not cry for the dead, and do not mourn for him,”

and the explanation of the verse is:

Do not cry for the dead excessively, and do not mourn for him beyond the proper measure.

And we explain:

How so?

Three days

is the appropriate measure

for crying, and seven

days is the appropriate measure

for eulogizing,

and

thirty

days

for

the prohibition against

laundering and haircuts

of mourners.

From this point onward, said the Holy One, blessed be He, you are not more compassionate toward him than I am,

for the dead person is the work of My hands, and I killed him because of his sin; anyone who adds to or continues crying or eulogizing beyond this measure is grieving excessively over his dead.

And we expound the latter part of the verse: “Do not cry for the dead,” but

cry, cry for the one who departs,

the one who is called “the one who departs.”

Rav Yehuda said:

Cry

for the one who departs

to his world

without children.

Rabbi Joshua ben Levi would not go to a mourner’s home, to

the house of mourning,

except

f

or one who departs without children.

And his reason was

as it is written: “

Cry, cry for the one who departs.”

And we expound the latter part of the verse, “Cry, cry for the one who departs”:

“For he shall no longer return and see the land of his birthplace.”

Rav Huna said:

The reference is even to a living person. And what is meant by the statement that he will not return?

This

is a person

who committed a transgression and repeated it.

Since it has become permitted in his eyes, he will never repent of it.

Rav Huna follows his own reasoning, for Rav Huna said: Once a person commits a transgression

once

and repeats it

and commits it again,

it becomes permitted to him.

And we wonder: Is it conceivable that

it becomes permitted to him!?

And we explain:

Rather, say: It becomes for him

in his eyes

like something permitted.

Rabbi Levi said: During the first three days, a mourner should view himself as though a sword were placed between his two thighs [some versions read “shoulders,” and this is also implied by Rambam, who wrote “upon his neck”],

for the attribute of justice that prevailed in the house is directed against the relatives of the dead, and over time it gradually relaxes.

From three to seven

days, the mourner should view himself

as though

the sword

were placed for him

because of him

opposite him in a corner.

From this point onward,

after the seven days [according to Tosafot, until twelve months; according to the Tur, until thirty days], he should view it

as though it were passing opposite him in the marketplace.

[And Rambam concluded at the end of chapter 13 of the Laws of Mourning: All this is in order to prepare himself to return and awaken from his sleep, and it says: “You struck them, but they did not become ill,” implying that one must awaken and become ill.]

We learned in the Mishna:

And one does not

leave a bier in the street

for women ever, because of dignity,

The Sages of Neharde’a said: They taught this

that one does not leave a woman’s bier in the street

only

for a

woman who has given birth,

a woman who died in childbirth, because as a result of the birth she experiences an abnormal flow of blood.