1)

(a)A guest is obligated to perform the Mitzvah of Ner Chanukah.

(b)The easiest way for him to fulfill his obligation would be - by giving a small amount of money to his host, to buy a portion in the oil or the candles.(This consession will not help if the guest has his own doorway, in which case he will be obligated to light himself - Rosh, Si'man 8.)

(c)A married guest whose wife is at home - has no obligation to light, because he can rely on his wife lighting the Menorah on his behalf.

2)

(a)The advantage of ...

1. ... sunflower oil over olive oil is - that sunflower oil burns longer than olive oil.

2. ... olive oil over sunflower oil is - that olive oil burns brighter.

(b)Abaye changed from sunflower oil to olive oil - when he heard, in the name of Rebbi Yehoshua ben Levi, that olive oil is preferred.

(c)Regarding ink-making, olive-oil was added both in the smoking process and in that of the mixing. Some say that olive oil was the best to use for the smoking process - others say that it was the best oil to use for both smoking and mixing.

3)

(a)One recites a Berachah over seeing a lit Menorah if he has not yet lit his own Menorah, or if he is not going to light at all (e.g. if he is in a boat).

(b)Someone who sees a Menorah on the the first night of Chanukah recites the Berachah of 'she'Asah Nisim' and 'Shehechiyanu'.

(c)On subsequent nights, he recites only 'she'Asah Nisim'.

(d)He omits 'Zeman', because it is not applicable after the first night, whereas 'Nes' applies through the eight days, because each day that the oil burnt was an additional miracle (and we have already learnt that Chanukah was instituted because of the miracle of the oil, and not that of the victory - which happened only on the twenty-fifth).

4)

(a)We are able to say 'Asher Kid'shanu be'Mitzvosav ve'Tzivanu Lehadlik Ner Shel Chanukah', despite the fact that it is the Rabbanan who instituted the Mitzvah, and not Hash-m - because even Mitzvos de'Rabbanan are Torah-based, due to the Pasuk "Lo Sasur min ha'Davar Asher Yagidu Lecha Yamin u'Semol" (Shoftim - Devarim); alternatively, from "She'al Avicha ve'Yagedcha, Zekenecha ve'Yomru Lach." (Ha'azinu).

(b)According to Abaye - the Beraisa permits separating Demai naked, because Demai does not require a Berachah. The reason for this is bcause, a Safek de'Rabbanan does not require a Berachah, only a Vaday de'Rabbanan.

(c)One nevertheless recites a Berachah over the second day Yom-Tov (which is also a Safek de'Rabbanan) - because the Rabbanan gave the second day of Yom-Tov the Din of a Vaday; otherwise, they felt, people would come to treat Yom-Tov Sheini with disrespect.

(d)According to Rava - one is required to recite a Berachah even over a Safek mi'de'Rabbanan, and the reason that no Berachah is recited over Demai, is because Demai is not even considered a Safek (meaning that it is a weak institution). That is because the majority of Amei ha'Aretz used to Ma'aser properly. It was in spite of the fact that it was only a minority who failed to Ma'aser properly, that Yochanan Kohen Gadol decreed Demai on produce that one buys from them.

5)

(a)A house with two doorways leading into the courtyard requires two Menoros, - if they are on two different sides of the house (so that people entering the courtyard on the one side who see no Menorah there, will think that the owner of that apartment did not light).

(b)We are only concerned about people who live in that town - but not visitors from out of town, because if we worried about what they think, we would have to worry about what they might think, even if the two doorways were on the same side of the house, because how are they to know that that entire side is one apartment, and not two.

(c)The source for Chashad ('Mar'is ha'Ayin') is Pei'ah. The four reasons for the obligation of leaving Pei'ah at the end of one's field, and not in the middle are because of 'Gezel Aniyim', 'Bitul Aniyim', 'Chashad' and 'Mipnei ha'Rama'im'.

1. 'Gezel Aniyim' - i.e. that the owner will wait for the moment that his poor relatives arrive, and declare Pei'ah then, in order to ensure that they are the ones to take it;

2. 'Bitul Aniyim' - i.e. If he was permitted to leave Pei'ah at any stage of the harvest, the poor, not knowing at which stage the owner intends to leave Pei'ah, will be forced to hang around the field for the entire duration of the harvest - an utter waste of time.

3. 'Chashad' - i.e. not knowing at which point the owner left Pei'ah, people will accuse him of not leaving Pei'ah at all, and will go on to curse the man who does give the poor what is due to them.

4. 'Mipnei ha'Rama'im' - i.e. dishonest owners will get away with not leaving Pei'ah at all. They will always be able to say, either that they will leave Pei'ah later, or that they left it already. By having to leave Pei'ah at the end of the harvest, all of these suspicions fall away.

(d)'At the end of his field' means 'at the end of his harvest'.

6)

(a)A lamp with two lamp-holders and two wicks - may serve two people for the Mitzvah of Ner Chanukah, according to the Mehadrin who light one light per person per night. (See also b.)

(b)If one fills a dish with oil and surrounds it with wicks - as many people as there are wicks can be Yotze the Mitzvah, provided he places a cover on the dish, so that each wick can be seen to be a different entity; otherwise, it has the Din of a bonfire, and even one person will not be Yotze - since one can see the individual wicks all drawing from the same source.

7)

(a)First on the list of priorities is Shabbos lights - because Shalom Bayis (a dark house is conducive to a bad relationship with one's wife) has priority over oil for Ner Chanukah and wine for Kidush.

(b)"va'Tiznach mi'Shalom Nafshi" is the source for lighting the Shabbos lights.

(c)Ner Chanukah takes precedence over wine for Kidush - because of the importance of Pirsumei Nisa, despite the fact that wine for Kidush is 'Tadir' (more common, and what is more common usually takes precedence).

8)

(a)We learn from "Ki Ner Mitzvah ve'Torah Or" - that someone who is careful to fulfill the Mitzvah of Ner (Shabbos and Chanukah), will merit children who are Talmidei-Chachamim (which is why women Daven for that, when lighting Shabbos-lights).

(b)For observing carefully ...

1. ... the Mitzvah of Mezuzah - one merits a nice house (for the basic Mitzvah, one is rewarded in the World to Come, as Chazal have taught 'There is no reward for [basic] Mitzvos in this world!);

2. ... the Mitzvah of Tzitzis - one merits nice new clothes;

3. ... wine for Kidush - one merits barrels of wine. The Meforshim also explain that the above are not a reward at all, but the tools with which to perform the Mitzvah again, as Chazal have said 'One Mitzvah leads to another'.

(c)Rebbi Avin the carpenter merited to have two sons who were Talmidei-Chachamim - because he would kindle many Shabbos-lights.

9)

(a)Rav Yosef told his wife not to light at the last moment - because the Torah teaches us how the Pillar of Fire used to come down early and wait for the Pillar of Cloud to depart (and vice-versa) - so too, should she light well before nightfall (i.e. sunset).

(b)When, on the following Friday afternoon, she wanted to light very early - that old man told her that just as it is not right to light too late, so too, should one not light too early (before P'lag ha'Minchah), because then, it is not evident that one is lighting li'Chevod Shabbos).

(c)Someone who ...

1. ...loves Talmidei-Chachamim - will have sons who are themselves Talmidei-Chachamim;

2. ... honors Talmidei-Chachamim - will have sons-in-law who are Talmidei-Chachamim;

3. ... respects (fears) Talmidei-Chachamim - will himself become a Talmid-Chacham. If he is does learn sufficiently for that, then he will become a man with authority, to whom people will listen, as if he was a Talmid-Chacham. And the Mishnah in Pirkei Avos (Perek 6:1) has already taught us that a true Talmid-Chacham merits many words.

10)

(a)Our Mishnah forbids one to use 'Shemen Sereifah' for the Shabbos lights. Rabbah explains this to mean Terumah oil which became Tamei - which Chazal forbade for fear that in his keenness to fulfill the Mitzvah of burning Tamei Terumah, he will turn the wick higher, thereby transgressing the Shabbos.

(b)Although this suspicion does not apply on Yom-Tov - Chazal nevertheless decreed Yom-Tov because of Shabbos (making it like one decree).

(c)Rav Chisda establishes the Mishnah on Erev Shabbos which is also Yom-Tov - when it is forbidden to burn Shemen Sereifah, because the Torah permits cooking only when it is for one's personal needs, as the Torah writes in Sh'mos "Hu Levado Ye'aseh Lachem" (from which Chazal have have Darshened '"Lachem", for you, but not for Hashem').

(d)Even though the Seifa writes 'Ein Madlikin be'Shemen Sereifah be'*Yom-Tov*', we cannot infer that the Reisha is speaking about Shabbos which is not Yom-Tov - because the Seifa is coming to explain the Reisha, as if to say 'Why did the Reisha say that one may not light with Shemen Sereifah on Yom-Tov? Because it is forbidden to burn Kodshim on Yom-Tov.