| No. 1.—Seder Zeroeem contains | 1 section. |
| No. 2.—Seder Moed contains | 11 sections. |
| No. 3.—Seder Nosheem contains | 7 sections. |
| No. 4.—Seder Nezekeen contains | 8 sections. |
| No. 5.—Seder Kodosheem contains | 8 sections. |
| No. 6.—Seder Taharous contains | 1 section. |
| Total | 36 sections. |
CHAPTER XIV.[ToC]
APPENDIX.
Having given a brief description of the Mishna and the Talmud, and their contents, we now direct the attention of the reader to the following observations, as a summary to the preceding two chapters.
The Pentateuch, or Five Books of Moses, is generally understood by the term "written law," and the Talmud as the oral or traditional law. The oral law was handed down from Moses to Joshua, from the elders to the prophets, and from them to the Great Synod, which consisted of one hundred and twenty of the most learned men of the age, and in like manner from time to time, until the days of Rabbi Judah, already mentioned. This great man, seriously contemplating the state of his nation as regarded their religious affairs, and perceiving that those who were learned in the law were gradually diminishing in number, feared that the knowledge of the oral law might ultimately be forgotten, and with it the essential portion of the law of Moses. In the true spirit of devotion and piety, this Rabbi collected all the doctrines and precepts which had been taught orally, down to that period, and with the assistance of his pious colleagues, committed them to writing, and arranged them in the order of the Mishna, as already described. After the Mishna had been written, and presented to the nation at large, it was received by them with a general and unanimous consent. It was universally approved, and was held by them as an authentic document, delivered to Moses by the Almighty, while on the mount, as an explanation of the written law. The prevailing opinion among the people then was, that the Mishna had been handed down by tradition, and they were confirmed in such opinion by the conviction that the same had been taught to them in their youth in the various schools and academies which were established for such purposes. It was then considered expedient by the learned in those days, that some further explanation should be given, in order to render the Mishna more intelligible to the general class of readers.
With this view, some of the most eminent among the Jewish doctors, taught in the schools the oral law together with the signification thereof, and in this way they illustrated all the most abstruse and difficult passages by useful and instructive commentaries. These illustrations and glossaries increased from time to time, which formed the Talmud, such as it is at present in the possession of the Israelites. It abounds with aphorisms and ethics, which were introduced by the Rabbins and Doctors who composed the Talmud, in the course of their discussions. It was in this manner, that they supported the opinions advanced by them on the various subjects upon which they treated. These subjects were frequently illustrated by moral tales and allegories, such being the tutelar system prevalent among most of the oriental nations in those days.
In the said Talmud the Rabbins taught also the various arts and sciences, such as known in those times, although it may be conceded that they may not have reached to such perfection as in the present enlightened age; nevertheless the principle was known by the Israelites of old, and practically applied by them as far as necessity demanded. It is well known that astronomy, geometry, architecture, physics, natural philosophy, as well as many of the other sciences, were in high cultivation both before and after the Babylonian captivity.