Bava Batra 100: הַכֹּל הָבֶל

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The Gemora cites a braisa: No less than seven standings and sittings (standing and sitting ritual performed by the funeral; as part of the funeral procession, they would sit and listen to the leader offer eulogies on the deceased) are to be arranged for the deceased….

On their return from the burial, the mourners would stop after traveling a short distance and would sit to bewail the loss of the deceased. They would then stand and continue journeying for a short while and then repeat the procedure. The mourners perform no fewer than seven standings and sittings in honor of the deceased. These seven correspond to the seven references to “vanity” in the verse:

“Vanity of vanities, says Kohelet; vanity of vanities, all is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 1:2), counting the plural term “vanities” as two references.

We explore the poignant reference to Koheles and its implication for the fleeting nature of life through the eyes of various scholars.

Bava Batra 99: גִּינָּה לִפְנִים מִגִּינָּתוֹ

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Our new mishnah states: One who has ownership of a garden located beyond the garden of another, and also has access rights to it, may enter his garden only at a time when it is usual for people to enter, and may leave only at a time when it is usual for people to leave.

In the case of one who had a public thoroughfare passing through his field, and he appropriated it and instead gave the public an alternative thoroughfare on the side of his property, the halakha is that the thoroughfare that he gave them, he gave them, and they may use it.

We explore the parable of the King’s garden within a garden used by the Mechilta to explain why the reed sea resisted Moshe’s initial command to split fleeing only when the divine appears.

Bava Batra 98: וּפְנֵיהֶם אִישׁ אֶל אָחִיו

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Rabbi Levi said, and some say it was Rabbi Yoḥanan who said: "This matter is a tradition handed down to us by our ancestors: The space occupied by the Ark of the Covenant and the cherubs is not included in the measurement of the Holy of Holies in which it rested, as miraculously it did not occupy any space at all. “

Rabbenai says that Shmuel says: The cherubs stood miraculously and did not occupy any physical space, as it is stated:

“And five cubits was one wing of the cherub, and five cubits was the second wing of the cherub; ten cubits from the tip of its wings until the tip of its wings” (I Kings 6:24).

We explore the subject of the Keruvim in ancient near east and by chazal.

Bava Batra 97: כל הַמִּתְגָּאֶה בְּטַלִּית שֶׁל תַּלְמִיד חָכָם

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“And moreover, wine is a treacherous dealer; the haughty man abides not” (Habakkuk 2:5),

which is interpreted to mean that the wine of a haughty man will betray him, as it will sour as a punishment for his arrogance. Accordingly, since the wine soured after the buyer purchased it, he cannot place the blame upon the seller.

Citing the same verse Rav Yehuda says that Rav says: With regard to anyone who glorifies himself by wearing a garment of the style worn by a Torah scholar, but in reality he is not a Torah scholar, he will not be brought within the boundary of the Holy One, Blessed be He, in the World-to-Come.

We examine the qualities of a Torah Scholar and humility citing Reb Aharon Lichtensteins’ essay on Daas Torah and comparing with Chaim Grade's portrayal of the Chazon Ish and finally Kafka’s The Trial (Mann com Lande as Am Haaretz).

Bava Batra 96: מִי סָבְרַתְּ חַמְרָא הוּא

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The Gemara explains that according to the Chachamim, when one mixes wine sediments with water and later finds that the amount of water in the container is the same as the original amount, the beverage is exempt from Ma'aser. Since the amount of water in the mixture remained the same, the mixture has the status of water, and there is no obligation to separate Ma'aser from water. Rebbi Yehudah disagrees and states that Ma'aser must be separated from the beverage.

We explore the halachos of wine vs grape joice for kiddush and the the rabbinic response to Prohibition.

Bava Batra 95: מַרְתֵּף זֶה שֶׁל יַיִן

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The mishna teaches: When purchasing a cellar containing barrels of wine, one accepts upon himself that up to ten barrels of souring wine may be present in each hundred barrels purchased.

If he said: I am selling to you this particular cellar, without mentioning the word: Wine, then even if everything he gives him is wine that had turned into vinegar, it has come to the buyer and the sale is valid.

The mishna’s ruling that the buyer must accept that up to ten percent of the wine might be souring does not accord with any of the rulings of the baraita.

We explore the history of wine cellars and the chemistry of wine turning to vinegar, finally. Pro Flusser’s analysis of the parable of new wine in old flasks (Luke).

Bava Batra 94: מִי יֵימַר דְּלָאו כּוּלֵּיהּ עָרוֹבֵי עָרֵיב

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A certain amount of dirt should be expected when one purchases produce. The Gemara outlines reasonable amounts of dirt that might be found surrounding different types of produce. But perhaps the dirt is not there incidentally; perhaps the seller placed more than the expected amount of dirt to the container of produce assuming that the buyer would not notice the difference and thus pay more money for less produce.

On our daf, the Gemara brings Rav Huna’s teaching that a buyer can sift the grain that was purchased, and if he finds that there is more than a quarter kav of waste he can demand that the seller replace the entire amount that he had agreed to sell, not only the three-quarters that was to be expected.

We explore the work of Prof. Daniel Boyarin whose influence in the cultural history of rabbinic Judaism and its self definition is now coming under scrutiny.

Bava Batra 93: כֵּיוָן דְּמִיעְקָר עָקְרִי לְהוּ

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What level of responsibility does a supplier have if his failure to supply the item that was ordered leads to other losses or difficulties?

In all of these cases the Tanna Kamma rules that the craftsman who is paid for his work is held responsible to make up the loss.

A buyer is not reimbursed for his money or efforts to plant defective seeds. This is true only in a case where it is readily apparent that the seeds were defective.

We explore food contamination and the ugly facts regarding the kashrut industry.

Bava Batra 92: רוֹב הַנִּישָּׂאוֹת בְּתוּלוֹת יֵשׁ לָהֶן קוֹל

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The sixth chapter opens with a discussion of a sale in which the merchandise does not fulfill the requirements of the buyer. In some cases, a defect in the merchandise entirely nullifies the sale as a mistaken transaction.

In other cases, the defect is considered so common that the buyer should have specified if he did not want it. Similarly, if the merchandise is suitable for several purposes, it may be the responsibility of the buyer to specify the purpose for which he is purchasing the merchandise.

We explore the notion of warranties and Irwin Haut’s analysis of Unjust enrichment.

Bava Batra 91: וַאֲכַלְתֶּם מִן הַתְּבוּאָה יָשָׁן

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Our daf quotes a baraita that teaches that a person can only leave Israel if basic foods double in price. Rabbi Shimon bar Yoḥai teaches that this is only true if he cannot afford to purchase food at that price, but if he can afford the inflated prices, then he should not leave Israel. In a similar vein, Rabbi Shimon interpreted the story in Megillat Rut as teaching this lesson.

According to Rabbi Shimon, Elimelekh, Maḥlon and Khilyon – the father and two sons who left Israel in a time of famine – were among the leaders of their generation. Their punishment and death is attributed to their decision to abandon Israel during a difficult time.

We explore the book of Ruth and the genealogy of King David from Moabite roots.

Bava Batra 90: כְּגוֹן שַׁבְּתַי אַצָּר פֵּירוֹת

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Our daf ends with a discussion about people inflating prices deliberately, at the cost of those who are poor and vulnerable.

Some people hoard to sell to the poor when the price has risen substantially. The rabbis attempt to limit this sort of behaviour, suggesting that essential items should always be available at a reasonable price.

We explore the phenomenon of hoarding food especially in those subject to starvation during war and famine.

Bava Batra 89: נֶפֶשׁ מֹאזְנַיִם – תְּלוּיָה בָּאֲוִיר

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Our Gemara teaches, based on the passage in Devarim (25:14) that market inspectors are appointed to ensure the honesty of weights and measures, but no such inspectors are appointed for checking that prices are fair.

The Gemara relates that Shmuel asked Karna to teach publicly that market inspectors are appointed only to oversee measures, but no such inspectors are appointed to regulate prices.

We continue our exploration of weights and measures in antiquity.

Bava Batra 88: גֶּזֶל הֶדְיוֹט יוֹתֵר מִגֶּזֶל גָּבוֹהַּ

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The Torah requires honest weights and measures (see Vayikra 19:36). The Mishna on today’s daf teaches that business people who sell items like wine or oil are required to clean their scales on a regular basis in order to ensure that their customers are not being cheated. There are three different types of sellers, and each has a different schedule for washing his weights and scales:

The ba’al ha-bayit – the homeowner (in this context refers to the manufacturer) – the farmer who harvests his grain or produces wine from his grapes or oil from his olives, keeping enough for his own private needs and selling the rest to sitona’im.

The siton – the wholesaler who purchases in bulk from the ba’al ha-bayit and sells to the ḥenvani

The ḥenvani – the storekeeper, who purchases from the wholesaler and sells in small amounts out of his ḥanut, or store.

We explore the Injunction in Deut 25:15.

Bava Batra 87: לְהַטִּיף שָׁלֹשׁ טִיפִּין

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The Mishnah teaches that when a person purchases a barrel of wine (or oil), the seller must let three drops of the liquid drip into the buyer's vessel after he empties its contents. Any leftover liquid that collects at the bottom of the seller's vessel when the seller tilts his vessel belongs to the seller.

Rebbi Elazar asks why should this case be different from the case involving Terumah? The Mishnah in Terumos (11:8) says that when a person empties a barrel of Terumah and then tilts the barrel so that liquid collects on the bottom, the liquid that collects is also Terumah. According to the logic of the Mishnah here, in the case in Terumos the liquid left in the barrel should be Chulin!

We explore the three drops in mythology and the bird of Mother Earth Gaia and her impact on ecology.

Bava Batra 86: נְכָסִים שֶׁיֵּשׁ לָהֶן אַחְרָיוּת

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Our daf is a continuation of the Gemara as the rabbis discuss the implication of this Mishna. What happens if one is pulling donkey drivers or labourers who then pull with them the merchandise in question? Does one acquire through these actions, or perhaps when the merchandise is unloaded? But what if the merchandise is not unloaded after all?

The Gemara notes that in Masechet Kiddushin (26a), a Mishna teaches that guaranteed property, ie. land, is acquired through money, a bill, or possession. Movable property is acquired through pulling. A number of rabbis clarified this: movable property that is typically moved by lifted is also acquired by lifting - but not by pulling.

We explore the notion of land possession with regards to Eretz Yisrael both in ancient times and in the religious zionist movement.

Bava Batra 85: כִּלְיוֹ שֶׁל אָדָם קוֹנֶה לוֹ בְּכׇל מָקוֹם

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Ordinarily, the buyer can take possession of an object if it is placed in a vessel that belongs to him. Rav Sheshet asks Rav Huna whether something that is placed in an object belonging to the buyer will become his, if the buyer’s thing is resting on private property owned by the seller. In response, Rav Huna suggests looking at a parallel in the rules of gittin – divorces. Although the Torah appears to require that the get actually be placed in the wife’s hand (…ve-natan be-yadah – Devarim 24:1), the tradition that the Sages had was that that passage was not to be taken literally, rather that it had to be placed in her possession and control.

Our Mishnah describes produce acquisition which allows us to explore produce fraud, Big Agro and the influence of pesticides on public health.

Bava Batra 84: מָדַד וְלֹא מָשַׁךְ – לֹא קָנָה

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Performing a kinyan – an act that demonstrates ownership.

Even after a buyer and a seller have agreed to a price, and verbally agreed that they want the sale to take place, it is still necessary for the purchaser to perform a kinyan in order to take possession of the object. Generally speaking there are three symbolic acts that can serve this purpose, each of them under different circumstances.

hagbaha – lifting up the object to be purchased

meshikha – pulling an object

mesira – when the object is handed over from the owner to the buyer.

We explore methods and timing of acquisitions.

Bava Batra 83: אַרְבַּע מִדּוֹת בַּמּוֹכְרִין

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If the seller sold what was purported to be superior wheat and it was found to be inferior, the buyer can retract.

The seller might also want to void the sale if the price rises, but he does not have this option.

It is not a fraudulent sale, where both can retract. Rather, it is more akin to a case of price fraud or overcharge since the buyer did receive wheat, albeit of inferior quality.

We explore the issue of defective merchandise as well as fraudulent sales and advertising.

Bava Batra 82: כֹּל שֶׁרוֹאֶה פְּנֵי חַמָּה

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The mishna teaches: With regard to one who buys two trees in the field of another, if the trees grew, the owner of the field may not cut down their branches. The mishna further teaches: That which grows out of the trunk belongs to the owner of the tree, but that which grows out of the roots belongs to the owner of the ground.

Rabbi Yoḥanan said: With regard to anything that sees the face of the sun, i.e., which is visible and aboveground, this is considered to be growing out of the trunk. And with regard to that which does not see the face of the sun but is concealed in the earth, this is considered to be growing out of the roots.

We explore the metaphor of the sun(light) in Plato and in Chabad Chassidus.

Bava Batra 81: שְׁנֵי אִילָנוֹת

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MISHNA: With regard to one who buys two trees in the field of another, this one has not acquired any ground, but only the trees. Rabbi Meir says: He has acquired the groundunder them. The mishna states a halakha in accordance with the opinion of the first tanna: If the trees grew, the owner of the field may not cut down their branches, despite the fact that their shade damages his field.

Our focus on two trees allows an exploration of the original two trees in the Garden of Eden and a mediation on the mythical midrasnhic and hassidic renderings of meaning.