1)

(a)On Sunday, the Leviyim would say "la'Hashem ha'Aretz u'Melo'ah, Tevel v'Yoshvei Vah", because that is the day on which Hash-m created heaven and earth (ready to give it to His creations) and took sole control over it (since the angels were created only on the second day). On Monday, they said "Hash-m is great and exceedingly praised, in the city of G-d is his holy mountain" - because that is when Hash-m divided the upper worlds from the lower ones, picking them as His residence.

(b)On Tuesday, they said "G-d stands in the community of Hash-m ... ", because He divided the land from the water, creating a location for His community to stand (i.e. to live). On Wednesday, they said "Hash-m is the G-d of vengeance ... " - because He will punish those who worship the heavenly bodies, which He created on Wednesday.

(c)On Thursday, they said "Sing Praise to the G-d of our strength, because He created such a breathtaking variety of birds and fish. On Friday, they said "Hash-m Malach, Gei'us Laveish ... " - because He concluded His works and ruled over them.

(d)According to Rebbi Akiva, they said "Mizmor Shir l'Yom ha'Shabbos" in honor of the World to Come, the day which is entirely Shabbos. Rebbi Nechemyah disagrees - on the grounds that if all the other Shirim refer to the past (i.e. the creation), why should Shabbos alone refer to the future?

(e)According to him, it is because Hash-m rested from His work.

2)

(a)The basis of Rebbi Akiva and Rebbi Nechemyah's dispute lies in the Machlokes between Rav Ketina and Abaye. Rebbi Akiva learns from the Pasuk in Yeshayah "v'Nisgav Hash-m Levado ba'Yom ha'Hu", like Rav Ketina. Rebbi Nechemyah learns from a Pasuk in Hoshea, "Yechayeinu mi'Yomayim ba'Yom ha'Shelishi Yekimenu ... ", like Abaye.

1. ... Rav Ketina learns from the Pasuk in Yeshayah - that this world will last for six thousand years and then be destroyed one thousand years (since one day is like a thousand years in the eyes of Hash-m).

2. ... Abaye learn from the Pasuk in Hoshea - that the world will be destroyed for two thousand years, and not one.

(b)Rebbi Nechemyah is now forced to argue with Rebbi Akiva - because according to him, Shabbos/Mashi'ach will not last for one thousand days, in which case it cannot be referred to as a day which is entirely Shabbos.

3)

(a)Rav Anan bar Rava teaches us that at Musaf on Shabbos they would say 'ha'Ziv Lach' - which is the acronym of the first word in the six Parshiyos into which they divided Ha'azinu ('Ha'azinu', 'Zechor', 'Va'yar', 'Lulei', 'Ki Yadin Hashem' (see Tosfos DH 'ha'Ziv Lach')- the first four comprising six Pesukim, the last two, eight).

(b)Rav Anan bar Rava also said - that this is the way to divide the first six Aliyos of Parshas Ha'azinu in Shul.

(c)And Rebbi Yochanan taught us that, at Minchah on Shabbos, they would say "Az Yashir", "Mi Chamochah" and "Az Yashir" - referring to the first half of the Shiras ha'Yam ("Az Yashir"), the second half ("Mi Chamochah"), and "Az Yashir Yisrael" (the 'Shiras ha'Be'er') respectively.

(d)We ask whether the Leviyim recited the six paragraphs of Musaf and the three of Minchah each week, or whether they recited one paragraph each week, and we resolve this from a statement of Rebbi Yosi in a Beraisa - who says that whilst the Leviyim, who recited the Shir shel Yom at Musaf made one rotation (of the six chapters), those who recited it at Minchah, made two. Clearly then, they recited one paragraph each week.

4)

(a)Rav Yehudah bar Idi Amar Rebbi Yochanan describes the exiles of both the Shechinah and the Sanhedrin from the Beis-Hamikdash - each of which underwent ten stages of exile.

(b)This is discussed here - because of the Takanos of Raban Yochanan ben Zakai, who instituted most of his Takanos in Yavneh.

(c)The Sanhedrin moved from Yerushalayim to Yavneh (the first of the locations of the Galus of Sanhedrin from Yerushalayim, as we shall see shortly) - during the tenure of Raban Yochanan ben Zakai.

5)

(a)The Shechinah first moved from the lid of the Aron to the Cherub, from the Cherub to the threshold of the Heichal - and from the threshold to the Chatzer (according to the Gra, it went first to the roof of the Heichal and then to the Chatzer - see b.).

(b)From the Chatzer, the Shechinah moved to the copper Mizbe'ach, from where it moved to the roof - and then to the wall of the Chatzer.

(c)The Shechinah then moved from the wall of the Chatzer into Yerushalayim, and from Yerushalayim to Har ha'Zeisim. And then, before finally ascending back to its location in heaven - it moved to the desert.

(d)From the fact that it moved in so many stages - we can learn just how reluctant Hash-m was to remove His Shechinah from us.

6)

(a)The move from the threshold of the Heichal to the Mizbe'ach is recorded in the Book of Amos. The fact that the move from the Cherub to the threshold is recorded in Yechezkel, who lived long after Amos is not a problem - because Amos, as a Navi, was prophesying what would occur in the days of Yechezkel.

(b)The Shechinah left the Beis Hamikdash altogether to go up to the roof - when Menasheh placed an image in the Heichal (because 'there was no room for two').

(c)The Shechinah waited in the desert - for six months, for Yisrael to do Teshuvah, before making its final ascent back to heaven.

(d)"v'Einei Resha'im Tichlenah, u'Manos Avad Minhem, v'Sikvasam Mapach Nafesh" - signified that there was no hope that they would repent, and was Hash-m's final statement before ascending from the desert.

7)

(a)Correspondingly, the Sanhedrin went into exile ten times. The only source for this is - tradition.

(b)The two did not occur simultaneously - because the ten exiles of the Shechinah (which was not present in the second Beis-Hamikdash) took place in the first Beis-Hamikdash, whereas the ten exiles of the Sanhedrin occurred in the second. Note: The Sanhedrin did go into Galus during the first Beis-Hamikdash (when they left the Lishkas Hagazis forty years before the Churban - see c., also Agados Maharsha), but this has nothing to do with the ten Galuyos.

(c)The first exile was from the Lishkas Hagazis (a room in the Beis Hamikdash itself) to the Chanuyos (a shopping area on the Har ha'Bayis)...

(d)...where they moved in order to avoid issuing the death-penalty (which they were empowered to do only as long as they sat in the Lishkas Hagazis), due to the increase in murders.

8)

(a)The Sanhedrin subsequently moved from the Chanuyos to Yerushalayim - and from Yerushalayim to Yavneh.

(b)It then went from Usha back to Yavneh - and from Yavneh back to Usha.

(c)Whenever the current Nasi or his son who succeeded him, moved - the Yeshiva (incorporating the Sanhedrin) moved with him.

(d)The Sanhedrin moved from Yerushalayim to Yavneh in the days of Raban Yochanan ben Zakai, and from Yavneh to Usha and back in the days of Raban Gamliel. It moved back to Usha in the days of Raban Gamliel's son (Raban Shimon ben Gamliel the second).

9)

(a)From Usha, the Sanhedrin moved to Shefar'am, to Beis She'arim and to Tzipori - during which time Rebbi was the Nasi.

(b)Its last stop - was Teverya, 'the deepest of all of them'.

(c)Rebbi Elazar learns from the Pasuk "Ki Heishach Yoshvei Marom, Kiryah Nisgavah, Yashpilenah, Yashpilah ad Aretz, Yagi'enah ad Afar" - that the Sanhedrin went into Galus six times, not ten.

(d)Rebbi Yochanan learns from this Pasuk - that the redemption will come from the earth (i.e. when Yisrael are at their lowest ebb).

10)

(a)The Torah requires the witnesses who saw the new moon to go - wherever the Nasi happened to be.

(b)According to Rebbi Yehoshua ben Korchah in our Mishnah, Raban Yochanan ben Zakai instituted - that they needed to go only as far as the Beis-Din, and that the other members of Beis-Din should declare Rosh Chodesh without the Nasi.

(c)When a certain woman who resided in Neherda'a, refused to go to Mechoza where Ameimar was currently staying, and where he had ordered her to appear in court - he wrote a document placing her in Cherem.

(d)When Rav Ashi queried Ameimar from Raban Yochanan's Takanah - the latter replied that the Takanah was restricted to Kidush Levanah (where making the witnesses travel so far would discourage them from coming to testify on future occasions, but not to a debtor in money matters.

(e)Ameimar forced the woman to travel to another town (despite the fact that there was a Beis-Din in Neherda'a), because the creditor lived in Mechoza, and we have a principle 'a debtor is a slave to the creditor').

11)

(a)We have learned six Takanos of Raban Yochanan ben Zakai in this Perek, and one in the first (that the witnesses break Shabbos only for Nisan and Tishrei). Of the remaining three, the first is the obligation of Kohanim to wear shoes when going up to Duchen, the second, which concerns every Ger (convert) nowadays - is the negation of Chazal's obligation for a Ger to set aside a Rova for the Korban that he has to bring when he converts.

(b)A Rova is a quarter of a Shekel - sufficient to purchase a bird for a burnt-offering.

(c)We know that a Ger is obligated to bring a Korban when he converts - from the tradition that this is what our ancestors did at Har Sinai, when they entered into the covenant of Mitzvos with Milah, Tevilah (Kabalas ha'Mitzvos) and the sprinkling of the blood of a Korban.

(d)Raban Yochanan ben Zakai negated it - because of Takalah (in case, with the passing of time, the money is inadvertently used as Chulin).

12)

(a)In Rav Papa's opinion, the tenth Takanah of Raban Yochanan ben Zakai was that of Kerem Reva'i; according to Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak, it was the Lashon shel Zehoris. The Takanah of ...

1. ... 'Kerem Reva'i' was that, after the Churban, following the decree of Chazal who had obligated whoever lived within one day's journey of Yerushalayim to bring the fruit of the fourth year to Yerushalayim (depriving them of the option to redeem it and take the money to Yerushalayim instead) - Rebbi Yochanan rescinded that decree (since the reason of adorning the streets of Yerushalayim no longer applied).

2. ... 'Lashon shel Zehoris' - was instituting that, instead of tying the red thread at the entrance to the Ulam (initially on the outside, and then, when sometimes it did not turn white, and they were sad, on the inside) - they should tie half of it on the rock, and the other half, on the goat's horns.

(b)Rebbi Eliezer wanted to declare his vine-yard Hefker - because he was not able to carry so much fruit to Yerushalayim.

(c)His disciples deterred him from doing so however - on the grounds that his colleagues had already rescinded the original decree (and that he was therefore permitted to redeem the fruit and take the money to Yerushalayim).

13)

(a)Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak disagrees with Rav Papa. How is it possible, he maintains, for the disciples of Rebbi Eliezer to refer to Rebbi Yochanan ben Zakai (Rebbi Eliezer's Rebbe) as his colleague? Rav Papa counters this however - by pointing out that they did this out of respect for their Rebbe.

(b)Raban Yochanan ben Zakai's life was divided into three stages (similar to that of his grand-Talmid, Rebbi Akiva's, many years later) - the first forty years he did business, the second forty he studied Torah, and the third forty he taught it.

(c)Rav Papa disagrees with Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak, due to the fact that Rebbi Yochanan ben Zakai's era of Takanos only began within the last forty years of the Churban Beis-Hamikdash - in which case the red thread had already stopped turning white (and it could not have been among Rebbi Yochanan ben Zakai's Takanos).

(d)Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak counters this - by dating the Takanah at the period when he was still a Talmid. He made the suggestion, which his Rebbe accepted and fixed in his name.