Moed Katan 8b — the Talmud in English

And Shmuel said: ![](pamud.bmp "

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Because the dead person is not forgotten from the heart for thirty days,

and if he delivers a eulogy within thirty days before the festival, there is concern that he will continue to deliver a eulogy on the festival, since he has still not been forgotten from the heart .

And the Gemara explains:

What is the difference between them,

between the two reasons?

There is a difference between them

where

he performs

the eulogizer his eulogy

without payment .

For if the concern is that they may continue the eulogy during the festival, there is also concern in a case where he does it without payment, lest he also eulogize during the festival.

But there is no concern that they may spend on the eulogizer the money designated for ascending on the pilgrimage.

Mishna:

One may not dig burial niches and graves [יבואר בגמרא מהו קבר ומהו כוך] [this will be explained in the Gemara: what is a grave and what is a niche]

[the Gemara will explain what a grave is and what a niche is]

during the festival,

as it is prohibited to do this as preparation for people who will die in the future, since it is excessive exertion during the festival. [But for one who dies during the festival, it is permitted]].

But one may prepare the burial niches during the festival.

"This “preparation” will be explained in the Gemara .

And one may make a nivrakh during the festival,

a small pool of water [for washing the dead person and laundering the dead person’s clothes, Tosafot

] . And it is permitted to make it, since making it does not involve much exertion.

And

they likewise make

a coffin with the dead person in the courtyard.

That is, it is permitted to saw the wood for a coffin for the dead person only in the courtyard where the dead person is located, for then it is evident to everyone that he is making it for the dead person. But he should not make the coffin in another courtyard, since those who see him will think that he is performing labor during the festival for no need .

Rabbi Judah prohibits

cutting boards for a coffin for a dead person during the festival, since it involves much exertion.

Unless he has boards with him

already prepared, and he needs only to assemble them together; then this is not excessive exertion, and it is permitted to do this during the festival .

Gemara:

And we raise an objection concerning it:

What are niches and what are graves?

Rav Judah said: Niches—

by digging,

in the ground.

And graves—

by building.

It was taught likewise: These are niches and these are graves?

Niches—

by digging, and graves—

by building.

We learned in the Mishna:

But one may prepare the niches.

How do we

“prepare”

them?

Rav Judah said: If the

niche was

long—

he shortens it.

In a baraita it was taught:

how does one prepare the niche?—

He lengthens it and widens it.

We learned in the Mishna:

And one may make a nivrakh, etc.

What is a nivrakh?

Rav Judah said: This is a bekia,

a pool.

And we challenge this:

But it was taught: The nivrakh and the bekia!

And it is evident that a nivrakh is not a bekia!

And we answer:

Abaye said, and some say Rav Kahana:

The nivrakh and the bekia are both pools; therefore Rav Judah said that the nivrakh is a bekia, in order to explain that it is a pool.

Rather, the nivrakh is a large pool called

Giya,

and

the bekia is a small pool adjacent to the large pool, called

Bar Giya.

And therefore we learned in the baraita: the nivrakh and the bekia.

We learned in the Mishna:

And a coffin with the dead person in the courtyard.

And the Gemara says that we learned in a baraita what was stated in the Mishna:

We have already learned this!

For the Sages taught: One performs all the needs of the dead person

during the festival:

we cut his hair, launder his garment, and make a coffin for him from boards sawn on the eve of Yom Tov. [כדברי רבי יהודה במשנה] [In accordance with the words of Rabbi Judah in the Mishna].

[In accordance with the view of Rabbi Yehuda in the Mishna.]

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: They may even bring wood and saw it discreetly

inside his house. [כדברי תנא קמא] [In accordance with the words of the first tanna] .

[In accordance with the view of the first tanna.]

Mishna:

a.

One may not marry women during the festival, neither virgins

nor widows.

And one may not perform yibbum. Because

in every marriage

there is joy for him .

And in the Gemara it will be explained why one does not make the joy of a marriage during the festival.

But he may remarry his divorced wife,

for he does not have in marrying her the joy of [marrying] a new woman.

b.

And a woman makes her ornaments during the festival,

that is, the adornment of her body.

Rabbi Yehuda says:

not every adornment did they permit. Therefore,

she may not plaster

her body with plaster,

because it is disfigurement for her.

And although it is beautiful for her through the removal of the hair, she has pain when the plaster is upon her. And in the Gemara it will be explained.

c.

The layman,

who is not a tailor,

sews in his usual manner.

According to his ability, for the needs of the festival.

And

if

the craftsman,

whose sewing is fine,

makes irregular stitches,

he makes sewing that is not orderly and appears like the teeth of a dog.

d.

And they weave bed frames,

they make ropes lengthwise and crosswise, in order to support

the beds

for the needs of the festival.

Rabbi Yose says: they stretch,

for even if the bed is standing and there is no need except to stretch it, and it would be possible to repair it in another manner, in any event it is permitted for the needs of the festival.

Gemara:

We learned in the Mishna: One does not marry during the festival, because it is joy for him.

And we raised an objection to this:

Is it joy for him—

what of it!?

Is joy forbidden during the festival?

And the Gemara brings several opinions to explain why one does not marry women during the festival:

a.

Rav Yehuda said in the name of Shmuel, and likewise Rabbi Elazar said in the name of Rabbi Oshaya; and some say

there are those who say

Rabbi Elazar said in the name of Rabbi Hanina: Because one does not combine one joy with another joy!

And one must rejoice during the festival only with the joy of the festival.

b.

Rabba bar Rav Huna said:

They prohibited marriage during the festival

because he abandons the joy of the pilgrimage festival and occupies himself with the joy of his wife.

Abaye said to Rav Yosef: This

reason

of Rabba bar Rav Huna—

according to

Rav it is.

For Rav Daniel bar Ketina said in the name of Rav: From where [do we know] that one does not marry during the festival?

As it is stated, “

And you shall rejoice in your festival.”

And we expound:

“In your festival,” and not with your wife!

c.

Ulla said

that they prohibited marriage during the festival

because of the exertion,

for it is forbidden to exert oneself during the festival, and at a marriage, because of the joy in it, one exerts himself greatly for its sake.

d.

Rabbi Yitzhak Nappaḥa said: Because of the neglect of procreation.

For if it were permitted to marry during the festival, they would wait for the festival in order to save money and make one feast for the festival and the marriage together. And they would not marry throughout the entire year.

Meytivi

against all the reasons that were stated for the prohibition of marriage:

But it was taught in a beraita:

All these

women

whom they said

are

forbidden to marry during the festival—