BSD
Brochos 6b (2)
Teves 10, 5786. 12/27/2025
Some short notes:
1 – The Shiur was on עשרה בטבת and we picked up the גמרא of last week that discusses the שכר for fasting on such a day.
אֲמַר מָר זוּטְרָא: אַגְרָא דְּתַעֲנִיתָא, צִדְקְתָא.
Mar Zutra said: The primary reward for fasting is for the charity given to the poor on the fast day.
We mentioned the גמרא and Rashi in Sanhedrin (35, a) that this צדקה is specifically for ready-to-eat food (as opposed non edible such as grains) that is distributed at the end of the fast to poor people. These needy souls eagerly await for the fast to end to collect edible food with which they can break their fast.

As an example of ‘edible foods’ the גמרא cites: ‘bread and dates’.
Does that mean the custom at the time was for people to eat dates when a fast day ended? Maybe.
Anyway, based on the גמרא that says אין עני אלא בדעת, which includes all of us….we served dates….

2 – Next the גמרא discusses the prohibition of Davening in the opposite direction than the rest of the Shul. We mentioned the difference of opinions of Rashi and Tosfos as to which direction the Shul the גמרא is referring to is facing.
One interesting architectural point is that ‘all the Shuls faced (either) מזרח או מעריב, and the doors were on the opposite end either מזרח או מעריב’.
כל פתחי בית הכנסת היו במזרח והכי תניא בתוספתא דמגילה (פרק ג) מעין מקדש ומשכן,
פניהם למערב ואחוריהם למזרח.

See the Tosfos on 6a.

3 – The גמרא dissects the פסוק in תהלים י״ב:ט
סָבִיב רְשָׁעִים יִתְהַלָּכוּן
The wicked walk round about (the righteous).
כְּרוּם זֻלּוּת לִבְנֵי אָדָם
What is the meaning of these last four words?
Two explanations are offered.
One is about the importance of תפילה.
The other refers to a person that unfortunately needs to reach out to others for financial assistance ר”ל. He loses dignity in their eyes (זֻלּוּת לִבְנֵי אָדָם ), and his face changes colors like a כרום.
Now what is a כרום?
A multicolored bird.
See here.
https://daf-yomi.com/DYItemDetails.aspx?itemId=9417

Sunbird
So the חכמים are teaching us that the colorful bird in the Gemara symbolizes someone struggling financially or is overwhelmed by debt. This hardship forces them to seek help, causing them embarrassment – a ‘change of face’.
3 – The מהרש”א says that it refers primarily to a מלוה that ‘walks around’ a לוה that has no money to pay back his loan, causing the לוה to change colors.
סָבִיב רְשָׁעִים יִתְהַלָּכוּן
The wicked walk round-about (the righteous and destitute).

4 – The איי הים , by the Maggid of Slonim, Reb Yehudah Adel (or Edel), offers a deeper insight: when seeking help, one must adapt to the giver’s perspective, adjusting their approach and even their thinking to align with the donor’s values. He needs to conform and say to the giver ‘I’m really like you’. So that is the meaning that the person in need ‘changes colors’…..

5 – We spoke about a fascinating topic – The fast of the 9th of Teves.
See first here from the Shulchan Aruch. OC 580, 2.

‘The חכמים did not know the reason for the fast of the 9th of Teves’.
What follows is just the tip of the iceberg on this subject.
There are two issues here:
1 – As the commentators question – this day is the Yortzeit of Ezra the Scribe – עזרא הסופר.

So what is unknown? Just as we fast on ז אדר ( for משה רבינו) and on ראש חודש אב (for אהרן הכהן) we also fast on ט טבת for עזרא הסופר!
2 – We find in various sources the reason for this ט טבת fast – and the cause for the resistance to reveal it.
A- The birthday of אותו האיש.

Unrelated image, but thought it should go here.
See here from the תוספות חדשים למגילת תענית.

The Rebbe references this source in a letter about ניטל. LS 15, 554

B – The passing of Reb Shimon who sacrificed his life by joining the church.
Briefly – the חכמים, realizing that some Jews may be swayed by this new religion, searched for a way to cause these אפיקורסים to abandon תורה ומצוות. If this new sect would remain ‘frum’ (with their mistaken belief on the idea of אותו האיש) they reasoned, it would attract others.
Reb Shimon (a תנא) volunteered to ‘join’ this religion and it was him who convinced their followers to stop keeping Shabbos etc. This caused a total dissociation from this new sect.
This Reb Shimon is associated in non-Jewish sources as שמעון הקלפוס or Simeon of Jerusalem.
This secret mission was never publicized and neither was the reason for the fast on the day of Reb Shimon’s passing ever revealed.
See here.

See an interesting article here and here.
There obviously is much more on this fascinating topic.
6 – Reb Michoel Seligson has pointed to an interesting observation. The היום יום of ט טבת refers to a topic of עבודה זרה. (expectorating is a fancy word for ‘spitting’)

R’ Michoel Seligson

7 – Some Chabad history: We mentioned the cute colored Haitian, Bondejour, who was part of the maintenance staff of 770.

At that time, 770 was not covered with tiles – it was just concrete. After Davening, with hundreds of people spitting during עלינו, the visible spots on the concrete was not a pretty sight.
Bondejour would holler at everybody that it’s not respectful. כבוד בית הכנסת….
He had a point, one must say….perhaps spitting into a handkerchief would be more appropriate.

Interestingly, at the time, the staff of 770 was this Bondejour, who only spoke French, and להבדיל , a Jewish fellow from Flatbush who just came off the boat from Georgia – a גרוזיני, who only spoke גרוזיניש!
It was quite humorous to observe how these two worked hand-in-hand communicating with hand motions only….

One bright moment would be every morning when they would approach Reb Michoel Lipker ע”ה (after Davning in in 770) who grew up in גרוזיה and then moved on Shlichus to Morocco. Being fluent in both Georgian and French, he would translate the day’s schedule for both…..

8 – The story of the Magid Shiur who always refused a cup of coffee when offered by his students. When asked why, he would respond cryptically עיין זבחים פז,ב. His students looked up this גמרא but found nothing about ‘drinking coffee’ or anything else while learning. They thought that perhaps the מגיד שיעור had another גירסה but he would not divulge his true meaning.
Finally, after much nagging, he told them to look up זבחים פז,ב in the ש”ס that is in his study.
Sure enough, when opening his ש”ס at זבחים פז,ב they found a large coffee stain…..

9 – The גמרא continues with the famous saying:
וַאֲמַר רִבִּי חֶלְבּוֹ אֲמַר רַב הוּנָא: לְעוֹלָם יְהֶא אָדָם זָהִיר בִּתְפִלַּת הַמִּנְחָה, שֶׁהֲרֵי אֵלִיָּהוּ לֹא נַעֲנָה אֶלָּא בִּתְפִלַּת הַמִּנְחָה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״וַיְהִי בַּעֲלוֹת הַמִּנְחָה וַיִּגַּשׁ אֵלִיָּהוּ הַנָּבִיא וַיֹּאמַר״ וְגוֹ׳ (מלכים א י״ח:ל״ו). ״עֲנֵנִי ה׳, עֲנֵנִי!״
And Rabbi Ḥelbo said that Rav Huna said: One must always be vigilant with regard to מנחה, as Elijah’s prayer was only answered in the afternoon prayer, as it is stated: “And it was at the time of the afternoon offering that Elijah the Prophet came near, and he said: Answer me, Lord, answer me, that this people will know that You, Lord, are God” (I Kings 18:36-37). Because Elijah was answered in the afternoon prayer, it has particular significance.
If this an actual מנחה brought by אחיהו הנביא or was it during מנחה, afternoon time, we will discuss IYH next week.
10 – We mentioned the מהרש”א that the point of the גמרא is not the obligation to Daven מנחה (which is obvious), but the idea that one should Daven מנחה as soon as its time arrives.
Now there is the time of מנחה גדולה that begins at 30 minutes after חצות, which is the earliest time one may Daven מנחה.

Then there is מנחה גדולה that starts two and a half (Halachic) hours before צאת הכוכבים.
Simply put – on a perfect day of 12 equal hours of day and night, מנחה גדולה begins at 12:30 PM and מנחה קטנה at 3:30 PM.
According to the Shulchan Aruch, (233,1) מנחה, should לכתחילה be not before מנחה גדולה, or 3:30.
Why people Daven at מנחה גדולה is a good question.

10 -We mentioned in jest about this fellow who always insisted to Daven Mincha on Shabbos right after Shacharis.

He was told that for him, it is not תפילת מנחה but rather קריאת שמע שעל המיטה …. so he can dive into bed the entire afternoon until מעריב…..
Some even suspected that he was wearing his pajamas under his kapote….












































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