Mishnah
The
Mishnah or
Mishna, from the verb
shanah שנה, or "to study and review", also "secondary;" is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions known as the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic literature. The Mishnah was redacted between 180 and 220 CE by Rabbi Yehudah haNasi when, according to the Talmud, the persecution of the Jews and the passage of time raised the possibility that the details of the oral traditions dating from Pharisaic times would be forgotten. The Mishnah consists of six orders, each containing 7–12 tractates, 63 in total, and further subdivided into chapters and paragraphs or verses. The orders and their subjects are:
Zeraim, dealing with prayer and blessings, tithes and agricultural laws,
Moed, pertaining to the laws of the Sabbath and the Festivals,
Nashim, concerning marriage and divorce, some forms of oaths and the laws of the nazirite,
Nezikin, dealing...