- How to have two aliyos in a parshah that only has five pesukim
It was taught in a Mishnah regarding the maamados, that on Sunday, two people would have aliyos from the passukim that discuss the first day of Creation, and the third aliyah would be the passukim about the second day of Creation. The Gemara asks how it is possible to give two people aliyos from the first day when it only has five pesukim, since it was taught in a Baraisa: הקורא בתורה לא יפחות משלשה פסוקים – One who reads the Torah for the shul is not permitted to read less than three pesukim? Rav says, דולג – the second reader goes back and rereads the last passuk from the previous aliyah. Shmuel says: פוסק – One splits the third passuk into two pesukim, and the first reader reads the first half, and the second reader reads the latter half. The Gemara explains that Rav says that one must reread the passuk because he holds כל פסוקא דלא פסקיה משה אנן לא פסקינן ליה – Any passuk that Moshe did not divide, we may not divide it. Shmuel says that one should divide the passuk and not reread it because he holds, גזירה משום הנכנסין ומשום היוצאין – there is a decree because of those who enter or leave the shul in the middle of the Torah reading. The one entering the shul late might think that the first aliyah is only two pesukim, and the one leaving early might think the second aliyah will only be two pesukim. The Gemara concludes that the halachah is like Rav, that we reread the passuk.
- How many people read from the Torah on a Taanis?
The Gemara asks how many people read from the Torah on a Taanis, and brings the following Baraisa that states: זה הכלל כל שיש בו ביטול מלאכה לעם כגון תענית צבור ותשעה באב קורין ג' – This is the general rule: Any day in which there is a loss of work, which Rashi explains would come from delaying people in shul, such as a public fast and the ninth of Av, three people read from the Torah. ושאין בו ביטול מלאכה לעם כגון ראשי חדשים וחולו של מועד קורין ד' – And any day which does not cause a loss of work, such as Rosh Chodesh and Chol HaMoed, four people read from the Torah. Rashi explains that there is not as much bitul melachah on Rosh Chodesh because women do not do melachah on that day. He says that he heard from his elderly teacher, that women were given this mitzvah to refrain from melachah because they refused to give their jewelry for the eigel hazahav.
- Why Rav did not fall to the ground and recite tachanun with the rest of the tzibur
The Gemara brings an incident when Rav visited Bavel on a public fast day, and when the entire congregation fell to the ground on their faces to recite tachanun, Rav did not do so. The Gemara asks what Rav’s reason was, and answers, רצפה של אבנים היתה – it was a stone floor, and it was taught in a Baraisa: "ואבן משכית לא תתנו בארצכם להשתחות עליה" – You should not place a stone covering in your land to prostrate yourselves upon it. We can infer from here that one may not prostrate themselves on stone coverings "in their land," but they may do so in the Beis Hamikdash. The Gemara asks how the rest of the congregation could have bowed on the stone floor, and it clarifies that the stone floor was only in front of Rav, and that that he did not walk to an area where the floor was not stone because he did not want to bother the tzibur by walking past them, which would have required them to rise. Alternative explanations for Rav’s abstaining from tachanun are given.
