Taanit 20b (כ:) — the Talmud in English

He encountered

on the road

a certain man

, who was exceedingly ugly.

He said to him,

that man said to Rabbi Elazar:

“Peace be upon you, my Rabbi!”

But he did not return his greeting,

Rabbi Elazar did not respond with a greeting.

Moreover, instead of returning his greeting,

he said to him: “Empty one”

—this is an expression of contempt; that is: “Empty person such as you”—

“How ugly is that man”

he said this about that man—

“Perhaps all the people of your city are as ugly as you?”

He said to him,

that man said to him:

“I do not know.

Rather, go and say to the Craftsman who made me”—

that is, the Holy One, blessed be He—

“How ugly is this vessel that You made!”

That is, if you have complaints about my ugly appearance, I am not the one to whom they should be addressed. Rather, go to my Creator, the Holy One, blessed be He, and complain to Him about the ugly creation He made!

When he realized

and understood

himself that he had sinned

in what he had said,

he descended from the donkey—

and prostrated himself before him

before that man—

and said to him: “I have offended you,”

I spoke to you more harshly than was appropriate ,

“Forgive me!”

He said to him,

that man said to him:

“I will not forgive you until you go

to the Craftsman who made me and say to Him: ‘How ugly is this vessel that You made!’”

Rabbi Elazar was

walking

along

behind him

and

trying to appease him until

he reached his city .

to greet Rabbi Elazar], and they would say to him: “Peace be upon you, my Rabbi, my Rabbi; my teacher, my teacher!” He said to them that man: “Whom are you calling ‘Rabbi,’ ‘Rabbi’?”

The people of his city went out to greet him

to greet Rabbi Elazar,

and they said to him: “Peace be upon you, my Rabbi, my Rabbi; my teacher, my teacher!”

He said to them,

that man said to them:

“Whom are you calling ‘Rabbi, Rabbi’?”

who is walking after you”.

They said to him: To

the

man who is walking behind you.

They meant Rabbi Elazar.

He said to them: If

this

man—

-

is a Rabbi,

he—

may there not be many

rabbis

like him in Israel!

They said to him:

God forbid!

Why

are you saying this?!

He said to them: This is what he did

to me—

he told them the entire incident.

They said to him: Nevertheless,

despite what he did to you,

forgive him,

Rabbi Elazar, because

he is a great Torah scholar.

He said to them: For your sake—

because you are asking—

I hereby forgive him.

Provided that he does not become accustomed to doing so .

Immediately

Rabbi Elazar ben Rabbi Shimon entered

the study hall

and taught: “A person should always be pliable like a reed

, and should not be rigid like a cedar.”

And therefore,

because the reed is pliable,

the reed merited that a quill be taken from it with which to write a Torah scroll, tefillin, and mezuzot.

We learned in our Mishna:

“And likewise, a city in which there is pestilence or a collapse, etc.”

The Sages taught: The collapse that they mentioned

in our Mishna refers to a situation in which the walls were

sound

at the outset,

and not

walls that were already

unstable.

For if they were already unstable, it is their nature to fall.

Likewise, it refers to walls

that are not liable to fall, and not

walls

that are liable to fall.

The Gemara asks:

Which are they

that are

sound,

and

which are they

that are

not liable to fall?

If they are sound and not liable to fall, these are identical descriptions!

And likewise,

which are they that are unstable, and which are they that are liable to fall?

Are these not identical descriptions?

The Gemara explains: The reason that “liable to fall” and “sound” are each stated separately, implying that “liable to fall” refers to sound walls, is—

It is necessary

therefore, to refer to a case

in which

the walls are indeed sound, but

they fell because of

their height

because they were excessively high.

Alternatively,

it is possible that

they stand on the bank of a river.

Although the walls are sound, they fall because the water damages the ground and erodes the foundation.

The Gemara cites another incident concerning an unstable wall.

Like that unstable wall that was in Nehardea,

like the unstable wall that stood in the city of Nehardea,

under which Rav and Shmuel would not pass,

as they would not walk beneath it,

even though it had stood in its place for thirteen years and had not fallen.

even though the wall had already stood in its place for thirteen years without collapsing ].

One day, Rav Adda bar Ahava happened to be there

one day Rav Adda bar Ahava happened to come to that place.

Shmuel said to Rav: Let the Master come and let us go around it,

let us go around the dangerous wall rather than walk beneath it, as we always did.

He said to him,

Rav said to Shmuel:

“We do not need to do so today,

we do not need to go around it today, since

there is

Rav Adda bar Ahava with us, whose merit is great, and I am not afraid,” because Rav Adda bar Ahava, whose merits were numerous, was with them, and therefore there was no concern that the wall would collapse.

because Rav Adda bar Ahava, whose merits are numerous, is with us, and therefore there is no concern that the wall will collapse ].

The Gemara cites another incident concerning an unstable wall.

Rav Huna had wine in a certain unstable house, and he wanted to clear it out,

Rav Huna had wine stored in an unstable house, and he wanted to remove it before the house collapsed upon it. But he was afraid to enter there.

Rav Huna devised a plan and

brought Rav Adda bar Ahava inside,

he brought Rav Adda bar Ahava into the house, as his merits were numerous, as stated above.

He engaged him in a discussion

and kept him there by occupying him with Torah study

until he had cleared it out,

until he had finished removing the wine from the house.

After he left—

the house collapsed,

immediately after Rav Adda left the house, the house collapsed.

Rav Adda bar Ahava sensed

the matter;

Rav Adda bar Ahava sensed the reason,

that they had brought him into the house so that it would not collapse and they could remove the wine—and

he became angry

at this.

Why did he become angry about this?

He held

that he was of the opinion

that what

Rabbi Yannai said

was: “A person should never stand in a place of danger and say”:

“I have no reason to fear, because surely

a miracle will be performed for me,

and I will not be harmed.”

The reason is that he must be concerned

that perhaps no miracle will be performed for him

from Heaven.

And

even

if you should say

that

a miracle will be performed for him—

nevertheless,

they deduct

they reduce

from him

on that account

from his merits , the merits he possesses through mitzvot and good deeds.

from the merits he possesses on account of mitzvot and good deeds ] .

Rav Hanan said: What is the verse

from which this matter is derived—that when a miracle is performed for a person, his merits are deducted?

As it is written,

that Jacob said when he prayed to the Holy One, blessed be He, to save him from Esau:

“I have become diminished from all the kindnesses and from all the truth

and so forth, for with my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps” [that is, when I crossed the Jordan on my way to Laban, all my possessions consisted of the staff in my hand. But now, as I return from there, the people and possessions accompanying me are so numerous that they can be divided into two camps].

What Jacob meant by “I have become diminished” is that he was concerned that the great miracles performed for him had reduced and diminished his merits.

What were the deeds of

what did

Rav Adda bar Ahava,

that they were so certain of his merits?

As in this statement

as we find this saying:

His students asked Rav Adda bar Ahava: Through what,

through which merits

have you been granted longevity?

The Ben Yehoyada explains that they asked him this because it had been decreed upon the people of Babylonia that there would be anger among them, as it is stated " And the Lord will give you there an agitated heart", and the Gemara in tractate Nedarim [22a] says that the matter refers to Babylonia. And our Sages, of blessed memory, said that anger shortens a person's days, as it is stated in Job [14:1]: Short of days and full of anger. And Rav Adda bar Ahava was in Babylonia; therefore they were astonished at the length of his days. And in tractate Megilla [28a] we find something similar concerning Rabbi Zeira, whom they asked: By what did you live long? And the Siftey Hakhamim wrote there that they asked him this because he used to fast a great deal, as we find in tractate Bava Metzia [85a], that when he went up to the Land of Israel he fasted three hundred fasts. And fasting weakens a person's strength; therefore they asked him by what he lived so long. And in the Yerushalmi at the end of the chapter, another matter is brought: they sent to Rav Adda bar Ahava, What good deeds do you have in your possession that the Holy One, blessed be He, performs miracles for you? And there it is brought that Rav Adda bar Ahava removed one shoe and rain fell [the same deed that is brought below [24b] concerning Rav Yehuda].

He said to them,

by virtue of these matters:

1.

In all my days I was never exacting within my home ,

2.

And I did not walk before one greater than I in wisdom

that is, when I walked with people greater than I, I did not walk ahead of them; this is a trait of humility ,

3.

And I did not contemplate

words of Torah

in filthy alleyways ,

4.

And I did not walk four cubits without

contemplating

Torah

, and without

the

tefillin

placed upon my head and my arm,

5.

And I did not sleep in the study hall.

Not a regular sleep, and

even

not a temporary sleep ,

and

I did not rejoice

I did not rejoice

at the misfortune of my fellow ,

7.

And I did not call my fellow by his nickname

by a name that people used for him disparagingly, such as a family name.

And some say

and there are those who say that Rav Adda said: I did not call my fellow

by his family name

that is, by the family name by which he was known .

Rava said to Rafram bar Pappa: Let the Master tell us some of those fine deeds that Rav Huna used to perform

let the Master tell us of those excellent things that Rav Huna used to do!

He said to him: In his youth—

I do not remember

the things he did in his youth I do not remember. But

in his old age—

I remember

the things he did in his old age I remember.

This is what he would do:

On every cloudy day

whenever the sky was overcast, with a strong wind blowing and a concern that dilapidated walls might fall because of the force of the wind,

they would take him out in a golden carriage

they would take out Rav Huna, who was already elderly and found it difficult to walk, in a carriage of gold ,

and he would inspect the entire city

and in this way he would tour and inspect the whole city.

And every wall that was unstable—

he would demolish it

and every unstable wall—he would instruct his servants to demolish it, so that the wind would not cause it to fall upon people.

If its owner was able

if the owner of the wall had the financial means—

he would rebuild it

the owner of the wall would rebuild it with his own money.

And if he was unable

and if he was unable to do so,

then

he would rebuild it from his own funds

Rav Huna would build the wall with his own money .

Rafram bar Pappa further relates other fine deeds of Rav Huna:

And every Friday afternoon

every Friday, toward evening,

he would send an agent to the marketplace

Rav Huna would send an agent to the marketplace .

And all the vegetables that remained for the gardeners

all the vegetables left by the gardeners, the vegetable growers, because they had not succeeded in selling them until then,

he would buy them, and throw them into the river

Rav Huna's agent would now purchase those vegetables, and afterward throw them into the river, for the reason that will be explained below.

The Gemara asks: Why would the agent throw them into the river?

Let him give them

let him give them

to the poor!

The Gemara explains: This was because, if he did so,

sometimes they would rely on it and would not come to buy

the poor might rely on receiving the remaining vegetables for free and would not purchase any at all. But vegetables would not always remain in the marketplace, and it would turn out that sometimes the poor would have no vegetables for Shabbat!

The Gemara asks:

And

still, why did he have to throw them into the river?

Let him throw them to an animal

let him throw them to animals, so that they could eat them!

The Gemara explains:

He was of the opinion

Rav Huna was of the opinion that something that is

food for a person—

may not be fed

it

to an animal .

The reason is that this constitutes contempt for food: when food fit for a person is given to an animal, it appears as though one is kicking at the goodness that the Holy One, blessed be He, has bestowed in the world .

And now the Gemara asks about the matter itself:

Why did Rav Huna need to purchase those vegetables at all?

Could he not simply refrain from purchasing them altogether [as in: he should not purchase them at all]?

so that he would not buy them at all!

The Gemara explains: The reason is that Rav Huna was concerned that if those vegetables were not purchased, they would dry out and spoil over the course of Shabbat and would no longer be fit for use, causing the vegetable sellers to suffer a loss. If so,

you would find yourself [literally: it would be found that you]

you

causing them to fail in the future,

as they would no longer wish to sell vegetables for the Shabbat meal.

There was another exemplary practice of Rav Huna:

When he had some medicinal substance [when he had some sort of medicine],

he would fill a pitcher with it and hang it on the latch of the door [he would fill a vessel with that medicine and hang it at the entrance of his house],

he would fill a vessel with it and hang it at the entrance of his house

that is, he would fill a vessel with some of the medicine and hang it at the doorway of his house,

and would say: Anyone who needs it—

let him come and take it [anyone who wants it should come and take it].

that is, anyone who wanted it should come and take it.

Some say [and there are those who say]:

that

He was versed in the matter of Shibta [he knew that it was the practice of the demons to harm one who ate without washing his hands].

that is, he knew that it was customary for demons to harm someone who ate without washing his hands.

And

therefore

he would place a pitcher of water and raise it

for him [he would place a vessel of water in a prominent place],

that is, he would put a vessel of water in a visible place,

and would say: Anyone who needs it—

let him come and enter [so that he could enter and wash his hands],

so that he could wash his hands,

so as not to endanger himself [so that he would not come to danger].

so that he would not come to any danger.

Rav Huna had another exemplary practice:

When he was breaking bread [when he was preparing bread to eat],

that is, when he was preparing bread to eat,

he would open his door [he would open the entrance to his house]

that is, he would open the entrance to his house,

and say: Anyone who needs—

let him come and eat [anyone who needs food should come and eat].

that is, anyone who needed food should come and eat.

Rava said: All of them,

all the practices of Rav Huna mentioned above—

I can fulfill [I am able to fulfill],

that is, I am able to carry them out.