Kommentar zu Kelim 30:7

כלי זכוכית – This Mishnah is taught above in Chapter 2 [Mishnah 1] and Chapter 15 [Mishnah 1] and since it was necessary to teach the law of these vessels of glass, he returns and teaches them once again here.

Introduction Chapter thirty, the final chapter of Kelim (phew!), deals with the rules of purity that relate to glass vessels.

טבלא – table.

Glass vessels--those that are flat are pure and those that have receptacles are susceptible. This general rule was already taught in 15:1.

אסקוטלא (a salver or a waiter of nearly square form) – in the foreign language, we call a dish SHEKOTILA. But here we are speaking of a flat dish, which does not have a receptacle, but rather that from underneath it, a small receptacle is connected to it that serves when we turn it upside down on its face, similar to what our silver and glass cups have.

After they are broken they become clean. If he again made vessels of them they become susceptible to uncleanness from that point and onward. Once a glass vessel is broken, it is not usable. Therefore it is pure it loses any impurity that it once had, and it is not susceptible to impurity. If one repaired the glass such that it could again be used, it is considered a new vessel and is susceptible to impurity from that point and onward. It does not regain its old impurity.

יש להן לבזבז (they have a vertical rim/edge – by which a flat vessel is made into a vessel—like receptacle) – a rim all around, the vertical rim makes it a vessel that has a receptacle.

A glass tray or a flat dish is pure. If it has a rim it is susceptible. These glass vessels are usually flat. Therefore, they are pure. However, if they have a rim, they are susceptible to impurity because they have a receptacle.

שולי קערה ושולי אסקוטלא (bottoms of a flat dish) – when the place of their usage is broken, there remains a small receptacle and he turns it over and uses it, but nevertheless they are ritually pure, for the rims are not considered a vessel, because the place of the break that injuries the hands when they hold it.

The concave bottom of a glass bowl or plate which was adapted for use is pure. If it was polished or scraped with a file it becomes susceptible to uncleanness. This section refers to the bottom of a bowl or plate that remained after the bowl or plate was broken. The person then made some modification so that he could use them. Despite the fact that these do now have a receptacle, and would seem to be susceptible to impurity, they are still pure because the edges are still rough. However, if he polished the edges, the vessel is now susceptible to impurity because it is finished.

קרטסן או שפן (if he scraped them or filed them) – he repaired them and made them smooth until their were appropriate to be used in the same receptacle, they are impure, for they are no longer the shards of a vessel.

בשופין (with files) – a vessel that that refines and iron artisans remove the rust/mold and smooth/level the vessels. The Aramaic translation of הצריפים/those who smelt, refine is שופינא/file. LIMA in the foreign language.

אספקלריא (window-glass) – a glass mirror that a woman sees her face in. And in the foreign language ISPAKLAV. But even if it has a receptacle, it is ritually pure, for it is not used to receive anything, but only to look at the shape/form of the face.

A mirror is pure. A mirror is pure because it is a glass vessel without a receptacle.

תמחוי – like a kind of large glass tray.

A tray that was made into a mirror remains susceptible, but if it was originally made to serve as a mirror it is pure. A glass tray is susceptible to impurity. Therefore, even if he backs it up with some metal to be able to use it as a mirror, it is still considered a tray and it is still susceptible to impurity. However, if he made it to be a mirror from the outset, it is pure, even if it could be used as a tray. Reading this mishnah made me a bit curious concerning the history of mirror making. I found the following in Wikipedia: Metal-coated glass mirrors are said to have been invented in Sidon (modern-day Lebanon) in the first century AD,[6] and glass mirrors backed with gold leaf are mentioned by the Roman author Pliny in his Natural History, written in about 77 AD.[7] The Romans also developed a technique for creating crude mirrors by coating blown glass with molten lead.[8] It would seem that our mishnah would serve as additional evidence for the existence of glass mirrors during the first two centuries C.E. If any of you out there are Wikipedia editors, maybe you should even write this reference in!

תרוד (spoon – pointed on top and curved at the end) – a glass spoon.

A large [glass] spoon that has been placed on a table is susceptible to uncleanness if it can hold anything whatsoever. The test of whether this spoon is susceptible is whether it can stand on a table and still retain its liquid. If it can, everyone considers it a vessel and it is susceptible to impurity.

ואם לאו – if when he places it on the table or on a flat surface it rolls to here and there and what is in it spills, because it is sharp underneath and does not stand.

But if it cannot do so: Rabbi Akiva says that it is susceptible, And Rabbi Yohanan ben Nuri says that it is pure. If the spoon cannot hold liquids when placed on the table, Rabbi Akiva still considers it impure. Rabbi Yohanan ben Nuri says that it is pure.

ר' עקיבא מטמא – for since it has a receptacle. And the Halakha is according to Rabbi Akiba.

כוס – of glass.

Introduction This mishnah deals with the purity of glass cups.

שנפגם רובו טהור (that the majority of which is cracked/broken off) – that it is considered a broken vessel/fragment of a vessel.

A cup the greater part of which is broken off is pure. If most of the cup is broken off, it is unusable and no longer susceptible to impurity.

מפגם בו שלש ברובו – that the three notches/cracks stand in the majority of the cup but not in its minority.

If it was broken in three places extending over its greater part it is pure. If there are three breaks spread out onto the greater part of the cup, it is also pure. However, if the three cracks are all in the same place and most of the cup is intact, the cup can remain impure or susceptible to impurity.

Rabbi Shimon says: if it lets the greater part of the water leak out it is pure. Rabbi Shimon adds that if the cracks are sufficient such that it lets most of the water out, then it is pure.

אם מפזר הוא את רוב המים טהור (if it scatters/disperses the majority of the water – it is pure) – but with a minority, it is ritually impure. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Shimon.

If a hole appeared in it and it was mended with tin or pitch it is pure. Rabbi Yose says: if with tin it is susceptible to uncleanness, but if with pitch it is pure. According to the first opinion, even though he fixed the hole in the cup with tin or pitch it is still pure. According to this opinion, it is not really possible to fix glass cups. Rabbi Yose holds that if one fixes the cup with tin it is considered repaired and is again susceptible to impurity. He agrees that if it is fixed with pitch, it is still not susceptible. Assumedly, the one drinking from the cup will taste/smell the pitch while he will not taste or smell the tin.

בבעץ – with tin.

רבי יוסי אומר בבעץ טמא – for everything follows after what restores it/preserves it, and it is considered like a metal vessel. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yossi.

צלוחית – that is similar to our glass flash that has a long neck.

Introduction The final mishnah of Kelim (yes, it really is) deals with the purity of various glass flasks.

שניטל פיה – whose neck was removed.

A small flask whose neck was removed remains susceptible to uncleanness, A small flask whose neck was removed is still usable. Therefore, it is still susceptible to impurity.

ובגדולה – that is not able to be carried with one hand, but only with two hands is called a large [flask], but that which can be carried with one hand is called a small [flask].

But a large one whose neck was removed becomes pure. However, a large flask used to store oil or wine, one that requires two hands to hold, can no longer be used if its neck is broken because its contents will be spilled.

של פלייטון (an ointment or oil prepared from leaves of spikenard) – of balsam oil.

[A small flask] of spikenard oil whose neck was removed becomes pure, since it scratches the hand. Spikenard oil is a fragrant oil used for perfume. One would use this oil by putting a finger into the flask and then dabbing the oil onto one's body. If the flask's neck is broken one will cut one's hand when taking out the oil. Since the flask cannot be used properly, it is not susceptible to impurity.

Large flagons whose necks were removed remain susceptible to uncleanness, since they are adapted for the use of holding pickled foods. Large flagons (a type of jar) whose neck is broken off can still be used to pickle vegetables. Therefore, they are still susceptible.

מפני שהיא סורחת את היד (because it lacerates/catches the hand – when you attempt to get the aromatic unguent out) – one who goes to place his hand inside to take from the ointment of spikenard to smell it, his hand is lacerated and scratched and torn, [The word] סורחת like [the word] סורכת with [the letter] "כ" is the language of an adhesion/סרכא.

A glass funnel is clean. Glass vessels must have a receptacle to be susceptible to impurity. Therefore, a glass funnel is pure.

לגינין (bottle, flask/flagon – smaller than a pitcher but larger than a cup) – like large pitchers.

Rabbi Yose said: Happy are you Kelim; for you began with uncleanness, but you ended with cleanness. Even Rabbi Yose wanted to celebrate when finishing Tractate Kelim. The first mishnah in the chapter, which we learned on October 31 (!), over eight months ago, dealt with the "fathers of impurity." In other words, the tractate began by dealing with matters of impurity and the final section of the last mishnah deals with a vessel that is pure. Thus we have moved from a state of impurity to purity. Congratulations! We have completed Tractate Kelim! I bet you never thought this day would really come. Seriously, as I always write, it is a tradition at this point to thank God for helping us finish learning the tractate and to commit ourselves to going back and relearning it, so that we may not forget it and so that its lessons will stay with us for all of our lives. Kelim is the longest tractate in the Mishnah, and as I noted above, we began to learn it many months ago. While it is at times hard for us to comprehend, the laws of purity were a major part of the religious life of Jews from the time of the Torah through the Second Temple period, and as we see, continued to be a major focus of rabbinic law. I do admit that the tractate did tend to get a bit detailed (understatement) and without a clear picture of what all of these vessels looked like, it is hard to understand some of the laws. Nevertheless, we did learn some important principles that will help us throughout the rest of our learning. I am sure that we will review most of these as we can continue to learn together. Our learning of Seder Toharot continues tomorrow with Tractate Ohalot, where we learn the laws associated the impurity of a dead body.

מתקנין לכבשים (repairs them for use for pickled/preserved things) – when they pickle in them a vegetable in salt and in vinegar and leave the there to be established.

אפרכס (the hopper, grain-receiver on top of the millstone) – a vessel that is made for the millstone, wide from the top and narrow from the bottom at its rims, and they place in it a lot of wheat at one time and they (i.e., the wheat kernels) go down gradually into the millstone and they are ground there. And an example of this we found at the beginning of [Tractate] Hagigah [3a]: “Make your ear like the hopper to receive the teaching,” for one brings in a lot and it produces a little.

אשריך כלים – Tractate Kelim.

שנכנסת בטומאה ויצאת בטהרה – it begins with the primary sources of uncleanness and the glass hopper/grain-receive on top of the receiver concludes in purity.