Commentaire sur Erouvin 9:6

כל גגות העיר רשות אחד – and even though that the inhabitants below are divided into two [kinds of] people, nevertheless, the roofs whose usage is not frequent, they do not have the division of the domain and utensils that were kept for the Sabbath on this roof, it is permitted to reove them to the other [roof].

Introduction This mishnah deals with carrying from one roof to another. In order to understand this mishnah we need to remember that without an eruv it is only prohibited to carry things from the house to the courtyard. Even without an eruv it is permitted to carry things from one courtyard to another, provided those things were in the courtyard when Shabbat began.

ובלבד שלא יהא גג גבוה מחבירו י' -that if it is divided from them at the height of ten [handbreadths] it is forbidden to carry from it to the [other] roofs, as a decree because of a mound/hill that is ten [handbreadths] high and four [handbreadths] wide in the public thoroughfare [which is the private domain] that they would not come to carry upon him.

All the roofs of a town are a single domain, provided no roof is ten handbreadths higher or lower [than the neighboring roof], the words of Rabbi Meir. According to Rabbi Meir, one is allowed to carry vessels from roof to roof even without an eruv, as long as the vessels were on the roof when Shabbat began. However, if one roof is higher or lower ten handbreadths than the next, it is prohibited, since they are then considered to be two different domains.

כל אחד רשות לעצמו – if the inhabitants who are below did not make an Eruv, it is prohibited to carry from this [roof] to that [roof].

The Sages say: each one is its own domain. The Sages hold that just as it is prohibited to carry from one house to another without an eruv, so too it is prohibited to carry from one roof to another without an eruv. In other words, the roof is treated as an extension of the house below. In contrast, it is permitted to carry from courtyard to courtyard because there is no area below which is prohibited.

ר' שמעון – is more lenient than all of them, and he states, that roofs and courtyards and outside areas [of seventy cubits added to city limits for purposes of Sabbath distances] which ae not more than a field requiring one Seah of seed since for all of hem their usage is not unique and frequent, they are one domain, and we carry from one to the other without an Eruv, and evn if there roofs that were higher than ten [handbreadths] or much lower than ten [handbreadths], for Rabbi Shimon does not hold by [the concept] of עירובי חצרות/borders of courtyards except because of the utensils of the house.

Rabbi Shimon says: roofs, courtyards and karpafs are all one domain with regard to objects that were within them when Shabbat began, but not with regard to objects that were in the house when Shabbat began. Rabbi Shimon holds that it is permitted to carry from roof to roof, from courtyard to courtyard and from karpaf to karpaf (a karpaf is a small area behind the home used to store wood or other things) as long as the vessels were in those areas (and not in the house) when Shabbat began. However, if they were in the house when Shabbat began, without an eruv it is forbidden to take them out. Rabbi Shimon basically agrees with Rabbi Meir but does not make any exception for roofs which are ten handbreadths higher or lower than the others.

כלים ששבתו בתוכן – utensils that were spending Shabbat/made their Sabbath camp in one oft hem, we remove them one to the other.

ולא לכלים ששבת בתוך הבית – and he brought them out to the courtyard through the members of the courtyard making an Eruv, it is prohibited to remove them from this courtyard to another courtyard if they didn’t make an Eruv for the two courtyards together. And the Halakha is according to Rabbi Shimon.

הגדול מותר – to remove for himself a house utensil that is below, but the members of the small [roof] are forbidden on it. For relating to the large [roof] this breach is an opening and it is permitted with those railings/rims that are a bit larger from this side and a bit from that side, like a railing that is around the roofs and is considered a closing/cover. But, as for example, that the breach is not more than ten [handbreadths]. But a small [roof], it is prohibited to remove for him utensils of the house for the members of the large [roof] forbid him, for behold it was broken through in its entirety.

Introduction This mishnah deals with situations in which an area, either a roof or a courtyard, is missing one wall. As we shall see, if the wall is totally missing, it is prohibited to carry in this area.

הגדולה מותרת – [the large courtyard is permitted] for the railings/rims that remained tto it from one side and from the other, for this breach is an opening.

A large roof close to a small roof: the large one is permitted but that of the small one is forbidden. The mishnah describes a situation where there is a large roof and a small roof that share one wall. The fourth wall of the small roof is totally open to the large roof. Since the small roof has only three closed walls, it is forbidden to carry on the small roof. However, the large roof’s fourth side is not completely open to the small roof; only the middle part of that side is open. At the ends of each side, there would be existing sections of walls. These partial walls count as a full wall and it is permitted to carry on the larger roof.

והקטנה אסורה – for behold, it was breached entirely. And specifically when it was breached prior to Shabbat, but if was breached on Shabbat, even the small courtyard is permitted [for carrying], for sice it was permitted for part of Shabbat prior to its being breached, it was permitted for all of Shabbat.

If [the wall of a] large courtyard which shared a wall with a small courtyard was broken down, the use of the large one is permitted, but that of the smaller one is forbidden, because the gap is like a doorway to the large one. This section is exactly the same situation as above, but it describes courtyards instead of roofs. The gap in the wall is like a doorway for the larger courtyard, but for the small courtyard the gap means that it is simply a missing wall. Therefore, it is forbidden to carry in the smaller courtyard.

חצר שנפרצה לרה"ר – that the wall fell that is facing into the public thoroughfare completely, or more than ten [handbreadths].

If [the wall of a] courtyard which shared a wall with the public domain was broken down, one who brings from it into a private domain or from a private domain into it is liable, the words of Rabbi Eliezer. The sages say: from it into the public domain or from the public domain into it he is exempt because it is like a karmelit. In this case, the wall of a courtyard is broken and opens to the public domain. The wall is either completely fallen down, or at least 10 cubits of it have fallen down. According to Rabbi Eliezer, the courtyard now has the same status as that of the public domain. Therefore, one who carries from there into another private domain or from a private domain into there is liable for transgressing Shabbat. The rabbis disagree with Rabbi Eliezer and say that the courtyard has the status of a karmelit, a domain which is neither like the public domain nor like the private domain. Hence, while it is still forbidden to carry an object in or out of this area, one who does so is not liable for a toraitic transgression of Shabbat.

חייב – it is just like the public thoroughfare.

פטור – [he is exempt] but also forbidden, for it is not the public thoroughfare, but rather a Karmelit. And the Halakha is according to the Sages.

משתי רוחותיו – from one direction that takes hold of two directions, as for example, when the corner piece is breached, even when there aren’t ten cubits in the breach here in the corner piece it is not considered as an opening, for an opening in the corner piece, people don’t use. But a breach that is greater than ten [cubits], even from one direction [only], prohibits.

Introduction This mishnah deals with an area in which it was permitted to carry when Shabbat began but then in some way the area changed during Shabbat such that had it been that way when Shabbat began it would have been forbidden to carry in the area.

וכן בית שנפרץ מב' רוחותיו – that it was breached in the corner piece and part of this wall and part of the other wall fell, and the ceiling/roofing is not spread and fastened on the place of the breach, but if the roofing is spread over the place of the breach, the breach does not prohibit in the house, as we said, the mouth of the roof descends and stops up/closes.

The mishnah describes three situations in which it was permitted to carry in an area when Shabbat began and then during Shabbat the area changed such that it became an area in which it is prohibited to carry. The first is a courtyard whose walls broke down from two directions, opening it up either to a karmelit or to a public domain. The Talmud explains that this refers to a corner of the courtyard and not two opposite directions. Even if this breach is smaller than 10 cubits it is still not considered an “opening” to the courtyard (if it were considered an opening it would be permitted to carry), nor can this type of breach in the wall be repaired with a cross-beam or post (see above 1:6). The second situation is a house whose wall broke down from two directions, meaning at its corner. The third situation is an alley which had been properly enclosed with either a cross-beam or side-post (see again 1:6) but they were removed. When the cross-beam or side-post was in place it allowed people to carry in the alley, if an eruv had been set up.

מותרין לאותה שבת – for since it was permitted for part of it (i.e., the Sabbath).

A courtyard [whose walls] were breached from two sides, and so also a house [whose walls] were breached from two of its sides, or an alley from which the cross-beam or side-post was removed:
They are permitted for that Shabbat but prohibited for the future, the words of Rabbi Judah. According to Rabbi Judah, since it was permitted to carry in these areas when Shabbat began, it is permitted to carry there for all of Shabbat. However, in future Shabbatot it will be prohibited unless the problems are fixed.

לעתיד לבא – for next Shabbat.

Rabbi Yose says: if they are permitted on that Shabbat they are also permitted for the future and if they are prohibited in the future, they are also prohibited for that Shabbat. Rabbi Yose does not allow a situation where it would be permitted for the current Shabbat but prohibited in future Shabbatot. Perhaps this would be too confusing for people and they would come to think that if they can carry this Shabbat, then they can carry on subsequent Shabbatot as well, not realizing that when this Shabbat began the walls or cross-beam/side-post was still in place. Hence, Rabbi Yose holds that since it will be prohibited in the future (without repairs), it is prohibited for the current Shabbat as well.

ר' יוסי ומר אם מותרים כו' – meaning to say, in the same way that it is prohibited [to carry] for the next Shabbat, so it is prohibited for that Shabbat. And the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yossi. But we don’t say that [since] it was permitted for part of the Sabbath, it is permitted for all [of it], other than regarding the matter of the Eruv. For something that was permitted via [construction] of an Eruv for part of Shabbat, and it resulted that on that Shabbat something that was worthy through it that the Eruv would be abolished/undone, the Eruv is not abolished, for since it was permitted for part of the Shabbat, it was permitted for all of it, but in a place which had partitions prior to the Sabbath and its partitions were breached on the Sabbath, we don’t say regarding it, that since it was permitted for a portion of the Sabbath, it is permitted for all of it.

על גבי שני בתים – and they are on two sides of the public thoroughfare, we carry underneath the upper room, for the mouth of the ceiling from each side descends and closes.

Introduction Our mishnah deals with carrying underneath areas that are considered to be public domains.

וכן גשרים המפולשים (bridges under which there is an open passage) – and they have partitions from below on the two sides.

One who builds an upper room on the top of two houses, and so too in the case of viaducts, they may carry underneath them on Shabbat, the words of Rabbi Judah. But the sages prohibit this. There are two situations described in this section. In the first a person builds an upper chamber on top of two houses, meaning it spans two houses which are on opposite sides of the public domain. This means that people below are passing through a “covered public domain”. Similarly, a viaduct is a bridge which passes over the public domain, such that the people who walk beneath it are passing through a covered public domain. Rabbi Judah says that one can carry in a covered public domain, and therefore one can carry in these areas. According to the Talmud, we fictionally draw the edges of the roofs down to the ground so that the public domain has four walls, making it in essence a private domain. The rabbis prohibit carrying in this type of area. Although they do not consider the area to truly be a public domain, and one who carries there is not liable for a Toraitic transgression, it is nevertheless prohibited.

מערבין למבוי המפולש (for an alleyway which is a thoroughfare) – for since there are two partitions, that he (i.e., Rabbi Yehuda) holds that an alleyway that has two partitions, according to the [laws of the] Torah is a private domain. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yehuda.

Rabbi Judah moreover said: an eruv may be prepared for an alley that is a thoroughfare; But the sages forbid this. Most of the alleys that we have been discussing up until now have been alleys with only one open end. All agree that one can set up an eruv for this type of an alley. They disagree with regard to an alley which is open on two ends, one which people can use as a thoroughfare. Rabbi Judah says that one may set up an eruv even for an alley with two open ends whereas the rabbis say that this type of alley is like a public domain and it is forbidden to set up an eruv there.