The sugya opens with a baraita addressing the question: “Why do a person’s sons and daughters die when they are young?” The baraita states that this occurs “so that he will cry and mourn over an upright person.” The sugya then turns to laws and images of keri‘a (tearing one’s clothing) at death. A second baraita records R’ Shimon ben Elazar’s teaching: One who stands over the deceased at the moment of the soul’s departure is obligated to rend, likened to the obligation to rend when a Torah scroll burns.
The sugya next treats the death of Rav Safra. The Sages do not rend garments, explaining that they “did not learn from him.” Abaye rebukes them: the baraita says “a Torah scholar has died”, not “one’s teacher.” Abaye adds that Rav Safra’s teachings are recited daily. When the Sages think the moment has passed, Abaye cites: As long as eulogies continue for a scholar, one is obligated to rend. When they attempt to rend immediately, he cites another baraita: A scholar’s honor is at his eulogy, so the rending must occur then.
The sugya then shifts to the death of Rav Huna. They wish to place a Torah scroll on his bier; Rav Ḥisda forbids it, as Rav Huna did not tolerate sitting on a bed with a scroll on it. Evidence is cited from Rav Taḥlifa, who saw Rav Huna invert a jug to lift a scroll off the bed before sitting. When the bier cannot pass through the doorway, they consider lowering it from the roof; Rav Ḥisda objects, citing Rav Huna’s teaching that a scholar’s honor is to exit through the door. They propose transferring the body to a narrower bier; Rav Ḥisda again objects, as a scholar must be taken out on the first bier. The prooftext is II Samuel 6:3 (“the Ark of God” on a “new cart”). Unable to do otherwise, they break the doorway and remove him properly.
In his eulogy, R’ Abba declares Rav Huna worthy of the Shekhina, except that “Babylonia caused it not to rest.” Rav Naḥman bar Ḥisda (or Rav Ḥanan bar Ḥisda) challenges from Ezekiel’s prophecy in Babylonia, but his father silences him. The doubling hayo haya indicates Ezekiel had already begun prophesying in Eretz Yisrael.
When Rav Huna is brought to Eretz Yisrael, the messengers announce “Rav Huna has come,” and R’ Ami and R’ Asi initially think he is alive, recalling their awe of him in Babylonia. Informed that his coffin has arrived, some Sages go out to meet it; others do not. Two baraitot yield opposite rulings on whether to stand in a line and recite birkat aveilim and tanchumei aveilim for a coffin traveling from place to place.
They decide to bury Rav Huna near R’ Ḥiyya, since both “disseminated Torah in Israel.” The question arises: Who may enter the burial cave? Rav Ḥagga volunteers, citing his purity at age eighteen (never having experienced keri), his long service to Rav Huna, and his knowledge of Rav Huna’s pious deeds—e.g., forty fasts for a tefillin strap that flipped. Inside, he encounters the bodies of Yehuda and Ḥizkiyya, R’ Ḥiyya’s sons, lying to the right and left of their father. Yehuda tells Ḥizkiyya to rise out of respect for Rav Huna; when Ḥizkiyya stands, a pillar of fire rises with him. Afraid, Rav Ḥagga props up Rav Huna’s coffin and exits. He is unharmed because he supported the coffin.
The pattern repeats at the death of Rav Ḥisda: they again propose placing a Torah scroll on the bier; R’ Yitzḥak objects, for Rav Ḥisda did not approve this practice in life. When the mourners hesitate to sew their torn garments, R’ Yitzḥak bar Ami rules that once they turn their faces from the bier, they may sew.
The sugya concludes with the deaths of Rabba bar Huna and Rav Hamnuna, whose coffins, carried on camels, reach a single-file bridge in Eretz Yisrael. The animals stop. It’s explained to an accompanying Arab that the Sages are showing honor to one another, each deferring to the other to cross first. The Arab decides that Rabba bar Huna should go first because he is the son of a great man; his camel then proceeds. For speaking in this manner and thereby slighting Rav Hamnuna, the Arab is divinely punished: his molars and teeth fall out.
Outline
Intro
The Passage
Baraita - why do a person’s young children die? to generate mourning for an “upright person”
R’ Shimon ben Elazar on Rending at Death - one who stands at the moment of death must rend garments, akin to a Torah scroll burning
Rav Safra’s Death and Keri‘a
Sages fail to rend garments since they “did not learn from him”; Abaye rebukes them: the baraita speaks of a “Torah scholar,” not “one’s teacher”; He notes that Rav Safra’s words are cited daily
Sages think it is too late to rend; Abaye cites a tannaitic rule that as long as eulogies continue, people remain obligated
They then want to rend immediately; Abaye says the scholar’s honor is at the eulogy
Rav Huna’s Funeral: Torah Scroll on the Bier
They wish to place a Torah scroll beside Rav Huna; Rav Ḥisda objects: Rav Huna avoided sitting on a bed with a scroll
Evidence from Rav Taḥlifa
Bier does not fit; they consider lowering from roof; Rav Ḥisda opposes: a scholar’s honor is to exit through the door
They consider transferring him to a smaller bier; Rav Ḥisda objects: a scholar must go out on the first bier
Prooftext from the Ark placed on a “new cart”(II Samuel 6:3); With no alternative, they break the doorway to maintain the honor constraints
R’ Abba’s Eulogy and the Shekhina: R’ Abba - Rav Huna was worthy of the Shekhina, but Babylonia prevented it
Rav Naḥman / Ḥanan bar Ḥisda - Challenge from Ezekiel’s prophecy in Babylonia
Father silences the challenger; explanation: Ezekiel first prophesied in Israel
Arrival in Eretz Yisrael: R’ Ami and R’ Asi mistakenly think Rav Huna is alive; recall their reverence for him
Clarification: only the coffin arrived; Some go out; some do not
Two conflicting baraitot about whether people line up and recite blessings for a coffin traveling between places.
Burial Location: Decision to bury Rav Huna near R’ Ḥiyya, since both “disseminated Torah”
Who May Enter the Cave: Rav Ḥagga volunteers, citing his purity at age 18, long service to Rav Huna, and his knowledge of Rav Huna’s pious deeds (e.g., 40 fasts for a tefillin strap flipped)
Inside the Cave: Encounter with Yehuda and Ḥizkiyya - Spirits/ corpses of R’ Ḥiyya’s sons respond to Rav Huna’s presence; Ḥizkiyya rises with a pillar of fire; Rav Ḥagga escapes unharmed by propping up the coffin
Rav Ḥisda’s Death: Torah Scroll Issue Reappears
They again propose placing a Torah scroll; R’ Yitzḥak objects: he did not approve this practice in life
They think they must not re-sew; R’ Yitzḥak bar Ami says: once they turn away from the bier, they may
Rabba bar Huna and Rav Hamnuna
Two coffins on camels reach a single-file bridge; animals stop
An Arab says the honor order requires Rabba bar Huna to go first; after saying this, his teeth fall out for disrespecting Rav Hamnuna
The Passage
Moed_Katan/25a#3 and on
Baraita - why do a person’s young children die? to generate mourning for an “upright person”
[...]
תניא:
מפני מה בניו ובנותיו של אדם מתים כשהן קטנים?
כדי שיבכה ויתאבל על אדם כשר.
[...]
[...]
it is taught in a baraita:
For what reason do a person’s sons and daughters die when they are young?
They die so that he will cry and mourn over the death of an upright person (אדם כשר).
[...]
R’ Shimon ben Elazar on Rending at Death - one who stands at the moment of death must rend garments, akin to a Torah scroll burning
תניא,
רבי שמעון בן אלעזר אומר:
העומד על המת בשעת יציאת נשמה —
חייב לקרוע.
למה זה דומה?
לספר תורה שנשרף,
שחייב לקרוע
[...]
it is taught in a baraita:
R’ Shimon ben Elazar says:
One who stands over the deceased at the time of the soul’s departure --
is obligated to rend his clothes.
To what may this be likened?
To a Torah scroll that is burned,
for which anyone present is obligated to rend his clothes.
[...]
Rav Safra’s Death and Keri‘a
Sages fail to rend garments since they “did not learn from him”; Abaye rebukes them: the baraita speaks of a “Torah scholar,” not “one’s teacher”; He notes that Rav Safra’s words are cited daily
כי נח נפשיה דרב ספרא,
לא קרעו רבנן עליה,
אמרי: לא גמרינן מיניה.
אמר להו אביי:
מי תניא ״הרב שמת״?!
״חכם שמת״ תניא.
ועוד: כל יומא שמעתתיה בפומין בבי מדרשא.
§ The Talmud relates that when Rav Safra passed away
the other Sages did not rend their garments over him.
They said: We did not learn from him, as he did not disseminate his Torah knowledge to the public.
Abaye berated them and said to them:
Is it taught in the baraita: If one’s teacher died?!
It is taught: If a Torah scholar died, and Rav Safra was certainly a Torah scholar.
And furthermore, every day his teachings are in our mouths in the study hall,
so that even if we did not learn directly from him, we should still be considered his students.
Sages think it is too late to rend; Abaye cites a tannaitic rule that as long as eulogies continue, people remain obligated
סבור: מה דהוה הוה.
אמר להו אביי,
תנינא:
חכם,
כל זמן שעוסקין בהספד —
חייבין לקרוע.
The other Sages thought that what was done was done, and it was now too late for them to rend their garments.
Abaye said to them:
We learned:
With regard to a Torah scholar,
as long as they are engaged in eulogizing him, then people are obligated to rend their garments, even after the time of his death.
They then want to rend immediately; Abaye says the scholar’s honor is at the eulogy
סבור למיקרע לאלתר,
אמר להו אביי:
תניא:
חכם כבודו בהספידו.
They then thought to rend their garments immediately.
Abaye said to them:
It is taught in a baraita:
A Torah scholar’s honor is at the time of his eulogy,
and so you should wait until the time of the eulogy before rending your garments.
Rav Huna’s Funeral: Torah Scroll on the Bier
They wish to place a Torah scroll beside Rav Huna; Rav Ḥisda objects: Rav Huna avoided sitting on a bed with a scroll
כי נח נפשיה דרב הונא,
סבור לאותובי ספר תורה אפורייה.
אמר להו רב חסדא:
מילתא דבחייה לא סבירא ליה,
השתא ליקום ליה ליעבד ליה?!
§ The Talmud relates another incident: When Rav Huna died
they thought to place a Torah scroll on his bier, as was commonly done after the death of a Torah scholar, as if to say that the deceased fulfilled everything written in the scroll.
Rav Ḥisda said to them:
This is a practice that he did not hold with during his lifetime;
now should we stand up and do it for him when he is dead?!
Evidence from Rav Taḥlifa
דאמר רב תחליפא:
אנא חזיתיה לרב הונא
דבעי למיתב אפורייה,
והוה מנח ספר תורה עליה,
וכף כדא אארעא
ואותיב ספר תורה עילויה.
אלמא קסבר: אסור לישב על גבי מטה שספר תורה מונח עליה.
As Rav Taḥlifa said:
I myself saw Rav Huna,
who wished to sit on his bed,
and there was a Torah scroll placed on it.
And he turned over (כף) a jug (כדא)
and placed the Torah scroll on it so that he could then sit on the bed.
Apparently he holds that it is prohibited to sit on a bed upon which a Torah scroll lies.
Therefore, it would be inappropriate to lay a Torah scroll next to his body after he died.
Bier does not fit; they consider lowering from roof; Rav Ḥisda opposes: a scholar’s honor is to exit through the door
לא הוה נפיק פוריא מבבא,
סבור לשלשולי דרך גגין.
אמר להו רב חסדא:
הא גמירנא מיניה:
חכם, כבודו דרך פתח.
When they tried to remove his corpse from his house for the burial, the bier (פוריא) would not fit through the narrow door.
They then thought to lower the bier from the roof.
Rav Ḥisda said to them:
This I learned from him, Rav Huna himself:
A scholar’s honor is for him to be taken out through the main opening,
and not in any other manner.
They consider transferring him to a smaller bier; Rav Ḥisda objects: a scholar must go out on the first bier
סבור לאשנויי מפוריא לפוריא.
אמר להו רב חסדא:
הכי גמירנא מיניה:
חכם כבודו במטה ראשונה.
They then thought to move him from his bier to a narrower bier so that it would fit through the door.
But Rav Ḥisda said to them:
I learned from him, Rav Huna himself, as follows:
A scholar — his honor is for him to be taken out on the first bier.
Prooftext from the Ark placed on a “new cart”(II Samuel 6:3); With no alternative, they break the doorway to maintain the honor constraints
דאמר רב יהודה, אמר רב:
מנין לחכם שכבודו במטה ראשונה?
שנאמר:
״וירכיבו את ארון האלהים אל עגלה חדשה״.
פרוס בבא, ואפקוה.
As Rav Yehuda said that Rav said:
From where is it derived that a scholar’s honor is for him to be taken out on the first bier?
As it is stated:
“And they set the Ark of God upon a new cart” (II Samuel 6:3).
they broke (פרוס) the doorway and took him out.1
Steinsaltz:
When taking the Ark to Jerusalem, King David had it placed back on the cart upon which it had been returned by the Philistines, and a Torah scholar is considered to be similar to the Ark of the Covenant.
[After learning this, when Rav Huna’s bearers] saw that there was nothing else that they could do, “they broke the doorway and took [Rav Huna’s bier] out” through it.