S'il ne reconnaît pas [un arbre ou une clôture] ou s'il n'est pas expert dans la halakha [et ne sait pas qu'il lui sera utile de dire: "Mon habitation est à cet endroit"] et il dit: "Mon habitation est à ma place »(c'est-à-dire partout où il se trouve), sa place lui fait habitation, deux mille coudées dans un cercle de tous les côtés, [car en ce qui concerne les villes de refuge d'où les deux mille coudées du tchum Shabbath sont dérivés il est écrit (Nombres 35: 5): "Ce sera pour eux les espaces ouverts des villes" —Pour cela (c'est-à-dire pour les villes de refuge), vous ajoutez les coins (autour du cercle), mais vous n'ajoutez pas de coins pour ceux qui acquièrent une habitation le Shabbath.] Ce sont les mots de R. Chanina b. Antignos. Les sages disent: (deux mille coudées dans un) carré, comme dans une tablette carrée, pour que les coins soient gagnés. [Les rabbins expliquent "Ceci" (ci-dessus) comme inclusif, c'est-à-dire, comme cela sera (la règle pour) tous ceux qui acquièrent une habitation le Shabbath. La halakha est conforme aux sages. ("comme dans une tablette carrée" :) Rambam explique que parce qu'il est impossible de faire un carré exact, il est enseigné: "comme dans une tablette carrée". C'est-à-dire de la manière que les hommes ont l'habitude de faire, même si ce n'est pas exact. ("pour que les coins soient gagnés" :) les quatre coins de la diagonale, qui sont un ajout au cercle au milieu du carré.]
Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
ואם אינו מכיר – a tree or a fence.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
Introduction
In this mishnah we learn of a debate concerning the measuring of the 2000 cubits which a person may walk on Shabbat.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
או אינו בקי בהלכה – but he doesn’t know that it will benefit him when he says, that my Sabbath resting place is in a certain place, but he said “my Sabbath resting place is in its place,” he has acquired his place.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
If he does not recognize [any tree or fence], or if he is not familiar with the halakhah, and said, “Let my present position be my Shabbat place”, his position acquires for him the right of movement two thousand cubits in any direction. In a circle, the words of Rabbi Hanina ben Antigonus. But the sages say: the distances are square, in the shape of a square tablet, so that he may gain the area of the corners. The mishnah deals with a person who is traveling on the road and doesn’t recognize anything in the distance (as the person did in yesterday’s mishnah) or with a person who doesn’t know that the halakhah allows him to establish his Shabbat place at a distance by making an oral statement. He thinks that because he is far away from the point he recognizes that he can’t set up his 2000 cubit ring from there. The person then says that his present position is where he will spend Shabbat. He now has 2000 cubits within which to move in all directions. This halakhah is actually obvious; even if he didn’t make any statement he still has 2000 cubits in which to move. The halakhah is probably here as an introduction to the next section.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
עגולות – that regarding the Cities of Refuge, when we appoint them, we derive two thousand cubits of the Sabbath limit, as it is written (Numbers 35:5): “[You shall measure off two thousand cubits outside the town on the east side, two thousand on the south side, two thousand on the west side, and two thousand on the north side, with the town in the center.] That shall be the pasture for their towns.” To this one you give corners (see Talmud Eruvin 51a) which are corner-pieces, but you don’t give corner-pieces to those who set up Sabbath resting places, but the Rabbis who required square expound upon this to include like this (i.e., square) it will be for all Sabbath resting places, and the Halakha is according to the Sages.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
According to Rabbi Hanina ben Antigonus, the 2000 cubits form a circle. That is to say one simply draws a circle with a 2000 cubit radius around the person and that is the area within which he may walk. The Sages hold that this area is actually a square, drawn around the 2000 cubit radius circle. The advantage to the sages’ position is that the corners of the square increase the area. The square’s total area is 4004 x 4004=16,032,016 cubits. Note that the additional four cubits takes into account the person’s personal four cubits which his body occupies. In contrast the circle’s area is 10022 (radius, including 2 for his own body) x 3.14 (pi)= 12,585,132 (approximately).
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Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
כטבלא מרובעת – Maimonides wrote that because it is impossible to make an exactly defined quadrangular, the Mishnah purposely taught "כטבלא מרובעת"/a square board, that is to say, as people are accustomed to make something square, even though it is not an exactly defined quadrangular.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
נשכר את הזויות – four corners in its diameter of the quadrangular which is greater than the circle that is within it.
