Yevamot 50: Chalitza and Intercourse

Today we end Perek IV and begin Perek V.  Perek IV ends with a discussion about shnai dorot, the years of the generations.  Our notes teach us that the rabbis held slightly differing opinions as to what this might mean.  Perhaps a certain number of years are allotted to an entire generation or perhaps each individual is given a preordained number of years to live.  Some rabbis believe that years cannot be added to one's preset lifespan but they could be subtracted from one's life due to one's choices each day.  Another idea attached to the shnai dorot is the idea that each day has a number of given goals that we are to achieve.  These ideas are both inspiring and depressing to me.  Inspiring that I might achieve all that is possible for myself if I consciously choose "the right path".  Depressing because I know that I will never make the best decisions possible; that so much is decided in advance of my existence - that independence is relatively impossible.

Perek V begins with an exceedingly long Mishna that is quite repetitive and filled with examples regarding a similar set of points.  Apparently the rabbis were curious about why this Mishna might have been included; is it not redundant?  But again these great minds were able to share interpretations that suggested new and different meanings within the words of the Mishna.

The basic concept of daf is that chalitza and intercourse are our Torah-determined methods of managing yibum.  Thus any action taken after chalitza or intercourse has no halachic effect on the yevam and yevama; by Torah law, they have either broken the levirate bond through chalitza or strengthened the bond through marriage (as intercourse is both levirate betrothal and marriage; the ultimate act of acquisition, done through women's bodies).

The Mishna and Gemara discuss numerous details.  One of the major points of interest is the difference in ritual between yibum with one yavam and one yevama and one yevam and two yevamot.  With one yevama, there is not need to worry about timing or complicated decision-making on the part of the yibum.  She is either betrothed/married to the yavam through intercourse or she is released from the yevam through chalitza.   When two yevamot are waiting for the yavam to decide on whether or not to take on his sister-in-law as his wife, we are walked through exactly how he must treat one and then the other yevama.

Today's daf seems to push two ideas: the first is that Torah law supersedes rabbinic law.  The second is that men should be careful when taking on rival wives - they can complicate things dramatically, even after the men themselves have died.