Study Sukkah folio 44A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
אמרי: לדידהו נמי לא דחי. ואלא קשיא הני תרתי; דתנא חדא: כל העם מוליכין את לולביהן להר הבית, ותניא אידך: לבית הכנסת, ומתרצינן: כאן — בזמן שבית המקדש קיים, כאן — בזמן שאין בית המקדש קיים.
The rabbis say: For them in Eretz Yisrael it also does not override Shabbat. The Talmud asks: But if that is the case, the contradiction between these two sources is difficult, as it was taught in one Mishnah: All the people bring their lulavim to the Temple Mount on Friday, and it was taught in another Mishnah that they bring their lulavim to the synagogue. And we resolved this contradiction as follows: Here, where the Mishnah says that they bring their lulavim to the Temple Mount, it is referring to when the Temple is standing, and there, where the Mishnah says that they bring their lulavim to the synagogue, it is referring to when the Temple is not standing. Based on the above, when the Temple is not in existence the mitzva of lulav does not override Shabbat.
לא, אידי ואידי בזמן שבית המקדש קיים, ולא קשיא: כאן — במקדש, כאן — בגבולין.
The Talmud resolves the contradiction: No, both this Mishnah and that Mishnah are referring to Eretz Yisrael when the Temple is in existence; and nevertheless, it is not difficult. Here, where the Mishnah says that they bring their lulavim to the Temple Mount, it is referring to the procedure in the Temple. And there, where the Mishnah says that they bring their lulavim to the synagogue, it is referring to the procedure in the outlying areas in the rest of Eretz Yisrael, where they knew when the new month was established. However, today, neither in the Diaspora nor in Eretz Yisrael does the mitzva of lulav override Shabbat.
אמר ליה אביי לרבא: מאי שנא לולב דעבדינן ליה שבעה זכר למקדש, ומאי שנא ערבה דלא עבדינן לה שבעה זכר למקדש? אמר ליה: הואיל ואדם יוצא ידי חובתו בערבה שבלולב. אמר ליה: ההוא משום לולב הוא דקא עביד ליה. וכי תימא דקא מגבה ליה והדר מגבה ליה, והא מעשים בכל יום דלא קא עבדינן הכי!
Abaye said to Rava: What is different about lulav such that we perform the mitzva 7 days in commemoration of the Temple, and what is different about the willow branch that we do not perform the mitzva 7 days in commemoration of the Temple? Rava said to him: Since a person fulfills his obligation with the willow branch in the lulav, no additional commemoration is necessary. Abaye said to him: That is not a satisfactory answer, as he is performing that action due to the mitzva of taking the lulav and the other species. And if you say that he lifts the willow branch bound with the lulav to fulfill the mitzva of the 4 species and then lifts it again in commemoration of the willow branch in the Temple, aren’t actions performed daily proof that we do not do so, as no one lifts the lulav twice?