Back to the Beginning
January 1, 2020 7:01 PM Subscribe
On Saturday, January 4th, thousands of Jews around the world will complete daf yomi, the 7.5 year cycle of studying the Babylonian Talmud one page at a time. On January 5th, they'll start again.
The completion of a cycle is celebrated with a Siyum HaShas; thousands of people gathered at MetLife Stadium to celebrate (a little early) on January 1st; Video here.
Daf yomi isn't just for the Orthodox; check out these reflections from a Conservative and a Reform Jew, respectively. However, the text has the potential to be hard or painful: Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg presents one way to get through those texts. [Link is to ThreadReader; original twitter thread here.]
This BBC article has a basic guide to the Talmud and daf yomi. And, if you're thinking about jumping in for the cycle, My Jewish Learning has a round up of resources here, including courses, podcasts, and a daily newsletter.
And, try to find yourself a chavruta (study buddy) if you can, like these riders on the Long Island Railroad.
The completion of a cycle is celebrated with a Siyum HaShas; thousands of people gathered at MetLife Stadium to celebrate (a little early) on January 1st; Video here.
Daf yomi isn't just for the Orthodox; check out these reflections from a Conservative and a Reform Jew, respectively. However, the text has the potential to be hard or painful: Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg presents one way to get through those texts. [Link is to ThreadReader; original twitter thread here.]
This BBC article has a basic guide to the Talmud and daf yomi. And, if you're thinking about jumping in for the cycle, My Jewish Learning has a round up of resources here, including courses, podcasts, and a daily newsletter.
And, try to find yourself a chavruta (study buddy) if you can, like these riders on the Long Island Railroad.
Oooh, I am so down for MeFi Daf Yomi!
posted by Ruki at 9:43 PM on January 1, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by Ruki at 9:43 PM on January 1, 2020 [4 favorites]
don't be fooled; the daf in daf yomi means the front and back of a page! that's where they get you. I'd prefer an amud yomi, myself.
posted by So You're Saying These Are Pants? at 10:50 PM on January 1, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by So You're Saying These Are Pants? at 10:50 PM on January 1, 2020 [3 favorites]
pfeh. this is like just one or two marathons.
like ultra-runners, real (ultra?)chachamim do this and memorize the koran and the 27-book new testament....
posted by lalochezia at 4:49 AM on January 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
like ultra-runners, real (ultra?)chachamim do this and memorize the koran and the 27-book new testament....
posted by lalochezia at 4:49 AM on January 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
fast ein Maedchen: OMG YES
posted by 168 at 5:51 AM on January 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by 168 at 5:51 AM on January 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
Oh sure, anyone... fluent in 'ancient' Hebrew (no vowels) and Aramaic. Oh and pretty much memorized the torah and mishnas. Other than that, if you can lift the volumes dig right in, not fully joking, trying to carry all 7(?) volumes at once would throw my back out.
posted by sammyo at 6:36 AM on January 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by sammyo at 6:36 AM on January 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
Anyone want an uneducated illiterate secular queer Ashkie chevruta for the next seven years? Or MEFI DAF YOMI?!
I think there actually is a discussion about a plate of beans (cf. Nedarim 66b), so it would definitely be appropriate.
posted by greatgefilte at 9:28 AM on January 2, 2020 [8 favorites]
I think there actually is a discussion about a plate of beans (cf. Nedarim 66b), so it would definitely be appropriate.
posted by greatgefilte at 9:28 AM on January 2, 2020 [8 favorites]
I was curious about some of the Mishnahs and after reading several pages about how to deal with ejaculate decided that those guys really needed to get jobs or something to get their minds on something else. TLDR: religion is weird.
posted by misterpatrick at 10:33 AM on January 2, 2020
posted by misterpatrick at 10:33 AM on January 2, 2020
don't be fooled; the daf in daf yomi means the front and back of a page! that's where they get you. I'd prefer an amud yomi, myself.
I was trying to convince my spouse to jump in with me, and told him it was a 7 year commitment. Then he googled, saw that it was 7 years, 5 months, and accused me of false advertising. I'm still waiting on the shoe to drop on the whole it's-actually-kind-of-two-pages thing.
(We're both signed up for the MJL newsletter, and I'd totally be down for a MeFi daf yomi group, provided somebody else does the whole organizing thing!)
posted by damayanti at 11:58 AM on January 2, 2020
I was trying to convince my spouse to jump in with me, and told him it was a 7 year commitment. Then he googled, saw that it was 7 years, 5 months, and accused me of false advertising. I'm still waiting on the shoe to drop on the whole it's-actually-kind-of-two-pages thing.
(We're both signed up for the MJL newsletter, and I'd totally be down for a MeFi daf yomi group, provided somebody else does the whole organizing thing!)
posted by damayanti at 11:58 AM on January 2, 2020
Went ahead and set up mefidafyomi.slack.com. Memail me your email address and I'll send out an invite. If someone viscerally opposes slack, you just volunteered to set up something else!
posted by bfranklin at 1:11 PM on January 2, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by bfranklin at 1:11 PM on January 2, 2020 [2 favorites]
I only just saw this! There was also a women's siyum ha-shas in Jerusalem this past week.
Meanwhile, this was my favorite picture from the big one at the MetLife Stadium.
posted by Mchelly at 11:15 AM on January 6, 2020
Meanwhile, this was my favorite picture from the big one at the MetLife Stadium.
posted by Mchelly at 11:15 AM on January 6, 2020
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posted by fast ein Maedchen at 8:29 PM on January 1, 2020 [4 favorites]