Daf Yomi for Women - Hadran

If there is no border, how does one determine how much of the field was acquired by the buyer? The sea quill was used by Yehoshua to demarcate borders between the tribes when they conquered the land of Israel. In the book of Yehoshua, some cities were listed but not others – why? The boundaries given to Moshe are those used to determine which land is obligated in tithes.  The ones excluded from th...

Rav Huna bought land from a gentile, but after he paid for the land and before a document was written, another Jew came and acquired the land through chazaka , by plowing a bit in the field. Rav Nachman ruled as per Shmuel's ruling that the land belongs to the other Jew. Rav Huna challenged Rav Nachman by suggesting that if Rav Nachman were to hold by Shmuel, then he should also hold by Shmuel's o...

Today's daf is sponsored by Deborah Aschheim (Weiss) in loving memory of her mother, Edith Aschheim Z"L, on her 41st yahrzeit today. "You left us too soon at the age of 56.  You left Vienna on the kindertransport on 1 September 1939 and eventually began a new life in NYC, lamenting your lack of Jewish education due to interruptions caused by World War II. You would be proud of the legacy you left:...

Today's daf is sponsored by Marcia Baum in loving memory of her father, Sam Baum, on his 21st yahrzeit. "Dad was a larger-than-life individual whose acts of chesed and tzedaka are remembered to this day. He was a proud Jew, lover of Israel, and a proud American. He is sorely missed by all who knew him." For a chazaka of presumptive status to be effective, the possessor must bring a claim of how th...

What other actions require the presence of two people and which require three? In the context of this discussion, the Gemara elaborates on the laws of moda'a , a preemptive declaration. Rav Yehuda ruled that a document gift that is "hidden" is not effective. Why? Can it be used as a preemptive declaration? 

If the original owner protests if a possessor is profiting from the land, but tells the witnesses not to let the possessor know, is the protest effective? The Gemara brings several variations of this type of situation and the rulings of different rabbis in each one, depending on the language used. In front of how many people does one need to protest - two or three? Is it similar to the laws of  la...

Study Guide Bava Batra 38 There are three different regions for creating a  chazaka on land, meaning that if the land is in one region and the owner is in a different region, one cannot prove ownership by benefitting from the produce for three years. Rabbi Yehuda disagrees and explains the reason for three years is exactly for this type of scenario - to allow enough time for someone living far awa...

The Gemara continues to discuss whether plowing can create a chazaka on land. This issue was a subject of debate by many rabbis. If one benefits from only 10 out of 30 trees (that are growing in a field of three beit sea ) each year (and each year a different ten), one can still create a chazaka on the whole field, both according to the rabbis and Rabbi Yishmael. However, there are two limitations...

Today's daf is sponsored by Ariele Mortkowitz for the refuah shleima of Aliza Yehudit bat Malka Esther. "For the merit of healing and continued health and long life." Several assumptions about human behavior are used to determine ownership. One generally doesn't bring tools and harvest in a field that is not one's own. One wouldn't protest land that is unlikely to grow crops or unprotected land wh...

Two people claimed they had each inherited a particular piece of land from their fathers. Rav Nachman ruled that the stronger one prevails. How is this case different from two people claiming ownership of an item by having a document of sale or gift issued on the same date where Rav and Shmuel disagree - one holds it is divided and the other that it is given to the judges' discretion? How is it di...

The Gemara rejects the comparison of the case that came before Abaye where there was only one witness to the case of the naska (silver bricks) of Rabbi Abba. There was a case in which two people claimed ownership over a boat and the law of "may the stronger one prevail ( kol d'alim g'var )," was applicable. But one of them asked the court to seize the property to prevent that law from kicking in t...

More cases regarding disagreements about land ownership are discussed. Rava bar Sharshom was living on property that others claimed belonged to orphans. What did he do to try to prove he was the owner? Was his claim accepted? Another involved a disagreement about heirs - which was the closer relative who was supposed to inherit the property? Since neither had proof, one went to live on the land ba...

Rav Nachman was not concerned that overturning a court ruling based on new testimony would cause a lack of respect for the courts in the future. He relied on the ruling of Rabbi Elazar and Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel who disagreed with other tannaim in a case involving a kohen about whom there was concern that he was the son of a kohen and a divorcee. As the details of this debate are clarified, Rav...