Taryag Mitzvos – Part 1: The Heart Beats…the Odds

Author’s note: In honor of Shavuos – Z’man Matan Torasenu – and in honor of the upcoming “bar-mitzvah” anniversary of the release of my book, I am interrupting the series on Techeiles to insert a special series on Taryag mitzvos. This series is an actual chapter from my book, One Above and Seven Below, which I edited to make it more blog friendly. The original title of this chapter is Getting to the Heart of the Matter.

I plan to reprint this chapter in four parts and this is Part 1, the pilot portion. My next Techeiles post should come out shortly after Shavuos. Thereupon, Part 2 of this series will converge with the Techeiles series. I hope to have it out by Parshat Shelach Lecha.

“I’m a good Jew at heart. G-d understands me.”

How many times have we heard this sentiment, emanating predominantly from a non-observant or marginally observant Jew? The observant Jew will typically respond with, “Try telling the tax authorities that you have been paying your taxes at heart. I’m sure they will understand.” or “I suppose your heart will go to Gan Eden but we can’t be sure about the rest of you.”

Regardless, it cannot be said that this sentiment is totally without basis for even (especially) chareidim are wont to quote the well-known Talmudic phrase רחמנא ליבא בעי - "The Holy One requests the heart”. It must be that the chareidim understand this phrase differently than the average consumer.

What lies at the heart of the chareidi mindset?

In One Above and Seven Below, we defined a chareidi as one who adheres to the directive of the pasuk in Vayikra 26:3 to observe the mitzvos with ameilus (toil) b’Torah. Thus far, we have elaborated on the import of the ‘toil in Torah’ aspect to imply that this aspect is what distinguishes the chareidi from the non-chareidi Orthodox Jew (NCOJ). It would seem that in the ‘mitzvos’ department, the chareidi and NCOJ stand on equal footing. But even this can only be true if both entities conceptualize the significance of mitzvos in the same way; and I, for one, am not convinced that such is the case. I am not clear as to how NCOJs conceptualize the significance of mitzvos nor does it seem as if there is total collusion among their ranks.

The chareidim have a bit of an edge. They can learn these concepts from the words of Chazal; however, their words are succinct. Their implications must be excavated from beneath the surface - and this requires a bit of toil.

The last words of the Mishna in Makkoth (23b) characterize the chareidi perception of mitzvos:

Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya says: The Holy One wanted to confer merit on Israel, accordingly, He increased for them [the quantities of] Torah and mjitzvos as it is written, “G-d desires, for the sake of deeming him (i.e., the individual Jew) as righteous, [that he is] to enlarge the Torah and to strengthen it.”

This statement implies that G-d did not ‘have to’ give us such an extended list of mitzvos nor such a vast and complex Torah, but that He did it in order to enable every Jew to readily attain righteousness. How are we to understand this? Can mitzvos be superfluous? Isn’t every mitzvah essential? Doesn’t each one embrace a unique and vital purpose?

The gemara (ibid.) gives us a clue:

Rabbi Smalai expounded: 613 mitzvos were dictated to Moshe - 365 negative mitzvos corresponding to the days of a solar year and 248 positive mitzvos corresponding to the number of organs in a human being. Said Rav Hamenuna: What is the [indicative] pasuk? “Torah was commanded to us by Moshe as a legacy…” Torah has a numerical value of 611; Anochi (I am the Hashem your G-d) and Lo Yihiyeh Lecha (There shall not be any other gods before Me) were heard directly from the mouth of the Almighty. 

David came and reduced the amount to eleven as it states (Tehillim 15:1-5), “A song to David. G-d, who will reside in Your tent, who will dwell in Your holy mountain? One who walks with simplicity, one who performs righteousness…” Yeshaya came and reduced the amount to six as is written (Yeshaya 33:15), “One who goes with righteousness, one who speaks with straightforwardness…” Michah came and reduced the amount to three as is written… Yeshaya returned and reduced the amount to two as is written… Chabakuk came and reduced the number to one as is written (Chabakuk 2:4), וצדיק באמונתו יחיה “And a righteous man with his loyalty (emunah) shall he live.”

Hey, hold on there! How many mitzvos are there? Weren’t there supposed to be lots of them – for our own benefit?

Another question: What is the significance that Moshe relayed to us 611 mitzvos and that we received two mitzvos directly from HKBH? Didn’t all of the mitzvos emanate from HKBH? Many of us are familiar with the Talmudic legend (Shabbos 88b) that as HKBH uttered the first mitzvah the entire nation fell dead. HKBH dispersed a divine dew and revived them. He then uttered the second mitzvah and, once again, the entire nation fell dead and were again revived. Thereupon, they insisted on hearing the mitzvos only via relay through Moshe. It seems that the direct mitzvos were limited to two only for this ‘technical’ reason. If the Jews would have had more stamina, perhaps they would have heard three or thirty or all of them. Is this truly so, or is there some special significance that they heard these two, not more and not less?

Lastly, it is a splendid bit of symbolism that the number of negative mitzvos corresponds to the days of the solar year and that the number of positive mitzvos corresponds to the number of organs in the human body, but are we to understand this as merely a mnemonic symbol or is something deeper than that being implied?

The Maharsha confronts all of these issues and presents a detailed explanation of this obscure Talmudic passage. He begins by quoting some earlier commentaries, one of which maintains that the later prophets (David, Yeshaya, etc.) were not actually reducing the quantity of mitzvos but were merely categorizing them into groups to enable people to reach great levels. The Maharsha rejects this idea by noting that at one point the Talmud derives that one need not cover all eleven line items (in the case of David’s list) to qualify for the trophy, but, actually, any one of them will suffice.

The Maharsha goes on to offer his explanation. He begins by quoting the commentary of Rambam to the aforementioned Mishna comprising the statement of Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya. Rambam states:

And it is among the principles of our faith in the Torah that if a person should fulfill any one mitzvah of the Creator’s 613 mitzvos as it should be fulfilled, and he does not combine with it any intent of an earthly nature whatsoever, but rather that it is done for its own sake out of love [for G-d]… he is deserving of life in the World to Come.  This is because, as there are numerous mitzvos, it is not possible (i.e., likely) that a person, over the duration of his life, will not perform at least one mitzvah fully and as directed.

To summarize, Rambam is telling us that we need only perform one solitary mitzva with complete devotion and our fortune is made.

Based on Rambam, Maharsha interprets the statement of Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya to mean that there are two vantage points – that of Man in the physical world and that of G-d in the spiritual world. From G-d’s spiritual ‘vantage point’ physical embodiments have no significance in and of themselves. They are only tools or instruments that enable the physical man to enact a spiritual impulse. This means to say that the physical form of the daily tefillin and tzitzit, the matzo of Passover, the shofar of Rosh HaShanna, the sukka of Sukkot, etc., are, in actuality, nothing but instruments through which Man can display his allegiance to HKBH and forge a connection. This is all that Hashem requests from Man.

In other words, to G-d, there is only one mitzvah – EMUNAH (Loyalty to G-d). This automatically splits into two mitzvos, the positive and the negative, similar to a Venn diagram – A and A-complement. A is Anochi Hashem (I am Hashem your G-d…). This is the positive – to be loyal to HKBH, to acknowledge G-d as One, to fulfill Anochi Hashem. A-complement is Lo Yihiyeh Lecha (There shall be no other gods before Me). This is the negative - not to be disloyal to G-d, to disavow any other power, to observe Lo Yihiyeh Lecha.

All that Man has to do to merit Olam Habah is to fulfill this one mitzvah of Loyalty or Emunah (or, as Chovos Halevavos calls it: Yichud Hashem), which, in effect, means to fulfill Anochi and to observe Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. This is what Dovid HaMelech refers to as Sur MeRah (turn away from evil) i.e., observe Lo Yihiyeh and VaAseh Tov (do good) i.e., fulfill Anochi. Hence, he writes: “Who is the man who desires life (World to Come) who has a longing for days to see [pure] good? ...Turn away from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it.” Fulfilling Anochi and observing Lo Yihiyeh is the complete ticket. Rambam implies that this goal is achieved by a single pristine fulfillment or observance. What a deal!

It pays to waste no time to achieve this one mitzvah of Emunah. Paradise awaits! But, wait just a second – slow down. How exactly does one fulfill this mitzvah in ‘real-time’?

We physical beings cannot connect to the spiritual CPU without a graphical user interface. (No, Maharsha does not use this terminology.) So HKBH has developed one for us with a full set of applications and utilities. 611 to be exact. There are 247 positive mitzvos, all of which are applications for accessing Anochi. Likewise, there are 364 negative mitzvos, all of which are ‘bugs’ that will trigger Lo Yihiyeh Lecha (and crash the system).  According to Rambam, any single time we access Anochi or consciously avoid a ‘bug’ (observe Lo Yihiyeh Lecha) we ‘score a hit’. Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya is telling us that G-d, in His unbridled benevolence, gave us a host of methods of achieving this single mitzvah of Loyalty to G-d (Emuna) to facilitate each of us to make the grade at least once in his life and to earn a share of Eternity.

The point is that, although each mitzvah is indeed different and has a distinct physical imprint, at the ‘receiving station’ they all accomplish a like result – lighting up a display of Emuna. All of the mitzvos of the Torah are a light switch for this one light. Therefore, performing one mitzvah properly has the same result as if one has performed numerous mitzvos or even the entire Torah. It is similar to the quaint carnival game where one has to hit a disk with a sledgehammer whereupon a puck flies up a shaft. If it flies high enough it rings a bell and the contestant wins a prize. It shouldn’t matter if he uses a sledgehammer, a baseball bat, a paddle, a shoe, or whatever. If he hits it hard enough the bell rings and sounds exactly the same. One cannot discern what striking implement was used by the sound of the bell. Even if he uses two or more items to do the job, the bell sounds the same as if he used one. So, whether with one stick or 100 sticks, if he hits it right and rings the bell, he gets his prize, and if not, not.

Of course, he is well advised not to quit after one success, but this is not merely because the goal is to win more prizes, but because a Jew must be loyal to G‑d (and display said loyalty) all of the time.

The Maharsha goes on to explain the significance of the symbols. Man was given a body to enable him to ‘do’ – to perform positive actions – and, consequently, to fulfill Anochi. Therefore, the quantity of mitzvos (bell ringers or light switches) was set to correspond with the quantity of parts of the body. The most vital human organ is the heart and every other organ is subordinate to it. Therefore, says Maharsha, the heart represents the parent mitzvah of Anochi that we heard directly from G-d and all the other organs represent the physical manifestations of Anochi, i.e., the 247 positive mitzvos that we heard from Moshe.

On the flipside (literally), the negative mitzvos are represented by the number of days in the solar year. This is because the observance of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha and negative mitzvos is fulfilled when we have the opportunity and temptation to transgress them. G-d empowered our yetzer harah, also called the Satan (Bava Bathra 16a), to present us with ample opportunity to transgress. This is actually for our benefit as in this way we can ‘ring the bell’ of Emunah by, technically, doing nothing. The Hebrew term השטן (the Satan) has a numerical value of 364. This is because the Satan is empowered to test our Loyalty 364 days a year. Only one day is his power restrained, Yom Kippur. On Yom Kippur almost all physical activities are prohibited and we focus on refraining from all of the negative mitzvos on the list. This is the purest manifestation of the Lo Yihiyeh Lecha side of the Loyalty mitzvah. By restraining ourselves on the Yom Kippur we make a clear declaration (ring the bell) of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha and in this way we likewise merit a share in Olam Habah. Since Hashem’s Lo Yihiyeh Lecha is equivalent to all of Moshe’s 364 negative mitzvos, when we observe Lo Yihiyeh Lecha on Yom Kippur it is considered as if we observed all 364 earthly prohibitions (which, in effect, we have) and thus we are atoned for the failed opportunities that transpired throughout the year.

With this in mind, the Maharsha offers an explanation to a puzzling passage in masechet Eruvin (13b). The gemara relates that the students of Shammai and the students of Hillel debated (for 2 ½ years) the issue of whether it is more ‘convenient’ for Man to have been created or more convenient to not have been created. The gemara resolves that they ‘counted’ and concluded that it would be more convenient for Man to not have been created and now that he is created, he should scrutinize his actions.

The questions abound: What is the crux of the argument? What is meant by the adjective “more” and what is meant by the term “convenient”? What was counted and how does that resolve the issue? (Note - The classical interpretation is that they simply took a vote and concluded as they did based on the opinion of the majority. The notion that a deep philosophical issue is resolved based on how many members of either party showed up to the plenum on that day is a bit difficult to digest, especially if the vote fell squarely along party lines.) And, most vexing: if the merciful G-d created Man and said “and behold it is very good” (Breishis 1:31) then is it not obvious that being created is to our advantage?

Says Maharsha that in line with our discussion we can explain it as follows. From G-d’s vantage point there is only one two-sided mitzvah - Loyalty to G-d (Emuna) – which can be achieved via either of two approaches: action, by fulfilling Anochi, or inaction, by observing Lo Yihiyeh Lecha.

Clearly, if Man was not created, he would be incapable of the Anochi aspect though he would excel at observing Lo Yihiyeh Lecha (see Note at the end of this paragraph). The observing of Lo Yihiyeh would be quite convenient. Conversely, if he is created, he now has the opportunity to fulfill Anochi but is likewise vulnerable to transgress on prohibitions and negate Lo Yihiyeh Lecha. In this case, only the Anochi aspect is convenient.

Each situation has a gain and a risk. The debate centers around which of the two positions is comparatively the “more convenient” approach of achieving Loyalty.

(Note - I must postulate that the intention here is not to say that Man would not be created at all, but rather, that he would exist without any physical form. This would help to alleviate the obvious question as to how is it possible for Man to be virtuous in his observance of Lo Yihiyeh Lecha if he does not exist?)

To resolve the dilemma, the group took a rather mathematical approach – they simply counted and compared the quantity of positive mitzvos versus the quantity of negative mitzvos to determine what are the true ‘odds’. The resulting tabulation was, as we know, 365 negative mitzvos versus 248 positive ones. This means that for every two opportunities that we have to earn paradise we have close to three opportunities to botch it up. Not such favorable odds. Based on this calculation, the group concluded that it would be more convenient for Man to have not been created because, in that condition, it would be a cinch to observe the numerous negative mitzvos although he is thereby hindered from performing any positive ones. The fact that he is created into a physical form is not a convenience as the odds are not in his favor. Therefore, now that he is created, his only recourse is to overcome the odds by “scrutinizing his actions”, i.e., by capitalizing on his ability to perform actions and focusing those actions on those that fulfill Anochi.

With this, the Maharsha goes on to interpret the pasuk (Shir HaShirim 5:2), “I am asleep, yet my heart is awake.” (אני ישנה ולבי ער)

Ani yeshaina – I am asleep. We would be at an advantage were we to be asleep – i.e., not physically created – because, in that way we would be in full compliance of the 365 negative mitzvos. Maharsha notes that the numerical value of ישנה (asleep) is 365.

V’Libi ehr – yet my heart is awake. Maharsha quotes a Midrash on this pasuk:

Says Rabbi Chiya bar Abba: From where do we know that the Holy One is the heart of Israel? As the pasuk states (Tehillim 73:26), “The rock of my heart and my portion is G-d”.

In G-d’s realm there is but one mitzvah, the positive side of which, Anochi Hashem, is represented by the heart of the human body which is the root of vitality for all of the other organs. As Man was indeed created, he must activate his heart, i.e., scrutinize his actions to fulfill Anochi.

We now have a clearer understanding – the chareidi understanding – of the Talmudic edict רחמנא ליבא בעי - “The Holy One requests the heart.” The heart represents the sole positive mitzvah from G-d’s vantage point and likewise translates into all of the positive mitzvos in our physical world. To be a “good Jew at heart” one must focus his actions toward fulfilling Anochi and ‘beating the odds’. And he must undertake those actions for, if not, it would be more convenient if he were not created.

Finally, the Maharsha offers his explanation to the ensuing lines of the Talmud which states that David reduced the number to eleven, Yeshaya reduced it to six, Michah to three, Yeshaya again to two, and, ultimately, Chabakuk reduced it to one.

He says that we now understand that every physical mitzvah is merely a method of fulfilling Anochi and that any individual one is equally capable of achieving this goal and conferring the doer with a share in Olam Haba. Nevertheless, not all the mitzvos are equally accessible as some only apply to certain classes (e.g., Cohen or Levi), to particular callings (e.g., farmers, landowners, moneylenders, employers), to the different genders, and at specified times (e.g., day or night, festivals, Shmitta and Jubilee, etc.)

As such, King David endeavored to isolate those mitzvos that are accessible to all people at all times and to package them into categories to facilitate the individual to find at least one convenient mitzvah by which to merit Eternity. He compiled eleven categories. Subsequently, Yeshaya merged them into six categories that are more rudimentary and that every human being is expected to uphold. Michah was able to further glean the list into three fundamentals: doing justice, loving kindness, and behaving modestly before G-d. Yeshaya further presents that of these three, the two that involve inter-human relations are the primary ones. Finally, comes Chabakuk and brings us right back to where we started; that all of the mitzvos are actually exercises in one grand undertaking: Emunah – faith and loyalty to G-d – and that this endeavor is in affect for all Jews at all times.

End of Part 1.

Chag Sameach!!!

Techeiles 4 - Adama V’Shamayim

Author’s note – This post is a continuation of the series on techeiles which was presented back in 2018. To appreciate this post, it is highly recommended to at least see the opening post of the series (HERE). The other two posts are available HERE and HERE.



I all but abandoned my series on techeiles but it deserves some closure.

The series began in August 2018 after I wrote in a post that one of my sons is a techeiles enthusiast. The only comments I received to that post came from an anonymous (how brave!) gentleman who asserted that two well-respected poskim have rejected today’s techeiles – Murex trunculus – so therefore, it cannot be techeiles. He neglected to acknowledge that others have accepted it (or, at least, declined to rule it out).

The more vocal of these two well-respected poskim, Harav Yisroel Reisman, Shlita of Brooklyn, has gone so far to claim that, in his opinion, there is a 0% chance that the Murex trunculus is the true Talmudic techeiles – or so this commenter claimed. For the sake of accuracy, after reviewing his recorded shiur from June, 2011 and it seems that Harav Reisman only attributed the extreme non-probability of 0% to the Rambam. Nevertheless, he is clearly applying this 0% figure from the Rambam to his own shita.

Harav Reisman’s key contention is that the properties of the Murex snail do not “shtim with Chazal” and therefore it must be ruled out. This prompted me to open a series of discussions about how are we to understand puzzling aspects of Chazal and what exactly are the standards of “shtimming” with Chazal?

The opening post of the series – a must read – was the introduction to the topic. It pointed out how Chazal are so literal in their discussions that they commonly base Halachic opinions on Aggadic literature even though the Aggadic literature can be deemed to be “fanciful”.

The second post pointed out that, in many instances, there is quite a bit of room to question what exactly was it that Chazal said? When we see conflicting versions of the words of Chazal and disputes on “facts” among members of Chazal themselves, we are never left with a precise statement to use as a baseline for “shtimming”.

The third post illustrated how we must inevitably conclude that Chazal were not precise when it comes to numbers, sizes and distances. There is a great amount of exaggeration. This was written in October 2018 and there I paused. I have not written about this topic since.

I have been meaning to get back to it and close the series but I let myself get sidetracked. With the “Messianic fever” that has come along with the Corona outbreak, perhaps the time has come to get back to it.

This post will deal with the touchiest issue of all – how much can we rely on Chazal’s portrayal of the natural sciences, particularly zoology and biology? How well did Chazal understand natural phenomena, anatomy and reproduction? How do we deal with statements of Chazal that clearly do not “shtim” with what we know today?

Much of this discussion was the basis of the great “Slifkin” controversy that goes back about 15 years. Rav Natan Slifkin wrote several books that worked very hard to reconcile these conflicts. He brought up many questions of incongruency between Chazal and observable phenomenon that had been hitherto swept under the rug.

For this he was strongly censured by many Torah scholars for having the audacity to question the “accuracy” of Chazal – unjustly so, in my opinion. One renowned Torah authority is quoted to have said, “His Torah is not Torah, and his science is not science”. Well and good, but this did not answer any of the questions or resolve any of the conflicts.

If I understand correctly, his fundamental position is that Chazal did not always mean for their statements to be taken literally despite that they actually base many Halachos on their assertions, and that they were no more advanced in the natural sciences than were the secular philosophers and scientists of their times. Their opinions on phenomenon that could not be observed or studied was based on the prevailing theory, traditions and even mythology or legend and not solely on ruach hakodesh. As such, they were not always right.

In short, Chazal and empirical science – i.e., astronomy, zoology, and biology – do not always shtim.

In my previous post, I was talking about raw numbers and maybe we should pick up right where we left off. We were discussing how it is not possible that the Land of Israel as delineated in the Torah can be 400 parsaos by 400 parsaos. And, in fact, there is no real source for this.

But the gemara does give these dimensions to some other parts of the globe and here we will travel to Pesachim 94a. The gemara tells us:

Mitzrayim (Egypt) is 400 parsaos by 400 parsaos, and Egypt is one sixtieth of Kush (Ethiopia), and Kush is one sixtieth of “the world”… (it continues into Gan Eden and Gehinnom but we won’t go there – right now – I hope).

If you recall, we calculated a parsah to be about four Km. Thus, 400 parsaos are 1600 Km. 1600 Km squared comes to 2.56 million Km². Hence, the Mitzrayim that is being referred to is 2.56 million Km². The Kush being referred to is 60 times greater and must then be about 153.6 million Km². Perhaps Kush is meant to include Mitzrayim just like “the world” must also include Kush.

We certainly don’t know the borders of Mitzrayim and Kush at the time of this Chazal but let’s work with what we do know. It’s amazing how all of this trivial information is at our fingertips on Google.

Today’s Egypt is listed at 1.01 million Km². This is merely 40% of the 2.56 million that it should be but, if we need to, it’s not that hard to find another 1.5 million Km² in the general vicinity. Today’s Ethiopia is a tad bigger than today’s Egypt at 1.104 Km² but this is only 10% bigger and not 6000% (sixty times) as it should be.

Well, maybe Kush is meant to be all of the African continent? Does this help?

This is a bit closer since total Africa is 30.37 million Km². But even so, the entire African continent is only 30 times bigger than today’s Egypt, not 60, and it’s only 11.8 times bigger than the Egypt of Chazal. Moving right along, the entire surface of the planet Earth sizes up at 510 million Km². This is merely 16.8 times the size of the African continent or about one eighth of what it should be according to our premise that Kush is all of Africa. And the world area is only 18% (less than one fifth) of what it should be according to the gemara in Pesachim.

Now, of course, many of us are aware of the Maharsha in Brachos 57b that tells us that when the gemara says one sixtieth, it is not being exact. It merely means that just as one sixtieth is recognized as the shiur of bitul – a quantity that is so insignificant in relation to the whole that we can consider it negligable – likewise, these territories are so insignificant in size in comparison to the host territory that they don’t even count. Problem is that it is not really feasible to look at today’s Egypt (40% of Chazal’s), which is 1/30^th  (3.3%) of Africa, or Africa itself, which is the second largest land mass on Earth comprising 1/5 of Earth’s land and 6% or 1/16 of the world surface including the oceans, as being insignificant (batel b’shishim).

Okay, okay. We already discussed exaggerated numbers in our last post. Why am I repeating it?

The problem is not only the numbers of square Km, but a general issue of how Chazal understand the “layout” of our planet and how it relates to other celestial bodies. Or what is known as Astronomy.

All of the observable information that we have today points to the following:

·       The Earth is a sphere

·       The sun is stationary in relation to the Earth.

·       The Earth rotates on its axis while the sun stays in place thus giving us the appearance that the sun moves across the sky.

·       The Earth revolves around the sun in an elliptical orbit that positions the northern part of the world closer to the sun in the northern summer months and the southern part of the world closer to the sun in northern winter months.

·       The heavens of the physical world (not the spiritual world) are just a vast expanse of space that surrounds our planet and other planets, solar systems, galaxies, etc. It is not a blanket or covering of our planet. There is no evidence that it is dome shaped.

These “facts” have basically been proven by eclipses (Aristotle), air and space travel and photography, international communication, light refraction laws, and common sense. In today’s world these phenomena have been almost universally accepted as fact by the majority of mankind with very few dissenters.

In days of yore, for lack of current technology, our power of observation was much more limited. From our lowly position, the world does not appear as a sphere. It does not appear to move. We stand still on the ground and watch heavenly bodies move around. For lack of speedy travel and communication, nobody was able to determine how far the world goes. We think that the sun rises for the whole world and sets for the whole world. When the sun rises in Jerusalem, it is also rising in Rome and in Persia and Asia. When it sets for us, it sets for everyone.

This is what most people thought in the ancient world and all the evidence points out that this is what Chazal believed as well. Those who thought otherwise were the “lunatics”. To qualify this, we don’t have to go anywhere. We can stay right here in Pesachim 94a where we opened this discussion.

The gemara continues to tell us that the entire civilized world is positioned under a single star. To validate this, the gemara claims that anywhere one travels in the world, he can look up and see this star (the star does not seem to be identified). The gemara seems to challenge this with a mild variation that the whole of civilization is positioned between Taurus and Scorpio.

This gemara seems to indicate a total lack of acknowledgment of any kind of Southern hemisphere and civilization beneath the equator – or that there even is an equator.

As the gemara continues (94b), the gemara discusses two disputes between the Jewish philosophers and those of other nations. The first is about whether the stars are affixed to the dome of the sky and the dome moves and brings the stars along or the stars are not affixed and they move on their own while the dome stays still. This clearly indicates that both opinions held that the Earth is stationary and the fixed stars move around (we are not talking about the other planets).

The second dispute is about where does the sun go at the end of the day. The Jewish scholars hold that when it sets in the west, it ducks up behind the “rekiah” which is understood to be some kind of opaque blanket or canopy that covers the Earth. The United Nations scholars maintain that it goes underneath the Earth and heats up the water. Amazingly, Rebbe (Yehudah HaNasi) rules in favor of the non-Jewish scholars because we can see that the water becomes boiling hot overnight. Rashi says the proof is that in the mornings we see “smoke” on the rivers.

This clearly indicates that both sides maintained that the Earth is flat like a dish. At night the sun is cooking the barren underside of the world. Neither side can imagine that the sun moves to the other side of the world courtesy of the rotation of the Earth. Nobody dreams that when the sun is setting in Jerusalem (or Pumbadisa), it is up in the sky at high noon in New York. When it is midnight in Jerusalem, it is high noon in Honolulu.

Nobody dreams that it rises or sets other places on the Earth at different times that are hours apart and that when it is 6 am in one place, it is 6 pm in another. They maintain that when it rises at 6 am it rises for the whole world and it is 6 am in the whole world; and when it sets at 6 pm it sets for the whole world and it is 6 pm in the whole world. There are no time zones and there is no need for a Halachic date line.

So Chazal do not give us a clue how to determine an Halachic dateline and the matter is not even brought up by any Jewish scholar until the Baal HaMaor (cute, no?) broaches the issue in the 13^th century.

Back to our gemara in Pesachim 94b, the gemara goes on to quote a Braitha in the name of Rabi Nosson that:

In the summer, the sun is high in the sky and therefore the entire world is hot (the air temperature) and the water is cold. In the winter, the sun is low in the sky and therefore the entire world is cold (the air temperature) and the water is boiling hot.

This means that in the summer the sun is high so its heat affects the higher element which is the air on top of the surface. The water is further down so it does not get the heat from the sun in the summer. Hence, the water stays cold. In the winter the sun is low so its heat affects the lower element which is the water. It does not really affect the atmospheric air so the air gets cold.

Note that the fact that daylight and the sun are around for much longer in the summer and much shorter in the winter plays no part in this.

Both of these statements are in line with the belief that the total land mass of Earth is like the exposed top of an apple that is floating in the middle of a bowl of water with Eretz Yisrael smack in the middle. The great ocean is the “mayim hatachtonim” that both surrounds and goes under the Earth. The sky covers it like the cover of the entrée dish in a fancy restaurant. (This is how it is described in Teshuvos Chavos Yair 219.)

The sun rises for the whole mass and sets for the whole mass, so there are no time zones and no need for a Halachic dateline. It passes over the top of it, high in the summer and low in the winter, and at night, it reverses direction and goes back to its starting point either by taking the “high road” above and outside the “dish cover” concealed from view, or it takes the “low road” under the “bowl” and cooks all the water.

None of this will work and none is necessary if we know that the Earth is a sphere. Actually, the Yerushalmi in Avoda Zara does say the world is a sphere. But the Bavli seems to think it’s a dish. Perhaps we can explain this by saying that Eretz Yisrael was under the dominion of Rome who was the successor of Greece. As such, in Eretz Yisrael, even the Jewish scholars were aware of the more advanced Greek sciences. Conversely, Bavel was dominated by Persia and their astronomy was not as advanced. The Jewish scholars of Bavel pandered to the Persian “what-you-see-is-what-you-get” philosophy.

According to the round-Earth theory, the sun is busy cooking Hawaii when it’s night in Israel (which it certainly is) and is not cooking the water below ground. It seems that Chazal had not yet mastered the laws of calorics and heat exchange. Air temperature changes very quickly. Water temperature does not. Thus, in a summer day, the air temperature may start at 40°F at dawn and reach 80°F at noon and down to 70°F by sundown. The water starts at 60°F but won’t change much until the sun goes down and things cool anyway. But it won’t cool as fast either and so it will stay at 60°F day and night.

As such, when the day begins the air is 40°F and the water is 60°F so people think water is warm. Hey, it’s a lot warmer than the air. By noon, the air is 80°F and the water is still 60°F so all of a sudden, the water is freezing. Next morning the 60°F water is warm again in the 40°F air. It must have gotten cooked overnight, and what can cook it but the sun?

But the truth is that there were no thermometers in those days. The water temperature barely changed. Only the air temperature changed.

So Chazal tell us that the sun goes underneath the world and heats the water.

What is the Halachic ramification of all this?

Well, we already discussed the necessity (or not) of a Halachic dateline. But, in addition, many Rishonim, with Rashi at the helm, attribute this sun-low-in-the-sky (or cooks-the-wells-at-night) theory as the reason for the puzzling Halacha that the matzos of Pesach can only be made using water that sat out overnight – מים שלנו – and not water that was freshly drawn from a well. Since the sun warms up well water at night, the early morning water is warm and will “leavenate” the dough.

Other Rishonim give explanations to the opposite extreme assuming that fresh well water is very cold and its coldness is the problem. Maharam Hallavah says that when one mixes something very cold into another substance at room temperature, the sudden coldness causes the second substance to generate some latent heat and this is what will cause the flour to “leavenate”.  

Perhaps the root of the dispute is that Rashi and his colleagues view the Bavli flat Earth theory as “Halacha l’maaseh” and Maharam Hallavah maintains the more contemporary (or Yerushalmi) round Earth theory.

In any case, it is known that HRHG Rav Moshe Sternbuch, Shlita was the Chief Rabbi of South Africa and he was asked whether there is a need forמים שלנו  to make matzos in S. Africa? After all, the sun was high in the sky all the past months?

I am told he ruled that they still need מים שלנו to satisfy the Maharam Hallavah. But, what would Rashi pasken if he was asked?

It goes without saying that very likely there are other esoteric and metaphysical explanations for these divrei Chazal that are not affected by modern developments. Still and all, it is very difficult to contend that Chazal were more advanced in the physical world than the rest of mankind. There are just too many things that we can see today that don’t “shtim” with Chazal.

The astronomical sciences are not going to influence our analysis of the Murex trunculus too much. I really wanted to discuss what Chazal understood about living organisms – biology, zoology, and anatomy. This part was just the opener. When I started writing this post, I did not anticipate I would expend so much ink on the Earth and Water.

We’ll continue in the next post which I really hope will not take another two years (hopefully not even another two weeks).

See you then.