Take One Daf Yomi

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 95, the rabbis talk makeup: Is eyeliner kosher on Shabbat? What about blush, rouge, or lipstick? Stephanie Butnick returns to help us make sense of the rabbis' surprisingly keen knowledge of all-things-makeup. Why is braiding hair a form of building? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 93 and 94, make a distinction between the kinds of work one person can do alone and the sort of labor that truly takes a village. Rabbi Shira Stutman of Sixth & I in Washington, D.C., joins us to discuss this insight, and what it can teach us about our current movement for social justice. Why is repairing the world always a team effort? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 91 and 92, begin a long and fascinating discussion of intention, or how what we had meant to do impacts the outcome of our action. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to offer us some profound thoughts on living life with purpose and meaning. Why does intentionality matter? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 90, the rabbis warn against giving children locusts to play with, as the young ones may eat the bugs and the bugs may not be Kosher. One rabbi, however, warns that kids love their animal playmates and will not hurt them. To test this theory, we are joined by Lily, 8, and Hudson, 6, two budding bug enthusiasts. Would they ever eat a locust? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 89, tells us a heartwarming story about Satan trying and failing to stump Moses, and extols the great leader's virtue. Tal Ben-Shahar, best-selling author, Columbia professor, and the brain behind the Happiness Studies Academy, joins to tell us why happiness matters, especially now that the national mood is grim. Why must a good leader be humble rather than charismatic? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 88, dives into one of the most mysterious phrases in the entire Torah, the promise by the Israelites receiving the Torah to obey it first and only then listen to what it says. Rabbi Sari Laufer joins us to meditate on how and why some things only make sense once you experience them. What are the boundaries and the possibilities of obedience? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 86 and 87, ask a difficult question: Why have boundaries? And why would anyone choose to be religious when being religious involves so many strictures? Rabbi David Stav, chairman of the Tzohar organization that works to bridge the gaps between Orthodox and secular Jews in Israel, joins us to discuss the complex beauty of entering into a committed relationship with God. How is observing mitzvot like a marriage? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 84 and 85, find the rabbis in an agricultural state of mind, talking about the different seeds that one is permitted to sow in a single garden patch. Rabbi Ellen Bernstein, a prominent teacher and writer about Judaism and the environment, joins us to talk about biodiversity and our moral responsibilities to the earth. How is the Talmud promoting a truly organic approach to life? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 83, ends on a brooding note, with talk of dying in the tent of Torah. Why would such a life-affirming book as the Talmud strike such a morbid tone? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns with an uplifting interpretation, teaching us that true growth and sacrifice can only begin once we've had a chance to know ourselves as individuals. What is the self-help message in today's Daf? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 82, makes number two its number one concern. How are we to wipe our behinds? Zach Schreiber, a lawyer and the co-creator of Seinfeld Law, a blog dedicated to exploring the many intricate legal aspects of everyone's favorite sitcom, joins us to talk about why toilet talk is so crucial to comedy, religion, and the justice system alike. Was Elaine being Talmudic when she asked the person in the next stall to spare a square of toilet paper? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 81, tells a fiery little story about a pair of rabbis stuck on a bewitched boat and forced to utter God's name to undo the spell. Ilana Kurshan, author of If All the Seas Were Ink, a stellar memoir of studying the Talmud, joins us to unpack the mysteries of that omnipotent and mighty name, and how our thinking about it has evolved. Why do we refer to God as Hashem, or the name? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 79 and 80, invite us to look at our stuff and rearrange it according to a hierarchy of holiness. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to share some thoughts about why you can't recycle sacred writings and how even inanimate objects can teach us a valuable lesson about always aspiring to be better. How are tefilin holier than a Mezuzah? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 77 and 78, tells us a brief anecdote containing a poignant life lesson. Reading a classic Hassidic tale, we meditate on growth through difficulty, and on what Judaism has to teach us about overcoming adversity. Why should some hardships make us burst into dance? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 76, is a beautiful meditation on wine, from drinking it to blessing it to basking in its glory. Producer Josh Kross returns to offer a soliloquy on drinking mindfully. What's the deal with diluting wine? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 75, finds the rabbis in an ecumenical mood. While we're not allowed to emulate the ways of other religions, they tell us, learning from them and understanding their ways is allowed, maybe even advisable. Ashley McKinless, co-host of the popular podcast Jesuitical, joins us to talk about finding beauty and meaning in other traditions. Why should we pay attention to the intricacies of our friends' and neighbors' religious practices? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 74, unlocks one of the most profound mysteries of the Jewish universe: Why gefilte fish? Jeffrey Yoskowitz, co-author of The Gefilte Manifesto, joins us to shed some light on the much-maligned dish's origins, and why we can't get enough of it. Why is gefilte the ultimate Shabbat dish? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 72 and 73, finally give us the 39 labors we're not allowed to perform on Shabbat. Why did it take so long? Why go through more than 70 pages before getting to the point? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to shed light on this seminal question, and help us understand the real meaning of Shabbat. How is the Talmud like a Quentin Tarantino movie? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 70 and 71, bring up a fascinating concept: Yediah, or knowing. Are we responsible for the sins we commit if we don't really know that we've committed them? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explore the intricacies of this complicated question. How do we resolve the tension between divine intervention and free will? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 69, shares an anecdote that feels deeply relatable these days, about a man who wanders in the desert and loses all track of time. Dr. Erica Brown joins us to talk about the centrality of time in Judaism, and what to do when, sheltered in place, time itself becomes a challenge. How do we find a sense of direction when the days just seem to melt into one another? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 68, introduces an astonishing concept, that of the captive child. Just as a child kidnapped from his parents holds no responsibility for the way he was raised, the rabbis tell us, so do those of us who have never studied the intricacies of Jewish law not necessarily liable if and when we break them. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to talk about this intriguing and seminal concept. How do we learn to forgive ourselves? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 67, asks a very timely question: How open should we be to different putative potions and cures? Should we forbid anything not proven to work? Or should we keep an open mind, recognize that there's much we don't know, and that healing is both physical and emotional? Writer Lisa Ann Sandell, herself recovering from Covid-19, joins us to talk about what it's like to try and manage your care when so much remains unknown about the virus. How do we sort out which medical advice to accept and which to reject? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 65 and 66, discuss various laws pertaining to people with disabilities. Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, joins us to talk about how far we've come in rethinking our approach towards people with disabilities, and how far we still have to go. Why are shuls the perfect place to start and implement positive change? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 63 and 64, wax poetic about the Beit Midrash, the house of study, where Torah learning is conducted by dividing the students into pairs who read together and spend their days arguing. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to sing the glories of this pedagogical methodology, and tell us of the intellectual and emotional benefits of learning through quibbling. Should Harvard take note? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 62, finds the rabbis in a particularly patriarchal mood, discussing the things that women do to get the attention of men. Dr. Bat Sheva Marcus joins us to discuss why objectifying women, then and now, is never a good idea. Why does the passage tell us about men, women, and the still unresolved tensions between them? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 61, asks a profound question: Does magic work? Alana Newhouse, Tablet's Editor in Chief, joins us to talk about amulets, and why some people take good-luck charms very seriously. How do we know if our amulets are truly protecting us? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 60, tells an incredible and bloody story that begins with dorky footwear and ends in a bloodbath. Stephanie Butnick, co-host of Unorthodox, joins us to talk about sandals and other problematic footwear, and explain the cycles that make some fashion trends cool again and again and again. Is it ever OK to wear flip-flops if you're not at the beach? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 58 and 59, reveal some of the ancient rabbis' habits when it came to wearing brand-name clothes. Marco Greenberg, marketing and branding expert and the author of the new book Primitive: Tapping the Primal Drive That Powers the World's Most Successful People joins us to talk about the primordial power of logos, and why we still set so much store in our favorite brands. Is it better to be cool or warm? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 56 and 57, begin with the rabbis contemplating whether or not the great King David has ever sinned. After doing away with that troublesome bit about Uria the Hittite, they come to a strange conclusion: David's only sin was adhering, just once, to gossip. What can we learn from the king's costly flaw? And what does it have to do with Leonard Cohen? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 55, tells a dramatic story of four famous Biblical figures who died without sin. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to introduce us to these Fantastic Four, and explain what their lives and deaths can teach us about leadership. Is perfection the key to greatness or a detriment? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 54 makes a startling claim: If you were in a position to protest the sinful conduct of a friend and failed to do so, you yourself must be held accountable. It's an ancient take on the principle made famous by Spider-Man, namely that with great power comes great responsibility. Rabbi David Ingber joins us and delivers a moral primer on what each one of us can do to make sure we all stand for what's right. How do we hold ourselves accountable? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 53, is a work of stable compassion, asking just what we're permitted to do to keep our horses comfortable on Shabbat. Lily Leibovitz, an eight-year-old horseback riding enthusiast, joins us to talk about the importance of being nice to animals, and what it feels like to ride a horse for the very first time. What can we learn from our animal friends? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 51 and 52, have a nice ring to them. We mean this literally: The rabbis give us an intricate discussion about rings and purity, and the implications are still felt today. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to tell us all about the Lord and the rings. Why do some Orthodox men still refrain from wearing wedding rings? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 49 and 50, tell us a moving story of a righteous man, Elisha, who teaches us a more spiritual approach to confrontation. We welcome back Dr. Bat Sheva Marcus to give us a very therapeutic take on this tale, and, since she's a celebrated sex therapist, ask her to answer a listener question about the Talmud's take on masturbation. What can the rabbis teach us about self love in all of its varieties? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 48, is all about pillows. Are you allowed to stuff yours on Shabbat? The rabbis' decree is fascinating: If the pillow is old, go right ahead, but if it's new, no dice. To understand this principle of interior design, we called on the one and only Simon Doonan, author and judge on the Emmy-nominated show Making It. Why do some of us have trouble getting used to the new stuff we buy? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 47, dives into a discussion about a very modern-sounding thingamajig: a collapsible bed, the Talmud's take on the IKEA catalogue. Are we allowed to assemble and disassemble this modular piece of furniture on Shabbat? Rabbi Sari Laufer, Director of Congregational Engagement at Stephen Wise Temple in Los Angeles, joins us to shed some light on the idea of using things in different ways on Shabbat than we would during the week. How can we keep the spirit of the holy day even if we don't observe the letter of halakhic law? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 46, contains one of those delightful little stories that the Talmud likes to tell to make much bigger points. It's about Rava and Rav Avya, two brilliant men engaged in a fierce disagreement about a particular manner of halakha. To make his point, Rav Avya walks into his friend's house and puts his muddy feet on the bed. To help us decipher this act of aggression, we welcome the Corduroy Rav, Mark Oppenheimer, who helps guide us through the intricacies of arguing with dignity and meaning. How to talk to people who hold very different opinions without merely bickering? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 44 and 45, introduce us to the Muchni, a bit of detachable wheel that keeps the rest of the items in the wagon from being rendered impure. Rabbi Dr. Stu Halpern of Yeshiva University joins us to talk about technology's ability to both flood our lives with unholy things and help insulate us from disaster, and shares with us how his modern Orthodox community learned to rethink technology after the outbreak of Covid-19 forced many of the rituals that were previously conducted in person to move online. What can an ancient detachable wheel teach us about our lives today? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 40 to 43, cover a wide array of crucial questions, from why we're not allowed to take a hot shower on Shabbat to precisely what men should do with their members while urinating. Because we've been off for a few days, celebrating Pesach, Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to help us catch up on the Talmudic majesty we've missed. What is muktzah, and how can it help us see Shabbat in a whole new light? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 39, acknowledges what every amateur chef already knows: There's nothing more difficult to cook to perfection than the lowly egg. A minute here or there can make the difference between jammy perfection and a gray-hued mess, so producer Josh Kross, himself an egg enthusiast, joins us to interpret the rabbis' hard-boiled disquisition on the different approaches to egg-cooking. What might an omelet teach us about life? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 37 and 38, find the rabbis mulling the precise nature of a Kupah, a smallish stove that was popular in their day. And while the specifics of their conversation may sound archaic, its essence couldn't be more timely: What they're really trying to figure out is what to do when a new technology is thrust into our lives, and how our gadgets shape so much about the way we interact with the world. How is the Kupah just like an iPhone? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 35 and 36, raises one of the most loaded concepts in the entire Talmud: Bein Hashmashot, or Twilight. It's extremely significant for a host of religious obligations, yet the rabbis, in pure Talmudic fashion, couldn't decide on how long, precisely, twilight actually was. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to shed light on this strange and fascinating concept. Why did some rabbis believe you had to view Mt. Carmel from the Mediterranean in order to grasp the truly meaning of twilight? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 33 and 34, tell a wild story of a mighty rabbi and his son, so disgusted with the ways of this world that they chose to retreat and live in a cave for 13 years. When they emerge, however, trouble ensues. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin returns to teach us about the perils of very smart and serious people believing themselves to be better than the rest of us, and about why mysticism means seeing the divine sparks everywhere. Why should we never assume our scholarship and intelligence gives us special status? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 32, gives us a brief but fierce paragraph about those about to die, and what they should and shouldn't be doing as they are about to pass. This passage feels a bit too real in the midst of a deadly pandemic, and we welcome The New York Times writer Bari Weiss to discuss her piece about hospital chaplains and the holy work they do these days. Why is visiting the sick the holiest of mitzvahs? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 30, gives us a peak into the birth of modern politics: King David, dying, asks God how much time he has left, and God, refusing to answer, informs the aged monarch that the reign of his son, Solomon, is already set to begin. It's like an epic episode of HBO's Succession, as well as the moment of transition from the ancient world's view of kings as omnipotent to our contemporary understanding of rulers as servers of the people. Rabbi Dr. Ari Lamm joins us to talk about the glories of this story. What can the Talmud teach us about our current moment in American politics? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 28 and 29, features talk of the Tachash, a mysterious beast who may or may not have had a single horn, an enormous body, and a six-colored skin. Was he a Technicolor Jewish unicorn, or a Jewnicorn? Different commentators offered divergent interpretations, but in today's episode we take a page from one of our greatest Hasidic masters and read the Jewnicorn as a metaphor for human kindness. Why? Listen and find out.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 27, features the debut of what is arguably the oddest and most difficult to comprehend of all the mitzvot: The prohibition to wear Shatnez, or clothes made of both wool and linen. Why this specific ban? We welcome AJ Jacobs, author of The Year of Living Biblically, to make sense of this curious commandment and tell us about the time he invited a Shatnez inspector to raid his closet. What do wool and linen have to do with Cain and Abel? Listen and find out. Take one is sponsored this week by the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. In this time of anxiety, Jewish based mindfulness and meditation may the thing you need. Find out at Jewishspirituality.org/Takeone and when you check out, put in the code Takeone20 for a 20% discount.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 26, begins with the Talmud's equivalent of a Law & Order episode, telling a gruesome tale of a woman who sets her daughter-in-law on fire. Thankfully, not all of us have such murderously acrimonious relationships with our-laws; Stephanie Butnick, co-host of Tablet's popular Unorthodox podcast, joins us to make sense of the grizzly story and give us some tips about how to manage your relationship with the family you had married into. What's the secret to being close with your mother-in-law? Listen and find out. Take one is sponsored this week by the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. In this time of anxiety, Jewish based mindfulness and meditation may the thing you need. Find out at Jewishspirituality.org/Takeone and when you check out, put in the code Takeone20 for a 20% discount.

Today’s Daf Yomi page, Shabbat 25, finds the rabbis in an existential kind of mood. What truly matters in life? Some say money, others say companionship, and others yet, well, go a more scatological path. Mark Oppenheimer, the self-styled Corduroy Rav and co-host of Tablet's popular Unorthodox podcast, returns to talk about how your desires shape your life. Would you trade a large sum of money for an uninterrupted hour in the bathroom? Listen and find out. Take one is sponsored this week by the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. In this time of anxiety, Jewish based mindfulness and meditation may the thing you need. Find out at Jewishspirituality.org/Takeone and when you check out, put in the code Takeone20 for a 20% discount.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 23 and 24, revolve around a fascinating question: Should we treasure life's beautifully mundane moments, or hold up for rare and splendid miracles? Rabbi Scott Hoffman joins us to talk about getting our priorities straight, especially in times of crisis. What can candles and menorahs teach us about our values? Listen and find out. Take one is sponsored this week by the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. In this time of anxiety, Jewish based mindfulness and meditation may the thing you need. Find out at Jewishspirituality.org/Takeone and when you check out, put in the code Takeone20 for a 20% discount.

Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Shabbat 21 and 22, contain a well-known discussion of how to light the Hanukkah menorah. Which, coincidentally, has been the subject of a famous 1989 Supreme Court case, still considered a landmark shaping religious liberties for decades to come. Nathan Lewin, the legendary lawyer who argued the case and convinced the highest court in the land to allow the display of a menorah in a public space, joins us to talk about this important chapter in American Jewish history. What surprising pronouncement did the ACLU's lawyer make after losing the case? Listen and find out. This episode is sponsored by the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. In this time of anxiety, Jewish-based mindfulness and meditation may the thing you need. Find out at Jewishspirituality.org/Takeone and use the code Takeone20 at checkout for a 20 percent discount.