Pt2 Celestial Phenomena: Comets and Constellations in the Talmud (Mishnah Berakhot 9:2; Berakhot 58b-59a)

This is the second and final part of a two-part series. Part 1 is here, the outline can be found there.

The Constellations Orion and Pleiades as Balancing Forces of the Universe

Shmuel explores a seeming contradiction between biblical verses that mention the constellations Orion and Pleiades in different orders: 

Job 9:9 lists Orion before Pleiades (כימה), while Amos 5:8 lists Pleiades before Orion.¹

Shmuel reconciles this by explaining that Orion and Pleiades each balance the universe: Orion's heat counters the cold (צינה) of Pleiades, and Pleiades' cold counters the heat of Orion, making both essential for sustaining the world. 

שמואל רמי: 

כתיב ״עשה עש, כסיל, וכימה״, 

וכתיב: ״עשה כימה וכסיל״. 

הא כיצד? 

אלמלא חמה של כסיל -- לא נתקיים עולם מפני צינה של כימה, 

ואלמלא צינה של כימה — לא נתקיים עולם מפני חמה של כסיל.

On the subject of stars, the Gemara notes that Shmuel raised a contradiction between the implications of two verses with regard to constellations.

On the one hand it is written: “Who makes Ursa Major, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south” (Job 9:9); Orion precedes Pleiades.

And on the other hand it is written: “He Who makes Pleiades and Orion” (Amos 5:8); Pleiades precedes Orion.

So how is this reconciled?

The Gemara replies: Were it not for Orion’s heat, the universe could not exist because of the cold of Pleiades;

and conversely, were it not for the cold of Pleiades, the universe could not exist because of the heat of Orion.

Constellations and the “River of Fire” Influence the Lethality of Scorpion Stings

The Talmud quotes another tradition, that states that if the tail of the Scorpio constellation weren’t cooled by the River of Fire,² a scorpion sting would be fatal. 

This relates to God's control over celestial forces, as explained in Job 38:31,³ in the Talmud’s interpretation: God shifts the influence of constellations like the Pleiades and Orion to regulate temperature, balancing heat and cold through the stars.

וגמירי: 

אי לאו עוקצא דעקרבא דמנח בנהר דינור, 

כל מאן דהוה טרקא ליה עקרבא, לא הוה חיי. 

והיינו דקאמר ליה רחמנא לאיוב: 

״התקשר מעדנות כימה?

או משכות כסיל תפתח?!״.

And we learned a tradition that

if the tail of the constellation Scorpio did not rest in the River of Fire,

anyone stung by a scorpion would not survive. 

And that is what the All-Merciful said to Job of the relationship between heat and cold among the stars: 

“Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades 

or loosen the bands of Orion?!” (Job 38:31); God alternates intensifying the power of different constellations in order to raise or lower the temperature.

Interpretations of the Names and Positions of Pleiades and Ursa Major

The Talmud discusses the constellation Pleiades (mentioned earlier), called Kima (כימה) in Hebrew, and the origin of its name, which is interpreted to relate to its “like a hundred (כמאה) stars”.⁴

The Talmud also addresses Ursa Major,⁵ whose Hebrew name some interpret as a star group either at the tail of Aries⁶ or the head of Taurus.⁷ 

The Talmud concludes that the former opinion is more likely—that it refers to the tail of Aries (as opposed to the head of Taurus)—based on the subsequent verse in Job (38:32), which mentions guiding "Ursa Major with her sons." This suggests that the stars appear as an addition (טרפא) (which fits the tail of Aries better).⁸

מאי ״כימה״? 

אמר שמואל: כמאה ככבי. 

אמרי לה: דמכנפי, 

ואמרי לה: דמבדרן.

מאי ״עש״? 

אמר רב יהודה: יותא. 

מאי ״יותא״? 

אמרי לה: זנב טלה. 

ואמרי לה: רישא דעגלא. 

ומסתברא כמאן דאמר זנב טלה,

דכתיב: ״ועיש על בניה תנחם״.

אלמא חסרה, ומתחזיא כטרפא דטריף. 

With regard to Pleiades, the Gemara asks: What is Pleiades [Kima]? Why is it called by that name? 

Shmuel said: Because it is approximately a hundred [keme’a] stars, as that is the number of stars in that constellation; 

some say that they are concentrated 

and some say that they are dispersed.

With regard to the verse: “Who makes Ursa Major, Orion, and Pleiades” (Job 9:9), the Gemara asks: What is Ursa Major [Ash]? 

Rav Yehuda said: It is the star called Yota. 

This name was unfamiliar as well, so the Gemara asks: What is Yota? 

There is disagreement; some say that Yota is the group of stars comprising the tail of Aries, 

while others say that Yota belongs to the head of Taurus. 

The Gemara concludes: And it stands to reason in accordance with the opinion of the one who said that Yota is the group of stars comprising the tail of Aries,

as it is written: “Or can you guide Ursa Major with her sons?” (Job 38:32);

apparently it was incomplete and the tail appears as if it was appended onto it. 

Constellations and Cosmic Justice: The Tale of Ursa Major's Lost Stars and the Promise of Restoration

The Talmud states that Ursa Major appears to chase Pleiades, because it is demanding the return of its "children"—two stars taken by God from Ursa Major to fill a void in Pleiades after He removed two stars to initiate the biblical Flood.⁹

These original stars were not returned to Pleiades because, like earth removed from a pit (חוליתו),¹⁰ they were deemed unable to replace the void they created. 

Alternatively, these stars, having served a punitive role, could not advocate for their own removal.¹¹

The Talmud further questions why God did not create new stars for Pleiades, answering with the biblical verse that "there is nothing new under the sun." 

However, Rav Naḥman concludes that in the (Messianic) future, God will restore the lost stars to Ursa Major.

והאי דאזלא בתרה, דאמרה לה: הב לי בני. 

שבשעה שהקדוש ברוך הוא בקש להביא מבול לעולם 

נטל שני כוכבים מכימה, והביא מבול לעולם. 

וכשבקש לסתמה, נטל שני כוכבים מעיש, וסתמה.

וליהדר לה? 

אין הבור מתמלא מחוליתו. 

אי נמי: אין קטיגור נעשה סניגור.

וליברי לה תרי ככבי אחריני?

 ״אין כל חדש תחת השמש״. 

אמר רב נחמן: 

עתיד הקדוש ברוך הוא להחזירן לה, 

שנאמר: ״ועיש על בניה תנחם״.

The Gemara explains: And the fact that Ursa Major follows Pleiades, it is as if Ursa Major is saying to Pleiades: Give me back my children, my two stars. 

As it is related: When the Holy One, Blessed be He, sought to bring a flood into the world, 

He took two stars from Pleiades and brought the flood upon the world. 

And afterward, when He wished to fill the void, He took two stars from Ursa Major and filled the void with them. Consequently, the constellation of Ursa Major attempts to persuade Pleiades, seeking to get its stars back.

The Gemara asks: And return it, why did the Holy One, Blessed be He, not restore the original two stars to Pleiades?

The Gemara answers: A pit cannot be filled by its own earth; when a pit is excavated, the earth that was excavated from it is insufficient to refill it.

Alternatively, one could say that a prosecutor cannot become an advocate; since these stars caused the flood it is not appropriate that they facilitate the end of the flood.

The Gemara argues: Then God should have created two other new stars for Pleiades.

The Gemara responds: “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9).

Rav Naḥman said:

In the future, the Holy One, Blessed be He, will restore those same stars to Ursa Major,

as it is stated: “Or can you guide [tanḥem] Ursa Major with her sons?” (Job 38:32), which is interpreted homiletically in the sense of consolation [tanḥumim] apparently due to the restoration of those stars.

Appendix 1 - The Magnitude of Creation: God's Declaration to Israel of the Vast Celestial Order (Berakhot 32b)

Berakhot.32b.16

The Talmud discusses a midrash on Isaiah 49:14–15, where Zion laments being forsaken and forgotten by God.

Reish Lakish interprets this as the community of Israel expressing that even a man who remarries remembers his first wife’s deeds, yet God seems to have forsaken and forgotten them entirely.

God responds by emphasizing His enduring commitment to Israel, illustrating the vastness of creation:

1. I created 12 constellations¹² in the firmament (רקיע)

2. For each constellation, I created 30 armies (חיל)

3. For each army, I created 30 legions¹³

4. For each legion, I created 30 infantry division leaders (רהטון)

5. For each infantry division leader, I created 30 military camp leaders (קרטון)

6. For each military camp leader, I created 30 leaders of forts¹⁴

7. On each leader of a fort, I hung 365 “thousands (אלפי) of myriad (רבוא)" stars, corresponding to the days of the solar year (ימות החמה)

All these were created for Israel’s sake.

God reproaches Israel for doubting His devotion despite this grand testimony of care.

אמר לה הקדוש ברוך הוא:

בתי!

1. שנים עשר מזלות בראתי ברקיע,

2. 1. ועל כל מזל ומזל

   2. בראתי לו שלשים חיל,

3. 1. ועל כל חיל וחיל

   2. בראתי לו שלשים לגיון,

4. 1. ועל כל לגיון ולגיון

   2. בראתי לו שלשים רהטון,

5. 1. ועל כל רהטון ורהטון

   2. בראתי לו שלשים קרטון,

6. 1. ועל כל קרטון וקרטון

   2. בראתי לו שלשים גסטרא,

7. 1. ועל כל גסטרא וגסטרא

   2. תליתי בו שלש מאות וששים וחמשה אלפי רבוא כוכבים,

      1. כנגד ימות החמה.

God said to Israel:

My daughter!

1. I created 12 constellations in the firmament,

2. 1. and for each and every constellation

   2. I have created 30 armies,

3. 1. and for each and every army

   2. I have created 30 legions [ligyon],

4. 1. and for each and every legion

   2. I have created 30 infantry division leaders [rahaton],

5. 1. and for each and every infantry division leader

   2. I have created 30 military camp leaders [karton],

6. 1. and for each and every military camp leader

   2. I have created 30 leaders of forts [gastera],

7. 1. and on each and every leader of a fort

   2. I have hung 365,000 stars

      1. corresponding to the days of the solar year.

Appendix 2 - Iyyar or Marḥeshvan? Dispute between R' Eliezer and R' Yehoshua Regarding the date of Noah’s Flood (Rosh Hashanah 11b-12a)

Rosh_Hashanah.11b.6-12a.1

Genesis 7:11

ואזדו לטעמייהו,

דתניא:

״בשנת שש מאות שנה לחיי נח

בחדש השני

בשבעה עשר יום לחדש״,

And R' Eliezer and R' Yehoshua follow their lines of reasoning, as they disagreed about this same issue in another context as well.

As it is taught in a baraita:

“In the 600th year of Noah’s life,

in the 2nd month,

on the 17th day of the month, on that day were all the fountains of the great deep broken open, and the windows of heaven were opened” (Genesis 7:11).

R' Yehoshua - 17th of Iyyar

רבי יהושע אומר:

אותו היום שבעה עשר באייר היה,

יום ש

• מזל כימה שוקע ביום

• ומעינות מתמעטין.

R' Yehoshua says:

That day was the 17th of Iyyar, the second month of the year counting from Nisan,

which is the day that

• the constellation of Kima sets during the day

• and the season that the springs diminish with the increased heat.

ומתוך ששינו מעשיהן,

שינה הקדוש ברוך הוא עליהם מעשה בראשית,

והעלה מזל כימה ביום,

ונטל שני כוכבים מכימה

והביא מבול לעולם.

But because the people of the generation of the flood changed their actions for the worse,

God changed for them the acts of Creation,

and instead of Kima setting, He caused the constellation of Kima to rise during the day

and He removed 2 stars from Kima,

and in this way He brought a flood to the world.

R' Eliezer - 17th of Marḥeshvan

רבי אליעזר אומר:

אותו היום שבעה עשר במרחשון היה,

יום ש

• מזל כימה עולה ביום

• ומעינות מתגברים

ומתוך ששינו מעשיהם,

שינה הקדוש ברוך הוא עליהם מעשה בראשית,

והעלה מזל כימה ביום,

ונטל שני כוכבים

והביא מבול לעולם.

R' Eliezer disagrees and says:

That day was the 17th of Marḥeshvan, the second month counting from Tishrei,

which is the day that

• the constellation of Kima rises during the day

• and the season that the springs increase.

But because the people changed their actions for the worse,

God changed for them the acts of Creation

and He caused the constellation of Kima to rise during the day,

and He removed 2 stars from it

and He brought a flood to the world.

1. See Wikipedia, “Job 9” > “Verse 9“:

[Job said:] "who made the Bear and Orion,

the Pleiades and the chambers of the south;"

The translation of Bear, Orion, Pleiades from (Hebrew: Ash, Kesil, and Kimah) follows the familiar names of constellations derived from Greek tradition to substitute the Hebrew terms (cf. Job 38:31-33; Amos 5:8).

• "Bear": from Hebrew עָשׁ, ʿash (cf. עַיִשׁ, ʿayish in Job 38:32), rendered as "Arcturus" in KJV, also suggested to be Aldebaran, a star in the constellation of Taurus, among many other suggestions.

2. נהר דינור - on this term, see my lengthy note in my piece here; in this passage, the term appears to refer to the Milky Way, see Hebrew Wikipedia on נהר דינור.

3. See Wikipedia, “Job 38“ > “Verse 31“:

[YHWH said:] "“Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades,

Or loose the belt of Orion?"

• "Cluster": translated from the Hebrew word מַעֲדַנּ֣וֹת, ma-‘ă-ḏan-nō-wṯ, which is found here and in 1 Samuel 15:32, or possibly in Job 31:36 (“bind”; with a 'metathesis' or a 'reversal of consonants').

• "Pleiades (star cluster)": or "the Seven Stars".

4. Compare Wikipedia, “Pleiades“ > “Composition“:

The cluster contains more than 1,000 statistically confirmed members, not counting the number that would be added if all binary stars could be resolved.

On the Talmud’s interpretation of names, see my piece here (at my Academia page).

5. עָשׁ - transliteration: ‘ash.

6. טלה - literally: “lamb”.

7. עגלא - literally: “calf”.

This astrological sign is generally referred to in rabbinic sources as “ox” (מזל שור).

For lists of astrological signs (מזלות) in midrashic literature, see Esther_Rabbah.7.11 (starting from חזר ובדק במזלות), and Pesikta_Rabbati.20.1 (starting from שמזל ניסן).

See also Hebrew Wikipedia, “גלגל המזלות“ and Wikipedia, “Jewish views on astrology“ (this entry is skewed towardsviews opposed to astrology).

8. The Talmudic interpretation seems to be making a connection between Ursa Major's description in Job ("with her sons") and Aries's tail, but this doesn’t seem to fit an astronomical perspective. The "sons" description would actually fit Ursa Major itself better than Aries - Ursa Major's tail stars (the handle of the Big Dipper) are much more prominent and better match the idea of "following sons" than Aries's tail.

9. מבול.

On this—God removing two stars to initiate the biblical Flood—see also my appendix at the end of this piece: “Appendix 2 - Iyyar or Marḥeshvan? Dispute between R' Eliezer and R' Yehoshua Regarding the date of Noah’s Flood (Rosh Hashanah 11b-12a)“.

10. On this talmudic aphorism, and the underlying context, see Hebrew Wiktionary, “אין הבור מתמלא מחליתו“, and the bibliography listed there.

11. אין קטיגור נעשה סניגור - literally: “a prosecutor (קטיגור) cannot become an advocate (סניגור)”; both of these nouns are loanwords from Greek.

12. מזלות - zodiac.

13. לגיון - from Latin legion.

14. גסטרא - from Latin castra.