Shabbat

— There  drinking is rare; here it is usual.  Alternatively, as for minhah, since it has a fixed time, one is afraid  and will not come to transgress; but as for the evening service, since there is time for it all night, he is not afraid, and may come to transgress. R. Shesheth demurred: Is it any trouble to remove the girdle!  moreover, let him stand thus [ungirdled] and pray? mdash Because it is said, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.  Raba son of R. Huna put on stockings and prayed, quoting, 'prepare to meet etc.' Raba removed his cloak,  clasped his hands and prayed, saying, '[I pray] like a slave before his master.' R. Ashi said: I saw R. Kahana, when there was trouble in the world, removing his cloak, clasp his hands, and pray, saying, '[I pray] like a slave before his master.' When there was peace, he would put it on, cover and enfold himself and pray, quoting, 'Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.' Raba saw R. Hamnuna prolonging his prayers.  Said he, They forsake eternal life and occupy themselves with temporal life.  But he [R. Hamnuna] held, The times for prayer and [study of the] Torah are distinct from each other. R. Jeremiah was sitting before R. Zera engaged in study; as it was growing late for the service, R. Jeremiah was making haste [to adjourn]. Thereupon R. Zera applied to him [the verse], He that turneth away from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination. When is the beginning of a lawsuit? R. Jeremiah and R. Jonah one maintains: When the judges wrap themselves round;  and the other says: When the litigants commence [their pleas]. And they do not differ: the latter means when they are already engaged in judging;  the former, when they are not already engaged in judging. R. Ammi and R. Assi were sitting and studying between the pillars;  every now and then they knocked at the side of the door and announced: If anyone has a lawsuit, let him enter and come. R. Hisda and Rabbah son of R. Huna were sitting all day [engaged] in judgments, and their hearts grew faint,  [whereat] R. Hiyya b. Rab of Difti  recited to them, and the people stood about Moses from the morning into the evening;  now, can you really think that Moses sat and judged all day? when was his learning done? But it is to teach you, Every judge who judges with complete fairness  even for a single hour, the Writ gives him credit as though he had become a partner to the Holy One, blessed be He, in the creation.  [For] here it is written, 'and the people stood about Moses from the morning into the evening'; whilst elsewhere it is written, and there was morning, and there was evening, one day. Until when must they [the judges)sit at judgment? — R. Shesheth said: Until the time of the [main] meal [of the day]. R. Hama observed, What verse [teaches this]? For it is written, Woe to thee, land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes eat in the morning! Happy art thou, land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!  [i.e.,] in the strength of the Torah and not in the drunkenness of wine. Our Rabbis taught: The first hour [of the day]  is the mealtime for gladiators;  the second, for robbers;  the third, for heirs;  the fourth, for labourers,  the fifth, for all [other] people. But that is not so, for R. Papa said: The fourth [hour] is the mealtime for all people? — Rather the fourth hour is the mealtime for all [other] people, the fifth for [agricultural] labourers, and the sixth for scholars. After that it is like throwing a stone into a barrel.  Abaye said: That was said only if nothing at all is eaten in the morning; but if something is eaten in the morning, there is no objection. R. Adda b. Ahabah said: One may recite his prayers [the Eighteen Benedictions] at the baths. An objection is raised: If one enters the baths in the place where people stand dressed,  both reading [the shema'] and prayer [the Eighteen Benedictions] are permissible, and a greeting of 'Peace'  goes without saying; and one may don the phylacteries there,  and it goes without saying that he need not remove them [if already wearing them]; in the place where people stand undressed,  a greeting of 'Peace' is not permissible there  and reading and praying goes without saying; the phylacteries must be removed, and it goes without saying that they must not be donned!-When R. Adda b. Ahabah made his statement it referred to baths in which no one is present. But did not R. Jose b. Hanina say: The baths of which they [the Rabbis] spoke are even those in which none are present; the privy closet of which they spoke  means even such as contains no excrement? — Rather, when R. Adda stated [his ruling] it was in reference to new [baths].  But surely [this is just what] Rabina propounded: What if a place is designated for a privy closet; is designation recognized or not?  and it was not solved. Now did not the same [query of his] apply to baths?  No. Perhaps