The Mishna states: Bais Shammai maintains that one can bring a shelamim offering on the festival because eating from the shelamim is deemed to be a necessity on the festival, but one cannot perform semichah, leaning on the animal. Bais Shammai further maintains that one cannot even offer an olah on the festival (because it is completely burned and does not provide food for people), whereas Bais Hillel maintains that one can offer shelamim and olos on the festival and one can perform semichah on the animal. Bais Hillel reasons that since one can offer the animals on the festival, the Chachamim did not institute a prohibition regarding performing semichah.

If Shavuos falls out on a Friday, Bais Shammai maintains that the Day of Slaughter (for the shalmei chagigah (Rashi in the name of the Yerushalmi) and the olas re’iyah, which cannot be offered on the festival or on Shabbos) will be on Sunday (even though it is not Shavuos). Bais Hillel says: There is no Day of Slaughter in this instance (because the korbanos can be offered on Shavuos). They agree that if Shavuos falls out on Shabbos; the Day of Slaughter will be on Sunday.

On the Day of Slaughter, the Kohen Gadol does not dress in his nice clothes (indicating that it is not a festival) and it is permitted to eulogize and fast on this day in order to counter the opinion of the Sadducees, who claimed that Shavuos is always on a Sunday. (17a)

Rabbi Elozar said in the name of Rabbi Oshaya: One is obligated to bring a shalmei chagigah and an olas re’iyah on the first day of Shavuos (similar to the other festivals). There is a seven day compensation period for anyone who did not offer these korbanos on Shavuos. He derives this halacha from the fact that the Torah compares the Festival of Shavuos to the Festival of Matzos; just as the Festival of Matzos has a seven day compensation period for its festival offerings, so too   the Festival of Shavuos will have a seven day compensation period (even though it is no longer Shavuos) for its offerings.

The Gemora asks: Perhaps Shavuos should be compared to the Festival of Sukkos, which has an eight day compensation period for its offerings?

The Gemora answers: Shemini Atzeres (the last day of Sukkos) is an independent festival and not considered part of Sukkos; therefore Sukkos only has a seven day compensation period, as well.

The Gemora asks: Shemini Atzeres is regarded as an independent festival only in regards to six halachos: One distinction is that it has its own arrangement of sacrificial offerings. In addition, the songs that the Leviim sang were not from the same category of songs that were sung on Sukkos. Another distinction is that the text of the Shemoneh Esrei that is recited on Shemini Atzeres is different that the text that is recited on Sukkos. One recites the shehechiyonu blessing on Shemini Atzeres but not on the seventh day of Pesach. However, it is considered part of the Festival of Sukkos in regards to being part of the compensation period for the offerings of Sukkos? This is proven from the Mishna cited above (9a):  One who did not offer the korban on the first day of the festival may bring it on any day during the festival, including Shemini Atzeres.

The Gemora answers: We would rather learn from the smaller amount (seven days of compensation from Pesach) than the larger amount (eight days of compensation from Sukkos). This is based upon the following principle: If you seize the larger amount you will not be able to grasp it, but if you seize the smaller amount you will be able to grasp it. ( The logic behind this principle is that if one is faced with a choice of two numbers and is in doubt which to choose, choosing the smaller number is always preferable, regardless of which of the two numbers was actually the correct one (because included in the larger number is the smaller one). On the other hand, if the larger number is chosen, and the smaller one was the correct one, then an error will be made because the smaller number does not include the larger one. – Kollel Iyun Hadaf)

The Gemora asks: What is derived from the fact that the Torah compares the Festival of Sukkos to the Festival of Matzos?

The Gemora answers: This teaches us that there is an obligation to remain in Yerushalayim overnight after the offering of the sacrifice on the first day of Sukkos. The Torah states this halacha regarding the first day of Pesach and we derive that this halacha applies to Sukkos, as well. (17a – 17b)

The Gemora states that the dispute between Bais Shammai and Bais Hillel regarding the permissibility of offering the sacrifices on Shavuos applies whether Shavuos falls out on a Friday, and there is no opportunity to bring the korbanos on the following day either (since it is Shabbos) or whether Shavuos falls out during any of the other weekdays. (17b)

The Gemora cites another source teaching that Shavuos has a seven day compensation period for anyone that didn’t bring the korban on the first day. Rabbah bar Shmuel taught a braisa that states the following: The Torah stated that one should count days and sanctify Rosh Chodesh and it is written in the Torah to count days and sanctify Shavuos. Just as Rosh Chodesh is sanctified for the same amount of time as the unit by which it is counted (one day), so too Shavuos in sanctified for the same amount of time that it is counted by (a week). This teaches us that if one did not bring the korban on Shavuos, he has another six days to compensate.

The Gemora asks on this that we count days to Shavuos as well and therefore its sanctity should be only one day and not seven. Rava answers that there is an obligation to count days and weeks to Shavuos and therefore we can learn that there is a seven day compensation period. Furthermore, the Torah explicitly refers to the festival as Shavuos, meaning ‘weeks.’ (17b)

INSIGHTS TO THE DAF

Shmini Atzeres –

Independent Festival or Not?

The Beis Yosef (Y”D 120:20) cites a Yerushalmi in Nedarim: Rabbi Yochanan says: One who makes an oath against drinking wine on the “Chag,” is prohibited from drinking wine on Sukkos, including Shmini Atzeres. The Beis Yosef writes that even though Shmini Atzeres is a festival by itself; that is only in respect to the six laws delineated in the Gemora, however in regard to the manner in which people speak, it is included in the festival of Sukkos, and the laws of vows are based on the way people speak.

The Meiri comments: Shmini Atzeres is only included in his vow if he just said “Chag,” however if he explicitly said “Chag HaSukkos,” Shmini Atzeres will not be included in his vow.

Proof is brought from here to one who mistakenly said “Chag HaSukkos” in Shemoneh Esrei instead of “Shmini Atzeres”; he has not fulfilled his obligation and must recite Shemoneh Esrei again.

The Turei Even (Megillah 5a) disagrees and he states that one who mistakenly said “Chag HaSukkos” in Shemoneh Esrei instead of “Shmini Atzeres” would not be required to repeat Shemoneh Esrei. His proof is from our Gemora which states that Shmini Atzeres is considered part of the compensation period for the korbanos of the first day of Sukkos. Furthermore, one who vows to bring a korban has three festivals to bring it before he will have transgressed the prohibition against delaying. If the third festival is Sukkos, he will not violate this prohibition until after Shmini Atzeres.

The Nishmas Adam rules that even though Shmini Atzeres is an independent festival, it is nevertheless related to Sukkos by the fact that one still eats in the sukkah and therefore one who mistakenly said “Chag HaSukkos” in Shemoneh Esrei instead of “Shmini Atzeres” would not be required to repeat Shemoneh Esrei.

RABBINIC MITZVAH OF SEFIRAS HAOMER

Tosfos states that after the counting of the omer, one should say the following tefillah: Is should be the will of Hashem that the Beis Hamikdosh should be rebuilt. This is recited because the mitzvah nowadays is rabbinic and serves to commemorate the biblical mitzvah in the times when the Beis Hamikdosh was in existence.

Tosfos asks: What is the difference between the mitzva of sefiras haomer and the mitzvos of sounding the shofar and taking a lulav which is also only rabbinic nowadays and this additional tefillah is not recited?

He answers: The mitzvah of sefiras haomer is merely a reminder of the Beis Hamikdosh and the other mitzvos involve an action. The distinction is extremely ambiguous and the commentators struggle to explain the difference.

The Gemora in Menochos (66a) says: Ameimar would count days and not weeks. He said: The mitzvah of counting the omer is only to commemorate the Beis Hamikdosh.

The Brisker Rov explains: The rabbinic mitzvah of sefiras haomer is different that other rabbinic mitzvos. A regular rabbinic mitzvah, such as eating marror on Pesach, is the identical mitzvah nowadays as was in the times of the Beis Hamikdosh. The only difference is that then it was biblical and now it is only rabbinic. Sefiras haomer is different. The purpose of the mitzvah mitzva of counting the omer nowadays was not for the counting, but rather it was established to commemorate the Beis Hamikdosh. The mitzvah nowadays is not the same mitzvah as it was then. This is why Ameimar maintains that in the times of the Beis Hamikdosh, they counted days and weeks and nowadays, we only count the days.

According to this, he explains the Ba’al Hamaor at the end of Pesachim. The Ba’al Hamaor says that we do not recite a shehechiyonu onsefiras haomer like we do by other mitzvos because it is only a mitzvah of remembering the Beis Hamikdosh. Shehechiyonu is recited at a time of joy and it would not be appropriate to recite it when we are recalling the tragedy of the destruction of the Beis Hamikdosh and the present exile. By other rabbinical mitzvos, a shehechiyonu is recited because the purpose of the mitzvah was for the sake of the mitzvah and not to remind us of the destruction of the Beis Hamikdosh.

This is the explanation of Tosfos. The special tefillah of requesting the building of the Beis Hamikdosh is exclusively reserved for the mitzvah of sefiras haomer, which was only instituted to commemorate the Beis Hamikdosh.