An Israeli rabbi and scholar conveys the spirit of the Talmud as he treats its composition, traditions, structure, and laws.

Includes index. Translation of ha-Talmud la-kol.

History. What is the Talmud? ; The oral law : the first generations ; The oral law : the era of the zugot (pairs) ; The Tannaim ; The compilation of the Mishnah ; The Amoraim in Babylonia ; The Amoraim in Palestine ; The redaction of the Babylonian Talmud ; Talmudic exegesis ; The printing of the Talmud ; The persecution and banning of the Talmud -- Structure and content. The structure of the Talmud ; The subject matter of the Talmud ; Prayers and benedictions ; The Sabbath ; The festivals ; Marriage and divorce ; The status of women ; Civil law ; Criminal law ; Sacrifices ; Dietary laws ; Ritual purity and impurity ; Ethics and Halakhah ; Derekh eretz (deportment) ; The world of mysticism -- Method. Midrash (Halakhic exegesis) ; The Talmudic way of thinking ; Strange and bizarre problems ; Methods of study ; The Talmud and the Halakhah ; Aggadah in the Talmud ; What is a scholar? ; The Talmud's importance for the people ; The Talmud has never been completed -- Appendix : order and tractates of the Mishnah and Talmud.