Megillah, Daf Kaf Bet, Part 5
Introduction
Today’s section returns to the brief mention from above that Rav would not "fall on his face" as the other people in Babylon did. This is the source of the custom that remains to this day to fall on our faces after the Amidah, the section of the service called "Tahanun."
גופא, רב איקלע לבבל בתענית צבור. קם קרא בספרא, פתח – בריך, חתם – ולא בריך. נפול כולי עלמא אאנפייהו – ורב לא נפל על אנפיה.
The text [above stated]: Rav happened to be in Babylon on a public fast day. He got up forward and read in the Torah scroll. He blessed before beginning, but when he finished he did not bless. The whole congregation [subsequently] fell on their faces, but Rav did not fall on his face.
This is a repeat of the story from above.
מאי טעמא רב לא נפיל על אפיה? – רצפה של אבנים היתה. ותניא: +ויקרא כ"ו+ ואבן משכית לא תתנו בארצכם להשתחות עליה, עליה אי אתה משתחוה בארצכם, אבל אתה משתחוה על אבנים של בית המקדש. כדעולא, דאמר עולא: לא אסרה תורה אלא רצפה של אבנים בלבד. –
Why did not Rav fall on his face? There was a stone pavement there and it has been taught: "You shall not put any figured stone in your land to bow down upon it" (Leviticus 26:1): On it you may not bow down in your land, but you may bow down on the stones in the Temple. Like Ulla, who said: The Torah [here] is forbidding only a pavement of stone.
"Falling on the face" in this time period seems to have been literally prostrating oneself fully on the ground, not as we do today, where we bend over and just put our hands on our forearm. There is a prohibition of prostrating oneself onto stone pavement, based on a midrash on "figured stone" in Leviticus 26:1. Only in the Temple is one allowed to prostrate oneself onto a stone floor.
As an aside, this is why some people put a cloth under their heads when bowing onto the floor on Yom Kippur. In Israel it is not just the shaliach tzibbur who bows to the ground most people do. If the floor is made of stone, then one should not bow all the way down. However, if one puts a piece of cloth there, then one can bow one’s face all the way down.
אי הכי מאי איריא רב? אפילו כולהו נמי! – קמיה דרב הואי.
וליזיל לגבי ציבורא, ולינפול על אפיה!
לא בעי למיטרח ציבורא.
If that is the case, why is only Rav mentioned? All the rest should also have not done so!
It was in front of Rav.
Let him then go among the congregation and fall on his face?
He did not want to trouble the congregation.
If Rav didn’t bow down because it was forbidden, then why did the rest of the congregation? The answer is that the stone floor was only where Rav was. The rest of the congregation was not on a stone floor. Perhaps it was plain dirt (carpeting?).
In any case, why then didn’t Rav just go over to the congregation? The Talmud answers that he didn’t want to trouble them, for had he gone over to them, they would have had to stand up to honor him. He was quite the thoughtful rabbi!
ואיבעית אימא: רב פישוט ידים ורגלים הוה עביד, וכדעולא, דאמר עולא: לא אסרה תורה אלא פישוט ידים ורגלים בלבד.
וליפול על אפיה ולא ליעביד פשוט ידים ורגלים! – לא משני ממנהגיה.
Or if you like I can say that Rav usually spread out his hands and feet [when he fell on his face], and he followed the opinion of Ulla, who said, The Torah forbade only the spreading out of the hands and feet.
But let him fall on his face without spreading out his hands and feet?
He did not want to change his custom.
Alternatively, Rav didn’t bow down because it was his custom to spread out his hands and feet, which was prohibited. He didn’t want to change his custom and bow down in a permitted way, so he refrained from bowing down altogether. Evidently, everyone else bowed down without spreading their hands and feet.
ואיבעית אימא: אדם חשוב שאני, כדרבי אלעזר, דאמר רבי אלעזר, אין אדם חשוב רשאי ליפול על פניו אלא אם כן נענה כיהושע בן נון, דכתיב +יהושע ז’+ ויאמר ה’ אל יהושע קם לך [וגו’].
Or if you like I can say that an important man is different, as R. Elazar; for R. Elazar said: An important man is not permitted to fall on his face unless he is [sure of being] answered like Joshua son of Nun, as it is written, "And God said to Joshua why have you fallen on your face" (Joshua 7:10).
Alternatively, Rav did not fall on his face for he is an "important man." R. Elazar teaches that an "important man" is not allowed to fall on his face unless he is sure that God will answer him. If he were to fall on his face and God did not answer him, people would call into question whether God hears their prayers. Therefore, the important man should not fall on his face at all. This is also derived from the book of Joshua where God asks Joshua why he fell on his face, implying that he should not have done so. God, in this case, does not answer Joshua’s prayer.