Rosh Hashanah 27a (כז.) — the Talmud in English

We learned in the Mishna:

and its mouth

of the shofar of Rosh HaShana was

overlaid with gold.

And we raise an objection:

But it was taught in a beraita: If one overlaid it with gold at the place where the mouth of the blower rests,

of the blower—the shofar

is invalid.

Because the blast is produced through the gold, and not through the shofar itself.

But if he overlaid it with gold

not at the place where the mouth rests—

it is valid!

If so, how did we learn in the Mishna that its mouth was overlaid with gold?

Said

he explained

that when we also learned in our Mishna

that which we learned in our Mishna, that its mouth was overlaid with gold—

we learned this as referring to a place other than where the mouth rests.

We learned in the Mishna:

And two trumpets were on the sides.

And we wonder:

And two voices—

can they be heard!?

Can one hear the sound of the shofar and the sound of the trumpets, which are two sounds heard simultaneously?!

But it was taught

and we learned in a beraita:

“Remember

the day of Shabbat to sanctify it,” stated at the giving of the Torah in the Book of Exodus [20:8],

and “Observe

the day of Shabbat to sanctify it,” stated at the giving of the Torah in the Book of Deuteronomy [5:12], were both

said in a single utterance

of the Almighty,

which the mouth

of a human being

cannot utter, and the ear cannot hear

[except through a miracle they heard the statements simultaneously].

From here it follows that two sounds cannot be heard simultaneously!

And we answer:

For this reason, the shofar blast is extended

after the trumpets have finished sounding, as explained in the Mishna, so that he fulfills his obligation when he hears the sound of the shofar by itself.

And we raise an objection:

Does this mean

that from your words, those of the respondent, it is evident that you say [you hold]

that when

one hears the end of a blast without the beginning of the blast, he has fulfilled his obligation.

one hears the end of a blast without its beginning, he fulfills his obligation.

And consequently

it can be learned from your words that one who hears

the beginning of a blast without the end of the blast has also fulfilled his obligation,

for there is no difference between the end of a blast without its beginning and the beginning of a blast without its end!

Come and hear

come and hear a proof not in accordance with your words:

On Rosh HaShana, three sets of blasts are sounded, consisting of terua, tekia, terua, tekia—namely, tekia, terua, tekia. One is for Malkhuyot, one for Zikhronot, and one for Shofarot.

[As explained below, 33b. However, nowadays our practice is to sound three sets of tashrat, tashat, tarat.]

And we learned below [there]: One who

sounded

a long tekia

in the first

the tekia following the terua in the first set of terua-tekia-terua-tekia,

and extended

that same blast

into the second,

extending that same blast following the terua

as two

the measure of two blasts, because he wished to fulfill with it the obligation of the blast at the end of the first set and at the beginning of the second set—

he has only

one

blast.

He fulfills only the obligation of one set of terua-tekia-terua-tekia.

But according to your words, that you say it is possible to fulfill the obligation with half a blast,

why?

Why does he have only one?

Let it count for him as two!

Let the long blast count for him as two blasts—its first half for the first set and its second half for the second set! And we answer: It is indeed possible to fulfill the obligation with half a blast, but one cannot fulfill the obligation of two blasts with a single blast. For

the blasts

may not be divided from one another!

One may not cut up and divide a single blast and make it into two blasts.

Come and hear

come and hear another proof that it is entirely impossible to fulfill the obligation with half a blast:

We learned in the Mishna [below, 28a]:

One who sounds into a pit or into a cistern,

something resembling a pit constructed above ground [by building a wall on the ground],

or

one who sounds

into a large barrel,

a large barrel,

if he heard the sound of the shofar—

he has fulfilled his obligation.

But if he heard the sound of an indistinct reverberation

[an echo]

hearing—

he has not fulfilled his obligation.

And if indeed one who hears half a blast has fulfilled his obligation,

why

did one who hears the sound of an indistinct reverberation not fulfill his obligation?

Let him fulfill it

by

the beginning

of the

blast, before the sound becomes confused,

before the sound of the shofar becomes mixed with the echo!

From here it follows that one does not fulfill the obligation by hearing half a blast.

Therefore, the Gemara retracts this answer.

It is necessarily the case that although they sounded two trumpets on the sides, they nevertheless fulfilled their obligation through the entire blast of the shofar, from its beginning to its end, and not only through the end of the blast, when the shofar was extended beyond the trumpets.

As for what we objected above—“Two sounds cannot be heard,” as the Gemara proved above from the beraita stating that “Remember” and “Observe” were said in a single utterance, something that the ear cannot hear—the explanation is:

Rather, two sounds

two sounds, only when they emerge

from one person,

they are

not heard.

This is like “Remember” and “Observe,” both of which emerged from the mouth of the Almighty.

But two sounds

from two people

[from two individuals]

are heard.

Therefore, it was possible to hear the sound of the shofar even though the trumpets were sounding together with it, because they did not emerge from the mouth of one person.

And we wonder:

But from two people, can they be heard!?

Can two sounds from two people be heard?!

But it was taught:

In the time of the Sages, the Torah and the Prophets were read in the synagogue, and they were also translated into Aramaic so that the congregation would understand. And we learned in a beraita:

For the Torah—

one reads and one translates,

provided that one does not read

the Torah

while two translate,

since two sounds cannot be heard simultaneously [and certainly two should not read the Torah simultaneously].

From here it follows that two sounds from two people also cannot be heard!

And we answer:

This

the sounding of the shofar and the trumpets

is comparable only to the latter clause,

it resembles only what is stated at the end of the beraita:

For Hallel and the Scroll—

even ten may read

simultaneously.

And the listeners fulfill their obligation even though they cannot be precise and have all say the exact same word; rather, one reads one word and another reads the word that follows it.

Evidently,

from here we learn that

since it is beloved—

he directs his attention.

Something new, which does not occur every day, is beloved by a person, and he focuses his attention and hears it even though he is hearing two sounds simultaneously.

Here too,

also with regard to the sounding of the shofar and trumpets,

since it is beloved,

because the mitzva of sounding the shofar is new and beloved to a person, therefore

he directs his attention and hears.

He focuses his attention on hearing the sound of the shofar emerging among the trumpets.

And we raise an objection:

Rather,

since according to the conclusion they would fulfill their obligation through the entire blast of the shofar, the question arises:

Why is the shofar blast extended

beyond the trumpets?

And we answer: In order

to make known that the mitzva of the day

is

with the shofar,

and not with the trumpets.

We learned in the Mishna:

And on fast days

they sounded

with

rams’

horns, bent, and with their mouths overlaid with silver.

And we inquire about this:

What is different there,

what is different and distinctive about the shofar of Rosh HaShana in the Temple, that they made the covering of its mouth

of gold?

And what is different here,

on fast days, that they made the covering of the shofar

of silver?

And we offer two answers:

1.

Alternatively,

if you wish, say:

Every gathering

every assembly, through the sounding of trumpets,

is of silver;

it is made of silver.

For every sounding intended to assemble the people was performed with silver trumpets.

As it is written

[Numbers 10]:

“Make for yourself two silver trumpets,

and they shall be for you to summon the assembly.”

Here too, they made the covering of the mouth of the shofar from silver.

2.

Alternatively,

if you wish, say that we find that

the Torah spared the money of Israel.

And similarly, we find that the Torah spared the money of Israel with regard to the affliction of houses, as it is stated: “And the koen shall command, and they shall clear out the house” [Leviticus 14]. This was so that the earthenware vessels in the house would not become impure when the koen rendered the afflicted house impure, and be lost, since they have no means of purification.

Therefore, they make the trumpets of silver, which is less expensive than gold.

And therefore they also made the covering of the mouth of the shofar from silver.

And we question the second reason:

There too,

on Rosh HaShana in the Temple,

let us make

the covering of the mouth of the shofar

of silver,

and not of gold, and spare the money of Israel!

And we answer:

Even so,

although the Torah spared the money of Israel, nevertheless

the honor of the Festival

of Rosh HaShana

is preferable,

and therefore they made them of gold.

Rav Pappa bar Shmuel thought of performing the practice in accordance with the Mishna.

He considered acting in accordance with our Mishna and sounding the trumpets as well while the shofar was being sounded.

Rava said to him: They said

to sound the trumpets

only in the Temple.

It was also taught likewise: In what context was this statement said,

that there were two trumpets on the sides?—

In the Temple

alone.

But in the outlying areas,

in the other cities of Israel,

where there are trumpets,

namely, on fast days —

they do not

sound the

shofar.

And

where there is a shofar—

they do not

sound

trumpets.

And likewise,

in accordance with the words of our Mishna, that they sounded two trumpets together with the shofar,

Rabbi Ḥalafta instituted this practice in Tzippori, and Rabbi Ḥananya ben Teradyon in Sikhni.

And when the matter came before the Sages, they said: They would practice this only at the eastern gate

of the Temple courtyard [that is, in the Women’s Courtyard],

and only on the Temple Mount.

The Gemara explains why there is a distinction between the Temple and the outlying areas in this matter:

Rava said, and some say

[perhaps]

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi: What is the verse?

From which verse did they learn that the trumpets and the shofar are sounded together only in the Temple, and not in the outlying areas?

As it is written

[Psalms 98]:

“With trumpets and the sound of the shofar—

sound before the King, the Lord.”

From here it follows that specifically

before the King, the Lord, is it required

that they need

trumpets and the sound of the shofar

together.

But elsewhere—

no.

We learned in the Mishna:

The Jubilee is equivalent to Rosh HaShana with regard to sounding, and

also

with regard to the blessings,

in which Malkhuyot, Zikhronot, and Shofarot are mentioned in the Additional Prayer of Yom Kippur of the Jubilee, just as they are mentioned on Rosh HaShana.

Rabbi Shmuel bar Yitzḥak said: In accordance with whose view do we pray nowadays,

in whose view do we pray in our time and say in the Zikhronot section of Rosh HaShana:

“This day is the beginning of Your works,

for today all Your works were created,

a remembrance of the first day,”

on which the world was created?

In accordance with whose view,

whose view?—

In accordance with the view of Rabbi Eliezer, who said: The world was created in Tishrei.

[But according to Rabbi Yehoshua, above, 8a, the world was created in Nisan.]

Rav Eina raised an objection:

Our practice of saying in the Zikhronot of Rosh HaShana, “This day is the beginning of Your works,” contradicts what we learned in our Mishna:

The Jubilee is equivalent to Rosh HaShana with regard to sounding and with regard to the blessings.

And

this is difficult:

there is

after all a difference between them with regard to saying

“This day is the beginning of Your works, a remembrance of the first day.”

For on Rosh HaShana there is

a remembrance of the day on which the world was created. Therefore, we say this in the Zikhronot of Rosh HaShana.

But

whereas

on the Jubilee there is not

such a remembrance, since this blessing is recited on Yom Kippur, and it is not said in the Zikhronot of Yom Kippur, for the world was created on Rosh HaShana and not on Yom Kippur!

And from the fact that our Mishna says that they are equivalent with regard to the wording of the blessings, it is evident that according to our Mishna one does not say in the Rosh HaShana prayer, “This day is the beginning of Your works, a remembrance of the first day.” And the halakha follows an unattributed Mishna !

And we answer:

When it teaches

that which we learned, “The Jubilee is equivalent to Rosh HaShana with regard to sounding and with regard to the blessings”—

it refers to the rest,

we learned this only with regard to the other matters.

However, there is a difference between them with regard to saying, “This day is the beginning of Your works.”

Rav Shisha, son of Rav Idi, taught it this way,

he formulated Rav Shmuel bar Yitzḥak’s question and answer differently:

Rav Shmuel bar Yitzḥak said: This that we learned, that the Jubilee is equivalent to Rosh HaShana with regard to sounding and blessings—

in accordance with whose view,

whose view does our Mishna follow?

Not in accordance with Rabbi Eliezer!

For if

our Mishna follows

Rabbi Eliezer,

it can be challenged:

For

since he said

Rabbi Eliezer that

the world was created in Tishrei,

it follows that this is mentioned in the blessing of Zikhronot in the Additional Prayer.

And if so,

there is

a difference between Rosh HaShana and the Jubilee with regard to

“This day is the beginning of Your works, a remembrance of the first day.”

For on Rosh HaShana it is stated,

as it is mentioned in the Rosh HaShana prayer,

whereas on the Jubilee it is not stated,

as it is not mentioned in the Yom Kippur prayer! From here it follows that our Mishna, which holds that one does not say in the Rosh HaShana prayer, “This day is the beginning of Your works, a remembrance of the first day,” holds that the world was created in Nisan, in accordance with the view of Rabbi Yehoshua!

And we reject this: It is possible that our Mishna follows Rabbi Eliezer.

And

when it teaches

that which we learned, that the Jubilee is equivalent to Rosh HaShana with regard to sounding and blessings,

it refers to the rest.

We learned this only with regard to the other matters.

But there is a difference between them with regard to “This day is the beginning of Your works.”

Mishna:

1.

A shofar that split

and they glued it together

with glue, or by heating it with fire —

is invalid.

Because it is like two shofarot.

For Scripture stated that one should sound one shofar, and not two or three shofarot.

b.

He joined fragments of shofarot -

Invalid.

For this is like two shofarot. For the verse says to sound one shofar, and not two or three shofarot.