The distance covered until sunset

[Axelrod]

Thought about theur path with distance 1500 meter from tent to cedar.


A still of the sunset from the Japanese film «Rashomon» (1950).

After the Sun disappears behind the horizon, its rays, reflecting off the upper layers of the atmosphere, continue to illuminate the Earth. The lower the Sun goes behind the horizon, the fewer of its rays reach the Earth until complete darkness sets in. We cannot clearly determine to what time of day this period of twilight should be attributed – to day or to night.

And since, according to the law of the Torah, a new day begins in the evening (as it is said: «and there was evening and there was morning – one day» – Bereshit 1:5), there is doubt as to exactly when one day ends and another begins. The obligation to observe the Sabbath is a commandment from the Torah (and one of the most important). Therefore, it is natural that in everything that concerns the observance of the Sabbath, one should «strictly» observe the law, that is, begin the Sabbath a little earlier, while it is still obviously day, and end a little later, when it is definitely night – in order to avoid doubts.

It remains to find out when exactly this «uncertain» time from the point of view of Jewish law begins, how long it lasts and when it ends. For this, the Talmud provides various, sometimes contradictory, signs. There is also a dispute among the commentators of the Talmud as to how to understand these signs.

Next, according to https://toldot.com/urava/ask/urava_10068.html

We will not go into the details of this dispute, but will consider only the opinion accepted in the modern Jewish world, which was held by many outstanding Rishonim and Geonim, as well as outstanding sages of recent generations, such as the Vilna Gaon, Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the Chafetz Chaim, Rabbi Y.-M. Epstein and many others.

According to this opinion, the period of «bein ha-shmashot» begins immediately after the sun sets below the horizon, and continues for the time required to walk three quarters of a mile (1500 cubits). And it ends with the appearance of the first three stars. Or, in language we understand, 13-18 minutes after sunset.


– I found a new comparison: 1500 cubits at sunset is probably 1500 meters of their flight from the tent to the cedar.

The Almighty punished them for not following the instructions by sending a heavenly punishment: e.g. a west wind that shook the stove, magnetic fields, infrasound, hurricabe, a temperature drop and a snow shift.

[Axelrod]

                                                                 Let he who has not sinned cast the first stone                                                          [/u]

You also operate with phrases from the Bible.

Although the Jewish religion and the mission of the preacher irritate you, this is the only explanation I see.
I am not a believer and I am not a preacher, but I observe a certain pattern here.
We are forced to turn to the developments of the Holy Scripture, as did primitive people, who couldn't explain more.

[Axelrod]

It is important to understand that this time (18.6 minutes after sunset) is relevant only for the latitude of the Land of Israel and Babylon, the places where the Talmudic sages lived, and only during the spring and autumn equinoxes. In summer and winter, the Earth's axis of rotation is tilted relative to the Sun, as a result of which the Sun passes the twilight strip "obliquely", which somewhat increases its duration.

In addition, with distance from the equator, the speed of the Earth's rotation slows down, so in northern countries the duration of twilight increases noticeably. In addition, in the north (for example, in St. Petersburg), the Sun "glides" over the horizon in summer, not dropping low enough for a long time, which increases the duration of "bein hashmashot" to an hour or more.

For example, on June 22 in Jerusalem, "bein ha-shmashot" lasts 22 minutes, in Paris - 33 minutes, in London - 36 minutes, in Moscow - 56 minutes, and in St. Petersburg - 1 hour 10 minutes! (According to the computer program kaluach). Therefore, the moment of the beginning of the new day, that is, the appearance of the first three stars, became the subject of computer calculations. This depends on the angle at which the Sun sets below the horizon 18.6 minutes after sunset - in the Land of Israel on the days of the spring and autumn equinoxes (that is, 4.8 degrees).

There is another reason why we begin the Sabbath earlier and end it later. This reason is the commandment "to add from the mundane to the holy" (see Shulchan Aruch, OrachChaim 261:2 and 293:1), that is, to begin observing the laws of the Sabbath on Friday and end it on Sunday, in order to sanctify the weekdays with the sanctity of the Sabbath.