Pesachim 117 a, b

Our last mishna stated that we should all say "halleluya".  But what does that mean, and where does it come from?  The first part of today's daf examines some possibilities.  The rabbis wonder whether halleluya is one or two words.  They also question the authorship of the Book of Psalms, or Tehilim, where 'halleluya' is said to be the most important of the ten expressions of praise.

The rabbis argue about whether the 'ya' is in a form of the name of G-d, or whether it is a shortened form of an expression of praise combined with 'hallel'.  If halleluya includes G-d's name, there are implications: the word is divine, the expression of these praises are divine, and we should give special attention to these words.

The ten expressions of praise in Tehilim are nitzuach, niggun, maskil, mizmor, shir, ashrei, tehila, tefila, hoda'a and halleluia.   Did King David author all of these works of praise?  The rabbis share possible evidence of this authorship by assuming that kalu, said at the end of each song, is actually a contraction of kol elu, meaning that 'all of them' were written by King David.

From here the rabbis take an interesting turn.  We learn that some of the rabbis believe that David wrote about himself when writing in the singular and that he wrote on behalf of the Jewish community when he wrote in plural form.  The rabbis then ask about how we compose prayer; how we pray.  Do we pray in a state of anger, or sadness, or joy?  Elisha is said to have listened to minstrels when angry to bring back the spirit of the Lord.  And the rabbis manage to turn the beautiful idea of our lips being dripping with lilies to our lips dripping with bitterness, suggesting that we should be afraid of our teachers.  Rabba is said to have joked with his students before lecturing so that they were not as terrified when he began to speak.

The rabbis look more closely at Hallel.  They note that G-d often repeats that we do things "for My sake".  They also note that we say "halleluya" at the end of a number of verses, often followed by the start of a new verse. One of our notes by Steinsaltz teaches that we do not end verses about tragedy or destruction with "halleluya".  The rabbis then discuss the ordering of verses and they move toward understanding the formulae of other prayers.   The last of these examines prayers for Shabbat and for Shabbat and Festivals, where small differences are hotly challenged.  I learned from these arguments that Rava stated our usual practice: prayer is communal while kiddush is an individual obligation.  I also learned that the Elders of Pumbedita, when accepted as correct in their practice, put an end to the communal interruption of a prayer leader when that person chants something unusual; not yet accepted.

The daf ends with a new mishna focusing on the third and fourth cups of wine at the seder.  When they are to be poured and when they are to be drunk.  However, we are introduced to the Gemara's first questions about this mishna.  The rabbis wonder about generalizations that might be drawn from drinking for Grace after Meals and for Hallel.  They also wonder about whether or not we can drink between the third and fourth cups, whether there should be a fifth cup, and the dangers of intoxication at this point in the seder.

Again I am faced with the reality of our ancient leaders vying for power and for the establishment of their rabbinical institution.  It is amazing to me that this rabbinical tradition has lasted as long as it has; so many rules and protocols based on little more than people's homiletic interpretations of Torah text.  I wonder how ultra-orthodox scholars read Talmud; how they understand the Divinity that is said to be part of this process.  I see human beings -- with all of our longings and logic and desperation -- throughout.