Kiddushin 34b

קידושין ל״ד ע״ב

Learn Kiddushin 34b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

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Topic

Where the rules come from for women being exempt from time-bound מצוות and obligated in non-time-bound ones, and how the rule of שני כתובים הבאים כאחד protects those sources

Overview

The גמרא has a rule, learned from תפילין, that women are exempt from מצות עשה שהזמן גרמא (positive מצוות tied to a set time). It first explains why the תורה still writes special exclusions for סוכה and ראייה: they block a גזירה שוה from מצה or from הקהל that would have obligated women. Next it asks why the rule is not learned from שמחה, where women are included, to obligate them. אביי answers that a woman's שמחה is the duty of her husband, or for a widow, of the people she lives with. The גמרא then asks why the rule is not learned from הקהל. It answers that מצה and הקהל are שני כתובים הבאים כאחד, two verses teaching the same thing, so they cannot set a general rule. It shows that תפילין and ראייה are each needed, while women in הקהל already follows from the children, so the rule holds. It then asks what to say according to the opinion that such verses do teach, and adds a second difficulty. Women are obligated in non-time-bound מצוות, learned from מורא אב ואם, and תלמוד תורה and פריה ורביה cannot teach the opposite, because they are two verses that come as one. That question is taken up on the next amud.

Opening lines

The steps (20)

1. ResolutionThe special word for סוכה is needed to block a link to מצה
2. Challengeראייה also has its own exclusion of women
3. ResolutionThe word for ראייה is needed to block a link to הקהל
4. ChallengeWhy not learn from שמחה to obligate women?
5. Resolutionאביי: a woman's שמחה is her husband's job
6. ChallengeWhat about a widow?
7. ResolutionThe obligation is on the people she lives with
8. ChallengeWhy not learn from הקהל?
9. Resolutionמצה and הקהל are two verses teaching the same thing
10. Challengeתפילין and ראייה are also two verses
11. ResolutionBoth are needed: without ראייה we would learn from הקהל
12. ResolutionWithout תפילין we would compare it to מזוזה
13. ChallengeMaybe מצה and הקהל are also each needed
14. Resolutionמצה is needed so we don't learn from סוכות
15. Resolutionהקהל is not needed, so the two verses still teach nothing
16. ChallengeWhat about the opinion that two such verses do teach?
17. QuestionWhere do we learn women are obligated in non-time-bound מצוות?
18. ResponseWe learn it from מורא אב ואם
19. ChallengeWhy not learn the opposite from תלמוד תורה?
20. Resolutionתלמוד תורה and פריה ורביה are two verses that do not teach