Pesachim 112

דמסוכר ולא משי ידיה מפחיד שבעה יומי דשקיל מזייה ולא משי ידיה מפחיד תלתא יומי דשקיל טופריה ולא משי ידיה מפחיד חד יומא ולא ידע מאי קא מפחיד ידא אאוסיא דרגא לפחדא ידא אפותא דרגא לשינתא

One who lets blood and does not wash his hands will be afraid for seven days. One who cuts his hair and does not wash his hands will be afraid for three days. One who cuts his nails and does not wash his hands will be afraid for one day, and he will not know what is frightening him. Placing one’s hand on his nostrils is a way to become afraid. Placing one’s hand on his forehead is a way to fall asleep.

תנא אוכלין ומשקין תחת המטה אפילו מחופין בכלי ברזל רוח רעה שורה עליהן תנו רבנן לא ישתה אדם מים לא בלילי רביעיות ולא בלילי שבתות ואם שתה דמו בראשו מפני סכנה מאי סכנה רוח רעה

A Sage taught: If food and drink are under one’s bed, even if they are covered with iron vessels, an evil spirit rests upon them. The Sages taught: A person should not drink water on Tuesday nights or on Shabbat nights, i.e., Friday nights. And if he drinks water, his blood is upon his own head, due to the danger. The Gemara asks: What is this danger? The Gemara answers: The danger of the evil spirit that rules on these days.

ואם צחי מאי תקנתיה (נימא) שבעה קולות שאמר דוד על המים והדר נישתי שנאמר קול ה׳ על המים אל הכבוד הרעים ה׳ על מים רבים קול ה׳ בכח קול ה׳ בהדר קול ה׳ שובר ארזים וישבר ה׳ את ארזי הלבנון קול ה׳ חוצב להבות אש קול ה׳ יחיל מדבר יחיל ה׳ מדבר קדש קול ה׳ יחולל אילות ויחשוף יערות ובהיכלו כולו אומר כבוד

The Gemara asks: And if he is thirsty, what is his remedy? What should he drink? The Gemara answers: He should say the seven voices that David said over the water, and afterward he may drink. As it is stated: “The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; God of glory thunders, even the Lord upon many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. He makes them also skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the Lord hews out flames of fire. The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord makes the hinds to calve, and strips the forests bare; and in His temple all say: Glory” (Psalms 29:3–9).

ואי לא (נימא) הכי לול שפן אניגרון אנירדפין בין כוכבי יתיבנא בין בליעי שמיני אזילנא ואי לא אי איכא איניש בהדיה ניתעריה ולימא ליה פלניא בר פלנתא צחינא מיא והדר נישתי ואי לא מקרקש נכתמא אחצבא והדר נישתי ואי לא נישדי בה מידי והדר נישתי

And if he does not remember that verse, he should say as follows: Lul, Shafan, Anigron, Anirdafin, which are names of demons, I sit between the stars, I walk between thin and fat people, take any of them if you wish but leave me alone. And if he does not recall this incantation, if there is another person with him, he should wake him and say to him: So-and-so, son of so-and-so, I thirst for water; and then he may drink. And if there is no other person with him, he should knock the cover on the cup and then drink. And if he is not able to do this, he should throw some object in it and then drink.

תנו רבנן לא ישתה אדם מים לא מן הנהרות ולא מן האגמים בלילה ואם שתה דמו בראשו מפני הסכנה מאי סכנה סכנת שברירי ואי צחי מאי תקנתיה אי איכא איניש בהדיה לימא ליה פלניא בר פלנתא צחינא מיא ואי לא (נימא) איהו לנפשיה פלניא אמרה לי אימי איזדהר משברירי שברירי ברירי רירי ירי רי צחינא מיא בכסי חיורי:

The Sages taught: A person should not drink water from rivers or from ponds at night. And if he drank, his blood is upon his own head due to the danger. The Gemara explains: What is this danger? The danger of blindness. The Gemara asks: And if he is thirsty, what is his remedy? If there is another person with him, he should say to him: So-and-so, son of so-and-so, I thirst for water. And if there is no one else with him, he should say to himself: So-and-so, my mother said to me to beware of shavrirei, the demon of blindness. He should continue to say the following incantation, in the first part of which the demon’s name gradually disappears: Shavrirei berirei rirei yiri ri; I thirst for water in white earthenware cups. This is an incantation against those demons.

ואפילו מן התמחוי וכו׳: פשיטא

The Gemara returns to the statement of the mishna that on Passover one must drink no less than four cups of wine: And this halakha applies even if the poor person accepts funds from the charity plate. The Gemara asks: It is obvious that this is the case. If there is a mitzva to drink these four cups, they must be provided for him.

לא נצרכא אלא אפילו לרבי עקיבא דאמר עשה שבתך חול ואל תצטרך לבריות הכא משום פרסומי ניסא (מודי)

The Gemara answers: The mishna is necessary only to teach that this halakha applies even according to the opinion of Rabbi Akiva, who said: Make your Shabbat like an ordinary weekday and do not be beholden to other beings. If one is unable to honor Shabbat without financial help from others, it is better for him to save money and eat his Shabbat meals as he would on a weekday rather than rely on other people. Here, in the case of the four cups, Rabbi Akiva concedes that it is appropriate for a poor person to request assistance from the community, due to the obligation to publicize the miracle.

תנא דבי אליהו אף על פי שאמר רבי עקיבא עשה שבתך חול ואל תצטרך לבריות אבל עושה הוא דבר מועט בתוך ביתו מאי נינהו אמר רב פפא כסא דהרסנא כדתנן רבי יהודה בן תימא אומר הוי עז כנמר וקל כנשר רץ כצבי וגבור כארי לעשות רצון אביך שבשמים

With regard to this issue, the school of Eliyahu taught that although Rabbi Akiva said: Make your Shabbat like a weekday and do not be beholden to other beings; however, one should nevertheless perform some small alteration in his house to distinguish Shabbat from a weekday. The Gemara asks: What is this alteration? Rav Pappa said: For example, one should serve small, fried fish. As we learned in a mishna: Rabbi Yehuda ben Teima says: Be bold like a leopard, light like an eagle, run like a deer, and be strong like a lion to perform the will of your Father in Heaven. This statement teaches that one should exert every effort to perform a mitzva.

תנו רבנן שבעה דברים צוה רבי עקיבא את רבי יהושע בנו בני אל תשב בגובהה של עיר ותשנה ואל תדור בעיר שראשיה תלמידי חכמים

The Gemara cites the full source of Rabbi’s Akiva statement with regard to Shabbat preparations. The Sages taught: Rabbi Akiva commanded Rabbi Yehoshua, his son, about seven matters: My son, do not sit at the high point of a city, where many people pass, and study there, as the passersby will interrupt you. And do not live in a city whose leaders are Torah scholars, as they are too busy studying to govern properly.

ואל תכנס לביתך פתאום כל שכן לבית חבירך ואל תמנע מנעלים מרגליך השכם ואכול בקיץ מפני החמה ובחורף מפני הצינה ועשה שבתך חול ואל תצטרך לבריות והוי משתדל עם אדם שהשעה משחקת לו

Rabbi Akiva continued: And do not enter your house suddenly, without knocking first; all the more so do not enter the house of another, as he might not be ready to receive you. And do not withhold shoes from your feet, as it is disgraceful to go barefoot. Wake up and eat, in the summer due to the heat, as it is best to eat before it grows hot, and in the winter due to the strength you will need to tolerate the cold. And make your Shabbat like a weekday and do not be beholden to other beings. And exert yourself to join together with a person upon whom the hour smiles, i.e., a successful person.

אמר רב פפא לא למיזבן מיניה ולא לזבוני ליה אלא למעבד שותפות בהדיה והשתא דאמר רב שמואל בר יצחק מאי דכתיב מעשה ידיו ברכת כל הנוטל פרוטה מאיוב מתברך אפילו למיזבן מיניה ולזבוני ליה שפיר דמי

Rav Pappa said in explanation of this last statement: Do not buy from him and do not sell to him. If he is the beneficiary of good fortune, he will profit from any business transaction and you will suffer from it. Rather, form a partnership with him. And now we have heard that Rav Shmuel bar Yitzḥak said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “You have blessed the work of his hands” (Job 1:10)? This means that anyone who took a peruta from Job would be blessed, even if he received it via a business transaction. This shows that one should engage in business with a person who is blessed, for even if he wishes to buy from him or to sell to him it is well, i.e., he will share in the good fortune of the other.

חמשה דברים צוה רבי עקיבא את רבי שמעון בן יוחי כשהיה חבוש בבית האסורין אמר לו רבי למדני תורה אמר איני מלמדך אמר לו אם אין אתה מלמדני אני אומר ליוחי אבא ומוסרך למלכות אמר לו בני יותר ממה שהעגל רוצה לינק פרה רוצה להניק אמר לו ומי בסכנה והלא עגל בסכנה

The Gemara continues to cite similar advice dispensed by Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Akiva commanded Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai to do five matters when Rabbi Akiva was imprisoned. Beforehand, Rabbi Shimon said to him: Rabbi, teach me Torah. Rabbi Akiva said to him: I will not teach you, as it is dangerous to do so at the present time. Rabbi Shimon said to him in jest: If you will not teach me, I will tell Yoḥai my father, and he will turn you over to the government. In other words, I have no means of persuading you; you are already in prison. Rabbi Akiva said: My son, know that more than the calf wishes to suck, the cow wants to suckle, but I am afraid of the danger. Rabbi Shimon said to him: And who is in danger? Isn’t the calf in danger, as you are in jail and I am the one at risk?

אמר לו אם בקשת ליחנק היתלה באילן גדול וכשאתה מלמד את בנך למדהו בספר מוגה מאי היא אמר רבא ואיתימא רב משרשיא בחדתא שבשתא כיון דעל על

Rabbi Akiva said to him: If so, I will tell you a few matters. First of all, if you wish to strangle yourself, hang yourself on a tall tree. This proverb means that if one wants others to accept what he has to say, he should attribute his statement to a great man. And when you teach your son, teach him from a corrected text. The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of that statement? Rava said, and some say Rav Mesharshiya said: Rabbi Akiva was referring to learning a new topic, for once a mistake enters one’s mind, it has entered there and is difficult to put right.

לא תבשל בקדירה שבישל בה חבירך מאי ניהו גרושה בחיי בעלה דאמר מר גרוש שנשא גרושה ארבע דעות במטה ואי בעית אימא אפילו באלמנה לפי

Rabbi Akiva further told Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: Do not cook in a pot in which your colleague cooked his food. The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of this statement? The Gemara explains: Rabbi Akiva is referring to marrying a divorced woman in the lifetime of her former husband. As the Master said: If a divorced man marries a divorced woman, there are four minds in the bed during intimacy. Each person thinks about his current and former spouse, which verges on illegitimacy. And if you wish, say instead that this advice holds true even with regard to marrying a widow, as

שאין כל אצבעות שוות

not all fingers are equal. It is possible that intimate relations with her second husband might not be as pleasing as with the first, leading her to disparage and even hate him.

מצוה וגוף גדול אוכל פירות ולא שכר מצוה וגוף טהור נושא אשה ולו בנים

Rabbi Akiva continued to offer instruction: It is a mitzva and a great material benefit to one’s body to eat fruits without payment. That is, when one lends money and takes land as collateral, deducting from the loan the value of the fruit he eats, both the borrower and the lender benefit from this practice. One who both performs a mitzva and retains a pure body is one who marries a woman, as his thoughts will remain pure and he will merit to have children.

ארבעה דברים צוה רבינו הקדוש את בניו אל תדור בשכנציב משום דליצני הוו ומשכו לך בליצנותא

The Gemara cites more instructions issued by a Sage to his heirs. Our holy rabbi, Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, commanded his sons to do four matters: Do not live in Shekhantziv in Babylonia, because they are mockers. And they will draw you in to their mockery and lead you to abandon your Torah studies.

ואל תשב על מטת ארמית איכא דאמרי דלא תיגני בלא קרית שמע ואיכא דאמרי דלא תינסב גיורתא

Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi further commanded his sons: Do not sit on the bed of an Aramean woman. This advice is explained in different ways. Some say it means that you should not go to sleep without reciting Shema, as a Jew who does this acts like a gentile. And some say it means that you should not marry a convert, i.e., a Jewish woman who was once an Aramean.

ואיכא דאמרי ארמאית ממש ומשום מעשה דרב פפא

And some say that Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi meant the actual bed of an Aramean woman, and this is due to the concern for a similar outcome to the later incident involving Rav Pappa. The incident in question was as follows: Rav Pappa entered the house of a gentile woman to collect a debt. The woman asked him to sit on her bed until she brought the money. As it turned out, she had placed her dead baby under the bed. Rav Pappa was subsequently accused of killing the baby and was forced to flee the district.

ואל תבריח עצמך מן המכס דילמא משכחו לך ושקלי מנך כל דאית לך ואל תעמוד בפני השור בשעה שעולה מן האגם מפני שהשטן מרקד בין קרניו אמר רבי שמואל בשור שחור וביומי ניסן

Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi continued: And do not avoid paying taxes, lest they find you and confiscate everything you own. And do not stand before an ox when it emerges from the marsh because Satan dances between its horns, i.e., an ox is particularly menacing at that time. Rabbi Shmuel said: This is referring to a black ox, and specifically during the days of Nisan, when the ox is most dangerous.

תני רב אושעיא מרחיקין משור תם חמשים אמה משור מועד כמלא עיניו

Rav Oshaya teaches with regard to the same issue: One distances himself fifty cubits from an innocuous ox [shor tam], an ox with no consistent history of causing damage with the intent to injure. From a forewarned ox [shor muad], an ox whose owner was forewarned because his ox already gored a person three times, one distances himself until it is beyond eyeshot.

תנא משמיה דרבי מאיר ריש תורא בדיקולא סק לאיגרא ושדי דרגא מתותך אמר רב ניזהא דתורא הן הן ניזהא דאריה זה זה ניזהא דגמלא דא דא ניזהא דארבא הילני הייא הילא והילוק הוליא

A Sage taught citing the name of Rabbi Meir, in an exaggerated vein: Even if the head of the ox is in its food basket, go up to the roof and kick the ladder out from underneath you to escape from it. Rav said: The cry that one says to lead an ox is hen hen. The cry to lead a lion is zeh zeh. The cry to lead a camel is da da. The cry to laborers using ropes to pull a ship along a river is heleni, hayya, hela, vehilook, hulya.

אמר אביי עור דג וכוס חמין וביצים וכנים לבנים כולן קשין לדבר אחר עור מאן דגני אמשכא דצלא דג שיבוטא ביומי ניסן כוס שיורי כסא דהרסנא חמין חמימי דחמימי משדרו עילויה ביצים מאן דמדרך אקליפים כינים לבנים מאן דמחוור לבושיה ולא נטיר ליה תמניא יומי והדר לבוש לה בריין הנך כינים וקשין לדבר אחר

Abaye said: Hide, fish, and a cup, hot water, and eggs, and white lice all cause the other matter, i.e., leprosy. The Gemara elaborates: Hide is referring to one who sleeps on a tanner’s hide before it has been tanned. Fish is referring to the shibuta fish in the days of Nisan. The cup is referring to one who eats the leftovers of small fried fish. Hot water is referring to very hot water that one pours on himself. Eggs means one who steps on eggshells. White lice is referring to one who washes his garment but does not keep it for eight days before wearing it again, a habit which creates these lice. And all of these practices cause the other matter, leprosy.

אמר רב פפא ביתא דאית ביה שונרא לא ניעול בה איניש בלא מסני מאי טעמא משום דשונרא קטיל לחיויא ואכיל ליה ואית ביה בחיויא גרמי קטיני ואי יתיב לה גרמא דחיויא אכרעיה לא נפיק ואסתכן ליה איכא דאמרי ביתא דלית ביה שונרא לא ניעול ביה איניש בהכרא מאי טעמא דילמא מיכריך ביה חויא ולא ידע ומסתכן

Rav Pappa said: With regard to a house in which there is a cat, a person should not enter there barefoot. What is the reason? Because the cat might kill a snake and eat it, and the snake has small bones, and if a small bone gets into one’s foot it cannot be removed, and he will be in danger. Some say that Rav Pappa said: With regard to a house in which there is no cat, a person should not enter there in the dark. What is the reason? Since there is no cat to hunt snakes, perhaps a snake will wrap itself around him without him knowing and he will be in danger.

שלשה דברים צוה רבי ישמעאל ברבי יוסי את רבי (מקש סימן) אל תעש מום בעצמך מאי היא לא תיהוי לך דינא בהדי תלתא דחד הוי בעל דינך ותרי סהדי ואל תעמוד על המקח בשעה שאין לך דמים

Rabbi Yishmael, son of Rabbi Yosei, commanded Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi with regard to three matters. Parenthetically, the Gemara states that mem, kuf, shin is a mnemonic for the three statements, as it stands for mum, blemish, mekaḥ, a purchase, and ishtekha, your wife. The first matter is: Do not inflict a blemish upon yourself. The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of that statement? The Gemara explains: Do not have a court case against three people, as one will be your opponent and two will act as witnesses and testify against you whatever they wish. And do not stand over and display interest in a purchase when you do not have enough money even for the price you are offering, as this constitutes fraud.

אשתך טבלה אל תזקק לה לילה הראשונה אמר רב ובנדה דאורייתא הואיל והוחזק מעין פתוח דילמא משכה זיבה

The Gemara cites the third instruction that Rabbi Yishmael, son of Rabbi Yosei, commanded Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi. After your wife has immersed, do not engage in intimacy with her on the first night. Rather, wait an additional night. Rav said: And this is referring to a menstruating woman whose status applies by Torah law. According to Torah law, even if a woman experiences a continuous emission of blood for seven days, if the flow stops on the seventh day, she may immerse that night and engage in relations with her husband without delay. However, Rav maintains that one must act stringently in this case. His reasoning is: Since there is a presumption that the flow of blood is open, perhaps her zava blood will continue afterward, i.e., she will see more blood after engaging in intimacy.

שלשה דברים צוה רבי יוסי ברבי יהודה את רבי אל תצא יחידי בלילה ואל תעמוד בפני הנר ערום ואל תכנס למרחץ חדש שמא תפחת עד כמה אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי עד שנים עשר חדש ואל תעמוד בפני הנר ערום דתניא העומד בפני הנר ערום הוי נכפה והמשמש מטתו לאור הנר הויין לו בנים נכפין

The Gemara continues: Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Yehuda, commanded Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi with regard to three matters: Do not go out alone at night; do not stand naked before a candle; and do not enter a new bathhouse, lest it collapse when they light the fire beneath it. The Gemara asks: Until when is a bathhouse considered new? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Until twelve months have passed. With regard to the statement: And do not stand naked before a candle, the Gemara comments that this is as it was taught in a baraita: One who stands naked before a candle will become epileptic, and one who engages in intimacy by candlelight will have epileptic children.

תנו רבנן המשמש מטתו על מטה שתינוק ישן עליה אותו תינוק נכפה ולא אמרן אלא דלא הוי בר שתא אבל הוי בר שתא לית לן בה ולא אמרן אלא דגני להדי כרעיה אבל גני להדי רישיה לית לן בה ולא אמרן אלא דלא מנח ידיה עילויה אבל מנח ידיה עילויה לית לן בה

Likewise, the Sages taught: One who engages in intimacy in a bed upon which a baby is sleeping, that child becomes epileptic. And we said that this will occur only if the child is not yet one year old; however, if he is one year old we have no problem with it, as he is old enough not to be affected. And furthermore, we said this only concerning a baby that is sleeping near the father’s feet; but if the baby is sleeping near his head he is sufficiently far away so that we have no problem with it. And we said this only if he does not place his hand on the baby at the time, but if he places his hands on the baby to serve as a barrier between them, we have no problem with it.

אל תצא יחידי בלילה דתניא לא יצא יחידי בלילה לא בלילי רביעיות ולא בלילי שבתות מפני שאגרת בת מחלת היא ושמונה עשרה רבוא של מלאכי חבלה יוצאין וכל אחד ואחד יש לו רשות לחבל בפני עצמו

With regard to the instruction: Do not go out alone at night, the Gemara states that this is as it was taught in a baraita: One should not go out alone at night, neither on Tuesday nights nor on Shabbat nights, i.e., Friday nights, because the demon Agrat, daughter of Maḥalat, she and 180,000 angels of destruction go out at these times. And as each and every one of them has permission to destroy by itself, they are all the more dangerous when they go forth together.

מעיקרא הוו שכיחי כולי יומא זמנא חדא פגעה ברבי חנינא בן דוסא אמרה ליה אי לאו דמכרזן עלך ברקיע הזהרו בחנינא ובתורתו סכנתיך אמר לה אי חשיבנא ברקיע גוזר אני עליך שלא תעבורי ביישוב לעולם אמרה ליה במטותא מינך שבק לי רווחא פורתא שבק לה לילי שבתות ולילי רביעיות

The Gemara states: Initially, these demons were present every day. Once Agrat, daughter of Maḥalat, met Rabbi Ḥanina ben Dosa and said to him: Had they not announced about you in the Heavens: Be careful of Ḥanina and his Torah, I would have placed you in danger. He said to her: If I am considered important in Heaven, I decree upon you that you should never travel through inhabited places. She said to him: I beg you, leave me a little space. He left for her Shabbat nights and Tuesday nights.

ותו חדא זמנא פגעה ביה באביי אמרה ליה אי לאו דמכרזי עלך ברקיע הזהרו בנחמני ובתורתו הוה סכנתיך אמר לה אי חשיבנא ברקיע גוזרני עלייכי שלא תעבורי ביישוב לעולם הא קא חזינן דעברה אמרי הני

And furthermore, once Agrat, daughter of Maḥalat met Abaye and said to him: Had they not announced about you in the Heavens: Be careful of Naḥmani, Abaye, and his Torah, I would have placed you in danger. He said to her: If I am considered important in Heaven, I decree upon you that you should never pass through inhabited places. The Gemara asks: But we see that, notwithstanding these anecdotes, demons do pass through inhabited areas. The Sages say in explanation: These demons