Friday, April 17, 2009

Who likes Gozalot?

Just an interesting thing I noticed when preparing one of the previous posts about Minei Zemer. In Bavli Bavli Pesachim, we have:
דף קיט, ב משנה אין מפטירין אחר הפסח אפיקומן:
דף קיט, ב גמרא
מאי אפיקומן
אמר רב שלא יעקרו מחבורה לחבורה
ושמואל אמר כגון אורדילאי לי וגוזלייא לאבא
ורב חנינא בר שילא ורבי יוחנן אמר כגון תמרים קליות ואגוזים
תניא כוותיה דרבי יוחנן אין מפטירין אחר הפסח כגון תמרים קליות ואגוזים

The masoret hashas has an emendation. Since it is in square brackets, it would be from Rabbi Yeshayahu Pick rather than Rabbi Yehoshua Boaz. At any rate, he writes צ"ל אמרו, and then we have the word אמר placed in parentheses. And snunit follows this emendation, putting the word אמר into pointy brackets and אמרו into square brackets.

This makes sense. If it is two people who are speaking, Rav Chanina bar Shela and Rabbi Yochanan, then we should not have the singular אמר, but the plural אמרו. And it is easy to see how such an error can crop up -- omission of the vav, or shortening the word with an apostrophe followed by an improper expansion. And in the previous statement by Shmuel, it makes sense that Shmuel is contrasting his dessert preference to that of his father, or that of Rav (=Abba). I don't know if this emendation was on the basis of sevara or on the basis of some actual manuscript evidence as well.

However, that is only one way of parsing the gemara in question. The other way of parsing it is possible, and can preserve the girsa we have of אמר. Simply, it is Abba and Rav Chanina bar Shela who like gozalot. If so, it is only Rabbi Yochanan who speaks in the next statement, and so אמר is exactly what we should expect.

Turning to Yerushalmi Pesachim, we have confirmation that this is what was intended.
דף עא, א פרק י הלכה ו משנה מזגו לו כוס שלישי מברך על מזונו רביעית גומר עליו את ההלל ואומר עליו ברכת השיר בין הכוסות הללו אם רצה לשתות ישתה בין שלישי לרביעי לא ישתה אין מפטירין אחר הפסח אפיקומן:

דף עא, א פרק י הלכה ו גמרא
...
מאי אפיקומן
רבי סימון בשם רבי אינייני בר רבי סיסיי מיני זמר
ר"י אמר מיני מתיקה
שמואל אמר כגון ערדילי וגוזליא דחנניא בר שילת
Here, Abba is not mentioned at all by Shmuel. And it is only Rabbi Yochanan who says Minei Metika, which would still be parallel to the list in the Tosefta. And Chanania bar Shelat, the only one mentioned by Shmuel as liking gozlaya, is surely the same person as Rav Chanina bar Shela. It is clearer here because of the reordering of the shitot, so that there is no run from bar Shelat to Rabbi Yochanan.

It is also a good insight, and caution, to those who would try to fix up girsaot. Is there some missing piece of information that would make the "corrupt" girsa before you suddenly make total sense?

1 comment:

BreoganGal said...

hi
1-new section in English.
will be expanded shortly.
2 - Do I want to exchange links between our blogs?
greetings

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