Hello Everyone,
One of the most mystifying passages in the Talmud is in the tractate Rosh Hashanah (16a-b). The Gemarah asks why do we blow the shofar twice during the Rosh Hashanah prayer service. The Gemarah answers that we do this “to confound Satan.”
This answer does address the initial question but it leaves us with even more question. How do we “confound Satan”? Who is this Satan? Does he have any sort of intelligence? If he does not then what sort of Satan is he? And if he does does possess intelligence then why is he confounded every year by the same prayer service?
So today we will see how the Maharal of Prague ( and others) explain this passage from the Gemarah.