Chapter Three

Visible layers

Hebrew

ב רַבִּי חֲנִינָא סְגַן הַכֹּהֲנִים
אוֹמֵר: הֱוֵי מִתְפַּלֵּל בִּשְׁלוֹמָהּ
שֶׁל מַלְכוּת, שֶׁאִלְמָלֵא מוֹרָאָהּ,
אִישׁ אֶת רֵעֵהוּ חַיִּים בְּלָעוֹ. רַבִּי
חֲנִינָא בֶּן תְּרַדְיוֹן אוֹמֵר: שְׁנַיִם
שֶׁיּוֹשְׁבִין וְאֵין בֵּינֵיהֶם דִּבְרֵי
תּוֹרָה,1 הֲרֵי זֶה מוֹשַׁב לֵצִים,
שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וּבְמוֹשַׁב לֵצִים לֹא
יָשָׁב. אֲבָל שְׁנַיִם שֶׁיּוֹשְׁבִין וְיֵשׁ
בֵּינֵיהֶם דִּבְרֵי תּוֹרָה, שְׁכִינָה
שְׁרוּיָה בֵּינֵיהֶם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: אָז
נִדְבְּרוּ יִרְאֵי יְיָ אִישׁ אֶל רֵעֵהוּ,
וַיַּקְשֵׁב יְיָ וַיִּשְׁמָע, וַיִּכָּתֵב סֵפֶר
זִכָּרוֹן לְפָנָיו לְיִרְאֵי יְיָ וּלְחֹשְׁבֵי
שְׁמוֹ. אֵין לִי אֶלָּא שְׁנַיִם, מִנַּיִן
אֲפִילוּ אֶחָד שֶׁיּוֹשֵׁב וְעוֹסֵק
בַּתּוֹרָה שֶׁהַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא
קוֹבֵעַ לוֹ שָׂכָר, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: יֵשֵׁב
בָּדָד וְיִדֹּם כִּי נָטַל עָלָיו.

Sephardi

2 Rabbi Chanina s'gan haKohanim
omer: hevei mitpallel bi-shlomah
shel malchut, she-ilmale mora'ah,
ish et re'ehu chayim bela'o. Rabbi
Chanina ben Teradyon omer: sh'nayim
she-yoshvin ve-ein beineihem divrei
Torah,1 harei zeh moshav leitzim,
shene'emar: u-vemoshav leitzim lo
yashav. Aval sh'nayim she-yoshvin v'yesh
beineihem divrei Torah, Shechinah
sh'ruyah beineihem, shene'emar: az
nidberu yirei Adonai ish el re'ehu,
vayakshev Adonai vayishma, vayikatev sefer
zikaron lefanav le-yir'ei Adonai u-lechoshvei
shemo. Ein li ela sh'nayim, minayin
afilu echad she-yoshev ve-osek
baTorah she-haKadosh Baruch Hu
kovea lo sachar, shene'emar: yeshev
badad ve-yidom ki natal alav.

English

2 Rabbi Chanina, the head assistant of the High Priest, says: Pray for the well-being and success of the government, because if not for fear of government, people would swallow each other alive. Rabbi Chanina ben Teradyon says: If two people sit together and no words of Torah are discussed between them,1 it is considered to be a gathering of jokers, and God does not dwell there. As it says in Psalms: A righteous person does not sit among a gathering of jokers. But if two people sit together and words of Torah are discussed between them, the Divine Presence rests amongst them, as it says in Malachi: Then the people who fear the Lord spoke words of Torah one to another, and God paid attention and heard, and their words were written in a book of remembrance before Him, in order to reward those who fear the Lord and think about His Name—His Torah. From this verse we know only that the Divine Presence rests among two people who discuss Torah. From where do we know that if even one person sits by himself and occupies himself with Torah the Holy One, blessed be He, sets a reward for him? From a verse in Lamentations, where it says: Let him sit alone and study Torah quietly, because for doing so he can take a reward for himself.

Hebrew

ג רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹמֵר: שְׁלֹשָׁה
שֶׁאָכְלוּ עַל שֻׁלְחָן אֶחָד,2 וְלֹא
אָמְרוּ עָלָיו דִּבְרֵי תּוֹרָה, כְּאִלּוּ

Sephardi

3 Rabbi Shimon omer: sh'loshah
she-achlu al shulchan echad,2 v'lo
amru alav divrei Torah, ke'ilu

English

3 Rabbi Shimon says: If three people ate together at the same table2 and did not speak words of Torah upon it, it is as if they ate from sacrifices offered to idols that are made of dead, physical material. As it says in Isaiah: If a meal

Hebrew

אָכְלוּ מִזִּבְחֵי מֵתִים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר:
כִּי כָּל שֻׁלְחָנוֹת מָלְאוּ קִיא
צוֹאָה בְּלִי מָקוֹם. אֲבָל שְׁלֹשָׁה
שֶׁאָכְלוּ עַל שֻׁלְחָן אֶחָד וְאָמְרוּ
עָלָיו דִּבְרֵי תּוֹרָה, כְּאִלּוּ אָכְלוּ
מִשֻּׁלְחָנוֹ שֶׁל מָקוֹם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר:
וַיְדַבֵּר אֵלַי, זֶה הַשֻּׁלְחָן אֲשֶׁר
לִפְנֵי יְיָ.

Sephardi

achlu mizivchei metim, shene'emar:
ki kol shulchanot mal'u ki
tzo'ah beli makom. Aval sh'loshah
she-achlu al shulchan echad ve'amru
alav divrei Torah, ke'ilu achlu
mishulchano shel Makom, shene'emar:
vaydaber elai, zeh ha-shulchan asher
lifnei Adonai.

English

consists only of physical pleasure, and there is no mention of God, then all the tables are filled with vomit and waste. But if three people ate at the same table and spoke words of Torah upon it, it is as if they ate from God's table, as it says in Ezekiel regarding the Golden Table in the Holy Temple, "And he said to me, 'This is the table that is before the Lord.'" Any table upon which words of God's Torah are spoken is considered God's table.

Hebrew

ד רַבִּי חֲנִינָא בֶּן חֲכִינַאי אוֹמֵר:
הַנֵּעוֹר בַּלַּיְלָה, וְהַמְהַלֵּךְ בַּדֶּרֶךְ
יְחִידִי, וּמְפַנֶּה לִבּוֹ לְבַטָּלָה,
הֲרֵי זֶה מִתְחַיֵּב בְּנַפְשׁוֹ.

Sephardi

4 Rabbi Chanina ben Chachinai omer:
hane'or ba-lailah, ve-hamehalech baderech
yechidi, u-mefaneh libo le-vatalah,
harei zeh mitchayev be-nafsho.

English

4 Rabbi Chanina ben Chachinai says: One who stays awake at night or one who travels alone on a road, and turns his heart to worthless things instead of thinking about Torah, is responsible for anything bad that happens to him, because studying Torah would have helped protect him from danger.

Hebrew

ה רַבִּי נְחוּנְיָא בֶּן הַקָּנָה אוֹמֵר:
כָּל הַמְקַבֵּל עָלָיו עוֹל תּוֹרָה,3
מַעֲבִירִין מִמֶּנּוּ עוֹל מַלְכוּת
וְעוֹל דֶּרֶךְ אֶרֶץ, וְכָל הַפּוֹרֵק
מִמֶּנּוּ עוֹל תּוֹרָה, נוֹתְנִין עָלָיו
עוֹל מַלְכוּת וְעוֹל דֶּרֶךְ אֶרֶץ.

Sephardi

5 Rabbi Nechunya ben Hakanah omer:
kol hamekabel alav ol Torah,3
ma'avirin mimenu ol malchut
ve-ol derech eretz, vechol haporek
mimenu ol Torah, notnin alav
ol malchut ve-ol derech eretz.

English

5 Rabbi Nechunya ben Hakanah says: Whoever accepts upon himself the yoke of learning and supporting Torah,3 God removes the yoke and oppression of government and the yoke and worry of worldly affairs from him. Whoever removes the yoke of Torah from himself, God places the yoke of government and the yoke of worldly affairs upon him.

Hebrew

ו רַבִּי חֲלַפְתָּא בֶּן דּוֹסָא אִישׁ
כְּפַר חֲנַנְיָא אוֹמֵר: עֲשָׂרָה
שֶׁיּוֹשְׁבִין וְעוֹסְקִין בַּתּוֹרָה,
שְׁכִינָה שְׁרוּיָה בֵּינֵיהֶם,
שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: אֱלֹהִים נִצָּב בַּעֲדַת
אֵל. וּמִנַּיִן אֲפִילוּ חֲמִשָּׁה,
שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַאֲגֻדָּתוֹ עַל אֶרֶץ

Sephardi

6 Rabbi Chalafta ben Dosa ish
Kfar Chananya omer: asarah
she-yoshvin ve-oskin baTorah,
Shechinah sh'ruyah beineihem,
shene'emar: Elohim nitzav ba-adat
El. U-minayin afilu chamishah,
shene'emar: va-agudato al eretz

English

6 Rabbi Chalafta ben Dosa from Kfar Chananya says: If ten people sit and are involved in Torah learning, the Divine Presence rests among them. As it says in Psalms: God stands in the congregation of God. The Divine Presence rests among ten people—a congregation—when they learn Torah. From where do we know that the Divine Presence rests even among five people who learn Torah together? From a verse in Amos, where it says: God established His bundle on the earth and He rests upon it. A bundle, carried with the five fingers of the hand, corresponds to