Bava Basra Daf 100 בבא בתרא דַף 100

The previous Daf explained why a field’s owner cannot reclaim the public’s old path by giving them another one. The Gemara then asks why the public keeps the new path, and explains that the Mishnah follows Rebbe Eliezer, who said: רבים שבררו דרך לעצמם – if the public chose a path for themselves in someone’s field, מה שבררו בררו – what they chose, they chose, and it becomes theirs. In this Mishnah, where he gave them the new path (mistakenly thinking he would retrieve the old path), certainly they would keep it. The Gemara objects that the public cannot simply seize a path through someone’s field, and Rav Yehudah quoted Rav explaining the case: כגון שאבדה להן דרך באותה שדה – where [the public] lost a path in that field, and the public took a path to replace theirs. Since this is logical, Rabbah bar Rav Huna, who quoted Rav saying the halachah does not follow Rebbe Eliezer, must not have interpreted the Mishnah this way. According to him, the Mishnah is based on Rav Yehudah’s principle: מיצר שהחזיקו בו רבים – a boundary which the public took possession of for a path, אסור לקלקלו – it is forbidden for the owner to ruin it.

Rebbe Eliezer had taught that if the public chose a path in someone’s property, their choice is effective. The Gemara asks: רבים במאי קנו ליה – how does the public acquire [the path]? It answers: בהילוך – by walking on it, as Rebbe Eliezer says in a Baraisa: הלך בה לארכה ולרחבה – if one walks across the length and width of a property, קנה מקום הילוכו – he acquires the area he walked. But the Chochomim say: אין הילוך מועיל כלום עד שיחזיק – walking is not effective to acquire land, until he makes a [kinyan] chazakah. Rebbe Eliezer’s derives this from where Hashem told Avraham: קום התהלך בארץ לארכה ולרחבה כי לך אתננה – “Arise, walk in the land along its length and width, for I will give it to you,” implying he acquired it by walking on it. The Chochomim explain that Hashem told Avraham to walk through Eretz Yisroel משום חביבותא דאברהם – because of [Hashem’s] love for Avraham, כדי שיהא נוח לכבוש לפני בניו – so it would be easy for his descendants to conquer it. The Chochomim concede regarding a שביל של כרמים – path through vineyards, הואיל ונעשה להילוך נקנה בהילוך – since it is made for walking, it is acquired with walking.

A Baraisa states: אין פוחתין משבעה מעמדות ומושבות למת – we do not do fewer than seven standings and sittings for a person who died, where the people would pause to sit and comfort the mourners, or bemoan the loss, and then stand and continue. This was done at least seven times, corresponding to the seven mentions of “futility” in the passuk: הבל הבלים אמר קהלת הבל הבלים הכל הבל. In another Baraisa, Rebbe Yehudah says that originally, in the province of Yehudah, they performed at least seven standings and sittings, in which someone would announce: עמדו יקרים עמודו – “Stand, dear ones, stand!” After walking further, he would announce: שבו יקרים שבו – “Sit, dear ones, sit!” The Chochomim told Rebbe Yehudah that if this is the entire procedure, it would be permitted to do on Shabbos as well.

When Rav Avya performed the מעמד ומושב procedure for his wife, he made several mistakes: (1) He performed it even with non-relatives, (2) he performed it on the second day after burial, rather than just the first, (3) he performed it in the city, not the cemetery, and (4) he performed it in a town lacking such a custom.