First, we meet Berurya, Rabbi Meir's wife (and the daughter of Rabbi Chaninah ben Teradyon).
Let's look at how she understands Jewish texts and how she teaches.
There were these hooligans in Rabbi Meir’s neighborhood who caused him a great deal of anguish. Rabbi Meir prayed for God to have mercy on them, that they should die.
Rabbi Meir’s wife, Berurya, said to him: What is your thinking? Do you base yourself on the verse, as it is written: “Let sins cease from the land” (Psalms 104:35), meaning that the world would be better if the wicked were destroyed?
But is it written, let sinners cease?” Let sins cease, is written. One should pray for an end to their transgressions, not for the demise of the transgressors themselves. Moreover, go to the end of the verse, where it says: “And the wicked will be no more.” If transgressions shall cease refers to the demise of the evildoers, how is it possible that the wicked will be no more, i.e., that they will no longer be evil? Rather, pray for God to have mercy on them, that they should repent, as if they repent, then the wicked will be no more.
Rabbi Meir saw that Berurya was correct and he prayed for God to have mercy on them, and they repented.
For context, this is the verse they are discussing. It's very interesting to note that the word that Berurya translates as "sins" is translated as "sinners" here. The textual read that she dismisses is actually the simplest read of the text. Does that change your anything about the story for you?
Next, we meet Yalta, the wife of Rabbi Nachman and the daughter of the Exilarch, the political leader of the Jews in Babylonia.
Take a moment to think about what she's doing here. How does she think about Jewish law? Ask yourself - which person in this story has actually issued this ruling?
§ The Gemara relates that Yalta, Rav Naḥman’s wife, brought blood before Rabba bar bar Ḥana, and he deemed her ritually impure. She then brought it before Rav Yitzḥak, son of Rav Yehuda, and he deemed her pure.
The Gemara asks: But how could Rav Yitzḥak, son of Rav Yehuda, act in this manner? But isn’t it taught in a baraita: In the case of a halakhic authority who deemed an item impure, another halakhic authority is not allowed to deem it pure; if one halakhic authority deemed a matter prohibited, another halakhic authority is not allowed to deem it permitted?
The Gemara explains that initially Rav Yitzḥak, son of Rav Yehuda, deemed her impure, but he changed his mind when Yalta said to him: Every day that I bring blood of this kind of color to Rabba bar bar Ḥana he deems me pure, and specifically now he issued a different ruling, as he feels pain in his eye. Upon hearing this, Rav Yitzḥak, son of Rav Yehuda, deemed her pure.
I promised uppity, did I not?
Let's look at Berurya in this story. How does she behave? Are there differences between the first incident and the second?
עוּלָּא אִקְּלַע לְבֵי רַב נַחְמָן. כְּרֵיךְ רִיפְתָּא, בָּרֵיךְ בִּרְכַּת מְזוֹנָא, יְהַב לֵיהּ כָּסָא דְּבִרְכְּתָא לְרַב נַחְמָן. אֲמַר לֵיהּ רַב נַחְמָן: לִישַׁדַּר מָר כָּסָא דְבִרְכְּתָא לְיַלְתָּא. אֲמַר לֵיהּ: הָכִי אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן: אֵין פְּרִי בִטְנָהּ שֶׁל אִשָּׁה מִתְבָּרֵךְ אֶלָּא מִפְּרִי בִּטְנוֹ שֶׁל אִישׁ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר ״וּבֵרַךְ פְּרִי בִטְנְךָ״. ״פְּרִי בִטְנָהּ״ לֹא נֶאֱמַר, אֶלָּא ״פְּרִי בִטְנְךָ״. [...] אַדְּהָכִי שְׁמַעָה יַלְתָּא, קָמָה בְּזִיהֲרָא, וְעַלַּת לְבֵי חַמְרָא, וּתְבַרָא אַרְבַּע מְאָה דַּנֵּי דְחַמְרָא. אֲמַר לֵיהּ רַב נַחְמָן: נְשַׁדַּר לַהּ מָר כָּסָא אַחֲרִינָא, שְׁלַח לַהּ: כֹּל הַאי נַבְגָּא, דְּבִרְכְּתָא הִיא. שְׁלַחָה לֵיהּ: מִמְּהַדּוּרֵי — מִילֵּי, וּמִסְּמַרְטוּטֵי — כַּלְמֵי.
The Gemara relates: Ulla happened to come to the house of Rav Naḥman. He ate bread, recited Grace after Meals, and gave the cup of blessing to Rav Naḥman. Rav Naḥman said to him: Master, please send the cup of blessing to Yalta, my wife. Ulla responded to him: There is no need, as Rabbi Yoḥanan said as follows: The fruit of a woman’s body is blessed only from the fruit of a man’s body, as it is stated: “And He will love you, and bless you, and make you numerous, and He will bless the fruit of your body” (Deuteronomy 7:13). The Gemara infers: “He will bless the fruit of her body” was not stated. Rather, “He will bless the fruit of your [masculine singular] body.”
[...] The Gemara relates that meanwhile Yalta heard Ulla’s refusal to send her the cup of blessing. She arose in a rage, entered the wine-storage, and broke four hundred barrels of wine. Afterward, Rav Naḥman said to Ulla: Let the Master send her another cup. Ulla sent Yalta a different cup with a message saying that all of the wine in this barrel is wine of blessing.
She sent him back: From itinerant peddlers come meaningless words, and from rags come lice.
This may be one of my favorite stories in all of the Gemara.
What is Yalta doing? Why does she react the way she does? What do you think of her?
A rule worth remembering when it comes to the Talmud is that most people do not have identities. They are known as "a certain man" or "a certain woman". Only famous people (such as Roman emperors or Cleopatra), Biblical characters, and Torah scholars are given names or identifying details.
The fact that we know Berurya and Yalta's names tells us what the Talmud thinks of their knowledge and scholarship.