תלמוד בבלי מסכת ראש השנה דף ב עמוד א

ארבעה – ראשי שנים הם. באחד בניסן – ראש השנה למלכים ולרגלים, באחד באלול – ראש השנה למעשר בהמה. רבי אלעזר ורבי שמעון אומרים: באחד בתשרי. באחד בתשרי – ראש – השנה לשנים, ולשמיטין, וליובלות, לנטיעה, ולירקות. באחד בשבט – ראש השנה לאילן, כדברי בית שמאי, בית הלל אומרים: בחמשה עשר בו

Idea of diff. bet. שנה and חודש.

שנה is from language of repeating. To review. שני. Second time.

חודש is חידוש. Renews.

Every year repeats.

Every month renews.

Gemara says the argument between בית שמאי ובית הלל revolves around what day can we say that most of the rain of the season has fallen so that the sap in the tree begins to flow allowing the tree ability to start to grow new fruits.

ראש חודש שבט is ר”ה לאילנות acc. to בית שמאי. This is the day where there is a determination what we will be with the trees. Which trees will give a lot of fruit, a little fruit. Get enough rain not have enough rain. Good soil, good crop etc…

ב”ה holds not for another 2 weeks. טו בשבט = ר”ה לאילן לפי בית הלל

Why does it sayראש השנה לאילן it should say in plural – ר”ה לאילנות.

כי האדם עץ השדה – Idea of comparison man and a tree is fundamentally aspect of growth.

In the mishna all 4 ראשי שנים are compared to each other and so all have status somewhat of יום טוב.

This is time which is fighting to awaken life. Fruits are getting ready to come forth.

Ten weeks before יציאת מצרים is when the מכות began. On ר”ח שבט. Can start the ball rolling.

גאולה compared to tree sprouting.

ראש חודש שבט is ר”ה לאילנות and has another very important aspect. Says in torah דברים פרק א’

וַיְהִי בְּאַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה בְּעַשְׁתֵּי עָשָׂר חֹדֶשׁ בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ דִּבֶּר מֹשֶׁה אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה יְקֹוָק אֹתוֹ אֲלֵהֶם אַחֲרֵי הַכֹּתוֹ אֵת סִיחֹן מֶלֶךְ הָאֱמֹרִי אֲשֶׁר יוֹשֵׁב בְּחֶשְׁבּוֹן וְאֵת עוֹג מֶלֶךְ הַבָּשָׁן אֲשֶׁר יוֹשֵׁב בְּעַשְׁתָּרֹת בְּאֶדְרֶעִי בְּעֵבֶר הַיַּרְדֵּן בְּאֶרֶץ מוֹאָב הוֹאִיל מֹשֶׁה בֵּאֵר אֶת הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת לֵאמֹר:

בני יששכר writes this month is specifically מסוגל to be מחזק and מצליח in תורה שבעל פה. Moshe explains torah in different languages. Makes it very clear.

Turns out there is connection bet. ר”ה לאילן and תורה שבעל פה.

שבט comes after most of the rain has fallen and tree is now ready to sprout so too on ר”ח שבט a person has capacity to undertake and give birth to חידושי תורה שבעל פה.

דברים רבה פרשת דברים ד”ה ז

ד”א אלה הדברים, אתמול היה אומר לא איש דברים אנכי, ועתה אומר אלה הדברים, וא”ר אלעזר … אמר שלמה ‘מרפא לשון עץ חיים’ (משלי ט”ו ד’). א”ר אחא: אם לשונך חוכך אשון אותו בד”ת והוא מתרפא, צא ולמד ממשה שהיה פסילוס, ובשביל שנתעסק בתורה נתרפא לשונו, לא איש דברים אנכי, עכשיו הוא אומר אלה הדברים, הוי מרפא לשון עץ חיים”.

Medrash seems to be saying that Moshe is cured from his speech impediment only after he starts to say torah in דברים.

Question: If  Moshe taught Torah all 40 years in the desert. So why now does he get this cure. Answer is that till now was just a funnel for word of Hashem. שכינה מדברת מתוך גרונו של משה Now developing own ideas. Owns ways of explaining. Own language. Then he becomes cured of speaking ailment.

Chidushei Harim: שמאי – סוף תיבות ‘לא איש דברים אנכי’ while הילל – סוף תיבות ‘הוא יהיה לך לפה’.

Shamai is parallel to Moshe. Inability to speak represents is high spiritual status where things don’t have any borders. Not limited by speech (Maharal). While Hillel parallel to Aharon. The speaker, the one who brings defines things and brings them down into the world.

Another way of saying and explaining diff. Bet שמאי והלל is the difference between Potential and Reality כח ופועל

ראש חודש always represents the potential of that month. The 15^{th פועל}

^{Eight candles vs. One candle. What goes first.}

^{Last mishna – when is fish מקבל  טומאה. When they are caught or when they are dead.}

^{Honeycombs: when do they become considered as liquids which make other food fit to contract טומאה. בית שמאי – when one thinks about removing the honey. בית הלל – when one crushes the honeycomb.}

^{Better to be born or not to be born}

^{The School of Shammai, who highlights the potential, says that it is better for a person not to have been born, because the potential for personal fulfillment already exists in the spiritual realms. A person’s existence in this world is – at its best – merely an expression of his spiritual potential. This is essential to fulfill G-d’s purpose in creation, but “for a person,” i.e., from his own individual standpoint, it is preferable that he not have been created.}

^{The School of Hillel, who focuses on actual expression, maintains that it is through the descent into this world that a soul reaches the heights of fulfillment. For the observance of the Torah and its mitzvos on this material plane lifts a person to a level above its previous rung in the spiritual realms. Therefore, it is preferable for the person to have been born.}

^{We will follow שמאי during זמן משיח}

^{By Hashem the potential and actual are the same. When Hashem thinks it is. He is reality and potential in one. Are we keeping mitzvos from our perspective or from Hashem’s perspective.}

^{מלאכות שבת – See my shiur on מלאכות שבת and how the different מחלוקות ראשונים relate to the above מחלוקת.}

^{We are creatures of the actual. We cannot live on potential nourishment, or be emotionally satisfied by potential relationships; on the whole, we judge people by their actual conduct, as opposed to their potential to behave a certain way. Reality, to us, is what is, not what might be.}

^{The Torah}

^{Whose Torah is it, ours or G-d’s? Both Shammai and Hillel would agree that it is both.}

^{תורה שבכתב ותורה שבעל פה. Torah is both Hashem’s and ours.}

^{Idea of translating into 70 languages is to highlight and give קדושה to torah of any jew no matter where hes it and no matter what lang he speaks}

^{דור הפלגה all was one language split into many. Now the many is being split into one. The תורה combines and brings them together. As the jews are going into ארץ ישראל to conquer the nations they need to do this on spiritual plane so every language becomes made holy through בע’ לשון פירשה להם. Only now can they go into ארץ ישראל.}

^{ראש השנה לאילן – אילן גימטריא 91 Also סוכה גימ’ 91. And this is combination of 2 names of ה’.}

^{The name that represents completely unlimited potential while other name is the name of reality.}

^{If you have any questions on these notes please leave a comment and I’ll be glad to elaborate.}