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POINT BY POINT SUMMARY

by Rabbi Ephraim Becker
Kollel Iyun Hadaf, Yerushalayim
Rosh Kollel: Rabbi Mordecai Kornfeld


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Pesachim 94

Pesachim 81 - 95: We are grateful to Mr. Mark Frankel of Queens, N.Y. for suggesting the idea of "Point by Point Summaries" and sponsoring its initial two weeks -- Tizkeh l'Mitzvos!

1) THE ROLES OF DISTANCE AND DIFFICULTY

(a) If he was past Modi'in, and he could arrive by means of special rushing, he is considered a distance away, and is Patur.
(b) If he was caught in traffic, but closer than Modi'in, he is considered within range and he would be Chayav.
2) COSMIC CALCULATIONS
(a) [Rava] The world is 6000 Parsah and the sky is 1000 Parsah thick.
(b) The former is a tradition [Rabah b.b. Chana in the name of R. Yochanan]; the latter is deduced.
(c) R. Yochanan calculated how far an average person can walk in a day (10 Parsah=40 Milin) and Rava applied it as follows:
1. From Alos to Netz (as well as from Shkiya to Tzetz) a person walks five Milin.
2. The sun travels 6000 Parsah while the person walks 30 Milin.
3. Thus the sun travels 1000 Parsah (the thickness of the sky) while the person walks five Milin (from Shkiya to Tzetz).
(d) Question: But the Bereisa [R. Yehudah] teaches that the thickness of the sky is 1/10 of the day, not 1/6!?
(e) Answer: This refutes Rava, and it *also* refutes Ula!
(f) Question: Does this not also refute R. Yochanan?
(g) Answer: R. Yochanan only calculated the total distance an average person walks in a day, Rabah make the [erroneous] subdivisions. (h) Question: This should refute R. Chanina (93b) as well?!
(i) Answer: There the angels were rushing Lot (more than average).
(j) Question #1: The world must be larger than 6000 Parsah!
1. The Bereisa teaches that Mitzrayim is 400x400 Parsah
2. Which is 1/60th of Kush,
3. Which is 1/60th of the world (*>6000 Parsah!*),
4. Which is 1/60th of the Gan, which is 1/60th of Eden,
5. Which is 1/60th of Gehinom (the world is but a small "cover"of Gehinom).
(k) Question #2: We were taught that all the inhabitable land is under one star (as evidenced by the unchanging angle to the star from any point of habitation), indicating a much larger world!
(l) Question #3: The earth is between two constellations, and the world represents but one hour of the day (the sun passing over the width of the Earth).
94b---------------------------------------94b

(m) Question #4: The Bas Kol told the wicked man how outrageous is his boast that he will rise up to the Heavens (given the brief span of a person's life), indicating the great expanse of the cosmos, far larger than Rava indicated.
3) THE MOVEMENT OF THE COSMOS
(a) The Chachamim maintain that the Galgal is stationary while the Mazalos revolve, as opposed to the non-Jewish scholars who maintain the reverse.
(b) [Rebbi] The Gentiles may be refuted from the fact that certain constellations remain constant in their position in the sky.
(c) Question: Perhaps this is due to the cosmos being like a pivot of a millstone or a door socket?
4) THE MOVEMENT OF THE SUN
(a) The Chachamim maintain that the sun travels beneath the sky by day and above the sky by night, while the non-Jewish scholars maintain that it travels below the earth at night.
(b) [Rebbi] The non-Jews seem correct as indicated by the wells.
(c) In the summer the sun travels in the heights of the heaven (air is hot and the wells are cold) and at a lower sky in the winter (thus the air is cold and the wells are hot).
(d) The sun provides four climates for specific purposes:
1. Nisan-Sivan it travels over the mountains to melt the snows.
2. Tamuz-Elul over the habitation to ripen the fruits.
3. Tishrei-Kislev over the seas to dry up the rivers.
4. Teves-Adar over deserts to avoid drying the seeds.
5) ONE WHO WAS BY THE THRESHOLD
(a) We do not tell (the one who is so close to the Azarah) to enter.
(b) Question: But R. Eliezer taught that we *do* tell an Arel to get a Milah!
(c) Answer #1: [Abaye] The exemptions are different.
(d) Answer #2: [Rava] It (telling him to go in) is a Machlokes Tana'im (within the opinion of R. Eliezer).
1. [Tana Kama] Richuk Makom refers to the boundaries of eating.
2. [R. Yosi] It refers to outside the place of its sacrifice.
(e) Question: Like which opinion does R. Yitzhok subscribe? (He taught that we calculate the majority/minority being Tamei/Tahor based on those in the Azarah.)
(f) Answer: Like R. Yosi.
6) R. YOSI HAGLILI
(a) R. Yosi holds that Derech Rechokah would normally refer to a distance of two or three days.
(b) The words "Uv'Derech Lo Hayah" teach that the boundary is the threshold of the Azarah.
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