Babylonian Talmud

Rodkinson 1918 — source 2, scan section 34

TRACT SABBATH. 273 Rabbi did not order them to act, but merely to think. R, Johanan, however, said, that Rabbi ordered his disciples to act. And what, according to R. Johanan's opinion, were the disciples to do ? R. Ami said, that Rabbi ordered them to place the stones in position for them to sit on, but R. Assi said, that Rabbi ordered them not only to place the stones in position, but also to clean them (because, in the latter's opinion, changing the position of an object does not constitute an actual deed). It was taught : R. Jose b. Saul said it was not stones but a pile of building wood. R. Johanan b. Saul, however, said it was not building wood but poles with which the depth of the water is sounded. One may dip water with a hollow pumpkin to which a vine- branch is fastened." If it is fastened one may, and if not, one may not. Shall we assume that our Mishna is not in accordance with the opinion of R. Simeon ben Gamaliel? as we have learned in a Boraitha : Branches of a tree which were intended for kind- ling, if subsequently used for sitting purposes, must be tied together, but R. Simeon ben Gamaliel said, they need not be tied together.* Said R. Ashi : It may be said, that this Mishna is not at variance with the opinion of R. Simeon ben Gamaliel, but is merely a precautionary measure, for fear that a branch, being brittle, ^night be broken by the man if not tied together. ''For a window-blind,'' etc. Rabba bar bar Hana in the name of R. Johanan said : All agree that it is not permitted to put up even a temporary tent t to begin with on a biblical festi- val, and decidedly not on the Sabbath, but as for adding (that is, if part of the blind was already up) a blind to a temporary tent that had already been put up, R. Eliezer said, that it is not permissible on a festival and much less so on the Sabbath, and the sages declare, that it is permitted on the Sabbath and so much the more on a festival. The sages say it may be put up in any mamter. ' ' What is meant by " in any manner " ? Said R. Aba in the name of R. Kahana: " By that is meant, that it makes no difference whether the blind was fastened or not, providing it was prepared for its purpose since the day before." Said R. Jeremiah to him: Compare page 90, in this tract. f By a temporary tent, says Rashi, is meant principally a sheet put up on four poles to serve as a roof, but screens on the sides are not considered a tent. The putting up of a window-blind in a building, however, is regarded by R. Eliezer as ao addition to the building. 274 THE BABYLONIAN TALMUD. " Why wouldst thou assume that the sages would be more lenient in this matter ? Say rather that they meant to state, that it made no difference whether the blind hung down or not, providing it had been previously fastened." R. Aba answered: " Because I hold with the Tana of the following Tosephta: A stick, prepared by the master of a house for the opening and locking of a door, may be used on Sabbath, providing it was fastened and hung to the door; otherwise, it must not be used. R. Simeon ben Gamaliel, however, declared, that as long as it was prepared for that purpose, it was of no consequence whether it was fastened and hung to the door." (Thus it may be seen that R. Aba held with R. Simeon ben Gamaliel.) R. Jehudah bar Silas in the name of R. Assi, quoting R. Johanan, said: "The Halakha according to R. Simeon ben Gamaliel prevails." Did R. Johanan say this in reality ? Have we not learned in a Mishna, that all covers of vessels having handles attached may be handled on Sabbath? Referring to this, R. Jehudah b. Shila in the name of R. Assi, quoting R. Johanan, said, that such would be the case only if the covers could be made use of as independent vessels. (How, then, can R. Johanan hold with R. Simeon ben Gamaliel, who says, that the stick which was not fastened to the door may be used on Sab- bath, surely it is not an independent vessel ?) Shall we assume, that R. Johanan holds with R. Simeon ben Gamaliel only in the case where the stick could also be used for other purposes and thus could be called an independent vessel? Then how can it be said that R. Johanan holds with R. Simeon ben Gamaliel, for the latter does not require the stick to be an independent vessel, as we have learned above in the matter of the branches (see page 273), where R. Simeon ben Gamaliel declares, that they need not be tied together? R. Johanan is in accordance with him only in the matter of the stick being prepared for its par- ticular purpose without being fastened to the door, but disa- grees with him as regards an independent vessel. R. Itz'hak of Naph'ha* proclaimed at the door of the Exij^rch's house, that the Halakha according to R. Eliezer pre- vailed. R. Amram raised an objection: " We have learned in the last Mishna of this Tract as follows : ' Thence we learn that it is permitted to put up a window-blind, to measure and to tie on the Sabbath.' " (How, then, could R. Itz'hak say, that the * See note to page 96, in this tract. TRACT SABBATH. 275 Halakha according to R. EHezer prevailed ?) Said Abayi to him: Upon what is thy objection concerning R. Itz'hak based ? The Mishna just mentioned gives the opinion of the sages only, v.ho are at variance with R. Eliezer in our Mishna, and thou mightst say, that because no contention is mentioned, the Halakha according to the sages prevails; then thou knowest of another Mishna (in Erubin), concerning the hinge of a cupboard door, no name is mentioned, and still the Mishna appears to be in accordance with the opinion of R. Eliezer only (thus R. Itz'hak can accept R. Eliezer's opinion). Saith the Gemara: (Although Abayi justified R. Itz'hak) an act of the sages (as is related in the last-mentioned Mishna) is sufficiently decisive to establish the Halakha. MISHNA: All lids of utensils maybe removed (on the Sab- bath), provided they have handles. Said R. Jose : What does this apply to ? To lids of vessels fastened in the ground, but lids of vessels in general may be removed at all events. GEMARA: Said R. Jehudah bar Shila in the name of R. Assi, quoting R. Johanan : " The lids of utensils may be handled only if they can be made use of for other purposes as independent vessels." Saith the Gemara: "All agree, that cov- ers of utensils (fixtures) fixed in the ground must be handled only if they have handles attached, and lids of other utensils not fixed in the ground may be handled even if they have no handles, but the point of the divergent opinions is as regards the covers of ovens, the one side contending, that ovens must be regarded as fixtures in the ground and the other side con- tending that they are ordinary utensils." CHAPTER XVIII.