Pirkei Avot Collection A Collection of the Best

(13) He would say, "Spread a name, lose one's name. And one who does not increase [knowledge] ceases. And one who does not study is liable to die. And one who makes use of the crown [of learning] passes away."

(14) He [Rabbi Hillel] used to say: If I am not for me, who will be for me? And when I am for myself alone, what am I? And if not now, then when?

(1) Rabbi [Yehuda haNasi] said: Which is the straight path that a person should choose for themselves? Whichever [path] that is [itself] praiseworthy for the person adopting [it], And praiseworthy to them from [other] people. And be as careful with a light commandment as with a weighty one, for you do not know the reward given [for the fulfillment] of [the respective] commandments. Also, weigh the loss [that may be sustained through the fulfillment] of a commandment against the reward [that may be obtained] for [fulfilling] it. And [weigh] the gain [that may be obtained through the committing] of a transgression against the loss [that may be sustained] by [committing] it. Keep your eye on three things, and you will not come to sin: Know what is above you: An Eye that sees, and an Ear that hears, and all your deeds are written in a book.

(4) He was accustomed to say: Make God's will like your will, so that God will make your will like God's will. Nullify your will to God's will, so that God will nullify the will of others to your will. Hillel says: Do not separate yourself from the community. Do not believe in yourself until the day of your death. Do not judge your fellow until you come to their place. Do not say something that cannot be heard, for in the end it will be heard. Do not say, "When I will be available I will study [Torah]," lest you never become available.

(5) He was accustomed to say: A boor cannot fear sin. An ignorant person cannot be pious. A person prone to being ashamed cannot learn. An impatient person cannot teach. Not all who engage in a lot of business become wise. In a place where there is no human being, strive to be a human being.

(6) He also saw a skull that was floating on top of the water. He said (to it): "Since you drowned [others, others] drowned you. And in the end, those that drowned you will be drowned.

(7) He was accustomed to say: The more flesh, the more worms. The more possessions, the more worry. The more wives, the more witchcraft. The more maidservants, the more lewdness. The more man-servants, the more theft. The more Torah, the more life. The more sitting [and studying], the more wisdom. The more counsel, the more understanding. The more charity, the more peace. One who has acquired a good name has acquired for oneself. One who has acquired words of Torah has acquired for oneself the life of the World to Come.

(9) He said to them: Go out and see what is a straight path that a person should cling to. Rabbi Eliezer says: A good eye. Rabbi Yehoshua says: A good friend. Rabbi Yosi says: A good neighbor. Rabbi Shimon says: Seeing the consequences of one's actions. Rabbi Elazar says: A good heart. He said to them: I see the words of Rabbi Elazar ben Arakh [as better than] all of yours, because your words are included in his. He said to them: Go out and see what is an evil path that a person should distance themselves from. Rabbi Eliezer says: A bad eye. Rabbi Yehoshua says: A bad friend. Rabbi Yosi says: A bad neighbor. Rabbi Shimon says: One who borrows but does not repay. Borrowing from a person is like borrowing from the Omnipresent blessed be God, as it says (Psalms 37:21) "The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous one gives graciously." Rabbi Elazar says: A bad heart. He said to them: I see the words of Rabbi Elazar ben Arakh [as better than] all of yours, for your words are included in his.

(15) Rabbi Tarfon said: The day is short and the work is much, and the workers are lazy and the reward is great, and the Master of the house is pressing.

(16) He used to say: It is not your responsibility to finish the work, but neither are you free to desist from it. If you have learned much Torah, your reward will be much; and the Master of your work is trustworthy to pay you the wage for your activity. And know, the giving of reward to the righteous is in the future to come.

(2) Rabbi Chanina, the Deputy High Priest, says: Pray for the welfare of the government, for were it not for the fear of it, humans would swallow their fellow alive. Rabbi Chananya ben Teradyon says: Two who are sitting together and there are no words of Torah [spoken] between them, this is a session of scorners, as it is said (Psalms 1:1): “[Happy is the person who has]... not sat in the session of the scorners.” But two who are sitting together and there are words of Torah [spoken] between them, the Divine Presence rests with them, as it is said (Malachi 3:16): “Then those who feared the Lord spoke one with another, and the Lord hearkened and heard, and a book of remembrance was written before God, for those who feared the Lord and for those who thought upon God's Name.” I have no [Scriptural support for this] except [in a case of] two. From where [is there proof that] that even [when there is only] one [person studying Torah], the Holy One, blessed be God, determines a reward for them? As it is said (Lamentations 3:28): “One sits alone and is silent, since one takes [a reward] for it.”

(3) Rabbi Shimon says: Three who ate at one table and did not say upon it words of Torah - it is as if they ate from the offerings of the dead, as it is said (Isaiah 28:8): "For all of the tables are full of vomit and feces without the Omnipresent." However, three who ate at one table and said upon it words of Torah - it is as if they ate from the table of the Omnipresent, blessed be God, as it is said (Ezekiel 41:22): "And he said to me, this is the table that is before the Lord."

(6) Rabbi Chalafta [ben Dosa] of Kfar Chananiah says: Ten who are sitting together and engaging in Torah, the Divine Presence rests among them, as it is said (Psalms 82:1): “God stands in the congregation of God.” And from where [is there proof that this is true] even [when there are only] five? As it is said (Amos 9:6): “And God has founded God's band upon the earth.” And from where even three? As it is said (Psalms 82:1): “In the midst of judges God judges.” And from where even two? As it is said (Malachi 3:16): “Then those who feared the Lord spoke one with another, and the Lord hearkened and heard.” And from where even one? As it is said (Exodus 20:20 (20:21 in NJPS)): “In every place where I cause My Name to be mentioned I will come to you and bless you.”

(9) Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa says: Anyone whose fear of sin precedes their wisdom, their wisdom endures. And anyone whose wisdom precedes their fear of sin, their wisdom does not endure. He would [also] say: Anyone whose actions are more plentiful than their wisdom, their wisdom endures. And anyone whose wisdom is more plentiful than their actions, their wisdom does not endure.

(12) Rabbi Yishmael says: Be yielding to an elder, pleasant to a youth and greet every person with joy.

(13) Rabbi Akiva says: Joking and lightheartedness acclimate toward promiscuity. Tradition is a safeguarding fence around Torah. Tithes are a safeguarding fence around wealth. Vows are a safeguarding fence around abstinence. A safeguarding fence around wisdom is silence.

(17) Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah says: If there is no Torah, there is no worldly occupation; if there is no worldly occupation, there is no Torah. If there is no wisdom, there is no fear; if there is no fear, there is no wisdom. If there is no understanding, there is no knowledge; if there is no knowledge, there is no understanding. If there is no flour, there is no Torah; if there is no Torah, there is no flour. He would say: Anyone whose wisdom exceeds their deeds, to what is one compared? To a tree whose branches are many but whose roots are few; and the wind comes and uproots it and turns it upside down; as it is said; "And he shall be like a lonely juniper tree in the wasteland and shall not see when good comes, but shall inhabit the parched places of the wilderness, a salty land that is uninhabitable." (Jeremiah 17:6). But one whose deeds exceed their wisdom, what are they like? Like a tree whose branches are few but whose roots are many; since even if all the winds of the world come and blow upon it, they do not move it from its place, as it is said; "He shall be like a tree planted by the waters, and spreads out its roots by the river, and shall not perceive when heat comes, but its leaf shall remain fresh; and it will not be troubled in the year of drought, nor will it cease to bear fruit." (Jeremiah 17:8).

(1) Ben Zoma says: Who is the wise one? One who learns from all people, as it says, "I have acquired understanding from all my teachers" (Psalms 119:99). Who is the mighty one? One who conquers their impulse, as it says, "slowness to anger is better than a mighty person and the ruler of one's own spirit than the conqueror of a city." (Proverbs 16:32). Who is the rich one? One who is happy with their lot, as it says, "When you eat [from] the work of your hands, you will be happy, and it will be well with you" (Psalms 128:2). "You will be happy" in this world, and "it will be well with you" in the world to come. Who is honored? One who honors the created beings, as it says, "For those who honor Me, I will honor; and those who despise Me will be held in little esteem" (I Samuel 2:30).

(3) He would say: Do not disparage anyone, and do not shun any thing. For you have no person who does not have their hour, and you have no thing that does not have its place.

(5) Rabbi Yishmael his son says: One who studies Torah in order to teach will be given the opportunity both to study and to teach. One who studies in order to practice will be given the opportunity to study, to teach, to observe, and to practice. Rabbi Tzadok says: Do not make it [the Torah] into a crown with which to aggrandize yourself, and not into a spade with which to dig into them. And thus Hillel used to say: And one who makes use of the crown [of learning] passes away. From here you learn that any one who benefits from the words of the Torah removes their life from the world.

(9) Rabbi Yonatan says: Anyone who implements the Torah in poverty, their end will be to implement it in wealth. And anyone that disregards the Torah in wealth, will in the end disregard it in poverty.

(11) Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov says: One who does a single commandment acquires a single defender. One who does a single sin acquires a single prosecutor. Repentance and good deeds are like a shield against punishment. Rabbi Yochanan the shoemaker says: Every gathering that is for the sake of Heaven, its end is to endure. And every gathering that is not for the sake of Heaven, its end is not to endure.

(15) Rabbi Yanai says: We do not have [the ability to explain] the tranquility of the wicked or even the suffering of the righteous. Rabbi Mattia ben Charash says: Be the first to greet every person, and be a tail to lions, and do not be a head to foxes.

(18) Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar says: Do not assuage the anger of your friend at the time of their anger; do not console them at the time when their deceased lies before them; do not question them at the time of their vow; and do not seek to see them at the time of their humiliation.

(19) Shmuel the Younger says: (Proverbs 24:17-18) "When your enemy falls, do not be happy, and when they stumbles, let your heart not rejoice. Lest God see and it be bad in God's eyes and God turns from them [the enemy] God's anger."

(20) Elisha ben Abuya says: One who learns as a child is compared to what? To ink written on new parchment. And one who learns as an elder is compared to what? To ink written on scraped parchment. Rabbi Yose bar Yehuda, man of Kfar HaBavli, says: One who learns from young ones is compared to what? To one who eats unripe grapes and drinks wine from its press. And one who learns from elders is compared to what? To one who eats ripe grapes and drinks aged wine. Rebbi says: Do not look at the jug but rather at what is in it. For there are new jugs full of old, and old that do not have even new within them.