Praying for Rain

MISHNA: One mentions the might of the rains [and recites]: He makes the wind blow and the rain fall, in the second blessing of the Amida prayer, the blessing of] the revival of the dead. And the request [for rain: And grant dew and rain as a blessing,] in [the ninth blessing of the Amida prayer,] the blessing of the years...

MISHNA: From when does one begin to mention the might of the rains [by inserting the phrase: He makes the wind blow and rain fall]? Rabbi Eliezer says: From the first Festival day of the festival of Sukkot. Rabbi Yehoshua says: From the last Festival day of the festival of Sukkot. Rabbi Yehoshua said [to Rabbi Eliezer]: Since rain is nothing other than a sign of a curse during the festival of Sukkot, [as rainfall forces Jews to leave their sukkot,] why should one mention [the might of rain during this period]? Rabbi Eliezer said to him: I too did not say [that it is proper] to request [rain at this time], but [it is proper only] to mention [the phrase]: He makes the wind blow and rain fall, in its due time. [Rabbi Yehoshua] said to him: If so, one should always mention [rain, even in the summer]. [Rabbi Eliezer answered:] One requests rain only [immediately] preceding the rainy season.

R' Yosef Caro (1488-1575)

The Laws of the Mentioning of the Wind and Rain and Dew. Containing 9 S'ifim
We start to say "Who makes the wind blow and rain fall" in the second blessing in the Musaf prayer [i.e. Amidah] of the latter Yom Tov of "Chag" [the Sukkot-Shemini Atzeret holiday] (i.e. Shemini Atzeret), and we do not stop [saying it] until the Musaf prayer [i.e. Amidah] of the first Yom Tov of Pesach.

MISHNA: On the third of Marḥeshvan [one starts to] request rain [by inserting the phrase: And give dew and rain, in the blessing of the years, the ninth blessing of the Amida]. Rabban Gamliel says: On the seventh of [Marḥeshvan, which is] fifteen days after the festival of Sukkot, so that the last of the Jewish people, [who travelled to Jerusalem on foot for the Festival,] can reach the Euphrates River. GEMARA: Rabbi Elazar said: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabban Gamliel. It is taught in a baraita that Ḥananya says: And in the Diaspora [one does not begin to request rain] until sixty days into the season [i.e., sixty days after the autumnal equinox]. Rav Huna bar Ḥiyya said that Shmuel said: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Ḥananya. [The Gemara asks:] Is that so? But they raised a dilemma before Shmuel: From when does one mention: And give dew and rain? He said to them: From when they bring wood into the house of Tavut the bird hunter [rishba]. Perhaps this and that are one measure [of time]. A dilemma was raised before [the Sages: Is the] sixtieth day [itself treated as part of the period] before [the] sixtieth [day] or [is it included] in [the period] after [the] sixtieth [day]? Come and hear [that there is a dispute in this regard]. Rav said: [The] sixtieth day [is part of the period] after [the] sixtieth [day], and Shmuel said: [The] sixtieth day [is part] of [the period] before the sixtieth. Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said: And your mnemonic [to remember the divergent opinions is]: Those above require water; those below do not require water. [Shmuel lived in the lowlands of Babylonia, whereas Rav studied in Eretz Yisrael.] Rav Pappa said: The halakha is [that the] sixtieth day [is part of the period] after [the] sixtieth [day, as stated by] Rav.

R' Yosef Caro (1488-1575)

(1) The Laws of the Blessing of the Years. Containing 5 S'ifim:

[Regarding] the Blessing of the Years: In the rainy season, one must say in [the blessing] - "And give dew and rain". And in the Diaspora we start to ask for rain in the evening prayer of the 60th day after the autumnal equinox (and the day of the equinox is included [as day one of the 60 day count]) (Hagahot Maimoni Chapter 2). And in the land of Israel we start to ask [for rain] from the night of 7 Marcheshvan and we [continue to] ask up until the afternoon prayer of the eve of the first Yom Tov of Pesach; and from then onwards, we stop asking.

§ It is taught in another baraita: With regard to dew and with regard to wind, the Sages did not obligate one to mention [them by reciting: He makes the wind blow and the dew fall, in the second blessing of the Amida], but if one seeks to mention them, he may mention them. What is the reason? Rabbi Ḥanina said: Because [winds and dew] are not withheld. And dew, from where do we derive that it is not withheld? As it is written: “And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab: As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be no dew or rain in these years but according to my word” (I Kings 17:1), and it is written: “Go, show yourself before Ahab, and I will send rain upon the land” (I Kings 18:1). [God] did not say to [Elijah that He will restore] dew. What is the reason? Because it is not withheld. And since dew is not withheld, why did Elijah swear [that there would be no dew]? This is what [Elijah] said to [Ahab]: [Not only will there be no rainfall, but] even the dew of blessing will not come. But if so, let God restore the dew of blessing [when God ended the drought of rain, in the aforementioned verse. The Gemara answers: This was not necessary], because the matter is not recognizable, i.e., people cannot distinguish between dew of blessing and the regular dew which is always present.

Multiple Authors (1100-1328)

The Sages did not require one to mention dew and minds...therefore we are not makpid to say morid hatal even in the days of Summer although one does not say "He makes the rain fall". And this is the halacha...

R' Moshe ben Maimon (1138-1204)

[When] one errs during the rainy season and does not recite either morid hageshem or morid hatal, he must return to the beginning of the prayers. However, if he mentions dew, he need not repeat [his prayers].
Should one err in the summer and recite morid hageshem, he must return to the beginning of the prayers. However, if he omits mention of dew [in the summer], he need not repeat his prayers, for dew is never held back, nor is there a need to request it.

R' Yosef Caro (1488-1575)

If one said, "Who makes the wind blow" (in the hot season) or if one did not say it in the rainy season, we make [that person] go back [and do it correctly]. And similarly regarding [saying] "dew", if one mentioned it in the rainy season or if one did not mention it in the hot season, we do not go back. Gloss: And we Ashkenazim do not mention "dew", not in the hot season and not in the rainy season; rather, in the hot season we just say "the Powerful One to deliver us. Sustainer of the living, etc..." [i.e. we do not mention dew in between those] (Tur). There are those who say that the prayer leader stops mentioning [rain] in the Musaf prayer on the first day of Yom Tov of Pesach, but the congregation does mention it [in Musaf]; and they do not stop until Mincha, for by then they already heard the prayer leader stop mentioning it in [the repetition of] the Musaf prayer. And that is how we practice.

Rabbi Ḥanina said: [During the] first [three blessings, he] is like a servant who arranges praise before his master; [during the] middle [blessings, he] is like a servant who requests a reward from his master; [during the] final [three blessings, one] is like a servant who received a reward from his master and is taking his leave and departing.

R' Yechiel Michel Epstein (1829-1908)

Mentioning [mashiv haruach] is not the same as asking [as in ten tal umatar], for with asking each and every province asks according to the time of their rains, as explained in Section 117, but with mentioning the whole world [begins] mentioning on one day. For granted with asking we beseech God veten tal umatar - it follows that everyone should ask at the time when they need it. But with mentioning that is just mentioning the strength of God, [so] all mention it at the time when God's strength is [most clearly] recognisable, and that is at the moment when the time for rains arrives in the land of Israel, and so at that point we all mention it. And that is the last day of Succot which is Shemini Atzeret, because that is the time of rains in the land of Israel. And although the requesting also in the land of Israel starts on [the seventh] of Marcheshvan as I wrote there, that is in order to allow the pilgrims to reach their locales.

Shmuel said: The vernal equinox occurs only at [the beginning of one of] the four quarters of a day: Either at the beginning of the day, or at the beginning of the night, or at midday, or at midnight. The summer solstice occurs only: Either at [the conclusion of] one and a half [hours] or seven and a half [hours] of the day or night. And the autumnal equinox occurs only [at certain times]: Either at [the conclusion of] three hours or nine hours of the day or night. And the winter solstice occurs only [at certain times]: Either at [the conclusion of] four and a half [hours] or ten and a half [hours] of the day or night. And there are only ninety-one days and seven and a half hours between [the beginning of] one season and the next, [as he assumed that a year is exactly 365¼ days]. And [similarly, each] season [begins precisely] one-half [planetary] hour past the [beginning of the] previous season. [There are seven heavenly bodies that are each ascendant for an hour at a time in a constant rotation: Mercury, Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, and Venus. Each season begins half an hour later in this rotation than] the previous [season].

The inhabitants of Nineveh sent a question to Rabbi [Yehuda HaNasi]: People such as us, who require rain even during the season of Tammuz, what should we do [when there is a drought during the summer]? Are we likened to individuals or are we likened to a community? Are we likened to individuals and [therefore we pray for rain in the blessing]: Who listens to prayer? Or are we likened to a community [and we pray for rain in the ninth blessing], the blessing of the years? He sent his answer to them: You are likened to individuals and [therefore you pray for rain in the blessing]: Who listens to prayer. The Gemara raises an objection from a baraita: Rabbi Yehuda said: When [do the halakhot concerning the times during which the prayer for rain is recited apply]? When the years (i.e., the climate) are as they ought to be and the Jewish people are living in their land. However, nowadays, [when the Jewish people are dispersed around the world, and the climate is not always as it ought to be,] all is in accordance with the year (i.e., the local climate), all is in accordance with the place in question, and all is in accordance with the particular time, [and therefore one prays for rain in the blessing of the years, as necessary for the local climate]. He said to him: You raise a contradiction from a baraita against Rabbi [Yehuda HaNasi]? Rabbi [Yehuda HaNasi himself] is a tanna, and [consequently has the authority] to dispute [the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda]. What [halakhic conclusion] was reached about this matter? Rav Naḥman said: [One prays for rain] in the blessing of the years, [in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda]. Rav Sheshet said: [One prays] in [the blessing]: Who listens to prayer, [as stated by Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi]. And the halakha [is that if rain is required when it is not the rainy season in Eretz Yisrael, one prays for rain in the blessing]: Who listens to prayer.

R' Moshe ben Maimon (1138-1204)

This one who hears that he heard here in the name of Rabbi Yehuda: "עד שיעבור הפסח" is not the same person who heard in his name what was mentioned above (see Tractate Taanit 4b), and we have already said in a teaching that preceded above that the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yehudah. But the Halakha is according to Rabban Gamaliel (see Tractate Taanit 6a). And all of this is in the Land of Israel and anything that is similar to it, and similarly, all of what will be stated further with regard to the times of the fasts, it is not other than in the Land of Israel and every place whose atmosphere is close to its (i.e., the Land of Israel’s), but in the rest of the lands, surely the question will be at the appropriate time for rain in that location, and for surely that specific time is like those which is the seventh of [the month of] Mar Heshvan, and if the rains were delayed after that specific time because of the relationship of these times that are mentioned here, surely these [people] fast like is mentioned here, because there are lands where the time of the rains doesn’t begin other than in Nisan, and there are lands that in [the month of] Mar Heshvan, it is summer (i.e., in the southern hemisphere), and the rains there are not a blessing but rather destroy and devastate, and how can people from that place request rains in [the month of] Mar Heshvan, is this not falsehood? And this is correct and clear (see Jerusalem Talmud Tractate Taanit, Chapter 1, Mishnah 1 and in the Babylonian Talmud of Tractate Taanit 14b like the people who dwell in Nineveh. See also Maimonides’ the Laws of Fasts, Chapter 3, Halakha 10).

R' Moshe ben Maimon (1138-1204)

[Beginning] from the seventh of Marcheshvan, one petitions for rain in the blessing of prosperity, [and continues to do so] as long as one mentions the rain.
Where does the above apply? To Eretz Yisrael. However, in Shin'ar, Syria, Egypt and areas adjacent to or similar to these, one petitions for rain 60 days after the autumnal equinox.
In places that require rain in the summer months, such as the distant islands, they petition for rains when they need them, in [the blessing of] "the One who hears prayer."

R' Asher ben Yechiel (c. 1250-1327)

(1) In the year 5073 from the creation of the world, the rains were withheld and only a bit of precipitation fell all winter. A fast was called, to beg God to give rain upon the soil.

(2) On the first night of Passover, after the evening prayers, my master and father, R. Asher, sat at the door to his home, and we, some of his confidantes, stood over him to the right and left. He said: “Now is a good time to raise something about which I have always wondered. Why not invoke and petition for rain until Shavu’ot?” Some of the confidantes responded: “It would be good to notify the elders to do so.” It was right in their eyes, and they sent word to the synagogue cantor to invoke rain the next day. So they did. The thirteen attributes were invoked in the large synagogue, and there was a great cry during the invocations. And some of the sages protested that this was done without their counsel, and they spread word saying that it should not have been done, for it portends curse. My father and master, R. Asher, held back and said nothing on that day, until the night of hol ha-mo’ed. Then he wrote a treatise to support his words, and this is its content:

(3) Since I have heard that some are astonished at my words, I have come to explain what I have said—that currently it is not proper to cease invoking and petitioning for rain on the first day of Passover. It was not from when it happened; rather, already many years ago in Germany I protested two things that I saw practiced in those days.

(4) The first is that they do not petition for rain properly. Even though it is stated in the first chapter of Ta’anit (10b): “It is taught: Hananyah says: In the Diaspora, [we do not begin petitioning for rain] until the sixtieth day of the [autumn] season; and R. Huna b. Hiya said in the name of Shmuel: The law accords with Hananyah.” We always follow the Babylonian Sages and practice in accord with their opinions whenever the Babylonian Sages and the Eretz Yisrael Sages dispute each other, for we consider the Babylonian Talmud to be primary. This all applies on matters concerning permitting or prohibiting, obligating or exempting, declaring pure or defiled. But when the matter hinges on the temporal needs, and it does not entail an alteration that transgresses the words of the Torah, it is proper to follow the year, the times, and the season. And Babylon sits on a great deal of water, and they did not require rain until the sixtieth day of the season. Alternatively, the planting season was later in Babylon. But in Germany, where the planting season begins in the middle of Tishrei, it is well known that if the rains do not fall immediately after the seeds are planted, they will be ruined, as the birds and rats will eat them all. So why should we not practice in accordance with the people of Eretz Yisrael, who petition for rain in Marheshvan [=early autumn], like Rabban Gamliel? For in this matter there is no dispute between the people of Babylon and the people of Eretz Yisrael in the sense that these offer a rationale for why it is proper to follow their position, and those offer a rationale for why it is proper to follow their position. Rather, in Babylon they acted on the basis of their needs, and the Mishna (in Ta’anit), which states that we begin petitioning in Marheshvan, was taught in Eretz Yisrael, in accordance with its needs. Do not wonder: Now that I have written that there is no dispute between them, why is it necessary for Shmuel to rule in accordance with Hananyah? For one can say that since the Mishna teaches that Rabban Gamliel says that we begin petitioning for rain on the seventh of Marheshvan, and R. Elazar stated that the law accords with Rabban Gamliel, I might have said that this should not be altered in any place, so as not to violate the words of the Mishna, as R. Elazar ruled. We thus learn from Shmuel that this is not akin to violating the words of the Mishna, for it was taught in the Land of Israel, according to their locale and needs. Now we may reason a fortiori: If the people of Babylon practise in accordance with their locale and needs by deviating from the Mishna, then certainly the people of Germany should act in accordance with their needs by not deviating from the Mishna. Indeed, we find that this entire Mishna was only taught to the people of Eretz Yisrael, and in accordance with their needs. For [the Talmud] challenges the statement of R. Asi in the name of R. Yohanan (Ta’anit 4b) that the law accords with R. Yehuda, who stated that the last person to pass before the ark [=lead the prayers] on the last day of Sukkot invokes [rain] based on R. Elazar’s statement that the law accords with Rabban Gamliel, who said that we petition for rain starting on the seventh of Marheshvan and that there is no gap between [when we begin] petitioning and [when we begin] invoking, as the Talmud concludes. The Talmud answers: “This is for us, and that is for them.” The Babylonians have produce in the field that they must bring into the house after Sukkot but before the rains begin. Therefore, they do not petition for rain until the seventh of Marheshvan. Alternatively [the Talmud answers]: “Both are for Eretz Yisrael. This refers to a time that the Temple stood, and that refers to a time that the Temple no longer stood.” Thus, we see that all of these times [for beginning to petition for rain] are accord with the needs of the locale and time.

(5) The second practice is that they customarily stop invoking and petitioning for rain on the first day of Passover, whereas it is well known that in Germany the sustenance of the produce is primarily from the rains that fall between Passover and Shavuot. The Mishna (Ta’anit 2a), which states that we stop [invoking rain] in the first day of Passover, was taught to the people of Eretz Yisrael, as I have demonstrated, and for them, the barley harvest was on Passover, and the wheat as well was already standing and only needed to dry out and ripen by Shavu’ot. Thus, rain was an omen of curse for them. But in Germany, where the produce cannot survive without the rain between Passover and Shavuot, [rain] portends blessing for them. So why should we not invoke and petition for rain until Shavuot? The laws of repeating [the Amida] for reciting “morid ha-geshem” [=the invocation of rain] will apply to them after Shavuot, just as it applies to residents of Eretz Yisrael from Passover on; as I have demonstrated, each land invokes and petitions for rain according to its needs. For just as Eretz Yisrael and Babylon have different practices for invoking and petitioning for rain, each according to its needs, so too other lands. For what is the difference? Further proof can be adduced from this (Ta’anit 14b): “The people of Nineveh asked of Rabbi [Yehuda the Prince]: Are those like us, who require rain even in the summer season, considered as individuals, who recite [the petition for rain] in “Shome’a Tefila,” or as a public, who recite it in “Birkat Ha-shanim”? He sent to them: You are like individuals, and [recite it] in “Shome’a Tefila.” They challenged [from a beraita]: “R. Yehuda said: When does this [cycle of fast days] apply? When the years are as ordained and Israel is settled on its soil. But nowadays, all depends on the year, and the locale, and the season.” You are challenging Rabbi based on a beraita? Rabbi is a tanna and disagrees!” Thus, we see that Rabbi only disagrees regarding the residents of a single city. However, regarding the land of Germany, which is very broad, Rabbi would agree that that they continue petitioning as long as they need rain, and since they petition out of need, they certainly invoke, for invoking also serves the petition. As R. Yohanan state: “As long as one petitions, one invokes.”

(6) I discussed all of these matters before my masters in Germany, and no one challenged my words. Rather, they said: “We do not need to change the practice in Germany, because drought is uncommon there, and often the produce is ruined by excessive rain.”

(7) When I left Germany and passed through Provence, I heard that in Provence they would invoke the rains on the seventh of Marheshvan, and I deemed this to be quite correct. I said to the sages of Montpelier: “You have answered one of my questions; what do you do with regard to stopping [to invoke and petition for rain]?” They said that they practice in accordance with the Mishna: they stop on the first day of Passover. I said to them: “Is it possible that you do not require rain between Passover and Shavuot?” They told me that they require much rain, and that the produce cannot survive without rain. So I presented my words to them, as they are written above, and they found it to be quite correct, but they said: “That we petition [beginning] on the seventh of Marheshvan is because this was the practice instituted by the early sages. But with regard to stopping, we cannot do anything to change the practice unless we gather all the sages of the land.” I left there without knowing what they agreed to do.

(8) And when I came here, I saw that we need rain between Passover and Shavuot even more than other places. Several times I told my colleagues that it would be proper not to stop invoking and petitioning until Shavuot. For now I know that in all the lands with which I am familiar, the main rains are between Passover and Shavuot, and certainly much of them. Yet I did not dare to speak these words to change the practice.

(9) But now that I see that, because of our sins, the rains have stopped, and the plantings have been ruined, and we are fasting for rains, and even on Sabbaths and holidays, when we do not fast, we invoke the thirteen attributes and recite verses pertaining to rain, my heart has said to me: the time has now come to institute what I have wanted to do for many years, for they will certainly heed me during such a time of distress; and if this is prescribed for them during the present year, they will find it sweet, and they will not relent from it. They would certainly do so, but they tilted their hearts and changed back their minds.

(10) Regarding their protest against petitioning on the grounds that it portends curse—even in their opinion [rain] does not portend curse until the month of Nisan [=early spring] has ended, as the Mishna states (Ta’anit 12b): “If Nisan ended and rains fell, they portend curse.” Moreover, in the source for their words, have they not realized that it is derived from a verse (I Samuel 12:17): “Is it not the wheat harvest today? [I will call out to the Lord, and he will bring thunder and rain, and you will know and see that your wickedness before the Lord, in that you asked for a king, is excessive]”? And so which harvest is set for right now, that would mean that we do not need rain? Moreover, the Talmud states on this [Mishna]: “R. Yose b. Avin said: this only applies if no rain had yet fallen, but if rain had previously fallen, the present rain portends blessing.”

(11) Maimonides, of blessed memory, accords with me in his Commentary on the Mishna, which states: “Until when do we petition for rain? R. Yehuda says: until the end of Passover.” The tanna who taught this is not the tanna who taught the previous mishna. And we have already ruled above that the law accords with R. Yehoshua and Rabban Gamliel. This all applies only in Eretz Yisrael and lands whose climate is like its climate. And everything you see them saying about the timing of the fast days only applies in Eretz Yisrael and places with similar climes. But in other lands, the petitioning must be during the season that they require rain in that land, and that time shall be treated as though it is the seventh of Marheshvan. And if the rains are delayed beyond that time, the fast days should be practiced accordingly, for there are lands where the rains only begin in Nisan, and there are lands where Marheshvan is summer. Rains are not good during the sunny season—rather, they ruin and kill. So how can the people of that land petition for rain in Marheshvan? It is a complete lie! This reasoning is all true and appealing.” And in his composition [=Mishneh Torah] he wrote (Laws of Prayer 2:16-17): “From the seventh of Marheshvan, we petition for rain in Birkat Ha-shanim for as long as rain is invoked. What is this said about? Eretz Yisrael. But in Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt, and places nearby and similar to them, we petition for rain from the sixtieth day of the autumn season. Places that require rain during the sunny season, such as distant islands, petition for rain when they need it, in Shome’a Tefila.”

(12) Superficially, it seems that the Commentary on the Mishna contradicts what he wrote in his composition. In his commentary on the Mishna, he wrote: “But in other lands, the petitioning must be during the season that they require rain in that land, and that time shall be treated as though it is the seventh of Marheshvan.” Thus, we petition in Birkat Ha-shanim. But in his composition he wrote that islands petition for rain in Shome’a Tefila. Yet one who scrutinized his words will find them precise. In the commentary on the Mishna he wrote “lands”—since there is a difference between Eretz Yisrael and Babylon with regard to invoking and petitioning for rain, we can derive that they are not considered as a public, but are one land, and they recite it during the season that they need to petition for rain, in Birkat Ha-shanim. But in his composition he wrote: “Places that require rain during the sunny season, such as distant islands.” These are not considered separate lands. Thus, they are considered individuals, and they recite it in Shome’a Tefila. It has thus been demonstrated and it is well known that in Germany, which is a large land, and France, and all the lands between Germany and this land, including this land, all require rain between Passover and Shavuot. And they are certainly a public and may petition for rain in Birkat Ha-shanim and invoke rains in the winter like residents of Eretz Yisrael.

(13) But when I saw that they had swayed the heart of the community to not accept the words of the living God from me, I too retracted from petitioning and invoking rain in the synagogue I attend, even though I could have petitioned, and even though I am an individual, since it is a public need. Nevertheless, I did not want to create multiple factions. I would not have written on hol ha-mo’ed, as I am unaccustomed to it, but it is the need of the hour, due to the desecration of God’s name, and it is also, in a small sense, a need of the festival.

(14) Asher b. R. Yehiel

(15) These are all correct words, and they are all compelling to one who understands and clear to those who find knowledge. They are words of reason. I therefore sign my name: David Ha-Kohen b. R. Moshe Ha-Kohen, Yisrael b. Yoseph Yissachar Ha-Levi b. R. Yekutiel Ha-Levi, Moshe Ha-Kohen b. Yehuda Ha-Kohen; Do not cast aspersions on the words of our masters, for lips shall kiss one who responds with clear words. Shlomo b. R. Yaakov

And the Rosh writes in his responsa, klal 4, in he tenth question, that [quotes Rosh at length]. But from my study of it I do not agree with the distinction our Rabbi proposed in this explanation, for [if so then] why did he not call it a land rather than islands. [Rather], the intent of our Rabbi in Peirush Hamishna is that at the time that they taught the Mishna [about] asking for rain that was only for the land of Israel and the lands whose atmosphere is like [Israel's] but other lands which only need rains a other times only ask for rain at the time they need it...however, there he did not explain the place in the amidah where one asks [for rain], and here [in Mishnah Torah] he explains that [in these circumstances] one asks in shomeah tefillah like the people of Nineveh.

R' Shlomo Yitzchaki (1040-1105)

And in Babylon in exile because they do not need rain [as much] we do not ask until six [days after] tekufat Tishrei. And this is our practice because all of our practices follow those of Babylon.

R' Menachem Meiri (1249–1315)

There are places where the practice is not to ask [for rain] until sixty [days after] the tekufah because all our practices are like those of the Babylonians. But there are those who say that our practice is only like that of the Babylonians where the lands are equal but if the Babylon is wet such that they do not require much dew but our [lands] are dry and we do need dew then we should ask from the 7th Marcheshvan [as in Israel] and this is the practice in all our locales. And there are those who rule that we should ask immediately on motzei Yom Tov because we rule like R' Shimon ben Gamliel who says [to start] on the 7th Marcheshvan and R' Shimon ben Gamliel only said [to start] on the 7th Marcheshvan because of the pilgrims and now that there are no pilgrims he would also say to start immediately on motzei Yom Tov. Nevertheless it seems to me that [there is also the consideration of waiting until] after the fruit lies in the fields, as it says there in the Gemara "we have fruit in the field". [So] we also need to wait until after [that]. And it is fitting for us not to ask until 7th Marcheshan. And there are those who rule [to start on] the 3rd Marcheshvan which is the time of the first reviah but one should not innovate on this Mishna where the Gemara does not explain it.

Rabbi Asi said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yehuda. Rabbi Zeira said to Rabbi Asi: And did Rabbi Yoḥanan actually say that? But didn’t we learn in a mishna (6a): On the third of Marḥeshvan one [starts to] request rain. Rabban Gamliel says: [One starts] on the seventh of [Marḥeshvan]. And [with regard to this mishna], Rabbi Elazar, [Rabbi Yoḥanan’s preeminent student,] said: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabban Gamliel. [Rabbi Asi] said to [Rabbi Zeira]: Are you raising a contradiction [from the statement of] one man against [the statement of another] man? [Although Rabbi Elazar was Rabbi Yoḥanan’s student, their opinions need not be consistent with one another]. If you wish, say [instead that this is] not difficult, [as Rabbi Elazar’s ruling] here [is referring] to [the] request [for rain, which begins on the seventh of Marḥeshvan, whereas Rabbi Yoḥanan’s ruling] there [is referring] to the mention [of rain, which begins on the Eighth Day of Assembly]. But didn’t Rabbi Yoḥanan say: At [the same time] when one requests [rain, one] mentions it. That ruling was stated [only with regard] to ceasing [the request and mention of rain]. But didn’t Rabbi Yoḥanan say: [When one] begins to mention [rain, one] begins to request it; [and when one] ceases to request [rain, one] ceases to mention it. Rather, it is not difficult. This [statement, where Rabbi Elazar ruled in accordance with the opinion of Rabban Gamliel], is for us, [who live in Babylonia and start to pray for rain later, whereas] that [statement of the mishna] is for them, [the residents of Eretz Yisrael]. What is different [with regard] to us [in Babylonia that we do not request rain immediately after Sukkot? The reason is] that we still have fruit in the field. [Therefore, we do not want rain to fall. However,] they, [the inhabitants of Eretz Yisrael], also have pilgrims [who need to travel for a significant time to reach their homes after the Festival, and they do not want it to rain on them].

...and since it does not say this the implication is that we do not have a third option in any place. And we would find that the time of Rabban Gamliel which is the 15th is uprooted entirely after the destruction of the Temple because people in the land of Israel would ask immediately [after Succot] and those in Babylon 60 [days after] the tekufah like Chananya [says] and other lands can act either like those in Israel or like those in Babylon. And those who do not have fruit in the field can certainly act like the people of Israel [and start saying it] immediately [after Succot] like the people of the land of Israel. But those who do have fruit in the field who are in doubt between the two times, they are dissimilar to the land of Israel because they have fruit in the field and from the time of Babylon because of the great delay in the request. [However,] the Geonim distinguished the time that in every place [that is not Israel they should act like those in Babylon] for three reasons. First, because we follow them in every matter. Second, so that there is one law across the whole diaspora as is the implication of the statement in Shas. And third because requesting immediately [after Succot] could damage fruit in the field...

And we in the diaspora follow the people of Babylon in all laws, even though seemingly this does not relate to [monetary] laws. And the Rambam has already written in Peirush Hamishnah on Taanit there that the matter depends on provinces, [and] the time that they need dew. And if so then in most provinces in Europe where they sow after Pesach we should say tal umatar in the Summer, because in the Winter we do not need dew at all? And the Rosh has already expanded upon this in a responsum. And it is not comparable to individuals who need dew who say it in shomeah tefillah as explained, because we are not individuals but rather large provinces. Nevertheless, the Rosh himself writes that his view was not accepted at all, see there. And it is as if a heavenly voice said to act like the people of Babylon. And this also emerges from the words of Rambam in the second chapter of his work, where he does not write as he does in Peirush Hamishnah, see there. And this is the default position proposed by the Shulchan Aruch, and this is the halacha. And all who object to this are fit to be punished...