Mishnayos Taanis Perek 2 Mishnah 9
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תענית פרק ב׳ משנה ט׳
The mishna continues: One may not decree a fast on the community starting on a Thursday, so as not to cause an increase in prices. If the first of a series of fasts is on a Thursday, then on Friday everyone will come to purchase their food for after the fast and for Shabbat, which will allow the storeowners to take advantage of the crowds and raise their prices. Rather, the first set of three fasts is on a Monday, Thursday, and the following Monday, and the second set of three is on a Thursday, Monday, and the following Thursday. Rabbi Yosei says: Just as the first three fasts do not begin on Thursday, so too, neither the second set nor the last set starts on a Thursday. Instead, all the series of fasts begin on a Monday.
אֵין גּוֹזְרִין תַּעֲנִית עַל הַצִּבּוּר בַּתְּחִלָּה בַּחֲמִישִׁי, שֶׁלֹּא לְהַפְקִיעַ הַשְּׁעָרִים, אֶלָּא שָׁלשׁ תַּעֲנִיּוֹת הָרִאשׁוֹנוֹת שֵׁנִי וַחֲמִישִׁי וְשֵׁנִי, וְשָׁלשׁ שְׁנִיּוֹת חֲמִישִׁי שֵׁנִי וַחֲמִישִׁי. רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר, כְּשֵׁם שֶׁאֵין הָרִאשׁוֹנוֹת בַּחֲמִישִׁי, כָּךְ לֹא שְׁנִיּוֹת וְלֹא אַחֲרוֹנוֹת:
Bartenura
שלא להפקיע את השערים. כשרואין בעלי חנויות שקונין למוצאי חמישי שתי סעודות גדולות, אחת לליל התענית ואחת לשבת, יהיו סבורין שבא רעב לעולם ומיקרין ומפקיעין השער. אבל משהתחילו להתענות בשני, יודעים שאינו אלא מפני התענית, פ״א שלא יאמרו אם לא שראו ב״ד שהרעב בא, לא היו דוחקים לגזור תענית עתה סמוך לשבת, ומפני כן ייקרו ויפקיעו השער:
שלא להפקיע את השערים – When we see that store owners would purchase two large meals at the conclusion of the fifth day of the week (i.e., Thursday), one for the night of the fast and one for Shabat, people would think that there a famine is coming in the world causing prices to rise and unsettling the market. But when they started to fast on Mondays, people knew that it was none other than because of [the need to] fast [for rain to fall]. Another explanation: that they should not say that if the Jewish court did not see that the famine is coming, they would not have pushed to decree a fast now so close to Shabbat, and because of that, the prices would rise and the market became unsettled.