Ta'anit (Mishnah)

Taʿanit / תענית (dt. "Fast day") is a treatise of the Mishnah in the order Moʿed (festival times, festival day) .

Name and position in the Seder

The usual designation תענית / fast day can be found in the Babylonian text tradition of the Mishnah. In contrast, the treatise in the Eretz-Jisra'elischen tradition bears the name תעניות / feast days.

The tract is usually ninth in the Moed order after Rosh Hashanah and before Megilla , both of which also have four chapters. Only in the Talmud manuscript Munich is Taʿanit in eleventh place after Megilla and before Moʿed Qatan .

content

As the name of the treatise suggests, it mainly deals with questions about fasting days. In the first place are publicly proclaimed fast days when there is no rain. The first two chapters clarify when a fast should be proclaimed or which days are unsuitable for fasting (e.g. new moons, Hanukkah and Purim ) and which liturgical pieces are to be recited.

The third chapter deals with fast days that are declared due to natural disasters, epidemics or danger of war. There is a famous anecdote about Choni the circle puller, which is also mentioned by Flavius Josephus :

"It happened that one said to Choni the circle puller:" Pray that the rain may fall! " He said to them, "Fast and bring in the Passover ovens so they don't soften!" He prayed, but there was no rain. He drew a circle, stood in it and said: "Rabbuni! Your children have turned their faces on me, because I am like a son of the house before you. I swear by your great name that I will not leave here until you You will have mercy on your children. Then it began to rain drop by drop. There he said: “I did not ask for this, but rain that fills wells, channels and cisterns.” Then the rain fell with anger. Then he said: “Not such I asked, but rain of pleasure, blessing and good deed. "Then the rain fell as it should be until Israel went up from Jerusalem to the Temple Mount because of (the multitude) of the rain. They said to him:" How you have prayed for the rain to fall, then pray for the rain to stop. "Then he said to them:" Fast and see whether the stone of the erring has dissolved. "Then Shimon ben Shetach sent to him. He spoke to them to him: "You should be banished. But what should i do with you You behave improperly on the spot, like a son who behaves improperly to his father, but the latter does his will. Scripture says about you: Your father and mother are happy, and those who gave birth to you are happy. (Proverbs 23:25). ""

- Mishnah Taʿanit 3.8.

Only in the fourth chapter are memorial days such as the Tisha beAv (9th Av) or the Shiva Assar beTammus (17th Tammuz) dealt with.

There is a Tosefta tract on Taʿanit, as well as a Gemara in the Jerusalem or Palestinian Talmud and in the Babylonian Talmud.

literature

Dietrich Correns: Taanijot (fasting days). Töpelmann, Giessen 1989, ISBN 3-11-002439-X .
Michael Krupp (Ed.): The Mishnah. 2nd order. Mo'ed - festival times. Part 2, 9: Michael Krupp: Taanit - fasting. Thoroughly revised edition. Lee Achim Sefarim, Jerusalem 2004, ISBN 965-7221-15-3 .

Web links

Hebrew text of the treatise
Greenup, Albert William: The Mishna tractate Taanith (On the public fasts) , London 1921

Remarks

↑ The Passover ovens were made from clay especially for the festival. If the rain falls - which Choni is counting on - they would soften and the Passover festival would be disrupted.
↑ The "stone of the erring" is a kind of "lost and found" office on Temple Square. Of course, the stone doesn't dissolve. Choni’s answer expresses his unwillingness to react to the urging of the population.

[1] The Passover ovens were made from clay especially for the festival. If the rain falls - which Choni is counting on - they would soften and the Passover festival would be disrupted.

[2] The "stone of the erring" is a kind of "lost and found" office on Temple Square. Of course, the stone doesn't dissolve. Choni’s answer expresses his unwillingness to react to the urging of the population.