Bava Batra 72 - 78
- Donating to the Sanctuary in generous fashion
- Sanctifying an inherited or purchased field
- What is included in sale of a ship
- The sea stories of the Sage Rabbah
- The adventures of the Sage Rabbah bar Bar Chanah
- Sea visions of other Sages
- All about the Leviathan
- Rabbi Yochanan and his skeptical listener
- The canopies of Gan Eden and of the World to Come
- The dimensions of Yerushalayim
- How is the sale of a ship finalized
- How loan documents can be transferred
- What is included in sale of a wagon or mules
- Are its saddle or offspring included in the sale of a donkey
A Strand of Sand
- Bava Batra 73a
"Do you not fear me, says
This passage is quoted in our gemara in relation to a mystical report by the Sage Rabbah about a dialogue between two giant waves.
"Tell me if there is anything, my friend, which you have not yet flooded," said one wave to another, "so that I can go and destroy it."
"Take note of the power of your Master Who has made it impossible to pass over one thin strand of sand."
The commentaries explain that the first wave had the illusion that because it had reached great heights it had broken through the barrier of beach which had been created to contain it. The above-mentioned passage is cited as support of the second wave's response that it has no permission to pass that boundary.
In a homiletic sense the waves of the sea symbolize the nations of the world who attempt to destroy the Jewish people. Although some of them reach great heights and imagine that they have destroyed us, history bears witness that no wave has succeeded in doing so, and we know that they never will, because Heaven has placed a strand of sand to protect us forever.
What the Sages Say
"Three are called by the Name of
- Rabbi Yochanan - Bava Batra 75b
