[8a - 50 lines; 8b - 35 lines]
1)[line 1]והרי יובלותVA'HAREI YOVLOS!- but there are Yovel years [that are mentioned in the Mishnah, and which begin only following the action of Beis Din blowing the Shofar on Yom ha'Kipurim]!
2)[line 2]שהן בארבע ראשי חדשיםSHE'HEN B'ARBA ROSHEI CHODASHIM- each of which fall upon one of four Roshei Chodashim. This answers both of the questions posed by the Gemara earlier: The Rosh Hashanah of Regalim, which falls upon the fifteenth of Nisan, does not qualify for this count since it is in the middle of the month, and the sixteenth of Nisan and the sixth of Sivan are not mentioned in our Mishnah for this same reason (see Insights).
3)[line 3]באחד בשבט כבית שמאי?B'ECHAD BI'SHEVAT K'VEIS SHAMAI?- [is the Tana of our Mishnah then ruling that] the first of Shevat [is the Rosh Hashanah for Ma'asar Behemah,] according to [the opinion of] Beis Shamai?
4)[line 7]"לבשו כרים הצאן, ועמקים יעטפו בר; יתרועעו אף ישירו""LAVSHU CHARIM HA'TZON, VA'AMAKIM YA'ATFU VAR; YISRO'A'U, AF YASHIRU!"- "The meadows don sheep and the valleys cloak themselves with fodder; they shout joyfully, and even sing!" (Tehilim 65:14) - Our Gemara homiletically interprets this verse to mean, "The sheep conceive when the valleys are full of ripened grain, and when the grain hardens to the point that it produces a rustling sound when the wind blows." The sound produced by the rustle of the wheat stalks is referred to as their "song." (See Yerushalmi Shekalim 8a and Background ibid. #4 for a different interpretation of this verse.)
5)[line 11]ראש השנה שלהן אלולROSH HASHANAH SHELA'HEN ELUL- their Rosh Hashanah is Elul [since it is the first Rosh Chodesh after the birthing season]
6)[line 14]שבליםSHIBOLIM- stalks of grain
7a)[line 16]באפלתאAFEILASA- those animals that conceive belatedly
b)[line 18]בחרפייתאCHORPEYASA- those animals that conceive early
8)[line 27]מעשר בהמהMA'ASAR BEHEMAH
(a)Once a year, one must designate every tenth Kosher animal born into his herd/flock over the course of the previous year as Ma'asar Behemah (Vayikra 27:32). This is accomplished by gathering all of each type of animal born in the previous year into a corral. They are then made to leave the corral in a single-file line through a narrow opening. Their owner stands by and counts them, marking every tenth one.
(b)Animals designated as Ma'asar Behemah are eaten by their owner. If they are unblemished, they are offered as a Korban Shelamim (see Background to 6:10) and eaten by their owner in Yerushalayim. If they have a Mum, their owner may slaughter and eat them as he would any Kosher animal.
(c)Animals born in different years may not be joined together for the purpose of being counted for Ma'asar Behemah. The date which is the cut-off point is the subject of dispute in our Mishnah.
9)[line 28]מעשר דגןMA'ASER DAGAN
(a)After a crop is harvested and brought to the owner's house or yard, he must separate Terumah from the crop and give it to a Kohen. Although the Torah does not specify an amount that must be given, the Rabanan set the requirement at between one fortieth and one sixtieth of the total crop.
(b)Once Terumah is separated from the produce, the first tithe is separated. One tenth of the remaining produce is given to a Levi; this is known as Ma'aser Rishon.
(c)Produce grown in one year may not be mixed with produce of another year for the purposes of Ma'aser. For this purpose, the year begins on the first day of Tishrei (Rosh Hashanah).
10)[line 28]מקישMAKISH (HEKESH)
(a)One of the methods employed by Chazal when determining Halachah from the verses of the Torah is Hekesh. Hekesh entails comparing two subjects that are mentioned together in a verse.
(b)A Hekesh is a powerful way of determining Halachah. When two subjects are compared through a Hekesh, all possible parallels are drawn between them, unless a different Derashah teaches us otherwise ("Ein Hekesh l'Mechetzah"). Additionally, logical differences that would impede a Kal va'Chomer (see Background to Avodah Zarah 46:22) or a Gezeirah Shavah (see Background to Zevachim 103:30) do not stand in the way of learning one subject from another through a Hekesh ("Ein Meshivin Al ha'Hekesh").
11)[line 29]סמוך לגמרו עישורוSAMUCH L'GAMRO ISURO- the new year (Rosh Chodesh Tishrei) begins just after its processing is finished [as it is left to dry in the fields throughout the summer]
12)[line 35]לשטרותLI'SHETAROS- for documents [which are dated according to the year of the king]. This year changes on the same date every year, no matter when the king was crowned.
13)[line 35]המוקדמיןHA'MUKDAMIN- that are predated
14)[line 43]קראי אתא לאשמועינןKERA'EI ASA L'ASHMU'INAN- was intending to explain the [seeming dichotomy between the] verses [in Nechemyah (see Daf 3b)]
15)[line 44]כרבי זירא מתני להK'REBBI ZEIRA MASNI LAH- understood the Mishnah according to [the explanation of] Rebbi Zeira [and not that it was teaching a Halachah relating to the dating of documents]
16)[line 45]לתקופהL'TEKUFAH- for counting the time of year [with regard to the lunar months, solar solstices and equinoxes, and the relationship between the lunar and solar calendars (see next entry)]
17)[line 46]בתשרי נברא העולםMI'TISHREI NIVRA HA'OLAM
(a)There is a Tana'ic disagreement regarding when the world was created. Rebbi Yehoshua is of the opinion that HaSh-m created the world and the luminaries in the position state of Nisan. Rebbi Eliezer maintains that the world was created in Tishrei.
(b)There are a number of practical differences between these two opinions. Presumably, the sun and moon were at (roughly) the same position when they were created. However, from that point onward, they each follow a separate path. The moon completes a monthly cycle of waxing and waning approximately every twenty-nine and a half days, resulting in a twelve-month year of approximately 354 days. The solar year, on the other hand, consists of approximately 365 1/4 days. The half-year difference between the reckoning of Rebbi Yehoshua and Rebbi Eliezer therefore results in different computations for when the month completes its monthly cycle, when the sun completes its yearly cycle, and what the difference between the two cycles is at any given point over the course of the year.
18)[line 47]"[ארץ אשר ה' א-לקיך דרש אתה; תמיד עיני ה' א-לקיך בה,] מרשית השנה ועד אחרית שנה""[ERETZ ASHER HASH-M EL-KECHA DORESH OSA; TAMID EINEI HASH-M EL-KECHA BAH,] ME'REISHIS HA'SHANAH V'AD ACHARIS SHANAH"- "[A land which HaSh-m your G-d shall seek the welfare of; the eyes of HaSh-m your G-d are constantly turned to it,] from the beginning of the year to its end" (Devarim 11:12).
19)[line 49]"תקעו בחדש שופר בכסה ליום חגנו. [כי חק לישראל הוא משפט לא-לקי יעקב]""TIK'U VA'CHODESH SHOFAR, BA'KESEH L'YOM CHAGENU. [KI CHOK L'YISRAEL HU, MISHPAT LE'L-OKEI YAKOV]"- "Blow a Shofar on [Rosh] Chodesh, at the appointed time of our festival. [For it is an ordinance for Yisrael, a judgment for the G-d of Yakov]" (Tehilim 81:4-5) - Our Gemara interprets the word "ba'Keseh" in a way that pinpoints the time described in this verse as Rosh Hashanah.
8b----------------------------------------8b
20)[line 1]שהחדש מתכסה בוSHEHA'CHODESH MISKASEH BO- (a) in which the moon is hidden [due to that which it is not visible for a twenty-four period at the beginning of every month (Daf 20)] (RASHI); (b) in which the month is designated (i.e., begins) (RABEINU TAM in TOSFOS DH sheha'Chodesh); (c) regarding which [the Torah] makes no mention of [the Chatas of] Rosh Chodesh [when discussing the additional Korbanos offered on that day in Bamidbar 29:6] (RABEINU MESHULAM in TOSFOS DH sheha'Chodesh); (d) in which no mention is made of [the Chatas of] Rosh Chodesh [in the Musaf prayer of that day] (second explanation of RABEINU MESHULAM in TOSFOS DH sheha'Chodesh)
21)[line 7]תלמוד לומר משפט לא-לקי יעקבTALMUD LOMAR MISHPAT LE'L-OKEI YAKOV- [the verse] teaches us [that all nations are judged on that day] by saying, "a judgment for the G-d of Yakov" [who is the G-d of all nations]
22)[line 11]"משפט עבדו ומשפט עמו""MISHPAT AVDO U'MISHPAT AMO" - "[And may these words of mine that I have supplicated before HaSh-m be near to HaSh-m, our G-d, day and night, that He may grant] the just due of His servant and the just due of His people Israel, [each day's need in its day]" (Melachim I 8:59) (THE PRAYER OF SHLOMO HA'MELECH UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE BEIS HA'MIKDASH)
(a)Having completed the construction of the Beis ha'Mikdash, Shlomo ha'Melech beseeched HaSh-m to always be receptive to the prayers of Klal Yisrael (as well as those of other nations). His main concern was that the Beis ha'Mikdash should draw Klal Yisrael close to HaSh-m, and that this relationship should express itself in a higher quality of Mitzvah observance. Shlomo then expressed his desire that "... all the nations of the earth should know that HaSh-m is G-d; there is no other."
(b)From Shlomo's request that his own judgment to be carried out separately from that of the rest of the nation, it is clear that a king is judged prior to the common populace. In the global sense, our Gemara considers Klal Yisrael to be a king relative to the other nations of the earth.
23a)[line 12]לאו אורח ארעאLAV ORACH AR'A- it is not proper conduct (this is the Aramaic translation of "Derech Eretz")
b)[line 13]למיקם מלכא אבראיL'MEIKAM MALKA AVRA'I- to make a king stand outside
24)[line 14]מקמי דליפוש חרון אףMEKAMEI D'LEIFUSH CHARON AF- [it is best for Klal Yisrael to be judged] before the wrath [of the judge] increases [as a result of viewing the sinful ways of the nations of the world]
25)[line 23]תעבירו שופרTA'AVIRU SHOFAR- blow a Shofar
26)[line 28]נפטריןNIFTARIN- dismissed
27)[line 29]ועטרותיהן בראשיהןV'ATROSEIHEN B'ROSHEIHEM- with their crowns on their heads. The Me'iri quotes a Yerushalmi (that we do not appear to have) which explains that a slave was not allowed to wrap himself in a Talis, as this was the sign of a free man. They were therefore unable to make the blessing of "... Oter Yisrael b'Sif'arah." Once Yovel had arrived and they were indeed free men, they would wrap themselves in Taleisim so as to make this blessing.
28)[line 31]שנים אתה מקדש ואי אתה מקדש חדשיםSHANIM ATAH MEKADESH V'IY ATAH MEKADESH CHODASHIM- you should sanctify years, but not months. Rosh Chodesh always falls on one of two possible days. Whether or not Beis Din verbally sanctifies Rosh Chodesh when they accept eyewitness testimony that it is on the first of these days is the subject of a Tanaic dispute (Daf 24a). The derivation noted here is that of Rebbi Elazar b'Rebbi Shimon, who maintains that under no circumstances do Beis Din verbally sanctify months.
29)[line 33]כך מתקדשת והולכת בסופהKACH MISKADESHES V'HOLECHES B'SOFAH- it likewise continues in its sanctity at its end [until Yom ha'Kipurim of the following year]
30)[line 33]ואל תתמהV'AL TETAMEH- and do not wonder [why Yovel should extend somewhat into the following year]
31)[line 34]מוסיפין מחול על קדשMOSIFIN ME'CHOL AL HA'KODESH- [generally speaking,] we add non-sanctified time onto sanctified time. This applies to Shabbos, Yom ha'Kipurim, Yom Tov, and the year of Shemitah. The Gemara derives the source for this Halachah on the following Amud.