(3) The Shema may not be repeated, nor may any one go before the ark, nor may priests raise their hands [to say the priest's blessing], nor may they read in the Torah, nor read a section from the Prophets; nor may they perform the funeral halts , nor may the blessing for mourners be said, nor the seven blessings said on the celebration of a marriage, neither may the [Divine] name mentioned, when less than ten [men] are present. And on an occasion of redeeming land that has been consecrated, it is necessary that at least nine Israelites and a Cohen [priest] shall be present, and the same also at the valuation of a man.

and he returned to the beginning of Grace after Meals and repeated it. Giddel bar Manyumi said to Rav Naḥman: Why did the master act in that manner? He said: As Rabbi Sheila said that Rav said: If one erred, he returns to the beginning.Giddel bar Manyumi challenged: Didn’t Rav Huna say that Rav said: If one erred, he recites: Blessed…Who gave? Rav Naḥman said to him: Wasn’t it stated about this that Rabbi Menashya bar Taḥlifa said that Rav said: They only taught that one recites the short blessing in a case where he did not yet begin reciting: Who is good and does good; however, if he already began reciting: Who is good and does good, he must return to the beginning of Grace after Meals?Rav Idi bar Avin said that Rav Amram said that Rav Naḥman said that Shmuel said: If one erred and did not mention the formula for the New Moon in hisAmidaprayer, we require him to return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. However, if one erred and forgot to mention the New Moon in Grace after Meals, we do not require him to return to the beginning and repeat it.Rav Avin said to Rav Amram about this: What is the difference between the Amidaprayer and Grace after Meals? He said to him: That question was also difficult for me and I asked Rav Naḥman about it, and he said to me: I did not hear the reason from Mar Shmuel himself, but let us see if we can analyze it ourselves. For the Amidaprayer, which is an obligation, we require him to return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. For Grace after Meals, which is not an obligation, as if he wants to eat, he eats and if he wants not to eat, he does not eat, we do not require him to return to the beginning and repeat it. Grace after Meals is not a full-fledged obligation; it is dependent upon eating, which is optional. Consequently, failure to mention the New Moon in Grace after Meals is not a source of concern.The Gemara asks: If so, on Shabbatot and Festivals, when there is a mitzva to eat and when it is not possible to refrain from eating, there too, if he erred and failed to mention them in Grace after Meals, would you say that he must return to the beginning and repeat it? He said: Yes. As Rabbi Sheila said that Rav said: If one erred, he returns to the beginning of Grace after Meals. The Gemara asks: Didn’t Rav Huna say that Rav said: If one erred, he recites: Blessed…Who gave? The Gemara rejects this: Wasn’t it stated about this: They only taught that one recites the short blessing in a case where he did not yet begin reciting: Who is good and does good; however, if he already began reciting: Who is good and does good, he must return to the beginning of Grace after Meals.There is a dispute in the mishna: How much must one eat to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun? An olive-bulk; Rabbi Yehuda says: An egg-bulk.The Gemara asks: Is that to say that Rabbi Meir considers an olive-bulk significant and Rabbi Yehuda considers an egg-bulk significant? Didn’t we hear them say the opposite elsewhere? As we learned in a mishna: And similarly, one who left Jerusalem and remembered that there was consecrated meat in his hand, which may not be removed from Jerusalem, if he passed Mount Scopus, or anywhere that is a comparable distance from the Temple Mount, he burns the sanctified meat at the site where he is located; and if he has not yet traveled that distance, he must return to burn it before the Temple with the wood of the arrangement that was designated for burning consecrated items that were disqualified.The Gemara asks: How much meat must be in their possession in order to obligate them to return? Rabbi Meir says: One must return for an egg-bulk of this, sanctified meat, and that, leaven mentioned there previously. And Rabbi Yehuda says: One must return for an olive-bulk of this and that. Their opinions there seem to contradict their opinions in our mishna.To resolve this contradiction, Rabbi Yoḥanan said: The opinions are reversed in one of these sources and must be emended. Abaye said: Actually do not reverse them. Here, with regard to zimmun, they disagree with regard to the interpretation of verses. Rabbi Meir holds: “And you shall eat,” that is eating; “and be satisfied,” that is drinking after eating. The halakha is in accordance with the standard halakhic principle that eating is defined as the consumption of an olive-bulk. And Rabbi Yehuda holds: “And you shall eat and be satisfied,” refers to eating that includes satisfaction. And what is considered eating with satisfaction? The consumption of an egg-bulk.On the other hand, there, in the case of leaven and sanctified foods, they disagree not with regard to the interpretation of verses, but with regard to logical reasoning. Rabbi Meir holds: The requirement to return consecrated food is analogous to its ritual impurity, and just as its susceptibility to ritual impurity is only when it is the size of an egg-bulk, so too, the requirement to return it is only when it is the size of an egg-bulk. And Rabbi Yehuda holds: The requirement to return consecrated food is analogous to its prohibition, and just as its prohibition is only when it is the size of an olive-bulk, so too, the requirement to return it is only when it is the size of an olive-bulk.MISHNA: The mishna delineates distinctions in the halakhot of the zimmun blessing, based on the number of people present. How does one recite the zimmun? In a group of three people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the One from Whose food we have eaten. In a group of three people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the One from Whose food we have eaten, as even without him there are enough people to recite the zimmun.With the increase in the number of participants, the blessing is more complex. In a group of ten people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless our God. In a group of ten people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless our God. This formula is recited both in a group of ten and in a group of one hundred thousand.In a group of one hundred people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the Lord our God. In a group of one hundred people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the Lord our God. In a group of one thousand people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of one thousand people and him, he says: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of ten thousand people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. In a group of ten thousand people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten.The principle is that just as he recites the blessing, so too those present recite in response: Blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten.On a similar note, Rabbi Yosei HaGelili says: According to the size of the crowd, they recite the blessing, as it is stated: “Bless you God in full assemblies, even the Lord, you who are from the fountain of Israel” (Psalms 68:27). Rabbi Akiva said that there are no distinctions based on the size of the crowd: What do we find in the synagogue? Both when there are many and when there are few, as long as there is a quorum of ten, the prayer leader says: Bless [barekhu] the Lord. Rabbi Yishmael said that in the synagogue, one recites: Bless the Lord the blessed One.GEMARA:Shmuel said: One should never exclude himself from the collective.The Gemara raises a challenge from what we learned in our mishna: In a group of three people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the One from Whose food we have eaten. He thereby excludes himself from the collective.The Gemara answers: Say that the meaning of the mishna is:

He may even say: Bless; nevertheless: Let us bless, is preferable as Rav Adda bar Ahava said that they said in the school of Rav: We learned: A group of six to ten people may divide into two groups, each forming its own zimmun. However, a group of ten, which invokes God’s name in the zimmun, may not divide into two groups as that would negate the opportunity to invoke God’s name.The Gemara proceeds: Granted, if you say: Let us bless is preferable, that is why six people who ate together may divide into two groups. However, if you say: Bless is preferable, why are they permitted to divide into two groups? Neither group would be able to say: Bless. Rather, mustn’t one conclude from this: Let us bless is preferable as the one reciting the zimmun does not exclude himself from the group? The Gemara sums up the discussion: Indeed, conclude from this that that is the case.That was also taught in the Tosefta: Both if he said: Bless, and if he said: Let us bless, we do not reprimand him for doing so; and the punctilious reprimand him for doing so. And the Gemara says: As a rule, from the style of one’s blessings it is obvious whether or not he is a Torah scholar. How so? For example, Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi says: In a zimmun, one who recites: Blessed be the One from Whose food we have eaten and by Whose goodness we live, he is a Torah scholar. However, one who recites: Blessed be the One from Whose food we have eaten and from Whose goodness we live, he is an ignoramus, as that expression insinuates that only some of God’s goodness was bestowed upon him, which is tantamount to a denial of God’s loving-kindness.Abaye said to Rav Dimi: Isn’t it written that King David articulated his prayer in that manner: “Be pleased, therefore, to bless Your servant’s house, that it abide before You forever; for You, Lord God, have spoken. And from Your blessing may Your servant’s house be blessed forever” (II Samuel 7:29). David said: From Your blessing. The Gemara answers: In a case of request it is different, as it is inappropriate to demand the full bounty of God’s blessing. The Gemara questions this: In a case of request, too, is it not written that a request for the full bounty of God’s blessing is granted: “Open your mouth wide, that I will fill it” (Psalms 81:11)? What one receives corresponds to what he requests. The Gemara answered: That verse is written with regard to matters of Torah, where it is wholly appropriate to make excessive requests.On the topic of the zimmun formula, it was taught in a baraita: Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi says: One who recites in a zimmun: And by His goodness we live, he is a Torah scholar. However, one who recites: And by His goodness they live, he is a fool, as he excluded himself from the collective. The Sages of Neharbela taught the opposite. In their opinion, they live is preferable because it is a more inclusive formula, whereas, we live is more limited and personal. Nonetheless, the Gemara concludes: The halakha is not in accordance with the opinion of the Sages of Neharbela.On a similar note, Rabbi Yoḥanan said: One who recites in a zimmun: Let us bless the One Whose food we have eaten, he is a Torah scholar. However, one who recites: Let us bless to Him from Whose food we have eaten, he is an ignoramus, as it appears that the blessing is directed to the host of the meal.Rabbi Aḥa the son of Rava questioned this and said to Rav Ashi: Don’t we say during the Passover seder: To He Who performed all of these miracles for our ancestors and for us, using the expression: To He Who? Rav Ashi said to him: There, in the case of miracles performed for our ancestors and for us, it is self-evident that the blessing refers to God. Who performs miracles? The Holy One, blessed be He. In the case of food, however, it is not self-evident, as the host of the meal also provided the food that was eaten.Rabbi Yoḥanan said with regard to the formula of the zimmun that one who recites in a zimmun: Blessed be the One from Whose food we have eaten, he is a Torah scholar. However, one who recites: For the food we have eaten, he is an ignoramus, as it appears that he is blessing the host of the meal. If he was blessing God, why would he restrict the blessing to food (Tosafot)?Rav Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua said: We only said this halakhawith regard to a zimmun of three, where there is no mention of God’s name. In a zimmun of ten, however, where there is mention of God’s name, it is self-evident to whom the blessing refers, as we learned in our mishna: Just as he recites the blessing, so too do those present recite in response: Blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten.We learned in our mishna with regard to the formula of zimmun: This formula is recited both in a group of ten and in a group of one hundred thousand. The Gemara raises an objection: The mishna itself is difficult. On one hand, you said: This formula is recited both in a group of ten and in a group of one hundred thousand; consequently, the two cases are the same. On the other hand, it is then taught: In a group of one hundred people, the one reciting the zimmunsays; in a group of one thousand people, the one reciting the zimmunsays; in a group of ten thousand people, the one reciting the zimmunsays. Evidently, the formula depends on the number of people.Rav Yosef said: This is not difficult, as these two statements are the opinions of different Sages. This is the opinion of Rabbi Yosei HaGelili, and that is the opinion of Rabbi Akiva. As we learned in our mishna: Rabbi Yosei HaGelili says: According to the size of the crowd, they recite the blessing, as it is stated: “Bless you God in full assemblies, even the Lord, you who are from the fountain of Israel” (Psalms 68:27). We also learned in our mishna that Rabbi Akiva said that there are no distinctions based on the size of the crowd: What do we find in the synagogue? Both when there are many and when there are few, as long as there is a quorum of ten, the prayer leader says: Bless the Lord. In the case of Grace after Meals as well, the formula remains the same regardless of the number of people participating in the zimmun.The Gemara asks: And Rabbi Akiva, what does he do with that verse cited by Rabbi Yosei HaGelili? The Gemara answers: He needs it to derive that which was taught in a baraita: Rabbi Meir says: From where is it derived that even fetuses in their mother’s womb recited the song at the Red Sea? As it is stated in the chapter of Psalms that describes the exodus from Egypt: “In assemblies, bless God, the Lord, from the source of Israel,” and fetuses are included in these assemblies. The Gemara asks: And from where does the other Sage, Rabbi Yosei HaGelili, derive the matter of the singing of the fetuses? The Gemara answers: He derives it from the source of Israel, which he interprets as an allusion to the womb.Rava said: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Akiva. The Gemara recounts that Ravina and Rav Ḥama bar Buzi happened to come to a banquet at the house of the Exilarch. At the end of the meal, Rav Ḥama rose and was seeking to gather a group of one hundred participants in the meal so that the zimmun for one hundred could be recited. Ravina said to him: You need not do so, as Rava declared the following: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Akiva and the formula remains the same regardless of the number of people participating in the zimmun, as long as there are at least ten.The Gemara discusses Rava’s conduct at meals at the house of the Exilarch. Rava said: When we would eat bread at the house of the Exilarch, we would recite the Grace after Meals blessing in groups of three. The Gemara asks: Let them recite the blessing in groups of ten. The Gemara answers: Then the Exilarch would hear and become angry upon seeing a large group of Sages reciting Grace after Meals before he completed his meal. The Gemara asks: Why could they not satisfy their obligation with the Exilarch’s blessing? The Gemara answers: Since everyone is making noise, they do not hear and would not fulfill their obligation.Rabba Tosefa’a said: These three people, who break bread together and one of them went ahead and recited Grace after Meals on his own without a zimmun, they, the other two diners, fulfill their obligation with his participation in their zimmun; he, however, does not fulfill his obligation with his participation in their zimmun because there is no retroactive zimmun, and once he recited his blessing, participating in the zimmun accomplishes nothing for him.The mishna states that Rabbi Akiva holds that in the synagogue, one recites: Bless the Lord, while Rabbi Yishmael said that he recites: Bless the Lord the blessed One. Rafram bar Pappa happened to come to the synagogue of Abei Givar when he rose to read from the Torah scroll and recited: Bless the Lord, and was silent, and did not recite: The blessed One. Because Rafram bar Pappa followed the principle that the halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Akiva, and those present were not accustomed to that ruling, everyone in the synagogue cried out: Bless the Lord the blessed One. Rava said to Rafram bar Pappa: You black pot, a fond nickname for a Torah scholar who invests great effort in Torah study and worship of God, why are you involving yourself in this tannaitic dispute? Although Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Yishmael disagree, Rabbi Yishmael’s formula, in which Rabbi Akiva’s formula is included, is acceptable to both. Furthermore, standard practice is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yishmael.MISHNA:Three people who ate as one are not permitted to divide and recite Grace after Meals individually; rather, they recite the zimmun together. And the same is true of four who ate together, and the same is true of five. However, a group of six, up to but not including ten people who ate as one, may divide into two groups, each reciting its own zimmun. And a group of ten may not divide into two groups until there are twenty people present. The general principle is that a group may not divide unless the smaller groups will be able to recite the same zimmun formula that the whole group would have recited.The mishna states a halakha with regard to two groups joining together: Two groups that were eating in one house, when some members of each group can see each other, they may combine to form a zimmun. And if not, these recite a zimmun for themselves and those recite a zimmun for themselves.The mishna also speaks of the blessing over wine: One does not recite a blessing over wine until he adds water to it, that is the statement of Rabbi Eliezer. Undiluted wine is too strong to drink and a blessing is inappropriate. And the Rabbis say: Since it is possible to drink undiluted wine, one recites a blessing over it.GEMARA: At the beginning of the mishna, we learned that three people who ate together may not disperse. The Gemara asks: What does this mishna teach us? We already learned this once: Three people who ate as one are required to form a zimmun.The Gemara answers: This teaches us thathalakhawhich Rabbi Abba said that Shmuel said: Three individuals who sat to eat as one, and they have not yet begun to eat, nevertheless, they are not permitted to divide and recite Grace after Meals individually.The Gemara cites another version: Rabbi Abba said that Shmuel said that this is what the mishna teaches: Three individuals who sat to eat as one, even though they do not share a meal, but each and every one of them eats from his own loaf, they are considered a single group in terms of zimmun, and are not permitted to divide. Alternatively, perhaps the mishna comes to teach thathalakhaof Rav Huna, as Rav Huna said: Three individuals who came from three different groups and sat together to continue their meals also form a zimmun and are not permitted to divide.Rav Ḥisda said: And that is only the halakha in a case where the three individuals came from three groups of three people each, so that each original group was independently obligated to recite the zimmun, and that obligation never lapsed.Rava qualified this, and said:

(7) Impress them upon your children. Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up.

(19) and teach them to your children—reciting them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up;

(1) A psalm. A song; for the sabbath day.(2) It is good to praise the LORD, to sing hymns to Your name, O Most High,(3) To proclaim Your steadfast love at daybreak, Your faithfulness each night(4) With a ten-stringed harp, with voice and lyre together.(5) You have gladdened me by Your deeds, O LORD; I shout for joy at Your handiwork.(6) How great are Your works, O LORD, how very subtle Your designs!(7) A brutish man cannot know, a fool cannot understand this:(8) though the wicked sprout like grass, though all evildoers blossom, it is only that they may be destroyed forever.(9) But You are exalted, O LORD, for all time.(10) Surely, Your enemies, O LORD, surely, Your enemies perish; all evildoers are scattered.(11) You raise my horn high like that of a wild ox; I am soaked in freshening oil.(12) I shall see the defeat of my watchful foes, hear of the downfall of the wicked who beset me.(13) The righteous bloom like a date-palm; they thrive like a cedar in Lebanon;(14) planted in the house of the LORD, they flourish in the courts of our God.(15) In old age they still produce fruit; they are full of sap and freshness,(16) attesting that the LORD is upright, my rock, in whom there is no wrong.

(164) I praise You seven times each day for Your just rules.

Rabba bar Ḥinnana Sava said in the name of Rav: One who did not recite: True and Firm [emet veyatziv] at the beginning of the blessing of redemption that follows Shemain the morning prayer, and: True and Trustworthy [emet ve’emuna] in the evening prayer, he did not fulfill his obligation. An allusion to the difference in formulation between morning and evening is, as it is stated: “To declare Your kindness in the morning and Your faith in the nights” (Psalms 92:3). In the morning, one must mention God’s loving-kindness, while in the evening one is required to emphasize the aspect of faith.

(1) The Shema is read twice every day,—in the evening and in the morning, as it is said, "and when thou liest down and when thou risest up" (Deuteronomy 6:7), the phrases in this text meaning at the time when men are lying down, that is, at night, and at the time when they have risen, that is, by day.

(2) What does one read? Three sections as follows: the section beginning, "Hear, O Israel" (Deuteronomy 6:4-9); that commencing, "And it shall come to pass" (Deuteronomy 11:13-21); and that commencing, "And the Lord spoke" (Numbers 15:37-41). The section beginning, "Hear, O Israel" is recited first, because it sets forth the duties of acknowledging the Unity of God, loving Him, and studying His words. This is the great and essential matter on which all depends. Then, the passage beginning, "And it shall come to pass" is read, this containing a charge to fulfill all the other commandments. Finally the section concerning Fringes is read, as it also contains a charge to remember all the commandments.

(3) Although the precept to wear fringes is not incumbent at night, still the section concerning this precept is recited at night, because it mentions the departure from Egypt, which it is a duty to recall by day and at night, as it is said, "that thou mayest remember the day of thy going forth from the land of Egypt all the days of thy life" (Deuteronomy 16:3). The reading of these three sections in this order is termed "The reading of the Shema."

(4) When reciting the Shema, after concluding the first verse, one repeats in a low tone the sentence, "Blessed be the name of His glorious sovereignty for ever and ever" and then resumes the reading of the first section in the regular order from the verse, "And thou shalt love the Lord, thy God,…"to the end of the section. Why is the sentence above mentioned interpolated? We have a tradition that when the patriarch Jacob, residing in Egypt, gathered his sons about him, in his dying hour, he earnestly charged them concerning the Unity of God and the Way of the Lord in which Abraham and his father Isaac had walked. He questioned them, saying to them, "Possibly, my sons, there is some one among you who is unworthy, and is not at one with me on the doctrine of the Unity of the Creator of the World," in the same way as our teacher Moses charged the people in the words, "Lest there be among you a man or a woman … whose heart turneth away this day" (Deuteronomy 29:17). They all answered, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one." This means, "Our father, Israel, hear this, our [confession of faith]: 'the Lord our God is one Lord'". The aged patriarch then ejaculated, "Blessed be the name of His glorious Sovereignty for ever and ever." Hence, all Israelites keep the custom of reciting, after the first verse of the Shema, the thanksgiving uttered by the Patriarch Israel.

(5) Blessings are recited before the Shema and after it. When reading the Shema by day, two blessings are recited before it, and one after it. When reading it at night, two blessings are recited before, and two after it.

(6) The former of the two blessings recited before the Shema by day, is that beginning, "Who formest light and createst darkness." The latter is that beginning, "With everlasting love hast Thou loved us." The blessing subsequent to the Shema is that beginning, "True and Firm." The former of the two blessings recited before the Shema at night is that beginning, "Who bringest on the evening twilight." The latter begins "With everlasting love hast Thou loved Thy people Israel." The former of the blessings, recited after it, is that beginning, "True and trustworthy." The latter, that beginning, "Cause us to lie down [O Lord, our God, in peace."]

(7) The first of the blessings recited before the Shema, whether by day or at night, is introduced with the formula, "Blessed [art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe]" and concludes with the formula, "Blessed [art Thou, O Lord]." Of the other blessings, each concludes with the formula, "Blessed [art Thou, O Lord]" but are not introduced with the formula, "Blessed art Thou …" These blessings as well as all the other blessings with which all Israel are familiar were instituted by Ezra and his court and no one is permitted to take aught away from the wording or add to it. The blessings which they (Ezra and his colleagues) ordained to conclude with the formula, "Blessed [art Thou etc.]" may not be recited without this formula. Those which they ordained should conclude without this formula may not be recited with it. Those which they ordained not to begin with a benedictory formula, may not be begun with it. Those which they ordained should begin with it may not be begun without it. In short, whoever alters the form the Sages gave to the blessings commits an error and must recite the blessing again according to its prescribed form. Whoever does not recite the blessing beginning, "True and firm" in the morning, and that beginning, "True and trustworthy" in the evening has not fulfilled his duty.

(8) If one has recited the second blessing before the first, either in the Morning or in the Evening Service, and whether the blessings thus transposed are those recited before or after the Shema, he has fulfilled his duty; for no order has been statutorily fixed for the blessings. If, in the morning service, one began the first blessing with the formula, "Who createst light" and concluded it with the formula, "Who bringest on the evening twilight," he has not fulfilled his duty. But if one began with the formula, "who bringest on the evening twilight" and concluded with the formula, "who createst light" he has fulfilled his duty. Thus too, in the evening service, if one began with the formula, "who bringest on the evening twilight" and concluded with the formula, "who createst light" he has not fulfilled his duty; but if one began with the formula, "who createst light" and concluded with the formula, "who bringest on the evening twilight" he has fulfilled his duty; for the essential element in all Blessings is the Conclusion.

(9) When is the time for reading the Shema? In the evening, the duty is correctly performed if it is read at any time from the first appearance of the stars till midnight. If one however transgressed and delayed, but read the Shema before daybreak, he has discharged the obligation. The Sages fixed midnight as the limit only in order to prevent complete violation.

(10) One who reads the Evening Shema after dawn but before sunrise has not discharged his obligation, unless he had been unavoidably prevented from reading it earlier, as, for instance, if he had been inebriated or sick, etc. Anyone who unavoidably delays reading the Shema till this time does not recite the Blessing beginning, "Cause us to lie down in peace."

(11) When is the right time for reading the Shema by day? To observe the precept properly, one should begin reading it before sunrise, so as to conclude the recital of the Blessing after the Shema exactly at sunrise. This interval is about a tenth of an hour before the Sun rises. One who deferred reading the Shema till the Sun had risen, has discharged his obligation—the period for reading the Shema being extended, for one who delayed, to the end of the first three hours of the day.

(12) If one anticipated the hour and read the Shema of the Morning Service after dawn, he has fulfilled his duty, even if he concluded it before sunrise. In case of urgency, as for instance, when one has risen early in order to set out on a journey, he may deliberately read it before dawn.

(13) If one reads the Shema after the first three hours of the day are gone, even though he had been unavoidably prevented from doing so earlier, he has not fulfilled the duty of reading the Shema at the right time. He is in the same category with one who reads the Torah. Still he recites the blessings that precede and follow it, at any part of the day, even if he delayed the reading till after the first three hours of the morning had elapsed.

(1)The law of the recitation of Shema morning and evening: That we were commanded every day, morning and evening, to read one verse from the Torah in this Order, and that is "Hear Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one" (Deuteronomy 6:4). And about this verse is it stated (Deuteronomy 6:7), "and you will speak in them in your sitting in your home, in your laying down and in your rising up." And the explanation about this comes (Berakhot 10b) [that it is] at the time that people lay down and at the time that people get up. And it is established to us for the Rabbis (Berakhot 10b) that all of the night until the dawn rises is called the time that people lay down - and like the matter that is written (Leviticus 26:6), "and you will lay down and there is no one that makes to tremble"; and so [too], "it does not lay down until it eats prey" (Numbers 23:24) - since all the time of its laying down is implied. And also that people are divided in their attributes regarding laying down. There are those that do not lay down until half of the night, and some [not] until its end, and there are some that lay down immediately at the beginning of the night. And because of this, they said (Berakhot 10b) that the time of the recitation of Shema at night is from the time that the priests retire to eat their priestly tithe - which is the coming out of the stars - until the dawn rises. And the time that people rise up was understood [by] them [to be] from the beginning of the day - meaning to say when the morning is light [enough] that a man can recognize his fellow from the distance of four ells - until three full hours (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Reading the Shema 1:11). And rising up was not understood by them to be all of the day, like laying down; as it is not the way of any person that is healthy to rise up from his bed at the end of the day, or even its middle. And they, may their memory be blessed, said (Berakhot 9b) about the recitation of Shema of the morning that, in any case, from here onward - meaning from the end of three hours until the end of the day - he who did not read [it] did not lose [out] that he not be able to read it with its blessings.

(2) It is from the roots of the commandment that God wanted to give merit to His people that they should accept upon them His Kingdom and His unity every day and night, all the days that they are alive. As since man is a physical being [that] is seduced by the vanities of the world and drawn by his desires, he certainly requires a constant reminder of the Kingdom of the Heavens to guard him from sin. Hence it was from His kindness to have us merit and He commanded us to remember [this at] these two times, regularly and with great intention. [The] one at the day is to help for all of our actions during the day; as when a man remembers in the morning the unity of God and His Kingdom, and that His Providence and Omnipotence is over everything, and he places to his heart that His eyes are open upon all of his ways and that all of his steps are marked - that he cannot obscure anything from Him and he cannot hide any of his thoughts - will this thought and the acknowledgement of his mouth in the thing not be a protection for him that whole day? And the acknowledgement of the night will also be a protection the whole night. And because the foundation of the commandment is what we mentioned, they, may their memory be blessed, obligated us about intention of the heart and said that if he did not have intention in his heart, he did not fulfill his obligation. As a man does not remember anything unless he places his intention to it. And this is what they, may their memory be blessed said in Berakhot 13b in the chapter [entitled] Haya Koreh, "The Rabbis learned, '"Listen Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one" - to here, intention of the heart is required.'" And they required us to lengthen [the word,] one. And [it is] like it was learned over there, "Somchos ben Yosef says, 'Anyone who lengthens [the word,] one, his days and years are lengthened.' And Rav Acha bar Yakkov said, 'But in the [letter,] dalet.' Rav Ashi said, 'And so long as he does not cut short the [letter,] chet.'" And they said there, "How much is this lengthening?" And the answer was until you crown Him in the heavens and in the earth and in the four directions of the world; meaning to say that you have intention that His governance is over all, and that there is nothing obscured from Him and that the existence of all things is through His will.

(3) From the laws of the commandment is that which they, may their memory be blessed, said (Berakhot 13b) that the obligation of the first verse of the section is from Torah writ - as we have said - but [it is] the Sages that obligated us to read the three sections, which are Shema, 'And it shall be if you listen' [and] 'And He said.' And we begin with reading the section of Shema which has the command about unification of God, may He be blessed, His love and the study of His Torah, which is the great foundation that everything is dependent upon. And after it is the section of "And it shall be if you listen," which has the command about all the other commandments. And after it is the section of fringes (tsitsit) that also has the command about the remembrance of all the commandments (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Reading the Shema 1:2). And if so, with a person remembering these [things] with intention once every day and another time every night, he will be saved from sin - in any case, if he is intelligent.

(4) And also from the content of the commandment is that which they, may their memory be blessed, obligated us (Berakhot 11a) to bless before the recitation and after it: In the morning, he blesses two before it, 'Who creates light' and 'Everlasting love'; and one after it, 'True and solid.' And at night, [he blesses] two before it, 'Who brings the evening' and 'Everlasting love'; and two after it, 'True and faithful,' and 'Lay us down.' And there is no need to speak about them at length, as they are known in all of Israel regarding their introductions, their endings and their wording. And Ezra and his court ordained them, with all of the blessings that are set in the mouths of all of Israel.

(5) And also from the content of the commandment is that which they said (Berakhot 15a) that one who reads the Shema needs to make it audible to his ear, but that if he did not make it audible to his ear, yet nonetheless read the words with his lips, he has fulfilled [his obligation], ex post facto. And so [too,] that which they said (Berakhot 15a) that one needs to be exacting about the words, yet if he was not exacting about them, he has [still] fulfilled [it]. And some of the commentators said (Meiri on Berakhot 15a) that the matter is not that he did not pronounce the words and the letters. As with this, certainly is it not said that if he was not exacting, he has fulfilled [it]; as anyone who did not read the whole recitation of the Shema has not fulfilled his obligation. Rather, the matter of his fulfilling it if he was not being exacting in them is that he did not put a space between [words that] run into [each other] such as bekhol-levavecha, esev-besadecha, ve'avadetem-meheirah, bechol-levavechem [and] hakanaf-petil; and so [too,] if the did not sibilate [the letter,] zayin of tizkheru, that needs sibilation; or that he did not lengthen the [letter,] dalet, as it is fitting to do, a priori.

(6) And also from the content of the commandment is that which they said (Berakhot 13a) that between the paragraphs a man asks about the well-being of someone he is obligated to honor and responds to greet any person; and in their middle, he asks due to fear - meaning to the kings of the [other] nations or to [their] great ministers and responds due to honor (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Reading the Shema 2:16). And it has been [much time] that we have not seen someone who is particular towards his fellow at all if he not interrupt [to greet him], even between the paragraphs. [These] and the rest of the many details of the commandment, and all of the matters for which we refrain from the recitation of the Shema are [all] elucidated in Berakhot in the first chapters (see Tur, Orach Chaim 61).

(7) And it is practiced in every place and at all times by males, but not by females; because it is in the category of positive commandments determined by time, [from which] women are exempt. And one who transgresses it and does not read the recitation of the Shema every day and every night at its time - which the Sages fixed for it - has ioilated this positive commandment. And Ramban, may his memory be blessed (at the end of Sefer HaMitzot, s.v. ve'atah, eem tavin), counted the recitation of the Shema in the day as one commandment and in the night as another commandment in his tally of the commandments; since the time of this is not the time of that, and this does not impede on that.

and he returned to the beginning of Grace after Meals and repeated it. Giddel bar Manyumi said to Rav Naḥman: Why did the master act in that manner? He said: As Rabbi Sheila said that Rav said: If one erred, he returns to the beginning.Giddel bar Manyumi challenged: Didn’t Rav Huna say that Rav said: If one erred, he recites: Blessed…Who gave? Rav Naḥman said to him: Wasn’t it stated about this that Rabbi Menashya bar Taḥlifa said that Rav said: They only taught that one recites the short blessing in a case where he did not yet begin reciting: Who is good and does good; however, if he already began reciting: Who is good and does good, he must return to the beginning of Grace after Meals?Rav Idi bar Avin said that Rav Amram said that Rav Naḥman said that Shmuel said: If one erred and did not mention the formula for the New Moon in hisAmidaprayer, we require him to return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. However, if one erred and forgot to mention the New Moon in Grace after Meals, we do not require him to return to the beginning and repeat it.Rav Avin said to Rav Amram about this: What is the difference between the Amidaprayer and Grace after Meals? He said to him: That question was also difficult for me and I asked Rav Naḥman about it, and he said to me: I did not hear the reason from Mar Shmuel himself, but let us see if we can analyze it ourselves. For the Amidaprayer, which is an obligation, we require him to return to the beginning of the prayer and repeat it. For Grace after Meals, which is not an obligation, as if he wants to eat, he eats and if he wants not to eat, he does not eat, we do not require him to return to the beginning and repeat it. Grace after Meals is not a full-fledged obligation; it is dependent upon eating, which is optional. Consequently, failure to mention the New Moon in Grace after Meals is not a source of concern.The Gemara asks: If so, on Shabbatot and Festivals, when there is a mitzva to eat and when it is not possible to refrain from eating, there too, if he erred and failed to mention them in Grace after Meals, would you say that he must return to the beginning and repeat it? He said: Yes. As Rabbi Sheila said that Rav said: If one erred, he returns to the beginning of Grace after Meals. The Gemara asks: Didn’t Rav Huna say that Rav said: If one erred, he recites: Blessed…Who gave? The Gemara rejects this: Wasn’t it stated about this: They only taught that one recites the short blessing in a case where he did not yet begin reciting: Who is good and does good; however, if he already began reciting: Who is good and does good, he must return to the beginning of Grace after Meals.There is a dispute in the mishna: How much must one eat to obligate those with whom they ate in a zimmun? An olive-bulk; Rabbi Yehuda says: An egg-bulk.The Gemara asks: Is that to say that Rabbi Meir considers an olive-bulk significant and Rabbi Yehuda considers an egg-bulk significant? Didn’t we hear them say the opposite elsewhere? As we learned in a mishna: And similarly, one who left Jerusalem and remembered that there was consecrated meat in his hand, which may not be removed from Jerusalem, if he passed Mount Scopus, or anywhere that is a comparable distance from the Temple Mount, he burns the sanctified meat at the site where he is located; and if he has not yet traveled that distance, he must return to burn it before the Temple with the wood of the arrangement that was designated for burning consecrated items that were disqualified.The Gemara asks: How much meat must be in their possession in order to obligate them to return? Rabbi Meir says: One must return for an egg-bulk of this, sanctified meat, and that, leaven mentioned there previously. And Rabbi Yehuda says: One must return for an olive-bulk of this and that. Their opinions there seem to contradict their opinions in our mishna.To resolve this contradiction, Rabbi Yoḥanan said: The opinions are reversed in one of these sources and must be emended. Abaye said: Actually do not reverse them. Here, with regard to zimmun, they disagree with regard to the interpretation of verses. Rabbi Meir holds: “And you shall eat,” that is eating; “and be satisfied,” that is drinking after eating. The halakha is in accordance with the standard halakhic principle that eating is defined as the consumption of an olive-bulk. And Rabbi Yehuda holds: “And you shall eat and be satisfied,” refers to eating that includes satisfaction. And what is considered eating with satisfaction? The consumption of an egg-bulk.On the other hand, there, in the case of leaven and sanctified foods, they disagree not with regard to the interpretation of verses, but with regard to logical reasoning. Rabbi Meir holds: The requirement to return consecrated food is analogous to its ritual impurity, and just as its susceptibility to ritual impurity is only when it is the size of an egg-bulk, so too, the requirement to return it is only when it is the size of an egg-bulk. And Rabbi Yehuda holds: The requirement to return consecrated food is analogous to its prohibition, and just as its prohibition is only when it is the size of an olive-bulk, so too, the requirement to return it is only when it is the size of an olive-bulk.MISHNA: The mishna delineates distinctions in the halakhot of the zimmun blessing, based on the number of people present. How does one recite the zimmun? In a group of three people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the One from Whose food we have eaten. In a group of three people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the One from Whose food we have eaten, as even without him there are enough people to recite the zimmun.With the increase in the number of participants, the blessing is more complex. In a group of ten people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless our God. In a group of ten people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless our God. This formula is recited both in a group of ten and in a group of one hundred thousand.In a group of one hundred people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the Lord our God. In a group of one hundred people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the Lord our God. In a group of one thousand people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of one thousand people and him, he says: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel. In a group of ten thousand people, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Let us bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten. In a group of ten thousand people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten.The principle is that just as he recites the blessing, so too those present recite in response: Blessed be the Lord our God, the God of Israel, the God of Hosts, Who sits upon the cherubs, for the food that we have eaten.On a similar note, Rabbi Yosei HaGelili says: According to the size of the crowd, they recite the blessing, as it is stated: “Bless you God in full assemblies, even the Lord, you who are from the fountain of Israel” (Psalms 68:27). Rabbi Akiva said that there are no distinctions based on the size of the crowd: What do we find in the synagogue? Both when there are many and when there are few, as long as there is a quorum of ten, the prayer leader says: Bless [barekhu] the Lord. Rabbi Yishmael said that in the synagogue, one recites: Bless the Lord the blessed One.GEMARA:Shmuel said: One should never exclude himself from the collective.The Gemara raises a challenge from what we learned in our mishna: In a group of three people and him, the one reciting the zimmunsays: Bless the One from Whose food we have eaten. He thereby excludes himself from the collective.The Gemara answers: Say that the meaning of the mishna is: