Making room for dessert TB Shabbat 9

Up to now we have been studying the ins and outs of the prohibition of hotzaah, carrying an object from one domain to another. Today’s daf TB Shabbat 9b takes us into the  Shabbat itself. We’ll learn what is permissible to do before Shabbat enters. The second chapter will discuss the laws of lighting candles. Chapters three and four deals with food prepation for Shabbat.


The Mishnah at the very top of  TB Shabbat 9b details what activities may not start less he runs out of time and misses the obligation to daven the Mincha Amidah.


“A person may not sit before the barber adjacent to the time of mincha until he recites the afternoon prayer. And a person may not enter the bathhouse and may not enter to work in a tannery [burseki]. And he may neither begin to eat a meal nor to sit in judgment until he prays. And however, if they already began engaging in those activities, they need not stop and recite the Amida prayer. The tanna articulated a principle: One stops engaging in all of these activities to recite Shema and one does not stop to recite the Amida prayer.


The Gemara defines the beginning of these activities. “We learned in the Mishna that if he began one of the aforementioned activities, haircut, bath, tannery, meal, and judgment, he is not required to stop. The Gemara asked: From when is it considered the beginning of the haircut? Rav Avin said: From when he places the barber’s wrap over his knees. And from when is it considered the beginning of the bath? Rav Avin said: From when the one entering the bathhouse to bathe removes his outer wrap, his cloak. And from when is it considered the beginning of his visit to the tannery? From when he ties the leather apron between his shoulders (Me’iri). And from when is it considered the beginning of eating? Rav said: From when he ritually washes his hands for the meal. And Rabbi Hanina said: From when he loosens his belt.” (Sefaria.org translation)


I found the two views when a meal begins very interesting because the Gemara explains that these two amoraim are not disagreeing at all. “The Gemara comments: And they do not disagree. Rather this, the statement of Rabbi Hanina, who said that the beginning of the meal is considered from when he loosens his belt, is for us, for the people of Babylonia, who are accustomed to close their belts tightly, and therefore the beginning of the meal is when one loosens his belt. And that, the statement of Rav, who said that the beginning of the meal is considered from when he ritually washes his hands, is for them, the people of Eretz Yisrael who did not close their belts tightly, and therefore only when one washes his hands does the meal begin.” (Sefaria.org translation)


I live in the United States and I think we should follow Rav’s opinion because we loosen our belts near the end of the meal so we make room for dessert!