שִׁוִּ֬יתִי יהוה לְנֶגְדִּ֣י תָמִ֑יד כִּ֥י מִֽ֝ימִינִ֗י בַּל־אֶמּֽוֹט׃
I am ever mindful of the LORD’s presence;He is at my right hand; I shall never be shaken.
דין השכמת הבוקר ובו ט סעיפים:יתגבר כארי לעמוד בבוקר לעבודת בוראו שיהא הוא מעורר השחר: הגה ועכ"פ לא יאחר זמן התפלה שהצבור מתפללין. (טור) הגה שויתי יהוה לנגדי תמיד הוא כלל גדול בתורה ובמעלות הצדיקים אשר הולכים לפני האלהים כי אין ישיבת האדם ותנועותיו ועסקיו והוא לבדו בביתו כישיבתו ותנועותיו ועסקיו והוא לפני מלך גדול ולא דבורו והרחבת פיו כרצונו והוא עם אנשי ביתו וקרוביו כדבורו במושב המלך כ"ש כשישים האדם אל לבו שהמלך הגדול הקב"ה אשר מלא כל הארץ כבודו עומד עליו ורואה במעשיו
One should strengthen himself like a lion to get up in the morning to serve his Creator, so that it is he who awakens the dawn. Rem"a: At least, one should not delay beyond the time when the congregation prays (Tur). Rem"a: "I have set the Lord before me constantly" (Psalms 16:8); this is a major principle in the Torah and amongst the virtues of the righteous who walk before God. For a person's way of sitting, his movements and his dealings while he is alone in his house are not like his way of sitting, his movements and his dealings when he is before a great king; nor are his speech and free expression as much as he wants when he is with his household members and his relatives like his speech when in a royal audience. All the more so when one takes to heart that the Great King, the Holy One, Blessed Is He, Whose glory fills the earth, is standing over him and watching his actions,
דין ברכת אשר יצר ואלהי נשמה ופירושיו. ובו ד"ס:כשיצא מבית הכסא יברך אשר יצר את האדם בחכמה שבריאת האדם היא בחכמה נפלאה...: הגה ועוד יש לפרש שמפליא לעשות במה ששומר רוח האדם בקרבו וקושר דבר רוחני בדבר גשמי והכל הוא ע"י שהוא רופא כל בשר כי אז האדם בקו הבריאות ונשמתו משתמרת בקרבו (דברי עצמו):
The Laws of the Blessings "Asher Yatzar" and "Elokai Neshama" and Their Meanings. Containing 4 Se'ifim:When one leaves the bathroom he should recite the blessing of "Who formed man with wisdom", as the creation of man was done with great wisdom.... Rem"a: Another explanation is that "does wondrous things" refers to [the fact] that [G-d] keeps the spirit of man within his body and binds something spiritual to something physical, and all this [is possible] because He is the healer of all flesh, because then man stays healthy, and his soul is maintained within his body (His (ie. the Rem"a's) own opinion).
רַבִּי אוֹמֵר, אֵיזוֹהִי דֶרֶךְ יְשָׁרָה שֶׁיָּבֹר לוֹ הָאָדָם, כֹּל שֶׁהִיא תִפְאֶרֶת לְעוֹשֶׂיהָ וְתִפְאֶרֶת לוֹ מִן הָאָדָם. וֶהֱוֵי זָהִיר בְּמִצְוָה קַלָּה כְבַחֲמוּרָה, שֶׁאֵין אַתָּה יוֹדֵעַ מַתַּן שְׂכָרָן שֶׁל מִצְוֹת.
Rabbi Said: which is the straight path that a man should choose for himself? One which is an honor to the person adopting it, and [on account of which] honor [accrues] to him from others. And be careful with a light commandment as with a grave one, for you did know not the reward for the fulfillment of the commandments.
רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר, הָעוֹשֶׂה תְפִלָּתוֹ קֶבַע, אֵין תְּפִלָּתוֹ תַּחֲנוּנִים. רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אוֹמֵר, הַמְהַלֵּךְ בִּמְקוֹם סַכָּנָה, מִתְפַּלֵּל תְּפִלָּה קְצָרָה. אוֹמֵר, הוֹשַׁע הַשֵּׁם אֶת עַמְּךָ אֶת שְׁאֵרִית יִשְׂרָאֵל, בְּכָל פָּרָשַׁת הָעִבּוּר יִהְיוּ צָרְכֵיהֶם לְפָנֶיךָ. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' שׁוֹמֵעַ תְּפִלָּה:
Rabbi Eliezer says: One whose prayer is fixed, his prayer is not supplication and is flawed. The Gemara will clarify the halakhic implications of this flaw. Rabbi Yehoshua says: One who cannot recite a complete prayer because he is walking in a place of danger, recites a brief prayer and says: Redeem, Lord, Your people, the remnant of Israel, at every transition [parashat ha’ibur], the meaning of which will be discussed in the Gemara. May their needs be before You. Blessed are You, Lord, Who listens to prayer.
הלכה: רִבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר הָעוֹשֶׂה תְפִילָּתוֹ קֶבַע אֵין תְּפִילָּתוֹ תַחֲנוּנִים. רִבִּי אַבָּהוּ בְשֵׁם רִבִּי אֶלְעָזָר וּבִלְבַד שֶׁלֹּא יְהֵא כְקוֹרֵא בְּאִיגֶּרֶת. רִבִּי אָחָא בְשֵׁם רִבִּי יוֹסֵי צָרִיךְ לְחַדֵּשׁ בָּהּ דָּבָר בְּכָל־יוֹם.
HALAKHAH: “Rebbi Eliezer says: If one makes his prayer fixed, his prayer is not supplication.” Rebbi Abbahu in the name of Rebbi Eleazar: Only that one should not be like one who reads a letter. Rebbi Aḥa in the name of Rebbi Yose: One has to say something new every day.
בֶּן זוֹמָא אוֹמֵר, אֵיזֶהוּ חָכָם, הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קיט) מִכָּל מְלַמְּדַי הִשְׂכַּלְתִּי כִּי עֵדְוֹתֶיךָ שִׂיחָה לִּי.
Ben Zoma said:Who is wise? He who learns from every man, as it is said: “From all who taught me have I gained understanding” (Psalms 119:99).
הַלּוֹמֵד מִכָּל אָדָם. וְאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁהוּא קָטָן מִמֶּנּוּ. שֶׁכֵּיוָן שֶׁאֵינוֹ חָס עַל כְּבוֹדוֹ וְלוֹמֵד מִן הַקְּטַנִּים, נִכָּרִים הַדְּבָרִים שֶׁחָכְמָתוֹ הוּא לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם וְלֹא לְהִתְיַהֵר וּלְהִתְפָּאֵר בָּהּ:
"He who learns from all men": And even though [that person that he learns from] is lesser than he. As since he is not concerned about his honor and learns from the lesser ones, [it shows] that his wisdom is for the sake of Heaven and not to boast and revel in.
כִּדְרַבִּי דְּתַנְיָא רַבִּי אוֹמֵר לָמָּה נִסְמְכָה פָּרָשַׁת נָזִיר לְפָרָשַׁת סוֹטָה לוֹמַר לָךְ שֶׁכׇּל הָרוֹאֶה סוֹטָה בְּקִלְקוּלָהּ יַזִּיר עַצְמוֹ מִן הַיַּיִן
The Gemara answers: This was done in accordance with the statement of Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi with regard to the sequence of passages in the Torah, as it is taught in a baraita that Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi says: Why is the portion of a nazirite (Numbers, chapter 6) placed adjacent to the portion of a sota (Numbers, chapter 5)? This was done to tell you that anyone who sees a sota in her disgrace as she undergoes the rite of the bitter water should renounce wine, as wine is one of the causes of sexual transgression, as it loosens inhibitions. For the same reason that the Torah teaches these passages one after the other, Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi arranged these tractates one after the other.
דְּאָמַר רַבִּי חִיָּיא, מַאי דִּכְתִיב: ״מַלְּפֵנוּ מִבַּהֲמוֹת אָרֶץ וּמֵעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם יְחַכְּמֵנוּ״. ״מַלְּפֵנוּ מִבַּהֲמוֹת״ — זוֹ פְּרֵידָה, שֶׁכּוֹרַעַת וּמַשְׁתֶּנֶת מַיִם. ״וּמֵעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם יְחַכְּמֵנוּ״ — זֶה תַּרְנְגוֹל, שֶׁמְּפַיֵּיס וְאַחַר כָּךְ בּוֹעֵל. אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן: אִילְמָלֵא לֹא נִיתְּנָה תּוֹרָה, הָיִינוּ לְמֵידִין צְנִיעוּת מֵחָתוּל, וְגָזֵל מִנְּמָלָה, וַעֲרָיוֹת מִיּוֹנָה. דֶּרֶךְ אֶרֶץ מִתַּרְנְגוֹל — שֶׁמְּפַיֵּיס וְאַחַר כָּךְ בּוֹעֵל.
As Rabbi Ḥiyya said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “Who teaches us by the beasts of the earth, and makes us wiser by the birds of the sky” (Job 35:11)? He explains: “Who teaches us by the beasts of the earth”; this is the female mule, which crouches and urinates and from which we learn modesty. “And makes us wiser by the birds of the sky”; this is the rooster, which first cajoles the hen and then mates with it. Similarly, Rabbi Yoḥanan said: Even if the Torah had not been given, we would nonetheless have learned modesty from the cat, which covers its excrement, and that stealing is objectionable from the ant, which does not take grain from another ant, and forbidden relations from the dove, which is faithful to its partner, and proper relations from the rooster, which first appeases the hen and then mates with it.