Rosh Hashanah 15

והרי יובלות ר' ישמעאל בנו של רבי יוחנן בן ברוקה היא

But what of Jubilees?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. n. 2.');">¹</span> - This follows the authority of R'Ishmael the son of R'Johanan B'Beroka.

ורב אשי אמר ארבע ראשי השנים הם שהן בארבע ראשי חדשים

R'Ashi said: [The meaning of our Mishnah is,] There are four New Years which fall on four firsts of the month.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And for this reason the New Year for the Omer and the two loaves are not included in our MISHNAH:');">²</span> [Do you then reckon] the first of Shebat [as one and so] follow Beth Shammai?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. MISHNAH:');">³</span>

באחד בשבט כב"ש ה"ק שלשה לדברי הכל באחד בשבט מחלוקת ב"ש וב"ה:

- He [R'Ashi] meant it in this way: There are three according to all authorities; with regard to the first of Shebat there is a difference of opinion between Beth Shammai and Beth Hillel. R'ELEAZAR AND R'SIMEON SAID, ON THE FIRST OF TISHRI.

ר' אלעזר ור"ש אומרים באחד בתשרי: א"ר יוחנן ושניהם מקרא אחד דרשו שנאמר (תהלים סה, יד) לבשו כרים הצאן ועמקים יעטפו בר יתרועעו אף ישירו ר"מ סבר אימתי לבשו כרים הצאן בזמן שעמקים יעטפו בר ואימתי עמקים יעטפו בר באדר מתעברות באדר ויולדות באב ר"ה שלהן אלול

R'Johanan said: They both based their opinions on the same verse, viz. , The rams have mounted the sheep<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' E.V., 'The meadows are clothed with flocks'.');">⁴</span> and the valleys also are covered over with corn, they shout for joy, yea, they sing.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ps. LXV, 14.');">⁵</span>

ר' אלעזר ור"ש אומרים אימתי לבשו כרים הצאן בזמן שיתרועעו אף ישירו אימתי שבלים אומרות שירה בניסן מתעברות בניסן ויולדות באלול ר"ה שלהן תשרי

R'Meir reasoned: When do the rams mount the sheep? At the time when the valleys are covered over with corn.

ואידך נמי הא כתיב יתרועעו אף ישירו ההוא באפלתא דהויין בניסן ואידך נמי הכתיב ועמקים יעטפו בר ההוא בחרפייתא דאתיין מאדר

And when are the valleys covered over with corn? In Adar.

בשלמא לר"מ כדכתיב לבשו כרים הצאן בזמן שעמקים יעטפו בר ואיכא נמי יתרועעו אף ישירו אלא לרבי אלעזר ור"ש איפכא מיבעי ליה לבשו כרים הצאן בזמן שיתרועעו אף ישירו ואיכא נמי דעמקים יעטפו בר

The sheep conceive in Adar and bear in Ab,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Six months being allowed for pregnancy.');">⁶</span> and their New Year is in Elul.

אלא אמר רבא דכ"ע לבשו כרים הצאן בזמן שעמקים יעטפו בר באדר והכא בהאי קרא קמיפלגי (דברים יד, כב) עשר תעשר בשני מעשרות הכתוב מדבר אחד מעשר בהמה ואחד מעשר דגן

R'Eleazar and R'Simeon said: When do the rams mount the sheep? At the time when they [the ears of corn] shout for joy and sing.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' A poetic description of the rustling of the ears. It is doubtful whether we can find here an allusion to the idea that 'all creatures sing a certain chant before the Holy One, blessed be He'.');">⁷</span>

ר"מ סבר מקיש מעשר בהמה למעשר דגן מה מעשר דגן סמוך לגמרו עישורו אף מעשר בהמה סמוך לגמרו עישורו ורבי אלעזר ור"ש סברי מקיש מעשר בהמה למעשר דגן מה מעשר דגן ר"ה שלו תשרי אף מעשר בהמה ר"ה שלו תשרי:

When do the ears of corn burst into song? In Nisan.

באחד בתשרי ר"ה לשנים למאי הלכתא אמר רב פפא לשטרות דתנן שטרי חוב המוקדמין פסולין והמאוחרין כשירין

They conceive in Nisan and bear in Elul, and their New Year is in Tishri. How then does the other [R'Meir] account for the words, 'they shout for joy, yea they sing'? - This refers to the late ones, whose conception takes place in Nisan.

והתנן באחד בניסן ר"ה למלכים ואמרינן למאי הלכתא ואמר רב חסדא לשטרות

But how then does the other [R'Eleazar] account for the words, the valleys are covered with corn? - That refers to the early ones, whose conception takes place in Adar. Now according to R'Meir, there is no difficulty; the text says, 'The rams mount the sheep', to wit at the time when 'the valleys are covered with corn', but there are some also [which do not conceive till] they shout aloud and sing'.

לא קשיא כאן למלכי ישראל כאן למלכי אומות העולם

But on the view of R'Eleazar and R'Simeon, the clauses should be reversed, thus: 'The rams mount the sheep', to wit, at the time when the ears of corn 'shout for joy and sing', but there are some which do so [already] 'when the valleys are covered with corn'? - The fact is, said Raba, that all authorities hold that the rams mount the sheep at the time when the valleys are covered with corn, which is in Adar, but where they differ is in the exposition of the following text, viz. , Thou shalt surely tithe,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'tithing thou shalt tithe', Deut., XIV, 22.');">⁸</span> [in regard to which we have learnt that] the Scripture speaks of two tithes, the tithe of cattle the tithe of corn.

אלא הא דאמר רב חסדא לא שנו אלא למלכי ישראל אבל למלכי אומות העולם מתשרי מנינן רב חסדא מתניתין אתא לאשמועינן

Now R'Meir was of opinion that the tithe of cattle is put on the same footing as the tithe o corn in this way: just as corn becomes liable to tithe, soon after it reaches completion,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., after it has become thoroughly dried in the fields, in Elul, v. infra 12a.');">⁹</span> so cattle becomes liable to tithe soon after it reaches completion.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., after it is born, in Ab.');">¹⁰</span>

לא רב חסדא קראי אתא לאשמועינן

R'Eleazar and R'Simeon again held that the tithe of cattle is put on the same footing as the tithe of corn in this way: just as the New Year for the tithe of corn is in Tishri, so the New Year for the tithe of cattle is in Tishri. ON THE FIRST OF TISHRI IS NEW YEAR FOR YEARS.

ואיבעית אימא רב חסדא כרבי זירא מתני לה דרבי זירא אמר לתקופה ור"א היא דאמר בתשרי נברא העולם

What legal bearing has this? - R'Papa said: For [determining the validity of] documents, as we have learnt, 'Bonds if antedated are invalid, but if postdated are valid'.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. supra, p. 2, n. 2.');">¹¹</span> But we have learnt, ON THE FIRST OF NISAN IS NEW YEAR FOR KINGS, and we asked, What is the legal bearing of this, and R'Hisda replied, For [determining the validity of] documents?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Which shows that the year for documents is dated from Nisan and not Tishri.');">¹²</span>

רב נחמן בר יצחק אמר לדין דכתיב (דברים יא, יב) מראשית השנה ועד אחרית שנה מראשית השנה נידון מה יהא בסופה

- There is no contradiction; the one statement refers to kings of Israel, the other to kings of other nations. What then of the dictum of R'Hisda, 'This statement refers only to the kings of Israel, but for the kings of other nations w reckon from Tishri'; was R'Hisda telling us only something that we already know from a Mishnah? - No; R'Hisda wanted to tell us the import of some Scriptural verses.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., he was telling us that we can learn from the Scriptures that the years of non-Israelitish kings are reckoned from Tishri. V. supra p. 7.');">¹³</span>

ממאי דתשרי הוא דכתיב (תהלים פא, ד) תקעו בחדש שופר בכסה ליום חגנו איזהו חג

If you like I can say that R'Hisda explains the Mishnah here in the same way as R'Zera, since R'Zera said [that it<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The statement ON THE FIRST OF TISHRI IS THE NEW YEAR FOR YEARS.');">¹⁴</span> means], for reckoning cycles,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., the cycle of Tishri is the first of the four cycles of the year, v. infra p. 43, n. 9. The year is divided into four cycles called Tekufoth, the Tekufah of Nisan (Vernal Equinox) ; Tammuz (Summer Solstice) ; Tishri (Autumn Equinox) ; Tebeth (Winter Solstice) . The term Tekufah is also applied to the season itself.');">¹⁵</span> in this following the view of R'Eleazar, who said that the world was created in Tishri.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. infra 10b.');">¹⁶</span> R'Nahman B'Isaac [explained the Mishnah to refer] to the Divine judgment 'as it is written, From the beginning of the year to the end of the year,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Deut. XI, 12. The verse continues, the eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it (the land of Canaan) .');">¹⁷</span> [which means], From the beginning of the year sentence is passed as to what shall be up to the end of it. How do we know that this takes place in Tishri? - Because it is written, Blow the horn at the new moon, at the covered time [keseh]<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' E.V., 'appointed time', or 'full moon'.');">¹⁸</span> for our feastday.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ps. LXXXI, 4.');">¹⁹</span> Which is the feast