Siman - Pesachim Daf 109
- Keeping Children Awake
The Gemara cites Baraisas that discuss keeping children awake for the seder:
·Rebbe Yehudah says that we give children קליות ואגוזין בערב פסח – parched grain and walnuts on Erev Pesach [it is evident from Rambam and others that the Gemara refers to the night of Pesach], כדי שלא ישנו וישאלו – so that they will not sleep and they will ask questions.
·Rebbe Eliezer says: חוטפין מצות בלילי פסחים – We snatch matzos on the night of Pesach,בשביל תינוקות שלא ישנו – for the benefit of the children, so that they should not fall asleep. The Rashbam’s preferred explanation this means that we prevent children from eating too much matzah and becoming drowsy as a result. Alternatively, we remove the seder plate from the table to prompt the children to ask why.
·It was said about Rebbe Akiva: מימיו לא אמר הגיע עת לעמוד בבהמ''ד – He never said, “The time has come to stand up in the Beis Hamidrash and leave,” חוץ מערבי פסחים וערב יום הכפורים – except for Erev Pesach and Erev Yom Kippur. בע''פ בשביל תינוקות כדי שלא ישנו – On Erev Pesach [he did this] for the benefit of the children, so that they should not fall asleep [Rashbam explains that the talmidim would go home early either to ensure that their children nap during the day or so that they could begin the seder before the children would go to sleep], וערב יוה''כ כדי שיאכילו את בניהם – and on Erev Yom Kippur so that [the talmidim] should feed their children.
- Simchas Yom Tov
It was taught in a Baraisa: חייב אדם לשמח בניו ובני ביתו ברגל שנא' ושמחת בחגך – A man is obligated to gladden his children and the members of his household on Yom Tov, as is stated, “And you should rejoice on your festival [you, your son, your daughter, your slave, etc.]” במה משמחם ביין – With what does he gladden them? With wine. רבי יהודה אומר אנשים בראוי להם ונשים בראוי להן – Men with what is appropriate for them and women with what is appropriate for them. The Gemara explains that wine is appropriate to gladden men and Rav Yosef explains that new clothing is appropriate to gladden women. In Bavel, it was with colored garments and in Eretz Yisroel it was with white pressed linen garments. Rebbe Yehudah ben Beseirah says: בזמן שבית המקדש קיים אין שמחה אלא בבשר – When the Beis Hamikdash stands, [the mitzvah of] rejoicing is [fulfilled] only through [bringing an offering and eating its] meat. ועכשיו שאין בית המקדש קיים אין שמחה אלא ביין – But now that the Beis Hamikdash does not stand, [the mitzvah of] rejoicing is [fulfilled] only through [drinking] wine.
- The Size of a Revi’is
Rav Chisda defines the liquid measure of revi’is by describing the size of the space that a revi’is occupies: רביעית של תורה אצבעים על אצבעים ברום אצבעים וחצי אצבע וחומש אצבע – The revi’is of the Torah is two fingers by two fingers, with a height of two fingers, half a finger, and a fifth of a finger, or 2 x 2 x 2.7 fingers. Rav Chisda derives this from a Baraisa that teaches that, because a mikveh must be able to contain a person’s entire body at one time, it must be an amah by an amah, with a height of three amos, and the Chachamim determined that an area of that size contains forty se’ah. Applying the same ratio, Rav Chisda concluded that an area of 2 x 2 x 2.7 fingers contains a revi’is.
