After fifth-generation Tanna, Rabbi Meir died, his contemporary Rabbi Yehuda didn’t want an influx of Rabbi Meir’s students, whom he considered troublemakers (Nazir 49-50). He

On Nazir 42a, Rav Acha son of Rav Ikka deduces a rather important global principle: that the majority is reckoned as the entirety (rubo kechulo)

A nazir may not eat any part of the grape, from the חַרְצַנִּים unto the זָג (Bemidbar 6:4). But what are these? Zugt Rashi, the

What should our attitude be towards conjectural emendations to the Talmudic text? Rabbeinu Tam, that is, Rabbi Yaakov ben Meir, Rashi’s grandson and French Tosafist

Oftentimes, in the run-up to Tu B’Shevat, I hear divrei Torah which begin “the Torah compares man to a tree,” and then explore the ways

I’ve got a weird and unique interpretation of an exchange between Rabbi Yehuda Nesia and Reish Lakish on Nazir 20b.As background, the Mishna describes a

A mishna on Nazir 5a declares that an unspecified nezirut (abstinence from wine) is for 30 days. In the Gemara, Rav Matnah and Bar Pada

What is Nazir doing in seder Nashim? The Talmudic Narrator opens the tractate by asking this curious question. מִכְּדֵי תַּנָּא בְּסֵדֶר נָשִׁים קָאֵי, מַאי טַעְמָא

One of the primary reasons we care about which Tanna or Amora said what, is as follows. We assume that his opinion, worldview and halachic

Does Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov always win? On Ketubot 46b, a brayta records a dispute about the nature of motzi shem ra, where the new

Am I wasting my time writing this column? My sustained focus is on understanding a sugya or rabbinic pronouncement based on what we know about