Talmud in Verse
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Sonnet for Tractate Brachot
How could we ever laud You enough, dear L-rd!
Like a child to an umbilical chord,
We owe all to You from night to light;
And, all in between is attributed to Your Might.
We thank you L-rd, the Architect of all,
The Sculptor, the Gardener, the Judge and King.
We must ensure, we always hear Your call.
It is for You, L-rd, that praises we sing.
Given a banquet in which we eat and drink,
And, all we see, hear, say, do or think
Is owed to You, L-rd, our lives' very link;
Only, through You, L-rd, are we saved from the brink
What can we add in gratitude to you?
To walk in Your Holy Ways, as partners, true.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Shabbat
Every Shabbat is our honeymoon with G-d.
Would we work on a honeymoon or rather laud?
Greet the Shabbat with Leha Dodi;
Observe and Remember and truly see.
Each week recall G-d's dowry and present;
Love bestowed in beauty its Covenant.
Thirty-nine labours are prohibited
To awaken our renewed soul, thus gifted.
How could we depart from our love’s groove
Further than the area of our Eruv?
To carry a burden would not behoove
Love which remains from which not to move.
The Respect and Honour within our gates,
The treasure of Shabbat that love celebrates.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Shevuot
To take an oath is a serious matter;
A vow is of a category latter.
Mesechet Shevuot is one of oaths;
Nedarim speaks of vows, uttered by mouths.
That which can be pronounced by our lips
requires discipline for words spoken, need grips.
Shevuot ha'edot, testimony in Court
must bear truth, or a witness commits a tort.
Shevuot hapikadon to change one's statement
bodes grave consequences in an assortment.
Modeh b'mikzat stating to owe a fraction,
or Kofer hakol to deny true debt needs a sanction.
An employee remembers when he is paid;
An employer, a mistake may have made.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Avodah Zara
How with all one’s being to laud G-d!
Avodah Zara is a guide to direction.
What must one do to worship the one G-d
To eschew in word, thought and deed any deviation.
Love the Lord Our God, with all one’s heart, soul and might.
To reflect God in all action, taste, sound and sight. (1)
Aversion to idolatry, a shofar blast
Warning of temptations to pocket, anger and lust.
The one God, Master of the universe
Revealed himself to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob;
To Moses in the desert's stillness;
In Sinai to Israel, never God’s honor to rob!
The lessons of tractate Avodah Zara
Are evermore but to cleave to the Torah!⬢
- which include avoidance of certain business transactions, in time and location, nutrition, alcohol consumption and immoral conduct interactions with idolaters.
A Sonnet for Tractate Horayoth
How does a Court admit to an error made?
How do leaders rectify a mistake?
By recognizing that such does not fade
Until a public offering is made for its sake.
When the Mufla Beth Din was absent,
The High Court in its entirety had not ruled.
Thus, the judgment was not as it was meant;
The absence of the lead scholar, its judgment annulled.
No Court atonement could serve for the deed;
As such judgment for the community should not proceed.
Authorities could not substitute a sin offering,
As the judgment was not meant to bring suffering.
A leader, who brings a community to err,
Must such full responsibility bear.⬢
Sonnet for Mesechta Chullin
To decide what is sacred? What is profane?
How can Holiness be able to gain?
The Divine scheme does sanctify all life.
To shecht meat for food means more than a knife.
By whom and how will the shechting be done?
Refined knowledge and intention, no dry run.
Divine creation must be kept sacred,
To recall holy sparks by those to be fed.
Eating meat was a concession to humans made;
(Bereishit 1:29) yet, sacredness of purpose must never fade.
What can be eaten and what is set aside?
To transcend the primitive with Halacha's guide.
Animals permitted and others forbidden,
To reveal holiness that is not hidden.⬢
(Vayikra 11:44 and Devarim 14:21)
Sonnet for Tractate Arakhin
How does one determine a valuation
In one's vow of donation for G--d's grace?
The Torah specifies the evaluation
As an income tax of the soul for Temple and priests as its base..
How does one make an assessment
In one's worship for spiritual investment?
Just as an accountant can determine value,
The tractate gives appropriation its due.
One does calculate one’s own ledger’s worth;
Individuals are reckoned from a month after birth.
Valuations are deciphered for houses and fields;
Mobile property and real estate transactions are sealed.
Redemption of one's heritage property
And the Jubilee year must be accounted for surety.
Sonnet for Tractate Temura
Substitution of an animal’s kin
For restitution of a sin,
By a gift of consecration in His Name
May not be acceptable, if it is lame.
Recognizing the animal must be tame,
And, if blemished, it is not the same,
For purposes of sanctification in His Name
And, not for expectation of material gain.
The language by which one does consecrate
Through vows that must not desecrate,
With neither offerings of any ill-gotten gain,
Nor having caused demised or pain.
The very reason for the offerings,
Also, has as its purpose to alleviate sufferings.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Karetot
Liable or not liable, not sure;
Yet, if certain of a commitment of a sin,
Then a Korban Hatat to adjure
To the truth for atonement.
If not certain of a sin committed,
Then an Asham Tuluy to befit it.
Wittingly or unwittingly, to limit
One's transgression and towards purity submit
For sins of incest and adultery,
Also, as a guilt for impurity, Hatat Kevu'ah,
Recognizing the temporary pleasures as reverie
Scarring morality with its assault and battery
On the purity of the soul's integrity,
Also, negating sanctification and worship by idolatry.⬢
A Sonnet for Tractate Tamid
The sanctity of the Temple remains,
As ushered in Psalms by the Temple priests,
Each day, a different song, its echo proclaims:
The earth is the L-rd’s, in his Harvests are Feasts.
Almighty is the L-rd and highly praised
In the city of Our L-rd, and His holy mountain.
In His honour, offerings and tributes are raised,
Recognizing life is from His Source's Fountain.
The Lord is a witness to all, thus, the judges.
Nothing is able to withstand that which He lodges
and dislodges.
Sing and praise to our Creator, our Liberator.
Nothing and no one was, is, or could be greater.
Sing for the time to come; and, it will become,
A Shabbat forever, eternity in Psalm.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Niddah
G-d gave the waters of purification,
With the very birth of creation,
To provide for humanity’s sanctification,
Subsequent to any impurity’s diversion,
The Mikvah's natural rainwater,
Flows from Gan Aiden for both son and daughter.
For life’s purpose is Sanctity from G-dliness;
Thus, to immerse and reconnect to holiness.
As in the Song of Songs, the beloved to protect
With patience and honor, is a sign of respect,
Of true love for one’s partner,
Recognizing the care of the Gardener.
In order for seeds to flower and bloom,
And, to bring back the Garden of Eden soon.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Eruvin
Shabbat is not in time and space, normalcy.
Shabbat touches the hem of eternity;
To live without a burden to carry;
With no weight from the week to tarry.
Any arrangement from public to private space,
Must then set aside the week and its pace.
It is not meant for us to race.
It is for us but to rest in G-d’s grace.
Let us then rest with, and in, G-d’s Makom.
“And turn away our foot", Shabbat has come.
Let us ensure before Shabbat, all is done;
To welcome the bride with the setting sun.
Leave any and all burdens from the week;
To enter G-d’s palace with our souls, but Unity to seek. ⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Pesahim
What does the Tractate Pesahim teach us?
The story, background, setting, props and stage.
For us, now, to relive the exodus;
Cross the Red Sea, imbibe, digest and gage.
Whether we have absorbed Freedom's Song,
Separating ego from ourselves and our throng?
By our avodah to dismiss the fusion
Of oppression and inner illusion.
The four mandatory cups of wine
Demonstrate the Divine Presence as a sign,
That G-d takes, rescues, redeems and brings us
To freedom which at each Seder we discuss.
Why the four cups of wine, three matzot, lamb,
Bitter herbs and haroset? As signs, do oppression ban.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Shekalim
How does one contribute to the Temple?
Not simply with donation but with heart.
The contribution of the half -shekel was ample
For each to become whole with another part.
The set time for the offering was key.
A pledge duly paid makes a person free.
A mitzvah fulfilled is the key
For success in life in all we see.
The funds were scrupulously managed:
The chief officers in administration,
With thirteen different chests for verification,
Two for shekels, no accounting bandaged.
Any money, if found, on temple premises
Served as an offering for the gift of our genesis.
(Footnote - Explanation for last line of the Sonnet)
In recognition that we are frail and we make mistakes,
Our offerings, at times, serve as repentance
for who we were, in order to become, who we could be.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Yoma
The High Priest had the monumental task,
To represent Klal Israel and thus to grasp,
The solemnity in radiance without ego's mask.
As the Judge of Judges decides who shall last.
Entering the Sanctity of time and space,
In the Holy of Holies for Klal Israel to face;
Almighty's judgment, may it be with grace.
For the Heshbon Hanefesh, a new year to trace.
A road for the future from lessons of the past;
For tshuva to renew life to Mashiach, at last;
In purity, the High priest as the Klal did fast;
To cleanse all sins of which Torah is aghast.
To take as a nation its ethical temperature:
Is the soul's tax pledge for the future.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Sukkah
The temporary Sukkah is a symbol
Of the transitory nature of life;
Only in G-d’s embrace can security fulfil
The Sukkah Shlema, in time and space of strife.
Divine law ingathers us all as one,
As the etrog, lulav, hadas and arava,
Each a distinct trait, yet, each a daughter and son.
Blessed in all, we posses, given just as manna.
The parameters, walls and shak of the Sukkah,
Embodiment of measures for fulfillment
Of responsibility, not as a detriment
But to embrace all-in G-d’s Sukkah.
The final narrative, a paradox,
Miriam of the Bilga clan’s example talks.
(The hope is the to entice the reader of the Sonnet to read or hear the story as an illustration of unity and its converse.)⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Beitza
How is Yom Tov different from Shabbat?
Exodus 12:16, its festiveness,
Explains itself in preparation selectiveness,
As to what to the table can be brought.
Enough food for each person, without automation,
As our past lacked refrigeration,
Carriage from one domain to another
Did not adherence to these laws bother.
Animals which slept in pastures or elsewhere,
And not in our locale, familiar,
Eggs hatched on holidays and not before,
Could not on Yom Tov be cooked within our doors.
Deep within ourselves, what does it all mean?
To celebrate but curb, yetzer hara of sin.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Rosh Hashana
What does it mean to mark time through space?
Where does it begin? To what does time amount?
Tractate Rosh Hashana teaches chronologies of G-d's grace.
In quantity and quality, how to make time, count!
What are we to do with the passage of time?
Thus, a Tractate for calculating time-line.
It begins with Passover and freedom in Nissan.
But, Divine creation, in Tishrei, with the moon and sun.
Monthly calculations are lunar based;
With assurances that seasons are solar traced.
The conscience, too, is called to account with blasts:
The shofar calls, crowns, proclaims, alerts and grasps.
That we must not only count time but make time count.
Thus, the kavana of prayer is accounted as paramount.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Ta'anit
When, why and how to fast on chosen days?
Examination of the conscience, thus, says:
What is it we must examine in ourselves?
Our ethical temperature then delves
Into that which we must fix to better serve
G-d, who constantly in our midst remains ;
And listens to our Shmone Esrei, words in reserve
For times of life's dryness, supplicating for rains.
The Ark is transported from the Temple
To stand as witness in the City's open space ;
Clothed in sackcloth with ashes , people tremble
As the Shofar is blown to plead for God's grace.
The Tractate’s end brings a message of hope,
After days of sadness, promised joy allows us to cope.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Megillah (Esther)
What’s in a story, much by which to learn
What it means to be in narrow exile!
Tractate Megillah teaches as the world does turn;
Never to forget Amalek and his guile.
The story in its hidden layers brings a sigh,
Inflicted on many voiceless due to a lie.
Antisemitism has so many guises,
Without denouncement of all hatred’s vices.
How to honour public readings of Torah;
And the Commandment to read the Megillah
Are gifts of knowledge bestowed by the Tractate;
Walled cities from time of Joshua give the date,
When to commemorate and then celebrate,
G-d’s hidden work that saves our fate.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Moed Katan
For everything there is a season;
There is a time and place with reason.
There is a time to celebrate;
And a time to commemorate.
There is a time to heal from illness;
And a time to mourn in inner stillness.
A time to ameliorate,
To separate from grave Halachic mistakes made.
When to externally, wholly celebrate?
When to internally, in measure, celebrate?
What must be taken care of on the Moed?
And what must be left, less important, to fade?
For everything there is a season;
There is a time and place with reason.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Chagiga
Three times a year for the joyous festivals
Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot,
Pilgrims streamed to enter Jerusalem's walls
With offerings for the Temple in worship, sought.
Burnt offerings and festival peace offerings,
Symbols of tshuva and gifts from the soul ,
Both to give life meaning and transcend sufferings.
Thus, celebrate life's cycle by G-d's given role.
Ritual impurity and purity
In the Temple for each ritual object's lot,
Obliges devout care and sincerity,
Knowing what is sacred and what is not!
The Divine chariot and creation
Imprint but hide mystical formulation.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Yevamot
Not to have progeny is a tragedy;
Yevamot attempts to avoid calamity;
An unmarried brother’s responsibility,
To take as his wife, his brother’s widow in matrimony.
To ensure the widow’s dignity,
All is done to ensure compatibility.
Dependant on the sibling's adaptability.
For matrimonial felicity.
For lineage to continue in purity,
Time and rules for accountabilty,
Assess physical well-being necessity;
And psychological feasibility.
Decisions in an atmosphere of liberty
Require heshbon hanefesh accountability.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Ketuvot
The ramifications of a marriage
Are at the core of Talmudic discourse,
Designated as a “miniature Talmud”1
Or a “master key to the Talmud itself.”2
Respect, honor, dignity, well being
Establish the climate of confidence,
As sacred watchwords for the relationship’s
Intimacy, security and well being.3
Thus, sustenance, appearance, nourishment,
Living quarters are the husband's responsibility.
The mutual obligations of both spouses
Mark a sanctified bond for reverence.
Divorce or death of the husband unfolds
A regime of guarantees for the wife's needs.⬢
1 Shas Katan
2 Mafte’ah ha’Shas
3 physical and psychological health
Sonnet for Tractate Nedarim
Dedicated to the memory of Shimshon ben ha’Rav Michael Arié, Sigmond Shore, my Father O.B.M., who taught me at the age of four, by shaking my hand in his, that my word is my bond- a sacred promise.
Never make a promise, you cannot keep;
A word is a bond, once uttered, captive
To its formulation, in time and space;
Thus, every word must be filterd, thought out.
“Moses spoke to the leaders of the tribes;
If a man takes, upon himself, a vow…
He shall not desecrate, his uttered word;
That which he transmits, he must then fulfill.”*
A promise, inadvertently given,
Or based on lack of knowledge, intention,
Can be disavowed, if demonstrated
To lack understanding of consequences.
Protection of a husband or Father,
Or authority, caught in time, disavows.⬢
(*Numbers 30:2-3)
Sonnet for Tractate Nazir
Is there not enough to uphold? What more?
If one who denies himself wine is a sinner,
How much more so, an ascetic in all!
Why deny what God permitted and gave? (Numbers 6 : 1 to 21)
In the three pronouncements uttered in vows :
Straight forward, the Samson and lifelong vows :
What are the obligations in length and breadth?
And, what responsibilities, thus, entail?
The shaving of hair upon completion,
And ritual cleansing on termination,
Then narratives recount of dire dangers
Removed by vows which rescued from hostile strangers.
When and by whom, then, could vows be annuled?
When are they fulfilled, for life to begin anew?⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Sotah
In honor of Rabbi Levi New of the Montreal Torah Center: Rabbi Levi New taught more than four hundred sessions to impart the intricacies of this Tractate. The sessions are fortunately available on YouTube here.
The sacredness of marriage Is sublime;
Based on the sanctity of precious time.
For each moment is brought into account;
Recognizing, there is no room for doubt.
G-d did give us the treasure of pure souls;
How do we truly live with righteous goals?
A test had been devised, in time, set aside;
The tractate teaches for nothing to hide.
The first century’s era brought to life,
Roman legions who then did sow strife.
The era concludes, history meeting
KIng Agrippa’s public Torah reading.
And, the attributes of Talmudic sages
Are then demonstrated on the last pages.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Kiddushim
Kiddushin- betrothal is commitment,
Acknowledgement of a permanent union.
Its responsibility is fulfillment
Through gift, document, intimate union.
The covenant is attested by two witnesses;
As the pact between G-d and Israel,
Is a sacred bond, bound by promise,
As is witnessed by both heaven and earth.
The Chuppah, a physical manifestation,
Of the home to nurture a family,
Is incorporated into the Nissuin.
Not forgotten are slaves or animals.
Commitment does not have a recess, or pause.
All acts in a home reflect that commitment.
To cosmic ethical harmony.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Kiddushim
The civil law teachings of Baba Kama
Open the judicial portals of reason,
To intricately solve all cases
Of damages to property and persons.
Damages perpetrated are resolved
By levels of responsibility.
Damages committed by accident
Are different then those by intention.
An assessment is value calculated
By degree of injury and suffering,
By assessment of needs for recovery
With full account taken for lost wages.
Even embarrassment takes its toll,
Both emotional and physical, thus, all.⬢
( Bava Kama interprets Parsha Mishpatim, in Exodus, 21:18-37 and 22:1-14)
Sonnet for Tractate Bava Metzia
An ancient people in an ancient land
Received a barometer of morality;
And a thermometer of ethics at G-d’s command
Of Halakhot explained with practicality.
Rightful ownership through acquisition
Needs safeguards from misappropriation.
Owners of property give different mandates
For custodians to respect, or the owner litigates.
Exploitation of another is disrespect of your brother.
G-d gives all and usury hurts another.
How are risks and dangers assessed?
For craftsman, harvesters and lessees to feel blessed.
The letter of the law is to be applied;
But the spirit of the law must not be denied.⬢
Sonnet for Tractate Bava Batra
The scale of values in each transaction
In Bava Batra exemplifies dignity,
Given to each person in property
Exchanges and transfers of sales and wills.
The degree of adherence of respect,
Dependent on proper title, results
In weighing the evidence variables
In bills of sale, deeds of gifts and testaments.
From land and crop transfers to ship purchases;
To ensuring precise weights and measures
And designating public and private property
Also, with support for unmarried daughters.
Therefore, the need for clarity in deeds
Bodes respect for the will of signatories.⬢