1)

(a)In a case where there are no children, Rachel's husband and her Tzarah Le'ah go overseas, and witnesses come and testify that the former died, Rachel is permitted to remarry - provided she knows for sure that her Tzarah is not pregnant (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

(b)Otherwise, she is also forbidden to perform Yibum - in case the Tzarah gave birth.

(c)The problem with the Mishnah's ruling is - why Rachel cannot perform Chalitzah and then get married 'Mah Nafshach'?

(d)She is not however, permitted to do so in case the Tzarah gives birth, and, to enable her to marry a Kohen, it will be necessary to announce that the Chalitzah that she performed is invalid. The problem with that is that - whoever was present at the Chalitzah but not at the announcement, and who subsequently sees her married to a Kohen, will think that a Chalutzah is permitted to marry a Kohen.

2)

(a)Even if Rachel also has a mother-in-law overseas - we do not suspect that the latter may have given birth to a son (like we did in the previous case), rendering her subject to Yibum - because (unlike the previous case, where both a son and a daughter will exempt her from Yibum, in this case) it is specifically a son who will obligate her to perform Yibum, and since it is possible that she gave birth either to a girl or to a still-born baby, we go after the majority.

(b)The Tana Kama does indeed suspect that she may have given birth to a son - in the event that she was pregnant when she left to go overseas (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

(c)Rebbi Yehoshua - exempts her from Yibum even then.

(d)The Halachah is - like the Tana Kama.

3)

(a)In a case where each of two women ('Yevamos') who are married to two brothers claims that her husband died, the Mishnah forbids them to remarry - on account of the other one's husband (who renders her subject to Yibum.

(b)And we cannot allow each one to remarry on the basis of her 'Yevamah's testimony - since a woman is not believed to permit her 'Yevamah' to remarry, as we have already learned.

(c)If one of them has witnesses who support her claim (See Tos. Yom-Tov), and the other one doesn't - then the latter is permitted to remarry, whereas the former is not.

(d)If however, there are no witnesses, but one of them has children and the other one doesn't - then the former is permitted to remarry, whereas the latter is not (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

4)

(a)Still in connection with the last case, if there are two remaining brothers - the two 'Yevamos' are permitted to make Yibum with them.

(b)If they did, and the brothers subsequently die (See Tos. Yom-Tov), the Tana Kama nevertheless forbids the 'Yevamos to remarry - because even though the Heter to perform Yibum came about through their own testimony, the Heter to remarry is the result of the 'Yevamah's' testimony, which we don't accept.

(c)Rebbi Elazar disagrees - based on the principle of 'Ho'il' (Migu); since each woman is permitted to her Yavam, she is also permitted to everybody else (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

(d)The Halachah is - like the Tana Kama.

5)

(a)With regard to the testimony that enables a woman to remarry. the witnesses must recognize the man's shape of face' (See Tos. Yom-Tov) - including his nose.

(b)Recognition of any other part of his body will not suffice (See Tos. Yom-Tov) - since there may be other people with similar identification marks.

(c)Testimony based on the dead man's clothing is not acceptable either, even if the identification marks are clear - since the dead man may have borrowed them from somebody else (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

6)

(a)Even if the witnesses testify that they saw the man dying - his wife is not permitted to remarry (as long as he was still alive at the time).

(b)And the same will apply to where they testify that ...

1. ... his limbs were severed (See Tos. Yom-Tov) or that he was hanging from a tree or ...

2. ... being eaten by a wild animal ...

(c)... unless the animal was eating a vital organ without which one cannot live.

7)

(a)The time period (from the time of death until the witnesses see the dead man) that the Tana Kama gives within which they must testify is - three days ...

(b)... since after that, a person's appearance tends to change, in which case their testimony is no longer reliable.

(c)Rebbi Yehudah ben Bava disagrees with the Tana Kama - since circumstances differ from case to case.

(d)When he says that one cannot compare all ...

1. ... people, he means, for example - that a fat man's face will begin to swell quicker than that of a thin man.

2. ... locations - since in a hot location, he will begin to decompose (and change his appearance) quicker than in a cool one, and likewise, he will begin to decompose quicker ...

3. ... in the summer than in the winter.

(e)The Halachah is - like the Tana Kama.

8)

(a)The Tana Kama forbids a woman whose husband fell into water irrespective of whether it is 'Mayim ...

1. ... she'Yesh lahem Sof' - where land is visible in all four directions, or 'Mayim ...

2. ... she'Ein lahem Sof' - where water stretches in all directions as far as the eye can see.

(b)The Chachamim in a Beraisa (See Tos. Yom-Tov) permit a woman to remarry in the case of 'Mayim she'Yesh lahem Sof' - if so much time elapsed that it is impossible for the person to have survived, and he did not emerge.

9)

(a)Rebbi Meir related the episode of a person who actually fell into a huge pit - and from which he emerged alive only three days later.

(b)He is stringent even in a case of 'Mayim she'Yesh lahem Sof' - because he maintains that a person is able to survive in water for long periods without being seen.

(c)Rebbi Yossi disagrees. To prove his point, he cites an incident where a blind man went to Tovel in a cave, his friend followed him to pull him out, and they remained there the length of time that a person could not normally have survived.

(d)The Chachamim there - permitted their wives to remarry.

(e)The Halachah is - like the Chachamim and Rebbi Yossi.

10)

(a)In another episode that occurred in Asya, the Mishnah relates how they lowered a man into the sea (from a boat), and later recovered - only his leg (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

(b)Citing the Chachamim, the Tana concludes that - if they recovered the upper leg she would have been permitted to remarry, but not if it was the lower leg.

(c)Despite the fact that it was a case of 'Mayim she'Ein lahem Sof, had they found the upper leg they would have permitted the woman to remarry - because even assuming he managed to emerge from the sea, a person missing an upper leg is a T'reifah and cannot survive a year (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

11)

(a)The Tana Kama rules that if one heard women saying among themselves that so-and-so died - his wife may remarry.

(b)Rebbi Yehudah permits her to remarry - even if children were heard to declare that they are going to eulogize and to bury so-and-so.

(c)The Gemara amends Rebbi Yehudah's statement to read that what they overheard was the children saying that they had just returned (See Tos. Yom-Tov) from eulogizing and burying so-and-so.

(d)They also need to state - how many Rabbanim and eulogizers were present (some of them by name) and some of the contents of the Hespeidim.

(e)Otherwise - they may have been referring to a pet locust which died, in the way that children do.

12)

(a)The Tana Kama rules that witnesses who, without actually intending to testify, relate that a man died - are believed (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

(b)Rebbi Yehudah ben Bava maintains that if the witness is ...

1. ... a Yisrael - he must intend to testify, whereas if it is ...

2. ... a Nochri - then he is only believed if his testimony is given 'Masi'ach L'fi Tumo' (talking off-the-cuff), but if his intention is to testify, he is not believed (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

13)

(a)Even if the witnesses saw the man die by the light of a candle or by the light of the moon - they are believed.

(b)if one hears about a man's death via a Bas-Kol (a Heavenly voice [See Tos. Yom-Tov DH 'u'Masi'in' & 'Bas-Kol']) - the woman is permitted to remarry.

(c)The Mishnah relates how ...

1. ... they once heard someone announce from the top of a mountain that 'P'loni the son of P'loni from such and such a town has died, and although they found nobody there, the Chachamim permitted his wife to remarry.

2. ... a man from Tzalmon announced that he ('P'loni the son of P'loni') had been bitten by a snake - and that he was about to die (See Tos. Yom-Tov).

(d)The end of the story was - that they went and discovered the dead man, whom they did not recognize, and the Chachamim allowed his wife to remarry.

14)

(a)When Rebbi Akiva went down to Neherda'a - to declare a leap-year (See Meleches Sh'lomoh), he found Rebbi Nechemyah Ish Beis D'li there (See Tos. Yom-Tov) ...

(b)... who asked him - whether it was true that other than Rebbi Yehudah ben Bava, all the Chachamim in Eretz Yisrael maintained that one cannot allow a woman to remarry on the testimony of one witness.

(c)When Rebbi Akiva replied in the affirmative, he instructed him to tell the Chachamim in his name that - it is common knowledge that the countryside was teeming with bands of robbers, but he had a tradition from Raban Gamliel ha'Zaken that it is permitted.

(d)He mentioned the bands of robbers - to explain why he had not come personally to impart the information.

15)

(a)When Rebbi Akiva told Raban Gamliel (of Yavneh [See Tiferes Yisrael]) what Rebbi Nechemyah had said, the latter reacted - by expressing his pleasure at the fact they had found a colleague to reinforce the opinion of Rebbi Yehudah ben Bava.

(b)Just at that moment - he remembered that a group of men had been murdered in the town Tel Arza ...

(c)... and he promptly allowed their wives to remarry on the testimony of single witnesses.

(d)As a result of his actions - the Heter to allow women to remarry on the testimony of one witness became established.

16)

(a)The Mishnah extends the Heter to remarry even to ...

1. ... a witness who heard from another witness.

2. ... an Eved, a woman or a Shifchah (See Tos. Yom-Tov. [The difficulty remains however, as to why Rebbi Akiva switches the order to the regular one).

(b)Rebbi Eliezer and Rebbi Yehoshua - disagree with the entire Heter.

(c)Rebbi Akiva compromises between the two previous opinions - by permitting the actual Heter, but not extending it to a woman, an Eved or a Shifchah.

17)

(a)In response to Rebbi Akiva, the Chachamim told him what happened to a group of Levi'im on their way to Tzo'ar the city of dates. When one of the group fell ill on the way - they left him in an inn belonging to an inn-keeper who was a Nochris.

(b)When, on the way back, they asked her about their friend, she replied that - he had died and that she had buried him ...

(c)... on the basis of which - the Chachamim allowed his wife to remarry.

(d)When the Chachamim extrapolated that if a gentile inn-keeper is believed, how much more so a Jewish woman of status (such as a Kohenes), Rebbi Akiva retorted - that the innkeeper herself ought not to have been believed.

18)

(a)After informing the group of Levi'im that their friend had died and that she had buried him - the innkeeper produced his stick and satchel to illustrate her point.

(b)The Tana sees fir to mention this - as a proof that she made the statement 'Masi'ach L'fi Tumo' (as we learned earlier in the Perek according to Rebbi Yehudah ben Bava).

(c)Of all the opinions that the Mishnah cites, the Halachah is - like the Tana Kama.