Megillah, Daf Yod Het, Part 6
Introduction
Most of today’s section deals with writing scrolls by memory. Is this permissible, or can one write a new scroll of Scripture only by copying an already existent one?
היה כותבה, דורשה, ומגיהה, אם כוון לבו יצא וכו’.
היכי דמי? אי דקא מסדר פסוקא פסוקא וכתב לה – כי כוון לבו מאי הוי? על פה הוא! אלא דכתב פסוקא פסוקא וקרי ליה.
If one was writing it, expounding it, or correcting it, if he directed his heart, he has fulfilled his obligation.
How so? If he was arranging each verse and then writing it, what does it matter if he had intention? He is reciting it by heart! Rather he writes each verse and then recites it.
The mishnah says that if someone is writing a Megillah, and when reading it has intention to fulfill his obligation, then he has fulfilled his obligation.
The Talmud examines how this could have occurred. If he was thinking of each verse in his head, and then writing it down from memory, then even if he had intention he has not fulfilled his obligation, because he is not reading it from a scroll. The scroll was not yet written when he recited it.
Rather, he must first write each verse and then recite it. This is not the normal way of writing a scroll, but if he wishes to fulfill his obligation, this is how he must do it.
ומי יצא? והאמר רבי חלבו אמר רב חמא בר גוריא אמר רב: הלכה כדברי האומר כולה. ואפילו למאן דאמר מאיש יהודי צריכה שתהא כתובה כולה!
אלא, דמנחה מגילה קמיה וקרי לה מינה פסוקא פסוקא, וכתב לה.
But does he thereby fulfill his obligation? Has not R. Helbo said in the name of R. Hama b. Guria who said it in the name of Rav, The halakhah is according to the one who says that all of it [must be recited], and even according to the one who says that it is sufficient [to recite] from "A Jew was" (Esther 2:5), it is necessary that the whole should be [already] written?
Rather a Megillah lies before him and he reads from it, verse by verse, and then writes.
The problem with the scenario as we understood it above is that the Megillah must be entirely written before he begins to read it. Later in the Talmud we shall see that some tannaim hold that one need not read the entire Megillah; he can start from 2:5 (and some hold even later). Nevertheless, even those tannaim who hold that one can start later in the book, the parts that must be read must be written before any of the reading begins.
Therefore, the mishnah must refer to a case where he is not writing a scroll from memory. He is copying from a book that he already has in front of him. First he reads it, verse by verse, then he writes the new scroll. This would be a normal way of copying a scroll.
לימא מסייע ליה לרבה בר בר חנה, דאמר רבה בר בר חנה אמר רבי יוחנן: אסור לכתוב אות אחת שלא מן הכתב. – דלמא דאתרמי ליה אתרמויי.
Shall we then say that this supports Rabbah b. Bar Hanah, for Rabbah b. Bar Hanah said in the name of R. Yohanan: It is forbidden to write one letter [of the Megillah], not from another written copy?
Perhaps [the Mishnah speaks of a case] where he just happened [to have a copy before him].
Above, we interpreted the mishnah to refer to a case where one copies the Megillah from another scroll. It is at first suggested that this supports R. Yohanan who said that it is forbidden to write a Megillah except based on an already existent scroll.
The Talmud rejects the use of the Mishnah as proof, for it may be that the Mishnah just happens to refer to a case where a person copies from such a scroll. One could theoretically write a Megillah from memory, but one would not be able to fulfill one’s obligation to hear the Megillah while doing so.
גופא, אמר רבה בר בר חנה אמר רבי יוחנן: אסור לכתוב אות אחת שלא מן הכתב.
מיתיבי, אמר רבי שמעון בן אלעזר: מעשה ברבי מאיר שהלך לעבר שנה בעסיא, ולא היה שם מגילה, וכתבה מלבו וקראה.
אמר רבי אבהו: שאני רבי מאיר דמקיים ביה +משלי ד’+ ועפעפיך יישרו נגדך.
אמר ליה רמי בר חמא לרבי ירמיה מדפתי: מאי ועפעפיך יישרו נגדך? אמר לו: אלו דברי תורה, דכתיב בהו +משלי כ"ג+ התעיף עיניך בו ואיננו, ואפילו הכי – מיושרין הן אצל רבי מאיר.
The text [above states]: Rabbah b. Bar Hanah said in the name of R. Yohanan, It is forbidden to write one letter except from a copy.
They objected: It happened that R. Meir went to intercalate the year in Assia, and there was no Megillah there and he wrote one out by heart.
R. Abbahu said: R. Meir is different, because to him could be applied the verse, "Let your eyes look in front, and gaze straight before you" (Proverbs 4:25).
Rami b. Hama asked R. Jeremiah from Difti: What is the meaning of "Let your eyes [af’apekha] look in front, and gaze straight before you"?
He replied: This refers to the words of the Torah, of which it is written, "Will your eyes fly over it [ta’if] and it is gone?" (Proverbs 23:5).
And even so, they were produced correctly by R. Meir.
The Talmud now discusses R. Yohanan’s prohibition against writing a Megillah by heart. This statement is contradicted by a story in which R. Meir goes to Assia (Turkey) to add a month to the year. While there during the month of Adar, he sees that they do not have a Megillah and he writes one by heart. Thus we seem to see that one can write a Megillah by heart.
R. Abbahu says that R. Meir is different for R. Meir’s eyes are "straight." This is interpreted to mean that when R. Meir lifts his eyes away from Torah, the Torah remains "straight before him." He can reproduce it correctly. In contrast, others, when their eyes fly away from Torah, it is gone, and they cannot produce it correctly. Only R. Meir was allowed to write a Megillah from memory. All others must copy it from an already existent copy.
רב חסדא אשכחיה לרב חננאל דהוה כתב ספרים שלא מן הכתב, אמר ליה: ראויה כל התורה כולה ליכתב על פיך, אלא כך אמרו חכמים: אסור לכתוב אות אחת שלא מן הכתב. מדקאמר כל התורה כולה ראויה שתיכתב על פיך – מכלל דמיושרין הן אצלו.
והא רבי מאיר כתב! שעת הדחק שאני.
R. Hisda found R. Hananel writing scrolls without a written copy.
He said to him: The whole Torah could be written by you by heart, but the Sages have ruled: It is forbidden to write one letter except from a copy.
Since he said: The whole Torah could be written by you by heart, we may conclude that he could produce them correctly.
But we see that R. Meir actually did write?
In case of emergency it is different.
The Talmud now cites a story where R. Hisda prohibits R. Hananel from writing scrolls by heart, even though R. Hananel could certainly do so. This seems to mean that even exceptional individuals may not write scrolls by heart.
But R. Meir did write a Megillah in Assia. If this was forbidden, how did he do so?
The answer is that it is permitted only in a case of an emergency. In Assia there was no other Megillah from which to copy, so he had to write one by heart.
אביי שרא לדבי בר חבו למיכתב תפלין ומזוזות שלא מן הכתב, כמאן – כי האי תנא. דתניא, רבי ירמיה אומר משום רבינו: תפלין ומזוזות נכתבות שלא מן הכתב, ואין צריכות שרטוט.
והלכתא: תפלין – אין צריכין שרטוט, מזוזות – צריכין שרטוט. אידי ואידי נכתבות שלא מן הכתב. מאי טעמא – מיגרס גריסין.
Abaye allowed the members of the household of Bar Habu to write tefillin and mezuzot without a copy.
Whose authority did he follow? The following Tanna, as it has been taught: R. Jeremiah says in the name of our Teacher: Tefillin and mezuzot may be written out without a copy, and do not require to be written upon ruled lines.
The law, however, is that tefillin do not require lines, but mezuzot do require lines, and both may be written without a copy.
What is the reason? They are frequently recited.
Tefillin and mezuzot are not like full scrolls. They contain familiar verses and therefore may be written from memory. Tefillin may be written on unlined parchment, but mezuzot require lines.