What is the time range in which one can say the prayer of Shema at night? Why did the mishna start in mid topic? Why with the night prayer and not the morning prayer of Shema? Why did they describe the time based on an action and not in a time frame connected to the…

Rabbi Eliezer says one can say shema until the end of the first watch. How many watches were there? Three or four? What are signs of each watch? Rabbi Yosi went into a ruin and prayed. Eliyahu Hanavi rebukes him for doing that. What are the three reasons why people can’t go into a ruin?…

Did Moshe and King David really not know when it was midnight? It seems that they did know. If so, why did Moshe say “around midnight” and what was the need to David’s harp? How was David different from other kings? How did he repsond when Mefiboshet corrected him? In what way was his son…

Why do we say Shema at night in bed? How do we view suffering? What is “suffering out of love”? Is there a way to know id the suffering is because you sinned or is it suffering out of love. Why do good things happen to bad people? How can we comfort others who are…

One should pray facing the wall. One’s bed should be facing North to South. One who finishes praying earlier, should not leave a friend behind. Is this the case in every situation? Evil spirits (which may just mean anxieties) are all around us. What is the best way to deal with it? Best to pray…

Does God pray? Does God get angry? If so, for how long? When? This was a secret that Bilam knew and would use it to curse people at that exact moment. It is more effective for one to realize one’s mistakes internally and change their way, rather than to be punished and repent because of…

It is best to pray at the time that the community is praying. Why is that? What type of things is it important to pray for? Is it better to pray in a synogogue or a place where one learns? Why? Is it best to live near one’s rabbi or not? One should read the…

Can one recite shema right before and right after sunrise and fulfill both the night and day obligations? Why when the mishna lists mitzvot that can be done all night, it doesn’t list eating the Pesach sacrifice? Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria and Rabbi Akiva have a debate regarding the time one can eat the Pesach…

Bruria corrects Rabbi Meir, her husband, that one should not pray for the death of evildoers but for their repentance. There is a discussion between Bruria and a heretic and Rabbi Avahu and a heretic regarding verses that are hard to understand. The verse in Proverbs “the her mouth is full of intelligence” is said…

From the phrase “when you sit in your house and when you walk on your way” one derives that one who is occupied with a mitzvah or a groom on the night of his wedding are exempt from saying shema. The groom is exempt because his mind is preoccupied with the fulfillment of a mitzvah.…