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An Astronomical perspective on the Talmudic passage in tractate Berachot 58b Ehud Bar Sinai In honored memory of Rabbi Tsvi Kamil - a man of Torah and Science who passed away on Av 16, 5770
Introduction
The Kima constellation is the body mentioned most often in Jewish sources after the sun and the moon. Kima is mentioned three times in the Bible1, three times in the Babylonian Talmud,2 once in the Jerusalem Talmud, once in the Tannaitic book of Seder Olam Rabba, and in many Midrashim and Piyutim. There have been many attempts to answer the question of what is Kima, which star or constellation does Kima designate and where is it located on the map of the sky. Throughout the generations, many have attempted to determine this location. The most prominent suggestions include: Aldebaran (Taurus) Ibn Ezra3, Saadia Gaon Sirius (Canis Major) George Hoffman, Professor M. A. Stern Arcturus (Bootes) Septuaginta of Job,4 Vulgate of Amos.5 Draco Marcus Jastrow6 Scorpio Maharsha,7 the Vilna Gaon,8 and the Shir9 Pleiades (Taurus) Vulgate, Septuaginta, Hakalir, Rashi, Ba'alei Hatossafot Pharkdan (Ursa minor) Ibn Janach10 Hyadas (Taurus) Vulgate in Job
Rashi and most of the Jewish commentators and researchers claim that the zodiac sign Kima is the star cluster known among astronomers as Pleiades, or M45 (Messier object 45)11. Chazal referred to it as Aries tail, because of its location between the zodiac signs12 of Aries and Taurus. This essay does not propose to review everything that was written about Kima in the various sources over the generations, but rather to focus on the astronomic aspect of the passage in tractate Berachot 58b. This passage in the Babylonian Talmud deals with the four astral bodies Kima, Kesil, Ayish (Ash) and Scorpio. An astronomical investigation of what the passage says about the relationship of these four astral bodies leads to the conclusion that Kima should be identified as Scorpio, in contrast with its widespread identification as Aries.
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Amos 5:6; Job 9:9; and, Job: 38:3. Berachot 58b; Rosh Hashana 11b; and, Bava Metzia 106b. Rabbi Avraham ben Meir ben Ezra (1093-1164). The Septuagint on Job (a translation of the bible into Greek, written during the second century B.C.E.) Translation of the Bible to Latin, which was done in the fourth century B.C.E. Author of the Aramaic-English Dictionary (1829-1903). Rabbi Samuel Eliezer Halevi Eidels (1555-1632). Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman Kramer, the Vilna Gaon (1720-1797). Shlomo Yehuda Rappaport (1790-1867). Rabbi Yonah Ibn Janah (Spain, 990-1050). Charles Messier, French astronomer (1730-1817). In this essay the term Zodiac sign means one of the 12 star constellations in the zodiac.
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The Amora Shmuel says:13 The paths of Heaven are clear to me as the paths of Nehardea; except for a kochva dshavit of which I am ignorant. Shmuel contrasted. It is written He makes Ash Kesil and Kima (Job 9), but it is written: He makes Kima and Kesil (Amos 5). How so? Were it not for the heat of Kesil, the world would not survive due to the cold of Kima; and were it not for the cold of Kima, the world would not survive due to the heat of Kesil
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One of the important first generation Talmudic sages; he had extensive knowledge in astronomy.
This diametrical relationship between Kima and Kesil is already mentioned in the Bible. Amos 5:8 says:
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Who made Kima and Kesil, Who turns deep darkness into dawn and darkens day into night, Who summons the waters of the sea and pours them out upon the earthHis name is the LORD! Apparently, there Kima and Kesil are opposites, like morning and the evening or day and night. Job 38:31 echoes this opposition by the use of the opposite verbs [:[.. - ..
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Can you tie the cords to Kima or undo the reins of Kesil? The diametric positions of the two constellations and their identical size, as suggested by these verses, cannot be reconciled with the conclusion of many interpreters that Kima is Aries tail (=Pleiades) and Kesil is Orion. It is well known that Orion and Pleiades are very close to each other rather than diametrically opposed and they are certainly not similar in size. The Pleiades are a small cluster of only 6 or 7 barely visible stars, while Orion is a large collection of prominent stars considered by some to be the largest and finest looking of the constellations.
The following illustration shows clearly the differences between Orion and Pleiades:
Aries
Orion
It is important to note that Scorpio and Orion are of the largest and most impressive constellations in the sky. Each one has seven large stars, all of which are included in the list of the 100 brightest stars.14 Interestingly enough, some Jewish scholars, among them the Maharsha15, the Vilna Gaon16 and the Shir17, believed that Kima is actually Scorpio and not Aries.
Illustration 2 The Scorpio constellation whose sting rests in the Dinor River
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The 100 Brightest Stars http://calgary.rasc.ca/stellarmagnitudes.htm Maharsha Rabbi Shemel Elazar Eidels (1555-1632). See his commentary on Berachot 58b: And it appears according to the versions of the first chapter of [tractate] Rosh Hashana that Kima is also not from the Aries zodiac sign, but rather from the Scorpio Zodiac sign, which is unique to the month of Cheshvan; and therefore, both are cold because their ascendance is in Cheshvan, which is the beginning of the cold period, and it did not say that Aries Tail is only in Ash. The Vilna Gaon Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman Kramer(1720-1797). See his commentary on tractate Rosh Hashana 11b, which can be found in the Tikkunei Hazohar, and in the book Sde Eliyahu. Shir Rabbi Shlmo Yehuda Rappaport (1790-1867). He was the rabbi of Tarnopol, and later of Prague. See his essay Nahar Dinur in his book Erech Milin Warsaw 5674, 1914, pp. 297-301.
If it were not for the tail of Scorpio, which bites Kesil, the world would not exist.
Illustration 3 Tractate Berachot 58b, Paris Manuscript 671 (the additional passage is underlined)
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a. A manuscript of the Talmud that can be found in the Paris library (Paris 671). b. A manuscript of the Talmud that can be found in the Oxford library (Oxford 366). http://www.theoi.com/Gigante/GiganteOrion.html See the Ibn Ezra commentary on Job 38:31. It appears as though Ibn Ezra was unfamiliar with this Talmudic text.
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It is common knowledge that in the area of Scorpios tail, the Milky Way stars are highly concentrated, and the Milky Way can be viewed clearly there, whereas in other areas of the sky the view is weaker.
Kima and the Great Flood Continuation of the Passage in Berachot, ibid
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What is Ash? Rave Yehuda said: Yotha. What is Yotha? Some say it is the tail of the ram, and some say it is the head of the bull. And it is reasonable to follow the one who says the tail of the ram. For it is written: And could you comfort Ayish for her children? Evidently [Ash] is missing. And [the tail of the ram] appears as it had been beaten. And the reason why [Ash] follows [Kima] is that she says to [Kima], give me my children!
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For when the Holy One Blessed Be He wanted to bring a flood upon the world he took two stars from Kima and he brought a flood upon the world, and when he wanted to fill it in [the gap] he took two stars from Ayish and filled it up But let God return Kimas to her. A pit cannot be filled with its own earth. Alternatively, a prosecutor cannot become a defender. But let [God] create two other stars for [Kima]. There is nothing new beneath the sun. Rav Nachman said: In the future, the Holy One Blessed Be He, will restore [Ashs] stars to her, for it is stated: or lead Ayish together with her children.
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Summary
The analysis of the passage in tractate Berachot 58b leads to the conclusion that Kima is identified with the Scorpio cluster. On the other hand, the analysis of the other passages in the Talmud that mention Kima, and which I have not discussed in this article, reveals a more complex picture. In tractate Bava Metziah 106b Kima is clearly identified with Aries tail (Pleiades), which marks the end of the planting season, when it appears above the head (is in the zenith during the evening hours). However, in tractate Rosh Hashana 11b (and also Seder Olam Rabba chapter 4) in the discussion on Kima and the Great Flood, Kima is identified as both Aries tail (Pleiades) and Scorpio. This is due to the different and conflicting versions on the topic of Kima and the Great Flood that exist in the different manuscripts.23 It appears that the oldest source associating Kima with Aries tail (Pleiades) is the Septuagint, written in the second century B.C.E. After reviewing all of the information concerning the identity of Kima, it appears to me that in Biblical times (Amos/Job), an ancient tradition identifying Kima as Scorpio was widely accepted. This tradition was forgotten over time and was replaced with a new tradition; one that identifies Kima with the Pleiades,24 as reflected in the translation of the Bible to Greek. The Sages of Israel who wanted to adapt the translation to the Greek culture, replaced Kima with Pleiades in their interpretations, just as they introduced many other changes.25 According to this explanation, in tractate Berachot Shmuel refers to the ancient tradition whereas in tractate Bava Metzia 106b, Rav Pappa, a later Babylonian fifth generation Amora, brings a more modern tradition, which shows that watching Kima helped determine the end of the planting season much like the Greeks who observed the Pleiades for agricultural purposes. In tractate Rosh Hashana 11b the two traditions fused and were given equal expression. According to those who say the world was created in Nissan and the Great Flood was in Iyar, Kima is Aries tail (Rabbi Yehoshua) whereas, according to those who say that the world was created in Tishrei and the Great Flood was in Marcheshvan, Kima is Scorpio (Rabbi Eliezer)26. Rashi accurately expressed this ambiguous situation: (Rashi - Berachot 58b)
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See "Kima" and the Flood in "Seder 'Olam" and B.T. Rosh Ha-Shana Stellar Time-Reckoning and Uranography in Rabbinic Literature: Chaim Milikowsky: Proceedings of the American Academy for Jewish Research, Vol. 50 (1983), pp. 105-132 The Pleiades constellation has an important place in Greek culture, and it is mentioned in the poetry of Homer and Hesiod. Its celestial position was used as a reference point for determining the agricultural seasons. Talmud Bavli, Megilla 9a See Prof. Milikovsky (note 23) p. 117 This emendation must be based upon an alternative identification of Kima, according to which Kima is an astral body roughly antipodal to the Pleiades.
Acknowledgements
I am grateful to Rabbi Rachamim Sar Shalom for his important suggestions and help in preparing this article.