Xai, how are you?

Can any of us escape our pasts? Is time travel Jewish? We explore these questions on today's Russian Doll epi! Also featured: spiritual ennui, living in the present, and Satanist pawn shops. Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

A listener asks why we pray facing east, and the answer lies somewhere along this episode's meandering path through Talmudic disagreements, shifting historical meanings, and a discussion of sacred place. Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

A listener asks: what's the deal with halakhic water rights? The answer? Flooding the world, a floating throne, legislating the commons and proximity to the source. Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Season 2 premiere of Russian Doll is finally here! It asks us the question we're all always thinking about: are we all pregnant with ourselves? Is HaShem pregnant with themselves? Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Listener question time! What is tzedek, who is Tzadok, and would we hook up with the wife of Potiphar? The answers are in this episode! Featured: venn diagrams, outfit repeaters, awkward dudes and the 8 levels of charity. Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Finally, listener questions return! This week: Talmudic insults, arguments, and lessons about distrusting the government. Anarchism, communism, friendship and ostriches all make an appearance. Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Finally, the Russian Doll season finale! It is a true quagmire of sincerity. We've got Jodorowsky, getting to be alone with ourselves, Maimonides returns and some Pirkei Avot greatest hits. Register for It Is In The Heavens here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/it-is-in-the-heavens-jewish-astrology-in-the-talmud-and-beyond-tickets-422556155837 Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

We're taking another vacation week, so here's replay of a patron episode. We'll be back next week! Michael has a Talmudic tale that nearly passes the Bechdel test! It features fake bread, smoke, nosy neighbors, miracles, and a humble guy who (maybe) sustains the world by only eating carobs. Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Xava is getting new boobies, so we're taking a week off. Enjoy this patron replay, and we'll be back next week! Michael brings a sugye addressing the age old question: are halakhic loopholes more like a barrel of cucumbers or a vat of honey? Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

It's time for our Rabbi Akiva omnibus episode! Where did he come from, where did he go? Was he cool, or not so much? Also, is he sort of also an allegory for the process of history? We will try to find out! Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.