A rich compendium of rabbinical works, formed by the Mishnah and the Gemara. Compiled in the early Middle Ages, it consists of two versions, the Babylonian Talmud and the Palestinian (or Jerusalem) Talmud. The contents are an alternating mixture of Jewish law and homiletic interpretations. Rabbinical training includes an in- depth study of the Talmud. Regarded with irrational hatred by detractors of the work, it has been repeatedly condemned to be burnt.