Daf Ditty Eruvin 39: Yoma Arichta

Reb Nachman says, the Heilege Reb Nachman says,

you know why people hate each other?

Because deep, deep, deep down they don’t really believe that God created them.
And they hate each other.

If it would be clear to them that there is only one G-d, and G-d created them,
they’d love each other.

Reb Shlomo on Rosh Hashana

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MISHNA: During the time period when the Jewish calendar was established by the court
according to the testimony of witnesses who had seen the new moon, Rosh Hashanah would be
observed for only one day if witnesses arrived on that day, and for two days if witnesses failed to
arrive and the month of Elul was declared to be an extended, thirty-day month. Rabbi Yehuda
says:

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With regard to Rosh Hashanah, if one feared that the month of Elul might be extended, and he
wanted to travel in two different directions on the two days that could be Rosh Hashanah, this
person may establish two eiruvin and say:

My eiruv on the first day shall be to the east and on the second day to the west, or alternatively:
On the first day it shall be to the west, and on the second day to the east. Similarly, he may say:
My eiruv shall apply on the first day, but on the second day I shall be like the rest of the
inhabitants of my town, or alternatively:

My eiruv shall apply on the second day, but on the first day I shall be like the rest of the
inhabitants of my town. And the Rabbis did not agree with him that the two days of Rosh
Hashanah can be divided in such a manner.

And Rabbi Yehuda said further, with regard to the two days of Rosh Hashanah that one observes
because he does not know which is the real day of the Festival: A person may make a condition
with regard to a basket of tevel produce on the first day of the Festival and say as follows:

If today is the Festival and tomorrow is an ordinary weekday, I will separate the teruma and tithes
tomorrow, and I have performed nothing today; if today is an ordinary weekday, I hereby separate
the appropriate teruma and tithes now.

He may then eat the produce on the second day of the Festival, since one of his two acts of tithing
was certainly performed on an ordinary weekday.

Introduction to the doubt as to exact day:

In the previous mishnayot we learned that the sages and Rabbi Judah debate whether or not one
day of Rosh Hashanah is the real day and the other is only observed because we don’t know which
day Rosh Hashanah really is, or whether both days of Rosh Hashanah are treated as one extended
day, neither of which is considered to be of doubtful status. In the final Mishnah of this chapter we
see that this debate has ramifications for the prayers recited as well.

Rabbi Dosa ben Harkinas says: the person who goes in front of the ark on [the first day of] of
Rosh Hashanah says: “Strengthen us, o Lord our God, on this first day of the month, whether

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it be today or tomorrow”; and on the following day he says: ‘[Strengthen us...] whether it be
today or yesterday.” But the sages did not agree with him.

According to Rabbi Dosa ben Harkinas, in the prayers themselves one must include a mention of
the fact that it is uncertain which day Rosh Hashanah really is. The prayer to which the Mishnah
refers is the Amidah, also called the Shmonah Esrei (the Eighteen). On the first day he must
mention “whether it be today or tomorrow” and on the second day “whether it be today or
yesterday.”

Again, the sages disagree because they hold that we don’t treat the two days as if one was certain
and one was doubtful but rather, we treat them as one long extended holiday. In the Talmud it
teaches that this debate is not only about Rosh Hashanah but Rosh Hodesh (the first of the new
month) as well.

The sages hold that prayer is not the time for making legal stipulations. While the status of these
two days may indeed be somewhat doubtful, at least to certain sages, it doesn’t seem appropriate
to mention this doubt in prayer, at the point where a person is pouring one’s heart out to God and
asking for strength.

The expression of such doubts during prayer might lead to doubts concerning the rabbis’ ability in
general to dictate when holidays are, or at least lead to doubts concerning the efficacy of the
community’s prayers.

Steinzaltz (OBM) writes

Months on the Jewish calendar are based on the lunar cycle, and are therefore made up of either
29 or 30 days. While today the calendar is set based on rules and calculations from the time of
the amoraim, during Temple times the beginning of the month was dependent on witnesses who
would testify that they saw the new moon. The tradition that has Diaspora Jews keeping an extra
day of Yom Tov stems from the inability of the messengers in those days to bring this information
in time for the beginning of the holiday.

Rosh Hashanah is an interesting holiday as far as Jewish law is concerned. While

the Torah commands to keep the holiday – which includes the restrictions of a normal Yom Tov –
on the first day of the month of Tishrei, already in the time of the Temple it was often celebrated
for two days, since even in Jerusalem where the Sanhedrin sat, they could not be sure when the
new moon would be seen. Were the witnesses to come first thing in the morning on the 30th day
of Elul, that day would be established as the single day of Rosh Hashanah. If they were to come
late in the day – or not at all – then the next day would be announced as Rosh Hashanah, as well.

The Mishna (39a) relates to this situation as it affects the rules of eiruvin. Can a person who is
concerned that Rosh Hashanah will be two days, arrange an eiruv tehumin in one direction for
the first day and in another direction for the second day? Rabbi Yehuda rules that each day
of Rosh Hashanah would be considered a separate holiday, so separate eiruvin could be made.
The hakhamim (identified in the Gemara as Rabbi Yose) argue that the two days must be

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considered kedusha ahat – as sharing “one holiness” – and the eiruv can only be made in one
direction for both days.

Rabbi Yose argues that the case where the witnesses came late in the day, after we have already
determined that the first day will not really be Rosh Hashanah, and yet both days are
declared Rosh Hashanah, proves that the two days share, in effect a single kedusha. Those who
argue with him say that the two days do not have equal holiness, as only one of the days is
really Yom Tov. We treat both of them as having kedusha so that people will not come to treat
the day lightly – d’lo le-zilzulei bei.

The traditional explanation is that in the case when the witnesses arrive in court late in the day,
their testimony is not accepted, and the “true” day of Rosh Hashanah is established as the second
day. We are concerned that in future years people will not take the first day seriously, so we
announce both days as Rosh Hashanah. The Ra’avad understands this Gemara in the opposite
way. According to him, since there were witnesses who saw the new moon on the first day and
arrived in the court to testify, really the first day is the “true” Rosh Hashanah. The Sages added
a second day to accommodate the witnesses whose testimony is accepted on that day.

[The day beginning the New Year, as well as the respective days beginning the months of the year,
was determined and announced in Jerusalem after the court heard, and were satisfied with the
necessary testimony regarding the time the new moon appeared in the respective month. People

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who lived in the diaspora, too far from Jerusalem, were not able to ascertain in time which day
was fixed as the New Year.]

Rabbi Yehudah said: If on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, it was feared that the preceding month of
Elul might be intercalated (and it would be declared to consist of thirty, instead of twenty nine
days; if the witnesses were in time, only the day following the twenty-ninth of Elul was announced
as Rosh Hashanah, but if they were late, that day was added to Elul and Rosh Hashanah was
announced for both that day - the thirtieth of Elul, and the day following it - the first of Tishrei),
he (if he wishes to go on the two days respectively in two opposite directions of the town) may
prepare two eiruvs and make the following declaration:

“My eiruv for the first day shall be to the east (of the city), and the one for the second day shall
be to the west,” or, “The one for the first day shall be to the west, and the one for the second day
shall be to the east.” [If he only needs the eiruv for one of the days, he declares as follows:] “My
eiruv shall be effective for the first day, and for the second day, I shall retain the same rights as
the residents of my town (who did not make an eiruv),” or, “My eiruv shall be effective for the
second day, and for the first day, I shall retain the same rights as the residents of my town.”

[R’ Yehudah maintains that since two days are observed out of doubt, and in essence, one day is
holy and the other is an ordinary weekday, they are independent of each other, and each day’s
techum does not affect the other.] The Sages, however, did not agree with him (maintaining that
both days are in fact one entity of holiness).

Rabbi Yehudah further said: A man may conditionally set aside terumah (though the designating
of terumah and ma’aser is forbidden on a day that is definitely known to be a holy day) for a basket
of produce (which is tevel – untithed) on the first festival day (of Rosh Hashanah) and may then
eat it on the second day. [He makes the following declaration, “If today is an ordinary weekday
and tomorrow will be a holy day, let this basket of produce be terumah for the other, and if today
is a holy day and tomorrow is a weekday, let my declaration be void.” He thus designates it
conditionally and puts it away.

On the following day, he says, “If today is a weekday let this basket of produce (the one he
designated as terumah the day before) be terumah for the other, and if today is a holy day, let my
declaration be void,” and he thus designates it and may then eat the remainder.] And so also, if an
egg was laid on the first festival day (of Rosh Hashanah), it may be eaten on the second (it cannot
be eaten on the first; the reason for that is explained in the Gemora in Beitzah; since R’ Yehudah
maintains that one day is Yom Tov and the other day is an ordinary weekday, the egg may be eaten
on the second day); but the Sages did not agree with him.

Rabbi Dosa ben Harkinas said: The person who leads the prayer services on the first festival day
(of Rosh Hashanah) says, “Fortify us, O Hashem our God, on this day of Rosh Chodesh, whether
it be today or tomorrow,” and on the following day, he says, “[Fortify us, O Hashem our God, on
this day of Rosh Chodesh], whether it be today or yesterday.” The Sages, however, did not agree
with him. The Gemora asks: Who is it that did not agree with him (R’ Yehudah)?

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Rav replied: It is Rabbi Yosi, for it was taught in a braisa: The Sages agree with Rabbi Eliezer that
if on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, it was feared that the preceding month of Elul might be
intercalated, he (if he wishes to go on the two days respectively in two opposite directions of the
town) may prepare two eiruvs and make the following declaration: “My eiruv for the first day shall
be to the east (of the city), and the one for the second day shall be to the west,” or, “The one for
the first day shall be to the west, and the one for the second day shall be to the east.” [If he only
needs the eiruv for one of the days, he declares as follows:] “My eiruv shall be effective for the
first day, and for the second day, I shall retain the same rights as the residents of my town (who
did not make an eiruv),” or, “My eiruv shall be effective for the second day, and for the first day,
I shall retain the same rights as the residents of my town.”

[R’ Eliezer maintains that since two days are observed out of doubt, and in essence, one day is
holy and the other is an ordinary weekday, they are independent of each other, and each day’s
techum does not affect the other.] Rabbi Yosi, however, forbids this. Rabbi Yosi said to them: Do
you not agree that, if witnesses came after the time of Minchah (that they observed the new moon,
their testimony would not be accepted, and Rosh Hashanah would definitely be on the following
day), both that day and the day following are observed as holy days!?

[The Rabbis decreed that the remainder of the day must be observed as a holy one, for otherwise,
in future years, the people would belittle the importance of observing the thirtieth day of Elul as
Rosh Hashanah. R’ Yosi maintains that in such an occurrence, it was mandated that Rosh
Hashanah was a two-day celebration. Since the people who lived far away from Jerusalem would
never know in time if this actually occurred, they always had to observe the two days of Rosh
Hashanah as if it was a two-day celebration. Accordingly, he ruled that one could not prepare two
eiruvs for both days; rather, only one eiruv could be made for both of the days.]

The Gemora explains the opinion of the Rabbis who disagree: There, the reason for the observance
(on the remaining time of the first day) is that people shall not treat it with disrespect (but it was
not regarded as a holy day).

[It is in fact not holy; but if, where witnesses came after Minchah, that day (the 30th of Elul) had
not been treated to the end as a holy day, the public might on the next occasion come to regard the
entire day with equal disrespect and would, in consequence, permit themselves to work all that day
as if it had been one of the ordinary working days. Such laxity would result in the actual desecration
of a holy day where the witnesses happened to come before noon and that day (the one following
the 29th of Elul) had been declared as the one and only day of Rosh Hashanah.]

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From the ruling that if the witnesses come late in the day, both that day and the next day are treated
as Rosh Hashanah, R' Yosi proves that both days are one continuous kedushah.1

The Sages, on the other hand, maintain that the first day is kept as a Yom Tov only so people will
not come to make a mockery of Yom Tov. Rabbi Elchanan Wasserman (Kovetz Shiurim to Beitzah
5a) finds the position of R' Yosi difficult to understand: In the final analysis, surely R' Yosi also
concedes that the "first day" is not truly Rosh Hashanah. So, in the end, isn’t his position based on
making a mockery of Yom Tov as well?

Reb Elchonon suggests that the difference of opinion hinges on the following question: Is Yom
Tov (or Shabbos) a single united entity of continuous time or a composite entity of sequential
time? R' Yosi is of the opinion that a Yom Tov is one single unit. Hence, if one began observing a
day as a potential Yom Tov (even as a rabbinic requirement), the rest of the day is, perforce, also
Yom Tov.

The Sages, on the other hand, are of the opinion that a Yom Tov is a composite of many "Yom
Tov moments." Hence, were it not for the issue of making a mockery of Yom Tov, when the
witnesses tarried, it would have been acceptable (even mid’Rabanan) to end Yom Tov in the
middle of the day.

[This question is reminiscent of the well-known question as to whether the state of marriage is a
single united entity of continuous time or a composite entity of sequential time. It is related that
Rabbi Shimon Shkop once suggested to Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik that marriage is a composite of
many "Kiddushin moments," and that Reb Chaim responded: “If so, you deserve a Mazal Tov!]”

Rabbi Elliot Goldberg writes:2

Yesterday, the rabbis discussed the specifics of an eruv techumin in a case where a festival falls
adjacent to Shabbat. Much of that discussion turned on the question of whether both days are
considered a single sacred event or not.

Today, the rabbis discuss a similar question with respect to the two days of Rosh Hashanah. Are
they two sacred events or one? The answer to that question has direct bearing on whether one can
establish a single eruv for all of Rosh Hashanah or whether a separate eruv is needed for each
potential day.

Wait -- potential day? Isn’t Rosh Hashanah always two days?

It has been for a long time, but that wasn’t always the case.

1
Daf Digest
2
Myjewishlearning.com

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Before the advent of a fixed calendar, the start of each month was determined by the testimony of
two witnesses who saw the new moon in the sky, indicating a new month had begun. If witnesses
arrived on the 30th day of a month and declared they had seen the moon the previous night, that
day would be declared the first day of the new month. But if they didn’t appear on the 30th, the
following day would be declared the first day of the new month.

As a result, Rosh Hashanah could be observed for one day in some years and for two days in
others. Rosh Hashanah would always be observed on the 30th day of the month of Elul. If
witnesses arrived on that day, it would be declared to actually be the first day of the following
month, Tishrei, and Rosh Hashanah would be only one day that year. But if they didn’t arrive on
the 30th, Rosh Hashanah would be extended into the following day, which would then be the first
of Tishrei.

Given this, the Mishnah teaches this law:

Rabbi Yehuda says: With regard to Rosh Hashanah, if one feared that the month of Elul
might be extended, this person may establish two eruvin and say: My eruv on the first day
shall be to the east and on the second day to the west, or alternatively: On the first day it
shall be to the west, and on the second day to the east. Similarly, he may say: My eruv shall
apply on the first day, but on the second day I shall be like the rest of the inhabitants of my
town, or alternatively: My eruv shall apply on the second day, but on the first day I shall be
like the rest of the inhabitants of my town. And the rabbis did not agree with him that the
two days of Rosh Hashanah can be divided in such a manner.

The Mishnah is discussing the concept of a conditional eruv, of the sort we first encountered
in Eruvin 36. If Rosh Hashanah is two days in a given year, Rabbi Yehuda says you can place an
eruv in two locations and decide that one is operative on one day and the other on the second day.
But the majority do not accept this, ruling that one may not separate the days of Rosh Hashanah in
this manner, as they are one continuously sacred event.

The Gemara tells us that the case in the Mishnah is one in which witnesses arrive on the 30th day
of Elul, but after the time for testifying has passed. In this instance, everyone agrees that their
testimony is invalid, and Rosh Hashanah is observed for another day. The disagreement is over
whether a conditional eruv could be established in such a case.

One opinion holds that the extension of Rosh Hashanah into an additional day that we know to be
a weekday (because the witness testimony is accurate, even though it is ignored) is evidence that
both days are a single sacred event. Therefore, it is forbidden to establish a separate eruv for each
day.

The other holds that the sanctification of the 30th day of Elul is done to protect the sanctity of Rosh
Hashanah in a year when it is observed for just one day. Given the yearly fluctuations, people
might come to violate the first day, expecting there to be a second one that is truly the holiday. But
this assumption might lead to a desecration of the holiday when it actually falls on the first day.

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To avoid that, the first day is sanctified even when it is simply the 30th of Elul, suggesting that the
sanctity of the first day is distinct from the second and that multiple eruvim should be allowed.

The Gemara does not reach a clear conclusion on this question. We’ll take a deep dive into these
matters when we get to Tractate Rosh Hashanah in about a year.

Eliyahu Kitov writes:3

Rosh Hashanah is observed as a two-day holiday, on the first and second of Tishrei, even though
the Torah ordains only one day, as the verse

,‫ִיְשָׂרֵאל‬ ‫ְבֵּני‬-‫ֶאל‬ ‫כד ַדֵּבּר‬ 24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying: In the seventh
,‫ ַבֹּחֶדשׁ ַהְשִּׁביִﬠי ְבֶּאָחד ַלֹחֶדשׁ‬:‫ֵלאֹמר‬ month, in the first day of the month, shall be a solemn rest
,‫ִזְכרוֹן ְתּרוָּﬠה‬--‫ִיְהֶיה ָלֶכם ַשָׁבּתוֹן‬ unto you, a memorial proclaimed with the blast of horns, a
.‫ֹקֶדשׁ‬-‫ִמְקָרא‬ holy convocation.
Lev 23:24

The first day of Rosh Hashanah can fall only on the following days: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday,
or Shabbat. This regulation is an ordinance of the Sages.
The Talmud Yerushalmi (Eruvin 3:9) notes that our two-day celebration of Rosh Hashanah is an
enactment of the early Prophets, who established it for the following reason. During the period of
the Prophets, the sanctification of the months was dependent upon hearing the testimony of
witnesses who had seen the new moon. On the evening following the twenty-ninth day of Elul, the
court would sanctify the day as the first of Tishrei based on the possibility that witnesses might
come that day and testify that they had seen the new moon, retroactively establishing Rosh
Hashanah on that day. If the witnesses did indeed appear, then that day would be sanctified, and
the following day would be a regular day - the second of Tishrei. However, if witnesses did not
appear, then the following day would be Rosh Hashanah and retroactively, the previous evening -
which the court had sanctified - would turn out to be a regular weekday. So that people would not
treat the first day lightly, since its sanctified or weekday status was dependent upon the appearance
of witnesses during the course of the day, the early Prophets ordained that Rosh Hashanah be

3
The Book of Our Heritage, Feldheim Publications. (https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4381/jewish/Why-Rosh-
Hashanah-Is-Two-Days.htm)

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celebrated as a two-day holiday - with the prohibition of work, the sounding of the shofar, and the
order of prayer being observed on both days.

The two-day celebration of Rosh Hashanah is referred to as Yoma arichta - a long day; i.e., the
forty-eight-hour observance of Rosh Hashanah is considered one extended day. Both days are
sanctified definitively [in contrast to the second day of the Festivals celebrated in the Diaspora,
whose sanctity is based on doubt]. Regarding preparation, however, they are considered to be two
separate days and thus one may not prepare food on the first day for the second.

The Rambam (Hilchot Kiddush ha-Chodesh 5:7-8) writes:

The Festival of Rosh Hashanah - in the period when they would establish (the calendar) based
upon testimony - was celebrated by the majority of the residents of the Land of Israel for two days
because they were in doubt [as to when the Festival began], for they did not know when the court
had established the new month since the agents of the court did not go out on a Festival. (That is,
since Rosh Hashanah is the only Festival celebrated on the first of a month, there was no means
of informing those who lived outside of Jerusalem that the court had accepted testimony that the
new moon of Tishrei had been sighted. Once the month was established, Rosh Hashanah would
begin, and the agents of the court would be unable to inform the populace since they could not
travel on a Festival.)

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Moreover, even in Jerusalem itself, which was the seat of the court, it frequently happened that
Rosh Hashanah was observed for two days. If witnesses failed to arrive on the thirtieth day of Elul,
the people were accustomed to celebrating it as Rosh Hashanah, while waiting for witnesses to
appear, observing the following day likewise as a holyday. Since they used to keep two days Rosh
Hashanah even when the method of observation was in use, the sages ordained that even the
citizens of Eretz Yisrael should keep it for two days always, at the present time when the calendar
is determined by computation. You may thus infer that even the second day of Rosh Hashanah is
based on the authority of the sages.
Moreover, even in Jerusalem, the site of the court, two days of Rosh Hashanah were often
celebrated. (Even) if witnesses did not appear at any time on the thirtieth day [i.e., thirty days after
the new moon of Elul, when the new moon of Tishrei should have been seen), they would sanctify
that day on which they waited for the witnesses. (If witnesses appeared during the day, the court
would have to retroactively establish the day as Rosh Hashanah. Since it was not unlikely that
witnesses would indeed appear during the day, given that it was the thirtieth day after the new
moon of Elul, the court would sanctify the day as Rosh Hashanah even before they appeared. Had
the court not done so and waited for the appearance of witnesses, if the witnesses appeared in the
late morning of the thirtieth, Rosh Hashanah would be established as falling on that day and the
people would be retroactively culpable of having violated the sanctity of the day.) The following
day would also be sanctified [if the witnesses did not appear until then]. Thus, since they celebrated
two days of Rosh Hashanah even during the period when the months were sanctified based on the
testimony of witnesses, it was ordained that all Jews - even those living in the Land of Israel -
should celebrate two days of Rosh Hashanah now that the calendar is based upon calculation. We
thus see that the celebration of the second day of Rosh Hashanah nowadays is also a regulation of
the Sages [similar to the second day of the Festivals that is celebrated in the Diaspora].

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What then is the difference between the second day of Rosh Hashanah celebrated when the months
were calculated based on testimony, and the second day celebrated nowadays? In the former
period, if witnesses did not appear, the first day celebrated would retroactively turn out to be a
Rabbinical obligation and the second day would be a Torah obligation. Nowadays, when the
calendar is based on fixed calculations, the first day of Rosh Hashanah is a Torah obligation and
the second day is a Rabbinical enactment.

The Vagaries of the leap Year Affecting our Observance of Two Days
Mishna stated: Our With regard to Rosh Hashanah, if one feared that the month of Elul might be
extended, and he wanted to travel in two different directions on the two days that could be Rosh
Hashanah, this person may establish two eiruvin and say….

Why fear?
Mendell Lewittes writes:4
Let us examine one of the major problems faced by the Jewish people in those days as a
consequence of this ad hoc fixing of the calendar, bearing in mind that the Jewish reckoning of
the animal cycle of months begins with the month of Nisan, which must, necessarily, occur after
the Spring equinox (Exodus 12:2,13:4).

The Mishnah (Eduyot 7:7) records that Rabbis Yehoshua and Papias testified (before the Sages in
Yavneh) that a leap-year could be decided upon as late as the 29th day of Adar (the month before
Nisan), whereas previously it had been ruled that it has to be decided upon before Purlin (which is
celebrated on the 14th of Adar).

The Talmud (B. Rosh Hashanah 7a) explains the previous ruling as follows: Already at Putira
time, 30 days before Passover, public discussions were conducted concerning the laws of Passover
and, thus, the people anticipated that festival to occur within a month. If an additional month were
to be proclaimed after Purim, there would be much confusion concerning Passover, as people
would refuse to believe the messengers reporting the postponement of Passover.

The earlier ruling seems reasonable enough, but the Talmud offers no reason why the authorities
in Yavneh decided to change the rule.

It seems to me that the change came about because of a change in historical circumstances.

From several statements in the Mishnah (Rosh Hashana, chap. 2) we know that, in the earlier
period, going back to the days of the Second Temple, attempts were made by the Boethusians --

4
Vagaries of a Jewish leap year. By: Lewittes, Mendell, Judaism, 00225762, Summer93, Vol. 42, Issue 3

13
a Jewish sect opposed to the rulings of the Sages, then known as the Perushim (Pharisees) --to
confuse the people by giving false signals proclaiming the declaration of a new month.

This led to circumspection by the people as to the credibility of the messengers of the Court. After
the destruction of the Temple, the Boethusians ceased to exist as an active group and, thus, there
no longer existed any fear that the messengers might be false.

Be this explanation as it may, it is clear that the ruling that an additional month may be added even
after Purim created a serious problem.

For example: The 14th day of Adar arrived, and the people observed the holiday of Purim; they
read the Megillah; they sent manot (edible portions) to friends and gifts to the poor. And, behold,
a week later the High Court decided to add another month, a second Adar, to the year.

Immediately the question arose: Will we have to celebrate Purim again when the 14th day of the
second Adar arrives? The Mishnah gives a clear answer: it has to be read again in Adar Two (B.
Megillah 6b).

The Talmud explains: '"To bring one redemption (ge'ulah) close to another," i.e., to bring close
together the celebration of Israel's redemption from the evil decree of Haman and the celebration
of Israel's redemption from bondage in Egypt.

An examination of other Talmudic sources related to this problem reveals that it had not been
completely resolved by the Sages of Yavneh.

The first chapter of tractate Sanhedrin deals at length with leap-years; why and when they were
decided upon, and the procedure involved. Incidentally, the Talmud records there an interesting
episode. It was during the time when Rome had become Christian (c. 330) and Jews were
prohibited from observing their religious practices, including the declaration of a leap-year,
without which the Jewish festivals could not be properly designated and observed. It became
necessary, therefore, for the High Court in Erez. Yisrael to adopt clandestine measures by which
to advise the Jews in the Diaspora that a leap-year had been declared.

The Court dispatched a missive to Raba, head of the Academy in Mehoza-Babylonia (338-352),
in language that could be understood only by Jews as referring to the declaration of a leap-year.
Thus, the word neziv (prefect) alluded to a month, since King Solomon had appointed twelve
prefects governing all Israel (I Kings 4:7), and the word edomi (Edomite) alluded to Rome, "who
would not allow us to add a neziv to the year" (B. Sanhedrin 12a).

To return to our original problem. The Talmud (Ibid.) relates that Raba asked Rabbi Nahman why
may we decide upon a leap-year during all of Adar (except the last day, i.e., the 30th, "since that
day may be declared as the 1st day of Nisan"); "do we not already start discussing Pesah at Purim,
and if you decide after Purim to postpone Pesah, isn't there the liability that people will eat .hame.z
on Pesah?" -- i.e., on the postponed, real Pesah, having already observed the originally scheduled
Pesah on what was actually Purlin! This is the very reason why the earlier authorities had ruled
that we do not declare a leap-year after Purim.

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So, we may ask: Was not this ruling already rejected two centuries earlier by the Sages in Yavneh,
as we have seen above? Why did Raba bring up this argument again? We have a still more puzzling
question. Already a generation before Raba, in the days of Rabbi Zera, the calendar had been fixed
(B. Bezah 4b), including the fixing of leap-years; how does it happen that Raba suggests that a
change in the calendar might be proclaimed by the authorities in Israel?

To explain this apparent inconsistency, we again have to refer to the historical circumstances of
the period. The fixed calendar would have allowed the Jews in Babylonia to observe one festival
day instead of two days which they hitherto had observed because of the vagaries of the calendar
(Yom Tov Sheni Shel Galuyot). However, the authorities in Erez. Yisrael wrote to their colleagues
in Babylonia: "Continue to observe the custom of your fathers [and observe two days of Yom Tov],
for the kingdom may someday issue a decree (Rashi: "banning the study of Torah, resulting in a
loss of knowing how to fix the calendar"), which will lead to an upset in Jewish life" (Rashi: "and
the eating of hamez on Pesah") (Ibid). In other words: "There is a possibility that your calendar
will have to be revised."

Now we can understand Raba's question to Rabbi Nahman. If there is a possibility that the calendar
will be revised because of religious persecution, let us at least adopt the ruling of the earlier
authorities that no leap-year be declared after Purim. In such uncertain times, the people may
again discount the proclamation of postponing Pesah. Rabbi Nahman, however, assured Raba that
we need not entertain such fear, for by then people knew that the Court has to make calculations
even after Purim (Rashi: because of unexpected changes in climate) and, therefore, would be aware
of the possibility of change in the calendar and would wait for final confirmation before the end
of Adar.

Shabbethai Donnolo (913 – c. 982, Hebrew: ‫)שבתי דונולו‬

was a Graeco-Italian, Jewish physician, and writer on medicine and astrology.

15
He was born at Oria, Apulia. When twelve years of age, he was made prisoner by the Arabs under
the leadership of the Fatimid amir Abu Ja'far Muslim, but was ransomed by his relatives
at Otranto, while the rest of his family was carried to Palermo and North Africa. He turned to
medicine and astrology for a livelihood, studying the sciences of "the Greeks, Arabs, Babylonians,
and Indians." As no Jews at that time busied themselves with these subjects, he traveled in Italy in
search of learned non-Jews. His special teacher was an Arab from Baghdad. According to the
biography of Nilus the Younger, abbot of Rossano, he practiced medicine for some time in that
city. Later he would become the Byzantine court physician. The alleged gravestone of Donnolo,
found by Abraham Firkovich in the Crimea, is evidently spurious.
Donnolo is one of the earliest Jewish writers on medicine, and one of the few Jewish scholars
of Southern Italy at this early time. What remains of his medical work, Sefer ha-Yaqar "Precious
Book", was published by Moritz Steinschneider in 1867, from MS. 37, Plut. 88, in the Medicean
Library at Florence, and contains an "antidotarium," or book of practical directions for preparing
medicinal roots. Donnolo's medical science is based upon Greco-Latin sources; only
one Arabic plant-name occurs. He cites Asaph the Jew.
In addition, he wrote a commentary to the Sefer Yetzirah, dealing almost wholly with astrology,
and called Ḥakhmoni (in one manuscript, Taḥkemoni; see Second Book of Samuel 23:8; I
Chronicles 11:11). At the end of the preface is a table giving the position of the heavenly bodies
in Elul 946. The treatise published by Adolf Neubauer is part of a religio-astrological commentary
on the Book of Genesis 1:26 (written in 982), which probably formed a sort of introduction to
the Ḥakhmoni, in which the idea that man is a microcosm is worked out.
Parts of this introduction are found word for word in the anonymous Orchot Tzaddikim (or Sefer
Middot) and the Sheveṭ Musar of Elijah ben Solomon Abraham ha-Kohen. It was published
separately by Adolf Jellinek.

Sacha Stern and Piergabriele Mancuso write:5

The literary production of Shabbetai Donnolo ranges from pharmacopoeia through human
pathology to astrology and astronomy, although not all works can be attributed to him with
certainty. His most important work is Sefer Hakmoni, completed in 946.

This work is well known for its discussion of the problem of the creation of man in God's likeness
in Genesis 1:26 and for its commentary on Sefer Yesirah. The astronomical table and text
published in this article come from the introductory section of Sefer Hakmoni, which opens with
a poem set as a long acrostic bearing the author's name and his main biographical data. A long
biographical section follows, wherein Donnolo gives a general account of the events following the
fall of Oria, the deportation of the Jews from the city, and the beginning of his intellectual and
professional career.

5
An Astronomical Table by Shabbetai Donnolo and the Jewish Calendar in Tenth-Century Italy Aleph , 2007, No. 7 (2007), pp.
13-41 Indiana University Press

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Donnolo's Description of the Table As stated, the astronomical table is attested only in the earliest
manuscript of Sefer Hakmoni, MS Oxford. It was presumably omitted in later manuscripts because
of its technical complexity and the scribes' lack of interest in preserving it. However, Donnolo's
description of the table, which appears in the main text, did survive more or less intact in all the
manuscripts, except for some errors and changes that were due, again, to its technical complexity,
but also perhaps to the scribes' inability to relate this text to the astronomical table that it described
(because the table had not been preserved).

As indicated in this passage, the first section of Donnolo's table is calendrical. The first four
columns of the table, as we shall see, indicate the days of the month according to four different
calendars: Islamic/ lunar/Jewish (treated as all one and the same), Julian (not mentioned, however,
in Donnolo's description here), Persian, and Egyptian. The fifth column indicates the day of the

17
week. The last eight columns are astronomical and provide the true longitudes of the sun, moon,
Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, and lunar node respectively. As stated in this passage,
longitudes are expressed in relation to the zodiacal signs, which are divided (as per standard usage)
into 30 degrees, and each degree into 60 minutes. The last line of this passage is a string of seven
zodiacal signs in disorder, with repetitions. This string at first sight is incomprehensible, which
explains why it has become corrupted in the manuscript tradition. Its purpose, however, is probably
to indicate in which zodiacal sign the sun, moon, planets, and lunar node are positioned at the
beginning of the table. This is necessary because the table itself does not indicate this (zodiacal
signs are mentioned in the table only where there is a change, i.e., whenever the celestial body
enters a new sign). At the beginning of the table, the celestial bodies are in the following signs:

The table comprises 29 rows, corresponding to the 29 days of the lunar month of (Islamic) Safar
or (Jewish) Elul, which in 946 CE, according to this text, began at the end of August. Columns 2-
4 (Julian, Persian, and Egyptian calendars) have 30 rows, the first or last of which are superfluous
in the table. We do not have a clear explanation for this excessive row, but it should be noted that
the Persian and Egyptian months, as well as the Julian month of September, are all 30-day month.

Normal practice, in medieval astronomical texts, is to reckon zodiacal signs from 0° to 29° 59'. In
the absence of any Hebrew alphabetical character for zero, the zero in this table has simply been
omitted: thus, for any position at 0°, only the minutes are given (for example in the first line, the
position of Moon is indicated as io for 0°51').16

However, presumably because of the zero problem, the author occasionally uses an alternative
count from Io to 30° 59' (thus the Sun in line 24, for example, is indicated as [Virgo] 30° 12'). Both
counts are effectively the same, except that 30° of one sign (according to the latter count) is
equivalent to 0° of the sign that follows (according to the former count): for example, 30° (Aries)
= 0° (Taurus). Thus, the same position will be allocated (in this example) to either Aries or Taurus,
depending on which counting system happens to be used.

Some of the astronomical data in the table conform to a standard Ptolemaic computation, but others
deviate from it completely. In Table 1, we compare Donnolo's data to those computed according
to Ptolemy's Almagest (meridian of Alexandria, at noon), for three sample dates:

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Secrets of Rosh Hashanah6, A Mystical Approach

Efraim Palvanov writes,

6
https://www.mayimachronim.com/tag/yoma-arichta/

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The Torah portions, Nitzavim, is always read right before Rosh Hashanah, and appropriately
begins: “You are all standing today before Hashem, your God…” The verse has traditionally been
seen as an allusion to Rosh Hashanah, when each person stands before God and is judged. The
Torah says today, implying one day, yet everyone celebrates Rosh Hashanah over two days. This
is true even in Israel, where yom tovs are typically observed for only one day.

The reason for this is because in ancient times there was no set calendar, so a new month was
declared based on the testimony of two witnesses. Once the new month was declared in Jerusalem,
messengers were sent out to inform the rest of the communities in the Holy Land, and beyond.
Communities that were far from Israel would not receive the message until two or three weeks
later, so they would often have to observe the holidays based on their own (doubtful) opinion of
when the holiday should be. They therefore kept each yom tov for two days.

Rosh Hashanah, however, is the only holiday that takes place on the very first day of the month,
so as soon as the new month of Tishrei was declared, it was immediately Rosh Hashanah, and
messengers could not be sent out! Thus, even communities across Israel would observe the holiday
for two days, based on their own observations.

Although today we have a set calendar, and there is no longer a declaration of a new month based
on witnesses, two days are still observed since established traditions become permanent laws. Of
course, this is only the simplest of explanations, for there are certainly deeper reasons in observing
two days, especially when it comes to Rosh Hashanah.

Judgement in Eden

Rosh Hashanah commemorates the day that God fashioned Adam and Eve. On that same day, the
first couple consumed the Forbidden Fruit, were judged, and banished from the Garden of Eden.
Originally, they had been made immortal. Now, they had brought death into the world, and God
decreed that their earthly life would have an end. Adam and Eve were, not surprisingly, the first
people to be inscribed in the Book of Death. Each year since, on the anniversary of man’s creation
and judgement, every single human being (Jewish or not) is judged in the Heavenly Court, and
inscribed in the Book of Life, or the Book of Death.

This is the idea behind the symbolic consumption of apples in honey. In Jewish tradition, the
Garden of Eden is likened to an apple orchard, with the scent of the air in Eden being like that of
apples. (Having said that, it is not a Jewish tradition that the Forbidden Fruit itself was an apple!)
The apple reminds us of the Garden—of Adam and Eve and their judgement—and we dip it in
honey so that our judgement should be sweet.

But what happens when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat? It is well-known that there is no
judgement on Shabbat. The Heavenly Court rests, and even the souls in Gehinnom are said to have
a day off. This is illustrated by a famous exchange in the Talmud (Sanhedrin 65b) between Rabbi
Akiva and the Roman governor of Judea at the time, Turnus Rufus:

Turnus Rufus asked Rabbi Akiva: “How does [Shabbat] differ from any other day?”
He replied: “How does one official differ from another?”

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 “Because my lord [the Roman Emperor], wishes it so.”
Rabbi Akiva said: “the Sabbath, too, is distinguished because the Lord wishes it so.”
He asked: “How do you know that this day is the Sabbath?”
[Rabbi Akiva] answered: “The River Sambation proves it; the ba’al ov proves it; your father’s
grave proves it, as no smoke ascends from it on Shabbat.”

An illustration of Rabbi Akiva from the Mantua Haggadah of 1568

Rufus asks Rabbi Akiva how the Jews are certain that the Sabbath that they keep is actually the
correct seventh day since Creation. Rabbi Akiva brings three proofs:

The first is a legendary river called the Sambation (or Sabbation), which was known in those days,
and which raged the entire week, but flowed calmly only on Shabbat. The second proof is that
people who summon the dead from the afterlife (practicing a form of witchcraft called ov) are
unable to channel the dead-on Shabbat. (I know of a person who was once involved in such dark
arts and became a religious Jew after realizing that he was never able to summon spirits on the
Sabbath or on Jewish holidays!)

Lastly, Rabbi Akiva notes how Turnus Rufus’ own father’s grave would emit smoke every day of
the week, except on Shabbat. This is because the soul of Rufus’ wicked father was in Gehinnom,
but all souls in that purgatory get a reprieve on Shabbat. (Historical sources suggest that Rufus’
father was Terentius Rufus, one of the generals involved in the destruction of the Second Temple.)

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Based on this, we can understand why Rosh Hashanah must be observed over two days. When the
holiday falls on Shabbat, no judgement can take place, so the judgement is pushed off to the next
day. This is also related to the fact that when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat, the shofar is not
blown. This is not at all because blowing a shofar is forbidden on Shabbat, which is, in fact,
permitted.

The simple explanation given for this is that we’re worried the person blowing the shofar might
carry it to the synagogue (in a place without an eruv), and carrying is forbidden on Shabbat. The
deeper reason is this: Blowing the shofar is supposed to “confound Satan”. Satan is not the trident-
carrying, horned demon of the underworld (as popularly believed in Christianity).
Rather, Satan literally means the “one who opposes” or the “prosecutor”. It is Satan’s job to serve
as the prosecution in the Heavenly Court. The shofar’s blow confuses Satan, and prevents him
from working too much against us. On Shabbat, the Heavenly Court rests, and Satan is having a
day off, so there is no need to confound him!

The First Shabbat

One might argue that Rosh Hashanah should only be two days long when it falls on Shabbat; in
other years, one day would suffice. Other than the fact that this would be confusing—as the holiday
would span different lengths in different years—there are other explanations for the two days,
including that each day involves different types of judgement (for example, one day for
sins bein adam l’Makom, between man and God; and one day for bein adam l’havero, between
man and his fellow). Nonetheless, our Sages still describe Rosh Hashanah as really being one
day—one unique, extra-long, 48-hour day which our Sages called yoma arichta, literally the “long
day”. Perhaps this is another reason for the custom of not sleeping on the “first night” of Rosh
Hashanah. (The other reason: how could anyone possibly sleep through their own trial?)

Finally, the story of Rabbi Akiva and Turnus Rufus gives us one more reason to commemorate
Rosh Hashanah over two days. Rufus questioned Rabbi Akiva on how he can be so sure that the
Sabbath which he keeps is indeed the correct seventh day going back to Creation.

If Rosh Hashanah is the day Adam and Eve were created, then it corresponds to the sixth day of
Creation. That means the very next day was the seventh day of Creation, and that the second day
of Rosh Hashanah always commemorates the very first Sabbath. When we celebrate on the second
day of Rosh Hashanah, we mark Adam and Eve’s first Shabbat, and recognize that each seventh
day has been observed ever since, and will continue to be observed for another.

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