Chullin 213
ואיכא דאמרי
R'Papa said: A person may not wash the hands in a dike used for irrigation, because [the water] here does not run directly from the human act;<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The water in the dike is supplied by buckets which a man fills from a river and empties into the dike, and thence it runs off in its courses over fields. It is therefore forbidden to dip the hands in the dike because the power of man has already spent itself at the beginning of the dike and the waters run now of their own impetus.');"><sup>3</sup></span>
האי אריתא דדלאי אין נוטלין ממנו לידים דלא אתו מכח גברא
the waters are then considered as connected<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' If he filled this cracked bucket with water from the river and emptied it out into the dike, the water would be running out at both ends, from the crack back into the river and from the mouth into the dike, so that, while the bucket is being emptied out, the water in the dike is actually connected with the water in the river; one may therefore immerse the hands in the dike.');"><sup>5</sup></span>
ואמר רבא
Now it follows that if it can hold [a quarter log] even though there is not [that much] in it [it may be used]! - This is no difficulty, for the one passage refers to one person and the other to two persons.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Where one person washes the hands a quarter log of water is necessary, and so also where two persons wash the hands one after the other only a quarter log is necessary; obviously then in the latter case the second person washes his hands with less than a quarter log. This is allowed, however, because of the reason stated infra, that the second person uses the residue of what was the proper amount for washing the hands.');"><sup>6</sup></span>
א"ל
Others report that he replied thus: We are particular about the vessel and the colour [of the water], but we are not particular about the amount [of water used], for we have learnt: A quarter log of water [is sufficient] for washing the hands of one person or even of two persons.
אמר ליה
Raba also said: If the stopper of a jar was fashioned<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The stopper is cup-shaped, concave on the inside and convex outside. As the inside was not made to serve as a receptacle it is therefore necessary to hollow it out a little more for this purpose (Rashi) . According to Tosaf. it is only necessary to make the outside flat so that it should be able to stand upright without support.');"><sup>12</sup></span>
מי רביעית נוטלין לידים לאחד ואפי' לשנים
A sack or a basket, even though they were made to hold water, may not be used for washing the hands.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For these do not usually hold water and cannot be regarded as a vessel for washing.');"><sup>13</sup></span>
ולא היא שאני התם משום דקאתו משירי טהרה
The question was raised: May one eat with a cloth [wrapped round the hand] or not?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' If a person did not wash the hands but wrapped a cloth round them, may he thus eat his food or not?');"><sup>14</sup></span>
אתקין רב יעקב מנהר פקוד נטלא בת רביעתא
Must we apprehend lest [the bare hand] touch [the food] or not? - Come and hear: But when they gave R'Zadok less than an egg's bulk of food to eat, the took it with a cloth, ate it outside the Sukkah, and did not say the Grac after it.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. Suk. 26b.');"><sup>15</sup></span>
ואמר רבא
- No, perhaps the only inference is, if it was as large as an egg's bulk it would have been necessary to eat it in the Sukkah and to say the Grace after it.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' But not to wash the hands since they were covered with a cloth.');"><sup>17</sup></span>