Pesachim 113a (קיג.) — the Talmud in English

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are demons.

These are the demons that travel along the paths between the vineyards [for they were prohibited only from passing through inhabited areas],

when the horses escape

and their horses flee into the city,

and they come and address them,

the demons come to return the horses from there, and only then do they enter the inhabited area.

Rav said to Rav Asi: Do not live in a city

do not reside in a city

where the neighing of a horse is not heard,

where the sound of a horse neighing is not heard,

nor the barking of a dog.

That is, a city in which there are no horses or dogs, which protect the city, since a horse enables one to pursue thieves and apprehend them.

And do not live in a city whose leader is a physician,

for the head of the city is a physician [alternatively, a Torah scholar], because one is preoccupied with his medical practice and the other with his learning, and they do not attend to the needs of the community.

And do not marry two women.

Do not marry two women, lest they conspire together against you.

If you have married two, marry a third!

Marry another, third wife, so that she will inform you if the other two conspire against you.

Rav said to Rav Kahana: Turn over carcasses, but do not turn over words!

It is preferable for you to engage in carcasses than to engage extensively in speech that leads to vulgarity.

Skin carcasses in the marketplace

engage in flaying the hides of dead animals

and take your wage,

and earn money from it,

and do not say: I am Kahana! And I am a great man! And this is distasteful to me,

and beneath my dignity.

When you ascend to the roof,

when you set out on a journey, even to a nearby place,

your provisions should be with you,

take your food with you.

Even if a hundred pumpkins cost one zuz in the city,

even when food is inexpensive, when one hundred pumpkins cost only one zuz in the city, nevertheless

let them be beneath your wings,

let your provisions be with you.

Rav said to his son, Hiyya: Do not drink drugs.

Do not accustom yourself to drinking drugs, even as a treatment [if another remedy is available], because you may become addicted to them and lose your money.

And do not take long strides.

Do not take an excessively long stride, because it diminishes the light of the eyes.

And do not pull out a tooth.

Do not pull out a diseased tooth, as in the end it may heal.

And do not provoke a snake.

Do not provoke a snake.

And do not provoke a gentile.

Do not provoke a gentile, as explained below.

The Sages taught: There are three whom one should not provoke.

And these are they: a young gentile, a young snake, and a young scholar.

What is the reason?

Because

their sovereignty stands behind their ears.

Their power stands behind their ears. That is, they are destined to grow, their authority will increase, and they will take revenge on you.

Rav said to his son, Aivu: I have labored over teaching you the passage,

I have exerted myself to teach you Gemara,

but the matter did not succeed,

and I did not succeed.

Come, I will teach you

come and I will teach you

worldly matters: While the sand is still on your feet,

while the sand is still on your feet from having come from the road,

sell what you have brought,

sell what you brought, so that you can immediately buy more and sell again.

You may regret every sale

anything that you sold and that subsequently increased in price may cause you to regret having hurried to sell it.

Except for wine,

wine,

which you should sell and not regret.

For perhaps, had you not sold it, it would have turned sour.

Open your purse,

first open your purse and receive the money, and only afterward

open your sacks

and give the grain to the purchasers.

A measure from the land

it is preferable to go to a nearby place and earn a little

rather than a large measure from overseas,

earning a great deal in a foreign country.

If you have dates in your container,

if you have dates in a vessel designated for that purpose,

run to the brewer’s house

run to the house of the brewer to make beer from them, for otherwise you will eat them and incur a loss [because one could earn much more from beer, as follows].

And how much?

From what quantity of dates and upward is this said?

Rava said: Up to three se’a.

Rav Pappa said: Had I not brewed beer,

had I not engaged in brewing beer,

I would not have become wealthy,

I would not have become wealthy!

Some say: Rav Hisda said: Had I not brewed beer, I would not have become wealthy.

What is the meaning of sudana,

why is beer called sudana?

Rav Hisda said: “A fine secret,”

it is good advice, for one becomes wealthy through it,

and acts of loving-kindness

as one can give beer as a gift to the poor and perform charity and kindness [because one invests little principal, while the profit from brewing beer is substantial. Rashbam].

Rav Pappa said: Everything

“incidental,”

anything that requires a document to be written for it, such as a loan,

requires collection!

It still must be collected, and that entails effort.

Regarding every credit sale, it is uncertain whether the money will come or whether it will not come.

It is uncertain whether the money will be paid or not.

And what does come,

even what comes into your hands when payment is made,

is bad money,

as it is paid little by little, in installments.

Rabbi Yohanan said three things in the name of the people of Jerusalem:

a.

When you go out to war, do not go out first; go out last, so that

if you flee,

you will enter first.

b.

Make your Shabbat like a weekday, and do not become dependent on others.

c.

And make an effort to associate with one whom fortune favors,

to conduct business and form a partnership with him.

Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said three things in the name of the people of Jerusalem:

a.

Do not increase roofs [

the reading of Maharsha is with a gimel]. Do not conduct too many of your affairs publicly, in an exposed place,

because of an incident that occurred,

the incident of David and Bathsheba, who bathed on the roof.

b.

When your daughter reaches maturity, free your slave and give him to her!

That is, he should hasten to marry her off, even to his slave.

c.

And be careful with your wife because of her first son-in-law.

What is the reason?

Rav Hisda said: Because of forbidden sexual relations,

lest she commit adultery with him.

Rav Kahana said: Because of money,

as she will squander your money on him.

And the Gemara says:

Both are present,

both reasons are valid.

Rabbi Yohanan said: There are three who inherit the World to Come

who are included among them.

These are they:

a.

One who lives in the Land of Israel.

b.

One who raises his sons to Torah study.

c.

And one who makes Havdala over wine at the conclusion of Shabbat.

And the Gemara explains:

What is it?

What effort is involved in making Havdala over wine?

For he sets aside from the wine used for Kiddush for Havdala.

When he has only a small amount of wine, he leaves what remains of his Kiddush wine for Havdala, rather than drinking it with his meal.

Rabbi Yohanan said: There are three whom the Holy One, blessed be He, publicly praises every day

for their merit:

a.

A single man who lives in a metropolis and does not sin.

b.

A poor person who returns a lost object to its owner.

c.

A wealthy person who tithes his produce in private,

and does not reduce the amount of his tithes, despite the fact that this entails a substantial loss for him.

Rav Safra was a single man who lived in a metropolis.