Take One Daf Yomi

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 49, is all about how couples should share their money—or not. Writer and editor Lisa Ann Sandell joins us to talk about the dos and don'ts of making money and marriage alike work. Who, exactly, owns the dog? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 47 and 48, raise a tough question: If we're forced to do something, does that thing really count? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to shed light on the soulful principle behind what, on paper, sounds like a harsh Halachic ruling. What to do when you come across a particularly pushy salesman? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 45 and 46, raise an interesting question: What to do when you accidentally picked up someone else's coat in shul? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain how and why this seemingly mundane-sounding question contains multitudes, and can teach us a surprisingly soulful lesson in how to live. What's the most Jewish article of clothing ever created? Listen and find o...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 44, informs us that real estate is different from movable objects because it has a kol, literally a voice, meaning people talk about it and therefore tell each other everything there is to know about any piece of property. Rabbi Dr. Stu Halpern of Yeshiva University's Straus Center joins us to talk about the wild real estate situation in Modi'in, Israel, where buyin...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 43, tells a story of a community that loses its Torah scroll in a brazen break-in. What should we do when we suffer such attacks? And what advice do the rabbis have for us as we, too, struggle to find some light in a benighted world? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 42, discusses the categories of people who may work very hard, and be well-compensated, but who may never claim true ownership. How is there condition similar to that of our best compensated meritocrats? And why are so many of the most fabulously salaried Americans so miserable? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 40 and 41, teach us the concept of the Moda'a, a difficult legal tool that allows someone forced to do something under duress a way out of a bad situation. Why did the rabbis question whether this tool might also invalidate the entirety of the Torah? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Fol...

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 38 and 39, discuss what happens to legal arrangements and normal life if and when the land of Israel is ravaged by war. Producer Courtney Hazlett joins us with a dispatch from Israel, shining a light on the life of one ordinary family living with ten months of war. What do ordinary people do in extraordinary circumstances? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscr...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 37, kicks things off with a vexing question about two people arguing over a piece of land, and soon evolves into a discussion of hope, grit, and keeping on. How did an elderly shoemaker inspire a very learned rabbi to denounce despair? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitte...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 36, praises the principle of dissent, of speaking your mind precisely when the many and the mighty think differently. What did some of the greatest dissenters in the history of the Supreme Court learn from Talmudic idea of an argument for the sake of heaven? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.c...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 35, introduces us to a concept called shudda de'dayanei, or judicial discretion, allowing judges to exercise their authority in difficult and contentious cases. Sivan Rahav Meir, host of the Sivan Says podcast and one of Israel's leading journalists and Torah teachers, joins us to discuss great power, great responsibility, and how to use both well. What did the cele...

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 33 and 34, delivers a crucial lesson about prioritizing those among us who can barely defend themselves. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain why we should take special care when dealing with the disadvantaged. Why did the rabbis insist on a special oath when doing business with orphans? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. S...

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 31 and 32, deliver a bit of wisdom that served the rabbis well while discussing property rights, but that couldn't be more relevant to us in these contentious political times. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to discuss the fascinating and timely notion of being presumed Kosher. Why should we treat everyone as if they're worthy of our trust? Listen and find out. Like...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 30, tells us the story of a man who was so busy he failed to notice his friend was living in his house for three years. What can we learn from this outlandish tale about our own relationship with productivity and stress? And was the wise Rava right to rule that keeping really, really busy is kind of good for you? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 29, finds Rava and Abaye locked in a fierce argument over everything from legal deeds to human psychology. Why should we sometimes slow down our reading of the Talmud and learn from these great wise rabbis? And what might today's discussion teach us about the way we interact with each other? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sen...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 28, discusses what it takes to truly take possession of something, like a field, say, or a house. But can the same rules prescribed by the rabbis teach us how to take possession of our own country? And might the Talmud have a prescription on how we should to about, in the midst of a very volatile political moment, and reclaim democracy? Listen and find out. Like the...

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 26 and 27, advise us to distance ourselves from our neighbors in order to avert fractiousness and violence. We share the latest episode from Tablet’s podcast What Really Matters with Walter Russell Mead, which discusses the rise of J.D. Vance, America’s nervous allies in Europe and Asia, Silicon Valley’s break right, and the near-slaying of Donald Trump. Is there h...

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 24 and 25, kick things off by regulating how to design cities so that they don't smell. What surprising factor brought about London's Great Stink of 1858? And what does Rabbi Akiva have to teach us modern city dwellers struggling with overly fragrant streets? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 23, gives us a masterclass on Talmud thinking. What to do when you don't know all the facts? And is there a sound way to go ahead and eliminate doubt? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. We thi...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 22, gives us a shocking admission: Sometimes, jealousy is good. Terrific, even. Perhaps essential to human growth and greatness. But how can we tell the good kind of jealous from the bad? And how does jealousy help explain the Beatles? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitte...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 21, delivers a brief history of Jewish education. Once upon a time, it was only up to parents to make sure their kids learned Torah, until the rabbis noticed that this arrangement favored the few and the privileged. And so, they erected a system of education that still has much to teach us today. What are the four insights the rabbis have for everyone interested in...

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 19 and 20, continue the discussion on the best way to be a good neighbor. We share an episode from our sister podcast, Sivan Says, about neighbors getting together after tragedy and helping each other out. What can neighborliness achieve? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Tw...

Today’s Talmud pages, Bava Batra 17 and 18, find the rabbis advocating the merits of building sturdy walls and keeping a healthy distance from the folks next door. But does their ancient wisdom really hold up in the complex, globalized, modern world? And do good fences really make good neighbors? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabl...

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 16, raises one of the most profound questions in human morality: the question of theodicy, or why would an all-merciful God allow evil to exist in the world. As the rabbis read the ancient book of Job, they deliver a surprisingly modern, and acutely relevant, wisdom. So what should we do when the going gets a little bit too tough for us to take? Listen and find out....

Today’s Talmud page, Bava Batra 15, brings us a mystery for the ages. Liel discusses the conundrum of Moses recording his own demise. Who actually wrote the Torah? Listen and find out. Like the show? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. We think that you may als...