Other Incidents of his Infraction of Traditional Teaching

Tractate Berakoth, by , by A. Lukyn Williams, [1921], at sacred-texts.com

Gamaliel: Other Incidents of his Infraction of Traditional Teaching.

M.II. 7 (6). He bathed the first night after the death of his wife. They said to him: Didst thou not teach us, that a mourner is forbidden to bathe?

p. 21

[paragraph continues] M.He said to them: I am not like all other men; ¹ I am weakly. ²

II. 8 (7 cont.). And when his slave Tabi died he accepted condolence ³ for him. They said to him: Didst thou not teach us, that men do not accept condolence for slaves? He said to them: My slave Tabi was not like all other slaves; he was a worthy man.

Footnotes

21:1 Cf. Luke 18¹¹.

21:2 ἀσθενής.

21:3 condolence. In the formal utterance of prayers for the mourners by those who visited them during the week of mourning. For examples of such prayers used to-day see SA, p. 324. R. Eliezer refused to accept such condolence from his disciples, and said that only the same phrases should be used as at the death of an ox, "God make up to thee thy loss," but other Rabbis did permit more to be said when the male or female slave was pious (Gemara T.B. 18^b). Cf. infra. p. 42.