Ideas and Model Lessons in Learning Rashi-#7
Copyright RashiYomi Inc 2004 Adapted From Rashi-is-Simple http://www.RashiYomi.Com/
Written by Dr. Russell Jay Hendel;
A: REVIEW
This is the 7-th in a 30 part series on the Methods that are useful for teaching Rashi. Parts 1 - 6 may be accessed on the Rashi website at http://www.Rashiyomi.com/ in the workbook series. Part 1 contains useful information on our notation and methods - to best understand this issue the reader should be familiar with our conventions.

B: THE MEANING METHODS
Part 5 began a 3-4 part subseries reviewing the 10 Rashi methods for explaining meaning. The background and examples provided by Part 5 will also be extremely useful for understanding this issue.

C: THE UNIFIED MEANING METHOD
Rashi will frequently show the unifying meaning behind a word. Rashi may simply take a known word which is thought to have disparate meanings and translate it slightly differently thereby showing an underlying unity. Alternatively Rashi may take a known word which is thought to have one meaning and translate it slightly differently thereby enriching our understanding of the Biblical text.

D: EXAMPLE 1 - The Root YaDaH
We illustrate the unified meaning method by using the Biblical root YaDaH. We present the example at 3 student levels. Recall first that the Hebrew root YaDaH is traditionally translated as to know.
The (Very) Advanced Level:
Ask the student to find many verses and/or Rashis on the root YaDaH. Rashi proposes a different translation to the Hebrew root YaDaH. What is this new proposed translation? Does it fit the verses better? Illustrate.
The Intermediate Level
Review the dozen or so Rashis listed below commenting on the Hebrew Biblical root YaDaH. Rashi proposes a different translation to the Hebrew root YaDaH. What is this new proposed translation? Does it fit the verses better? Illustrate.
The Rashis on YaDaH are as follows:
- Ex18-11a Gn18-19a Dt29-03a Dt34-10a
- Gn12-11a Gn42-23a Ex01-08b Gn19-05a
- Ex02-25a Ex03-07a Gn22-12c Nu11-16b Ex16-06b
Some of these Rashis are a bit more explicit than the other Rashis on the proposed new meaning of YaDaH.
Identify which Rashis are pivotal in identifying the new meaning.
The Elementary Level:
Review the 13 Rashis commenting on the Hebrew root YaDaH listed above. These Rashis suggest that a better translation of the Biblical root YaDaH would be the English words familiar or appreciate. Using the 13 verses involved show that familiar and appreciate do sound better as translations than to know. Only some of these 13 Rashis explicitly advocate a translation of familiarity and appreciate. Identify these pivotal Rashis.
E: YaDaH means Familiar: Dt34-10a
Rashi translates the Biblical root YaDaH as meaning familiar rather than know. Here are sample Biblical verses with explicit Rashi:
The Biblical Text- Dt34-10a
There did not arise again a prophet in Israel like Moses that God knew face to face
The Rashi Text
The Biblical phrase that God knew refers to the fact that Moses was familiar with God---he could go in and speak to Him whenever he felt like.

F: YaDaH means Familiar: Gn18-19a
Another example where Rashi explicitly identifies YaDaH with familiarity occurs in
The Biblical Text Gn18-19a
[The Biblical text is discussing the whether God will inform Abraham about the destruction of Sedom and Amorah. The text states...] For I, God, will familiarize him [about the destruction] in order that he be [better] able to instruct his descendants
Rashi Text
The Biblical word YaDaH, has a nuance of emotional familiarity [literally endearment]. Another example--where YaDaH means familiar---occurs in Ru02-01---the phrase --- a familiar to her husband refers to relatives Another example is Ex33-17 when God says to Moses, And I will be familiar with you by name. However the main nuance [of YaDaH] is knowledge since endearment manifests itself in knowing the person
Hence I have translated Rashi's idea of knowledge-endearment as familiarity since familiarity fulfills Rashis criteria of YaDaH meaning both knowledge and endearment. Notice that the translation of YaDaH as familiar also makes sense and fits right in the two verses cited by Rashi [relative=a familiar; know by name=be familiar]
This process of finding an English word like familiarity which shares nuances with other concepts like knowledge and endearment is called finding a unifying semantic model. An advanced skill in understanding Rashi is the ability to find succinct semantic models for translation of words.
This approach to Rashi---understanding Rashi using succinct unifying semantic models---was in fact a major contribution of my article PeShat and Derash published in Tradition in Winter 1980.

F: SOLUTION TO THE THREE STUDENT LEVELS
We have already answered most of the questions:
- YaDaH is better translated as Familiar rather than to know
- Some sample verses are as follows
---- Ru02-01: Relative = a Familiar
---- Gn18-19a: I will familiarize Abraham with the reasons for the destruction so that
he can more properly command his children about Gods ways
---- Dt34-10a: There never again arose a prophet in Israel like Moses who was familiar with God
- The Rashis on Dt32-10a and Gn18-19a are pivotal and crucial in explicitly identifying YDA=Familiar
- Other Rashis on YDA are best understood in light of the translation YDA=FAMILIAR explicitly
mentioned in Dt34-10a and Gn18-19a. For example
Dt29-03a states God did not give you the heart to be familiar or the eyes to see or the ears
to hear until today
- In all these verses the translation familiar is superior to the translation to know. The discovery of the English
word, familiar, is done by the process of finding a unifying semantic model.

G: EXAMPLE 2: QaDaX
We close with another example of the unified meaning method which is slightly different in character to the YDA example. As usual we present the example at 3 student levels
The advanced level
Either thru use of a Biblical Concordance or a Biblical search Engine find all meanings of the root Kuph-Daleth-Cheth. How many meanings are there? What is the unifying theme? How are they unified?
The intermediate Level
Review the following 4 verses which all contain the Biblical root Kuph-Daleth-Cheth: Is64-01, Dt32-32a, Lv26-16c, Is54-12.. How many meanings are there? What is the unifying theme? How are they unified.
The elementary level
The Biblical root QDX has 3 meanings: a) Spark, b) Aches, c) A Precious-Stone. You may find examples of these 3 meanings in the verses above. Construct a unifying semantic model. How does this unifying model unite the diverse meanings.
Note: Unlike many other Rashi techniques, the unified meaning method requires a facility with nuances of words. It requires an excellent command of the native language. Not every student may find this method easy---it is less mechanical than the other Rashi methods.

H: SOLUTION TO THE THREE STUDENT LEVELS
The root QDX has a fundamental unified meaning of sparks. The concept of sparks shares similarity with aches and precious stones based on the mode of perception: Indeed,
- a precious stone appears to be SPARKling (note the English use of the spark-stone connection)
- an throbbing ache feels like sparks
Unlike YDA, where we suggested a new meaning -- familiar vs know -- and this new suggested unifying meaning applied to all examples, here, with QDX, we retain the original meaning of spark. However sparks can mean different things depending on the mode of perception: In the visual sphere precious stones look like sparks while in the feeling sphere, sparks and aches are similar.

I: THE Rashi WEBSITE AS A RESOURCE
If you wanted to do research on a possible unified meaning you would
- visit the Rashi website.
- You would navigate to the LIST page at http://www.Rashiyomi.com/lists.htm.
- Then you would click the Edit item on the top menu.
- You would then click the Find submenu item.
-You could do a search for UNIFIED MEANING or else for sparks.
- In the WORD MEANINGS--UNIFIED MEANING part of the lists page you could find unified explanations of many Biblical roots.
- You would find a list with the meanings of QDX. By clicking on the list link you would visit
- http://www.Rashiyomi.com/h23n8.htm#LIST863h where you would find the above examples.

J: THE RADACK RESOURCE
We mention in passing that a great resource to do research on meaning is the Book of Roots written by great Jewish grammarian RADACK. This resource will present all meanings of a root and facilitate discovery of the unified meaning.

K: RASHI AND UNIFIED MEANING
One of the ways Rashi differed from other Biblical commentators is the emphasis on unified meaning. That is Rashi will frequently prefer a single unified explanation while other commentators might prefer translating a word using 2-3 unrelated meanings. Although the further presentation of examples and issue involved in this important methodological controversy are too technical to present here, we note the great utility in using lists in Bible study. The use of lists enables the student to take intelligent positions, backed up by sources, whenever an issue arises. Thus the use of lists is a critical method to the serious student.

L: HOMEWORK EXERCISES
For each of the roots below do the following with your students.
As mentioned many other exercises are available on the Rashi website. We have also already mentioned how difficult finding a unified meaning can be. We select two exercises which most students should be able to do at one of the three levels.
- If you seek an advanced level then ask the student to try and research all meanings and discover the unified meaning
- If you seek an intermeidate level then present the various meanings but ask the student to discover the unified meaning
- If you seek an elementary level then present the unified meaning. Ask the student to verify that this unified meaning gives a better explanation.
The two homework exercises are as follows:
EXAMPLE 3: Use root Ayin-Sin-Hey. The root can mean make, do, acquire, and fix. A list of meanings/Verses may be found on the Rashi website at http://www.Rashiyomi.com/h19n17.htm#LIST962f
EXAMPLE 4: Use root Mem-Hey-Resh. The word can mean hurry, skilled, foolish, dowry. A list of meanings/Verses may be found on the Rashi website at http://www.Rashiyomi.com/h20n2.htm#LIST862L