Sukkah, Daf Mem Vav, Part 2

 

Introduction

This section continues to deal with the issue of whether one blesses over the lulav all seven days, or only on the first.

 

אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל מצות לולב כל שבעה.

ור’ יהושע בן לוי אמר יום ראשון מצות לולב מכאן ואילך מצות זקנים.

ורבי יצחק אמר כל יומא מצות זקנים ואפילו יום ראשון.

והא קיימא לן דיום ראשון דאורייתא!

אימא בר מיום ראשון.

אי הכי היינו דרבי יהושע בן לוי!

אימא וכן אמר רבי יצחק.

 

Rav Judah said in the name of Shmuel: The mitzvah of the lulav is for all seven days.

But R. Joshua b. Levi said: The mitzvah of the lulav is for the first day only. From that point onward it is a mitzvah of the elders.

And R. Yitzchak said: Every day it is a mitzvah of the elders, even the first.

But have we not an established that on the first day it is a toraitic commandment?

Say rather "except for the first day."

But if so, is this opinion not the same as that of R. Joshua b. Levi?

Say, "And so said R. Yitzchak."

 

According to Rashi the argument in this section is over whether one recites a blessing over the lulav for all seven days of Sukkot. Rav Judah in the name of Shmuel says that there is a mitzvah all seven days and therefore one blesses for all seven days, even though only the first day is a mitzvah from the Torah. R. Joshua ben Levi says that since only the first day is from the Torah, one blesses only on that day. On subsequent days the mitzvah is from the "elders" and therefore one doesn’t bless. While at first it seems that R. Yitzchak holds that one would not recite a blessing even on the first day, the Talmud cannot countenance such a position. Therefore it emends R. Yitzchak’s statement such that he agrees with R. Joshua b. Levi.

 

ואף רב סבר כל שבעה מצות לולב דאמר רבי חייא בר אשי אמר רב המדליק נר של חנוכה צריך לברך.

רבי ירמיה אמר הרואה נר של חנוכה צריך לברך.

מאי מברך? אמר רב יהודה יום ראשון המדליק מברך שלש הרואה מברך שתים מכאן ואילך מדליק מברך שתים ורואה מברך אחת.

ומאי מברך? ברוך אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו להדליק נר (של) חנוכה.

 

Rav also holds that the mitzvah of the lulav is for all seven days, for R. Hiyya b. Ashi said in the name of Rav: One who lights the Hanukkah lamp must recite a blessing.

R. Yirmiyah said: One who sees the Hanukkah lamp must recite the blessing.

What blessing does one recite?

Rav Judah said: On the first day the one who lights must recite three blessings and the one who sees it must recite two. From that day on the one who lights recites two blessings and the one who sees them only one.

What is the blessing? Blessed [are You, O Lord our God, King of the Universe] who has sanctified us by Your commandments, and commanded us to kindle the light of Hanukkah .

 

This section begins by using a different statement made by Rav to deduce that he too holds that one recites the blessing over the lulav for all seven days, even though there is no mitzvah from the Torah after the first day. This ruling is derived from another ruling where Rav says that one who lights the Hannukah lamp must recite a blessing, even though this is surely not a mitzvah. In other words, Rav holds that one recites blessings over "derabanan" rabbinic commandments.

The Talmud now turns to discuss the laws of lighting the Hannukah lamp.

R. Yirmiyah says that one who sees the Hannukah lamp must also recite a blessing, similar to one who hears the sound of the shofar.

R. Judah works both of these opinions into one statement. The person who lights recites three blessings (on the first night) and two on subsequent nights. The person who only sees the lamp recites two on the first day and one on subsequent days.

The one who lights recites "who has commanded us to light the Hannukah lamp." The one who sees would not say this blessing. He would say "who has wrought miracles for our ancestors (sheasa nisim)" They would both recite shehiyanu on the first night but not on subsequent nights.

 

והיכן צונו מ"לא תסור."

ורב נחמן בר יצחק אמר(דברים לב, ז)  שאל אביך ויגדך.

מאי ממעט? זמן.

אימא ממעט נס! נס כל יומא איתיה.

רב נחמן בר יצחק מתני לה בהדיא אמר רב כל שבעה מצות לולב.

 

But where did He command us? "Do not turn aside" (Deuteronomy 17:11).

R. Nahman b. Yitzchak said: "Ask your father, and he will tell you" (Deuteronomy 32:7)

Which [blessing] does one omit? The blessing on the time.

Say that one omits the blessing of the miracle?

The miracle occurred every day.

R. Nahman b. Yitzchak taught this explicitly: Rav said: The commandment of the lulav applies to all seven days.

 

The Talmud now asks where we were commanded to light the Hannukah lamp after all, its certainly not in the Torah! The rabbis use two generic verses that both imply that one should listen to what the sages tell you to do. These two verses are frequently cited to bolster the authority of the rabbis, as if to say that even a commandment issued by the sages (or elders) has toraitic authority.

Next the Talmud asks why one omits only the blessing on the time (shehiyanu). Why not omit the blessing over the miracle? The answer is that each day that this small amount of oil remained lit was a miracle.

The sugya concludes with a statement in which Rav explicitly rules that one blesses over the lulav. Earlier we had derived this opinion from a statement concerning Hannukah. Here it is transmitted explicitly.