Masekhet

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A masekhet (Hebrew : מַסֶּכֶת‎, Sephardic: /mɑːˈsɛxɛt/ , Ashkenazic: /mɑːˈsɛxɛs/ ; plural masekhtotמַסֶּכְתּוֹת‎) is an organizational element of Talmudic literature that systematically examines a subject, referred to as a tractate in English.

Contents

A tractate/masekhet consists of chapters (perakim; singular: פרק perek or pereq).

Etymology

The word masechet ( מַּסָּכֶת ) appears in the Hebrew Bible denoting web or texture (Judges 16:13–14). The plain Hebrew meaning of the word is the warp and weft used in weaving. It also refers to a work of in-depth examination of a topic comprising discussions, research and conclusions. It refers in particular to the sections of the Mishnah, Tosefta, Beraita, and Gemara of the Babylonian and Yerushalaim Talmuds. [1] [2]

Usage

The "major" tractates, those of the Mishnah itself, are organized into six groups, called sedarim, while the minor tractates, which were not canonized in the Mishnah, stand alone.

The Mishnah comprises sixty-three tractates, each of which is divided into chapters and paragraphs. The same applies to the Tosefta. Each tractate is named after its principal subject, e.g., Masekhet Berakhoth, Masekhet Shabbath, or Masekhet Sanhedrin. The Aramaic word masekhta (מסכתא) is used interchangeably with the Hebrew word masekhet. [1]

The following are the tractates of the Mishnah, in the six divisions known as Sedarim (Orders):

The Babylonian Talmud has Gemara—rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah—on thirty-seven masekhtot; the Jerusalem Talmud has Gemara on thirty-nine masekhtot. [1]

The fifteen Minor Masekhtot are usually printed at the end of Seder Nezikin in the Talmud. They contain diverse subjects such as Aggadah including folklore, historical anecdotes, moral exhortations, practical advice in various spheres, laws and customs pertaining to death and mourning, engagement, marriage and co-habitation, deportment, manners and behavior, maxims urging self-examination and modesty, the ways of peace between people, regulations for writing Torah scrolls and the Mezuzah, Tefillin and for making Tzitzit, as well as conversion to Judaism. [1]

Rabbinic literature that expounds upon such Talmudic literature may organize itself similarly (e.g. the Halachot by Alfasi), but many do not (e.g. Mishneh Torah by Maimonides). Non-Mishnaic literature, such as Midrash , even when from the Mishnaic-era, is not organized into tractates.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mishnah</span> First major written collection of the Oral Torah

The Mishnah or the Mishna is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. It is also the first work of rabbinic literature, with the oldest surviving material dating to the 6th to 7th centuries BCE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Talmud</span> Central text of Rabbinic Judaism

The Talmud is, after the Hebrew Bible, the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (halakha) and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewish cultural life and was foundational to "all Jewish thought and aspirations", serving also as "the guide for the daily life" of Jews.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tosefta</span> Compilation of the Jewish law from the late 2nd century

The Tosefta is a compilation of Jewish Oral Law from the late second century, the period of the Mishnah and the Jewish sages known as the Tannaim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rabbinic literature</span> Jewish literature attributed to rabbis

Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of works authored by rabbis throughout Jewish history. The term typically refers to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writings. It aligns with the Hebrew term Sifrut Chazal, which translates to “literature [of our] sages” and generally pertains only to the sages (Chazal) from the Talmudic period. This more specific sense of "Rabbinic literature"—referring to the Talmud, Midrashim, and related writings, but hardly ever to later texts—is how the term is generally intended when used in contemporary academic writing. The terms mefareshim and parshanim almost always refer to later, post-Talmudic writers of rabbinic glosses on Biblical and Talmudic texts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gemara</span> Component of the Talmud

The Gemara is an essential component of the Talmud, comprising a collection of rabbinical analyses and commentaries on the Mishnah and presented in 63 books. The term is derived from the Aramaic word גמרא‎ and rooted in the Semitic word ג-מ-ר (gamar), which means "to finish" or "complete". Initially, the Gemara was transmitted orally and not permitted to be written down. However, after Judah the Prince compiled the Mishnah around 200 CE, rabbis from Babylonia and the Land of Israel extensively studied the work. Their discussions were eventually documented in a series of books, which would come to be known as the Gemara. The Gemara, when combined with the Mishnah, forms the full Talmud.

<i>Baraita</i> Teachings "outside" of the six orders of the Mishnah

Baraita designates a tradition in the Oral Torah of Rabbinical Judaism that is not incorporated in the Mishnah. Baraita thus refers to teachings "outside" of the six orders of the Mishnah. Originally, "Baraita" probably referred to teachings from schools outside the main Mishnaic-era yeshivas – although in later collections, individual barayata are often authored by sages of the Mishna (Tannaim).

Tannaim were the rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 10–220 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also referred to as the Mishnaic period, lasted about 210 years. It came after the period of the Zugot "Pairs" and was immediately followed by the period of the Amoraim "Interpreters".

Seder Zeraim is the first of the six orders, or major divisions, of the Mishnah, Tosefta, and the Talmud, and, apart from the first tractate which concerns the rules for prayers and blessings, primarily deals with the laws of agricultural produce and tithes of the Torah which apply in the Land of Israel, in both their religious and social aspects.

Moed is the second Order of the Mishnah, the first written recording of the Oral Torah of the Jewish people. Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. The order of Moed consists of 12 tractates:

  1. Shabbat: or Shabbath ("Sabbath") deals with the 39 prohibitions of "work" on the Shabbat. 24 chapters.
  2. Eruvin: (ערובין) ("Mixtures") deals with the Eruv or Sabbath-bound - a category of constructions/delineations that alter the domains of the Sabbath for carrying and travel. 10 chapters.
  3. Pesahim: (פסחים) deals with the prescriptions regarding the Passover and the paschal sacrifice. 10 chapters.
  4. Shekalim: (שקלים) ("Shekels") deals with the collection of the half-Shekel as well as the expenses and expenditure of the Temple. 8 chapters
  5. Yoma: (יומא) ; called also "Kippurim" or "Yom ha-Kippurim" ; deals with the prescriptions Yom Kippur, especially the ceremony by the Kohen Gadol. 8 chapters.
  6. Sukkah: (סוכה) ("Booth"); deals with the festival of Sukkot and the Sukkah itself. Also deals with the Four Species which are waved on Sukkot. 5 chapters.
  7. Beitza: (ביצה) ("Egg"); deals chiefly with the rules to be observed on Yom Tov. 5 chapters.
  8. Rosh Hashanah: deals chiefly with the regulation of the calendar by the new moon, and with the services of the festival of Rosh Hashanah. 4 chapters.
  9. Ta'anit: (תענית) ("Fasting") deals chiefly with the special fast-days in times of drought or other untoward occurrences. 4 chapters
  10. Megillah: (מגילה) ("Scroll") contains chiefly regulations and prescriptions regarding the reading of the scroll of Esther at Purim, and the reading of other passages from the Torah and Neviim in the synagogue. 4 chapters.
  11. Mo'ed Katan: deals with Chol HaMoed, the intermediate festival days of Pesach and Sukkot. 3 chapters.
  12. Hagigah: (חגיגה) deals with the Three Pilgrimage Festivals and the pilgrimage offering that men were supposed to bring in Jerusalem. 3 chapters.
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minor tractate</span> Tractates covering topics of halakhah not covered by the Mishnah

The minor tractates are essays from the Talmudic period or later dealing with topics about which no formal tractate exists in the Mishnah. They may thus be contrasted to the Tosefta, whose tractates parallel those of the Mishnah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kodashim</span> Fifth of the six orders, or major divisions, of the Mishnah, Tosefta and the Talmud

Kodashim is the fifth of the six orders, or major divisions, of the Mishnah, Tosefta and the Talmud, and deals largely with the services within the Temple in Jerusalem, its maintenance and design, the korbanot, or sacrificial offerings that were offered there, and other subjects related to these topics, as well as, notably, the topic of kosher slaughter.

Demai (Hebrew: דְּמַאי, is the third tractate of Seder Zeraim of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. It deals with the Jewish legal concept of demai, meaning doubtfully tithed produce, and concerns the laws related to agricultural produce about which it is suspected that certain obligatory tithes have not been separated in accordance with requirements derived from the Torah. The tithes in question are ma'aser rishon, terumath ma'aser, and ma'aser sheni or ma'aser ani, depending on the year of the Sabbatical year cycle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berakhot (tractate)</span> Tractate of the Talmud about blessings and prayers, particularly the Shema and the Amidah

Berakhot is the first tractate of Seder Zeraim of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. The tractate discusses the rules of prayers, particularly the Shema and the Amidah, and blessings for various circumstances.

<i>Kilayim</i> (tractate) Jewish law forbidding some types of mixing

Kil'ayim is the fourth tractate of Seder Zeraim of the Mishnah, dealing with several biblical prohibitions of mixed species, namely, planting certain mixtures of seeds, grafting different species of trees together, growing plants other than grapevines in vineyards, crossbreeding animals, working a team of different kinds of animals together, and mixing wool and linen in garments.

Uktzim is the last masekhet of the order of Tohorot in the Mishnah. It is the last tractate in the Mishnah. It consists of three chapters. Uktzim describes the various forms of tumah having to do with the stalks of fruits and vegetables.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shabbat (Talmud)</span> Talmudic tractate about the Jewish Sabbath

Shabbat is the first tractate of Seder Moed of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. The tractate deals with the laws and practices regarding observing the Jewish Sabbath. The tractate focuses primarily on the categories and types of activities prohibited on the Sabbath according to interpretations of many verses in the Torah, notably Exodus 20:9–10 and Deut. 5:13–14.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Megillah (Talmud)</span> Tractate of the Talmud

Masekhet Megillah is a tractate in Seder Moed of the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds. It deals with laws and stories relating to Purim, a Jewish holiday originating from the Book of Esther. Megillah continues to dictate how Purim is celebrated in Jewish communities worldwide to this day.

Sotah is a tractate of the Talmud in Rabbinic Judaism. The tractate explains the ordeal of the bitter water, a trial by ordeal of a woman suspected of adultery, which is prescribed by the Book of Numbers in the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh). In most editions, this tractate is the fifth in the order of Nashim, and it is divided into nine chapters. The tractate exists in the Mishnah, Tosefta, and both the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmud.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nedarim (Talmud)</span> Tractate of the Mishnah and the Talmud

Nedarim is a masechet of the order of Nashim of the Mishnah and the Talmud. Its subject is laws relating to the neder, a kind of vow or oath in Judaism.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Birnbaum, Philip (1975). "Tractates" . A Book of Jewish Concepts. New York, NY: Hebrew Publishing Company. p.  373-374. ISBN   088482876X.
  2. ↑ Even-Shoshan, Avraham (1991). "מסכת". Ha'Milon Ha'Ivri HaMrukaz (in Hebrew). Yerushalaim, Yisrael: Kiryat Sefer. p. 394. ISBN   965-17-0103-X.
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