Talmud - Shabbat 115a שבת קט״ו א׳

trimming vegetables is permitted. And Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: If Yom Kippur occurs on a weekday, one may crack nuts and remove pomegranate seeds from the late afternoon and onward, because doing so involves no actual labor and due to anxiety, i.e., if a person does not know that there is food prepared for when the fast ends, he suffers more during the final hours of the day (Rabbi Zeraḥia HaLevi). The Gemara relates: The members of Rav Yehuda’s house would trim cabbage. The members of Rabba’s house would scrub gourds. Once Rabba saw that they were doing this early, before the late afternoon, he said to them: A letter came from the West, i.e., from Eretz Yisrael, in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan, saying that doing so is prohibited.

MISHNA: With regard to all sacred writings, one may rescue them from the fire on Shabbat, whether they are read in public, e.g., Torah or Prophets scrolls, or whether they are not read in public, e.g., Writings scrolls. This ruling applies even though they were written in any foreign language. According to the Rabbis, those scrolls are not read in public, but they are still sacred and require burial. And why does one not read the Writings on Shabbat? Due to suspension of Torah study in the study hall. People came to the study hall at specific times on Shabbat to hear words of halakha, and other texts were not allowed at those times.

GEMARA: It was stated that amora’im debated the status of sacred writings written in Aramaic translation or in any other language. Rav Huna said: One may not rescue them from the fire on Shabbat. And Rav Ḥisda said: One may rescue them from the fire on Shabbat. The Gemara adds: According to the one who said that sacred writings written in other languages may be read, everybody agrees that one may rescue them. Where they argue is according to the one who said that they may not be read. Rav Huna said: One may not rescue them, as they may not be read. Whereas Rav Ḥisda said: One may rescue them due to disgrace to sacred writings that will result. We learned in the mishna: With regard to all sacred writings, one may rescue them from the fire on Shabbat whether they are read in public or whether they are not read in public, even if they are written in any foreign language. What, is it not that the phrase: “That they are read” is referring to the books of the Prophets, and the phrase: “That they are not read” is referring to the Writings? Even though these are books written in any foreign language, which may not be read, it is taught that one may save them. This then is a conclusive refutation of the opinion of Rav Huna.

Rav Huna could have said to you: And do you understand the mishna that way? Say the latter clause of the mishna, which states: They require burial. This is unnecessary, as now, that it was mentioned that we rescue them from the fire, is it necessary to say that they require burial? Rather, the mishna must be emended. Rav Huna reconciles the mishna in accordance with his reasoning, and Rav Ḥisda reconciles the mishna in accordance with his reasoning. Rav Huna reconciles this in accordance with his reasoning: Whether they are read is referring to the Prophets, and whether they are not read is referring to the Writings. In what case is this statement said? It is in a case where they are written in the holy tongue, but if they are not written in Hebrew but in any other language, they are not rescued from the fire on Shabbat, and even so, they require burial. Rav Ḥisda reconciles the mishna in accordance with his reasoning: Whether they are read is referring to the Prophets, and whether they are not read is referring to the Writings, even if they are written in any language other than Hebrew, they are also rescued. And this is what the mishna is saying: And even the decayed sections of parchment require burial.

The Gemara raises an objection from that which was taught in a baraita: If they were written in Aramaic translation or in any language other than Hebrew, they are rescued from the fire on Shabbat. And this is a conclusive refutation of the opinion of Rav Huna, who states that these are not rescued. Rav Huna could have said to you: This tanna holds that sacred writings not written in Hebrew may be read, whereas Rav Huna stated his ruling in accordance with the opinion of the tanna who holds that they may not be read, and therefore may not be rescued. Come and hear another proof from that which was taught in a different baraita: Sacred writings that were written in Coptic, Egyptian; Median; Ivrit, i.e., ancient Hebrew script; Eilamitic; or Greek are rescued from the fire on Shabbat, even though they may not be read. This is a conclusive refutation of the opinion of Rav Huna, who holds that they are not rescued. Rav Huna could have said to you: This is a dispute between tanna’im, as it was taught in a baraita: If they were written in Aramaic translation or in any language other than Hebrew, one may rescue them from the fire on Shabbat. Rabbi Yosei says: One may not rescue them from the fire.

Rabbi Yosei said: There was an incident involving my father, Ḥalafta, who went to the esteemed Rabban Gamliel of Yavne in Tiberias, where he found him sitting at the table of Yoḥanan HaNazuf and in his hand there was a translation of the book of Job, and he was reading from it. Yoḥanan said to Rabban Gamliel of Yavne: I remember Rabban Gamliel, your father’s father, who was standing on top of a step on the Temple Mount. And they brought before him a translation of the book of Job, and he said to the builder: Bury this book under the course of bricks. When he heard of that incident, Rabban Gamliel of Yavne ordered that it be buried and he buried it. Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Yehuda, says that on the Temple Mount they overturned a large bowl of mortar on it. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi said: There are two responses to this that prove that it did not happen: One, from where would they get mortar on the Temple Mount? Construction on the Temple Mount was performed with other materials, not with mortar. And furthermore, is it permitted to actively destroy even sacred writings that are not read, with one’s hands? Rather, at the very least they leave them in a neglected place, where they are likely to decompose quickly, and they decay on their own. The Gemara seeks to clarify: Who are the tanna’im who dispute this halakha according to Rav Huna?

Traduction : The William Davidson digital edition of the Koren Noé Talmud, with commentary by Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz.

Shabbat 115a discusses preparing food before Yom Kippur ends and the laws of rescuing sacred scrolls, even in foreign languages, from fire on Shabbat.