Si l'un d'entre eux était près du mur de son voisin, [formant un angle droit avec lui], il ne peut en mettre un autre à moins qu'il ne le place à quatre coudées. [S'il venait mettre un deuxième mur contre le mur de son voisin pour que les trois murs forment une sorte de beth, son voisin peut l'arrêter jusqu'à ce qu'il l'éloigne de quatre coudées pour qu'il y ait assez de place entre les deux murs pour que les gens puissent marcher po Pour fouler le sol près du mur renforce et raffermit les fondations des murs. Ceci, uniquement avec un mur de jardin ou un mur dans la cour d'une ville nouvelle, où peu de gens ont foulé, et où le terrain n'a pas été suffisamment fortifié. Mais avec un mur dans la cour d'une vieille ville, il peut rejoindre les murs et ne pas avoir besoin de les éloigner. De même, si le mur de son voisin était plus court que quatre coudées, il n'a pas besoin de distance (son mur), car un mur de moins de quatre coudées ne nécessite aucun renforcement.] Et les fenêtres—au-dessus, au-dessous et en face, quatre coudées. [S'il avait une fenêtre au-dessus de son mur, et que son voisin a construit un mur en face de sa fenêtre, en dessous—s'il y avait moins de quatre coudées du haut du mur qu'il a construit jusqu'à la fenêtre, il peut le contraindre à l'abaisser, afin qu'il ne se tienne pas dessus et ne regarde pas par la fenêtre. S'il avait une fenêtre en bas sur son mur, il peut le contraindre à élever le mur qu'il a construit en face de quatre coudées plus haut que la fenêtre, afin qu'il ne regarde pas à l'intérieur. Et en face: il doit éloigner le mur de quatre coudées de la fenêtre pour ne pas en bloquer la lumière.]
Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Batra
מי שהיה כותלו סמוך לכותל חבירו – in the form of a גא"ם/Gamma – an angle, and he comes to make a second wall opposite the wall of his fellow until he makes the three walls like the form of the [Hebrew letter] "בי"ת"/Bet, his fellow will prevent him, until he distances it from opposite him four cubits, in order that the place between the two walls will be wide and many will be able to tread there. For the walking of feet on the ground nearest the wall strengthens the foundations of the wall and preserves them. And especially the wall of a garden or he wall of a courtyard that is in a new city where many have not [yet] tread, and the ground was not strengthened as much as needed through treading of the feet [of people]. But, in the wall of a courtyard that is in an old city is supported and there is no need to distance it. And similarly, if the wall of his fellow was not four cubits or more, he doesn’t have to distance it, for a wall that is less than four cubits does not need strengthening.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Batra
Introduction
Mishnah four discusses how far a person must distance his wall from his neighbor’s walls.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Batra
ובחלונות מלמעלן מלמטן ומכנגדן ד' אמות – he had a wall above his wall and his fellow built a wall opposite the window from below. If there remained from the top of the wall that he built up until the window less than four cubits in height, he forces him to lower the wall in order tha the not stand on the top of the wall and look out through the window.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Batra
If one’s wall was adjacent to his friend’s wall he may not build another wall adjoining it unless it is at a distance of four cubits. If a person already owns a wall adjacent to his friend’s wall, he may wish to add another wall, thereby creating a three walled structure. If he wishes to do that he must leave four cubits between the new wall and his friend’s wall in order that people will walk near his friend’s wall. It was believed that people walking near a wall would strengthen the foundations of the wall. If he didn’t leave enough room next to his friend’s wall people would not walk there, thereby depriving his friend of that benefit.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Batra
מלמטן – the window was lower than the wall, he forces his fellow to raise the wall that he built opposite him at the height of four cubits from the window in order that he should not see him.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Batra
And [if he builds a wall opposite his friend’s] windows, whether it is higher or lower than them or level with them, it may not be within four cubits. If a person wishes to build a wall opposite another person’s windows he must fulfill three conditions: 1) If the wall is higher than the window it must be more than four cubits higher so that he will not be able to use his wall to look into his friend’s window. 2) If the wall is lower than the window it must be more than four cubits lower so that he will not be able to stand on the wall and look into the window. 3) If it is across, it must be four cubits away so that it will not block the light going into the other window.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Batra
ומכנגד – he must distance the wall from the window four cubits in order that he will not obscure his light.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Batra
Questions for Further Thought: • Why is the mishnah so concerned with people looking into other people’s windows? What does this teach us about privacy?
