gittin 78

only a dog
would try trickery
he has to give it
when she's awake
and on guard
at what he's
publicly
thrown
at
her.

gittin 77

he may throw it away

but that is the moment
when her body
and her house
both become hers to own
and treasure.

gittin 76

how much can he exhort her for?
how many times can he raise the stakes?
how many times can he change conditions?
how many times can he come and go before she can leave?

gittin 75

 if you do....
....if you don't

controlling the conditions under which she will no longer be under his control.

gittin 74

conditional betrothals and divorces

pay him in money
pay him in his lost clothing
pay him in your humility
just pay him

she has to pay for her freedom
despite being too shy to have asked for her initial payment.

this page discusses the case of a husband giving his wife a divorce on certain conditions. e.g. she has to pay him a certain amount of money. or return of a garment that is lost... she has to pay. It is debated between R. Huna and R. Yehudah if the divorce is immediate or only on the fulfillment of the condition. This is compared to conditional betrothals, where it is conditional on him paying her money. In that case it is noted that the betrothal is only valid once the money is paid, as she might be too shy to ask for her money. But with this type of conditional divorce, she has to pay the money, no consideration as to how she might feel about this arrangement imposed upon her.

gittin 73

who can predict the unfortunate accident of sleeping with the dying man who wants to divorce you?

has to be seen to be believed.

but why would she want to fuck him?
even if she did it for the money,
how can he pay her for sex if he has a claim on her earnings?

what if a husband says to his wife: this is your divorce from today if I die... what is her status? and if he was dying, and makes it conditional that he does not recover from this illness, and then an unforeseen accident happens, is she divorced? and the time between issuing this divorce to when he dies, is she like a married woman or a divorcee? She cannot be alone with him, and needs 2 witnesses, lest they sleep together. and if they do, is the sex an act of betrothal and they would need a second divorce document? Or perhaps it wasn't sex as betrothal but he paid her just for sex, as an act of prostitution. But at the end of this page it describes her status as being like a married woman, in that he has ownership of any lost items she finds, any produce of her field belongs to him, and anything she earns. Which would include the money she earns prostituting herself to her soon-to-be-ex-husband...  but why would a woman, who has just heard from her dying husband that he wants to treat her as a divorced woman after his death, try to sleep with him? to cancel her status as a divorcee so that she will be widow.... learning this page I couldn't stop thinking, if he wants to divorce you, why try to sleep with him... why?

gittin 72

"divorce if I die"

but death is the only certainty for all mortal life.

even if there is ambiguity if she will be a widow, or just an ex-wife.

this page discusses the validity of a husband saying to his wife: this is your divorce if I die - and different versions of that statement, depending if it is connected to an on-going illness, or "from today, this is your divorce if I die" etc. Why say "if" - everybody's got to go sometime. If they are divorced or not is worthy of discussion. but one thing is certain. we will all die. no "if." and then it hit me. what isn't being discussed here is actually, he is saying to his wife: "if I die before you, then actually we are divorced." and what claim does a divorced wife have on the inheritance of his estate? From her point of view, is it better to be a widow or an ex-wife?

gittin 71

can the instructions to write be written?

or only valid when said explicitly
clearly
& directly
to the one who will write.

gittin 70

preventative cures
& behaviour that can harm the body
and one's future offspring

gittin 69

crazy cures and strange remedies
for treating sickness in the eyes,
nose,
mouth and body.

gittin 68

torment the demons
to trap their king
to trick the bird
to catch the worm
to build the temple
without the violence

(just with kidnapping, torture, rape, incest and suicide...)

gittin 67

it's just not done

- the improper behaviour of servants,
fools
and those tormented by demon drink.

gittin 66

instructions to divorce - even if demonic,
that come as he is about to die,
must be carried out
exactly
and not delegated to another.

gittin 65

when can a child begin to buy and sell and trade?
when they know what is valuable & what is not.
what is holy and what is profane.
what is owned and what is shared.

and what is ambiguous and what are the exact instructions that need to be followed to the letter.

gittin 64

both him   
and her

bring someone else to help them end their marriage.
but who is credible?

him?
her?
- even if she is a child

gittin 63

even at the time of separation
he can remove her agency
& insist she does not show him contempt.

but he does not have to give directly to her.

gittin 62

giving & receiving

the dough that seperated
and
the document of separation.

gittin 61

the men who take from the poor,

and the woman who grind together.

gittin 60

the path of peace is paved with hierarchy and order -
everyone knows their place and their turn to be watered.

gittin 59

the finest linen to wrap the body of the scholar with the finest mind - expanding and contracting and encompassing everything.

gittin 58

taking by force or deception,
the land or the woman.
who belongs to another
leads to the beautiful children uselessly fighting the sword with pens.

gittin 57

suicidal tendencies in the face of violent destruction.

- but perhaps it's better to shrug off the uprooted tree, or the butchered hen.
than have an eternal Akeidah.

gittin 56

rabbinic silence brings destruction, causing God's silence during the violation.

meanwhile...
the enemy tries to hammer out the buzzing and drilling in his head.
longing for this divine silence.

gittin 55

taking what's not yours
without owners full permission -
by theft,
intimidation
force & threats

& discarding 'property'
without her knowledge or consent.
by cowardly trickery. 

gittin 54

credible & thoughtful confessions of thoughtless behaviour.

behaviour that was meant to repair, and not destroy.
but not everything can be remedied.

God's name can't stand out and time may have passed.
and it is too late to make ammends.

gittin 53

some things aren't meant to be,
but they happen anyway.

if no one can see the harm,
is it really damaged?

but like clear water
some unseen things have weight.

gittin 52

Satan loves to mix it up - especially at twilight, when the sacred and profane merge.

the relatives vs the guardian
arguing over the land,
the animals
the clothing
the food
the drink
and the money.

because if you weren't closely connected to the dead, why would you care for their orphans?

gittin 51

animals stray

but a step-daughter's needs are always, eternally, there.

gittin 50

when it comes to dealing with one's late father's money.

- all grown men become children - wanting the grown-ups to sort it all out.

gittin 49

giver her the crappy land
she is so desperate to got married that she will settle for it.

even if no one else will.

gittin 48

collecting debts and money from land.

but not all land is equal
and not all claimants deserve the money.
not all landowners have completely unshared ownership going back generations.

gittin 47

the freed gladiator with no possessions to hand to his daughter, weighs in on who really can speak for the produce of the wife's land.

gittin 46

divorcing her because he thinks she slept around or can't have children.

but even if he's proved wrong, apparently it's a better world if she remains silent. and he doesn't admidt his mistake and take her back.

better for whom?

gittin 45

who deserves rescue and redemption?
the pure and righteous
those enslaved by - them.
and even whores and witches.

but not the one who talks to birds.

gittin 44

selling the slave to the gentiles
worse or better than selling animals or land?

either way, the slave can walk away.

gittin 43

half slave
half free

completely used by all.
- so free her so that she can be only one man's exclusive possession.

gittin 42

half slave, half free
but no eye or tooth

completely broken.

gittin 41

in-between 2 masters - the creditor and the debitor.

the slave is like a damaged field,
but who pays for the repair?

gittin 40

freeing the slave to serve a higher Master.
- by reading or wearing God's words.

- but what if there is no earthly master to give him his document of written words of freedom?

gittin 39

is the slave like the land

or like a hat that can be thrown about?

gittin 38

what is worse?
giving the slave girl her freedom,
or standing by and letting everyone fuck her.

gittin 37

using land to make loans, only works of everyone knows the rules of the game of debts that aren't meant to be cancelled.

gittin 36

tolerating improper behaviour
of the adulterous bride
or the abusive teacher.

gittin 35

because she baked a gold coin in the poor man's bread,
all widows, everywhere, have to beg, plead and threaten, so that their property is given to them or be reliant on others giving to the poor.

gittin 34

using all the names and all the places -
he tries to separate.

but she sits and ties
waft and warp
together.

gittin 33

 is it tikkun olam to be concerned about the unborn bastards.
or the living woman?

when they force him to free her,
- why do they have to go into hiding?