<b.Taanith ch.3.1-11, 18b-26a>

MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.1 The order of public fasts aforementioned is observed only in connection with [the withholding of] the first rain, but if the crops have undergone [an unusual] change the alarm is sounded at once. The same too is done if forty days elapsed between the first and the second rainfall because it is then a plague due to drought.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.2 If [rain] falls for crops but not for the trees, for the trees but not for crops, for both of these but not for cisterns, ditches and caves the alarm is sounded at once.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.3 And so too if no rain falls upon a particular city, as it is written, and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city; one piece was rained upon etc. b.Taan.19a In such a case that city fasts and sounds the alarm, but those [in the places] around it fast but do not sound the alarm. R. Akiba [T3] says: they sound the alarm but do not fast.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.4 And so too if a plague rages in a city or [its buildings] collapse then that city fasts and sounds the alarm, but the people [in the places] around it fast but do not sound the alarm. R. Akiba [T3] says: they sound the alarm but do not fast. What constitutes a plague? If in a city that can supply five hundred foot-soldiers three deaths take place on three consecutive days, this constitutes a plague; less than this is no plague.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.5 The alarm is sounded everywhere on account of the following [visitations]: blast, mildew, locust, cricket, wild beasts and the sword, as they are all plagues likely to spread.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.6 It happened that elders went down from Jerusalem to their own cities and ordered a fast because there was observed in Askelon blast which affected as much grain as would fill an oven [with loaves made thereof]. They also ordained a fast because wolves devoured two children on the other side of the Jordan; R. Jose [T4] said: not because they devoured [the children] but [merely] because they were seen.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.7 The alarm is sounded on the Sabbath on account of the following mishaps: if a city is besieged by hostile troops or [inundated by] the river, or if a ship is foundering on the sea, R. Jose [T4] says: [the alarm is sounded] for help but not for a call to prayers. Simeon [T4] the Temanite says: [the alarm is sounded] on account of plague, but the Sages did not agree with him.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.8 The alarm is sounded on account of any visitation, that comes upon the community except on account of an over-abundance of rain. It happened that the people said to Honi the Circle Drawer, pray for rain to fall. He replied: go and bring in the ovens [on which you have roasted] the Paschal offerings so that they do not dissolve. He prayed and no rain fell...what did he do? He drew a circle and stood within it and exclaimed, Master of the universe, thy children have turned to me because they believe me to be as a member of thy household; I swear by thy great name that I will not move from here until thou hast mercy upon thy children. Rain then began to drip, and thereupon he exclaimed: it is not for this that I have prayed but for rain [to fill] cisterns, ditches and caves. The rain then began to come down with great force, and thereupon he exclaimed; it is not for this that I have prayed but for rain of benevolence, blessing and bounty. Rain then fell in the normal way until the Israelites in Jerusalem were compelled to go up [for shelter] to the Temple Mount because of the rain. They came and said to him: in the same way as you have prayed for [the rain] to fall pray [now] for the rain to cease. He replied: go and see if the stone of claimants has been washed away. Thereupon Simeon b. Shetah [BCE1] sent to him [this message]: were it not that you are Honi I would have placed you under the ban, but what can I do unto you who importune God and he accedes to your request as a son that importunes his father and he accedes to his request; of you Scripture says, let thy father and thy mother be glad, and let her that bore thee rejoice.
MISHNAH: m.Taan.3.9 If whilst they are fasting rain falls, if it is before sunrise they do not complete the fast, if after sunrise, they do complete the fast. R. Eliezer [T2 or T5] says: if before noon they do not complete the fast, after noon they do complete it. It happened that the Rabbis ordained a fast in lydia and rain fell before noon. Thereupon R. Tarfon [T3] said to them: go, eat and drink and observe the day as a holiday. They went and ate and drank and observed the day as a holiday and at Evening time they came and recited the great Hallel.
GEMARA: The order of public fasts aforementioned is observed only in connection with [the withholding] of the first rain. A contradiction was raised against this Mishnah: [If rain is withheld at the time of] the first and second rainfalls prayers are offered; if at the third rainfall, fasts are observed! Rab Judah [BA2] replied: The Mishnah means this: The order of fasts aforementioned is observed only when the time for the first, second and third fructification rainfalls has passed and no rain fell, but if rain fell at the time for the first fructification rainfall and they sowed but nothing sprouted forth, or if the [plants] did sprout forth but they had undergone an unusual change the alarm is sounded at once. R. Nahman said: Only when they had undergone an unusual change, but not if they merely withered away. Is not this self-evident? We clearly learned, have undergone a change[R. Nahman`s statement] is needed to cover the case of seeds that have already shot up into stalks. You might have thought that this is a sign of recovery, he therefore informs us [that it is not].
the same too is done if forty days elapsed between the first and the second rainfalls and no rain fell etc. What is the nature of the plague of drought? Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: A plague which leads to scarcity. R. Nahman said: When [grain] has to be transported by river b.Taan.19b [from one city to another] it is drought, but when it has to be brought [overland] from one province to another it is famine. R. Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5] said: If a seah of grain costs one sela and is obtainable it is drought; but if four seahs cost a sela but are not easily obtainable, then it is a famine. R. Johanan [PA2] added: This holds good only when money is cheap and food dear, but if money is dear and food cheap then the alarm is sounded at once. For R. Johanan [PA2] said: I remember well [the time] when four seahs cost one sela and yet there were many in Tiberias swollen from hunger because there was not a coin to be had. If rain falls for crops but not for the trees. It is of course possible [for rainfall to be beneficial] for crops and not for the trees when [the rain] falls gently and not heavily; similarly, It can be beneficial for trees and not for crops when it falls heavily and not gently; similarly, it can be beneficial for both of them and yet not for cisterns, ditches and caves if it falls heavily and gently but yet not in great enough volume. But is it possible for rain to fall for cisterns, ditches and caves and yet not be beneficial for both of these [crops and trees] as has been taught in the Baraitha? When the rain is torrential.
Our Rabbis have taught: The alarm [for rain] for the trees is sounded during the middle of the Passover [season], and for the cisterns, ditches and caves even during the middle of the Tabernacles [season]; and at any time should there be no water to drink the alarm is sounded at once. What is meant by `at once`? On the [following] Monday, Thursday and Monday. The alarm is sounded for all the aforementioned only in the particular province affected. In the case of croup the alarm is sounded only when deaths result from it, but if no deaths result the alarm is not sounded. In the case of locust the alarm is sounded no matter how small in number. R. Simeon b. Eleazar [T5] says: [The alarm is sounded] also in the case of grasshoppers. Our Rabbis have taught: The alarm is sounded for the trees during the working years of the Sabbatical Cycle, but for the cisterns, ditches and caves even on the Sabbatical year. R. Simeon b. Gamaliel [T1 or T4] says: [The alarm is sounded] also for the trees during the Sabbatical year because the poor derive their livelihood from them.
Another Baraitha taught: The alarm is sounded for trees during the six working years of the Sabbatical Cycle, but for the cisterns, ditches and caves even on the Sabbatical year. R. Simeon b. Gamaliel [T1 or T4] says: [The alarm is sounded] also for the trees. For what grows of itself the alarm is sounded even on the Sabbatical year because the poor derive their livelihood from them.
It has been taught: R. Eleazar b. Perata [T3] said: Ever since the day the Temple was destroyed the rains have become irregular; there are years in which rains are abundant, and there are other years when they are scanty; there are some years when the rains come in season, and there are other years when they do not. To what may be compared the years when the rains come in season? To a servant to whom his master gave his week`s food allowance [in advance] on the first day of the week, with the result that the dough is baked well and eatable. To what may be compared the years when the rains do not come in season? To a servant to whom his master gave his week`s food allowance on the eve of the Sabbath with the result that his dough is not well baked and uneatable. To what may be compared the years when the rains are abundant? To a servant to whom his master gave his [year`s] food allowance in one lot so that the [waste of] the mill in grinding a kor is no more than [the waste] in grinding a kab and likewise the waste in kneading a kor is no more than in kneading a kab. To what may be compared the years when the rains are scanty? To a servant to whom his master gave his [year`s] food allowance little by little, so that the waste in grinding a kab is no less than in grinding a kor, and likewise the waste in kneading a kab is no less than in kneading a kor. Another explanation: When the rains are plentiful they may be compared to a man kneading clay; if he has a plentiful supply of water then the clay is well kneaded without all the water being used up, but if the supply is scanty the water will give out and the clay is not well kneaded.
Our Rabbis have taught: Once it happened when all Israel came up on pilgrimage to Jerusalem that there was no water available for drinking. Thereupon Nakdimon b. Gurion approached a certain [heathen] lord and said to him: Loan me twelve wells of water for the Pilgrims and I will repay you twelve wells of water; and if I do not, I will give you instead twelve talents of silver, and he fixed a time limit [for repayment]. When the time came [for repayment] and no rain had yet fallen the lord sent a message to him in the morning: Return to me either the water or the money that you owe me. Nakdimon replied: I have still time, the whole day is mine. At midday he [again] sent to him a message, Return to me either the water or the money that you owe me. Nakdimon replied: I still have time to-day. In the afternoon he [again] sent to him a message, Return to me either the water or the money that you owe me. Nakdimon replied, I still have time to-day. Thereupon the lord sneeringly said to him, Seeing that no rain has fallen throughout the whole year b.Taan.20a will it then rain now? Thereupon he repaired in a happy mood to the baths. Meanwhile, whilst the lord had gone gleefully to the baths, Nakdimon entered the Temple depressed. He wrapped himself in his cloak and stood up to pray. He said, `Master of the Universe! It is revealed and known before Thee that I have not done this for my honour nor for the honour of my father`s house, but for Thine honour have I done this in order that water be available for the Pilgrims`. Immediately the sky became covered with clouds and rain fell until the twelve wells were filled with water and there was much over. As the lord came out of the baths Nakdimon b. Gurion came out from the Temple and the two met, and Nakdimon said to the lord, Give me the money for the extra water that you have received. The latter replied,I know that the Holy One, blessed be He, disturbed the world but for your sake, yet my claim against you for the money still holds good, for the sun had already set and consequently the rain fell in my possession. Nakdimon thereupon again entered the Temple and wrapped himself in his cloak and stood up to pray and said, `Master of the Universe! Make it known that Thou hast beloved ones In Thy world`. Immediately the clouds dispersed and the sun broke through. Thereupon the lord said to him, Had not the sun broken through I would still have had a claim against you entitling me to exact my money from you. It has been taught: His name was not Nakdimon but Boni and he was called Nakdimon because the sun had broken through [nikdera] on his behalf.
The Rabbis have taught: For the sake of three the sun broke through, Moses, Joshua and Nakdimon b. Gurion. Now of Nakdimon we know from the above tradition; of Joshua too we know from Scripture where it is written, And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, etc.; but of Moses whence do we know this? R. Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3] said: We deduce it from an inference from the analagous use of the word ahel. Here it is written, I will begin [ahel] to put the dread of thee, and elsewhere it is written, I will begin [ahel] to magnify thee. R. Samuel b. Nahmani [PA3] said: From an analogous use of the word teth. Here it is written, I will begin to put [teth] the the dread of thee, and elsewhere it is written, In the day when the lord delivered [teth] up the Amorites etc. R. Johanan [PA2] said: It can be derived from the verse itself, Who, when they hear the report of thee, shall tremble and be in anguish because of thee. When did they tremble and were in anguish before Moses? When the sun broke through for Moses. An so too if no rain falls upon a particular city etc. Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: Both [cities cited in the verse are under] divine displeasure. Jerusalem is among them as one unclean. Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: [The verse implies] blessing; as an unclean [menstruous] woman becomes permissible [to her husband], so too will Jerusalem be reinstated. She is become as a widow; Rab Judah [BA2] said: [The verse implies] blessing; `as a widow`; not a real widow, but a woman whose husband has gone to a country beyond the sea [fully] intending to return to her. Therefore have I also made you contemptable and base before all the people: Rab Judah [BA2] said: [The verse implies] blessing; of you no overseers of rivers nor officers shall be appointed. For the Lord will smite Israel as a reed is shaken in the water: Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: [The verse implies] blessing. For R. Samuel b. Nahmani [PA3] said in the name of R. Johanan [PA2]: What is the meaning of the verse, Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are importunate? Better is the curse which Ahijah the Shilonite pronounced on Israel than the blessings with which Balaam the wicked blessed them. Ahijah the Shilonite cursed them by comparing them with the `reed`; he said to Israel, For the Lord will smite Israel as a reed is shaken in water. [Israel are as the reed], as the reed grows by the water and its stock grows new shoots and its roots are many, and even though all the winds of the universe come and blow at it they cannot move it from its place for it sways with the winds and as soon as they have dropped the reed resumes its upright position. But Balaam the wicked blessed them by comparing them with the `cedar`, as it is said, As cedars beside the waters; the cedar does not grow by the waterside and its stock does not grow new shoots and its roots are not many, and even though all the winds of the universe blow at it they cannot move it from its place; if however the south wind blows at it, it uproots it and turns it upside down. Moreover, [because of its yielding nature] the reed merited that of it should be made a pen for the writing of the Law, the Prophets and Hagiographa.
Our Rabbis have taught: A man should always be gentle as the reed and never unyielding as the cedar. Once R. Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3] son of R. Simeon [T4] was coming from Migdal Gedor, from the house of his teacher, and he was riding leisurely on his ass by the riverside and was feeling happy and elated because he had studied much Torah b.Taan.20b . There chanced to meet him an exceedingly ugly man who greeted him, `Peace be upon you, Sir`. He, however, did not return his salutation but instead said to him, `Raca, how ugly you are. Are all your fellow citizens as ugly as you are?` The man replied: `I do not know, but go and tell the craftsman who made me, `How Ugly is the vessel which you have made`.` When R. Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3] realized that he had done wrong he dismounted from the ass and prostrated himself before the man and said to him, `I submit myself to you, forgive me`. The man replied: `I will not forgive you until you go to the craftsman who made me and say to him,`How ugly is the vessel which you have made`.` He [R. Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3]] walked behind him until he reached his native city. When his fellow citizens came out to meet him greeting him with the words, `Peace be upon you O Teacher, O Master,` the man asked them, `Whom are you addressing thus`? They replied, `The man who is walking behind you.` Thereupon he exclaimed: `If this man is a teacher, may there not be any more like him in Israel`! The people then asked him: `Why`? He replied: `Such and such a thing has he done to me. They said to him: `Nevertheless, forgive him, for he is a man greatly learned in the Torah.` The man replied: `For your sakes I will forgive him, but only on the condition that he does not act in the same manner in the future.` Soon after this R. Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3] son of R. Simeon [T4] entered [the Beth Hamidrash] and expounded thus, A man should always be gentle as the reed and let him never be unyielding as the cedar. And for this reason the reed merited that of it should be made a pen for the writing of the Law, Phylacteries and Mezuzoth. And so too, if a plague rages in a city or [its buildings] collapse etc. Our Rabbis have taught: The ` collapse spoken of refers only to sound buildings but not to those already dilapidated; only to those which are not likely to fall in but not to those that are likely to fall in. Are not `sound buildings` the same as `those that are not likely to fall in`? And are not those already dilapidated` the same as `those likely to fall in`? It is necessary [to distinguish between them] when for instance they collapsed because of their excessive height, or, when they stood on the bank of a river. In Nehardea there was a dilapidated wall and neither Rab [BA1] nor Samuel [BA1] would go past it although it had remained standing in the same position for thirteen years. One day R. Adda b. Ahaba happened to come there and Samuel [BA1] said to Rab: `Come, Sir, let us walk around it`, and the latter replied, `This precaution is not necessary now because R. Adda b. Ahaba is with us; his merit is great and therefore I do not fear`. R. Huna [BA2 or PA4] had wine [stored] in a certain dilapidated house and he desired to remove it. He took R. Adda b. Ahaba into that house and kept him occupied with traditional teaching until he had removed it. As soon as he had left the house it fell in. R. Adda b. Ahaba noticed this and was offended, because he agreed with the statement of R. Jannai [PA1] who said: A man should never stand in a place of danger and declare, `A miracle will befall me`; perhaps a miracle will not befall him. And if a miracle does befall him he suffers thereby a reduction from his merits. R. Hanan said: This can be inferred from the verse where it is written, I am not worthy of all the mercies, and of all the truth.. What were the merits of R. Adda b. Ahaba?-Thus it has been stated: The disciples of R. Adda b. Ahaba asked him: To what do you attribute your longevity? He replied: I have never displayed any impatience in my house, and I have never walked in front of any man greater than myself, nor have I ever meditated [over the words of the Torah] in any dirty alleys, nor have I ever walked four cubits without [musing over] the Torah or without [wearing] phylacteries, nor have I ever fallen asleep in the Beth Hamidrash for any length of time or even momentarily, nor have I rejoiced at the disgrace of my friends, nor have I ever called my neighbour by a nickname given to him by myself, or, some say by the nickname given to him by others.
Raba [BA4] said to Rafram b. Papa: Tell me some of the good deeds which R. Huna [BA2 or PA4] had done. He replied: Of his childhood I do not recollect anything, but of his old age I do. On cloudy [stormy] days they used to drive him about in a golden carriage and he would survey every part of the city and he would order the demolition of any wall that was unsafe; if the owner was in a position to do so he had to rebuild it himself, but if not, then [R. Huna [BA2 or PA4]] would have it rebuilt at his own expense. On the eve of every Sabbath [Friday] he would send a messenger to the market and any vegetables that the [market] gardeners had left over he bought up and had then, thrown into the river. Should he not rather have had these distributed among the poor? [He was afraid] lest they would then at times be led to rely upon him and would not trouble to buy any for themselves. Why did he not give the vegetables to the domestic animals? He was of the opinion that food fit for human consumption may not be given to animals Then why did he purchase them at all? This would lead [the gardeners] to do wrong in the future [by not providing an adequate supply]. Whenever he discovered some [new] medicine he would fill a water jug with it and suspend it above the doorstep and proclaim, Whosoever desires it let him come and take of it. Some say, he knew from tradition a medicine for that disease, Sibetha and he would suspend a jugful of water and proclaim, Whosoever needs it let him come [and wash his hands] so that he may save his life from danger. When he had a meal he would open the door wide and declare, Whosoever is in need let him come and eat. Raba [BA4] said: All these things I could myself carry out except the last one b.Taan.21a because there are so many in Mahuza.
Ilfa and R. Johanan [PA2] studied together the Torah and they found themselves in great want and they said one to another, Let us go and engage in commerce so that of us may be fulfilled the verse, Howbeit there shall be no need among you. They went and sat down under a ruinous wall and while they were having their meal two ministering angels came and R. Johanan [PA2] overheard one saying to the other, Let us throw this wall upon these [people] and kill them, because they forsake life eternal and occupy themselves with life temporal. The other [angel] replied: Leave them alone because one of them has still much to achieve. R. Johanan [PA2] heard this but Ilfa did not. Whereupon R. Johanan [PA2] said to Ilfa, Master, have you heard anything? He replied: No. Thereupon R. Johanan [PA2] said to himself: Seeing that I heard this and Ilfa has not, it is evident that I am the one who still has much to achieve. R. Johanan [PA2] then said to Ilfa: I will go back, that of me may be fulfilled, For the poor shall never cease out of the land. Thereupon R. Johanan [PA2] went back but Ilfa did not. When [at last] Ilfa returned, R. Johanan [PA2] was already presiding over the school, and the scholars said to him: Had you remained here and studied the Torah you might have been presiding. Ilfa then suspended himself from the mast of a ship and exclaimed, If there is any one who will ask me a question from the Baraithas of R. Hiyya and R. Hoshaiah and I fail to elucidate it from the Mishnah then I will throw myself down and be drowned [in the sea]. And an old man came forward and cited the following Baraitha: If a man [in his last will and testament] declares, Give a shekel weekly to my sons, but actually they needed a sela then they should be given a sela; but if he declared, Give them a shekel only, then they should be given a shekel. If, however, he declared, On their death others should inherit [their allowance] in their stead, then whether he has declared `give` or `give only` they are given a shekel only. He replied: This is in accordance with the view of R. Meir [T4] who said: It is a duty to carry out the will of a dying man. It is related of Nahum [BA3] of Gamzu that he was blind in both his eyes, his two hands and legs were amputated and his whole body was covered with boils and he was lying in a dilapidated house on a bed the feet of which were standing in bowls of water in order to prevent the ants from crawling on to him. On one occasion his disciples desired to remove the bed and then clear the things out of the house, but he said to them, My children, first clear out the things [from the house] and then remove my bed for I am confident that so long as I am in the house it will not collapse. They first cleared out the things and then they removed his bed and the house [immediately] collapsed. Thereupon his disciples said to him, Master, since you are wholly righteous, why has all this befallen you? And he replied, I have brought it all upon myself. Once I was journeying on the road and was making for the house of my father-in-law and I had with me three asses, one laden with food, one with drink and one with all kinds of dainties, when a poor man met me and stopped me on the road and said to me, Master, give me something to eat. I replied to him, Wait until I have unloaded something from the ass; I had hardly managed to unload something from the ass when the man died [from hunger]. I then went and laid myself on him and exclaimed, May my eyes which had no pity upon your eyes become blind, may my hands which had no pity upon your hands be cut off, may my legs which had no pity upon your legs be amputated, and my mind was not at rest until I added, may my whole body be covered with boils. Thereupon his pupils exclaimed, `Alas! that we see you in such a sore plight`. To this he replied, `Woe would it be to me did you not see me in such a sore plight`. Why was he called Nahum [BA3] of Gamzu? Because whatever befell him he would declare, This also is for the best. Once the Jews desired to send to the Emperor a gift and after discussing who should go they decided that Nahum [BA3] of Gamzu should go because he had experienced many miracles. They sent with him a bag full of precious stones and pearls. He went and spent the night in a certain inn and during the night the people in the inn arose and emptied the bag and filled it up with earth. When he discovered this next morning he exclaimed, This also is for the best. When he arrived at his destination and they undid his bag they found that it was full of earth. The king thereupon desired to put them all to death saying, The Jews are mocking me. Nahum [BA3] then exclaimed, This also is for the best. Whereupon Elijah appeared in the guise of one of them and remarked, Perhaps this is some of the earth of their father Abraham, for when he threw earth [against the enemy] it turned into swords and when [he threw] stubble it changed into arrows, for it is written, His sword maketh them as dust, his bow as the driven stubble. Now there was one province which [the emperor had hitherto] not been able to conquer but when they tried some of this earth [against it] they were able to conquer it. Then they took him [Nahum [BA3]] to the royal treasury and filled his bag with precious stones and pearls and sent him back with great honour. When on his return journey he again spent the night in the same inn he was asked, What did you take [to the king] that they showed you such great honour? He replied, I brought thither what I had taken from here. [The innkeepers] thereupon razed the inn to the ground and took of the earth to the king and they said to him, The earth that was brought to you belonged to us. They tested it and it was not found to be [effective] and the innkeepers were thereupon put to death. What constitutes plague? If in a city that can supply five hundred foot-soldiers etc. Our Rabbis have taught: If in a city that can supply fifteen hundred foot-soldiers, as for example Kefar Acco, nine deaths take place in three consecutive days, this constitutes plague; if, however, these deaths take place in one day or in four days it is not plague. And if in a city that can supply five hundred foot-soldiers, as for example, Kefar-Amiko, three deaths take place in three consecutive days this constitutes plague; if, however, they take place in one day or in four days it is not plague. b.Taan.21b . In Derokereth, a city that supplied five hundred foot-soldiers three deaths took place in one day, whereupon R. Nahman b. Hisda ordained a [public] fast. R. Nahman b. Isaac said, This must be in accordance with the authority of R. Meir [T4] who declared, If for goring at long intervals [during three days] there is [full] liability, how much more so for goring at short intervals [in one day]. Said R. Nahman b. Hisda to R. Nahman b. Isaac: Pray, take a seat nearer us. The latter replied: We have taught, R. Jose [T4] says: It is not the place that honours the man but it is the man who honours the place. We find it thus in connection with Mt. Sinai, as long as the Shechinah dwelt thereon the Torah declared, Neither let the flocks nor herds feed before that mount; but once the Shechinah had departed thence the Torah said, When the ram`s horn soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount. The same too we find in connection with the Tent of Meeting in the wilderness; so long as it remained pitched the Torah commanded, That they put out of the camp every leper; but once the curtains were rolled up both those with a running issue and the lepers were permitted to enter therein. Thereupon R. Hisda [BA3] retorted: If so I will come nearer to you; whereupon the latter replied: It is more fitting that a scholar, the son of an ordinary man, should go to one who is a scholar and is the son of a scholar, than the latter should go towards the former. Once a plague broke out in Sura but it did not affect the locality in which Rab [BA1] resided. People thought that this was on account of Rab`s great merit but in a dream it was made clear to them that this was far too small a matter to need Rab`s great merit, but that it was on account of the merit of a certain man who made it a practice to lend shovel and spade for burials.
Once a fire broke out in Derokereth but it did not spread to the locality where R. Huna [BA2 or PA4] resided. People thought that it was on account of the great merit of R. Huna [BA2 or PA4], but in a dream it was made clear to them that this was far too small a matter to need R. Huna`s [BA2 or PA4] great merit, but that it was on account of a certain woman who [on the eve of Sabbaths] would heat her oven and permit her neighbours to make use of it. Once Rab Judah [BA2] was informed that locusts had come and he ordained a fast. He was then told that no damage had been done, whereupon he exclaimed: Have they then brought provision with them?
Once Rab Judah [BA2] was informed that pestilence was raging among the swine and he ordained a fast. Can it then be concluded from this that Rab Judah [BA2] is of the opinion that a plague scourging one species of animals is likely to attack also other species? No, the case of the swine is exceptional, because their intestines are like unto those of human beings. Once Samuel [BA1] was informed that pestilence was raging amongst the inhabitants of Be Hozae, and he ordained a fast. The people said to him: surely [Be Hozae] is a long distance away from here. He replied: Would then a crossing prevent it from spreading? Once R. Nahman was informed that there was pestilence in Palestine and he ordained a fast, for he said, If the `Mistress` is stricken how much more so the `Maidservant`. [Are we then to assume] that the reason for his ordaining the fast was because it was a case of `mistress` and `maidservant`, but if both were maidservants`, he would not have ordained the fast? But did not Samuel [BA1] ordain a fast [in Nehardea] when he was informed that there was pestilence amongst the inhabitants of Be Hozae? The case there was exceptional since there are caravans which it accompanies and with which it comes along. R. Abba [BA3 & PA3] was a cupper and daily he would receive greetings from the Heavenly Academy. Abaye [BA4] received greetings on every Sabbath eve, Raba [BA4] on the eve of every Day of Atonement. Abaye [BA4] felt dejected because of [the signal honour shown to] R. Abba [BA3 & PA3] the Cupper. People said to him: This distinction is made because you cannot do what R. Abba [BA3 & PA3] does. What was the special merit of R. Abba [BA3 & PA3] the Cupper? When he performed his operations he would separate men from women, and in addition he had a cloak which held a cup [for receiving the blood] and which was slit at the shoulder and whenever a woman patient came to him he would put the garment on her shoulder in order not to see her [exposed body]. He also had a place out of public gaze where the patients deposited their fees which he would charge; those that could afford it put their fees there, and thus those who could not pay were not put to shame. Whenever a young scholar happened to consult him not only would he accept no fee from him but on taking leave of him he also would give him some money at the same time adding, Go and regain strength therewith. One day Abaye [BA4] sent to him two scholars in order to test him. He received them and gave them food and drink and in the evening he prepared woollen mattresses for them [to sleep on]. b.Taan.22a In the morning the scholars rolled these together and took them to the market [for sale]. There they met R. Abba [BA3 & PA3] and they said to him, Sir, value these, how much they are worth, and he replied, So-and-so much. They said to him, Perhaps they are worth more? He replied, This is what I paid for them. They then said to him, They are yours, we took them away from you; tell us, pray, of what did you suspect us. He replied: I said to myself, perhaps the Rabbis needed money to redeem captives and they were ashamed to tell me. They replied, Sir, take them back. He answered: From the moment I missed them I dismissed them from my mind and [I devoted them] to charity.
Raba [BA4] was dejected because of the special honour shown to Abaye [BA4] and he was therefore told, Be content that [through your merit] the whole city is protected.
R. Beroka Hoza`ah used to frequent the market at Be Lapat where Elijah often appeared to him. Once he asked [the prophet], is there any one in this market who has a share in the world to come? He replied, No. Meanwhile he caught sight of a man wearing black shoes and who had no thread of blue on the corners of his garment and he exclaimed, This man has a share in the world to come. He [R. Beroka] ran after him and asked him, What is your occupation? And the man replied: Go away and come back tomorrow. Next day he asked him again, What is your occupation? And he replied: I am a jailer and I keep the men and women separate and I place my bed between them so that they may not come to sin; when I see a Jewish girl upon whom the Gentiles cast their eyes I risk my life and save her. Once there was amongst us a betrothed girl upon whom the Gentiles cast their eyes. I therefore took lees of [red] wine and put them in her skirt and I told them that she was unclean. [R. Beroka further] asked the man, Why have you no fringes and why do you wear black shoes? He replied: That the Gentiles amongst whom I constantly move may not know that I am a Jew, so that when a harsh decree is made [against Jews] I inform the rabbis and they pray [to God] and the decree is annulled. He further asked him, When I asked you, What is your occupation, why did you say to me, Go away now and come back to-morrow? He answered, They had just issued a harsh decree and I said I would first go and acquaint the rabbis of it so that they might pray to God. Whilst [they were thus conversing] two [men] passed by and [Elijah] remarked, These two have a share in the world to come. R. Beroka then approached and asked them, What is your occupation? They replied, We are jesters, when we see men depressed we cheer them up; furthermore when we see two people quarrelling we strive hard to make peace between them. The alarm is sounded everywhere on account of the following [visitations] etc. Our Rabbis have taught: The alarm is sounded everywhere on account of the following visitations, blast, mildew, locust, crickets and wild beasts. R. Akiba [T3] says: For the slightest attack of blast and mildew; and in the case of locust and crickets even if only one winged creature is seen the alarm is sounded [immediately]. For wild beasts etc. Our Rabbis have taught: The Alarm is sounded for wild beasts only when they are a [divine] visitation but not otherwise. What constitutes a [divine] visitation and what does not? When they make their appearance in the city that is a [divine] visitation, in the field it is not; by day it is a [divine] visitation, by night it is not; if a beast sees two persons and pursues them it is a [divine] visitation, but if it hides itself on seeing them it is not; if it killed two persons and devoured only one of them that is a [divine] visitation, but if it devoured both of them it is not; if it mounted the roof and carried off an infant out of the cradle that is a divine visitation. Is not this [Baraitha] self-contradictory? [First] you say, `If it makes its appearance in the city it is a visitation` and no distinction is made whether this happens by day or by night, and then you add `it is a visitation`, but by night it is not! There is no contradiction. This is what is meant. If it makes its appearance in the city by day it is a visitation, but in the city by night it is not. Or, in the field even by day it is not a visitation. [First you say,] `If the beast sees two persons and pursues them it is a visitation` which implies that if it remains still it is no visitation and then you add `if it hides itself on seeing then it is not a visitation`; this would imply that if it remains still it is a visitation! This is no contradiction. In the one case it speaks of [a beast] in a field near reedland, in the other in a field not near reedland. [You say,] `If it kills two men and devours one of them, that is a visitation but if it devours both of them it is not.` But did you not say that even if it only pursues [two people] that is a visitation? R. Papa [BA5] replied: That speaks of a case [where the beast is standing] in reedland.
The [above] text [states] `If it mounted the roof and carried off an infant out of the cradle it is a visitation`. Is not this self-evident? R. Papa [BA5] replied: This statement is meant to refer to [the case of a beast carrying off an infant out of a cradle in] a hunter`s cave.
and the sword etc. Our Rabbis have taught: By ` sword` is meant not only a hostile attack by an invading army but also the passing en route of a friendly army. For there could be no more friendly army than that of Pharaoh-Necho, and yet through it king Josiah met his fate, as it is said b.Taan.22b But he sent ambassadors to him, saying: What have I to do with thee, thou king of Judah? I come not against thee this day, but against the house wherewith I have war: and God hath given command to speed me; forbear thee from meddling with God, who is with me, that he destroyeth thee not. What is meant by `God who is with me`? Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: Idols. Josiah said [to himself], Since he [Pharaoh-Necho] puts his trust in his idols I will prevail over him.
And the archers shot at king Josiah; and the king said to his servants: Have me away, for I am sore wounded. What is meant by, `For I am sore wounded`? Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: This teaches that his whole body was perforated like a sieve. R. Samuel b. Nahmani [PA3] said in the name of R. Jonathan [T4]: Josiah was punished because he should have consulted Jeremiah [PA4] and he did not. On what did Josiah rely? On the divine promise contained in the words, Neither shall the sword go through your land. What sword? Is it the warring sword? It is already stated [in the same verse], And I will give peace in the land. It must surely refer to the peaceful sword. Josiah, however, did not know that his generation found but little favour [in the eyes of God]. When he was dying Jeremiah [PA4] observed that his lips were moving and he feared that perhaps, Heaven forfend,[Josiah] was saying something improper because of his great pain; he thereupon bent down and he overheard him justifying [God`s] decree against himself saying, The Lord is righteous; for I have rebelled against His word. He [Jeremiah [PA4]] then cited of him, The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the Lord.
it happened that the elders returned from Jerusalem to their own cities etc. The question was asked, [Does the Mishnah mean] as an oven full of grain, or as an oven full of bread? Come and hear: As much as would fill the opening of an oven. The following question however still remains, Does it mean [as much bread] as would close the opening of an oven, or a row of loaves extending to the opening of the oven? This is left undecided.
they also ordained a fast because wolves devoured etc. `Ulla [BA3] said in the name of R. Simeon b. Jehozadak: It happened that wolves devoured two children and they passed them out through their secretory canal and the question came up before the Sages and they declared that the flesh [of the children] was clean but that their bones were unclean. The alarm is sounded on the Sabbath etc. Our Rabbis have taught: When a city is surrounded by hostile Gentiles, or threatened with inundation by the river, or when a ship is foundering in the sea, or when an individual is being pursued by Gentiles or robbers or by an evil spirit, the alarm is sounded [even] on the Sabbath; and on account of all these an individual may afflict himself by fasting. R. Jose [T4] says: An individual may not afflict himself by fasting lest thereby he come to need the help of his fellow men and it may be that they will not have mercy upon him. Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: R. Jose`s [T4] reason is because it is written, And became a living soul; Scripture thereby implies, [God says], Keep alive the soul which I gave you.
Simeon [T4] the Temanite says [the alarm is sounded] also even on account of plague etc. The question was asked: Did the Rabbis disagree with him only when it was a question of sounding the alarm on the Sabbath, but on weekdays they agreed with him; or, perhaps they did not agree with him in any circumstances? Come and hear: The alarm is sounded on account of plague on the Sabbath, and, it goes without saying, on weekdays. R. Hanan b. Pitom, a disciple of R. Akiba [T3], said in the name of R. Akiba [T3]: We may not under any circumstances sound the alarm on account of plague.
the alarm is sounded on account of any visitation, that comes upon the community! Our Rabbis have taught: The alarm is sounded on account of any visitation that comes upon the community! except on account of an overabundance of rain. Why?-R. Johanan [PA2] said: Because we may not pray on account of an excess of good. R. Johanan [PA2] further said: Whence do we derive that we may not pray on account of an excess of good? For it is said, Bring ye the whole tithe into the storehouse... that there shall be more than sufficiency. What is the meaning of, `More than sufficiency`? Rami son of R. Yud interpreted: Until your lips grow weary with saying, Sufficient. Rami son of R. Yud said: In the Diaspora the alarm is sounded on account of this. It has been taught likewise: In a year of excessive rain the Men of the Mishmar send [a message] to the Men of the Ma`amad: Think of your brethren in the Diaspora that their houses may not become their graves.
R. Eliezer [T2 or T5] was asked, How excessive must the rainfall be to warrant prayer for it to cease? He replied: When a man standing on Keren Ofel is able to dabble his feet in water. But has it not been taught `his hands`? I mean, his feet [at the same time] as his hands. Rabah bar b. Hana related: Once as I was standing on Keren Ofel I saw [below] an Arab with a spear in his hand riding on a camel and to me he looked as small as a flax-worm. The Rabbis have taught: And I will give you rains in their season. [This means that the soil shall be] neither soaked nor parched, but moderately rained upon. For whenever the rain is excessive it scours away the soil so that it yields no fruit. b.Taan.23a Another explanation. `In their season`: [This means that rain would fall only] on the eve of Wednesdays and Sabbaths. For so it happened in the days of Simeon b. Shetah [BCE1]. [At that time] rain fell on the eve of Wednesdays and Sabbaths so that the grains of wheat came up as large as kidneys and the grains of barley like the stones of olives, and of the lentils like the golden denarii and they stored specimens of them for future generations in order to make known unto them the in effects of sin, as it is said. Your iniquities have turned away these things and your sins have withholden good from you. Likewise we find happened in the days of Herod when the people were occupied with the rebuilding of the Temple. [At that time] rain fell during the night but in the morning the wind blew and the clouds dispersed and the sun shone so that the people were able to go out to their work, and then they knew that they were engaged in sacred work.
it happened that the people said to Honi, the Circle Drawer etc. Once it happened that the greater part of the month of Adar had gone and yet no rain had fallen. The people sent a message to Honi the Circle Drawer, Pray that rain may fall. He prayed and no rain fell. He thereupon drew a circle and stood within it in the same way as the prophet Habakuk had done, as it is said, I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower etc. He exclaimed [before God], Master of the Universe, Thy children have turned to me because [they believe] me to be a member of Thy house. I swear by Thy great name that I will not move from here until Thou hast mercy Upon Thy children! Rain began to drip and his disciples said to him, We look to you to save us from death; we believe that this rain came down merely to release you from your oath. Thereupon he exclaimed: It is not for this that I have prayed, but for rain [to fill] cisterns, ditches and caves. The rain then began to come down with great force, every drop being as big as the opening of a barrel and the Sages estimated that no one drop was less than a log. His disciples then said to him: Master, we look to you to save us from death; we believe that the rain came down to destroy the world. Thereupon he exclaimed before [God], It is not for this that l have prayed, but for rain of benevolence, blessing and bounty. Then rain fell normally until the Israelites [in Jerusalem] were compelled to go up [for shelter] to the Temple Mount because of the rain. [His disciples] then said to him, Master, in the same way as you have prayed for the rain to fall pray for the rain to cease. He replied: I have it as a tradition that we may not pray on account of an excess of good. Despite this bring unto me a bullock for a thanks-giving-offering.] They brought unto him a bullock for a thanks-giving-offering and he laid his two hands upon it and said, Master of the Universe, Thy people Israel whom Thou hast brought out from Egypt cannot endure an excess of good nor an excess of punishment; when Thou wast angry with them, they could not endure it; when Thou didst shower upon them an excess of good they could not endure it; may it be Thy will that the rain may cease and that there be relief for the world. Immediately the wind began to blow and the clouds were dispersed and the sun shone and the people went out into the fields and gathered for themselves mushrooms and truffles. Thereupon Simeon b. Shetah [BCE1] sent this message to him, Were it not that you are Honi I would have placed you under the ban; for were the years like the years [of famine in the time] of Elijah (in whose hands were the keys of Rain) would not the name of Heaven be profaned through you? But what shall I do unto you who actest petulantly before the Omnipresent and he grants your desire, as a son who acts petulantly before his father and he grants his desires; thus he says to him, Father, take me to bathe in warm water, wash me in cold water, give me nuts, almonds, peaches, and pomegranates and he gives them unto him. Of you Scripture says, Let thy father and thy mother be glad, and let her that bore thee rejoice. Our Rabbis have taught: What was the message that the Sanhedrin sent to Honi the Circle-Drawer? [It was an interpretation of the verse], Thou, shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee, and light shall shine upon thy ways etc. `Thou shalt also decree a thing:` You have decreed [on earth] below and the Holy One, Blessed be He, fulfills your word [in heaven] above. `And light shall shine upon thy ways:` You have illumined with your prayer a generation in darkness. `When they cast thee down, thou shalt say: There is lifting up:` You have raised with your prayer a generation that has sunk low. `For the humble person he saveth:` You have saved by your prayer a generation that is humiliated with sin. `He delivereth him that is not innocent:` You have delivered by your prayer a generation that is not innocent. `Yea, He shall be delivered through the cleanliness of thy hands:` You have delivered it through the work of your clean hands.
R. Johanan [PA2] said: This righteous man [Honi] was throughout the whole of his life troubled about the meaning of the verse, A Song of Ascents, When the Lord brought back those that returned to Zion, we were like unto them that dream. Is it possible for a man to dream continuously for seventy years? One day he was journeying on the road and he saw a man planting a carob tree; he asked him, How long does it take [for this tree] to bear fruit? The man replied: Seventy years. He then further asked him: Are you certain that you will live another seventy years? The man replied: I found [ready grown] carob trees in the world; as my forefathers planted these for me so I too plant these for my children. Honi sat down to have a meal and sleep overcame him. As he slept a rocky formation enclosed upon him which hid him from sight and he continued to sleep for seventy years. When he awoke he saw a man gathering the fruit of the carob tree and he asked him, Are you the man who planted the tree? The man replied: I am his grandson. Thereupon he exclaimed: It is clear that I slept for seventy years. He then caught sight of his ass who had given birth to several generations of mules; and he returned home. He there enquired, Is the son of Honi the Circle-Drawer still alive? The people answered him, His son is no more, but his grandson is still living. Thereupon he said to them: I am Honi the Circle-Drawer, but no one would believe him. He then repaired to the Beth Hamidrash and there he overheard the scholars say, The law is as clear to us as in the days of Honi the Circle-Drawer, for whenever he came to the Beth Hamidrash he would settle for the scholars any difficulty that they had. Whereupon he called out, I am he; but the scholars would not believe him nor did they give him the honour due to him. This hurt him greatly and he prayed [for death] and he died. Raba [BA4] said: Hence the saying, Either companionship or death. R. Abba [BA3 & PA3] Hilkiah was a grandson of Honi the Circle-Drawer, and whenever the world was in need of rain the Rabbis sent a message to him and he prayed and rain fell. Once there was an urgent need for rain and the Rabbis sent to him a couple of scholars [to ask him] to pray for rain. They came to his house but they did not find him there. They then proceeded to the fields and they found him there hoeing. They greeted him b.Taan.23b but he took no notice of them. Towards evening he gathered some wood and placed the wood and the rake on one shoulder and his cloak on the other shoulder. Throughout the journey he walked barefoot but when he reached a stream he put his shoes on; when he lighted upon thorns and thistles he lifted up his garments; when he reached the city his wife well bedecked came out to meet him; when he arrived home his wife entered first [the house] and then he and then the scholars. He sat down to eat but he did not say to the scholars, `Join me`. He then shared the meal among his children, giving the older son one portion and the younger two. He said to his wife, I know the scholars have come on account of rain, let us go up to the roof and pray, perhaps the Holy One, Blessed be He, will have mercy and rain will fall, without having credit given to us. They went up to the roof; he stood in one corner and she in another; at first the clouds appeared over the corner where his wife stood. When he came down he said to the scholars. Why have you scholars come here? They replied: The Rabbis have sent us to you, Sir, [to ask you] to pray for rain. Thereupon he exclaimed, Blessed be God, who has made you no longer dependent on R. Abba [BA3 & PA3] Hilkiah. They replied: We know that the rain has come on your account, but tell us, Sir, the meaning of these mysterious acts of yours, which are bewildering to us? Why did you not take notice of us when we greeted you? He answered: I was a labourer hired by the day and I said I must not relax [from my work]. And why did you, Sir, carry the wood on one shoulder and the cloak on the other shoulder? He replied: It was a borrowed cloak; I borrowed it for one purpose [to wear] and not for any other Purpose. Why did you, Sir, go barefoot throughout the whole journey but when you came to a stream you put your shoes on? He replied: What was on the road I could see but not what was in the water. Why did you, Sir, lift up your garments whenever you lighted upon thorns and thistles? He replied: This [the body] heals itself, but the other [the clothes] does not. Why did your wife come out well bedecked to meet you, Sir, when you entered the city? He replied: In order that I might not set my eyes on any other woman. Why, Sir, did she enter [the house] first and you after her and then we? He replied: Because I did not know your character. Why, Sir, did you not ask us to join you in the meal? [He replied]: Because there was not sufficient food [for all]. Why did you give, Sir, one portion to the older son and two portions to the younger? He replied: Because the one stays at home and the other is away in the Synagogue [the whole day]. Why, Sir, did the clouds appear first in the corner where your wife stood and then in your corner? [He replied]: Because a wife stays at home and gives bread to the poor which they can at once enjoy whilst I give them money which they cannot at once enjoy. Or perhaps it may have to do with certain robbers in our neighbourhood; I prayed that they might die, but she prayed that they might repent [and they did repent]. Hanan ha-Nehba was the son of the daughter of Honi the Circle-Drawer. When the world was in need of rain the Rabbis would send to him school children and they would take hold of the hem of his garment and say to him, Father, Father, give us rain. Thereupon he would plead with the Holy One, Blessed be He, [thus], Master of the Universe, do it for the sake of these who are unable to distinguish between the Father who gives rain and the father who does not. And why was he called, Hanan ha-Nehba? Because he was wont to lock [mihabbeh] himself in the privy [out of modesty]. R. Zerika said to R. Safra [BA3]: Come and see the difference between the [so called] hard men of Palestine and the pious men of Babylonia. When the world was in need of rain the pious men of Babylonia, R. Huna [BA2 or PA4] and R. Hisda [BA3] said: Let us assemble and pray, Perhaps the Holy One, Blessed be He, may be reconciled and send rain. But the great men of Palestine, as for example, R. Jonah [PA5] the father of R. Mani [PA5], would go into his house when the world was in need of rain and say to his [family]: Get my haversack and I shall go and buy grain for a zuz. When he left his house he would go and stand in some low-lying spot, and then standing in this hidden spot, as it is written, Out of the depths have I called thee O Lord, dressed in sackcloth he prayed and rain came. When he returned home [his family] asked him, Have you brought the grain? He replied: Now that rain has come the world will feel relieved. Again his son, R. Mani [PA5], was annoyed by the members of the household of the Patriarch, he went and prostrated himself on the grave of his father and exclaimed: Father, father, these people persecute me. Once as they were passing [the grave] the knees of their horses became stiff [and remained so] until they undertook not to persecute him any longer. Again, R. Mani [PA5] used often to attend [the discourses] of R. Isaac b. Eliashab and he complained: The rich members of the family of my father-in-law are annoying me. The latter exclaimed: May they become poor! And they became poor. Later on he [R. Mani [PA5]] complained: They press me [for support] and R. Isaac [T5 or PA3] exclaimed: Let them become rich! And they became rich. [On another occasion] he complained: My wife is no longer acceptable to me. R. Isaac [T5 or PA3] thereupon asked: What is her name? He replied: Hannah. Whereupon R. Isaac [T5 or PA3] exclaimed: May Hannah become beautiful! And she became beautiful. He then complained: She is too domineering over me. Whereupon R. Isaac [T5 or PA3] exclaimed: If that is so, let Hannah revert to her [former] ugliness! And she became once again ugly.
Two disciples used to attend [the discourses of] R. Isaac b. Eliashab and they said to him, Master, pray that we may become very wise. He replied: Once I had the power to do this, but now I no longer possess this power.
R. Jose b. Abin used to attend [the discourses of] R. Jose [T4] of Yokereth. Later he left him and went to those of R. Ashi [BA6]. b.Taan.24a One day he heard him reciting a tradition that Samuel [BA1] had said: He that takes out of the sea a fish on the Sabbath, as soon as there is on it a dry spot as large as a sela, he has committed a breach of the Sabbath laws. Thereupon R. Jose b. Abin asked him: Why does not the Master add, `and between the fins`? He replied: Are you not aware that R. Jose b. Abin had [already] stated this? [The former] retorted: I am R. Jose b. Abin. Thereupon R. Ashi [BA6] enquired: Did you not frequent the discourses of R. Jose [T4] of Yokereth? He replied: Yes. R. Ashi [BA6] then asked him: Why did you leave him, Sir, and come here? He replied: How could the man who showed no mercy to his son and daughter show mercy to me? What happened to his son? Once R. Jose [T4] had day-labourers [working] in the field; night set in and no food was brought to them and they said to his son, `We are hungry`. Now they were resting under a fig tree and he exclaimed: Fig tree, fig tree, bring forth thy fruit that my father`s labourers may eat. It brought forth fruit and they ate. Meanwhile the father came and said to them, Do not bear a grievance against me; the reason for my delay is because I have been occupied up till now on an errand of charity. The labourers replied, May God satisfy you even as your son has satisfied us. Whereupon he asked: Whence? And they told him what had happened. Thereupon he said to his son: My son, you have troubled your Creator to cause the fig tree to bring forth its fruits before its time, may you too be taken hence before your time! What happened to his daughter? He had a beautiful daughter. One day he saw a man boring a hole in the fence so that he might catch a glimpse of her. He said to the man, What is [the meaning of] this? And the man answered: Master, if I am not worthy enough to marry her, may I not at least be worthy to catch a glimpse of her? Thereupon he exclaimed: My daughter, you are a source of trouble to mankind; return to the dust so that men may not sin because of you. He also had an ass. When it was hired out for the day [the people who hired it] would place, in the evening, the hire on its back and the ass would make its way home to its master. If, however, the money was too much or too little, it would not go. One day a pair of sandals were left on its back and the ass would not move until they were removed and only then did it proceed.
Whenever the collectors of charity caught sight of R. Eleazar b. Birtah they would hide themselves from him, because he was in the habit of giving away to them all that he had. One day he was going to the market to buy a trousseau for his daughter. When the collectors of charity caught sight of him they hid themselves from him. He ran after them and said to them: I adjure you, [tell me] on what mission are you engaged? And they replied: [The marriage of] an orphaned pair. He said to then: I swear, they must take precedence over my daughter. And he took all that he had and gave to them. He was left with one zuz and with this he bought wheat which he deposited in the granary. When his wife returned house she asked her daughter, What did your father bring home? She replied, He has put in the granary all that he had bought. She thereupon went to open the door of the granary and she found that it was so full of wheat that the wheat protruded through the hinges of the door-socket and the door would not open on account of this. The daughter then went to the Beth-Hamidrash and said to him [her father], Come and see what your Friend has done for you. Whereupon he said to her, l swear, they shall be to you as devoted property, and you shall have no more right to share in them than any poor person in Israel. R. Judah [T4; PA4 or PA5 in Y] the Prince ordained a fast and he prayed but no rain fell. He thereupon exclaimed: What a great difference there is between, Samuel [BA1] the Ramathite and Judah the son of Gamaliel [T1, T2 or T6]! Woe to the generation that finds itself in such plight! Woe to him in whose days this has happened. He felt very grieved and rain fell. Once the House of the Patriarch ordained a fast and did not inform either R. Johanan [PA2] or Resh Lakish [PA2]. In the morning, however, they did notify them. Resh Lakish [PA2] then said to R. Johanan [PA2], But we have not undertaken the fast on the previous evening. The latter replied: We are subject to their ordinances.
Once the House of the Patriarch ordained a fast and no rain fell. Thereupon Oshaiah, the youngest of the college scholars, expounded the verse, Then it shall be, if it be done in error by the congregation. This can be compared to a bride who lives in the house of her father. So long as her eyes are beautiful her body needs no examination; should, however, her eyes be bleared then her body needs examination. Thereupon the servants of the Patriarch came and put a scarf around his neck and tortured him. Whereupon the people of the city cried out, Leave him alone; us also he insults but since we see that whatever he does is for the sake of Heaven, we say nothing to him and we leave him alone, so you too leave him alone.
Once Rabbi [T5] ordained a fast and no rain fell. Thereupon `Ilfa (some say, R. Ilfi),[stepped down before the ark and] recited [the prayer], `He causeth the wind to blow`, and the wind blew. [He continued], `He causeth the rain to fall`, and rain fell. Rabbi [T5] then asked him, What is your special merit? He replied: I live in a poverty-stricken remote place where wine for Kiddush and Habdalah is unobtainable but I take the trouble to procure for myself wine for Kiddush and Habdalah and thus help also others to fulfil their duty. Once Rab [BA1] came to a certain place and decreed a fast but no rain fell. The Reader then stepped down at his request before the ark and recited, `He causeth the wind to blow`, and the wind blew; [he continued], `He causeth the rain to fall`, and rain fell. Rab [BA1] thereupon asked him, What is your special merit? The latter replied: I am a teacher of young children and I teach the children of the poor as well as those of the rich; I take no fees from any who cannot afford to pay; further, I have a fishpond and any boy who is reluctant [to learn] I bribe with some of the fishes from it and thereby appease him so that he becomes eager to learn. Once R. Nahman ordained a fast and he prayed but no rain fell. He thereupon said, `Take Nahman and throw him down from the wall to the ground`. He felt greatly dejected and then rain came. Rabbah [BA3] once decreed a fast. He prayed but no rain came. Thereupon the people remarked to him: When Rab Judah [BA2] ordained a fast rain did fall. He replied: What can l do? Is it because of studies? We are superior to him, because in the time of R. Judah [T4; PA4 or PA5 in Y] all studies were concentrated on b.Taan.24b Nezikin, whereas we study all the six sections. When R. Judah [T4; PA4 or PA5 in Y] reached the passage in [the Mishnah], `If a woman was preserving vegetables in a pot etc. or as some say the passage, `If olives are preserved together with their leaves then the leaves are not susceptible to uncleanness`, he exclaimed: I see here disputations of Rab [BA1] and Samuel [BA1], and yet we to-day teach `Ukkazin in thirteen different sessions. And yet when Rab Judah [BA2] removed one shoe [as a sign of humiliation] rain fell but when we cry out the whole day no one pays need to us. Is it because of some failing? If so, let any one who knows of it declare it. What, however, can the great men of a generation do when their generation does not [appear good enough to favour in the eyes of God]. Once Rab Judah [BA2] saw two men using bread wastefully and he exclaimed: It seems that there is plenty in the world. He gave an angry look and a famine arose. Thereupon the Rabbis said to R. Kahana [BA1, PA2, BA3 or BA6] the son of R. Nehunia, his attendant, You who are so constantly with him, endeavour to persuade him to go out by the door near the market place. He prevailed upon him and he went out to the market place and seeing there a large crowd he asked. What is the matter? He was told, They stand around a mass of ground dates which is on sale. Whereupon he exclaimed: It seems that there is famine in the world. He then said to his disciple: Take off my shoes. As soon as he had taken off one shoe rain fell. As he was about to take off the other Elijah appeared and said to him: The Holy One, Blessed be He, said, if you will take off the other shoe I will lay waste the world.
R. Mari the son of the daughter of Samuel [BA1] related: Once I was standing on the bank of the river Papa and I saw angels in the guise of sailors who brought sand and loaded ships with it and it turned into fine flour. When the people came to purchase [it] I called out to them: Do not buy this because it resulted from a miracle. Next day boatloads of wheat came from Perezina.
Once Raba [BA4] came to Hagrunia and ordained a fast but no rain fell. Thereupon he said to the people: Continue with your fasting overnight. Next morning he said to them: If there is any one of you who had a dream let him tell it. Thereupon R. Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3] from Hagrunia replied: To me in my dream the following was said: Good greetings to the good teacher from the good Lord who from His bounty dispenseth good to His people. Raba [BA4] then exclaimed: It seems that this is a favourable time to pray. He prayed and rain fell. Once a certain man was sentenced by the Court of Raba [BA4] to receive corporal punishment because he had intercourse with a Gentile woman. Raba [BA4] had the man punished and he died. The matter reached the ears of King Shapur and he sought to punish Raba. Whereupon Ifra Hormuz, the mother of King Shapur, said to her son, Do not interfere with the Jews because whatever they ask of their God he grants them. The king asked her, For example? They pray and rain falls [she replied]. He retorted: This must have been because it is the season for rain; let them pray now, in the Tammuz cycle for rain. She sent a message to Raba: Concentrate now your mind and pray for rain. He prayed but no rain fell. He then exclaimed: Master of the Universe, `O God, we have heard with our ears, our fathers have told us; a work Thou didst in their days, in the days of old.` But as for us we have not seen [it] with our eyes. Whereupon there followed such a heavy fall of rain that the gutters of Mahuza emptied their waters into the Tigris. Raba`s father then appeared unto him in a dream and said to him: Is there anyone who troubles Heaven so much? Change thy [sleeping] place. He changed his place and next morning he discovered that his bed had been cut with knives.
R. Papa [BA5] ordained a fast and no rain fell. As he felt faint he sipped a plateful of grits and he again prayed, but still no rain fell. Thereupon R. Nahman b. Ushpazarti said to him: If you, Sir, will sip another plateful of grits rain would fall. Raba [BA4] felt humiliated and faint, and rain fell.
R. Hanina b. Dosa [T2] was journeying on the road when it began to rain. He exclaimed: Master of the Universe, the whole world is at ease, but Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5] is in distress; the rain then ceased. When he reached home he exclaimed: Master of the Universe, the whole world is in distress and Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5] is at ease; whereupon rain fell. [With reference to this incident] R. Joseph [BA3] remarked: Of what avail was the prayer of the High Priest [on the Day of Atonement] against that of R. Hanina b. Dosa [T2]? For we have learnt: [The High Priest on the Day of Atonement] prayed a short prayer in the outer room [of the Temple]. What did he pray? Raba [BA4] son of R. Adda [BA2] and Rabin [PA3 or PA4] son of R. Adda [BA2] both said in the name of Rab Judah [BA2]: `May it be Thy will, O Lord our God, that this year may be one of rain and of heat`. Is then heat beneficial? Is it not rather something harmful? Rather [the prayer reads thus], `If the year is to be a year of heat, let it also be a year of rain and of dew, and let the prayer of those journeying on the roads gain admission before Thee.
R. Aha [PA4] the son of Raba [BA4] in the name of Rab Judah [BA2] completed the prayer as follows: `May a ruler never cease from the house of Judah and may Israel never be in need of sustenance one from another, nor from another people`. Rab Judah [BA2] said in the name of Rab: Every day a Heavenly Voice is heard declaring, The whole world draws its sustenance because [of the merit] of Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5] my son, and Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5] my son suffices himself with a kab of carobs from one Sabbath eve to another. Every Friday his wife would light the oven and throw twigs into it b.Taan.25a so as not to be put to shame. She had a bad neighbour who said,I know that these people have nothing, what then is the meaning of all this [smoke]? She went and knocked at the door. [The wife of R. Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5]] feeling humiliated [at this] retired into a room. A miracle happened and [her neighbour] saw the oven filled with loaves of bread and the kneading trough full of dough; she called out to her: You, you, bring your shovel, for your bread is getting charred; and she replied, I just went to fetch it. A Tanna taught: She actually had gone to fetch the shovel because she was accustomed to miracles. Once his wife said to him: How long shall we go on suffering so much: He replied: What shall we do?-Pray that something may be given to you, [she replied]. He prayed, and there emerged the figure of a hand reaching out to him a leg of a golden table. Thereupon he saw in a dream that the pious would one day eat at a three-legged golden table but he would eat at a two-legged table. Her husband said to her: Are you content that everybody shall eat at a perfect table and we at an imperfect table? She replied: What then shall we do? Pray that the leg should be taken away from you, [she replied]. He prayed and it was taken away. A Tanna taught: The latter miracle was greater than the former; for there is a tradition that a thing may be given but once; it is never taken away again.
Once on a Friday eve he noticed that his daughter was sad and he said to her, My daughter, why are you sad? She replied: My oilcan got mixed up with my vinegar can and I kindled of it the Sabbath light. He said to her: My daughter, Why should this trouble you? He who had commanded the oil to burn will also command the vinegar to burn. A Tanna taught: The light continued to burn the whole day until they took of it light for the Habdalah. R. Hanina b. Dosa [T2] had goats. On being told that they were doing damage he exclaimed, If they indeed do damage may bears devour them, but if not may they each of them at evening time bring home a bear on their horns. In the evening each of them brought home a bear on their horns.
Once a woman neighbour of R. Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5] was building a house but the beams would not reach the walls. She thereupon came to him and said: I have built a house but the beams will not reach the walls. He asked her: What is your name? She replied: Aiku. He thereupon exclaimed: Aiku, may your beams reach [the walls]. A Tanna taught: They projected one cubit on either side. Some say, New pieces joined themselves [miraculously] to the beams. It has been taught: Polemo says: I saw that house and its beams projected one cubit on either side, and people told me: This is the house which R. Hanina b. Dosa [T2] covered with beams, through his prayer. Whence did R. Hanina b. Dosa [T2] have goats seeing that he was poor? And furthermore, did not the Sages say: We may not rear small cattle in Palestine? R. Phinehas said: Once it happened that a man passed by his house and left there hens and the wife of R. Hanina b. Dosa [T2] found them. Her husband, however, forbade her to eat of their eggs. As the eggs and the chickens increased in number he was very troubled by them and he therefore sold them and with the proceeds he purchased goats. One day the man who lost the hens passed by [the house] again and said to his companions, Here I left my hens. R. Hanina [PA1, PA3 or PA5] overhearing this asked him: Have you any sign [by which to identify them]? He replied: Yes. He gave him the sign and took away the goats. These were the goats that brought bears on their horns.
R. Eleazar b. Pedath found himself in very great want. Once after being bled he had nothing to eat. He took the skin of garlic and put it into his mouth; he became faint and he fell asleep. The Rabbis coming to see him noticed that he was crying and laughing, and that a ray of light was radiating from his forehead. When he awoke they asked him: Why did you cry and laugh? He replied: Because the Holy One, Blessed be He, was sitting by my side and I asked Him, How long will I suffer in this world? And he replied: Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3], my son, would you rather that I should turn back the world to its very beginnings? Perhaps you might then be born at a happier hour? I replied: All this, and then only perhaps? I then asked Him, Which is the greater life, the one that I had already lived, or the one I am still to live. He replied: The one that I have already lived. I then said to Him: If so, I do not want it. He replied: As a reward for refusing it I will grant you in the next world thirteen rivers of balsam oil as clear as the Euphrates and the Tigris, which you will be able to enjoy. I asked, And nothing more? He replied: And what shall I then give to your fellow men? I said: Do I then ask the share of one who has nothing? He thereupon snapped at my forehead and exclaimed: Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3], my son, I have shot you with my arrows. R. Hama b. Hanina ordained a fast but no rain fell. People said to him: When R. Joshua b. Levi [PA1] ordained a fast rain did fall. He replied: I am I, and he is the son of Levi. Go and ask him that he may come [and pray for us] and let us concentrate on our prayer, perhaps the whole community will be contrite in heart and rain will fall. They prayed and no rain fell. He then asked them: Are you content that rain should fall on our account? They replied: Yes. He then exclaimed: heaven, heaven, cover thy face. But it did not cover [its face]. He then added: How brazen is the face of heaven! It then became covered and rain fell.
Levi ordained a fast but no rain fell. He thereupon exclaimed: Master of the Universe, Thou didst go up and take Thy Seat on high and hast no mercy upon Thy children. Rain fell but he became lame. R. Eleazar [T4 in M or PA3] said: Let a man never address himself in a reproachful manner towards God, seeing that one great man did so and he became lame, and he is Levi. But was this actually the cause [of his lameness]? Was it not rather because he demonstrated to Rabbi [T5] a particular form of prostration? Both were the cause of his lameness. R. Hiyya b. Luliani overhearing the clouds saying to one another, Come, let us take water to Ammon and Moab, exclaimed: Master of the Universe! When Thou wast about to give the Law to Thy people Israel Thou didst offer it around amongst all the nations of the world but they would not accept it, and now Thou wouldst give them rain; let them [the clouds] empty their waters here; and they emptied their waters on the spot. R. Hiyya b. Luliani expounded: What is the meaning of the verse, The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree; he shall glow like a cedar in Lebanon? If it is said, `Palm-tree` why is also said `Cedar`? And if `Cedar` why also `Palm-tree`? Had it been said, `Palm-tree` and not `Cedar` I might have argued that just in the same way b.Taan.25b as the stem of the Palm-tree does not renew itself so too the stem of the righteous, Heaven forfend, does not renew itself; therefore it is said `Cedar`. Had it been said `Cedar` and not `Palmtree`, I might have argued that just in the same way as the Cedar does not yield fruit, so too the righteous do not yield fruit; therefore it is said, `Palm-tree` and `Cedar`. But does the stem of the cedar renew itself. Surely it has been taught: If one buys a tree from his neighbour for felling he must leave of the trunk one handbreadth from the ground; of the trunk of the sycamore tree two handbreadths; of the virgin sycamore tree three handbreadths; of reeds and of vines from the knot above it; in the case, however, of date palms and cedars he may dig into the ground and uproot them because their stock does not renew itself. Here it speaks of other types of cedar trees in accordance with a statement of Rabbah b. Huna, who said: There are ten types of cedar trees, as it is said, I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia tree and the myrtle tree etc.
Our Rabbis have taught: It is related of R. Eliezer [T2 or T5] that he ordained thirteen fasts upon the community and no rain fell. In the end, as the people began to depart [from the synagogue], he exclaimed: Have you prepared graves for yourselves? Thereupon the people sobbed loudly and rain fell.
It is further related of R. Eliezer [T2 or T5] that once he stepped down before the Ark and recited the twenty-four benedictions [for fast days] and his prayer was not answered. R. Akiba [T3] stepped down after him and exclaimed: Our Father, our King, we have no King but Thee; our Father, our King, for Thy sake have mercy upon us; and rain fell. The Rabbis present suspected [R. Eliezer [T2 or T5]], whereupon a Heavenly Voice was heard proclaiming.[The prayer of] this man [R. Akiba [T3]] was answered not because he is greater than the other man, but because he is ever forbearing and the other is not. Our Rabbis have taught: How long should it continue to rain to warrant the community breaking their fast? [Until the rain has penetrated] as far as the knee of the plough enters the soil; this is the opinion of R. Meir [T4]. The Sages, however, say: In the case of arid soil one handbreadth, in the case of moderately soft soil two handbreadths, and in the case of cultivated soil three handbreadths. It has been taught: R. Simeon b. Eliezer says: Not a handbreadth of rain coming down from above but that the deep with three handbreadths comes up from below to meet it. But has it not been taught: Two handbreadths? There is no contradiction. In the one case it is cultivated soil, and in the other it is not.
R. Eliezer [T2 or T5] said: When on the Feast of Tabernacles the water libations are carried out, Deep says to Deep, `Let thy waters spring forth, I hear the voice of two friends`, as it is said, Deep calleth unto Deep at the voice of Thy cataracts etc. Rabbah [BA3] said: I myself have seen Ridya. who resembles a three years` old heifer, with its lips parted; he stands between the lower deep and the upper deep; to the upper deep he says. `Distil thy waters`, and to the lower deep he says. `Let thy waters spring forth`, as it is said, The flowers appear on the earth etc.
if whilst they are fasting rain falls, if it is before sunrise etc. Our Rabbis have taught: If whilst they are fasting rain falls, if it is before sunrise they need not complete the fast; if it is after sunrise they must complete it; this is the opinion of R. Meir [T4]. R. Judah [T4; PA4 or PA5 in Y] says: If before midday they need not complete the fast, if after midday they must complete it. R. Jose [T4] says: If before the ninth hour they need not complete the fast, if after the ninth hour they must complete it For thus we find it in the case of Ahab, King of Israel, that he fasted from the ninth hour onwards, as it is said, Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me etc. R. Judah [T4; PA4 or PA5 in Y] the Prince ordained a fast and rain fell after sunrise. He was of the opinion that the people should complete the fast. Said R. Ammi [PA3] to him: We have learnt: [There is a difference] between before midday and after midday. Samuel [BA1] the Little ordained a fast and rain fell before sunrise. The people thought that it was due to the merit of the community, whereupon he said to them: I will quote you a parable. This can be compared to a servant who asked his master for a gratuity and the master exclaimed, Give it to him, and let me not hear his voice.
Another time Samuel [BA1] the Little ordained a fast and rain fell after sunset. The people thought that it was due to the merit of the community. whereupon Samuel [BA1] exclaimed: I will quote you a parable. This can be compared to a servant who asked his master for a gratuity and the master exclaimed, Keep him waiting until he is made submissive and is distressed, and then give him his gratuity. According to Samuel [BA1] the Little, what would be an instance of rain falling on account of the merit of the community? If they recited [the prayer]. `He causeth the wind to blow`, and the wind blew, and if they recited, `He causeth the rain to fail, and rain fell. It happened that the Rabbis ordained a fast in lydia etc. Should they not have recited the Hallel first? Abaye [BA4] and Raba [BA4] explained this to be because the Hallel is recited b.Taan.26a only when the appetite is satisfied and the stomach is full? Is that so? Did not R. Papa [BA5] on one occasion when coming to the synagogue at Abi-Cobar ordain a fast and rain fell before midday and yet he first recited the Hallel and only after that the people ate and drank! It is different with the people of Mahuza, because drunkenness is frequent amongst them.

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