Translation:Mishnah/Seder Nezikin/Tractate Avot/Chapter 1
- Moshe received the Torah from Sinai,
- And transmitted it to Yehoshua,
- And Yehoshua to the Elders,
- And the Elders to the Prophets,
- And the Prophets transmitted it to the Men of the Great Assembly.
- They said three things:
- Deliberate before delivering a verdict,
- and establish many students,
- and make a fence for the Torah.
- Shimon the Righteous was of the last of the Men of the Great Assembly.
- He would say:
- Upon three things the world stands —
- upon the Torah, and upon service, and upon kind deeds.
- Antigonus of Sokho received [the tradition] from Shimon the Righteous.
- He would say:
- Do not be like servants attending a master in order to receive a reward,
- Rather be like servants attending a master not in order to receive a reward;
- And may the fear of Heaven be upon you.
- Yosei ben Yo'ezer of Tzereidah and Yosef ben Yochanan of Yerushalayim received from him.
- Yosei ben Yo'ezer of Tzereidah says:
- Your house should be a meeting house for the sages;
- become dirty from the dust of their feet, and drink their words thirstily.
- Yosei ben Yochanan of Yerushalayim says:
- Let your house be open wide, and let the poor be members of your household.
- And do not increase conversation with a woman.
- They said [this] regarding his wife, all the more so with the wife of his friend;
- From here, the sages said:
- Anyone who increases conversation with the woman —
- He causes evil to himself, and neglects the words of Torah,
- And in his end he inherits Gehenna.
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- Yehoshua ben Perachiah and Nittai of Arbel received the transmission from them.
- Yehoshua ben Perachia said,
- Make for yourself a rabbi, acquire for yourself a friend;
- and judge every person in their favor.
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- Nittai of Arbel said,
- Distance yourself from a bad neighbor,
- Do not befriend a wicked person,
- And do not despair of punishment.
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- Yehudah ben Tabbai and Shimon ben Shatach received from them.
- Yehudah ben Tabbai said,
- Do not act as an advisor among judges.
- When the litigants are before you, see them as criminals.
- And when the litigants have taken their leave, see them as innocent, should they have accepted the decision.
Shimon ben Shatach said:
Examine the witnesses thoroughly,
but be careful in your diction,
lest from your words they lie.
Shemayah and Avtalyon recieved the tradition from them.
Shemayah said:
Love work,
And hate power,
And do not get friendly with the government
Avtaloyon said:
Sages, be careful with your words,
unless you are exiled to a place of evil water [heretic teachings; see note].
The following students might drink and profane the name of the Heavens.
Hillel and Shammai received [the Torah] from them [Shemayah and Avtalyon].
Hillel used to say:
Be of the disciples of Aaron,
loving peace and pursuing peace,
loving [one's fellow] creatures and bringing them closer to the Torah.
He [also] used to say:
A name made widespread [eventually] loses its fame.
And one who does not increase [his knowledge] causes [it] to decrease.
And one who does not study [the Torah] is liable to die.
And one who makes [unworthy] use of the crown [of learning] passes away.
This was another favorite teaching of his:
If I am not for me, who will be for me?
If I am only for myself, what am I?
If not now, when?
Shammai used to say:
Make your Torah [study a] fixed [habit].
Speak little, and do much.
And receive every person with a pleasant countenance.
Rabban Gamliel used to say:
Provide for yourself a teacher.
And remove yourself from doubt.
And do not make a habit of tithing by guesswork.
Shimon, his son, used to say:
All my days, I grew up among the Sages,
And I found nothing better for a person than silence.
And studying [the Torah] is not the most important thing, but doing [it is].
And whoever talks too much brings about sin.
Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel used to say:
On three things does the world stand:
On justice, and on truth, and on peace,
As it is said:
“Judge with truth, justice, and peace in your gates.”