Pesachim 187

לרב יהודה לא קשיא טמא שרץ רחמנא דחייה דכתיב (במדבר ט, י) איש איש כי יהיה טמא לנפש מי לא עסקינן שחל שביעי שלו להיות בערב הפסח ואפילו הכי אמר רחמנא לידחי

On Rab Judah's view there is no difficulty: When one is unclean through a reptile, the Divine Law relegated him [to the second Passover], for it is written, 'If any man shall be unclean by reason of a dead body': does this not refer [even] to one whose seventh day falls on the eve of Passover, yet even so the Divine Law said: Let him be relegated [to the second].<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. supra ');">¹</span> Our Rabbis taught: If he was standing beyond Modi'im and is able to enter by horses and mules, you might think that he is culpable.

תנו רבנן היה עומד חוץ למודיעים ויכול ליכנס בסוסים ובפרדים יכול יהא חייב ת"ל (במדבר ט, יג) ובדרך לא היה והלה היה בדרך

Therefore it is stated: 'and is not in a journey,'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid.');">²</span> whereas this man was in a journey.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' As defined in the MISHNAH:');">³</span>

היה עומד לפנים מן המודיעים ואין יכול ליכנס מפני גמלים וקרונות המעכבות אותו יכול לא יהא חייב ת"ל ובדרך לא היה והרי לא היה בדרך:

If he was standing on the hither side of Modi'im, but could not enter on account of the camels and wagons which held him up,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' He too being on one, and the road was blocked.');">⁴</span> you might think that he is not culpable.

אמר רבא שיתא אלפי פרסי הוי עלמא וסומכא דרקיעא אלפא פרסי חדא גמרא וחדא סברא

Therefore It is stated, 'and is not in a journey,' and lo, he was not in a journey.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' He should have completed it on foot.');">⁵</span> Raba said: The world is six thousand parasangs,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Rashi: in diameter from east to west.');">⁶</span>

סבר לה כי הא דאמר רבה בר בר חנה א"ר יוחנן כמה מהלך אדם בינוני ביום י' פרסאות מעלות השחר ועד הנץ החמה ה' מילין משקיעת החמה עד צאת הכוכבים חמשה מילין נמצא עוביו של רקיע אחד מששה ביום

and the thickness of the heaven [rakia'] is one thousand parasangs the first one [of these statements] is a tradition, while the other is [based on] reason. [Thus:] he agrees with Rabbah B'Bar Hanah's dictum in R'Johanan's name: What is an average man's journey in a day?

מיתיבי רבי יהודה אומר עוביו של רקיע אחד מעשרה ביום תדע כמה מהלך אדם בינוני ביום עשר פרסאות ומעלות השחר עד הנץ החמה ארבעת מילין משקיעת החמה ועד צאת הכוכבים ארבעת מילין נמצאת עוביו של רקיע אחד מעשרה ביום תיובתא דרבא תיובתא דעולא תיובתא

Ten parasangs: from daybreak until the first sparklings of the rising sun five mils, and from sunset until the stars appear five mils: hence the thickness of the heaven is one sixth of the day['s journey].<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The periods from daybreak until the rising sun is in the heavens, and again from sunset until the stars appear, were regarded as the time during which the sun was passing through the sky, which was conceived as a solid vault stretched out above the earth. Hence it follows from Rabbah's dictum that since five mils can be walked in each of these two periods, while thirty mils can be walked during the day excluding these periods (ten parasangs=forty mils) , the thickness of the sky is one sixth of the world's diameter.');">⁷</span> An objection is raised: Rab Judah said: The thickness of the sky is one tenth of the day's journey.

לימא תיהוי תיובתא דר' יוחנן אמר לך אנא ביממא הוא דאמרי ורבנן הוא דקא טעו דקא חשבן דקדמא וחשוכא

The proo is this: what is an [average] man's journey in a day? Ten parasangs, and from daybreak until the rising sun four mils, [and] from sunset until the stars appear four mils,: hence the thickness of the sky is one tenth of the day['s journey].<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The one tenth is of the inclusive figure, i.e., four in forty, whereas one sixth mentioned before was exclusive: six in thirty. But in any case they disagree.');">⁸</span>

לימא תיהוי תיובתא דרבי חנינא לא (בראשית יט, טו) ויאיצו שאני

This is a refutation of Raba, and a refutation of 'Ulla! It is a refutation.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Both (for 'Ulla v. supra 93b) hold that five mils can be walked from daybreak until the sun is in the heavens, which certainly cannot be reconciled with the present statement.');">⁹</span> Shall we say that this is [also] a refutation of R'Johanan? -He can answer you: I spoke only of [an average man's journey] in a [complete] day, and it was the Rabbis<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., 'Ulla and R. Johanan.');">¹⁰</span>

ת"ש מצרים הי' ארבע מאות פרסה על ארבע מאות פרסה ומצרים אחד מששים בכוש וכוש אחד מששים בעולם ועולם אחד מששים בגן וגן אחד מששים בעדן ועדן אחד מששים בגיהנם נמצא כל העולם כולו ככיסוי קדירה לגיהנם תיובתא

who erred by calculating [the distance for] pre-dawn and after nightfall.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' He had merely stated that an average man can walk ten parasangs in a day, but Raba and 'Ulla had erred by adding that one travels five mils in the period stated; though most people do indeed walk five mils by the time the sun is in the heavens, that is because they generally start a little before dawn; similarly in the evening they continue their journey a little after nightfall.');">¹¹</span> Shall we say that this is a refutation of R'Hanina?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Supra 93b.');">¹²</span>

תא שמע דתנא דבי אליהו רבי נתן אומר כל הישוב כולו תחת כוכב אחד יושב תדע שהרי אדם נותן עינו בכוכב אחד הולך למזרח עומד כנגדו לארבע רוחות העולם עומד כנגדו מכלל דכל הישוב כולו תחת כוכב אחד יושב תיובתא

- No: 'and [the angels] hastened'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Gen. XIX, 15.');">¹³</span> is different -<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' They would naturally cover a greater distance.');">¹⁴</span>

ת"ש עגלה בצפון ועקרב בדרום וכל הישוב כולו אינו יושב אלא בין עגלה לעקרב וכל הישוב כולו אינו הוה אלא שעה אחת ביום שאין חמה נכנסת לישוב אלא שעה אחת ביום

Come and hear: Egypt was four hundred parasangs square. Now Egypt is one sixtieth of Ethiopia [Cush], Ethiopia one sixtieth of the world, the world one sixtieth of the Garden, the Garden one sixtieth of Eden, Eden one sixtieth of the Gehenna: thus the whole world is like a pot lid [in relation] to Gehenna.

תדע שבחמש חמה במזרח ובשבע חמה במערב חצי שש וחצי שבע חמה עומדת בראש כל אדם תיובתא

This is [indeed] a refutation.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For according to the present calculation the surface area of the world is 576,000,000 sq. parasangs (thus: 400 X 400 X 60 x 60) whereas according to Raba, even if the 6000 is squared, we have only 36,000,000 sq. parasangs.');">¹⁵</span> Come and hear: Tanna debe Eliyahu<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' This is a Midrash consisting of two parts, 'Seder Eliyahu Rabbah' and 'Seder Eliyahu Zuta'. According to the Talmud Keth. ');">¹⁶</span>

ת"ש דאמר ר' יוחנן בן זכאי מה תשובה השיבתו בת קול לאותו רשע בשעה שאמר (ישעיהו יד, יד) אעלה על במתי עב אדמה לעליון יצתה בת קול ואמרה לו רשע בן רשע

[taught]: R'Nathan said: The whole of the inhabited world is situate under one star. The proof is that a man looks at a star, [and] when he goes eastward it is opposites [and when he goes] to the four corners of the world it is opposite him. This proves that the whole of the inhabited world is situate under one star. This is indeed a refutation.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And since there are countless stars in the sky, it follows that the sky is immeasurably greater than the earth, not, as Raba says, only one sixth.');">¹⁷</span> Come and hear: The Wain ['Waggon']<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The Great Bear.');">¹⁸</span> is in the north and Scorpio is in the south, the whole of the inhabited world lies between the Wain and Scorpio, and the whole of the inhabited world represents but one hour of the day,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The sun in travelling through the sky takes one hour only to travel across the actual breadth of the world.');">¹⁹</span> for the sun enters [the space above] the inhabited world only for one hour in the day.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' As explained in the previous note.');">²⁰</span> The proof is that at the fifth [hour] the sun is in the east while at the seventh the sun is in the west [during] half of the sixth and half of the seventh the sun stands overhead all people.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' " wherever="" they="" are;="" thus="" it="" is="" during="" this="" hour="" only="" that="" the="" sun="" actually="" above="" world.="" too="" proves="" sky="" infinitely="" larger="" than="" earth.');"="">²¹</span> This is [indeed] a refutation. Come and hear: For R'Johanan B'Zakkai said: What answer did the Bath Kol<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. Glos.');">²²</span> give that wicked man [Nebuchadnezzar] when he asserted, 'I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High'?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Isa. XIV, 14.');">²³</span> A Bath Kol came forth and rebuked him: 'Thou wicked man, son of a wicked man,