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Demai ( he, דְּמַאי, is the third
tractate A tractate is a written work dealing formally and systematically with a subject; the word derives from the Latin ''tractatus'', meaning treatise. One example of its use is in citing a section of the Talmud, when the term '' masekhet'' () is used ...
of ''
Seder Zeraim Seder Zeraim ( he, סדר זרעים, Seder Zra'im, lit. "Order of Seeds") is the first of the six orders, or major divisions, of the Mishnah, Tosefta, and the Talmud, and, apart from the first tractate which concerns the rules for prayers and bles ...
'' ("Order of Seeds") of the
Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...
and of the
Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the center ...
. It deals with the Jewish legal concept of ''
demai Demai (Mishnaic Hebrew: ) is a Halakhic term meaning "doubtful". The ''demai'' status applies to agricultural produce acquired from common people ( am ha'aretz) who are suspected of not correctly separating tithes according to Jewish law. As a ...
'', meaning doubtfully tithed produce, and concerns the laws related to agricultural produce about which it is suspected that certain obligatory tithes have not been separated in accordance with requirements derived from the
Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...
. The tractate consists of seven chapters and has a
Gemara The Gemara (also transliterated Gemarah, or in Yiddish Gemo(r)re; from Aramaic , from the Semitic root ג-מ-ר ''gamar'', to finish or complete) is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah w ...
only in the
Jerusalem Talmud The Jerusalem Talmud ( he, תַּלְמוּד יְרוּשַׁלְמִי, translit=Talmud Yerushalmi, often for short), also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud of the Land of Israel, is a collection of rabbinic notes on the second-century ...
. There is a
Tosefta The Tosefta (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: תוספתא "supplement, addition") is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah. Overview In many ways, the Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishnah ( ...
of eight chapters for this tractate.


Subject matter

This tractate concerns the laws regarding agricultural produce about which there is a doubt as to whether the rules relating to the tithes were strictly observed. This doubtfully tithed produce is known as ''demai''. The background to the discussions of this tractate is that according to the
Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...
,
Israelite The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele ...
farmers were obligated to separate three types of tithes: * ''
Ma'aser rishon The first tithe (Hebrew language, Hebrew: ''ma'aser rishon'' מעשר ראשון) is a positive Mitzvah, commandment in the Torah requiring the giving of one tenth of agricultural produce to charity, after the giving of the standard ''terumah,'' ...
'' – the first tithe, which had to be given to
Levite Levites (or Levi) (, he, ''Lǝvīyyīm'') are Jewish males who claim patrilineal descent from the Tribe of Levi. The Tribe of Levi descended from Levi, the third son of Jacob and Leah. The surname ''Halevi'', which consists of the Hebrew defi ...
s, who had not been given an allotment of tribal land and therefore depended on this produce for their sustenance () * ''
Ma'aser sheni The second tithe (Hebrew: ''ma'aser sheni'' מעשר שני) is a tithe mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and practised within Orthodox Judaism. It is distinguished from the first tithe (Hebrew: ''ma'aser rishon'' מעשר ראשון), the third or ...
'' – the second tithe, which the owner had to consume in
Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
, or convert into money plus a fifth of its value and reconvert into food in Jerusalem () * '' Ma'aser ani'' – poor person's tithe, in place of the second tithe in the third and sixth year of the seven-year cycle in the
sabbatical year A sabbatical (from the Hebrew: (i.e., Sabbath); in Latin ; Greek: ) is a rest or break from work. The concept of the sabbatical is based on the Biblical practice of ''shmita'' (sabbatical year), which is related to agriculture. According to ...
( and ). The Levites also had to contribute from the tithe that they received from the Israelites to the kohanim, consisting of a tenth part of the tithe they had received; it was called '' terumath ma'aser'' (offering from the tithe) or ''ma'aser min ha-ma'aser'' (tithe from the tithe) (). During the period of the Second Temple, doubt began to arise among scrupulous observers of the law (known as ''haverim'') as to whether produce had been properly tithed when they bought from farmers who were likely to be uneducated, or unscrupulous about separating the tithes. This type of individual was known as an ''am ha'aretz'' (person of the land), someone whose trustworthiness was questionable. The ''am ha'aretz'' was not suspected of not giving ''
terumah A ''terumah'' ( he, תְּרוּמָה) or heave offering is a type of sacrifice in Judaism. The word is generally used for an offering to God, although it is also sometimes used as in ''ish teramot'', a "judge who loves gifts". The word ''teru ...
'' (gifts to the priests), because it required only a small payment comprising one-hundredth of the produce, and because ''terumah'' had a degree of sanctity that made it a severe transgression for a non-priest to eat. However, because it was doubtful whether the produce of the ''am ha'aretz'' had been tithed, the ''haverim'' who bought grain from them had to designate part of the produce as ''ma'aser'' (a tithe for the Levites or the poor) and ''ma'aser min ha-ma'aser'' (a tenth part of that tithe), albeit in a way that reduced financial loss. Of general note in this tractate are disputes between the Houses of Shammai and Hillel, the sages from Yavne, as well as material from the generation of Usha contained in this tractate. One of the earliest uses of the concept of "
monopoly A monopoly (from Greek el, μόνος, mónos, single, alone, label=none and el, πωλεῖν, pōleîn, to sell, label=none), as described by Irving Fisher, is a market with the "absence of competition", creating a situation where a speci ...
" in a commercial sense appears in this tractate, regarding the purchasing of agricultural goods from a dealer who has a monopoly on the produce (chapter 5; 4). The Gemara contains a few passages of
Aggadah Aggadah ( he, ''ʾAggāḏā'' or ''Haggāḏā''; Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: אַגָּדְתָא ''ʾAggāḏəṯāʾ''; "tales, fairytale, lore") is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, ...
. For example, the conscientiousness of Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair regarding the laws of tithes is described along with other acts of piety for which he was well-known.


Structure

The tractate consists of seven chapters and 53 paragraphs (''mishnayot''). It has a
Gemara The Gemara (also transliterated Gemarah, or in Yiddish Gemo(r)re; from Aramaic , from the Semitic root ג-מ-ר ''gamar'', to finish or complete) is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah w ...
– rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah – only in the
Jerusalem Talmud The Jerusalem Talmud ( he, תַּלְמוּד יְרוּשַׁלְמִי, translit=Talmud Yerushalmi, often for short), also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud of the Land of Israel, is a collection of rabbinic notes on the second-century ...
; it also has
Tosefta The Tosefta (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: תוספתא "supplement, addition") is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah. Overview In many ways, the Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishnah ( ...
. There is no Gemara in the
Babylonian Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the center ...
for this tractate or indeed for any of the tractates of this order of the Mishna, other than tractate Berakhot, as the laws related to agriculture that they discuss generally have no practical application outside of the Land of Israel. Demai, with its seven chapters, is an exception to the usual pattern of arranging the tractates in order according to the numbers of their chapters; it appears third in the Mishnah and Jerusalem Talmud, and in most manuscripts of the Tosefta, before tractates with more chapters. The Tosefta has a few modifications and additions. It divides Chapter 2 of the Mishna into two parts, and thus has eight chapters instead of the seven of the Mishnah. The eighth paragraph of the sixth chapter of the Mishnah corresponds to the beginning of the eighth chapter of the Tosefta. An overview of the topics of the chapters is as follows: *Chapter 1 details the cases of products that are exempt from the rules of ''demai'' such as fruit or vegetables which are ''hefker'' (unclaimed or ownerless property). *Chapter 2 lists the products to which the rules of ''demai'' apply even outside the Land of Israel if it is bought from an ''am ha’aretz''; discusses how a person may be certified as a ''ne'eman'' (one who is deemed trustworthy with respect to tithing), or as a ''ḥaver'' who is also trusted on matters of purity; and the duty of merchants regarding tithing ''demai'' produce. *Chapter 3 considers the rules for giving or leaving ''demai'' for other people to use and specifies that a ''haver'' must not cause others to consume ''demai''. *Chapter 4 considers the rules of eating ''demai'' produce with people who are not trustworthy, and when buying it from them is allowed. *Chapter 5 examines the rules about tithing ''demai'' produce bought from several people, and about tithing produce of one kind for produce of another kind. *Chapter 6 examines the rules of tithing produce of rented or leased land or trees, of tithing the produce of partners and heirs, of produce sold in lands bordering the Land of Israel, and of produce bought for an ''am ha'aretz''. *Chapter 7 considers the rules for the tithing of food consumed with an am ''ha'aretz'', rules of tithing by 'designation', and the rules concerning mixtures and regulations for the tithing of ''demai'' on urgent occasions.


Commentaries

Commentaries on this tractate include the following: *The ''Rash Sirilio'' is the earliest known comprehensive commentary on a large portion of the Jerusalem Talmud is that of Rabbi Shlomo Sirilio (1485–1558). In the
Vilna edition The Vilna Edition of the Talmud, printed in Vilna (now Vilnius), Lithuania, is by far the most common printed edition of the Talmud still in use today as the basic text for Torah study in yeshivas and by all scholars of Judaism. It was typeset b ...
of the Jerusalem Talmud it appears only for tractates Berakhot and
Pe'ah Pe'ah ( he, פֵּאָה, lit. "Corner") is the second tractate of '' Seder Zeraim'' ("Order of Seeds") of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. This tractate begins the discussion of topics related to agriculture, the main focus of this ''seder'' (order ...
; but the commentary for the entire Seder Zeraim, including tractate Demai, appears in the Mutzal Mi'Eish edition of the Jerusalem Talmud. In addition to his commentary, Rash Sirilio worked to remove mistakes made by manuscript copyists that over time had slipped into the text of the Jerusalem Talmud and his amended text of the Gemara is reproduced alongside his commentary in the Vilna and Mutzal Mi'Eish editions of the Jerusalem Talmud. *''Mahara Fulda'' and its companion, ''Tosefot Maharaf'', are the commentaries of Rabbi Eliyahu of Fulda, published in Amsterdam in 1710. Many later commentators refer to him only as ''HaMefareish'' (''The Commentator''). *''Pnei Moshe'', the only commentary that covers all of the Jerusalem Talmud completely was written by Rabbi Moshe Margolies, where it was first published in Amsterdam in 1775. *The
Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( he , ר' אליהו בן שלמה זלמן ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman'') known as the Vilna Gaon (Yiddish: דער װילנער גאון ''Der Vilner Gaon'', pl, Gaon z Wilna, lt, Vilniaus Gaonas) or Elijah of ...
also worked to correct many of the textual errors in the text of the Jerusalem Talmud and his rectifications are contained in marginal glosses published under the title ''Hagahot HaGra''. In addition, a work known as ''Beurei HaGra'', was written by his disciples based on his comments. Two versions of this commentary exist, based on manuscripts written by different disciples. *A commentary known as the ''Ridvaz'' on nearly all the tractates of the Jerusalem Talmud was first published in Piotrków in 1898, with its companion commentary, ''Tosefot HaRid'', by Rabbi Yaakov Dovid Wilovsky of
Slutzk Slutsk ( officially transliterated as Sluck, be, Слуцк; russian: Слуцк; pl, Słuck, lt, Sluckas, Yiddish/Hebrew: סלוצק ''Slutsk'') is a city in Belarus, located on the Sluch River south of Minsk. As of 2022, its population is ...
and later of
Safed Safed (known in Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), is a city in the Northern District of Israel. Located at an elevat ...
(1845–1914). In modern times, two comprehensive works have been published: *''Toldot Yitzchak'' and its companion ''Tevunah'', by Rabbi
Yitzchok Isaac Krasilschikov Rabbi Yitzchok Isaac ben Dov Ber Krasilschikov (1888 – May 13, 1965), also known as the Gaon of Poltava, was an exceptional Talmudic scholar and author of a monumental commentary on the Jerusalem Talmud. He was one of the last publicly pract ...
of
Poltava Poltava (, ; uk, Полтава ) is a city located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the capital city of the Poltava Oblast (province) and of the surrounding Poltava Raion (district) of the oblast. Poltava is administratively ...
, who wrote his commentary in the Soviet Union before he died in Moscow in 1965. The manuscript was smuggled out of Communist Russia by Rabbi Harry Bronstein, who founded Machon Mutzal MeiEish and published a new edition of Seder Zeraim of the Jerusalem Talmud, which included Rabbi Krasilschikov's work and all the major commentators published up to that time. *''Sha'arei Emunoh'', the commentary of Rabbi
Chaim Kanievsky Shmaryahu Yosef Chaim Kanievsky ( he, שמריהו יוסף חיים קַניֶבסקִי; January 8, 1928 – March 18, 2022) was an Israeli Haredi rabbi and ''posek''. He was a leading authority in Haredi Jewish society on legal and ethical pra ...
to the Jerusalem Talmud has been published to date on Sedarim Zeraim and Moed. It is based on lectures given by Rabbi Kanievsky and contains explanations from earlier commentators, as well as many original insights; the volume on Demai was published in
Bnei Brak Bnei Brak or Bene Beraq ( he, בְּנֵי בְּרַק ) is a city located on the central Mediterranean coastal plain in Israel, just east of Tel Aviv. A center of Haredi Judaism, Bnei Brak covers an area of 709 hectares (1752 acres, or 2.74 squ ...
, Israel, in 2002. In addition to the commentaries listed to the above, commentaries specific to tractate Demai, or to the laws of demai are the following: *''Kaftor VaFerach'', by Rabbi
Ishtori Haparchi Ishtori Haparchi (1280-1355), also Estori Haparchi and Ashtori ha-Parhi ( he, אשתורי הפרחי) is the pen name of the 14th-century Jewish physician, geographer, and traveller, Isaac HaKohen Ben Moses.''Encyclopedia Judaica'' Keter, Jerus ...
, a disciple of the Rosh, is one of the few surviving compositions of the Rishonim concerning Seder Zeraim. Rabbi Ishtori was born in
Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bo ...
in about 1280 and emigrated to the
Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine (see also Israel ...
, where he absorbed himself in the study of the halachot applying to the Land. His work was first published in
Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...
in 1546. *''Maharam Chaviv'' by Rabbi Moshe ibn Chaviv of
Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
(17th century) wrote a commentary to the Jerusalem Talmud's tractate Demai, as well as to the Jerusalem Talmud's tractates Berakhot and Peah. This commentary was also named Pnei Moshe, but to distinguish it from the more well-known commentary of that name by Moshe Margolies, it is sometimes referred to as Maharam Chaviv. Extant only as a manuscript from the time of its composition, it was first published by Machon Yerushalayim in 1994. *''Pe'at HaShulchan'' is a work on the laws pertaining to agriculture, written by Rabbi
Yisroel ben Shmuel of Shklov Yisroel ben Shmuel Ashkenazi of Shklov (c. 1770 – May 22, 1839) was a Lithuanian Jewish Talmudist, one of a group of Talmudical scholars of Shklov who were attracted to Vilna by Rabbi Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, known as the Vilna Gaon (1720–97 ...
(1770–1839), a disciple of the Vilna Gaon and first published in Safed in 1836. It contains two sections, the basic laws, which are mostly adopted from
Maimonides Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah s ...
, and a section of broader discussion called ''Beis Yisrael''. *''Aruch Ha'Shulchan He'Atid'' is a compendium of halachot written by Rabbi
Yechiel Michel Epstein Yechiel Michel ha-Levi Epstein ( he, יחיאל מיכל הלוי אפשטיין) (24 January 1829 – 25 March 1908), often called "the ''Aruch haShulchan''" after his magnum opus, Aruch HaShulchan, was a Rabbi and ''Posek'' (authority in Jewi ...
of Novaradok (1829–1902), who also composed the standard
Aruch HaShulchan ''Arukh HaShulchan'' (Hebrew: עָרוּךְ הַשֻּׁלְחָן r, arguably, עָרֹךְ הַשֻּׁלְחָן; see ''Title'' below is a work of halacha written by Yechiel Michel Epstein (1829–1908). The work attempts to be a clear, orga ...
. It was published posthumously in Jerusalem in 1938 and the first volume deals with the laws of Seder Zeraim. *''Torat HaAretz'' is a work on the agricultural laws, authored by Rabbi Moshe Kliers of
Tiberias Tiberias ( ; he, טְבֶרְיָה, ; ar, طبريا, Ṭabariyyā) is an Israeli city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Fou ...
, published in Jerusalem in 1928 (with a second edition published in 1972). *''Mikdash David'' is the work of Rabbi David HaKohen Rappaport (1890–1942), a Torah scholar who was murdered in
the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ar ...
and whose work contains a section pertaining to Seder Zeraim. *''Chazon Ish'' is a wide-ranging work by Rabbi
Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz (7 November 1878 – 24 October 1953), also known as the Chazon Ish () after his magnum opus, was a Belarusian-born Orthodox rabbi who later became one of the leaders of Haredi Judaism in Israel, where he spent his ...
covering a good part of the Mishnah and Talmud. Chazon Ish's writings on Seder Zeraim in particular have been influential in establishing contemporary halachah in Israel regarding agricultural matters. Chazon Ish's work on Seder Zeraim, including a section on Demai, was originally published in
Bnei Brak Bnei Brak or Bene Beraq ( he, בְּנֵי בְּרַק ) is a city located on the central Mediterranean coastal plain in Israel, just east of Tel Aviv. A center of Haredi Judaism, Bnei Brak covers an area of 709 hectares (1752 acres, or 2.74 squ ...
in 1958. *''Chidushim U'Veurim'' of Rabbi
Moshe Feinstein Moshe Feinstein ( he, משה פײַנשטיין; Lithuanian pronunciation: ''Moshe Faynshteyn''; en, Moses Feinstein; March 3, 1895 – March 23, 1986) was an American Orthodox rabbi, scholar, and ''posek'' (authority on ''halakha''—J ...
is an extensive work on the Jerusalem Talmud's tractate Demai and is published in the Machon Mutzal MeiEish edition of the Jerusalem Talmud. *''Eretz HaBechirah'' is a multi-volume work on Seder Zeraim by Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Weiner of Jerusalem; the volume on tractate Demai was published in Jerusalem in 1998. *''Emunas Eliezer'' is a commentary on the Mishna of tractate Demai by Rabbi Eliezer Ephraim Sherwinter, published in Fallsburg, NY in 2007. *''Mishnas Avraham'' is a work on various tractates in Seder Zeraim by Rabbi Avraham HaLevi Stewart; the volume on Demai was published in Jerusalem in 2007. *''Birkat Yisrael'' by Rabbi Yisrael Moshe Fried, in collaboration with others, was published in Jerusalem in 2008 as part of a volume containing a critical edition of the Jerusalem Talmud's tractate Demai with commentaries. In addition to its original comments, ''Birkat Yisrael'' cites many earlier works. *''Kav VeNaki'' is a commentary as well as a section of insights to tractate Demai co-authored by Rabbi Yehudah Levi and Rabbi Gershon Metzger, published in Jerusalem in 2005. Works that are of assistance interpreting the many botanical references in tractate Demai include the following: * * (monograph which identifies the plant names mentioned in the commentaries of the Rishonim). * (Rabbi Yosef Kafich in his notes to Rambam's Commentary in Arabic identifies numerous species by their Latin equivalents)


Historical context

The contents of this tractate mostly reflect conditions in
Judea Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous Latin, and the modern-day name of the mountainous sou ...
and
the Galilee Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Galile ...
during the second century C.E. and particularly the conditions in the Galilee after the
Bar Kokhba revolt The Bar Kokhba revolt ( he, , links=yes, ''Mereḏ Bar Kōḵḇāʾ‎''), or the 'Jewish Expedition' as the Romans named it ( la, Expeditio Judaica), was a rebellion by the Jews of the Roman province of Judea, led by Simon bar Kokhba, aga ...
(132–136 C.E.). Most of the
Tannaim ''Tannaim'' ( Amoraic Hebrew: תנאים , singular , ''Tanna'' "repeaters", "teachers") were the rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 10–220 CE. The period of the ''Tannaim'', also referred to as the Mi ...
whose opinions are recorded in this tractate are from this period. The tractate contains data about the social life and institutions of the time and the social and commercial relations between the various segments of the population, such as the ''chaver'', the ''am haaretz'', employers and workers, and innkeepers and their guests. The Gemara in the Jerusalem Talmud indicates that there were inspectors who distinguished between produce that was properly tithed (''metukan'') and the ''demai'', and that there were also officers appointed to watch the sale of articles of food and keep the prices low. The Gemara also has considerable information about the produce of the
Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine (see also Israel ...
. Many names of fruits and vegetables, in addition to those mentioned in the Mishnah, are cited in the Gemara, along with information about the markets and names of places inside and outside the Land of Israel.


References


External links


Full Hebrew and English text of the Mishnah for tractate Demai
on
Sefaria Sefaria is an online open source, free content, digital library of Jewish texts. It was founded in 2011 by former Google project manager Brett Lockspeiser and journalist-author Joshua Foer. Calling itself "a living library of Jewish texts", Sefar ...

Full text of the Mishnah for tractate Demai (Hebrew)
{{Mishnah Jewish agrarian laws Jewish ethical law Land of Israel laws in Judaism Mishnah Negative Mitzvoth Positive Mitzvoth Talmud Tithes in Judaism