BEITZAH - 018a – ביצה – פרק שני – יום טוב, יח ע”א

…lest he take it in his hand and carry it four amos in the public domain.^[1]

ויעבירנו ארבע אמות ברשות הרבים - from its place to the mikveh.

Abaye said to him: If he has a pit in his courtyard, what is there to say?

He said to him: It is a decree — a pit in his courtyard on account of a pit in the public domain.

That works for Shabbos; on Yom Tov, what is there to say?^[2]

They decreed Yom Tov on account of Shabbos.

But do we make such decrees?

ומי גזרינן - were the Rabbanan really so stringent in this enactment on the immersion of vessels as to forbid what is permitted on account of what is forbidden, and to make a decree upon a decree?

But we learned: And they agree that one may bring water into contact in a stone vessel to purify it, but one may not immerse.^[3]

And if it is so, let us decree hashakah on account of immersion!

And do you think so?

ותסברא - that this is a difficulty?

If he has good water, why would he need to do hashakah on this water?

Rather, he has none; and since he has none, he takes care of it.

מזהר זהיר בהו - that it not become tamei; and since he takes care of it, its becoming tamei is an uncommon thing, and the Rabbanan made no decree about it.

He raised an objection to him: One may draw

מדלין - water.

with a tamei bucket, and it becomes tahor.^[4]

בדלי טמא והוא טהור - of itself. And this is not like immersing a vessel over its water, which our Mishnah forbids; for there his whole purpose is only to purify, both the water and the vessel, so it is evident that it is an immersion — and the reason immersion is forbidden is that he appears to be repairing a vessel, and this does look so. But here not everyone knows that the bucket is tamei, and the onlooker says: he needed to draw this water.

And if it is so, let us decree lest he come to immerse it by itself!

נגזור דלמא אתי לאטבוליה בעיניה - without drawing water.

It is different there: since it was permitted to him only by way of his bucket,

מתוך שלא הותרה לו - this immersion is permitted to him only by way of his bucket, in his drawing, which is not the way of other immersions.

he remembers.

זכור הוא - that immersion is forbidden on Yom Tov.

He raised an objection to him: A vessel that became tamei on the eve of Yom Tov

כלי שנטמא מערב י"ט - and with an av hatumah, as below.

may not be immersed on Yom Tov.

אין מטבילין אותו בי"ט - since he should have immersed it while it was still day.

If on Yom Tov — it may be immersed on Yom Tov.

בי"ט מטבילין אותו בי"ט - and he may use it today for chullin, which do not require he’erev shemesh.^[5]

And if it is so, let us decree a vessel made tamei on Yom Tov on account of one made tamei on the eve of Yom Tov!

Tumah on Yom Tov is an uncommon thing,

דלא שכיחא - for everyone purifies himself for the festival, and all the more so they take care not to become tamei.

and in an uncommon thing the Rabbanan made no decree.

He raised an objection to him: A vessel that became tamei with an av hatumah^[6]

כלי שנטמא באב הטומאה - on the eve of Yom Tov, as above.

may not be immersed on Yom Tov;

אין מטבילין אותו בי"ט - for since it is tamei by Torah law, it is as though he were repairing it.

with a vlad hatumah, it may be immersed on Yom Tov.

בולד הטומאה - there is no repair here, for by Torah law it is entirely tahor, since a vessel becomes tamei only from an av hatumah, as it is taught in Perek Hakol Shochtin (Chulin 25a): food and drink become tamei from the airspace of an earthenware vessel, but no vessels become tamei from the airspace of an earthenware vessel — because that is a vlad hatumah, for what is inside it becomes tamei not on account of the sheretz but on account of the airspace of the vessel. Some explain: a vessel that became tamei with an av hatumah, even if it became tamei on Yom Tov, may not be immersed on Yom Tov, and the reason is that it requires he’erev shemesh, for tumah of Torah law requires he’erev shemesh; therefore, since it is not fit for use today, he may not immerse it. And this is difficult for me: it is fit to be used for chullin, for he’erev shemesh is needed only for terumah and kodshim, as we learned: he immersed and came up — he may eat maaser; his sun set — he may eat kodshim (Negaim 14:3).

And if it is so, let us decree this on account of that!

A vlad hatumah — where is it found?

ולד הטומאה היכי משכחת לה - who needs to immerse it? Only a kohen. For the vlad hatumah is a rishon, and a vessel made tamei by it is a sheni, which is permitted for chullin, since a sheni does not make a shelishi in chullin; so he need not immerse it except for terumah.

With kohanim — and kohanim are careful.

זריזין הן - and they will not come to permit a vessel made tamei with an av hatumah. Alternatively: they are careful that tumah not reach their vessels, and it is an uncommon thing.

Come and hear, for Rav Chiya bar Ashi said in the name of Rav: A niddah who has no garments

שאין לה בגדים - tahor ones to change into and put on after her immersion, and today is Yom Tov, and she cannot immerse the ones she is wearing.

uses a stratagem and immerses in her garments.^[7]

מערמת וטובלת - while she is dressed, and the immersion counts for the garments as well; and it is not evident that she is repairing them, for she went in for her own immersion, and a person is permitted to immerse, since he appears to be cooling himself, as below.

And if it is so, let us decree lest she come to immerse them by themselves!

It is different there: since it was permitted to her only by way of wearing them, she remembers.

Rav Yosef said: It is a decree on account of wringing.^[8]

רב יוסף אמר - the reason of our Mishnah, that immersing vessels on Shabbos and Yom Tov is forbidden, is on account of wringing garments, for garments too are included among vessels.

Abaye said to him: That works for vessels that can be wrung; for vessels that cannot be wrung, what is there to say?

He said to him: A decree for these on account of those.

He raised all these objections against him, and he answered him as we answered.

Rav Bivi said: It is a decree lest he delay.

שמא ישהא - if you permit him to immerse them on Yom Tov, he will put them off until Yom Tov, when he is free, and in the meantime come to a stumbling-block with them, using them for terumah.

It is taught in accordance with Rav Bivi:

A vessel that became tamei on the eve of Yom Tov may not be immersed on Yom Tov — a decree lest he delay.

Rava said: Because he appears to be repairing a vessel.

רבא אמר - the reason of our Mishnah is that he appears to be repairing a vessel, which resembles the finishing of a melachah, and they decreed against it rabbinically.

If so, a person too?

A person appears to be cooling himself.

That works for good water;

תינח מים יפין - in which it is usual to bathe.

with foul water, what is there to say?

Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak said: Sometimes a person comes…^[9]

Tosafos

שמא יעבירנו ארבע אמות ברשות הרבים - Why does it not say instead, “lest he carry it out from a private domain into the public domain”? One may answer that there is a marker at the doorway and at the doorposts of the courtyard.

גזרה י"ט אטו שבת - And this is not a decree upon a decree, for Yom Tov and Shabbos are one.

נגזור השקה אטו הטבלה - It is difficult: [the Gemara] could have refuted, “let us decree against hashakah lest he carry [the vessels] four amos in the public domain in order to do hashakah on them.” One may answer that for immersing a vessel it was necessary to decree lest he carry it, because he is eager to immerse it; but with hashakah of water he is not so eager, for other water is available. So too just below, regarding a vlad hatumah, it does not object “let us decree lest he carry it,” because he is not so eager to immerse it, since it is only a rabbinic tumah.

מדלין בדלי טמא והוא טהור - of itself. This is difficult, for the Mishnah says that one may not immerse a vessel over its water to purify it. One may answer that there it speaks of a vessel full of water, where it is evident that he wants to immerse it, and it is forbidden to immerse a vessel because it looks like repairing; but here not everyone knows that the bucket is tamei, and so an onlooker will suppose that he needs it for drawing.

כלי שנטמא באב הטומאה אין מטבילין אותו בולד הטומאה מטבילין אותו וכו' - Rashi explained that it speaks of a vessel that became tamei on the eve of Yom Tov, for if on Yom Tov, even [one tamei through] an av hatumah may be immersed; and what we said above, “[if it became tamei] on the eve of Yom Tov, one may not immerse it on Yom Tov,” speaks of one that became tamei through an av hatumah. The reason one may not immerse [a vessel tamei through] an av hatumah is that it is a Torah-level tumah, so it looks like repairing; but tumah contracted from liquids is only rabbinic, and it does not look like repairing. He also gave another explanation: that it speaks of one that became tamei on Yom Tov itself, through an av hatumah, and even so one may not immerse it on Yom Tov, since it requires he’erev shemesh and one does not immerse for the needs of a weekday; but [one tamei through] a vlad hatumah does not require he’erev shemesh, and may be immersed on Yom Tov; and what we said, “if it became tamei on Yom Tov one may immerse it on Yom Tov,” speaks of one that became tamei through a vlad hatumah. Rashi was not satisfied with this, since in any case it is still fit to be used for chullin, for it needs he’erev shemesh only for terumah. The Ri explained that it sits well according to the conclusion, which deals with terumah, where he’erev shemesh is required. But this does not seem right to Rabbeinu Yitzchak: is it then taken as settled that kohanim have no chullin? It is difficult, however: how is it permitted to immerse a vessel that became tamei through a vlad hatumah? If he wants to use it for chullin or maaser, it needs no immersion; and if for terumah, it needs he’erev shemesh — so he is immersing for the needs of a weekday. One may answer that according to the other explanation that Rashi gave, it sits well, for a rabbinic immersion such as this one does not require he’erev shemesh, as we learned in Maseches Parah (11:5): whatever requires immersion by the words of the Sages is permitted in all of them once it has immersed.

היכי משכחת לה בכהנים - And if you ask: with a Yisrael too it is found, for whatever disqualifies terumah renders liquids tamei with first-degree tumah — one may answer that it speaks of a vessel that is not fit to hold water, such as a perforated vessel.

מערמת וטובלת בבגדיה - This is difficult: it is soaking, and soaking is forbidden because it is laundering and whitening, as we say, “its soaking is its laundering.” One may answer that since it is done in a soiling manner, it is permitted. And know that it is so: how do we dry our hands on a towel on Shabbos? That is soaking, forbidden because it is laundering and whitening — rather, since it is done in a soiling manner, it is permitted. Here too let us say the same.

גזרה שמא ישהא - That is, until Yom Tov, when he is free, and he may come to a mishap and use them for terumah. But a person does not delay his own immersion; and besides, the concern of a mishap does not apply so much.

Notes

1. 1. This completes Rabbah’s reason, begun at the foot of 17b, for the Mishnah’s rule that a vessel may not be immersed on Shabbos or Yom Tov: he might carry it through the public domain to the mikveh.
2. 2. On Yom Tov carrying for a need is permitted, so the fear of carrying four amos cannot explain the prohibition there.
3. 3. The Mishnah on 17b. Hashakah: water that has become tamei is purified by bringing it, held in a stone vessel (which cannot become tamei), into contact with the water of a mikveh.
4. 4. A tamei bucket lowered into a mikveh to draw water is immersed in the process. The beraisa permits this on Shabbos and Yom Tov, and the Gemara sets it against Rabbah’s decree.
5. 5. He’erev shemesh: after immersion a person or vessel is fully tahor only once the sun has set. Until then it may be used for chullin, ordinary food, but not for terumah or kodshim.
6. 6. Av hatumah: a primary source of tumah, such as a sheretz. What it makes tamei becomes a vlad hatumah, a derived tumah, one degree weaker.
7. 7. Ha’aramah, a permitted stratagem: she immerses herself, which is allowed, while dressed, and her clothes are immersed with her.
8. 8. Rav Yosef gives a different reason for the Mishnah from Rabbah’s. Wringing water out of a garment is a form of the melachah of laundering.
9. 9. The sentence continues at the head of 18b.