Rosh Hashanah 2 - October 11, 5 Cheshvan

Study Guide Rosh Hashanah 2

Masechet Rosh Hashana is sponsored anonymously in honor of Rabbanit Michelle Farber whose dedication to learning and teaching the daf continues to inspire so many people around the world.

This week of Masechet Rosh Hashanah is sponsored by Rabia and Oliver Mitchell in honor of their daughter Ellin Mitchell Cooper becoming a Yoetzet Halacha. "Ellin, we are so proud of you and your dedication to Klal Yisrael. We look forward to great things to come! Hazak Hazak v’ nithazek."

There are different dates that are considered the dates for the start of the year for different issues. First of Nissan is the first day of the year for kings and the holidays. First of Elul is for animal tithes, although Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Shimon say it’s the first of Tishrei. The first of Tishrei is for counting years, shmita and the jubilee, for orla and vegetable tithes. Beit Shamai and Beit Hillel disagree about tithing fruit trees whether it’s the 1st or 15th of Shevat. The Gemara proceeds to explain the relevance of the cases in the Mishna. The first of the year for kings is relevant for documents to know if a document with the incorrect date will be disqualified or not. A braita is brought that has several laws related to king years. Even if a king were to begin his rule on the last day before Nissan, as soon as it becomes the first of Nissan, it is considered his second year. If two kings rule in the same year, one can count by either one. If one dies in Adar and the other takes over in Nissan, the first year is counted for the first king and the second year by the next. The Gemara questions all these cases? Aren’t they obvious? Each one is brought to teach a particular detail. Rabbi Yochanan brings a verse to teach the fact that we count from Nissan as it compares the counting of the reign of Solomon to the counting of the Exodus from Egypt, which is from Nissan. From where do we know that the counting of the Exodus is from Nissan and not Tishrei? That is derived from the description of the timing of the death of Aharon and the speech of Moshe before his death.