Rashi-Is-Simple Mailing List VISIT the RASHI DATABASE archives AT http://www.RashiYomi.com/ Surfing the Talmudic Seas (C) RashiYomi Incorporated, 2003 Written by Dr Russell Jay Hendel Volume 19 Number 3 For the WORD QUALITY HTML VERSION click here ----------------------------------- http://www.Rashiyomi.com/h19n3.htm ----------------------------------- Produced Aug 28th, 2003 WARNING: USE FIXED WIDTH FONTS (eg COURIER (NEW) 10) |
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | ||
Whats new and hot in this issue? | ||
ITEM | WHATS NEW & HOT IN THIS ISSUE | |
EXAGGERATION | Biblical examples of HYPERBOLE and BDELYGMIA | |
Rashi Problem | Why is ENGAGED called WINTERIZED? See Below |
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(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | |||
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VERSE | RULE | BRIEF DESCRIPTION | |
======== | =============== | ======================================= | |
Lv19-20a | WORD MEANINGS | EXAGGERATION:Body=single;Cold=engaged | |
Ex21-03a | WORD MEANINGS | EXAGGERATION:Body=single;Cold=engaged | |
Lv14-37a | WORD MEANINGS | Shin-Kaph-Ayin-Resh=SUNKEN-BRIGHT | |
Ex21-25a | CLIMAX | Broken-arm::Pain::ALL TORT TYPES | |
Lv15-03a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Lv14-41a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Lv11-35a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Ex31-18a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Lv02-05a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Lv02-07a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Lv13-02a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Lv13-02b | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Dt24-06a | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
Dt24-06b | WORD MEANINGS | Spill-ooze::Cut-Sandpaper::Oven-Stove | |
--------- | ---------------- | ----------------------------------- |
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VERSE: Lv19-20a
RASHIS COVERED: Lv19-20a Ex21-03a
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | ||
SUCCINCT SUMMARY ---------------- One of Rashis 6 main goals is explaining meaning, the same way the dictionary explains meaning. Rashi had a variety of vehicles to explain meaning. Today we focus on explaining meaning by EXAGGERATION. For example BREAKFAST refers to the day-s first meal; it is the meal where you BREAK your FAST. Here are some Biblical examples. EXAMPLE 1 --------- Ex21-03 If he comes IN-HIS-BODY RASHI: IN-HIS-BODY-ONLY--that is, single EXAMPLE 2 --------- Lv19-20a If she is WINTERED to a man RASHI: WINTERED--that is engaged (COLD vs the warmth of marriage with full relations) | ||
ITEM | DETAIL | |
RASHI RULE CLASS: | WORD MEANINGS | |
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS | EXAGGERATION | |
RASHI WORKBOOK PRINCIPLE | #7 | |
SEE BELOW | LIST972a | |
Words whose meaning | shows exaggeration |
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | |||
A list of words whose meanings illustrate exaggeration. The classical example is BREAKFAST--break your fast*1 | |||
VERSE | TEXT OF VERSE | CAPPED TERM MEANS.. | |
Ex21-03a | he comes in his BODY | BODY-ONLY=single | |
Lv19-20a | WINTERED to a man | Engaged vs Married | |
-------- | Skyscraper | Tall building | |
-------- | Breakfast | 1st meal of day | |
-------- | Hear a pin drop | Silence | |
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*1 EXAGGERATION is also called (possibly with some differences) as BDELYGMIA and HYPERBOLE. But the basic concept of EXAGGERATING is the same |
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VERSE: Ex21-25a
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | ||
SUCCINCT SUMMARY ---------------- Some Rashis focus on meaning and grammar of individual words. Other Rashis by contrast focus on overall PARAGRAPH STRUCTURE. The Rabbi Ishmael style rules afford us examples of paragraph development. The GENERALIZATION method suggests developing a basic theme by introducing the theme with examples which illustrate basic laws. EXAMPLE Ex21-24:25 ------------------ The paragraph is talking about BODILY DAMAGES - DETAIL: ORGAN DAMAGE: Eye, tooth, arm, leg - DETAIL: PAIN--------: Burn, cut, inflammation So we generalize from these 2 verses and infer that Damages are paid according to the various categories of damage such as pain or organ damage (Other categories of damage are MEDICAL, DISABILITY etc *10) | ||
ITEM | DETAIL | |
RASHI RULE CLASS: | STYLE | |
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS | BROAD | |
RASHI WORKBOOK PRINCIPLE | #23 | |
SEE BELOW | LIST401a | |
Verses interpreted | Broadly(Generalization) | |
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*10 The Rambam forumlates the same principle as follows - There are 5 dimensions of torts - - Permanant Organ damage - - Pain - - medical - - disability - - embarassment - When an act of damage is done you assess the - the amount of damage in each dimension and pay - accordingly (So if you gave a person a black eye - you pay for medical, embarassment and pain but - do not pay for permanant damage or disability develop |
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | |||
The following verses are all interpreted broadly. eg Ex21-26 says PAY DISABILITY FOR BEDRIDDEN (torts). This is generalized to ANY disability(BEDRIDDEN or NOT) | |||
VERSE | TEXT OF VERSE | GENERALIZATION | |
Nu05-13g | She wasnt GRABBED | wasnt RAPED | |
Ex21-18b | Tort on BEDRIDDEN | DISABILITY | |
Ex21-26a | Free if TOOTH fell | VISIBLE ORGAN | |
Ex21-28a | Tort if OX gores | ANIMAL | |
Ex21-17a | Death:FEMALE witch | FEMALE or MALE | |
Ex22-30b | FIELD animal trayf | WOUNDED animal | |
Ex22-21a | dont hurt ORPHANS | ANGUISHED person | |
Dt22-23a | FIELD rape | HIDDEN place | |
Dt23-11a | NOCTURNAL emission | EMISSION | |
Dt13-07f | temps you PRIVATLY | PRIVATE|PUBLIC | |
Dt25-04a | Dont muzzle an OX | ANIMAL | |
------- | ----------------- | --------------- | |
Dt22-02a | Return lost items | People you know personally*1 | |
Ex21-25a | Pay for eye,burn.. | Pay for each damage type*2 | |
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*1 This is a generalization from two verses, as follows -Ex23-04 Return the lost article of your PERSONAL ENEMY -Dt22-01:03 Return the lost article of your PERSONAL FRIEND So you return ANY article whether of your PERSONAL ENEMY or your PERSONAL FRIEND--as you long as you know the person PERSONALLY. The law however exempts you from returning the article to a known thief (a non PERSONAL enemy) who might be guessing the lost objects signs*10 *2 Ex21-24 lists 4 types of ORGAN damage:Eye,tooth,arm,leg Ex21-25 lists 3 types of PAIN damage:burn,cut,inflammation Hence we infer that in paying damage you pay for EACH type of damage *11 | |||
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*10 Several points should be made here FIRST POINT: - Ex23-04 uses the word YOUR ENEMY - Dt22-01:03 uses the word BROTHER 5 times So the real generalization is from YOUR ENEMY & BROTHER So everyone FROM your enemy TO your brother gets articles returned. This would exclude people you dont really know who might be guessing signs. Jewish law goes into the subtlety of someone whom you dont know either as your BROTHER or ENEMY. 2nd POINT: We mention Rashis literal language ------------------------------------------ The verse says return the object AFTER YOUR BROTHER ASKS. But no would return it before they are asked for it So read the verse as follows; Return the objects until you ASK ABOUT YOUR BROTHER--investigate him ------------------------------------------- Thus it appears that Rashi is deriving the law from a pun. (ASK ABOUT YOUR BROTHER vs YOUR BROTHER ASKS) But the truth of the matter is that Rashi is deriving the law from the generalization and contrast of verses. Rashi as is his usual custom expresses this technical derivation in a PUNchy PUNny manner (so students will remember it). 3rd POINT The main point in Rashi is that the two verses have to be generalized. The details of how this generalization takes place are subject to Talmudic discussion. In this case the Talmud and Rashi take an obvious approach of excluding people (thiefs) who we would not expect the law to cater to. But the main thrust of Rashi is the generalization from two verses--the details must be inferred. *11 Already Rashi points out that CUTS involve both PAIN and ORGAN damage (removal of skin). One cannot derive the 5 categories of damage from this verse (The other 3 categories, disability, medical and embarassment are each inferred from separate verses |
*#*#*# (C) RashiYomi Inc., 2003, Dr. Hendel, President #*#*#*#*#
VERSE: Lv14-37a
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | ||
SUCCINCT SUMMARY ---------------- One of Rashis 6 main goals is to explain word meanings the same way dictionaries explain word meanings. In explaining the meaning of roots Rashi very often used a one-letter and two-letter root theory. As I have explained numerous times Rashi DID believe in the Grammatical theory of 3 letter roots as we know them today. However Rashi held that this was a theory of ROOT CONJUGATION. Additionally Rashi believed in a totally different approach to ROOT MEANING. ROOT MEANING is governed by 2-letter roots. EXAMPLE ------- Shin-Kaph-Ayin-Resh refers to house stains that appear SUNKEN (Shin-Kaph-Ayin) and BRIGHT(Ayin-Resh) Hence it refers to a permanant fungus-type stain that has infected the house. | ||
ITEM | DETAIL | |
RASHI RULE CLASS: | WORD MEANINGS | |
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS | 2-4 LETTER ROOTS | |
RASHI WORKBOOK PRINCIPLE | #7 | |
------------------------ | -------------------------------- | |
SEE BELOW | LIST910b | |
List of roots | With 4 letters (2 sets of 2) |
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | |||||
List of 4 Letter roots in Rashi and their meanings. The meaning of the list should be clear (eg Gn49-12a contains the word CChLiLi which means DRUNKEN. The concept of DRUNKENNESS is clearly related to SWIRLING (LL) from the PALATE (CCh) activities. Other rows are interpreted similarly.) | |||||
VERSE | HEBREW | MEANS | 1st ROOT | 2nd ROOT | |
Dt07-13b | ASHTAROTH | Wealthy | Makes(AS) | Rows(TR) (of Cattle) | |
Gn49-12a | C Ch L L | Drunken | Swirling (LL) | From Palate(ChC) | |
Ex25-04b | Ar G MN | Purple | Woven(ARg) | For Appointed people(MN) | |
Gn41-45a | T Zv N Th | Wise | Brings out(POA) | the hidden (TzFn) | |
Lv16-08b | A Za Zel | Cliff | Going off (AZL) | to Hard Ground(AZ) | |
Lv14-37a | S-K-A-R | Infectd | Sunken(SKA) | Arousing(Bright)(AR) |
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VERSE: Lv15-03a
RASHIS COVERED:
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | ||
SUCCINCT SUMMARY ---------------- One of Rashis 6 main goals is the explanation of meanings, the same way the dictionary explains meaning. Rashi had a variety of vehicles to explain meaning. Today we focus on word pairs that belong to the same class but have some subtle nuance differentiating them. EXAMPLES -------- 1) Spill-ooze 2) Cut-sandpaper 3) Oven-stove 4) Pot-FryingPan 5) SnowWhite-CloudWhite 6) Top-Botton Grindstone 7) Vat-WashingTank Here is the point--it is easy to explain BOTH oven and stove as SOMETHING YOU COOK ON. The language you are using may not even have words for different types of COOKING UTENSILS. Rashis job is to give the finer nuances (OVEN vs STOVE). Similarly SPILL and OOZE are examples of LIQUIDS going out. Rashis job is to give nuances | ||
ITEM | DETAIL | |
RASHI RULE CLASS: | WORD MEANINGS | |
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS | NUANCES | |
RASHI WORKBOOK PRINCIPLE | #7 | |
SEE BELOW | LIST955a | |
List of Word pairs | belonging to the same class(oven:stove) |
(C) Dr Hendel, Jan-03 | ||||
List of Biblical word pairs which belong to the same class but differ in some nuance (eg SPILL-OOZE) | ||||
VERSE | WORD | BASIC IDEA | NUANCES | |
Lv15-03a | R-R | To SPILL | To OOZE out*1 | |
Lv14-41a | YQTzA | To CUT | To SANDPAPER*2 | |
Lv11-35a | KIRaIM | STOVES | OVEN*3 | |
Lv02-05a | MChVT | Pots | FRYING-PAN:Pot*4 | |
Lv02-07a | MRChST | Pots | FRYING-PAN:Pot*4 | |
Lv13-02a | SAYTH | White | SNOW-WHITE:CLOUD-WHITE*5 | |
Lv13-02b | BHRT | White | SNOW-WHITE:CLOUD-WHITE*5 | |
Dt24-06a | RChIM | Grindstone | Bottom Grindstone:Top Grindstone*6 | |
Dt24-06b | RCV | Grindstone | Bottom Grindstone:Top Grindstone*6 | |
Ex31-18a | KIYOR | BASIN | Vat:Sprinkler*7 | |
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*1 This root occurs very infrequently We have - Lv15-03a oozing (RR) of sexual secretions - 1S21-14 (Spittle) - Jb06-06(Oozing of plants or spittle) *2 Thus YQTziA doesnt just refer to ANY CUTTING but rather to SANDPAPERING. Hence this root can also refer to CORNERS and EDGES (which get their distinctness from being SANDPAPERED) *3 I used an English analogy. Actually TNUR vs CIRaYIM seem to refer to a ONE-burner vs a TWO-Burner hot plate. I am not actually sure on all details*10 *4 Both of these are pots. One is shallow--the type used for frying. The other is deep--the type used for rich cooking*10 *5 These are two shades of white. I dont know if analogies exist in English (CLOUD-WHITE or SNOW-WHITE vs MARBLE WHITE)*10 *6 I dont believe English has technical terms for the TOP vs the Bottom grindstone*10 *7 Again there are no English words. The Kaph-Vuv-Resh refers to a VAT that can hold about 200 Gallons By contrast the Kaph-Yud-Vuv-Resh refers to a hugh TANK of water with faucet holes. This TANK was used to wash hands and legs in the temple (The water sprinkled out of the holes and washed the person) | ||||
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*10 I believe Rashis basic thrust in all these verses is explaining items that are ALMOST similar in meaning but have some subtle nuance (Like STOVE OVEN). However Rashi goes further and gives etymologies of some of these words eg - SeAyTh = CLOUD WHITE (From NaSiH=cloud) - MaChaVath= FRYING PAN (Has a rim that HIDES(Cheth-Bet) - MaRCheSeth= Deep Cooking Pan(food BUBBLES (RaChSh)) - RCV=Top Grindstone that RIDES(RCV) on the other grindstone There are more etymologies; some of these have been discussed elsewhere. I believe these are the basic ones. |
*#*#*# (C) RashiYomi Inc., 2003, Dr. Hendel, President #*#*#*#*#