This is the Eri B. Sitt Edition, an audio series of the Talmud Bavli, tractate Bava Batra. This tractate, the longest in the Talmud in terms of pages, has been dedicated by our good friend and pioneering student in the Daf Yomi class, Adam Azra, for the success of his dear children. May they grow up to bring him satisfaction, possess wisdom and understanding, and be a source of honor to him, his wife, and his entire family. Amen.
Today we begin with the Mishnah at the bottom of the page: “One must move a pile of grain fifty cubits away from the city.” A pile of grain is a stack or heap of wheat or other produce. It must not be placed within fifty cubits of the city because it contains wheat as well as chaff, the outer covering of the wheat. When the wind blows, it carries the chaff into the city, where it can damage the residents and pollute the city.
The Mishnah then says that a person may not make a permanent pile of grain within his own field unless he places it fifty cubits away on every side. Again, the concern is that the chaff will blow into his neighbor’s field and ruin it. When chaff enters another person’s field, it dries out the crops. Therefore, even if a person is placing the pile in his own field, he must keep it at a sufficient distance so that he does not damage his neighbor’s property.
The pile must also be kept away from his neighbor’s trees and from his neighbor’s furrow. If the neighbor has merely plowed the field and has not yet planted anything, the pile must nevertheless be kept away so that it does not cause damage. Let us examine Rashi’s explanation.
What does the Mishnah mean by a “permanent pile”? When a person winnows grain, he throws the wheat into the air. The wind carries the chaff away, while the wheat falls back down. In this way, the wheat is separated from the chaff. We are concerned that if the pile is within fifty cubits of the city, the chaff will fly into the city when the person winnows the grain and will cause damage to the residents. The chaff can also dry out the seeds in another person’s field. As for the furrow of one’s neighbor, the Gemara will explain what damage the chaff can cause there.
There is a question regarding the measurements in the Mishnah. At the beginning, the Mishnah gives a specific measurement of fifty cubits. At the end, however, it says that the pile must be placed far enough away so that it will not cause damage. That sounds like a different measurement. Is the required distance fifty cubits, or is it simply whatever distance is necessary to prevent damage?
The Gemara begins with this very question. Why does the Mishnah give a measurement of fifty cubits at the beginning, but at the end give a different standard—far enough away that no damage will occur?
Abaye answers that the final part of the Mishnah is discussing a pile that is not permanent. What is a nonpermanent pile? Rabbi Yosef, in the name of Rav Huna bar Rav Yehudah, explains that it is any pile that does not require a winnowing fork. A winnowing fork was used to take grain from a large pile and throw it into the air so that the wind would separate the chaff from the wheat. If the pile is very large and requires such a fork, it is considered a permanent pile, and it must be fifty cubits away. If it is a smaller, nonpermanent pile, it may be placed closer, provided that it is far enough away not to cause damage.
According to Abaye, then, there are two measurements: a large pile requires fifty cubits, while a small pile may be closer as long as it does not cause damage.
Rav Ashi offers another explanation. He understands the entire Mishnah as referring to a distance of fifty cubits. The Mishnah means that one may not place a permanent pile within fifty cubits, and when it adds the words “so that it should not cause damage,” it is not introducing a second measurement. It is explaining the reason for the fifty-cubit requirement. According to Rav Ashi, there is no distinction between a large pile and a small pile in this Mishnah. The measurement is fifty cubits, and the reason is to prevent damage.
The Gemara raises a difficulty from a baraita. The baraita says that one must move a permanent pile fifty cubits away from a city. It then mentions gourds, squash, cucumbers, trees, and furrows. This indicates clearly that the reason for moving the pile away from all of these things is to prevent damage. That supports Rav Ashi, because according to him everything is measured at fifty cubits, and the reason is the prevention of damage.
However, according to Abaye there is a difficulty. Abaye distinguishes between a large permanent pile and a smaller nonpermanent pile, while the baraita appears to give one uniform measurement of fifty cubits regardless of what is involved. The Gemara concludes that this is indeed a difficulty against Abaye.
The Gemara then explains why the chaff can damage a field. When a person winnows grain, the chaff and other waste are carried by the wind into the neighboring field. If that field contains seeds or vegetables, the chaff can dry them out and ruin the crop. But what damage can it cause to an empty furrow, where nothing has yet been planted?
In the old days, a person would plow the field before the planting season, not necessarily during the month of Tishrei, in order to remove weeds from beneath the ground. Then, when the planting season arrived, the soil would be prepared. There could also be thorns in the ground, and plowing would prepare the field for the coming season. Nevertheless, at the time of the discussion there were no seeds in the furrow. What, then, could become dried out?
The Gemara answers that the chaff can over-fertilize the field. Chaff functions as fertilizer. Fertilizer is normally beneficial to the soil, but too much fertilizer is harmful. Rashi explains that it adds too much manure and can burn the seeds that will later be planted. Although fertilizer generally improves the ground, when the soil consists of excessive fertilizer, it becomes damaging. Therefore, if the pile is too close, the chaff carried by the wind can eventually burn the seeds that the neighbor plants in his furrow.
The next Mishnah discusses several things that must be moved away from a city: animal carcasses, graves, and a tannery. A tannery is a place where leather is produced and treated. These things have a common feature: they produce a very bad smell. We are concerned that the smell will reach the city and cause distress or damage to the residents.
One might ask why graves are included. Graves do not produce a smell in the same way as a carcass or a tannery. The commentators explain that graves are mentioned for a different reason. We do not want to make the people of the city morbid and depressed by placing graves in their midst. It is beneficial for people to remember the day of death from time to time, but graves should not be placed directly in the center of the city. A person who wants to reflect on mortality can go outside the city. Therefore, graves must also be moved fifty cubits away.
Regarding a tannery, the Mishnah gives an additional rule. Although we have just learned that a tannery must be fifty cubits away from the city, a tannery may be established only on the eastern side of the city. The reason is that there is generally not much wind from that side, and we are therefore less concerned that the smell will be blown into the city. According to the first opinion in the Mishnah, a tannery requires both conditions: it must be on the eastern side and fifty cubits away.
This special rule applies only to a tannery, not to graves or animal carcasses, because those do not produce as powerful a smell. With a tannery, the concern is greater, and therefore it may be placed only on the eastern side.
Rashi explains that the wind from the east is generally not strong and does not blow constantly in a damaging manner. The ordinary eastern wind is warm and gentle, as reflected in the Book of Jonah, where it is described as a quiet or calm wind. Since the wind from the east is usually mild, we are not concerned that it will carry the smell into the city. An unusually strong wind may occasionally arise, but it is not common enough to make us prohibit a tannery on the eastern side.
The Mishnah then records the opinion of Rabbi Akiva. He says that a tannery may be placed on any side of the city except the western side. There is a disagreement between the first opinion and Rabbi Akiva. The first opinion permits a tannery only on the eastern side, while Rabbi Akiva permits it anywhere except the western side. The tannery must also be moved fifty cubits away, but we must determine precisely how Rabbi Akiva understands this. Does he mean that it may be placed fifty cubits away on any side except the west, or does he mean that it may not be placed on the west at all, even if it is fifty cubits away?
The Gemara brings a baraita: Rabbi Akiva says that it is permitted to place a tannery on any side, provided that it is moved fifty cubits away, except for the western side, where it may not be placed at all. Thus, on the other sides, it is permitted at a distance of fifty cubits; on the western side, it is prohibited whether it is close to the city or fifty cubits away.
Why is the western side so problematic? The Gemara initially considers whether the reason is that the western wind is frequent. If the western wind blows constantly, one might be concerned that a tannery placed on the western side would continually send its smell into the city.
However, the Gemara rejects that explanation. The western wind is not the wind that is described as the most common or the most dangerous. The Sages teach that four winds blow every day, and that a northern wind accompanies them. The northern wind is especially important; without it, the world could not exist even for a moment. Rashi explains that the northern wind is light, sweet, and brings clear air.
The southern wind, by contrast, is the most dangerous. There is an angel called Ben Netz—“the son of the bird”—whose task is to stand beside the southern wind and restrain it. If the angel did not calm the southern wind, it would destroy the entire world.
How do we know this? A verse in Job says that God asks Job whether he understands why the bird spreads its wings toward the south. The idea is that the angel stands on the southern side and spreads its wings there. When the wind blows, the wings slow it down. God is telling Job: Do you think this happens by itself? I arranged it in this way. The verse indicates that Ben Netz spreads its wings in order to moderate the southern wind.
We are therefore left with the question: If the western wind is not especially frequent or dangerous, why may a tannery not be placed on the western side? The Gemara answers that the Divine Presence is in the west. It is not respectful to place a foul-smelling tannery in that direction. The prohibition has nothing to do with the smell reaching the city and nothing to do with the wind. It is simply a matter of honoring the Divine Presence.
How do we know that the Divine Presence is in the west? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi says that we must be grateful to the Men of the Great Assembly, because they wrote a verse in the Book of Ezra from which we learn this principle. This also teaches us in which direction to pray. Once we establish that the Divine Presence is in the west, a person praying the Amidah should face west.
The verse says that the heavenly bodies bow down. Consider the path of the sun. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. It appears, therefore, that the sun bows toward the west as it descends there. Why did God arrange the sun’s path in this way? It must be to indicate that the Divine Presence is in the west, and even the sun bows toward God.
One could ask that at night the sun sets in the west and then returns toward the east. Perhaps it is bowing toward the east as well. Tosafot addresses this question and explains that the relevant consideration is the part of the sun’s path that is visible. At night, we do not see the sun when it is on the other side of the horizon. What is visible to us is its movement from east to west. Therefore, the visible path indicates that the Divine Presence is in the west.
Rav Huna bar Yehudah raises another possibility. Perhaps the sun is like a servant who receives a gift from his master. After receiving the gift, the servant walks away backward so as not to turn his back on his master. It may be that the Divine Presence is actually in the east, and the sun faces east after serving God there, then travels backward toward the west. If so, the movement of the sun would not prove that the Divine Presence is in the west.
Rabbi Oshaya offers a different view. He says that the Divine Presence is found everywhere, in every direction, and is not concentrated in one direction more than another. He supports this with another verse that we recite every day, describing God as having made the heavens, the earth, and everything in them. Human messengers are not like divine messengers. When a human being sends a messenger, the messenger must return to the sender and report that the mission has been completed. A divine messenger, however, can report to God from the place where the mission was carried out.
This shows that God is present both where the messenger was sent and where the messenger arrives. God sends the messenger to perform a task, and when the messenger reaches the destination, he can report from there that he has completed it. The verse in Job describes lightning carrying out its task and saying that it has done so. It does not say that the lightning returns to God and then reports. It says that it goes to the place where it is sent and reports from there. This indicates that the Divine Presence is everywhere.
Rabbi Yishmael also maintains that the Divine Presence is everywhere. A baraita taught in his name derives this from an account in the time of the prophet Zechariah. God sent two angels: one to destroy Jerusalem, and another to stop the first angel from destroying the city completely, permitting him only to knock down the wall surrounding Jerusalem.
The verse describes one angel coming from one direction and another angel coming toward him from a different direction. Both were sent by God. If the Divine Presence were limited to one direction, the verse would have said that the second angel was behind the first and came from the same direction. Instead, it says that one angel came out and another came toward him, indicating that they came from different directions. This teaches that God dispatches His angels from every side. Rabbi Yishmael therefore understands that the Divine Presence rests in all directions.
Rav Sheshet also says that the Divine Presence is everywhere. Rav Sheshet was blind, and he once told his attendant that when he prayed the Amidah, he could position him in any direction, but not toward the east. This was not because the Divine Presence is absent from the east. Rather, the heretics and their followers prayed toward the east because they worshipped the sun, which rises in the east. Rav Sheshet did not want to give any legitimacy to their practice. His statement also indicates that he held that the Divine Presence is found in every direction.
Another opinion maintains that the Divine Presence is primarily in the west, like the opinion of Rabbi Akiva. This is why a tannery may not be placed on the western side. The Gemara asks where this can be found. It cites the word “Uria,” which is understood as referring to the air of God. Rashi explains that in the Persian language the word refers to the west. It is therefore understood as the place of God’s air, meaning the place of the Divine Presence.
Rashi offers another interpretation. Some say that the word refers to the east. The phrase can then be understood as “the air of God,” meaning that God’s air comes from the east because the Divine Presence is in the west. These are different interpretations: either the word is a Persian term for the west, or it refers to the east as the source from which the air of the Divine Presence comes.
Rav Yehudah then returns to the verse that says, “May my teaching flow like rain.” Rashi explains that Moses compared the Torah to the four winds. Just as the world cannot exist without the four winds, the world cannot exist without Torah. When Moses speaks about Torah, he compares it to the winds.
“May my words flow” refers to the western wind, which comes from the strength of the world. The western wind is connected with the Divine Presence, which is in the west. “May my words descend like dew” refers to the northern wind. The northern wind causes the value of gold to fall. It brings famine, and when there is famine there is not enough food. People must then spend a great deal of gold to obtain a small amount of food. The buying power of gold declines, and its value is cheapened. This is the meaning of the expression referring to gold becoming inexpensive.
“Like storms upon the grass” refers to the eastern wind, which blows against the world like a demon. It is a powerful wind and brings calamity. This may explain the earlier opinion that permits a tannery on the eastern side: if the eastern wind is strong, it will carry the smell away from the city rather than into it.
Moses then refers to the southern wind. The southern wind is beneficial. It brings rain and causes the grass and crops to grow. Thus, each wind has its own character and effect. The northern wind dries the land and harms the economy. The southern wind brings beneficial rain and growth. The western wind is associated with the side of the Divine Presence, while the eastern wind is compared to the demons and is therefore less favorable.
The Gemara then presents one of the more difficult discussions concerning the winds and the structure of the world. The commentators explain that the Sages were not speaking on a simple physical level. Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto writes this in his work Adir BaMarom, and the Gaon of Vilna likewise explains that these statements refer to spiritual matters. We know that the world is round, and the Zohar HaKadosh, in the portion of Shemini, explicitly describes the world as spherical. It is therefore clear that the Sages knew the shape of the world. In this passage, however, they are speaking on a higher spiritual level rather than describing the earth physically. We will not attempt to explain the full depth of those spiritual statements here.
A baraita says that the world is like an exedra, a porch. A porch has three walls and is open on the fourth side. According to this teaching, the northern side is open. When the sun reaches the northwestern corner, it bows and rises above the firmament.
In other words, according to this opinion, the sun travels from east to west on the southern side of the horizon. It rises in the east, crosses the southern side, and when it reaches the northwest, it is no longer visible. At night, it travels beyond the firmament on the northern side and returns to the east in the morning. Again, we cannot say that this is a physical description of the earth. The teaching presents the world as having three walls and an opening on the northern side, with the sun visible as it travels across the south and hidden at night.
Rabbi Yehoshua disagrees. He says that the world is not like a porch but like a tent. The northern side also has a wall. According to the first opinion, the sun leaves the world at night through the opening on the northern side and returns to the east. According to Rabbi Yehoshua, there is no opening through which the sun can pass. When the sun reaches the northwestern point, it returns beneath the firmament and travels back toward the east without leaving the world.
The Book of Ecclesiastes says that the sun travels toward the south and then circles around toward the north. This corresponds to the description that the sun travels along the southern side during the day and then passes along the northern side at night. The verse also says that sometimes the sun is on the eastern side and sometimes on the western side.
This can be understood in terms of the changing seasons. In the winter, the sun rises in the southeast and travels during the day to the southwest. At night, it travels through the remaining directions until it returns to the east. These are the shorter days. In the summer, the sun rises in the northeast, travels across the eastern, southern, and western sides, and reaches the northwest. At night, it travels only through the northern side until it returns to the northeast. These are the longer days.
Rashi explains that in the month of Tammuz, when the days are longest, the sun rises in the northeast and sets in the northwest. It makes a complete circuit across the visible sides. During the short winter days, it rises in the southeast and sets in the southwest, while at night it travels through the other three directions. The verse is describing the sun’s cycle during the long and short days.
One would have to be an astronomer or an expert in these matters to understand the full depth of what the Sages are saying. On the basic level, however, the explanation is that during the short days the sun travels through a smaller portion of the sky while it is visible, and during the summer it travels through a larger portion during the day and a smaller portion at night. That is the basic idea of the Gemara.
Another teaching says that storms come from the inner part of the world, and that this refers to the southern wind. According to the opinion that the world is open on the northern side, winds that come from the open side are strong. The southern wall is the back or inner wall of the structure, while the northern side is open. Therefore, stormy winds come from the inner part, while cold winds come from the open side because they are not insulated by the other walls.
The teaching continues that ice comes from the spirit of God, referring to the western side, since the Divine Presence is in the west. Water comes from the east. This seems difficult, because we previously learned that the southern wind brings rain and causes the grass to grow. The explanation is that the southern wind brings ordinary, beneficial rain, which helps crops grow in a normal way. The eastern wind, by contrast, brings torrential rain, a heavy downpour that is not beneficial to crops. Thus, when rain comes from the east, it is excessive and damaging, while the southern wind brings calm and beneficial rain.
Rav Chisda continues by saying that from the north, gold becomes cheap. This is the same idea we learned earlier. When the northern wind comes, it dries out the land and causes famine. When there is no food, gold loses its buying power. Normally, a certain amount of gold can purchase many things, but when food is scarce, the same amount of gold buys only a small amount of food. The northern wind therefore causes the value of gold to decline.
Since the Temple was destroyed, the southern wind has no longer been beneficial in the same way. The southern wind normally brings rain and growth, but after the destruction, God decreed that the southern wind would no longer perform its former function. The verse says that God made a decree against the south, and famine and pestilence are associated with it. The south is called the right side, while the north is called the left side. The decree was that the beneficial rain would no longer come from the south.
When the Jewish people are following the Torah and living in the Land of Israel, rain comes from God’s good treasury. The Torah says that God will open His good treasury to provide rain. That refers to rain of blessing. When the Jewish people are not on their land, the rain does not come from that special treasury called the good treasury.
Rabbi Yitzchak explains that the rain of the Land of Israel comes from a particular source. The Gemara then discusses the direction in which a person should pray. One who wants to become wise should face south, while one who wants to become wealthy should face north. The Gemara provides a way to remember this: the table was in the north and the menorah was in the south. The table represents livelihood and sustenance, so a person seeking wealth should face north, toward the table in the Temple. A person seeking wisdom should face south, toward the menorah.
Why does the menorah represent wisdom? The verse compares the Torah to light. Therefore, the menorah, which gives light, represents wisdom and Torah.
Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi offers a compromise. He says that a person should always pray toward the south, asking for wisdom. Once a person has wisdom, he can learn how to earn money. Torah provides both long life and wealth. If a person studies Torah, the other benefits will follow.
The Gemara challenges this position. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi had taught that the Divine Presence is in the west. How, then, can he say that a person should pray toward the south? He answers that he means that a person should angle himself toward the south. In reality, he is facing west, but he turns somewhat toward the south. Another explanation is that a person faces south while turning his head toward the west. Thus, he is facing south but directing his head toward the west.
We once mentioned another possible compromise: during the morning prayer one may pray for wisdom, and during the afternoon prayer one may pray for wealth. There are enough prayers that one can combine the directions in this way.
In practice, when we pray toward the north or south, we do not face those directions absolutely. We face toward the Land of Israel and Jerusalem. From where we are located, that may mean facing east. Therefore, when praying for wisdom from our location, we may face southeast, and when praying for wealth, northeast. We do not face due south or due north; we angle ourselves toward the Land of Israel.
The verse in the Song of Songs says, “Awaken, north, and come, south.” This can also be explained as a strategy for overcoming the evil inclination. When a person wants to get up in the morning, the evil inclination tells him to go back to sleep. It tells him that he is tired and needs more rest. The person can trick the evil inclination by saying, “No, I am getting up to make money. I want to be successful and wealthy.” The verse says, “Awaken, north”—tell the evil inclination that you are getting up for the north, for wealth, for the table. Once you are already out of bed, you can go to the south—to the study hall, to the menorah, and to Torah study. The initial declaration is merely a strategy to get out of bed and overcome the evil inclination.
The Gemara says that this teaching was stated to the people of Babylonia. Babylonia is north of the Land of Israel. Therefore, when the people of Babylonia prayed the Amidah, they faced south. This opinion is not necessarily based on the Divine Presence being in the west; it is based on the requirement to face the Land of Israel. Since Babylonia is north of the Land of Israel, its residents faced south.
How do we know that Babylonia is north of the Land of Israel? The prophet spoke about Nebuchadnezzar, who would come and destroy the Temple, and said that the evil would come from the north. That refers to Babylonia and Nebuchadnezzar. We therefore see that Babylonia was to the north.
This yields a practical halachic point. If a person is flying to the Land of Israel, he should pray toward the front of the plane, because the Land of Israel is in front of him. When he is returning from Israel, he should pray toward the back of the plane, because the Land of Israel is behind him. It also depends on where a person is located within the Land of Israel. For example, Tiberias is north of Jerusalem, so a person praying in Tiberias should face south. It is not automatically correct to face east.
We face east from our location only because the Land of Israel is east of us. In other countries, the Land of Israel may be in another direction. China, for example, is west of the Land of Israel. The rule is always to face toward the Land of Israel and Jerusalem. People sometimes mistakenly think that one must always face east, but the Gemara is teaching that the direction is determined by one’s location in relation to the Land of Israel.
Let us return to the final point of the Mishnah. According to the first opinion, a person who is soaking flax in water must move it away from his neighbor’s vegetables. The flax water has a bad smell and can damage the vegetables. If one person is preparing flax and his neighbor has vegetables growing nearby, the flax must be moved away so that it does not damage them. The Mishnah also says that leeks must be moved away from onions, because the combination can cause damage.
The Mishnah then discusses mustard seed and bees. We previously learned that mustard seed must be moved away from bees. Bees eat the mustard seed, which is very sharp. As a result, they need to eat something else and end up consuming the honey. They therefore take away the honey that belongs to the owner of the bees. Because the mustard seed is next to the bees, the bees eat it and the owner loses his honey.
Rabbi Yose disagrees regarding the mustard. He says that the mustard seed does not have to be moved away from the bees. His reasoning is that both sides cause damage. The bees eat the mustard, while the mustard causes damage to the bees and leads them to consume the honey. If both parties are damaging one another, who can claim that the other party is solely responsible? The owner of the bees can tell the mustard grower to remove his mustard, because the bees are suffering. The mustard grower can respond that the bees are eating his mustard. Since each side damages the other, Rabbi Yose says that neither party has a greater claim against the other.
The Gemara now examines Rabbi Akiva’s statement that a tannery may be placed on every side except the west. Does this mean that on the other three sides it may be placed immediately next to the city, with no requirement of fifty cubits, while on the west it must be fifty cubits away? Or does it mean that on the other three sides it must be fifty cubits away, while on the west it may not be placed at all?
The Gemara brings a baraita in which Rabbi Akiva says that a tannery may be placed on the other sides only after it has been moved fifty cubits away, while on the western side it may not be placed at all. This establishes that the western side is completely prohibited, whereas the other sides require a distance of fifty cubits.
The Gemara asks again why the west is different. It cannot be because the western wind is frequent, since the northern wind is the ordinary wind and the southern wind is the dangerous one. The answer is that the Divine Presence is in the west, and it is not respectful to place a foul-smelling tannery there.
The Gemara then returns to the disagreement between Rabbi Yose and the Sages. Rabbi Yose says generally that a person may place things wherever he wishes on his own property. If the neighbor is damaged, the neighbor must move. The Sages disagree and say that the person causing the damage must move.
According to the Sages, this is why the flax water must be moved away from the vegetables, and why the leeks must be moved away from the onions. The person who is creating the damaging condition may not insist that the neighbor leave. He must avoid causing harm.
Rabbi Yose tells the Sages that although they disagree with him in the general case, they should at least agree with him regarding mustard and bees. In that case, both parties are causing damage. The bees eat the mustard, while the mustard harms the bees and causes them to consume the honey. Therefore, why should the mustard grower be required to move while the owner of the bees is allowed to remain?
The Gemara expresses Rabbi Yose’s argument as follows: If the Sages tell the mustard grower, “Move your mustard away from the bees,” he can answer, “You move your bees away from my mustard.” The bees are eating the leaves of his mustard. Since both sides can make the same claim, there is no reason to place the entire burden on the mustard grower.
Thus, Rabbi Yose maintains his general position that a person may use his own property as he wishes, and the neighbor who is bothered must move. The Sages maintain that a person may not create a damaging situation for his neighbor and must move the source of the damage. Rabbi Yose argues that even according to the Sages, the mustard case should be different because each side damages the other.
May God be blessed forever and ever. Amen and amen.