1)

(a)The Emperor (Hadrian) sent a group of soldiers after Onkelos bar K'lonimus to bring him back to Rome - because he had converted to Judaism,.

(b)After quoting them some Pesukim - he convinced them to convert as well.

(c)The Emperor tried to prevent this from happening with the second group that he sent after him - by ordering them not to speak to Onkelos.

(d)As they were leading him back to Rome however, he asked them whether, if lower ranking officers would carry a torch for higher ranking officers, and the Hegmon for the Kuma, would the Kuma carry a torch for the Hegmon. What he meant was - whether a king would dream of carrying a torch for even the highest officer in his kingdom.

2)

(a)The soldiers agreed that - a king would never carry a torch for even the highest officer in the land.

(b)He then quoted them the Pasuk "va'Hashem Holech Lifneihem Yomam ... ", to prove to them the difference between their King and our king (who is also our Father), who personally lit up the desert nights with the pillar of fire on behalf of K'lal Yisrael.

(c)Following which - they too, converted.

(d)The third group of soldiers was given strict instructions not to speak to Unk'lus at all. He got them to question him however - by putting his hand on the Mezuzah as he walked past, and asking them what that was; to which they inevitably answered 'You tell us').

(e)He replied - by pointing out that whereas a regular king sits in his palace, whilst his men stand guard outside, Yisrael sit in their homes whilst Hash-m guards them, as the Pasuk writes "Hash-m Yishmor Tzeischa u'Vo'echa". They too, promptly converted.

3)

(a)The next thing Hadrian did was - to give up.

(b)Rav Yehudah Amar Rav - 'amends' the Pasuk in Toldos "Sh'nei Goyim be'Vitnech" to read "Sh'nei Ge'im" (two proud [esteemed] persons), referring to Antoninus (from Eisav) and Rebbi (from Ya'akov).

(c)Radishes, lettuce and cucumbers, he says, were never absent from their table, either in summer or in winter.

(d)Radishes cut up the food (in the stomach) ...

1. ... lettuces turn it over, whilst ...

2. ... cucumbers stretch the stomach.

4)

(a)Cucumbers are called 'Kishu'in' - because they are harmful (Kashin) to the body.

(b)When Rav Yehudah Amar Rav just said that they are healthy - he was referring to small one (which are called 'Kishos', whereas it is the large one that are called 'Kishu'in').

5)

(a)According to the Chachamim in our Mishnah, the day of the king's death is only considered a festival if they burned the king's vessels and utensils when he died. Rebbi Meir must therefore hold that - it makes no difference.

(b)Initially, we think that the basis of their Machlokes is - whether 'S'reifas Melachim' is a Chok la'Avodah-Zarah (the Chachamim) or not (Rebbi Meir).

(c)We refute this suggestion however, on the basis of a Beraisa - which specifically permits burning a king's belongings when he dies.

(d)Based on the Pasuk in Acharei-Mos "u've'Chukoseihem Lo Seilechu" - the Chachamim would never have permitted it, had it been a Chok la'Avodas Kochavim!

(e)Since neither opinion considers burning the king's belongings a 'Chok la'Avodah-Zarah', the basis of their Machlokes is - whether the death of a king whose belongings they do not burn when he dies, is important enough in their eyes to go and sacrifice to their gods on account of it (Rebbi Meir), or not (the Chachamim).

6)

(a)The Beraisa derives the concession to burn the king's belongings from a Pasuk in Yechezkel, which writes "be'Shalom Tamus u've'Misrefos Avosecha ha'Melachim ... " - in connection with Tzidkiyahu ha'Melech.

(b)Besides a king, one also burns - the property of the Nasi of Beis-Din when he dies.

(c)The Beraisa incorporates in the list of things that one burns - the Nasi's bed and his personal utensils.

7)

(a)Onkelos ha'Ger burned seventy Manah Tzuri (560 Manah Medinah) when Rabban Gamliel died.

(b)To reconcile this with the Beraisa that we just quoted, which restricts the burning to the Nasi's bed and his personal utensils - we amend it to seventy Manah Tzuri worth of utensils.

(c)We query this however, from the Beraisa 'Okrin al ha'Melachim ve'Ein bo Mishum Darkei ha'Emori' meaning that - when a king dies, one may cut the legs of his animals, and there is no problem with 'Darkei ha'Emori'.

(d)The problem this creates with what we just learned is - how animals can be classified as personal utensils?

(e)To reconcile the two Beraisos, Rav Papa establishes the latter one - by the horse on which the king rode.

8)

(a)Another Beraisa - confines Ikur to where it does not render the animal a T'reifah.

(b)One does this - by hamstringing the animal (cutting off the animal's hind legs [or the tendon]) from below the knee.

(c)The Beraisa forbids Ikur that renders the animal a T'reifah - because of 'Bal Tashchis' (the prohibition of wasting something that is useful [see also Tosfos DH 'Okrin']).

(d)Bearing in mind that T'reifus is confined to Kasher animals, the problem with this is that - the only animal that fits into the category of 'the king's personal utensils' is a horse, as Rav Papa just explained (and a horse is not Kasher).

(e)To reconcile the two Beraisos, Rav Papa re-establishes this latter Beraisa - by a calf that pulls the king's coach.

9)

(a)The Gemara is in a quandry how to explain 'u'Beluriso' (in our Mishnah 'Yom Tiglachas Zekano u'Beluriso'). One way of explaining it is 'the day that one shaves one's beard and leaves the B'luris intact. The other, is - the day that one shaves one's beard and (with reference to the following year) the day that one shaves one's B'luris, and not one's beard'.

(b)Based on another Beraisa, we resolve the She'eilah as to which explanation is the correct one - by including them both cases in the prohibition.

(c)Rav Yehudah Amar Shmuel cites another festival that took place every seventy years. The man riding on the back of a lame man represented - Eisav riding on the back of Ya'akov, symbolizing that Eisav still ruled over Ya'akov.

(d)The latter would be wearing - the special clothes of Adam ha'Rishon (that Ya'akov had 'borrowed' from him when he received the B'rachos from Yitzchak), and they would place on his head - the skin of Rebbi Yishmael Kohen Gadol's face (which had been treated with Afars'mon oil and which was still lying in the vaults in Rome).

10)

(a)They would place a chain of Piza (an extremely rare stone) weighing two hundred Zuz around his neck, stud his legs with precious stones, and make a public announcement ...

1. ... 'Sach Kiri P'laster'! meaning that - Ya'akov's prophesy to his children that they will be redeemed, is false.

2. ... 'Achuhah de'Marana Zaifna'! means - 'Our master (Eisav)'s brother is an impostor'.

(b)And when they continued ...

1. ... 'de'Chami Chami, u'de'Lo Chami Lo Chami' they meant that - seeing as this festival occurs only once every seventy years, someone who did not witness the festivities, will not get another chance.

2. ... 'Mai Ahanu le'Rama'ah be'Ram'useih, u'le'Zaifna be'Zaifnuseih', they meant that - the swindler has gained nothing from his swindle, nor the impostor from his forgery.

(c)Their final declaration was - 'Woe to Eisav when Ya'akov attains power'.

(d)Rav Ashi comments that - 'Achuhah de'Marana Zaifna!' is a bad reflection on themselves, since it can also be translated as 'The brother of our master the swindler'. What they should therefore have said was - 'Zaifna Achuhah de'Marana!'

(e)The Tana of our Mishnah omits this festival from his list - because he is only concerned with the festivals that occur annually.

11)

(a)The festivals in our Mishnah are those of the Romans. Our Sugya also lists the festivals of - the Persians and the Babylonians.

(b)Rav Chanan bar Rav Chisda (or Rav Chanan bar Rava Amar Rav) lists 'Beis-Beil in Bavel, Beis-N'vo in Kursi, Tar'asa in Mefeg, Tz'rifa in Ashkelon and Nashra in Arabia' - all as fixed Avodah-Zarahs.

(c)When Rav Dimi came from Eretz Yisrael, he added Yerid in Ein-Bechi and Nidbechah (or Nisbera) in Acco to the list. Rav Dimi from Neherda'a - inverted the above two 'Y'rid in Acco and Nidb'chah in Ein-Bechi'.

(d)Rav Chisda explained the significance of the above fixed Batei-Akum to his son Rav Chanan in that - it was forbidden to do business with them all year round.

12)

(a)During the era of Galus - Shmuel confines the prohibition of doing business with Nochrim on their festivals to the actual day of the festival itself ...

(b)... because we rely on them for our Parnasah, and it would be impossible to manage without them for three days.

(c)Rav Yehudah permitted Rav B'runa (or Rav Kahana or Rav Nachman) to buy a donkey, and Rav Z'vid, to buy wheat, even on the actual day of the festival of the Ta'ya'ei - the day when the local merchants would gather to celebrate in honor of their god.

(d)We reconcile this with Shmuel, who forbade doing business with Nochrim on the actual day of their festival - by pointing out that the merchants were not so particular about that festival, and if it suited them one year, they would cancel it.

13)

(a)Our Mishnah - permits doing business with the Nochrim who live outside the town, during the festival that the townspeople celebrate, and vice-versa ...

(b)... because each of them tended to celebrate different festivals.

(c)The Tana also permits traveling to a town at the time of the festival - only if there is a road leading from it to other towns, or if the road to the town branches off in other directions. Otherwise, it is forbidden because of 'Mar'is ha'Ayin' (the suspicion that he is going there in order to celebrate with the townspeople).

(d)Resh Lakish in the name of Rebbi Chanina defines 'Chutzah lah' in our Mishnah as the butchery of Azah - which was extremely close to the town, to teach us that 'Chutzah lah' has no minimum limits.