Commentary for Avodah Zarah 17:9
אמר רב פפא אי טעי תנא ולא ידע פרטיה כמה הוי לישייליה לספרא כמה כתיב וניטפי עלייהו ארבעין ותמני ומשכח ליה לחומריה וסימניך
Papa said: If the Tanna does not know the exact number of years [of the period of the Messiah] that have passed let him ask a scribe what year he uses in his writings, and on adding forty-eight to it he will find his solution. And your mnemonic is,
Daf Shevui to Avodah Zarah
If the tanna remembers how many hundreds of years have passed into the years of the Messiah, meaning the third period of 2000 years, but does not remember the exact number of years, he can ask a scribe who counts by the secular years and add 48. So for instance if it is the year 325 in the secular years then it must be the 73rd year of the Messianic cycle, plus whatever hundred they happen to be in.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy