Et de même en ce qui concerne un morceau de tissu que l'on a tissé pour être trois par trois [largeurs de doigts] qui ont contracté l'impureté du cadavre, et on a ensuite complété tout le vêtement dessus, puis enlevé un fil de sa partie initiale, il est pur d'impureté cadavre , mais est toujours impur au contact de l'impureté du cadavre. Si l'on retire un fil de sa portion initiale et qu'on complète ensuite tout le vêtement dessus, il est pur; car ils ont dit: un [morceau de tissu de] trois par trois [largeur de doigt] qui a été diminué est pur. Mais l'une des trois sur trois [largeurs de main] qui a été diminuée, même si elle est pure d' impureté midras , est [susceptible d'être] impure de toutes les [autres] impuretés.
Bartenura on Mishnah Kelim
וכן בגד שארג בו שלש אצבעות – in close confinement, that this is its measure to be defilement in all of the defilements together except for that of leaning, but with this, it is not defiled in any defilement that is in the world.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Kelim
Similarly, if a piece of cloth was woven to the size of three [fingerbreadths] square, and it contracted corpse uncleanness, and afterwards he finished the entire piece, and then he removed a single thread from its original part, it is free from corpse uncleanness but is still unclean from contact with corpse uncleanness. This is virtually the same halakhah as was found in section one of yesterday's mishnah, except that today's mishnah deals with a smaller piece of cloth, three fingerbreadths square. A piece this size cannot contract midras, but it can contract corpse impurity.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
Bartenura on Mishnah Kelim
שלש על שלש שנתמעט טהור – it is completely [pure], and is not appropriate for anything, neither for the poor nor the rich, therefore, it is pure from all defilements.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Kelim
If a thread was removed from the original part and then all the cloth was finished it remains clean, for the sages have ruled: if a piece of three [fingerbreadths] square is lessened it becomes clean. If a three fingerbreadths piece of cloth contracts corpse uncleanness and then is reduced, it is completely pure. Even if he then enlarges the cloth, there is no impurity left, so the whole cloth is pure.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Kelim
But if one of three handbreadths square is lessened, even though it is released from midras, it is still susceptible to all other forms of uncleanness. This is the difference between the type of impurity contracted by a three fingerbreadths piece of cloth, and one that is three handbreadths. A three handbreadths piece of cloth is still susceptible to other forms of impurity, such as corpse impurity. In contrast, something smaller than three fingerbreadths square is completely pure.
