ועוד שאלתי נסתפקנו בג' שמועות ממס' ר"ה שנאמרו מפי רבי זירא, באחת שצריך שיהי' לילה ויום מן החדש, והשני' נולד קודם חצות בידוע שנראה סמוך לשקיעת החמה, והשלישית כד' שעות מכסי סיהרא באנו ליסוד הסוד כמו שפי' ה"ר זרחי' והיה יום ב' בא' בתמוז ולערב שאלתי אם יש לסמוך על הפי' שפי' בהם רש"י או אם העיקר כמו שפי' הר"ר זרחי' הגדול:
I also asked [in my dream] about our uncertainty regarding the three Talmudic statements of Rabbi Zeira (Rosh Hashanah 20b:4) on the calculation of the calendar. First, that the night and the day need to belong to the new month. Second, that if the molad, the lunar conjunction, occurs before midday, the moon will certainly be visible close to sunset. Third, that the moon is invisible for twenty four hours [between the lunar cycles]. We have encountered the fundamental secret of the calendrical calculations, as elucidated by R. Zerachia1see Hamaor Hakatan on Rif Rosh Hashanah 5a . It was on a Monday evening, the first day of the month of Tammuz, when I asked whether it is better to rely on the interpretations offered by Rashi2Rashi on Rosh Hashanah 20b, where he gives his own understanding of the calendrical calculations, and cites R. Saadia Gaon, or whether the better interpretation is that of the great Rabbi Zerachia.
2
והשיבו מה זה מהרת למצוא בני זר"ח בחושך אור לישרי"ם:
They responded: "How quickly have you found your desire, my son," (Genesis 27:20) "Shining ['Zarach'] in the darkness is light for the upright ['Yesharim']." (Psalms 112:4) *Possibly, the meaning here is that R. Zerachia is in the darkness, while Rashi (the letters of his name are in the word Yesharim) is in the light and should be followed. Another possibility is that the first verse, spoken by the biblical Isaac, is a reference either to Rashi (R. Shlomo Yitzhaki) or to the Rif, R. Isaac Alfasi, who omits the statements of Rabbi Zeira in his Talmudic commentary. See Keset Hasofer ad loc. It is also unclear here to what extent the question here is theoretical. Maimonides omits the calendrical calculations as a commandment, while Sefer Mitzvot Gadol 47 seems to hold that it is a positive commandment incumbent upon every Jew who is able to make such calculations.
ועוד שאלתי נסתפקנו בג' שמועות ממס' ר"ה שנאמרו מפי רבי זירא, באחת שצריך שיהי' לילה ויום מן החדש, והשני' נולד קודם חצות בידוע שנראה סמוך לשקיעת החמה, והשלישית כד' שעות מכסי סיהרא באנו ליסוד הסוד כמו שפי' ה"ר זרחי' והיה יום ב' בא' בתמוז ולערב שאלתי אם יש לסמוך על הפי' שפי' בהם רש"י או אם העיקר כמו שפי' הר"ר זרחי' הגדול:
I also asked [in my dream] about our uncertainty regarding the three Talmudic statements of Rabbi Zeira (Rosh Hashanah 20b:4) on the calculation of the calendar. First, that the night and the day need to belong to the new month. Second, that if the molad, the lunar conjunction, occurs before midday, the moon will certainly be visible close to sunset. Third, that the moon is invisible for twenty four hours [between the lunar cycles]. We have encountered the fundamental secret of the calendrical calculations, as elucidated by R. Zerachia1see Hamaor Hakatan on Rif Rosh Hashanah 5a . It was on a Monday evening, the first day of the month of Tammuz, when I asked whether it is better to rely on the interpretations offered by Rashi2Rashi on Rosh Hashanah 20b, where he gives his own understanding of the calendrical calculations, and cites R. Saadia Gaon, or whether the better interpretation is that of the great Rabbi Zerachia.
והשיבו מה זה מהרת למצוא בני זר"ח בחושך אור לישרי"ם:
They responded: "How quickly have you found your desire, my son," (Genesis 27:20) "Shining ['Zarach'] in the darkness is light for the upright ['Yesharim']." (Psalms 112:4) *Possibly, the meaning here is that R. Zerachia is in the darkness, while Rashi (the letters of his name are in the word Yesharim) is in the light and should be followed. Another possibility is that the first verse, spoken by the biblical Isaac, is a reference either to Rashi (R. Shlomo Yitzhaki) or to the Rif, R. Isaac Alfasi, who omits the statements of Rabbi Zeira in his Talmudic commentary. See Keset Hasofer ad loc. It is also unclear here to what extent the question here is theoretical. Maimonides omits the calendrical calculations as a commandment, while Sefer Mitzvot Gadol 47 seems to hold that it is a positive commandment incumbent upon every Jew who is able to make such calculations.