 The Talmud consists of the Mishnah (a legal code) and the Gemara (Aramaic for "learning"), an analysis and commentary to that code.Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz writes that "If the Bible is the cornerstone of Judaism, then the Talmud is the central pillar ... No other work has had a comparable influence on the theory and practice of Jewish life, shaping influence on the theory and practice of Jewish life" and states