À partir de quelle heure le Shema peut-il être récité le soir? Depuis le moment où les Cohanim sont entrés pour manger leur terumah [les Cohanim qui sont devenus impurs et qui se sont immergés ne peuvent pas manger de terumah jusqu'à ce que "leur soleil se soit couché"; c'est-à-dire jusqu'à ce que les étoiles soient apparues. La raison pour laquelle «Depuis le moment où les étoiles sont apparues» n'est pas mentionnée est que nous pourrions être ainsi informés d'un apprentissage fortuit, à savoir, si les Cohanim se souillaient avec le type d'impureté où leur purification implique une offrande (comme zav ou metzora), le manque de cette offrande expiatoire ne les empêche pas de manger terumah, il est écrit (Lévitique 22: 7): "Et quand le soleil se couchera vetaher ('et le jour est fini'), il pourra manger du choses saintes "—le coucher du soleil est une condition préalable à sa terumah, mais son offrande expiatoire ne l'est pas], jusqu'à la fin de la première veille. [le premier tiers de la nuit, la nuit étant divisée en trois veilles. A partir de là, il n'est plus considéré comme le moment du récit du Shema du couché, et il ne satisfait pas (Deutéronome 6: 7): «… quand vous vous allongez». Et avant que les étoiles ne sortent aussi, c'est le jour, et non le moment de se coucher. Et ceux qui sont à l'avance et récitent le Shema du soir alors qu'il fait encore jour, comptent en cela sur R. Yehudah, qui dit (26a) que la prière du Minchah peut être récitée jusqu'à la mi-après-midi, une heure et quart avant la nuit. . Et il est décidé que l'on peut suivre R. Yehudah à cet égard—qu'immédiatement après l'expiration du temps pour la prière du Minchah, le temps du récital du Shema du soir commence.] Ce sont les paroles de R. Eliezer. Et les sages disent: jusqu'à minuit. R. Gamliel dit: Jusqu'à l'apparition de l'étoile du matin. [Pour toute la nuit est considéré comme le temps de se coucher. Et la halakha est en accord avec R. Gamliel, les sages aussi, d'accord avec lui, n'ayant dit «Jusqu'à minuit» que pour garder loin de la transgression. Cependant, ab initio, quand arrive le moment du récit de Shema de la Michna—- c'est-à-dire quand les étoiles apparaissent —il est interdit de manger et, il va sans dire, de dormir, jusqu'à ce qu'il récite le Shema et prie.] Il est arrivé une fois que ses fils venaient en retard d'une fête [Les fils de R. Gamliel ont entendu que les sages avaient dit: «Jusqu'à minuit», et voici ce qu'ils lui ont dit: Les sages diffèrent-ils de vous en disant: «Jusqu'à minuit», spécifiquement, et pas après? (et "un contre plusieurs, la halakha est selon le multiple"), ou est-ce que les sages tiennent avec vous, mais disent "jusqu'à minuit" pour garder un loin de la transgression? Et il répondit: Les sages tiennent avec moi, et disent: "Jusqu'à minuit" pour garder quelqu'un loin de la transgression; et tu es obligé de le réciter.], et ils lui dirent: Nous n'avons pas encore récité le Shema. Il leur a dit: Si l'étoile du matin n'est pas encore apparue, il vous incombe de la réciter. Et non pas cela seul [(C'est toujours R. Gamliel parlant à ses fils)] ont-ils dit, mais partout où les sages disent «jusqu'à minuit», la mitsva est acquise jusqu'à l'apparition de l'étoile du matin. La mitsva de brûler les graisses [des offrandes] et les morceaux [de l'holocauste quotidien de l'après-midi—C'est une mitsva d'offrir les pièces toute la nuit, à savoir. (Lévitique 6: 2): "C'est l'holocauste sur son bois de chauffage sur l'autel toute la nuit jusqu'au matin."] Obtient jusqu'à l'apparition de l'étoile du matin. Et la mitsva de manger toutes ces offrandes qui doivent être mangées en une journée [comme une offrande de remerciement, une offrande pour le péché, une offrande de culpabilité, etc., qui sont mangées un jour et une nuit—le temps de les manger est jusqu'à l'apparition de l'étoile du matin; et c'est ce qui les amène au statut de nothar (laissé au-delà du temps désigné et nécessitant d'être brûlé)], («la mitsva, etc.») obtient jusqu'à l'apparition de l'étoile du matin. Si oui, pourquoi les sages ont-ils dit: "Jusqu'à minuit"? [en ce qui concerne le récit du Shema et la consommation d'offrandes. Mais ils n'ont pas dit du tout «jusqu'à minuit» à propos de la combustion des graisses et des morceaux, n'ayant mentionné cela ici que pour nous informer que la mitsva de toutes les choses désignées pour la nuit obtient toute la nuit.] Pour en garder une. loin de la transgression. [qu'il ne vienne pas les manger après l'apparition de l'étoile du matin et qu'il n'encourt pas de kareth ("coupure"); et, de même, avec le récit du Shema, qu'il ne dise pas "j'ai encore du temps" et manque le temps désigné].
Ikar Tosafot Yom Tov on Mishnah Berakhot
From When. The Tana is referring to a Possuk as it says in the Possuk, "When you lie down and when you get up." From there we learn that it is an obligation on each man to read Shema in the evening and in the morning. And the Mishna now asks when is the time? and from the Possuk that says when you lie down at the beginning, we start with the evening Shema.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
מאימתי קורין את שמעו בערבית? משעה שהכהנים נכנסים לאכול בתרומתן – Kohanim (Priests) who became defiled and immersed [in the Mikveh/Ritual Bath] are not able to eat of the Terumah/heave offering (2% of a yield that a person initially tithes for a Kohen), until after sunset, which is, (at the time) when the stars appear. And the fact the Mishnah does not teach, “from the time when the stars appear” is an incidental matter, which comes to tell us, that if Kohanim were defiled with an uncleanness whose purification is dependent upon [the offering of] a sacrifice, such as one afflicted with gonorrhea or leprosy – their [form of] atonement does not prevent them from eating the heave offering, as it written (Leviticus 22:7): “As soon as the sun sets, he shall be pure; and afterward he may eat of the sacred donations [for they are his food].” The setting of the sun prevents him from his eating the heave offering, but his atonement [sacrifice] does not prevent him from eating his heave offering.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
Introduction
Tractate Berakhot begins by discussing what time the Shema (only two paragraphs were recited at night, Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21) is recited in the evening. It probably begins by discussing the evening Shema because in rabbinic thought the day begins at night. This is also the order reflected in Deuteronomy 6:7 and 11:19, “Recite them…when you lie down and when you get up.” In our mishnah the sages debate what the halakhic meaning of the words “when you lie down” really are.
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Ikar Tosafot Yom Tov on Mishnah Berakhot
The Possuk "And after you shall eat from the Kodshim" is referring to Terumah in Yevamos daf 74. Here the possuk understands, until the firmament goes away from the light and becomes dark that is when the stars come out.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
עד סוף האשמורה הראשונה – The first third of the night (is the end of the first “watch”), as the night is divided into three watches, and from then onwards is no longer called the time [for the] Recitation of the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:13-21; Numbers 15:37-41) when lying down, and we do not refer to it as “when you lie down” (Deuteronomy 6:7), and prior to the stars coming out (literally, “going out”), it is also considered daytime and not the time of lying down. And those who recite Evening Shema early while it is still day, rely upon that [opinion] of Rabbi Yehuda who said further on in Chapter “Tefillat HaShahar”/The Morning Prayer/Amidah (Chapter 4 of Berakhot, Mishnah 1), that the Afternoon prayer is recited until “Plag HaMinhah”/the middle of the afternoon (the half-way point between the time when the Tamid/Daily Sacrifice was offered – 3:30 pm and 6:00 pm when the time of sunset arrives at the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes), which is an hour and a quarter prior to the night time. And we establish (literally, “hold”), that he followed [the opinion of] Rabbi Yehudah, and immediately when the time for Minhah ends, the time for the Evening Recitation of the Shema begins.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
From what time may one recite the Shema in the evening? From the time that the priests enter [their houses] in order to eat their terumah until the end of the first watch, the words of Rabbi Eliezer. The priests would immerse at dusk so that after the sun had set and the stars came out they could go into their homes and eat terumah. Rabbi Eliezer determines that until the sun has set the Shema cannot be recited. The night is divided into three watches. Rabbi Eliezer holds that once the first watch has passed (this would be about 10 PM, if the day and night are both 12 hours), one can no longer recite the Shema. It seems that he interprets “when you lie down” to mean that the Shema must be recited at a time when most people go to sleep, that is between the time that the stars come out and the end of the first watch.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
עד שיעלה עמוד השחר – Since all night long is called the time for lying down, and the Halakha/law follows [the opinion of] Rabban Gamaliel since the Sages also agree with him, and they [the Sages] did not say, “Until Midnight” (for the recitation of the Evening Shema) other than to distance a person from [the possibility of committing a] sin. However, ab initio, when the time for the recitation of the Evening Shema of our Mishnah arrives, that is, from the time that the stars come out, it is forbidden to eat, and all the more so, to lie down until he recites and the Shema and recites the [Amidah] prayer.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
The sages say: until midnight. The sages say that he can read the Shema only until midnight.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
מעשה שבאו בניו מבית המשתה – The sons of Rabban Gamaliel followed the teaching of the Rabbis (regarding the ending time to recite the Evening Shema) who said, “until midnight,” and this is what they said to him: That when the Rabbis are in dispute with you, especially when they say, “until midnight” and not any longer, and [when there is a dispute between] and individual and a majority [view], the law follows the majority [view] (see Mishnah Eduyot, Chapter 1, Mishnah 5) or perhaps (alternatively), The Rabbis [hold] like you thinking and that which states, “until midnight, in order to distance a person from committing a sin,” and he (Rabban Gamaliel) said to the Rabbis that they hold like him, and that which [the Mishnah] states “until Midnight” in order to distance a person from [committing] a sin and you are required to recite the Shema [now].
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
Rabban Gamaliel says: until dawn. Rabban Gamaliel says that the Shema can be read until the sun rises the following morning. As we shall see below, Rabban Gamaliel does not actually disagree with the sages but rather explains their opinion.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
ולא זו בלבד– It is entirely the words of Rabban Gamaliel which he said to his sons.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
Once it happened that his sons came home [late] from a wedding feast and they said to him: we have not yet recited the [evening] Shema. He said to them: if it is not yet dawn you are still obligated to recite. In this story Rabban Gamaliel’s sons are out all night at a wedding party and they do not come home until early in the morning. Being good rabbi’s children, the first thing they ask him upon their return is if they can still recite the evening Shema or whether they have missed the opportunity altogether. Rabban Gamaliel answers that if it is not yet dawn, they may still recite the Shema.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
הקטר חלבים – of the Temple sacrifices.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
And not in respect to this alone did they so decide, but wherever the sages say “until midnight,” the mitzvah may be performed until dawn. The burning of the fat and the pieces may be performed till dawn. Similarly, all [the offerings] that are to be eaten within one day may be eaten till dawn. Why then did the sages say “until midnight”? In order to keep a man far from transgression. Here and in the following sections we see that Rabban Gamaliel holds that whenever the sages say that a certain mitzvah must be performed before midnight, in actuality it can be performed until the following morning. The sages said that the mitzvah should be performed before midnight so that the person would perform the mitzvah with plenty of time to spare and not miss his opportunity and thereby transgress. The mishnah brings two more such cases where they said that the mitzvah should be performed before midnight but it could actually be performed until the following morning. Parts of sacrifices that were not offered during the day were offered at night. While this should be done before midnight, if not done by then it can still be done up until the following dawn. Similarly, some sacrifices can only be eaten for a day or two and the night that follows. The sacrifice should be eaten before midnight, but if it is still leftover it can be eaten until dawn of the following morning.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
ואברים – [the limbs of] the burnt offering sacrifice offered daily at even-time in which its blood is cast on the day he is commanded to offer up the pieces all night long, as it written (Leviticus 6:2): “The burnt offering itself shall remain where it is burned upon the altar all night [until morning]…”
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
וכל הנאכלים ליום אחד – such as the thanksgiving offering, and the sin offering and the guilt offering and others like them, which are eaten in the daytime, but the nighttime is when they are eaten until the crack of dawn and he is the one who brings remnants [of the sacrifices left over beyond the legal time and bound to be burnt].
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
אם כן למה אמרו חכמים עד חצות – Regarding the Recitation of the [Evening] Shema and the eating of the Holy Things, but concerning the burning of the fats and limbs on the altar, the Sages did not say regarding it “until midnight” at all and [the Mishnah] did not hold this tradition other than to inform [us] that any Mitzvah which is to be performed at night is appropriate to be performed all night long (see Mishnah Megillah, Chapter 2, Mishnah 6).
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
כדי להרחיק את האדם מן העבירה – [Concerning the fats and limbs ]that he should not come to eat them after the crack of dawn and be liable for extirpation, and similarly regarding the Recitation of the Shema, that he shouldn’t say, “I still have time” and the time period would pass.
