As i mentioned in my first post, Daf Yomi is a cycle of reading a page of the Talmud every day over seven and one half years. So what is the Talmud? Why do we read it over and over?

Jacob Neusner describes the Talmud as the single most important document in Rabbinic Literature. But the Talmud is also deeply misunderstood. Talmud burning dates back to the thirteenth century and continues even unto this day. For many antisemitic fringe groups, the mystique of the Talmud fuels conspiracy theories about Jewish crimes against non-Jews (particularly Christians) or Jewish domination of world structures.

Let’s start with some basics. When we speak of the “Talmud”, there are actually two Talmuds: The Jerusalem Talmud (also called the Yerushalmi or the Talmud of the Land of Israel) and the Babylonian Talmud (also called the Bavli or Talmud Bavli). The Babylonian Talmud is far better known and when one refers only to the Talmud, most people are referring to the Babylonian Talmud.

Both Talmuds are structured the same way. An early code of law known as the Mishnah is set forth and then the teachings of famous rabbis are set forth in a set of commentaries on the Mishnah. The commentaries on the Mishnah are called the Gemara. Confusingly, the term “Talmud” may refer to the Gemara alone or the combined Mishnah and Gemara. The word “Talmud” derives from the Hebrew word for learning “Limud”. Both Talmuds are written in a combination of Hebrew and Aramaic. Aramaic was the everyday language of Jews throughout the Middle East at the time of the compilation of the Talmud.

The Jerusalem Talmud was compiled in Galilee in the 4th Century of the Common Era. The Babylonian Talmud was compiled (but not entirely completed) in the 6th Century in the centers of Jewish exile in Babylonia (modern day Iraq) where great centers of Jewish religious learning developed. Both Talmuds are written on commentaries of the Mishnah, although neither Talmud covers the entire Mishnah and there are many differences in what is covered.

The Mishnah itself was compiled as a code of Jewish law in the early Third Century. The rules in the Mishnah are known as the Oral Law as the rules were passed down orally until Rabbi Judah Ha’Nassi decided to compile the rules as religious persecution from the Romans threatened the oral tradition. The Talmud also was originally transmitted orally before being compiled. Oral transmission means the statements are short, often sentence fragments rather than completed thoughts. There are rhythms and formulas used in the language to assist in oral transmission. The Babylonian Talmud is somewhat more comprehensive in its language and easier to understand. Perhaps this is one reason why the Babylonian Talmud is more widely studied.

The Talmud is divided into six orders (Hebrew: Sedarim). The orders are divided into tractates (Hebrew: masekhtot) with 63 tractes in total. Finally, the tractates are divided into chapters (Hebrew: perakim). Although the Mishnah serves as a code of law, the rules are not clearly stated. Instead, they are recordings of debates between famous scholars. Sometimes the accepted rule is derived explicitly, sometimes it is not.

The Talmud starts with a statement from the Mishnah. The statement is compared and contrasted with other statements. The biblical source of the statement is analyzed and numerous specific cases are discussed to try to reach a general principle. The derived principle is then tested against other principles to make sure they are in harmony. Interspersed within the legal debates are stories about the lives of the sages, descriptions of everyday life and myths and allegories. The non-legal material is referred to as “Aggadah” and the legal material is referred to as “Halachah”.

The Talmud does not have a beginning, a middle and an end. Arguments do not develop like plots or characters in a modern work. An individual chapter or page can be read as a whole. I am not sure how the order was determined. If I see anything on this topic, I will devote a post to it.