Comentario sobre Niddah 2:14

כל היד המרבה לבדוק – that always examines [herself] lest she see it (i.e., blood).

Introduction Today's mishnah deals with a woman examining oneself to see if she had begun to menstruate.

ובאנשים – [a man] who always examines himself in his membrum virile (see Tractate Niddah 13a), lest his emission went out from him.

Every hand that makes frequent examination: In the case of women is praiseworthy, But in the case of men it ought to be cut off. The rabbis consider it praiseworthy for a woman to frequently examine herself to see if she has begun to menstruate. Such frequent examinations would ensure that she didn't defile vessels and food and it would make sure that she didn't have intercourse while menstruating. However, the rabbis took quite a strict stance against male masturbation. "Spilling the seed" was a grave sin according to rabbinic halakhah. The rabbis feared that a man who frequently checked to see if he had ejaculated would cause himself (either intentionally or unintentionally) to ejaculate. Therefore, men should not frequently examine themselves.

תקצץ (should be cut off) – who warms himself and feels his membrum virile when he warms himself (i.e., masturbates), and removes/spills semen in vain.

In the case of a deaf, an person not of sound senses, a blind or an insane woman, if other women of sound senses are available they attend to her, and they may eat terumah. The categories of women listed in this mishnah are not considered to have "da'at" which I usually translate as awareness. Here it seems to mean that they are not able to be responsible for themselves to determine when they are menstruating. If they have other women attending to them, they may eat terumah, which may only be done by a pure person.

וסומא – but it is not Mishnah and is inoperative/suspended, but rather, she examines herself and shows it to her friends.

It is the custom of the daughters of Israel to have intercourse using two testing-rags, one for the man and the other for herself. Virtuous women prepare also a third rag to prepare the "house" [before intercourse]. According to the mishnah, Jewish women have the custom of checking themselves by using two testing rags one to test herself and the other to give to her husband to see if blood was found on him. This blood would be a sign that she is menstruating. "Virtuous" (alt. "modest") women examine themselves not only after intercourse but before as well to make sure that she is pure. The mishnah refers to a woman's vagina as "the house." This same phrase is used in Mikvaot 8:4. I'm guessing that nicknames for a person's genitals is a cultural universal.

ושנטרפה דעתה (confused, not fully conscious) – on account of illness.

מתקינות אותן – they examine them (i.e., those who are confused/not fully conscious) and immerse them [as needed].

And this is the reading: הצנועות מתקנות להן שלישי לתקן את הבית – that is to say, to examine before sexual intercourse and to prepare herself for her husband, and the same law applies for all women as is taught in the first chapter [of Tractate Niddah] and at the time that she passes to passes to have intercourse with her husband, for it (i.e., the Mishnah) took [the terminology], "צנועות"/modest (i.e., pious) the cloth (literally, “the witness”) that she examines herself before this intercourse she does not examine herself with it for another intercourse because it is soiled/filthy and dull/shaded in its white appearance with the first examination, and furthermore, the drop [of blood] like mustard is not seen.

נמצא על שלו – even if he waited a long time after coition prior to wiping, it is known that there was blood at the time of sexual intercourse.

Introduction Today's mishnah deals with what happens if blood is found on one of the testing-rags after a couple have intercourse.

טמאין – both of them (i.e., the husband and the wife) are defiled for seven days, like the law of someone who has intercourse with a menstruant woman.

If [blood] is found on his rag they are both unclean and they are liable to bring a sacrifice. If any blood is found on the rag which the man uses to check himself then we can be sure that it came from the woman. They are both unclean for seven days as is the rule for a menstruant and the man who has relations with her (see Leviticus 15:24). In addition, they must both bring a sin-offering, which is the rule for any unintentional transgression which when done intentionally carries with it the penalty of "karet."

אותיום – immediately, and there is no [term] similar to this in the Mishnah.

If any blood is found on her rag immediately after their intercourse, they are both unclean and must bring a sacrifice. If [blood] is found on her rag after a time, they are unclean due to doubt but they are exempt from a sacrifice. If blood is found on her rag and it is found immediately after intercourse, then we can be assured that it is menstrual blood that was there during intercourse. Both are impure and liable for a sacrifice. However, if it is found later on, since she didn't clean herself immediately, then we can't be sure that it was there during intercourse. Perhaps she only began to bleed later. In such a case the man is "doubtfully" impure, which means that if he touched terumah it can't be eaten but it also is not burned because we are not sure he is impure. She is impure in any case. They are exempt from bringing a sin-offering because sin-offerings are not brought unless one is certain of a transgression, and it is not certain that she was menstruating when they had intercourse.

טמאים מספק – both of them are impure for seven days. But however, it is a doubtful impurity [in that she doubtfully saw blood at the time of intercourse and/or didn’t see blood at the time of intercourse, but only after the sexual intercourse) leaves it in abeyance but not to burn [a sin-offering].

ופטורים מן הקרבן – from a regular sin-offering, but they are liable for an uncertain guilt-offering [brought by one who is uncertain as to whether he committed a sin that requires a sin-offering; it was also called the guilt-offering of the pious].

ותדיח את פניה – wiping that of the bed.

Introduction Our mishnah is related to yesterday's mishnah where we learned that if the woman sees blood some time after having had intercourse she only defiles her husband from "doubt." The mishnah explains how long is considered "after time."

ואח"כ – meaning to say, if she delayed more than this measure [of time] (see Talmud Niddah 14b).

What is meant by "after a time"? As long as it takes to get down from the bed and wash her "face." "After a time" is considered to be as long as it would take the woman to get down from the bed and wash her "face." The word "face" here is another euphemism for the woman's vagina.

מטמאה מעת לעת- [ritually] pure things that she was engaged with. Like the law of checking every astronomical period of twenty-four hours as we stated in the first chapter (Mishnah 1).

[If blood was found some time] after she causes uncleanness retrospectively for a period of twenty-four hours but she does not cause the man who had intercourse with her to be unclean. Rabbi Akiva says: she also causes the man who had intercourse with her to be unclean. If she finds blood after this time, then she is still impure in the usual way. Everything she has touched in the last 24 hour period (or less if she examined herself during this period) is impure. However, she does not cause her husband to be defiled. In other words there are three time periods. If she finds blood immediately, he is certainly impure. If she finds it "after a time" meaning during the time period in which she could get off the bed and clean herself, he is doubtfully impure. If she finds it later, he is not impure. Rabbi Akiva says that he is impure. Evidently, Rabbi Akiva does not believe that there is much doubt here that she was already menstruating when they had intercourse.

ואינה מטמאה את בועלה –[she does not impart uncleanness to him who had sexual relations with her] for a defilement of seven days, but rather, the defilement of one evening, according to the law of anyone who comes in contact with a menstruant woman.

And the sages agree with Rabbi Akiva that one who saw a bloodstain defiles the man who had intercourse with her. The sages agree with Rabbi Akiva in a case where she finds a bloodstain on her clothing or on the sheet. This bloodstain is a more certain sign that she was menstruating when they had intercourse. Therefore the rabbis rule stringently.

ר' עקיבא אומר אף מטמאה את בועלה – that Rabbi Akiva holds that every astronomical period of twenty-four hours she defiles the person who had sexual relations with her a doubtful seven day period of defilement. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Akiva.

ומודים חכמים לר' עקיבא ברואה כתם (a blood stain on part of her clothing where it is attributable to uterine bleeding) – and even though that in the defilement of an astronomical period of twenty-four hours the Sages stated that she does not defile the person who had sexual relations with her because the defilement of an astronomical period of twenty-four hours is not other than only from the Rabbis, they agree with regard to seeing a blood stain on her clothing, that even though the defilement of a blood stain is according to the Rabbis, it defiles the person who had sexual relations with her a seven day period of [ritual] defilement.

כל הנשים בחזקת טהרה לבעליהן – and he doesn’t need to ask her if she is [ritually] pure. And these words [apply], when he left her in a presumption/state of [ritual] purity.

All women are in the presumption of being pure for their husband. What this means is that men do not need to ask their wives before they have intercourse if they are menstruating. Men can assume that their wives are ritually pure and that if they were menstruating, they would let them know.

הבאין מן הדרך נשיהן להן בחזקת טהורה – that you might think I would say that these words [apply], where that he is in the town, that he is lying to her and she examined herself, but not where he is not in the town, that he didn’t lie to her, it comes to teach the opposite. Two pieces of cloth for every sexual intercourse. One before and one afterwards, and on the morrow, she will examine them (see Tractate Niddah 15a).

For those who return from a journey, their wives are in the presumption of being pure. One might have thought that when a man is away from the house, his wife might not be careful about her own ritual purity. After all, she is not supposed to be having sex while he is away, so why should she care about being ritually pure? The mishnah teaches that even so, when he returns home, he can assume that his wife is pure, for if she was not, she would tell him.

Bet Shammai says: a woman needs two testing-rags for every time she has intercourse, or she must have relations in the light of a lamp. Bet Hillel says: two testing-rags suffice her for the whole night. If a woman has sexual relations with her husband multiple times during the night, the mishnah says that she needs two testing-rags for each time, one for her and one for him. In the morning, when it is light outside, she can look at them to see if any rag has blood on it. Alternatively, she should check the rags by light after each intercourse to make sure there is no blood on it from the previous time before she uses it to check on herself again. There are two explanations for Bet Hillel's position. Either they can simply use two testing rags one time at the end of the night, after the last time they have intercourse. Alternatively, this might mean that they can simply use the same rags to check themselves repeatedly throughout the night.

או תשמש לאור הנר – and she will heck after sexual intercourse until she wipes herself with it (i.e., the cloth).

דיה בשני עדים כל הלילה – one prior to the first sexual intercourse, and one after the final sexual intercourse. But even though that she did not know if she had seen blood between one and the other [act of sexual intercourse], whether according to the School of Shammai or whether according to the School of Hillel, it does not matter to us, for it was not needed other than for matter of [ritual] purity.

החדר והעליה והפרוזדור – the inner part of the female genitals/upper end of the vagina/uterus {חדר) from within, and the forepart of the female genitals/lower end of the vagina/uterus(פרוזדור) from without, both of them are one next to the other, with the inner part of the female genitals/upper end of the vagina/uterus(חדר) to the side in back of it, and the lower end of the vagina/uterus in front of it, and an upper chamber (עליה) built o top of both of them, and there is an hole/perforation (נקב) between it and the lower end of the vagina/uterus called a לול/a passage from the vestibulum vaginae, and sometimes blood comes from the upper chamber to the lower end of the vagina/uterus (פרוזדור) via the passage from the vestibulum vaginae (לול) . And the sides/walls of the womb are below in the middle of the lower end of the vagina/uterus (פרוזדור) and through there the blood exits.

Introduction Today's mishnah distinguishes between pure and impure blood that flow from various sources in a woman's body.

דם החדר טמא – that is the interior of the womb from where the menses are discharged (המקור) .

The sages spoke of a woman through a metaphor: A chamber, a vestibule and an upper chamber. The blood of the chamber is unclean, If blood is found in the vestibule, and there arises a doubt about its character, it is deemed unclean, because it is presumed to have come from the source. Building upon their analogy of a woman as a "house" (see mishnah one) the rabbis use a "house" metaphor to describe a woman's anatomy. There are many disagreements as to what parts of the anatomy these actually refer to. I will use Maimonides interpretation.

ספיקו טמא – it is [ritually] impure from doubt of a definite impurity/defilement.

There are three parts to a house and to the woman's anatomy. The "chamber" is equivalent to her uterus. The "vestibule" is the vagina. And the upper chamber is the cavity that contains the ovaries and fallopian tubes.

שחזקתו מן המקור – but we don’t say that perhaps it (i.e., the blood) comes from the upper chamber (עליה) for the blood of the upper chamber is pure, but they made it as if it definitely comes from the interior of the womb where the menses are discharged(המקור) . But these words [apply] when it is found from the vestibulum vaginae (לול) and internally to the side of the upper end of the vagina/uterus(חדר) , but if it (i.e., the blood) is found from the vestibulum vaginae (לול) and outwards, it is not impure a definitive defilement to burn it - but it is a doubtful defilement to hold it in abeyance, for two [types] of blood go out through that passage – the blood of the upper end of the vagina/uterus (חדר) and the blood of the upper chamber (עליה) – and we don’t know which comes (see also Maimonides’ Mishneh Torah, Hilkhot Issurei Biah, Chapter 5, Halakhot 3-5).

Blood that comes from the chamber is unclean. This is the source of menstrual blood. The implication in this mishnah is that if the blood comes from the upper chamber, it is clean. I am not entirely sure how it could be determined if the blood came from the upper chamber.

If blood is found on the vagina, and it is unclear whether it came from the uterus or not, the blood must be treated as unclean because it must be presumed to come from the "source" which is another word for the uterus. The practical implication of this is that if the woman touches terumah, the terumah is unclean and may not be eaten, but it is not burned. Only certainly impure terumah is burned.

חמשה דמים טמאים – in Scripture it is written "דמיה"/her blood - twice regarding the defilement of the blood that is in a woman (Leviticus 20:18): “and she has exposed her blood flow”/והיא גלתה את-מקור דמיה" and (Leviticus 12:7): “she shall then be pure from her flow of blood”/וטהרה ממקר דמיה and the limitation of her blood is two, which makes four bloods: red, the color of bright-colored crocus, and [blood] which is like water mixed with earth and [blood] which is like water mixed with wine. But the black [color] is included within red, and this we state in the Gemara (Tractate Niddah 19a) this black is red but that it was afflicted by disease.

Introduction The rabbis distinguished pure blood (blood that is not considered to have come from the uterus) from impure blood (uterine blood) by virtue of its color. In our mishnah the rabbis list which colors are pure and which are not.

וכקרן כרכום – like the appearance of the splendor of crocus/saffron, the language of (Exodus 34:29): “that the skin of his (i.e., Moses’) face was radiant.”

Five kinds of blood in a woman are unclean: red, black, like bright crocus, like earthy water, or like diluted wine. All of these shades are considered to be menstrual blood and are impure. Tomorrow's mishnah will further describe these shades and what real world things actually look like them.

וכמימי אדמה – all of them our Mishnah explains further on (see Mishnah 7).

Bet Shammai says: also like fenugreek water or the juice of roasted meat. But Bet Hillel declares these clean. Bet Shammai and Bet Hillel disagree as to whether blood the color or fenugreek water or the juice of roasted meat is impure. This is likely a very weak red color.

וכמזוג - like red wine that is mixed in water.

One that is yellow: Akavia ben Mahalalel declares unclean And the sages declare clean. We should note that the word that I have translated here as yellow is actually green. The truth is that in the ancient world the two colors were often identified as one. Indeed the words for yellow and green don't even appear that often in the Mishnah (mostly in Tractate Negaim). Since blood is usually red, it is likely that the word "green" here means a pale color, such as that of an etrog. In any case, the status of this blood is also disputed.

וכמימי תלתן – water that they steep in it fenugree. PINKEERIKO in the foreign language.

Rabbi Meir said: even if it does not convey uncleanness as a bloodstain it conveys uncleanness as a liquid. Rabbi Yose says: it does neither the one nor the other. Referring to this yellow blood, Rabbi Meir says that while he agrees with Rabbi Akiva that this blood does not count as a menstrual stain, the blood is still impure because it is a liquid that comes from a menstruant. As we will learn in 4:3, urine and spit that come from a menstruant (and some other categories of impure people) are impure. Rabbi Yose disagrees with Rabbi Meir and says that according to those sages who say that such blood is not menstrual blood, it is also not impure due to liquid impurity. Only spit and urine are impure.

וכמימי בשר צלי – thin secretion that comes out from roasted meat.

ובית הלל מתירין – There are three disputes in the matter. The first Tanna/teacher who stated that there are five impure bloods and nothing more. He holds that the waters of fenugreek and the waters of waters of roasted meat are suspended, we don’t eat nor do we burn them. But the School of Shammai defiles them, and burns upon them heave-offering and holy things. But the School of Hillel makes them completely pure. And the Halakha is according to the first Tanna/teacher, who suspends them/holds them in abeyance.

עקביא בן מהללאל מטמא (see also Tractate Eduyot, Chapter 5, Mishnah 6) – that he holds that this green is like the color of the bright-colored crocus, but that it was afflicted with disease. But the green that Akavya ben Mehalalel defiles this is like the appearance of the Etrog, but not like the appearance of leek-green stuff, which does not turn to a reddish color at all.

וחכמים מטהרין – and there are three disputes also regarding the green. The first Tanna/teacher holds that we hold it in suspense/abeyance we don’t consume it nor do we burn it. But Akavya ben Mehalalel defiles it and burns it. And the Sages purify it and consume it. But the Halakha is according to the first Tanna/teacher.

אם אינו מטמא משום כתם(if I does not impart uncleanness because it is a bloodstain) – to be considered from among the bloods that defile a woman.

מטמא משום משקה – and considered as blood to make seeds susceptible to receive ritual impurity like all the rest of blood. And it is one of the seven liquids that make the seeds susceptible (see Tracttae Makhshirin, Chapter 6, Mishnah 4).

לא כך ולא כך – it does not defile because of being a bloodstain, nor does it make seeds susceptible [to receive ritual impurity]. But the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yossi, and he is “the Sages” that dispute against Akavya [ben Mehalalel].

כדם המכה – like the blood of slaughtered bull which is very red. And at the beginning of the striking/assault of a knife, but not like the blood of all of the slaughtering [process], for the blood of the slaughtering continually changes. And there are those who say, like the blood of the wound of opening of the vein (i.e., the splashing blood).

Introduction Today's mishnah explains the colors found in section one of yesterday's mishnah.

כחרת (sediment of ink) – like the drop of ink that is at the bottom of the vessel/printer, which is very black, and not like the appearance of the ink at the top of the vessel which is thin/weak and not so black. Another explanation: חרת is ADARMONDIT in the foreign tongue, where they color the leather skins like the blacking used by shoemakers (see Tractate Shabbat 104b), that is deeper than this, which is deep like the appearance of blackness, meaning to say, blacker than sediment of ink.

What is considered red? Like the red of a wound. Red is simply like the color of blood that flows from a wound.

דיהה (fainter) – that its appearance is faint and not so black. And the same law applies for all the impure bloods, that in all of them, if deeper than this, it is impure, but fainter than this, it is pure, except for mixed wine, that whether deeper or whether fainter, is pure.

Black: Like ink-sediment. Darker than this is impure. Lighter than this is pure. Black refers to the black ink used to dye shoes. If it is darker than this black, it is impure. But if it is a lighter shade of black, it is pure.

כברור שבו (like the brightest shade in it)– that has bright leaves in a reddish appearance more than their andp examine other than in the middle row, and the middle leaf that is in the middle row is more praiseworthy of them all for examination.

Like bright crocus: like the clearest shade in it. The color of the blood that matches the crocus flower must be like the brightest shade of the crocus.

מבקעת בית הכרם – a [well -] known place in the Land of Israel whose name is Bet Kerem (see Tractate Middot, Chapter 3, Mishnah 4).

Like earthy water: from the Bet Kerem valley, when water floats over it. To determine the color of the earthy water, one should bring earth from the Bet Kerem valley, which Albeck says is in the north. Then water should be floated above this earth. The color of the water is the color of the red described in the mishnah.

ומציף מים – places water on the dirt, until the water floats on top of the dirt [from Bet Kerem] and we estimate them as turbid, but we don’t estimate them as clear-flowing.

Like diluted wine: two parts water, one part wine, from wine of the Sharon. As we have learned on many occasions, in the Greco-Roman world, wine was drunk diluted with water. Typically, this consisted of two parts water, one part wine. Thus, this is the color of the diluted wine used as a reference point in the previous mishnah. The wine should be the wine from the Sharon, which is also in the northern part of Israel.

וכמזוג – how?

שני חלקים מים ואחד יין מן היין השרוני – that comes from the land of Sharon, a place well-known place in the Land of Israel. Another explanation: wine that is made from the vines planted in the group of fields/plain and in the valley. It is the language of (Song of Songs 2:1): “A rose of Sharon.” But in this time, all that you see in a woman from the same place, is [ritually] impure, except from the white and the green. And from our days, we did not hear of he who declared pure any appearance of blood, other than only the white and the green of leeks.