View source for Talk:Relative hour

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== Challenge ==

{{ping|Davidbena}} I don't have a problem in general. But when you start stating "The traditional Jewish way of calibrating the time of day is to reckon the "first hour" of the day with the rise of dawn (Hebrew: עמוד השחר‎)...", there's a problem. In particular, as you well know, Magen Avraham holds the way you have stated, but the Vilna Gaon holds that we reckon the variable hours from sunrise to sunset. So you need to work those issues into the article. [[User:StevenJ81|StevenJ81]] ([[User talk:StevenJ81|talk]]) 15:43, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
:I am aware of the other opinions with respect to Jewish tradition, but I have written the one used by the vast majority of Jews here in Israel. I have thought about adding another section that brings down some of the other conflicting views, and which are less known. Be well.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 15:54, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
::By the way, it is not just the Vilna Gaon who thinks a day starts from sunrise, but also Rabbi Hai Gaon. However, their words have been rejected by Israel's latter exponents of Jewish law.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 15:56, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
:::[[User:StevenJ81|Steven]], I have since changed the wording of the paragraph. Instead of "traditional Jewish way," I wrote "conventional Jewish way."[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 16:02, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
::::When you say "...have been rejected by Israel's latter exponents of Jewish law", do you mean עם ישראל or ארץ ישראל? I do not think the majority of people in חו"ל necessarily hold by the MA. If anything, I think many people hold לחומרא: by MA (etc.) in the morning, by GR"A (etc.) in the afternoon. I think that the GR"A's opinion is certainly as widely ''known'' as the one you cite, regardless of whether the majority hold the other way. [[User:StevenJ81|StevenJ81]] ([[User talk:StevenJ81|talk]]) 18:01, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
:::::I mean worldwide. Few hold that a day begins at sunrise, without taking into account Rambam's views and the Mechaber's view of a day starting at dawn. Of course, I'm speaking about לדינא, rather than לחומרא, since there are actually many strictures that communities take upon themselves, especially with respect to the Shabbat. Nevertheless, there are many divergent opinions about this subject, but the primary sources actually come from the [[Jerusalem Talmud]] (''Berakhot'' 1:1), and from two places in the [[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Shabbat'' 34b-35a, and ''Pesahim'' 94a). Rabbi [[Ovadiah Yosef]], in his seminal works ''Halikhot 'Olam'' (vol. 3, p. 140) and ''Hazon Ovadiah'' (vol. 1, pp. 264-ff.) has written explicitly that we reject the opinion of ''Pesahim'' 94a in favor of ''Shabbat'' 34b-35a. As for the opinion of Magen Avraham and others, I will insert their opinions in either a footnote or a new section.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 19:10, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
:::::[[User:StevenJ81|Steven]], what sort of "chumrot" (strictures) practised by American Jewry would you like to see me mention in this article? Please be specific.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 19:20, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
:::::I wish to call your attention to this [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Relative_hour_(Jewish_law)&diff=782070307&oldid=782066755 edit]. If you can find the source for the GR"A, I'd be much obliged.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 19:46, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
::::::I don't especially have any "chumrot" I need to mention, and I'm no big fan of them myself. But I would make two points:
::::::*At least over here, the opinion you quote in the name of "most exponents of Jewish law" is invariably ascribed to the [[Avraham Gombiner|Magen Avraham]], while the other opinion is quoted in the name of the GR"A, Rav Hai Gaon, or the Ba'al HaTanya. It seems to me that if you really think that "most exponents of Jewish law" say this, you need a source to support that. Otherwise, simply quote it in the name of the MA, and most people will accept it as [[WP:BLUE]].
::::::*To clarify what I said before, there are people who follow the Magen Avraham in the morning, while others follow the GR"A. But I don't personally know anyone who follows the Magen Avraham in the afternoon ''lechatchila''. In both cases, people are following the earlier time "just in case". [[User:StevenJ81|StevenJ81]] ([[User talk:StevenJ81|talk]]) 21:02, 24 May 2017 (UTC)
::::::::Steven, you may wish to see this [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Relative_hour_(Jewish_law)&diff=782129662&oldid=782070307 edit], where I have added a cross-reference after the place that I wrote "most exponents of Jewish law", in compliance with your request.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 02:49, 25 May 2017 (UTC)
:::::::::Thank you. I think you're in good shape now. (It's really interesting that the Ashkenazi community in Israel does not follow the GR"A, since it does in so many other matters.) I'm going to mark the article as "B-Class" now. [[User:StevenJ81|StevenJ81]] ([[User talk:StevenJ81|talk]]) 13:34, 25 May 2017 (UTC)

== Kiryat Shema vs. Kriyat Shema ==

[[User:StevenJ81]], as for your question, "Why would ''Kiryat'' be correct?", there are some communities in Israel (namely, the [[Yemenite Jews]]), who say ''Kiryat Shema'' (<big>קִרְיַת שְׁמַע</big>) instead of ''Kriyat Shema'' (<big>קְרִיַּת שמע</big>), and is merely an adaptation of the tongue. Ordinarily, however, in regular usage of, let's say, "reading a book, etc.", everyone does make use of the word "kriyah" (verb: "reading"). You may wish to see the following sources for the variant ''Kiryat Shema'': See Yosef Amar Halevi, ''Talmud Bavli Menuqad'', vol. 1, Jerusalem 1980, s.v. ''Berakhoth'' 21a (in glosses), et al.; [[Shelomo Morag]], ''The Traditions of Hebrew and Aramaic of the Jews of Yemen'' (ed. Yosef Tobi), in Article entitled: ''The Samaritan and Yemenite Traditions of Hebrew: Points of Contact'', Tel-Aviv 2001, p. 222, § 3.4 {{ISBN|965-7247-00-4}}. I hope this was helpful. If you feel it is relevant to restore the original edit, I'll leave it to your discretion, as the former edit is the more ancient way of pronunciation, whereas the spelling/pronunciation that you suggest is the modern way of saying it (besides the Yemenites who still adhere to the old practice). Be well.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 23:37, 25 July 2018 (UTC)

== Talmudic sources (English and Hebrew original) ==

In the [[Jerusalem Talmud]] (''Berakhot ''1:1), we read the following account:

"Said Rabbi Hanina: From ''ayelet hashachar'' (i.e. appearance of two beams of light resembling columns rising up from the eastern sky at night) until the East [sky] begins to show light, a man is able to walk four [[Biblical mile|[biblical] miles]] From the moment the East [sky] begins to show light until the [actual] sunrise [over the horizon], he is able to proceed another four [biblical] miles.<ref>"The moment the East sky begins to show light" is known in rabbinic parlance as ''ʿalot hashachar'' (= "the rise of dawn" or the "break of dawn"). From the rise of dawn until the time it takes for the sun to break-out over the horizon (i.e. sunrise) is traditionally estimated at 72 minutes, meaning, a typical man walks a biblical mile in 18 minutes.</ref> Whence do we know that from [the time] the East [sky] begins to show light until the [actual] sunrise [over the horizon] one is able to traverse four [biblical] miles?  As it is written: 'As the morning dawned, [the angels urged Lot],' etc. <small>(Gen. 19:15)</small>. Moreover, it is written [elsewhere]: 'The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to [[Zoara|Zoar]]' <small>(Gen. 19:23)</small>. Now from [[Sodom and Gomorrah|Sodom]] to Zoar there are four [biblical] miles. [Actually], there were more!<ref>The [[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Pesahim ''93b) explains this passage, saying that there were actually 5 biblical miles from Zoar to Sodom</ref> Said Rabbi Ze'ira: The angel was making the way shorter for them."

'''Original Hebrew:'''
{{Script/Hebrew|אמר ר' חנינא מאיילת השחר עד שיאור המזרח אדם מהלך ארבעת מילין. משיאור המזרח עד שתנץ החמה ארבעת מיל. ומניין משיאור המזרח עד שתנץ החמה ארבעת מיל? דכתיב וכמו השחר עלה וגו'. וכתיב השמש יצא על הארץ ולוט בא צוערה. ומן סדום לצוער ארבעת מיל. ומן סדום לצוער ארבעת מיל. יותר הוון. אמר ר' זעירא המלאך היה מקדר לפניהן הדרך}}

Commentary of R. [[Solomon Sirilio]]:

"[Where it says]: 'from ''ayelet hashachar'',' the sense is explained in what follows, meaning to say, two horn-like beams [of light], etc. [Where it says]: 'the East [sky] begins to show light,' the sense is to the break of dawn ({{langx|he|עלה עמוד השחר}}). [Where it says]: 'As it is written: As the morning dawned, [the angels urged Lot],' the sense [here] is that the darkness of the night had gone away, and the East [sky] began to show brightness. [Where it says]:  'The sun had risen on the earth,' the sense [here] is that the sun broke-out [over the horizon] and shone upon the tops of the mountains. Now Lot used to dwell in the city of Sodom, as it is written in the scripture <small>(Gen. 19:1)</small>. [Where it says]: 'Actually, there were more,' it is as we are accustomed to say in the chapter, ''mī she-haya ṭamei'' ([[Babylonian Talmud|BT]], ''Pesahim ''93b), 'Said Hanina: As for myself, I have seen that place and it was five [biblical] miles.' [Where it says]: 'was making the way shorter for them,' it is similar to saying {{Script/Hebrew|מגדר}}, shortening and cutting-away the path before them, as it is written: 'then the angels hastened Lot,' meaning, they urged him along, but any other man does not walk [such great distance at a short time], but only four [biblical] miles." (END QUOTE)

The Jerusalem Talmud (ibid.) goes on to say:

"Whence do we know that from ''ayelet hashachar'' until the East [sky] begins to show light a man is able to traverse four [biblical] miles? It is because the Hebrew word {{Script/Hebrew|כמו}}, meaning "as", and said [here] twice, refers to a thing similar to another analogous situation.<ref>Meaning, just as from the break of dawn until sunrise a man is able to traverse four biblical miles (a time of 72 minutes), so, too, from the moment the two beams of light appear in the eastern sky in the late hours of the night until the break of dawn a man is able to traverse four biblical miles (a time of 72 minutes).</ref> Said Rabbi Yose, the son of Rabbi Bun, this so-called ''ayelet hashachar'', he that says that it is [the planet] Venus, he is mistaken. There are times when it comes out before [these two beams of light appear in the eastern sky], and there are times when it comes out later. So, then, what shall we say now? It is rather two horn-like beams of light that go up from the East and illuminate."

'''Original Hebrew:'''
{{Script/Hebrew| ומניין מאיילת השחר עד שיאור המזרח ארבעת מיל. כמו וכמו מילה מדמיא לחברתה. אמר ר' יוסי בר' בון הדא איילתא דשחרא מאן דאמר כוכבתא היא טעיא. זימנין דהיא מקדמא וזימנין דהיא מאחרא. מאי כדון. כמין תרין דוקרנין דנהור דסלקין מן מדינחא ומנהרין}}
--------------
 
'''NOTE:''' According to [[Mishnah]] (''Berakhot'' 1:1), the night ends with the rise of dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|עלות עמוד השחר}}), at which time, the time associated with daylight ushers in. [[Rashi]] alludes to the time of day beginning at dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|עמוד השחר}}).<ref>[[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Berakhot'' 59b, Rashi s.v. {{Script/Hebrew|שבתאי}}).</ref> [[Maimonides]] defines what is meant by ''ʿamud ha-shaḥar'' ({{langx|he|עמוד השחר}}) in Mishnah ''Berakhot'' 1:1, saying: "It is a column of light that breaks-out in the morning, and which is the light that is seen in the East corner [of the sky] before sunrise, about an hour and a fifth [of an hour]  (i.e. an hour and 12 minutes) of those standard hours."<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides |first= |author-link=Maimonides |title=[[Mishnah]], with Maimonides' Commentary |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |translator=[[Yosef Qafih]] |volume=1 |edition= |date=1963|location=Jerusalem |page=32 (Ber. 1:1)|language=he |oclc=233308346 }}</ref>  
{{reflist-talk}}[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 16:18, 29 July 2022 (UTC)

== Duration of dusk (Heb. "bayn ha-shemashot") and the start of nightfall (Shab. 34b)==

The [[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Shabbat ''34b–35a) discusses the duration of dusk, or what is also known as twilight ({{langx|he|בין השמשות}}), = ''bayn ha-shemashot'', in order to determine when the first hour of the night (darkness = {{Script/Hebrew|חשכה}}) actually begins. This discussion was prompted by the Mishnah (''Shabbat'' 2:7), which says: "Three things must a man say within his house when '''darkness''' is beginning to fall on the eve of Sabbath: 'Have ye tithed?' 'Have ye prepared the ''Erub''?' and, 'Light the candle.' If it is in doubt whether '''darkness''' [has already fallen] or that there is not yet '''darkness''', they may not set apart [[Tithes in Judaism|Tithes]] from what is known to be untithed, neither immerse utensils, nor light the candles, etc."

Babylonian Talmud (''Shabbat ''34b–35a)

"How long is the period of dusk (i.e. the intermediate time between day and night)? From sunset as long as the face of the East has a reddish glow,<ref>This is explained by [[Rabbeinu Chananel]] in BT ''Shabbat'' 34b as meaning when the sun sets in the West and casts its reddish glow towards the eastern sky.</ref> when the lower [horizon] is silvery (i.e. dark, no longer red) but not the upper, it is dusk (i.e. not yet nightfall). When the upper [horizon] is silvery and is the same as the lower [horizon], it is night. Such is the opinion of [[Rabbi Yehudah]]. Rabbi Nehemiah said: For as long as it takes a man to walk half a [[biblical mile]] from sunset. [[Rabbi Jose]] said: Dusk is as the twinkling of an eye, one entering and the other departing, and it is impossible to determine it. [...]  They have all followed their own opinions. For it was stated: How long is the period of dusk? [[Rabbah bar Nahmani|Rabbah]] said in the name of [[Judah bar Ezekiel|Rab Yehudah]] who, in turn, said in [[Samuel of Nehardea|Shemuel]]'s name: Three parts of a biblical mile. What is meant by, 'three parts of a biblical mile'? Shall we say, three half biblical miles? Then let him say, 'A biblical mile and a half'! While if it is three thirds of a biblical mile, let him say 'One biblical mile'! Hence, it must mean three quarters of a biblical mile (i.e. the time that it takes for a person to traverse in 12 minutes). While [[Rav Yosef bar Hiyya|Rab Yosef]] said in the name [[Rav Yehudah|Rab Yehudah]] who, in turn, said in [[Abba Arikha|Rab]]'s name: Two parts of a biblical mile. What is 'two parts of a biblical mile'? Shall we say, two halves? [If so], let him say, 'One biblical mile'! while if it means two quarters of a biblical mile, let him say, 'Half a biblical mile'! Hence, it must mean two-thirds of a biblical mile. What is the difference between them? One half of a sixth (i.e. Rabbah's determination of the period of dusk is one twelfth of a biblical mile longer than that of Rab Yosef)." (END QUOTE)

'''NOTE:''' The fixation of the start of nightfall at the conclusion of dusk is used in conjunction with the fixation for the rise of dawn (see previous section) to determine the length of the night, although at all times that length of time is divided into 12 equal hours. In the summer months when the days are long and the nights are short, one hour of the day may be as long as 80 minutes.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Customs of the Land of Israel (מנהגי ארץ-ישראל)|last=Gelis |first=Jacob |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |location=Jerusalem |date=1968 |page=102 (§ 18, note 18) |language=he |oclc=873519965}}</ref>

Babylonian Talmud (''Shabbat'' 35a)

"[[Rabbah bar bar Hana|Rabbah, the son of Bar Hannah]], has said in [[Rabbi Yochanan]]'s name: The ''halachah'' is as [[Rabbi Yehudah]] in respect to the Sabbath (i.e. one must take into account 13.5 minutes after sunset for night to usher-in on the start of the Sabbath),<ref>As a stringent measure, meaning the period of dusk lasts 13.5 minutes after sunset, and if any Jewish man or woman does any labor forbidden to do on the Sabbath day during these 13.5 minutes of dusk, he must bring a Guilt offering (''asham telui'') to the Temple for his atonement. ([[Rashi]] on BT ''Shabbat'' 35a, s.v. {{Script/Hebrew|בשלמא הלכה כר' יהודה}}).</ref> and the ''halachah'' is as [[Rabbi Jose]] in respect to ''[[Terumah (offering)|terumah]]'' (i.e. 12 minutes after sunset is all that is needed when a priest is permitted to eat of his ''terumah'')." (END QUOTE)

'''It is to be noted here''' also that [[Rabbeinu Asher]] writes on this episode, stating the following: "They (i.e. Rabbah and Rab Yosef) are divided over the [accurate] transmission of this oral teaching, but both bring down the same teaching in the name of Rab Yehudah. Rather, [with one] we are to apply the stringent ruling. With respect to the Sabbath, we practise in accordance with [[Rabbah bar Nahmani|Rabbah]]'s [teaching], [namely], that from sunset [for the entire duration of 13.5 minutes] (which is dusk) we do not light the [Sabbath] candle. But with respect to an individual who took upon himself a fast [on a certain day], its period of dusk is permitted, while dusk is not considered [dusk] until the lower [horizon] becomes silvery [in color], in accordance with Rab Yosef. [...] The ''halachah'' is as [[Rabbi Jose]] in respect to ''terumah'', meaning, when the priests [of Aaron's lineage] are permitted to eat their ''terumah'' (i.e. 12 minutes after sunset)."<ref>Rabbi [[Isaac Alfasi]] (Rif) adds in his ''Halakhot'' that the priests are not permitted to eat of their ''terumah'' until the entire doubtful time of dusk (''bayn ha-shemashot'') has been completed.</ref> (END QUOTE)  
{{reflist-talk}} --- [[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 11:33, 31 July 2022 (UTC)

== A divergent opinion regarding the time period of "bayn ha-shemashot" (Pes. 94a) ==

There is a divergent opinion in the [[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Pesahim ''94a), an opinion followed by [[Rabbeinu Tam]],<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Rabbeinu Tam |first= |author-link=Rabbeinu Tam |title=Sefer Ha-yashar |publisher=|date=1811 |location=Vienna|pages=[https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=40937&st=&pgnum=41&hilite= 19b] (section 181) |language=he|url=https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=40937&pgnum=1 }}</ref> and whence it is learned that the duration of the time of dusk ({{langx|he|בין השמשות}}), = ''bayn ha-shemashot'', is equivalent to the time it takes for a man to walk 3{{frac|1|4}} [[biblical mile]]s, or what is 58.5 minutes. As noted, this teaching contradicts that in BT ''Shabbat ''34a–35a (see previous section), besides being rejected by the ''geonim'' ([[Sherira Gaon]] and [[Hai Gaon]]),<ref>[[Moses Alashkar]], ''Responsa'' (''responsum'' # 96), Sabbionetta, 1553</ref><ref name="Gelis1968">{{cite book|title=The Customs of the Land of Israel (מנהגי ארץ-ישראל)|last=Gelis |first=Jacob |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |location=Jerusalem |date=1968 |pages=99-100 (§ 12) |language=he |oclc=873519965}}</ref> by [[Isaac Alfasi]],<ref name="Gelis1968"/><ref name="ShabbataiHaKohen"/> by [[Maimonides]],<ref>[[Maimonides]], ''[[Mishneh Torah]]'' (''Hil. Shabbat'' 5:4). Even so, Maimonides seems to conflate the teaching in BT ''Shabbat'' 34b–35a with the teaching in ''Pesahim'' 94a, reckoning the conclusion of ''bayn ha-shemashot'' (i.e. the time it takes to walk {{frac|3|4}} of a biblical mile) with the appearance of three stars in the night sky and the beginning of nightfall (''Kesef Mishneh'' on Mishneh Torah, ''Shabbat'' 5:4). Moreover, the first star that appears in the night sky is a sign that it is still day, and is not to be considered a doubtful case. <br>The difference between Maimonides' teaching and Rabbeinu Tam's teaching is that, for Maimonides, the period of dusk begins immediately with the full setting of the sun (i.e. when the sun can no longer be seen over the horizon), whereas, for Rabbeinu Tam, the period of dusk begins when the sun is beginning to set and can still be seen over the horizon.</ref><ref name="Gelis1968"/><ref name="ShabbataiHaKohen">[[Shabbatai HaKohen]], Commentary ''Siftei Cohen'' on the Shulhan Arukh (''Yoreh De'ah'' 266:9, small item 11)</ref> by his son, [[Abraham ben Moses Maimon]],<ref name="Gelis1968"/> by [[Nissim Gaon]],<ref name="Gelis1968"/> by [[Yaakov de Castro]],<ref>Yaakov de Castro, ''Erekh Lehem'' (Orach Chaim, section 260:2), who writes: "Rabbi [[Moses Alashkar]], of blessed memory, [in] section 90, has propounded that the time-period of dusk ({{Script/Hebrew|בין השמשות}}) is from the moment the entire disc of the sun has set until the appearance of three middle-sized stars, and in this manner it is fitting to act."</ref><ref name="Gelis1968"/> by [[Isaac of Corbeil]] (''Sefer Mitzvot Ḳatan''), by [[David ibn Zimra|Rabbi David ibn Zimra]] (Radbaz),<ref>{{cite book |last=Ibn Abi-Zimra |first=David |author-link=David ben Solomon ibn Abi Zimra |title=The Responsa of the Radbaz|editor=Aharon Wolden |volume=2 |date=1882 |location=Warsaw|language=he |oclc=233235313}}, s.v. part IV, ''responsum'' # 1353 (reprinted in Israel, n.d.)</ref> and by [[Chaim Yosef David Azulai]] (Chida).<ref name="Gelis1968"/><ref>Chaim Yosef David Azulai, ''Sefer Birkei Yosef''</ref> Rabbeinu Tam's ruling concerning the period of dusk is, however, mentioned and accepted by well-over forty exponents of Jewish law, among whom being [[Abraham ibn Daud]] (Ravad I), [[Nachmanides]] (Ramban),<ref>Moshe b. Nahman (Nachmanides), [https://www.hebrewbooks.org/41324 ''Sefer Torat ha-adam''], Chapter ''Avelut yeshanah'', pp. [https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=41324&st=&pgnum=133&hilite= 130]–[https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=41324&st=&pgnum=134&hilite= 131], Yitzhak Goldman: Warsaw 1876</ref> [[Shlomo ibn Aderet]] (Rashba),<ref>Commentary on Babylonian Talmud (''Berakhot'', first chapter). According to Radbaz's Questions & Responsa, Rabbi Shlomo ibn Aderet had only entertained some doubts about the teaching in ''Pesahim'' 94a, although he held as the principal view that teaching in ''Shabbat'' 34b. See {{cite book |last=Ibn Abi-Zimra |first=David |author-link=David ben Solomon ibn Abi Zimra |title=The Responsa of the Radbaz|editor=Aharon Wolden |volume=2 |date=1882 |location=Warsaw|language=he |oclc=233235313}}, s.v. part IV, ''responsum'' # 1353 (reprinted in Israel, n.d.)</ref> [[Aharon HaLevi]],<ref>Aharon Halevi, ''[[Sefer ha-Chinuch]]'', § 420. The apparent connection with the teaching in ''Pesahim'' 94a stems from the fact that R. Aharon Halevi requires reciting ''[[Qiryat Shema]]'' in the evening from the moment the stars appear in the night sky and which is thought to be a time later than 13.5 minutes after sunset.</ref> [[Asher ben Jehiel]] (Rosh / Rabbeinu Asher),<ref>Babylonian Talmud (''Taanit'', first chapter). The author of [[Siftei Cohen]] alleges that Rabbeinu Asher actually held the view opposite that of Rabbeinu Tam, and that the ''halachah'' was as it is described in BT ''Shabbat'' 34b–35a. See [[Shabbatai HaKohen]], Commentary ''Siftei Cohen'' on the Shulhan Arukh (''Yoreh De'ah'' 266:9, small item 11)</ref> [[Nissim of Gerona]] (RaN),<ref>Nissim of Gerona's commentary on [[Babylonian Talmud|BT]] ''Shabbat'' 35a, and on BT ''Yoma'' 81b</ref> [[Yom Tov of Seville]] (Ritva), [[Mordechai ben Hillel]] (the Mordechai), [[Moses ben Jacob of Coucy]] (SMaG), [[Eleazar of Worms]] (Rokeach), [[Menachem Meiri]] (Meiri),<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Meiri |first= |author-link=Menachem Meiri |title=Beit HaBechirah (Chiddushei ha-Meiri)|volume=1 |publisher=Hamaor Institute|date=2006 |editor=Daniel Bitton |location=Jerusalem|page=67 (''Shabbat'' 34b) |language=he|oclc=181631040}}. Meiri brings down both teachings (''Shab.'' 34b and ''Pes.'' 94a): "''Bayn ha-shemashot'' is a doubtful time of day, and a doubtful time of night. Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Yose were divided over it, seeing that the period of dusk for Rabbi Yehudah begins when the sun sets [over the horizon], [meaning] the end of its setting, that is to say, that it has completely gone away, and whenever the entire face of the East [sky] is reddish [in color] and it has spread below towards the West, etc. [...] As for what they have said in ''Pesahim'' (94a), [that dusk is] from the moment of sunset until the appearance of the stars, [being comparable to a man who traverses] four biblical miles, this means from the start of its setting, when it begins to sink down under but can still be seen little by little until it eventually vanishes entirely, etc." (End Quote). Meiri then goes on to write that when the sun begins to set over the horizon on Sabbath eve, and while it can still be seen (before it has completely vanished from sight), this short time signifies that man must already cease from his labors on Friday at some point during this time, as this time is considered what is added onto the Sabbath day from the regular or profane week-day (Heb. ''tosefet''), in accordance with the teaching that Jews, at the approach of the Sabbath, are to add from the profane day onto the holy day.</ref> [[Rabbenu Yerucham]], as well as by Rabbi [[Joseph Karo|Yosef Karo]] (Maran) himself (Shulhan Arukh, ''Orach Chaim'' § 261:2), who posits in accordance with their view, even in such cases where one is to act leniently.<ref name="OvadiaYosef">{{cite book |last=Yosef |first=Ovadia |author-link=Ovadia Yosef|title=Halikhot ʻOlam|publisher=Mekhon "Meʼor Yiśraʼel"|location=Jerusalem|year=2002 |page=59 |volume=5 |language=he |oclc=39937409}}</ref> It is to be noted here, however, that Rabbi Yosef Karo also rules in accordance with the teaching of Rabbi Yehudah in BT ''Shabbat'' 34b–35a.<ref>Yosef Karo, Shulhan Arukh (''Yoreh De'ah'' 266:9)</ref> (In practice, however, the vast majority of [[Sephardi Jews|Sephardic]] Jewish communities will follow the instructions given in BT ''Shabbat ''34b for the time known as ''bayn ha-shemashot'').<ref>{{cite book |last=Yosef |first=Ovadia |author-link=Ovadia Yosef|title=Halikhot ʻOlam|publisher=Mekhon "Meʼor Yiśraʼel"|location=Jerusalem|year=2002 |page=140 |volume=3 |language=he |oclc=39937409}}</ref><ref name="OvadiaYosef"/><ref>{{cite book|title=The Customs of the Land of Israel (מנהגי ארץ-ישראל)|last=Gelis |first=Jacob |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |location=Jerusalem |date=1968 |page=98 (§ 12) |language=he |oclc=873519965}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Yosef |first=Ovadia |author-link=Ovadia Yosef|title=Ḥazon ʻOvadyah|publisher=Mekhon "Meʼor Yiśraʼel"|location=Jerusalem|year=2003 |pages=264-ff. |volume=1 |language=he |oclc=}}</ref>

Babylonian Talmud (''Pesahim ''94a)

"Said [[Rabbah bar bar Hana|Rabbah, the son of Bar Hannah]]: [[Rabbi Yohanan]] said: 'How far does an average man walk in a day? Ten ''[[Parasang|parasangs]]''. From the break of dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|מעלות השחר}}) to sunrise [a man walks] five [[biblical mile]]s; from sunset until the appearance of the [night] stars, [a man walks] five biblical miles'." (END QUOTE)

It is to be noted here that in the same Talmudic passage (''Pes''. 94a), another opinion puts these distances at four biblical miles, instead of at five biblical miles.

{{reflist-talk}} --- [[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 23:39, 31 July 2022 (UTC)

== Rabbis who hold the view that the day begins with sunrise, rather than from the "rise of dawn" ==

In Judaism, we do find that there are some rabbis who hold the view that the hours of the day are measured from Sunrise ({{Script/Hebrew|נץ החמה}}) to the appearance of the first three medium-size stars at night, rather than from the "rise of dawn" ({{Script/Hebrew|עלות השחר}}) to the appearance of the stars. A proponent of this view is [[Ahai of Shabha]] in his ''[[Sheiltot]]'' (composed between the years 750 CE and 760 CE). However, Ahai of Shabha makes a distinction: It is inferred from his words that in respect to prayer ({{langx|he|תפלה}}) the "rise of dawn" marks the beginning of the day, but in respect to the burning of leaven on the eve of Passover ({{langx|he|בעור חמץ}}), the Sunrise marks the beginning of the day. (Note: This entire teaching is derived from the Babylonian Talmud, ''Pesahim ''12b).

'''Source '''(''Sheiltot'', column 122, section 74):<ref>{{cite book|title=Sheiltot of Rab Aḥai Gaon |last=Ahai of Shabha |first= |author-link=Ahai of Shabha |publisher=Makor Ltd. |page=31a (Pesach)|location=Jerusalem |date=1971 |oclc=762430858}}, a facsimile, printed from the first Venice edition (MS. 1546)</ref>

"The house of Israel are required to burn leaven from the fourteenth day of [the lunar month] Nisan, as it says: 'Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses' <small>(Exo. 12:15)</small>. What is meant by saying 'the first day'? If we should say the first day of the feast, behold it is written, 'For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses' <small>(Exo. 12:19)</small>. Rather, [the intent here is to] the first day before the actual feast, and that being on the fourteenth day [of the lunar month Nisan], as it is written: 'In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening' <small>(Exo. 12:18)</small>. [If that's the case], then why not say [burn the leaven] in the evening, from the moment the fourteenth day [of the month] ushers in? That is because it is written 'day'. So why not say [burn the leaven] in the morning? That is because the Hebrew word {{Script/Hebrew|אך}} = lit. "only" <small>(Exo. 12:15)</small> comes to intimate a division of the day [between two categories as to the laws concerning that day].<ref>Meaning, the prohibition of leaven begins from the 6th hour of the day, on the 14th day of the Hebrew calendar month of Nisan, as opposed to the early morning hours.</ref> He should have made it obligatory [to remove leaven] from the seventh hour [of the day], but our rabbis have put into effect [a preventive measure] by distancing the person [from transgressing the command], making it imperative upon him to burn [his leaven] at the start of the sixth hour so that he will not [inadvertently] touch a prohibitive command in the Torah, just as it is recited [in the Mishnah]: 'Rabbi Meir says they eat [leavened bread] all throughout the fifth hour [of the day], and they burn [their leaven] at the start of the sixth hour'. What is his reason? It is because a person does not confuse and, thereby, exchange the fifth hour [of the day] with the seventh hour [of the day], seeing that in the fifth hour the sun is in the East, but in the seventh hour the sun is in the West. At the sixth hour it (i.e. the sun) is positioned somewhat overhead ({{Script/Hebrew|בקרניתא}})."<ref>Rashi in ''Pesahim'' 12b, s.v. {{Script/Hebrew|בי קרנתא קאי}} explains this expression as meaning, "In the middle of the sky, about ready to incline towards the East, and about ready to incline towards the West, but there is no one who is able to precisely pin-point its location [as far as its cardinal direction is concerned]. For this reason it made use of the expression {{Script/Hebrew|בי ברנתא}} = 'somewhat overhead', rather than use {{Script/Hebrew|בי מיצעי}} = 'directly overhead' / 'in the middle,' since [the afternoon sun] is positioned in the South sky, etc." (End Quote)</ref><ref>[[Maimonides]] also explains what is meant by {{Script/Hebrew|בי קרנאתה}} (''Pesahim'' 12b). See {{cite book |last=Maimonides|author-link=Maimonides |title=R. Moses b. Maimon Responsa|editor=Jehoshua Blau |volume=1 |edition=2 |date=1989 |publisher=Meḳitse nirdamim / Rubin Mass Ltd.|place=Jerusalem |page=251 (''responsum'' no. 134) |language=he |oclc=78411726}} (in the ''Pe'er Dor'' edition, the ''responsum'' appears as no. 44). There, he writes that all throughout the year, whether in summer or in winter, the sun is positioned almost directly overhead during the 6th hour of the day, inclining a little towards the south for people who inhabit the northern hemisphere (north of the Equator). Maimonides wrote: "If you turn your face exactly towards the south side, while the east is toward your left and the west is toward your right, then if you were to look at the sun at the start of the day [while it is lying] low and [hovering] close to the earth, as much as can be seen by the naked eye, whenever an hour of the day has passed, the sun rises higher [in the sky] above the earth, and it is positioned towards your left side '''until the end of the sixth-hour''' [of the day], and then you will see the sun opposite your face, precisely opposite your eyes. This is what they call ''be qarnatha'' (''Pesahim'' 12b) ({{Script/Hebrew|בי קרנאתא}}). And when the seventh hour [of the day] has concluded, you will see the sun descending towards your right side, and it will continue to lower itself and go down until it sets. Now such is the case every day, in summer and in winter" (End Quote). Maimonides goes on to mention that in winter (i.e. lunar month Tevet) the sun appears to be distanced further away in the southern sky, whereas in summer it appears to be closer.</ref> (END QUOTE)

For the sun to be at its [[zenith]] in the 6th hour of the day would imply, by the proponents of this theory, that the 1st hour of the day be at sunrise. The [[Vilna Gaon]] speaks about this in depth.<ref>''Bi'urei ha-Gra'' ("Elucidations of the Gra") §459:2</ref> Where sunrise is used in ''[[Halakha|halacha]]'' to mark the beginning of the day:

* When burning leaven ({{Script/Hebrew|בעור חמץ}}) on the eve of Passover, it was traditionally done beginning from the 5th hour of the day, counting from sunrise (as explained above). 

* When calculating the hours of the day in [[Jewish astrology|astrological forecasts]], it was commonly practised to reckon the day as beginning with sunrise, rather than from the "rise of dawn."<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Donnolo |author-first=Sabbatai|authorlink=Shabbethai Donnolo|title=Sefer Ḥakhmoni |editor=David Castelli |publisher=Le Monnier |location=Firenze (Florence)|year=1881|pages=71-72|language=he |oclc=162802215 |url=https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=32416}}</ref> Not all, however, agree with this opinion, as [[Rashi]] thinks that the break of dawn is the beginning of the hours of the day in astrological calculations.<ref>[[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Berakhot'' 59b, Rashi s.v. {{Script/Hebrew|שבתאי}}).</ref>

* Whenever the [[Sages of Israel]] mentioned the hours of the day in respect to the time of reciting the [[Shema Yisrael|''Shema'' verses]] in the morning, they, too, did so by enumerating the hours of the day, <ins>starting from '''sunrise'''</ins> (rather than from the break of dawn).<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Rabbeinu Chananel |author-first=|author-link=Chananel ben Chushiel |editor=David Metsger |title=Rabbeinu Ḥananel bar Ḥushiʼel's Commentary on the Talmud (''Berakhot'')|publisher=Mekhon "Lev Sameach"|volume= |location=Jerusalem|year=1990|page=53 (''Berakhot'' 26a)|language=he|oclc=741094222}}, who wrote that the time of morning prayer was learnt from the time of offering the daily whole-burnt offerings ({{Script/Hebrew|תמידין}}) in the morning. According to Rabbeinu Chananel (''ibid''.), "He (i.e. Rabbi Yehudah) held the opinion that the validation of the whole burnt-offering [of the morning] is until the fourth hour of the day, starting from sunrise until it has been offered" (End Quote). As is the morning, daily burn-offering, so is the morning prayer and the recital of the ''Shema'' verses.</ref> This was done perhaps to make it easier for laymen and commoners to recognize the time when they were required to recite the ''Shema'' as a first resort, namely, from sunrise until the start of the 4th hour of the day,<ref>[[Babylonian Talmud]], ''Megillah'' 20a, "They do not read the Scroll of Esther, neither do they circumcise, nor do they immerse in a ritual bath ... until the sun has risen, but if any of them were done from the break of dawn, it is still valid" (End Quote). [[Rashi]], s.v. {{Script/Hebrew|עד הנץ החמה}}, "['Until the sun has risen'], when the doubtful condition of night has gone away"); ''ibid''., Rashi, s.v. {{Script/Hebrew|וכולן שעשו כו'}}, "['But if any of them were done from the break of dawn, it is still valid']. This is because from the break of dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|מעלות השחר}}) it is [considered] day, but since not all people are expert concerning it (i.e. that time of dawn), they must wait until sunrise." (End Quote)</ref><ref>[[Joseph Karo]],''[[Shulhan Arukh]]'' (''Orach Chaim'' 58:6); {{cite book |last=Maimonides |first= |author-link=Maimonides |title=[[Mishnah]], with Maimonides' Commentary |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |translator=[[Yosef Qafih]] |volume=1 |edition= |date=1963|location=Jerusalem |pages=33-34 (''Berakhot'' 1:5)|language=he |oclc=233308346 }}</ref> although the same Sages agree that if he were to recite the ''Shema'' before sunrise, after the break of dawn, he has still performed his religious duty, as the day officially begins from the break of dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|מעלות השחר}}), some 72 minutes before sunrise.<ref>{{cite book |last=Abraham of Narbonne|first= |author-link=Abraham of Narbonne|title=Sefer ha-Eškol |publisher=H. Meyer |volume=1 |edition= |date=1867|location=Halberstadt |page=[https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=9063&st=&pgnum=32&hilite= 10] (Hil. ''Tefillah ve-Ḳiryat Shema'') |language=he |oclc=774954727}}, who wrote: "At sunrise, the principal part of the day begins, and [as a first resort] it is one's duty to pray when the sun comes out, as it says: 'They shall fear you while the sun endures' (Psalm 72:5). [...] Even though the break of dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|עמוד השחר}}) is considered day for all things, just as we say in chapter 2 of ''Megillah'' [20a], as a first resort, the principal part of day is reckoned from the moment the rays of the sun appear and the majority of people have risen [from their sleep] at that hour, for we call [that time] {{Script/Hebrew|ובקומך}} (= "and when you rise up")." (End Quote)</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Maimonides|author-link=Maimonides |title=Mishneh Torah|editor=Yosef Qafih |editor-link=Yosef Qafih|contribution=Hil. Kiryat Shema' |publisher=Mekhon Moshe (Mekhon Mishnat ha-Rambam) |location=Kiryat-Ono |volume=2 |year=1985|pages=36-37 (note 32) |language=he |oclc=19158717 |title-link=Mishneh Torah}}</ref><ref>[[Arba'ah Turim]] (''Orach Chaim'' 58:1)</ref> Another reason why sunrise is mentioned with respect to ''Ḳiryat Shema'' is not because the day begins with sunrise, but because ''Ḳiryat Shema'' was meant to be recited in the morning when people awake and rise-up out of their beds, as is said: "and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, '''and when you rise up'''" <small>(Deut. 6:7)</small>.  Another opinion states that the recital of ''Ḳiryat Shema'' in the morning was meant to counter the idolaters who would begin to worship the sun at the hour of sunrise.<ref>{{cite book |last=Al-ʻAdani |first=Saʻid ben Daṿid  |editor=Zephaniah Sharʻabi |translator=Pinḥas ben Yosef Ḳoraḥ |title=Perush Rabenu Saʻid n. Daṿid al-ʻAdani ʻal Mishneh Torah leha-Rambam  (Sefer Ahavah)|publisher=Mekhon Marʻeh |location=Ḳiryat Sefer|year=2009|page=44 |language=he|oclc=429339490}}</ref>   

'''NOTE:''' The fixation of the time of sunrise ({{Script/Hebrew|הנץ החמה}}) is used in conjunction with the fixation for the time when three medium-size stars have appeared in the night sky ({{Script/Hebrew|צאת הכוכבים}}) to determine the overall length of the day, although at all times that length of time is divided into 12 equal hours, whether in summer or in winter.<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides |first= |author-link=Maimonides |title=[[Mishnah]], with Maimonides' Commentary |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |translator=[[Yosef Qafih]] |volume=1 |edition= |date=1963|location=Jerusalem |page=33 (''Berakhot'' 1:5)|language=he |oclc=233308346 |quote=...And be apprised that all of the hours that are mentioned throughout the entire Mishnah are none other than relative hours (Heb. sha'ot zemaniyot). The meaning of relative (Heb. zemaniyot) refers to the hours of which 12 are allotted for the day, and likewise for the night.}}</ref>
{{reflist-talk}} -- [[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 14:25, 2 August 2022 (UTC)

== Maimonides vs. Rabbeinu Tam (regarding "bayn ha-shemashot") ==

* [[Maimonides]]' view of the time known as dusk ({{langx|he|בין השמשות}}) (= ''bayn ha-shemashot'') differs from that of [[Rabbeinu Tam]]. According to Maimonides, the period of dusk is defined as beginning immediately after the sun has vanished completely from the western horizon.<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides |author-link=Maimonides |title=Sefer Mishneh Torah - HaYad Ha-Chazakah (Maimonides' Code of Jewish Law) |publisher=Pe'er HaTorah |volume=1 |date=1974|location=Jerusalem |page=22 [11b] (Hil. Shabbat 5:4) |language=he |oclc=122758200 }}</ref><ref>''[[Siftei Cohen]]'' on Shulhan Arukh (''Yoreh De'ah'' 266:9, small item no. 11)</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Levi ibn Habib|author-link=Levi ibn Habib|title=Responsa of Rabbi Levi ibn Habib|publisher=Mekhon Romm Fund|location=Jerusalem |year=2008 |page=[https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=53913&st=&pgnum=492&hilite= 455] (''responsum ''no. 144) |language=he |oclc=741212369}}</ref> In Maimonides' own words: "...Be apprised that after the sun has set until there appears three medium-size stars and their light, that is the time of dusk ("bayn ha-shemashot"), and when three [stars] appear that is certainly night. Now there is a general rule with us which states that [the period of] dusk is a dubious [period] (i.e. not known whether it is day or night)."<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides |first= |author-link=Maimonides |title=[[Mishnah]], with Maimonides' Commentary |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |translator=[[Yosef Qafih]] |volume=1 |edition= |date=1963|location=Jerusalem |page=17 (''Shabbat'' 2:6)|language=he |oclc=233308346 }}</ref> Maimonides' view is the same as that of [[Rabbi Yehudah]] in [[Babylonian Talmud|BT]] ''Shabbat ''34b, as explained by the [[Menachem Meiri|Meiri]].<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Meiri |first= |author-link=Menachem Meiri |title=Beit HaBechirah (Chiddushei ha-Meiri)|volume=1 |publisher=Hamaor Institute|date=2006 |editor=Daniel Bitton |location=Jerusalem|page=67 (''Shabbat'' 34b) |language=he|oclc=181631040}}</ref> Maimonides' view also happens to be the same view as that held by the ''geonim'', as explained by Rabbi [[Chanokh Heynekh HaKohen Levin]] (in the Responsa ''Zikhron Yosef'', ''responsum ''no. 58), namely, the beginning of dusk is to be reckoned immediately following the complete setting of the sun.<ref>{{cite book |last=Yosef |first=Ovadia |author-link=Ovadia Yosef|title=Halikhot ʻOlam|publisher=Mekhon "Meʼor Yiśraʼel"|location=Jerusalem|year=2002 |page=63 |volume=5 |language=he |oclc=39937409}}</ref>

* Rabbeinu Tam, on the other hand, held the view that the period of dusk ({{langx|he|בין השמשות}}) (= ''bayn ha-shemashot'') actually begins when the sun is beginning to set on the western horizon, but has not yet completely vanished over the horizon.<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Rabbeinu Tam |first= |author-link=Rabbeinu Tam |title=Sefer Ha-yashar |publisher=|date=1811 |location=Vienna|page=[https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=40937&st=&pgnum=41&hilite= 19b] (section 181) |language=he|url=https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=40937&pgnum=1 }}</ref><ref>Rabbeinu Tam's view is also explained by Rabbi [[Joseph Karo]] in ''[[Beit Yosef (book)|Beit Yosef]]'' on [[Yaakov ben Asher]]'s ''[[Arba'ah Turim]]'' (''Orach Chaim'' 261:2)</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Yom Tov of Seville|first=|author-link=Yom Tov of Seville|title=Sefer Chidushei ha-Ritva|publisher=Merkaz le-chinukh torani|volume=1|location=Zikhron Ya'akov|year=2002|page=63 |language=he |oclc=}}, s.v. {{Script/Hebrew|והקשה ר"ת}}</ref> This is often referred to as the "first sunset."<ref name="VidaldeToulouse">[[Vidal of Tolosa]], in his commentary ''Maggid Mishneh'' on Maimonides' ''Mishneh Torah'' (''Shabbat'' 5:4)</ref><ref>The actual time that it takes for the disc of the sun to "touch" the horizon, until it completely vanishes from the horizon, is a time disputed by rabbinic authorities. The Tunisian rabbi, Rabbi Mazuz Matzliach, brings down several opinions in his Questions and Responsa ''Ish Matzliach''. See {{cite book |author=Mazuz, Matzliach|title=Sefer Ish Matzliach|publisher=|location=Jerba|year=1969|page=[https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=7535&st=&pgnum=177&hilite= 66b] (''responsum'' no. 15)|language=he |oclc=741161989}}. One authority holds that the sunset takes about one hour, while another holds that it takes only 2 minutes and 40 seconds.</ref> When the sun is fully gone down over the horizon after 13.5 minutes, this begins the critical time, a time that is often referred to as the "second sunset."<ref name="VidaldeToulouse"/> Accordingly, this period of dusk continues for a total of 58.5 minutes, or what it would normally take for an average man to walk 3.25 [[biblical mile]]s.<ref>{{cite book |last=Yosef |first=Ovadia |author-link=Ovadia Yosef|title=Halikhot ʻOlam|publisher=Mekhon "Meʼor Yiśraʼel"|location=Jerusalem|year=2002 |pages=58-59 |volume=5 |language=he |oclc=39937409}}</ref> According to the Chief Sephardic Rabbi, R. [[Ovadia Yosef]], Rabbeinu Tam's view finds succour somewhat in a teaching brought down by R. [[Hai Gaon]], who wrote that it is customary on the eve of Sabbath and on [[Festival day (Jewish)|Festival days]] to add from the profane day of the week unto the holy day (Sabbath), starting from the time when the sun begins to set over the horizon, but has not fully gone down yet.<ref name="OvadiahYosef2002"/> Moreover, according to the ''geonim'', a man is able to walk 4 [[biblical mile]]s (i.e. 72 minutes) from the moment the sun begins to set until the stars come out in the night sky.<ref name="OvadiahYosef2002">{{cite book |last=Yosef |first=Ovadia |author-link=Ovadia Yosef|title=Halikhot ʻOlam|publisher=Mekhon "Meʼor Yiśraʼel"|location=Jerusalem|year=2002 |page=142 |volume=3 |language=he |oclc=39937409}}</ref>

{{reflist-talk}} ---[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 02:09, 8 August 2022 (UTC)
:Fascinating. Are you going to add this to the article? ---Lilach5 ([[User:לילך5|לילך5]]) [[User talk:לילך5|discuss]] 19:39, 8 August 2022 (UTC)
::Perhaps when I finish collecting all the necessary pieces to this "puzzle" I'll condense it and incorporate some of it in the article. The matter is very complex, and there are many divergent opinions in the halacha, with each community following his own rabbinic authorities. As you can see, there is no single view on this subject.[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 18:18, 9 August 2022 (UTC)

== Rabbi Yosef Qafih's Commentary on Mishneh Torah (Hil. Kiryat Shema 1:11) ==

Rabbi [[Yosef Qafih]], who served as a judge in Israel's Rabbinic Court of Appeals, wrote in his commentary on Maimonides' ''[[Mishneh Torah]]'' (''Hil. Kiryat Shema'' 1:11) the following words concerning whether the day is reckoned from sunrise ({{Script/Hebrew|הנץ החמה}}) or from the rise of dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|עמוד השחר}}), and concludes with the following:<ref name="Qafih1985">{{cite book |author=Maimonides|author-link=Maimonides |title=Mishneh Torah|editor=Yosef Qafih |editor-link=Yosef Qafih|publisher=Mekhon Moshe (Mekhon Mishnat ha-Rambam) |location=Kiryat-Ono |volume=2 |year=1985|pages=36-37 (note 32) |language=he |oclc=19158717 |title-link=Mishneh Torah}}</ref>

* '''Maimonides''' [''Hil. Kiryat Shema'' 1:11]
** What is its time during the day? Its prescribed [time] is for one to begin reciting [the Shema verses] before sunrise, so that he may finish reciting and can make the last blessing [of Shema] with the rise of the sun. The given time for this is about one-tenth of an hour (i.e. 6 minutes) before the sun rises [on the horizon]. If he delayed and read [the verses] after the sun had already risen he has [still] fulfilled his duty, seeing that its designated time [of recital] is until the end of [the first] three hours of the day, for anyone who transgresses and delays.

* '''Yosef Qafih''' (commentary, ''ibid''.)<ref name="Qafih1985"/>
** [note 32] "For the meaning of these hours see ''supra'', in [Maimonides'] Mishnah Commentary, meaning to say, a quarter of the day, while a day begins from the break of dawn ({{Script/Hebrew|מעלות השחר}}) until the coming-out of the stars, as [explained] above in note 26.<ref>There, Rabbi Qafih cites Maimonides in his Mishnah Commentary on ''Megillah'' 2:4, and where he wrote: "...We have reckoned the day from the rise of dawn, since it says in [the Book of] Ezra 'from the break of dawn until the stars came out' (Nehemiah 4:15 [21]). Now he called this [time] 'day', when he said of it, 'in the night they were unto us a guard, while the day [was spent in] labor' (''ibid''. vs. 16 [22])."</ref> As for what is written in ''Hil. Chametz u-matzah'', I shall explain. Our Rabbi (i.e. Maimonides) has written in ''responsum'' no. 136 {{sic}} [134]<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides|author-link=Maimonides |title=R. Moses b. Maimon Responsa|editor=Jehoshua Blau |volume=1 |edition=2 |date=1989 |publisher=Meḳitse nirdamim / Rubin Mass Ltd.|place=Jerusalem |page=251 (''responsum'' no. 134) |language=he |oclc=78411726}} (in the ''Pe'er Dor'' edition, the ''responsum'' appears as no. 44)</ref> that "all the hours mentioned by the Sages throughout the entire Talmud are relative hours ({{Script/Hebrew|שעות זמניות}}), meaning, they are at all times 12 hours in the night, and 12 hours in the day, no matter what the day is like; if it is long, each of its hours will, accordingly, [also] be long. And if it was short, the hours [likewise] will be short. These hours are called by the astrologers 'the relative hour' ({{Script/Hebrew|השעה הזמנית}}), or 'the stretched hour' ({{Script/Hebrew|השעה הנטויה}})" (End Quote). Our Rabbi goes on to mention three categories of hours, in his [[Mishnah]] commentary, namely: relative hours ({{Script/Hebrew|סאעאת זמאנייה}}), being those that are mentioned here and as that [written] above in his commentary on the Mishnah, and here, in his ''responsum'' ({{Script/Hebrew|סאעאת אלאעתדאל}}), these being the hours described for the days of [[Nisan]] and [[Tishrei|Tishri]], where the day and the night are equal [in length]. Insofar that the hours are equal, the day being of them 12 hours, and the night being of them 12 hours, they are actually similar to [our] standard hours [of equal time], even though they, too, are apparently relative [hours]. As for these, he (i.e. Maimonides) has mentioned them in his commentary on [Mishnah] ''[[Berakhot (tractate)|Berakhot]]'' 1:1,<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides |first= |author-link=Maimonides |title=[[Mishnah]], with Maimonides' Commentary |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |translator=[[Yosef Qafih]] |volume=1 |date=1963|location=Jerusalem |page=32 (Ber. 1:1)|language=he |oclc=233308346 |quote=...It (i.e. ''ʻamūd ha-shaḥar'') is a column of light that breaks-out in the morning, and which is the light that is seen in the East corner [of the sky] before sunrise, about an hour and a fifth [of an hour]  (i.e. an hour and 12 minutes) of those standard hours. }}</ref> wherefore I have translated there 'the standard hours' [for what he wrote as] {{Script/Hebrew|סאעאת אלאסתוי}} (i.e. a standard hour of 60 minutes). They are the hours that are equal, of which there are 24 in the entire day. At times, the [hours of] daylight can amount to 9, while [the hours of] the night can be as much as 15, while at other times, it can be reversed. He has [also] mentioned these [hours] in [his Mishnah commentary on] ''[[Pesachim|Pesahim]]'' 3:2.<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides |first= |author-link=Maimonides |title=[[Mishnah]], with Maimonides' Commentary |publisher=[[Mossad Harav Kook]] |translator=[[Yosef Qafih]] |volume=1 |date=1963|location=Jerusalem |page=108 (''Pesahim'' 3:2)|language=he |oclc=233308346 |quote=...and the time needed for it [to become leavened] is what it takes for a person to walk by foot in an average pace one [biblical] mile, and that being what it takes for two-fifths of an hour (i.e. 24 minutes) [to pass], of those standard hours}}</ref> I have made note of these three places only for an example.<ref name="Qafih1985"/><br><br>These [first] three hours [of the day] for reciting [[Kiryat Shema]] make-up a quarter of the day, from the [[Dawn|break of dawn]] ({{Script/Hebrew|מעלות השחר}}) until the stars come out [at night]. Likewise, [the prescribed] four [hours] given for [the morning] [[Shacharit|prayer]] make-up a third [part] of the day, from the break of dawn until the stars come out [at night]. Likewise, this applies to the 4 hours [in which one is allowed to eat] ''chametz'' (i.e. leaven) [on the eve of Passover]. Thus it is expressly mentioned in ''Pesahim'' 12[b] [of the Babylonian Talmud], and it is [wholly] fitting that we explicate about it more, but [the gist of the matter is that] people do not err between daytime and night-time. Behold, it is [hereby] plainly implied that the first hour of the day begins from the break of dawn. So has the Rabbi [and author of] ''[[Chaim Yosef David Azulai|Ḥayim Sha'al]]'' written ([https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=821&st=&pgnum=242&hilite= Part II, section 38, item 70]), [namely], that the hours three and four prescribed for the [[Shema Yisrael|recital of the Shema]] and for the prayer begin from the break of dawn, unlike that [opinion expressed] by the [author of] the ''[[Mordecai Yoffe|Lavush]]''.<ref>cf. [[Mordecai Yoffe]], ''Levush Malkhus'' (''Orach Chaim'', sections 233:1, 266)</ref> [For a more comprehensive look at this subject], refer to [the books] ''Minḥat Cohen'', and ''Mor u'ketziah'', and ''Lechem Shamayim'', [all] belonging to the [[Ya'abetz|Ya'avetz]], and in this manner has [his] instruction spread in all places. Look there [at his works]. Likewise do we have it as our own practice, in every matter, to count the hours from the break of dawn."<ref name="Qafih1985"/> (END QUOTE)

'''NOTE:''' It is implied by Rabbi Yosef Qafih's teaching that the only reason that the Talmud (''Pesahim'' 12b) mentions the sun being positioned almost directly overhead during the sixth-hour of the day when the leaven (Heb. ''chametz'') must already be burnt is because at Passover, which falls in the lunar month of [[Nisan]], the hours of the day and night are equal (i.e. [[Spring equinox (northern hemisphere)|Spring equinox]]), which explains why the sun is positioned nearly directly above every man's head, even for those who count the day from the break of dawn. Rabbi Qafih's teaching is practised by the [[Yemenite Jews|Yemenite Jewish]] community when reckoning the hours of the day in respect to the time of reciting ''[[Kiryat Shema]]'', the [[Shacharit|morning prayer]] (''Shacharit''), and the hour when a person is still permitted to eat leaven on the eve of Passover, and the designated hour of its burning. Rabbi Qafih's teaching, as also the community's practice, stand at variance with the more stringent practice followed by Ashkenazi communities and some Sephardic communities, as described by Rabbi [[Yechiel Michel Tucazinsky|Tucazinsky]], so as to distance ourselves from transgressing in matters given over to rabbinic disputes.<ref>{{cite book|author-last=Tukatzinsky |author-first=Yechiel Michel |author-link=Yechiel Michel Tucazinsky |title=Sefer Bein ha-Shemashos |publisher= |year=1928|location=Jerusalem|language=he|pages=[https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=9405&st=&pgnum=49&hilite= 97]-98 |oclc=233065543 |url=https://www.hebrewbooks.org/9405 |quote=The opinion of our Rabbi, the Vilna Gaon, as well as of many other ''poskim'', is that in all the halachic matters touching on the hours [of the day], we reckon [the day] from sunrise until sunset, such as the latest time [one is required to recite] ''Kiryat Shema'', [being] a quarter of the day (a third of the hours), and the latest time of the [morning] prayer, [being] a third of the day (four hours), and the latest time [permitted in] eating leaven on the eve of Passover, [being] a third of the day, and the burning of leaven [which follows] in another relative hour – all [hours being reckoned] from sunrise until sunset. ...The practice is to be stringent in accordance with the Vilna Gaon's method when it comes to the latest time [in which a person recites] ''Kiryat Shema'', and [says] the [morning] prayer, and when it comes to eating and burning the leaven [on the eve of Passover].}}</ref>                

{{reflist-talk}} ---[[User:Davidbena|Davidbena]] ([[User talk:Davidbena|talk]]) 23:19, 8 August 2022 (UTC)