Julian Ungar-Sargon

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Daf Ditty

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

Menachot 98: חַד אָמַר: כְּדֵי שֶׁיֵּדְעוּ מֵהֵיכָן בָּאוּ, וְחַד אָמַר: כְּדֵי שֶׁתְּהֵא אֵימַת מַלְכוּת עֲלֵיהֶן

jyungar April 19, 2026

For the source text click/tap here: Menachot 98

To download, click/tap here: PDF

During the Second Temple period, there were five gates leading to the Temple Mount, two on the Southern Wall and one each on the Western, Eastern and Northern walls. The Mishna in Massekhet Middot (1:3) teaches that the gate on the Eastern side was called “The gate of Shushan” and it was decorated with an engraving of the Persian capital, Shushan.

Two opinions are offered in the Talmudic Sages on our daf to explain why Shushan appeared there. Rav Ḥisda and Rav Yitzḥak bar Avdimi weighed in on this question. According to one it was so that the people would know from whence they came; according to the other it was so that the fear of the ruling government should be upon the people.

We explore the history and archeology of the Shushan gate.

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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.​