Introduction by the Author

I shall bless the Lord who has counseled me, and guided me on the path of truth, and aided me in the knots of Greek language The author uses a Hebrew idiom referring to complex or "foreign" technical language, often associated with the dense dialectics of the Talmud.. He said to me: "Arise, take for yourself the scribe’s inkhorn that is at your side, and write this as a memorial in a founded book."

All the fragrant spices of the Oral Torah are closed and sealed within the Holy Torah, divided into six orders The six orders of the Mishnah: Zeraim, Moed, Nashim, Nezikin, Kodashim, and Tahorot.. They are cleaner than sanctuary vessels, sweeter than honey and the honeycomb of the watchers A reference to Psalm 19:11, poetic imagery for the sweetness of divine law.. Like the key to the mouth, they raise up difficult and deep matters, freshening and straightening the path toward the knowledge of truth and faith, wisdom, moral instruction, and understanding.

Their eyes examined the words of the Rambam Maimonides, may his memory be for a blessing, in his commentary on the Mishnah. In this [work], the silver of the Mishnayot Mishnah texts, etc.—these are the daughters of Nabal and exquisite brides—they will scoff, for they look upon our beauty without a critical eye, failing to take up the labor to perform it. My original intention was not to abandon the labor of the derush homiletic interpretation and to pick from the heads of the materials—both old and new—to preach on Sabbaths and new moons, and in the holy congregation, and to walk in the way of tradition, to cause the voice of the multitude to be heard, and [for] gatherings every year, and in honor of a bridegroom over a bride, and the joy of a circumcision, and also for the sound of wailing, upon hearing the voice as of one who travails in pain and distress.

For even though this way brings one to the good and merits the public, and mentions in it the sign of His knowledge for those who walk [in the path], and their heights in the Mishnayot Mishnah passages and the sayings of the Chazal our Sages of blessed memory, I feared the burden I bore for this labor. It is fitting that there are many, indeed very many, books of homiletics, bringing forth different understandings. But my true intention was to find life from all my hopes when I saw that the days of my stewardship have ended, and old age and hoariness have come. Here I am, and my soul—they have opened hundreds in the work—the Lord has not released my desire, and has not forsaken me for vanity and blessing.

When shall I also do for my own house? This is my place of rest, to be entertained in the joy of the religion, reading and reviewing, and writing in books during the life of the fruit and the building of the soul, from the foundations of the pillars of faith. And also the ways of faith in the name of the Eternal, and in it is the salvation of worlds, and to stand upon the knowledge of the general ways, to attain the acquisition of all wisdom, pure and clear, and every good word, sweet to the soul and healing. And to guard the words of my desire, I am a man of might, for whom all that I have written is for a blessing and a merit, my strength in the holy, in his great judgment, and his rooms, the multitude which my brother [has done]... And whom shall I answer, and who shall be left to give him fine flour in his lifetime, if not the sayings of the Chazal our Sages of blessed memory?

This is only in the Talmud, and the Talmud is the foundation and its sons, and it is not consumed by the teachers, the lofty ones who are raised up toward the knowledge of the truth, straightened according to the intention of the wise, the observers, and the upright. And the matters are ancient, in the sayings of the firm and established, publicized and explained between the chapters, and within the decisions of monetary laws, the roots of the machines Likely referring to the intricate legal mechanisms or "engines" of logic within the Gemara., in precious stones and pearls hidden and spread out within the freedom of the blessing. And it shall not be a small thing for any man of the congregation of Israel, whose heart desires to be a light from Zion, the blessing of all pearls and great and holy precious stones. And this is the place of understanding, adorned in his seeing that the Rambam Maimonides, may his memory be for a blessing, in the opening of his commentary on the Mishnah, mentioned this part regarding the homiletic matters that are in the Talmud, and his words are:

And the intention of Rav Ashi in compiling the Talmud was fourfold. First, the explanation of the Mishnah, etc. And the fourth, the intention that they are proofs for every matter, every detail that is learned in the innovation printed therein. And this fourth matter, meaning the printing of that which is brought in the Talmud outside the order hinted at in his Mishnah, is small and sealed, but it contains great conditions because it includes general measures and wonderful traditions. For those homiletics, when they begin in the name of contemplation, will be understood in the name of the Mishnah I established, for there is nothing above it. And revealed from them are the sharp eyes and the completion of the matters that the wise men of wisdom were concealing and did not reveal their manifestation. And everything that the philosophers and their like came with, and they understood it according to its plain sense, and in fear, for the matters are far from the intellect, than which there is nothing higher. And also this matter, regarding matters in the valleys, as Moses [intended] to clothe the thoughts of the students, and therefore his greatness. And also in order to scatter the eyes of the masses so that they will not remember to sit forever, and they are all inclusive of them, the radiance of the truths. And many were their interpretations according to the language in the dough, as it is said, a rule, and in the Talmud study/learning they do not reveal to them a secret because there is no tradition for every person to learn the letters to their perfection. And he expanded somewhat on this. And he also wrote, may his memory be for a blessing, that the one who teaches the masses of the people needs to be by way of parable and metaphor so that it will include the women, the infants, and the aged, until their intellect can reflect and their eyes be established in the sayings of wisdom. And on this matter, he hinted at what is in... The author quotes Maimonides' introduction to the Mishnah, where he discusses the rationale behind including Agaddic/homiletical material in the Talmud to protect hidden truths from the uninitiated while providing moral guidance to the masses.

And it is fitting to think about the intention of the Rif Rabbi Isaac Alfasi, may his memory be for a blessing, who, blessed be his wisdom and piety, saw to merit Israel, and his primary intention was to clarify and store up in the soul, and gathered a blessing from all the fine flour that is in the compilation of the Talmud, the stick and the lost, and a string of blessing. And he did not leave this part in this, to it he hinted, his opinion was not in the sayings of the "refuse" that are not understood, and the like, the permitted ones, which look like refuse to the Rachmana the Merciful One/God, God forbid, from this his opinion. But from within it, our tractate is pure and clear from the Lord, it was for him to teach the children of Israel, and to remove for them the law day and night, in a way short and long, all the laws of forbidden and permitted, and liable and innocent, and the wise of the amusements which he will express to them, fitting to be built on the way of the plain sense, in language clear and bright, and all in a way clear to him, parable and metaphor, all that which is not so in the part of the derashot homilies, which was the intention of the Sages in it, by way of the hidden, revealing a palm and covering two palms. Because of this, the Rif Rabbi Isaac Alfasi, may his memory be for a blessing, saw, and also the Halachot legal codes, may his memory be for a blessing, that all followed in his footsteps, for it was good in his eyes to bless Israel, and to arrange the Shulchan Aruch Code of Jewish Law in a book which is founded on all parts of the laws, to forbid and to permit, from all the orders of the Shas, the multitude of the law that is reviewed by way of the plain sense, its inside as its outside, it will not be mixed within it. In the part of the homilies, they allowed themselves to write most of it by way of a word from here and to the benefit of the blessings within it. But here, to fill his hands, he will write in a book according to what is brought in general and in particular, every way of homiletics, and there is nothing new in this, for always, all the day, the Sages and the students, the early and the late, were accustomed to make books from the midrashim exegesis of our Sages of blessed memory. And also now, I saw with my eyes to bring near, and to arrange, and to write this compilation according to what is hinted at in the name of the books which he wrote on the book founded on all the spices of the Talmud. And already the wise men and the understanding ones standing over the work of the printing in the great city of the wise and the scribes, Kushtandina Constantinople, have agreed to print. Here, the earth is full of knowledge from those books, for the students and the teachers and the merchants bought many of them, and not with expensive money. And even with all this, I did not prevent myself from completing my work, the work of thought, for

two are better. And every man of the book will recognize the Torah and will know in his reading what I added to write in this book after my first intention, which was that there should be found close to every passage, every language of Rashi Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki and the Tosafot medieval talmudic commentaries, and our later Rabbis, may their memory be for a blessing, and the innovations of the Rashba Rabbi Shlomo ben Aderet, and the Ritba Rabbi Yom Tov Asevilli, and the Ramban Nachmanides, and all the Rishonim early commentators, may their memory be for a blessing. For my mind was not cooled by the interpretation of the words of the passage alone, for this is not sufficient to be a work, only to the matters I focused upon for greater benefit. And that is the explanation of the subject, for we saw in many shmuot traditions/hearings that the words of our Sages of blessed memory, in the explanation of the subject, are in short language, great in words, which the aforementioned shas Talmud did not lean toward the language, to be an interpretation in a word clarified of itself.

And I will mention here one of them by way of example and paradigm, and that is in the chapter Helek, page 10, the statement of Rabbi Hillel: "There is no Messiah for Israel, for they already consumed him in the days of Hezekiah." And as it appears, it is a statement sweet, opposite to the holiness I established, the holy of holies, in the covenant of our Messiah. Some of the wise and pious expanded upon its interpretation. And Rashi Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki wrote in his commentary a short statement, great in words, and these are his words: "There is no Messiah for Israel, but the Holy One, blessed be He, will rule by Himself and redeem them alone." And his intention in this is to save [one] from the words of Rabbi Hillel in his difficulty regarding the subject of exile and redemption with Israel and the Torah of our Master Moses, may peace be upon him. For he who denies this, in his essence, denies all the words of our Master Moses, who said: "And the Lord your God will return your captivity and have compassion on you... and will gather you, etc., if your outcasts are at the ends of the heavens, etc." And also other verses in the Song of Ha'azinu. And also the words of the prophets with one voice in the song of the redemption of Israel, and his voice in the ruins, promises and designations in saying: "And Hezekiah approached, restraining the hands of the Teacher," which indicates Hezekiah. And he entered into this close to this verse: "And it shall be on that day, the Lord will again add His hand a second time to acquire the remnant of His people that will remain from Assyria and from Egypt, etc." And this was fulfilled not in the days of Hezekiah, and many like these, and they were kings exalted, etc., and they, and more, and like them, to the work from all the aforementioned, because of the confusion, etc. And also in the intention of the grave matters, the Torah, there are lessons and other explanations, and a blessing that the intention of Rabbi Hillel is to say that the nations of Israel will be doing [their own] thought and from all foreign [influences] to call, and every idolater will pass them by. For the Lord, the Lord, and He, blessed be He, by Himself will be the secret from all the gods, those who fear Him will know and discern that His anger is for them. And this was fulfilled in the coming, even though they [had] to save the mountain of Amos, a great voice to call every [soul] in the name of the Lord, etc. And this statement in its time he brought, a wise man and an understander, and in the time I came to write, for this is broad, radiance, and the praise, etc. And in many other explanations, and all these he points to in the explanation of it, he demands nothing but that there is here in the act of secrets near the idolaters who enslaved them, the Lord, and the [books], and [they] were freed, only that the Holy One, blessed be He, in His glory and by Himself will be a helper for them and will subdue every helper and supporter to [their] house, and Jacob will be rising beneath Him, not by the hand of another will a king rule to save Israel, since all kings and princes and all the peoples, the idolaters, it will be so [as] the Scripture. And even though Rabbi Hillel admits all this, it is fitting to say upon it, the secret of the words, etc. And its interpretation is all that burden with this, and it is incumbent from it to abolish Rashi Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, and that it is not to be said so, there is no place to expand. And all that I mentioned of this is only to publicize my great intention which draws upon the words of Rashi in short language to build the intention of the sayings of our Sages of blessed memory.

And therefore, in the added matters and their arrangement, it is fitting to be in the language of the places that have the subject of the monetary [laws]. And the deficiency which the Lord put in the bribe, he struck in his gift, in the detailed opening of his life which was brought near in the mentioned editions. And my intention in the [text], the construction of the [Rambam] and the rest, and what he added in this, and the sources, not to say according to the [Sages], the quality of the order between the intention of our Master [to reveal] what will come. And also in the chapter HaSfinah Tractate Bava Batra 73a., the Rashba Rabbi Shlomo ben Aderet and the Ritba Rabbi Yom Tov Asevilli wrote on the words of the aforementioned ge'onim early rabbinic authorities there, words close to the intellect, settled upon the heart.

And further, I set my heart to write in this book a passage with difficult laws, according to the laws of the wise, even though everything is written in the explanation of the concept according to the concept of such a small book, some agadot homiletic tales of the Ramban Nachmanides, may his memory be for a blessing. And I wrote on every agadah homiletic tale of them, what the Ramban wrote, even though it is not correct if he is not wise, from the truth of the length of my columns, in every place that I found them. For your eyes, it is said, "The words of the wise are like goads," leading those who study them, angels of life, the ways of life, to teach the students the way of truth. These [ethical] measures are to say in the occurrences, curses, and laws, without a language speaking in the basic premises which every matter on this will be written in explanation, and all the congregation will [know] in all days.

And I added further to write in this book many matters not included in the compilation of the aforementioned wise man. For even though they are not written in the way of the stick, nevertheless, one should learn from them special supports and good measures. And in the aforementioned passage, they did not lean toward the [side]. And it is fitting to accept [it] upon the goodness of his Torah, even though according to the words of every perfect [man] who completed his work, for he wrote nothing except from the tractates which have Talmud, and from all the order of Zeraim The first order of the Mishnah, which generally lacks a Gemara in the Babylonian Talmud., he did not take the [items] except from tractate Berakhot. And also in the tractates which have Talmud, I took the rest and the [excerpts] which he left in the Mishnah and in the Gemara in many places in the [work], gathering after him. And I, in my simplicity, set my eyes and my heart upon every passage, short or long, which according to my meager language has in it a good, inclusive remark for wisdom and good matters, and I wrote them in this book.

And because of the rebukers in his opening and in the second [part], three things which I wrote to learn from them great qualities and many general [rules]. In tractate Peah, "These are things that a person eats, etc., and the principle remains for the world to come." From tractate Bikkurim, I took the understanding: "With my hand [I brought] the first fruits, etc." And the righteous are standing for the receiving of his judgment, his kingdom, great benefits in the heart of the Sabbath, in the [sections]. And likewise, from other tractates, I took beraitot External teachings of the Sages not included in the Mishnah. and deeds that will be proofs to the Rambam and the Halachot, may their memory be for a blessing, when they have holy contents. And thus, the student who examines, in his seeing his interpretation of all the aforementioned commentators, and if not, they will skip to stand him on the end of the intention of the master of the teaching, it is good. And if in all this he still needs additional explanation, the [authorities] who write [the books] of wisdom, they will support my hand, provided that he does not turn right or left from the foundations which I added [to] our holy Torah, for the turning of his heart [is] brothers and the [spirit], and our lives are lives in reading because of it, holy to him, between [the] and the [high]. And we cannot hide [it] in gifts publicized within matters, for the students of the students have sickness and do the [books] of their words, and there is no [reason] to [hide] greatness and [things] from it. The Holy One, in His mercies, will enlighten our eyes, show us wonders from His Torah, and [return] these mountains to their owners. I am coming to begin my opening, and this [has been] for me many days, I thought to do this work, and which until now, because there were not in my hand the books of the [tools], the orders of the Mishnah and Talmud with commentary and the commentator...