Julian Ungar-Sargon

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Daf Ditty

A wide-ranging commentary on the daily page of Talmud.

The Israelites Collecting Manna from Heaven, Rudolf von Ems (Austrian, 1200–1254) The J. Paul Getty Museum, L.A.

Beitzah 16: Neshama Yeseirah

jyungar September 16, 2021

For the source text click/tap here: Beitzah 16

To download, click/tap here:  PDF

The concept of some form of expanded soul being afforded the Jew during the weekly Shabbat already appears in our daf (Beitza 16a), where Resh Lakish states:

The Holy One, Blessed be He, gives man an additional soul on the eve of Shabbat, and at the end of Shabbat He takes it back, as it says (Shemot 31:17): “shavat va-yinafash” — once Shabbat ends, woe (vai) to the spirit (nefesh) which is lost.

Resh Lakish derives from the phrase “shavat va-yinafash” that after Shabbat ends, one loses a little part of one's soul, referring to the additional soul that accompanies the Jew on Shabbat. Nefesh literally means spirit, but here it is a verb. It refer to some internal form of refreshment and even restoration that affects the inner part of one's personality.

The Chasam Sofer points out that there is a fundamental difference between Shabbos and the other Yomim Tovim. On Shabbos, the Ribono shel Olam and kedusha [holiness] arrives, whether we are ready or not, and whether we are prepared or not. The mere fact that it is Shabbos invests us and imbues us with a certain kedusha.

We further explore the nature of the unique gift of the Shabbat.

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Julian Ungar-Sargon

This is Julian Ungar-Sargon's personal website. It contains poems, essays, and podcasts for the spiritual seeker and interdisciplinary aficionado.​