Gemara
The Gemara comprises a collection of rabbinical analyses and commentaries on the Mishnah and presented in 63 books. The term is derived from the Aramaic word and rooted in the Semitic word ג-מ-ר, which means "to finish" or "complete". Initially, the Gemara was transmitted orally and not permitted to be written down. However, after Judah the Prince compiled the Mishnah around 200 CE, rabbis from Babylonia and the Land of Israel extensively studied the work. Their discussions were eventually documented in a series of books, which would come to be known as the Gemara. There are two versions of the Talmud: the Babylonian Talmud and the Jerusalem Talmud. The Mishnah is virtually the same in two Talmuds; the Gemara is what differentiates the Babylonian Talmud from its Jerusalem counterpart.
The Babylonian Talmud, compiled by scholars in Babylonia around 500 CE and primarily from the academies of Sura, Pumbedita, and Nehardea, is the more commonly cited version when referring to the "Gemara" or "Talmud"; redaction of the Jerusalem Talmud was interrupted in the mid-fourth century when the Romans suppressed Jewish scholarship in Israel and most Talmudists fled to Babylon. As a result, the Bavli was more intensively edited, studied, and commented on. The main compilers of the Babylonian Talmud were Ravina and Rav Ashi. The Jerusalem Talmud was compiled by Jewish scholars in the Land of Israel, primarily from the academies of Tiberias and Caesarea, around 350–400 CE.
The Talmud is organized into six sedarim, or "orders," which include Zeraim, Moed, Nashim, Nezikin, Kodshim, and Taharot.
In 1923, Polish Rabbi Meir Shapiro introduced a contemporary practice called "Daf Yomi," or "daily page," wherein participants study one page of the Talmud daily in cycles lasting seven and a half years each. This initiative ensures that both scholars and laypeople across the globe engage in the comprehensive study of the entire Talmud.
Gemara and Mishnah
describes the Gemara as:The rabbis of the Mishnah are known as Tannaim. The rabbis of the Gemara are referred to as Amoraim. The analysis of the Amoraim, recorded as gemara, is thus focused on clarifying the positions, views, and word choice of the Tannaim.
Because there are two Gemaras, as mentioned above, there are in fact two Talmuds: the Jerusalem Talmud, and the Babylonian Talmud, corresponding to the Jerusalem Gemara and the Babylonian Gemara; both share the same Mishnah. The Gemara is mostly written in Aramaic, the Jerusalem Gemara in Western Aramaic and the Babylonian in Eastern Aramaic, but both contain portions in Hebrew. Sometimes the language changes in the middle of a story.
Origins of the word
In a narrow sense, the word refers to the mastery and transmission of existing tradition, as opposed to, which means the deriving of new results by logic. Both activities are represented in the as one literary work.The Aramaic noun gemar was formed from the verb that means "learn." This substantive noun thus designates what was learned, and the learning transmitted to scholars by tradition, though it connotes in a more limited sense to exposition of the Mishnah. The word therefore gained currency as a designation of the Talmud. In the modern editions, the term gemara occurs frequently in this sense—but in nearly every case it was substituted at a later time for the objectionable word talmud, which was prohibited by the Christian censors. The only passage in which gemara occurs with the meaning of "Talmud" in the strict sense, and not censored, is Eruvin 32b, where it is used by Rav Nahman, a Babylonian amora. Later editions of the Talmud frequently substitute for the word "Gemara" the Aramaic abbreviation for "the six orders of the Mishnah," pronounced as "Shas," which has become a popular designation for the Babylonian Talmud.
The ''Sugya''
The building block of gemara is known as a sugya, "a self-contained basic unit of Talmudic discussion" that often centers on a statement from the mishnah, the amoraic rabbis, or simply independent of these. They vary in size and complexity and, though self-contained, may mention or assume knowledge of other sugiyot.The analysis of the Amoraim is generally focused on clarifying the positions, words and views of the Tannaim. These debates and exchanges form the "building-blocks" of the ; the name for such a passage of Gemara is a . A will typically comprise a detailed proof-based elaboration of the. Every aspect of the text is treated as a subject of close investigation. This analysis is aimed at an exhaustive understanding of the full meaning.
In the Talmud, a is presented as a series of responsive hypotheses and questions – with the Talmudic text as a record of each step in the process of reasoning and derivation. The thus takes the form of a dialectical exchange. The disputants here are termed the and .
The records the semantic disagreements between Tannaim and Amoraim. Some of these debates were actually conducted by the Amoraim, though many of them are hypothetically reconstructed by the Talmud's redactors. Only rarely are debates formally closed.
Argumentation and debate
The distinctive character of the derives largely from the intricate use of argumentation and debate, described above;these "back and forth" analytics are characterized by the Talmudic phrase shakla v'tarya.
In each, either participant may cite scriptural, and proof to build a logical support for their respective opinions. The process of deduction required to derive a conclusion from a prooftext is often logically complex and indirect. "Confronted with a statement on any subject, the Talmudic student will proceed to raise a series of questions before he satisfies himself of having understood its full meaning." This analysis has been described as "mathematical" in approach; Adin Steinsaltz makes the analogy of the Amoraim as scientists investigating the Halakha, where the Tanakh, Mishnah, Tosefta and midrash are the phenomena studied.
Prooftexts
Prooftexts quoted to corroborate or disprove the respective opinions and theories will include:- verses from the Tanakh: the exact language employed is regarded as significant;
- other : cross-references to analogous cases, or to parallel reasoning by the in question;
- Beraitot – uncodified which are also sources of halakha ;
- * references to opinions and cases in the ;
- * references to the ;
- cross-references to other : again to analogous cases or logic.
Questions addressed
Language
Why does the use one word rather than another? If a statement is not clear enough, the seeks to clarify the intention.Logic
Exploring the logical principles underlying the statements, and showing how different understandings of the reasons could lead to differences in their practical application. What underlying principle is entailed in a statement of fact or in a specific instance brought as an illustration? If a statement appears obvious, the seeks the logical reason for its necessity. It seeks to answer under which circumstances a statement is true, and what qualifications are permissible. All statements are examined for internal consistency.See: List of Talmudic principles and :Category:Talmud concepts and terminology