Commentary for Avodah Zarah 76:6
ר' חייא פרוואה איקלע לבי ריש גלותא אמרו ליה ביצה צלויה מאי אמר להו חזקיה ובר קפרא שרו ור' יוחנן אסר ואין דבריו של אחד במקום שנים אמר להו רב זביד לא תציתו ליה הכי אמר אביי הלכתא כוותיה דרבי יוחנן אשקיוהו נגוטא דחלא ונח נפשיה
R. Hiyya Parva'ah visited the house of the Exilarch. They asked him, “What is the rule with regard to an egg roasted [by a non-Jew]?” He replied, “Hezekiah and Bar Kapara permit it, but R. Yohanan prohibits it, and the opinion of one sage cannot stand against that of two.” R. Zevid said to them, “Pay no attention to him, for Abaye said that the halakhah agrees with R. Yohanan.” [The Exilarch's non-Jewis servants were infuriated by R. Zevid's remark and] gave him a draught of spiced vinegar from which he died.
Daf Shevui to Avodah Zarah
Here we can see that there was some controversy around this issue. R. Zevid tried to put his foot down and not allow the Jews in the House of the Exilarch (the political leader in Babylonia) to eat eggs roasted by non-Jews. But the story ends with R. Zevid’s death. It is probably significant that this story occurs in this particular location. The Exilarch was the political leader of the community and as such would have had the most contact with non-Jews. Perhaps that is why R. Zevid tried to stop such a relaxation with the law. And perhaps that is why the story ends with his death.
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