Talking Talmud

This daf is the (or a) talmudic source for several of prominent midrashim about the patriarch Abraham and matriarch Sarah. Also, back to halakhah - dealing with the harvest. Plus, special terms for harvesting from a vineyard, and how they extend to other crops and produce that grow from the ground.

The daf shares the story of Rabbah bar Nachmani and his mysterious death. The Genara tries to understand why Rabbi Yochanom ben Matya uses the image of the Solomon’s banquet.

More aggadah - the suffering of R. Elazar, and not bring buried properly. With Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi's reaction, and his own suffering. Plus, other experiences of suffering and empathy in the context of Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi. Also, the question of people dying "before" their time. Plus, burial practices of these sages and families. Also, the exceptional scholarship and Torah commitment of Rabbi Hiyy...

The daf shares the poignant story of Rabbi Yochanon and Reish Leikish: hiw they met and ultimately how they both die because of slight. The daf also shares about the life of Rabbi Elazar the son of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai.

Closing chapter 6, starting chapter 7. First, 6: If one is a witness, one must come forward to give proof, and avoid litigants needing to take an oath. This law (of Isi ben Yehudah) is then put into practice in a series of example. And 7: More attention to workers rights, especially pertaining to food, while on the job, and also whether an employer can require his workers to work very early and/or...

The daf poses a question about a person who finds a lost object and is the finder considered to be an unpaid shomer or a paid shomer. A new mishnah dealing with the laws around a broken keg but the Gemara has trouble reconciling a barita with our mishnah.

A dilemma - when one is exempt from the liability of a borrower, does that mean he has no liability or just as one who is paid to watch over it. Plus, why a donkey who isn't sold is a different case from a gift of pottery, for example. Also, the parameters of the paid guardian, and the requirements of an unpaid guardian, and the interaction with the one who owns the item being guarded. The formula...

3 mishnayot! 1 - If one rents a cow to plow a mountain, but plows in a valley... how does that difference (and the reverse) make a difference in terms of liability? 2 - Renting a donkey to transport wheat, but barley is transported instead - and how either weight or volume may make a difference in terms of the renter's liability. 3 - Terms of renting vs. a paid guardian, plus terms of helping a po...

If a rented donkey dies midway through the journey, the renter pays a partial fee, and complains about the experience. But what if that donkey can be replaced? Plus, what if a donkey is rented for a man to ride, but a woman rides? She's considered heavier on the donkey... Also, renting a boat that doesn't make the journey, but sinks - the questions whether the rental was specific to that boat or a...

A new mishnah discusses what happens when something to a rented animal and who is responsible for unavoidable injuries. The gemara tries to determine if the first part of the mishnah is the opinion of Rabbi Meir

Rava's rulings in employment, in terms of setting norms, and what goes beyond all reasonable expectations. Plus, how people were trained not to renege on a contract, even an unwritten one.

The daf begins the sixth perek which discusses issues that may come up between an employer and worker. Plus Rav Nachmun tries to create a halakhic parallel with gitin which the Gemara does not think is a good parallel.

The last daf of the fifth perek wraps up the discussion of interest with two final mishnahs. The Genara after the first mishnah shares an opinion if Hillel that is not followed. Why does the Gemara share this opinion? The second mishnah discusses multiple transactions that could be seen as having an interest payment. The perek ends with a discussion of three groups of people who cannot find justic...

Contracting for produce in advance - even when the harvest or processing isn't finished, but the raw goods are already in the offing, and some number of steps are needed to complete the product. But whose process? Human handling or natural (or divine) ripening, etc.? Also, a series of cases to back the respective views of Rav and Shmuel. Plus, a new mishnah on lending seed wheat to one's sharecrop...

Surcharges for sharecroppers - is that interest or not? Plus, real cases vs. theoretical ones. And the details of how those real cases are manifest.

The daf asks the question what happens if a non-Jew converts and was charged interest by a Jew - can the interest still be collected. A new mishnah discussed forward contracting and price setting of produce.

Some reflections by the sages on how bad it is to lend with interest - where the mishnah seemed to allow it after all, at least with regard to non-Jews. The distinction between righteous people and regular people provides good food for thought. Also, what happens when one has lend funds with a guarantor, and how interest can apparently become part of the transaction, including when a non-Jew decid...

How being an orphan (minor) changes the terms of the prohibition against interest. Also, a new mishnah: fixed costs on what becomes a loan (via caring for an animal as an investment) cannot be paid back differently - to a Jew. When dealing with a non-Jew, extra payment is indeed allowed.

More on the partnerships of yesterday's daf, but in story form. Plus, a new mishnah on appraising animals and their progeny, and when adding sums to the costs smacks of interest and when it doesn't at all.

Rav Ashi shares a halacha about pledged property from the sages of Mechoza and explains the root of the word mishkanta. A new mishnah introduces iska and how it relates to a concern about interest.

A case where a woman instructs a man to go buy property from her relatives on her behalf, which gives rise to the relative's question whether he'll be able to buy the property back, if and when he gets the money to do so. Which in turn gives rise to a discussion of whether that re-purchase can happen, and then the fruits of the field in the interim is either fully fixed interest or possibly a "hin...

The daf discusses different scenarios where a states condition may or may not be binding. The terms asmachta is used but in a way that is different than how it has been used before.

The daf has two mishnayiot. The first describes circumstances when a higher price is allowed to be paid. The second discusses partial payment on a field and does the buyer or seller have access to the produce.

More on advance payments... Where the product has to already be in one's tradition (in contrast to gourds, for example, that still need to grow). Plus, a specified amount as an advance discount that isn't used immediately is later considered interest. Also, a new mishnah! One who borrows money from another cannot allow the lender to stay in his courtyard, for example, lest it smack of interest (wi...

Who is Rabbi Oshaya l, an amora, and what is his relationship with tannaitic literature. The daf discusses how a seller can use produce to pay a debt.