Halakhah su Ecclesiaste 1:78

It was mid Friday night, the fourteenth day of the month of Tevet, in the year 4919,¹ Corresponding to Saturday, December 13, 1158 C.E. (Gregorian calendar). I, Abraham the Spaniard, known as “Ibn Ezra,”² “Ibn Ezra” was a family name; the name of Rabbi Abraham Ibn Ezra’s father was Me’ir. was in one of the cities of the island that is called “Edge of the Earth,”³ See Preface. which is in the seventh zone of the inhabited zones of the earth.⁴ The ancients divided the inhabited portion of the earth (the northern hemisphere), into seven zones, from south to north. The seventh zone is the northern-most zone, in which England lies. I was asleep and my sleep was sweet to me. I dreamt that what appeared to be a man stood before me with a sealed letter in his hand. He spoke up and said to me: “Take this letter that the Sabbath sends you.” I prostrated myself and bowed before God and I blessed the God who gave us the Sabbath for honoring me so. I took hold of the letter with both my hands and my hands dripped with myrrh. I read the letter and it was sweet as honey to my mouth. However, as I read the last lines my heart became agitated and my soul almost failed me. I asked the one who stood before me: “What is my iniquity and what is my sin? From the day that I knew the revered God who created me, and I learned his commandments, I have always loved the Sabbath. I would go out to greet her with a full heart even before she arrived, and I would send her forth when she departed with joy and song. Who among her servants is as faithful as I? Why did she send me this letter?” It read as follows:

"There is nothing new under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 1:9). The world in which the sun began its 207^th 28-year cycle is not new, but it is certainly vastly different from the world as it was at the beginning of earlier cycles within both human memory and recorded history. Heretofore, Birkat ha-Hammah was a little-noted event, marked by the otherwise observant but of only passing curiosity—if that—to others, and of no interest at all beyond the Jewish community. This time the event was celebrated in communities throughout the world by large assemblies of Jews and, in many locales, by throngs numbering in the thousands. Unlike former occasions, the media, including wire services, conducted interviews and published articles heralding the event.¹See, for example, JTA Condensed Edition, February 20, 2009, p. 3; Jewish Week, March 20, 2009, p. 3 and March 27, 2009, pp. 1 and 18-20; “Love the Earth? Bless the Sun,” Wall Street Journal, April 3, 2009, p. W11; and “A Jewish Holiday, Once Every 28 Years,” New York Times, April 3, 2009, p. A12, and “For Jews, Another 28 Years, Another Blessing of the Sun,” New York Times, April 7, 2009, p. A26. In preparation for the last such event in 1981 more Hebrew-language publications dealing with Birkat ha-Hammah appeared than in all of prior Jewish literary history. This time, in addition to expanded and enhanced editions of many of those works, a host of compendia and monographs were published well in advance of the event. Clearly, both interest in, and observance of, Jewish ritual in general, and of Birkat ha-Hammah in particular, are far more intense than in years gone by.

So the annual seasons are dependent on the sun; similarly the daily seasons.²⁰ The day is divided into quarters just as the year is. See the beginning of Gate 3. The truth is that the planets do not have the ability to affect the sun’s actions, only to add or diminish heat or cold. For the sun’s action is equivalent to the actions of all the others, since it is the largest created body,²¹ Scholars then believed that the sun was the largest created body in the universe. it is closest to the earth,²² There was discussion among medieval astronomers regarding the relative distances of the sun, Mercury, and Venus from the earth. Here Ibn Ezra accepts the view that, besides the moon, the sun is closer to earth than all other planets and stars. and it rules over daytime.

And if he transgressed and spoke lashon hara about his friend and came to repent, it [his repentance] depends upon this: If his friends rejected his words and his friend was in no way demeaned by this [lashon hara] in their eyes, if so, there adheres to him only the sin of "between man and his Maker" (and not that of between "man and his neighbor"), his having transgressed the will of the L–rd, who commanded this [that lashon hara must not be spoken], as we wrote above in the introduction. His correction is to regret what has passed, confess [his sin] and take it upon himself with a full heart not to repeat this [sin] in the future, as with all sins between man and his Maker. But if his friend were demeaned by this in the eyes of the hearers and through this suffered physical or financial harm, or if he were caused [emotional] pain by this, this is in the category of all the sins between man and his neighbor, which even Yom Kippur and the day of death do not atone for until he conciliates his neighbor. He must, therefore, ask pardon of his friend for this, and when he is conciliated and forgives him, there remains with him only the sin of between man and his Maker, and he must do as mentioned above. And even if his friend does not yet know anything about it, he must reveal what he did to him which was not in accordance with the din, and ask forgiveness of him for this, since he knows that through him this harm was done him. From this we can understand how much one must take care to guard himself from this pernicious trait [of lashon hara], for if one is steeped in this, G–d forbid, teshuvah [repentance] is almost impossible for him. For he certainly will not remember all of the souls whom he grieved by this lashon hara. And even those people whom he remembers as having stirred up evil against will not know of it, wherefore he will be ashamed to reveal it to them. And sometimes 54 he will speak of a family taint and thereby harm all the future generations, so that he can never be pardoned for this. As Chazal have said (Yerushalmi Bava Kamma 8:7): "One who speaks of a family taint never has atonement [for this]." Therefore, one must distance himself from this extremely pernicious trait, so that he not thereafter be, G–d forbid, [in the category of] "the crooked cannot be straightened" (Koheleth 1:15).

The truth is that Scripture mentions the heavens and the earth because they form one globe, with the heavens like the circumference and the earth like the point at the center.¹³ Ibn Ezra is of the opinion that the “heavens” spoken of in Genesis refer to the lower sky, the atmosphere that is immediately above the earth. Genesis does not speak of the spheres of planets and stars that encompass the earth. See Ibn Ezra’s commentary to Genesis 1:1–2. Now the earth was covered with water from all sides, as it is written “they will not return to cover the earth” (Psalms 104:9), and the wind surrounds the waters.¹⁴ Thus the lower world consists of four spheres, each one encompassing those below it. Their order from innermost to outermost is: earth, water, air, and fire. The ancients believed that everything in the lower world, the world below the moon’s sphere, is composed of four elements – fire, air, water, and earth. This lower world is the subject of Creation in the book of Genesis. These are the four elements, namely, the heavens, earth, wind and water, for the heavens correspond to fire. Similarly we find “To make a weight for the wind and He counted the waters by measure” (Job 28:25), “For He gazes to the edges of the earth, under all the heavens He sees” (ibid. 28:24). Similarly, “Who measured the waters with his fist and counted the heavens with a span, and all the dust of the earth in a measure… who counted the wind of God” (Isaiah 40:12–13). Again, “Who ascended to the heavens and descended” (Proverbs 30:4), and the other three follow the word “heavens.”¹⁵ The verse reads: “Who ascended to the heavens and descended, who gathered wind in his fists, who bound the waters in a garment, who erected the ends of earth” (Proverbs 30:4). Here again, the four basic elements are enumerated. Also, “The sun shines” (Ecclesiastes 1:5) corresponds to the heavens, “and the earth remains forever” (ibid. 1:4), “round and round goes the wind” (ibid. 1:6), “all the rivers go to the sea” (ibid. 1:7). Since the circumference, which is the heavens, and the center, which is the earth, were created, so too all that is between them was created.

The ideal time for praying the morning Amidah is at sunrise, as it is written: "So they will fear You when the sun shines."¹Psalms 72:5. Nevertheless, if you prayed after day-break, your obligation is fulfilled. The time for prayer continues until the [first] third of the day,²The day is reckoned from sunrise to sunset. Daybreak is approximately an hour and twenty minutes before sunrise. and must not be delayed longer. Nevertheless, if it so happened that you delayed longer, even intentionally, you may pray till noon. Even though the reward is not the same as when you pray at the proper time, you will still be rewarded for praying. If you willfully delayed until noon without praying, you can no longer make up for it, and concerning such a person it is said: "What is crooked cannot be made straight."³Ecclesiastes 1:5. Cases where the delay was unintentional or because of circumstances beyond control, will be discussed in Chapter 21.

“May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, The tongue that speaketh proud things!” (Ps. 12:4). He who relates evil gossip is regarded as if he had denied God,¹Arakhin 15a. for it is written after that, they “who have said: ‛Our tongue will we make mighty: Our lips are with us: who is our lord over us?’” (Ps. 12:5). Gossip, which knows no limit, see how powerful it is, and let us take a lesson from the “spies.”²They were sent by Moses to search out the Holy Land. (See Numbers 13 and Deuteronomy 1:22.) Even when one slanders wood and stones, which do not hear and see, there is concern for their shame, so much more when one slanders his neighbor who is created in the (divine) image and likeness, “What shall be given thee, and what shall be done more unto thee, Thou deceitful tongue” (Ps. 1:23). The Holy One, blessed be He has said to the tongue, “What shall I do to you? All of man’s limbs are from without, you are within. Moreover, I have made for you two walls, one of bone and one of flesh; of bone, the teeth; and of flesh, the lips.” “In the multitude of words there wanteth not transgression” (Prov. 10:19). A man should always increase (his) silence ³Maimonides, Hilkhoth Deoth, 2:4. and not speak at all, except (to indulge) in the words of the wise or in matters necessary for the needs of his body. It has been said of Rav, the student of Rabenu (Judah) the Pious, that in all his days he never indulged in idle talk.⁴Yoma 19b. All who indulge in ordinary talk transgress a positive commandment as it has been said, “And shalt talk of them (Deut. 6:7) and not in other matters.”⁵Ibid. And (we know) that a prohibition which has been derived by implication from a positive command is a positive command.⁶Yebamoth 56b. Others say, he violates both a prohibition and a positive command, as it is said, “all things toil to weariness; man cannot utter it …” (Eccl. 1:8). And even involving bodily needs, let his words not be excessive, but sparing, and concern only those matters which are deemed necessities.⁷Hagigah 5b. And so with words of Torah let a man’s talk be brief and the content great. For so have the scholars said, “let a man always teach his students by way of the short method.” ⁸Pesahim 3b. But if his words are many and the content meagre, it is then foolishness, as it is written, “And a fool’s voice through a multitude of words” (Eccl. 5:2). A safeguard to wisdom is silence.⁹Aboth 3:17. Therefore let a man not be hasty in answering¹⁰Derekh Eretz Zuta, Chapter II. nor speak excessively. Also let him teach his student with composure and quietness, without shouting or lengthiness, for “the words of the wise (are) spoken in quiet” (Eccl. 9:17).

There are those who err in thinking that examination of the nose is indicative of cessation of brain activity and, on the basis of this, wish to establish that life is contingent upon the brain …. In truth this is an absolute error and contradicts that which our Sages, of blessed memory, have established on our behalf … "And there is nothing new under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 1:9). There have already been many among those who are great in wisdom who were inclined to think that way, i.e., that life is contingent upon the brain, but greater persons came and disproved these notions as is recorded in Teshuvot Hakham Ẓevi….