REVIEW QUESTIONS ON MISHNAYOS
Prepared by Rabbi Eliezer Chrysler
of Kollel Iyun Hadaf, Yerushalayim
daf@dafyomi.co.il http://www.dafyomi.co.il
Mishnah 1
1)
(a) On what condition does R. Meir say that that whoever studies Torah will merit many things?
(b) What exactly does 'many things' mean?
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2)
(a) Based on the Pasuk in Koheles "ki Zeh Kol ha'Adam", what is the connection of a person who studies Torah with the creation of the world?
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3)
(a) His first title is 'Rei'a'. What does 'Rei'a' mean?
(b) He is also called 'beloved' (since the Pasuk in Tehilim writes "Shalom Rav l'Ohavei Sorosecha") 'one who loves Hash-m and his fellow man'. What is...
1. ... the basis of the middle title (one who loves Hash-m)?
2. ... significance of the latter title (one who loves his fellow man)?
(c) What additional two titles does he bear? What else does he do to both G-d and man?
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4)
(a) In what sort of 'clothes' does the Torah dress the person who learns Torah Lishmah?
(b) And it also prepares him to become a Tzadik a Chasid and a Yashar. What is the definition of ...
1. ... 'Tzadik'?
2. ... 'Chasid'?
3. ... 'Yashar'?
(c) What fourth title does it prepare for him?
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5)
(a) If the Torah that he learns keeps far away from sin, what does it bring him near to?
(b) The Mishnah lists four benefits that Torah grants a person based on the Pasuk in Mishlei "Li Eitzah v'Sushiyah, Ani Binah, Li Gevurah". In the previous Pasuk "Hash-m Kanani Reishis Darko", what does " Reishis Darko" refer to?
(c) Based on the latter Pasuk, which four benefits does one derive from the person who learns Torah Lishmah?
(d) How else might we interpret the current statement?
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6)
(a) The Torah also grants him Malchus, Memshalah and Chikur Din. What is the difference between Malchus and Memshalah (see Tif'eres Yisrael)?
(b) What is 'Chikur Din'?
(c) What is revealed to him on account of the Torah that he learns?
(d) What does he become, besides a fountain that is self-generating?
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7)
(a) He also becomes Tzanu'a (modest) and Erech Ru'ach (Apayim) and is Mochel al Elbono. What is the connection between Erech Ru'ach and learning Torah?
(b) What does 'Mochel al Elbono' mean?
(c) Finally, what does it do to him status-wise?
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Mishnah 2
8)
(a) What is the source of the daily announcement cited by R. Yehoshua ben Levi in the Beraisa 'Oy Lahem la'Beri'os me'Elbonah shel Torah'?
(b) What does it mean?
(c) Whoever does not study Torah is called Nazuf. What does 'Nazuf' mean?
(d) What does the Pasuk in Mishlei compare to a golden nose-ring in the nose of a Chazir?
(e) And what is the significance of the continuation of the Pasuk "Ishah Yafah v'Saras Ta'am"?
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9)
(a) What do we learn from the Pasuk in ...
1. ... ki Sisa "v'ha'Luchos Ma'aseh Elokim Hemah ... Charus al ha'Luchos"?
2. ... Chukas "u'mi'Matanah Nachali'el"?
3. ... "u'mi'Nachali'el Bamos"?
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Mishnah 3
10)
(a) What is one obligated to do to someone from whom one learned one ...
1. ... chapter of Torah?
2. ... Halachah or Pasuk, one thing of interest or even just one letter?
(b) To whom did David ha'Melech call 'Rabo Alufo u'Meyuda'o' for teaching him two things?
(c) On what grounds can we learn from there 'Kal-vs'Chomer' for ourselves to do so when we learn even one letter from a friend?
(d) What do we learn from the two Pesukim in Mishlei "Kavod Chachamim Yinchalu, u'Semimim Yinchalu Tov" and "ki Lekach Tov Nasati Lachem Torasi al Ta'azovu"?
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11)
(a) What did Achitofel say to David ha'Melech when he once found him learning on his own?
(b) And what did he once see him do, that prompted him to quote the Pasuk in Kedoshim "u'Mikdashi Tira'u"?
(c) How does the Pasuk in Tehilim "b'Veis Elokim Nehalech b'Ragesh" tie up with this episode?
(d) According to a second version, he saw him enter the Beis ha'Midrash on his own. Which Pasuk did he then quote him?
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Mishnah 4
12)
(a) What does the Tana mean when he says 'Pas ba'Melach Tochal?
(b) What similar statement does he make with regard to drinking, sleeping and living?
(c) What is the point of all this?
(d) If one fulfills this, says the Mishnah, one's reward is forthcoming, "Ashrecha v'Tov Lach" (Tehilim). What is the significance of this dual reward?
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Mishnah 5
13)
(a) The Mishnah now gives four pieces of advice to the budding Talmid-Chacham. In the course of one's studies, what should one not ...
1. ... seek?
2. ... covet?
(b) What does the Tana prescribe with regard to the performance of Mitzvos?
(c) Whose table should one not desire?
(d) Why is that? How does the Tana describe 'your table' and 'your crown'?
(e) But what if it is seems to you that their table and their crown continue to exceed yours?
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Mishnah 6
14)
(a) We learned in the Mishnah in Sanhedrin that a king can neither judge nor can he be judged. How many special characteristics does Malchus comprise?
(b) Besides those in Sanhedrin, where are all the others listed?
(c) How many Matnos Kehunah are there all told?
(d) If ten of them apply in the Beis Hamikdash, where do the remaining fourteen apply?
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15)
(a) How many characteristics are required to acquire Torah?
(b) What does this prove?
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16)
(a) The Tana now proceeds to list the forty-eight characteristics. The first three are study, listening to one's Rebbes and arranging them on one's lips. The following two are connected with one's heart. What are they?
(b) In connection with the above, what do we learn from the Pasuk in Mishlei "ki Chayim Hem l'Motza'eihem"? How do we amend the word "l'Motza'eihem"?
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17)
(a) The next five have to do with Midos, the first of which are awe, fear and humility. What is the difference between dread (Eimah) and fear (Yir'ah) in this context (see Tif'eres Yisrael)?
(b) In connection with the above, what do we learn from the Pasuk in Tehilim "v'Gilu bi'Re'adah"?
(c) Which two (positive) Midos make up the five?
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18)
(a) What are the next three, which have to do with interacting with one's Rebbes, Chaverim and Talmidim, respectively?
(b) Shimush Chachamim might also mean making an effort to learn from every Chacham possible. In that case, what is the meaning of ...
1. ... 'Dikduk Chaverim'?
2. ... 'Pilpul Talmidim'
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19)
(a) 'b'Yishuv, b'Mikra b'Mishnah'. What does 'b'Yishuv' mean (see Tif'eres Yisrael)?
(b) b'Yishuv might also mean one of two other things, one of them Yeshivah (sitting and learning). What is the other?
(c) The Mishnah now prescribes cutting down six things to a bare minimum, beginning with minimizing one's business ventures and Derech Eretz. What does 'Derech Eretz' mean?
(d) The third is the minimizing of one's material pleasures. What are the remaining three?
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20)
(a) One needs to be slow to anger and to have a good heart. In whom does one need to have faith, what must one be prepared to accept, what does one have to recognize and what to rejoice over?
(b) What sort of Yisurim (suffering) might the Mishnah be referring to?
(c) Why is rejoicing over one's lot so important?
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21)
(a) What does the Mishnah include in the list that is an extension of 'Asu Seyag la'Torah' (see Medrash Shmuel)?
(b) What else might - 'ha'Oseh Seyag li'Devarav' mean?
(c) What should a person who has many good deeds to his credit be careful not do about it?
(d) What is the reason for this?
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22)
(a) In addition to being loved, someone who wishes to acquire Torah must himself love five things. What are the first two?
(b) He must also love Tzedakos, Tochachos and Meisharim. What do these three things mean?
(c) Some texts replace 'Ohev es ha'Tzedakos' with 'Oseh Nachas Ru'ach l'Yotzro'. What does this mean?
(d) What should one distance oneself from, what should one not be happy to do and what should not be vain about?
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23)
(a) Here the Tana lists four things that concern one's attitude towards one's fellow Jew. The first of these is 'Nosei b'Ol im Chavero'. What does this mean?
(b) What is one supposed to do if he ...
1. ... has done something that appears wrong?
2. ... is unaware that something he is about to do is wrong?
(c) What is the meaning of ...
1. ... 'u'Ma'amido al ha'Shalom'?
2. ... 'Misyashev Libo b'Salmudo'?
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24)
(a) The first three of the last seven things with which one acquires Torah are 'Sho'el u'Meshiv', 'Shome'a u'Mosif' and 'ha'Lomed al Menas Lelamed'. What is the meaning of ...
1. ... 'Sho'el u'Meshiv' (see Tif'eres Yisrael)?
2. ... 'Shome'a u'Mosif' (see Medrash Shmuel)?
(b) What follows 'ha'Lomed al Menas Lelamed'?
(c) The first of the last three items is someone who acknowledges his Rebbi's greatness (see Tif'eres Yisrael). What comes next?
(d) What is the last item on the list?
(e) What do we learn from the Pasuk in Megilas Esther "va'Tomer Esther la'Melech b'Shem Mordechai"?
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Mishnah 7
25)
(a) What dual benefit does Torah grant those who learn it?
(b) In this regard, what do we learn from the Pasuk in Mishlei ...
1. ... "ki Chayim Heim l'Motza'eihem, ul'Chol Besaro Marpei"?
2. ... "Rif'us Tehi l'Sharecha v'Shikuy l'Atzmosecha"?
3. ... "Etz Chayim Hi la'Machazikim Bah ... "?
(c) And what do we learn from the Pasuk there ...
1. ... "ki Livyas Chen Hem l'Roshecha ... "?
2. ... "Titen l'Roshcha ... Ateres Tif'eres Temagneka"?
3. ... "Orech Yamim bi'Yeminah"?
4. ... "bi'Semolah Osher v'Chavod"?
5. ... "ki Orech Chayim ... v'Shalom Yosifu Lach"?
(d) If the Pasuk in Mishlei describes the ways of the Torah as 'pleasant', how does it describe its paths?
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Mishnah 8
26)
(a) R. Shimon ben Menasyah in the name of R. Shimon ben Yochai lists eight assets. He lists beauty, strength, wealth, and Kavod. What follows Kavod?
(b) To this he adds Ziknah and Seivah. What follows Seivah?
(c) What does he say about them?
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27)
(a) In the ensuing Pesukim that the Tana quotes (almost all from Mishlei), what is the meaning of ...
1. ... "Ateres"?
2. ... "Tif'eres"?
(b) The word "Zekenim" appears there a number of times. What does at least one of them refer to, if not old age?
(c) Kavod is the only one whose source ("v'Chafrah ... v'Neged Zekenim Kavod") is not from Mishlei. From where is it?
(d) Whom does R. Shimon ben Menasyah cite as having realized all seven assets (not counting 'children')?
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Mishnah 9
28)
(a) Following the preliminary greetings, what did ...
1. ... the man whom R. Yosi ben Kisma met on his travels, ask him?
2. ... R. Yosi ben Kisma reply?
(b) What did ...
1. ... the same man offer him to come and live in his town?
2. ... R. Yosi ben Kisma reply?
(c) What reason did he give for declining the offer? What accompanies a person after his death, and what does not?
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29)
(a) Which three worlds are hinted in the Pasuk "b'Hishalechecha Tancheh Osach, b'Shochbecha Tishmor Alecha, v'Hekitzoscha Hi Sesichecha"?
(b) What do the three statements then mean?
(c) Which Pasuk in Tehilim supports R. Yosi ben Kisma's reply?
(d) What is the significance of the Pasuk in Chagai "Li ha'Kesef v'Li ha'Zahav, Ne'um Hash-m Tzevakos"? Why did he add it (see Tif'eres Yisrael)?
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Mishnah 10
30)
(a) How many things does the Mishnah list that Hash-m acquired for Himself?
(b) What is the significance of this statement (see Tif'eres Yisrael)?
(c) The first listed by the Tana is Torah. Why is it mentioned first? Surely, judging by the period in history that it was given, it ought to have been the fourth?
(d) The source for this is the Pasuk in Mishlei "Hash-m Kanani Mif'alav me'Az. What is the phrase that precedes it?
(e) What did Hash-m have in mind when He created them in this order?
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31)
(a) Which pair of items appear next on the list?
(b) The Tana cites the Pasuk in Yeshayah "Koh Amar Hash-m, ha'Shamayim Kis'i, ve'ha'Aretz Hadom Raglai ... ". However, this Pasuk does not contain the word 'Kinyan'. Which Pasuk in Tehilim do we rely on for that?
(c) Why can we not then learn it from the second Pasuk alone?
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32)
(a) Avraham is the third Kinyan. What is the significance of this statement, based on the source Pasuk in Vayera "Baruch Avram l'Kel Elyon Koneh Shamayim va'Aretz"?
(b) What did Avraham do to deserve this distinction?
(c) Who made the above statement?
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33)
(a) What are the fourth and fifth Kinyanim respectively?
(b) From where do we know that Yisrael is a Kinyan?
(c) What do we then learn from the Pasuk in Tehilim "li'Kedoshim Asher ba'Aretz Hemah, v'Adirei Kol Cheftzi Bam"?
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34)
(a) The Tana learns the Beis Hamikdash from the Pasuk in Tehilim "va'Yevi'em el Gevul Kodsho, Har Zeh Kansah Yemino", though this Pasuk makes no direct reference to the Beis Hamidkash. From which Pasuk in Beshalach does he learn that "Gevul Kodsho" refers to the Beis Hamikdash?
(b) Presumably due to the complexity of the current Derashah, the Gemara in Pesachim omits Beis Hamikdash from the list. What are the three items that it lists as being Kinyanim that Hash-m acquired?
(c) And presumably due to the complexity of the Derashah from which the Tana previously learned Shamayim va'Aretz, the same Gemara learns them from another source. Which source?
(d) What does the Sugya there then do with regard to Avraham?
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Mishnah 11
35)
(a) What does the Mishnah learn from the Pasuk in Yeshayah "Kol ha'Nikra vi'Shemi v'li'Chevodi, Berasiv, Yetzartiv af Asisiv"?
(b) Why does the Tana add the Pasuk in Beshalach "Hash-m Yimloch l'Olam Va'ed" (see Medrash Shmuel)?
(c) The Masechta ends with the famous saying of Rebbi Chananyah ben Akashya. What does he say?
(d) In fact Rebbi did not insert it here. Where is it in fact, borrowed from?
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36)
(a) What makes it necessary to recite something at the end of each Perek (in those communities where it is customary to recite one chapter on Shabbos after Minchah during the summer months)?
(b) Why did the Chachamim choose specifically this saying?
(c) We explained at the beginning of the Masechta the significance of the chain of Torah (from Moshe to Yehoshua, to the Zekenim, to the Anshei Keneses ha'Gedolah. What practical lesson can we learn from it?
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***** SALIK BERAISA SHEL KINYAN HA'TORAH, V'HADRAN ALACH MASECHES AVOS *****
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