Menachot 48

Chapter 48

א מדרס ועשאו וילון טהור מן המדרס אבל טמא מגע מדרס
1 was used as a curtain, it becomes free of midras uncleanness<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Since it is no longer intended to be used for any of the purposes (specified in the prec. n.) which make it susceptible to midras uncleanness.');"><sup>1</sup></span>
ב א"ר יוסי באיזה מדרס נגע זה אלא שאם נגע בו הזב טמא מגע הזב
2 but remains unclean by reason of contact with midras uncleanness.
ג כי נגע בו הזב מיהא טמא ואפי' לבסוף (כטמא מדרס ואח"כ מגע הזב) אמאי לימא שבע ליה טומאה
3 R'Jose said, What midras uncleanness has it touched?
ד א"ל וממאי דהאי שאם נגע בו הזב לבתר מדרס דילמא מקמי מדרס דהויא טומאה חמורה על טומאה קלה
4 If, however, one that had an issue had touched it,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Before it was used as a curtain. At this stage the sheet bears two kinds of uncleanness: midras uncleanness and the uncleanness from contact with one that had an issue.');"><sup>2</sup></span>
ה אבל הכא דאידי ואידי טומאה קלה לא
5 it would be unclean by reason of contact with one that had an issue.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For as soon as it is used as a curtain the midras uncleanness vanishes and there remains now the uncleanness from contact with one that had an issue.');"><sup>3</sup></span>
ו אלא מסיפא מודה רבי יוסי בשני סדינין המקופלין ומונחין זה על זה וישב זב עליהן שהעליון טמא מדרס והתחתון טמא מדרס ומגע מדרס ואמאי לימא שבע ליה טומאה
6 At any rate, it says, if one that had an issue had touched it, it would be unclean, presumably even though [this contact was] subsequent [to the midras uncleanness], that is to say, it first had contracted midras uncleanness and then further uncleanness by reason of contact with one that had an issue.
ז התם בבת אחת הכא בזה אחר זה
7 Now why is this?
ח אמר רבא עשרון שחלקו ואבד אחד מהן והפריש אחר תחתיו ונמצא הראשון והרי שלשתן מונחין בביסא נטמא אבוד אבוד וראשון מצטרפין מופרש אין מצטרף
8 Should we not say it was sated with uncleanness?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And once it has contracted midras uncleanness it was no more susceptible to any further uncleanness.');"><sup>4</sup></span>
ט נטמא מופרש מופרש וראשון מצטרפין אבוד אין מצטרף נטמא ראשון שניהם מצטרפין
9 - He replied, Whence do you know to say that this contact by one that had an issue was subsequent [to the midras uncleanness]?
י אביי אמר אפילו נטמא אחד מהן נמי שניהם מצטרפין מ"ט כולהו בני ביקתא דהדדי נינהו
10 Perhaps it was prior to the midras uncleanness, so that it was a case of a graver uncleanness being imposed upon a lighter uncleanness.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And it is admitted by all that a thing which had contracted a lighter uncleanness (i.e., one which can only convey uncleanness to foodstuffs and liquids) cannot be so sated with uncleanness as to preclude any graver uncleanness (i.e., one which can convey uncleanness even to men and vessels) .');"><sup>5</sup></span>
יא וכן לענין קמיצה קמץ מן האבוד שיריו וראשון נאכלין מופרש אינו נאכל קמץ מן המופרש שיריו וראשון נאכלין אבוד אינו נאכל
11 Here, however, since at each [contact] there is only a light uncleanness, it is not so!<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For foodstuffs can only suffer light uncleanness. In our case, therefore, since the half-tenth has already contracted a light uncleanness it cannot suffer a further similar uncleanness.');"><sup>6</sup></span>
יב קמץ מן ראשון שניהם אינן נאכלין
12 One might prove it, however, from the subsequent [Mishnah] which reads: R'Jose agrees that where two sheets lay folded one above the other and one that had an issue sat upon them, the upper has contracted midras uncleanness, and the lower has contracted midras uncleanness and also uncleanness by reason of contact with midras uncleanness.
יג אביי אמר אפילו קמץ מאחד מהן שניהן אינן נאכלין מ"ט כולהו נמי בני ביקתא דהדדי נינהו
13 Now why is this?
יד מתקיף לה רב פפא ושירים דידיה מיהא נאכלין הא איכא דנקא דקומץ דלא קריב
14 Should we not say it was sated with uncleanness? - There they<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The two kinds of uncleanness.');"><sup>7</sup></span>
טו מתקיף לה רב יצחק בריה דרב משרשיא וקומץ גופיה היכי קריב הא איכא תלתא חולין
15 come simultaneously, whilst here they come one after another.
טז רב אשי אמר קומץ בדעתא דכהן תליא מילתא וכהן כי קמיץ אעשרון קא קמיץ:
16 Raba said, Where a tenth was divided [into halves] and one [half] was lost so that another was brought as a substitute, and then it was found again, and now all three [half-tenths] are in the mixing vessel - if that which had been lost became unclean, then it is united with the first half-tenth,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., the half-tenth which had not been lost will also be unclean for these two originally formed the tenth.');"><sup>8</sup></span> but not with the substituted half-tenth.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And this half remains clean; for at no time was it contemplated that what was lost and what was substituted for it should together make up the tenth.');"><sup>9</sup></span> If the substituted half-tenth became unclean, then it is united with the first half-tenth but not w the lost half-tenth. If the first half-tenth became unclean, then it is united with each of the others.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For the first half-tenth was intended to be taken in the first place together with what was lost, and subsequently with what was substituted for it, so that a relation was set up between the first half-tenth and each of the others, and therefore all are unclean.');"><sup>10</sup></span> Abaye said, Even if any one of the half-tenths became unclean, it is united with each of the others, since they all belong together.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'members of the same narrow house'; i.e., they all were intended to be used for the one meal-offering.');"><sup>11</sup></span> And so it is with regard to the taking of the handful. If the handful was taken from the half-tenth which had been lost, then what was left of it and the first half-tenth may be eaten<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Since originally these two made up the tenth for the meal-offering.');"><sup>12</sup></span> but not the substituted half-tenth. If it was taken from the substituted half-tenth, then what was left of it and the first half-tenth m be eaten but not the half-tenth which had been lost. If it was taken from the first half-tenth, then [what was left of it may be eaten but] the others may not be eaten.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The first half-tenth was intended to go with each of the other half-tenths and, inasmuch as the handful can serve only in respect of one tenth, there is one half-tenth which has not been rendered permissible by the handful; and as it is not known which it is, both may not be eaten.');"><sup>13</sup></span> Abaye said, Even though the handful was taken from any one half-tenth, the other two may not be eaten, since they all belong together. R'Papa demurred, [You say that] what was left of it may be eaten, but one third of the handful has not been offered!<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Presumably when the handful was taken out and offered up it was intended to serve everything that was in the vessel, so that one third of the handful should not have been offered, since that represented the superfluous half-tenth. Consequently the handful must be regarded as having been incomplete so that what was left of it cannot be permitted to be eaten. The reading 'one third' in the text is supported by MS.M. and Sh. Mek. In cur. edd. the text states 'one sixth'; the meaning, however, is identical with the foregoing explanation, and is arrived at in this way. Since it is not known which of the two remaining half-tenths is the superfluous one which causes one third of the handful to be nullified, this result is therefore attributed in equal shares to each of the half-tenths, so that each is responsible for the nullification of one sixth of the handful,');"><sup>14</sup></span> R'Isaac the son of R'Mesharsheya also demurred, How may the handful be offered, is not one third thereof unhallowed? - R'Ashi answered, The taking of the handful rests with the mind of the priest, and clearly when the priest takes the handful he does so only in respect of a tenth.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The third half-tenth is disregarded by the priest when he takes the handful; therefore, the residue of that half-tenth from which the handful was taken may be eaten, whilst the two remaining half-tenths may not, since we do not know which was the half-tenth disregarded by the priest. Quaere: where the priest expressly declared which half-tenth he disregarded and which he took account of, would the latter be permitted to be eaten? V. Likkute Halakoth. a.l.');"><sup>15</sup></span> [