Commentaire sur Kéilim 6:6

העושה שלשה פטפוטים – three legs/,pins that sit/rest on the land.

Introduction Today's mishnah deals with the purity of makeshift stoves.

וחיברן בטיט – above their head, like a kind of iron vessel that they call TRIPID.

If he put three props into the ground and joined them [to the ground] with clay so that a pot could be set on them, [the structure] is susceptible to impurity. The props used to make this stove are of earthenware. If he set three of them together so that he could rest a stove on top of them and attached them to the ground with clay, the structure is susceptible to impurity.

קבע שלשה מסמרים – that he inserted them into the ground.

If he set three nails in the ground so that a pot could be set on them, even though a place was made on the top for the pot to rest, [the structure] is not susceptible to impurity. The nails are made of metal and metal that is attached to the ground is not susceptible to impurity. Therefore this structure remains pure even if he makes a place on top out of earthenware for a pot to sit on. The fact that it is covered with some earthenware does not affect its status.

טהורות – for metal vessels that are attached to the ground are like the ground itself, and they are not susceptible to receive [ritual] defilement.

One who made a stove of two stones, joining them [to the ground] with clay: It is susceptible to impurity. Rabbi Judah says that it is not susceptible to impurity, unless a third stone is added or [the structure] is placed near a wall. According to the first opinion, since the stones are wide enough to support the pot, once they are attached with clay to the ground they are considered a stove and they are susceptible to impurity. However, Rabbi Judah retains the rule that we need a tri-partite structure in order to be susceptible to impurity. Therefore, he must either add a third stone or put the structure next to the wall to serve as a third stone.

וחיברם בטיט טמאה – it is like a portable stove on feet with caves for two pots/כירה of earthenware, that the plaster/clay on their head makes it the designation of earthenware.

If one stone was joined with clay and the other was not joined with clay, [the structure] is not susceptible to impurity. According to the sages both stones must be attached to the ground for it to be susceptible to impurity. If one was attached to the ground with clay and the other was not, the structure is not susceptible.

עד שיעשה שלישית – similar to three clay pins forming a sort of tripod for the support of a pot.

או עד שיסמוך לכותל – that the wall will sort the pot from one side.

אחת בטיט – one is fastened/attached to its neighbor with plaster/clay at its top.

ואחת שלא בטיט – that the third one is not attached/fastened. And this is [the opinion of] Rabbi Yehuda, but the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yehuda.

האבן שהיה שופת עליה ועל התנור (the stone that he was placing the cooking pot over/by the fire as well as on the oven) – land the stone was attached with plaster/clay.

A stone on which he placed a pot, [on it] and on an oven, or on it and a double stove, or on it and on a stove, is susceptible to impurity. In this case a person places a pot on a makeshift stove, where one side consists of a stone attached to the ground by clay and the other side consists of either an oven a double stove or a single stove. The stone is susceptible to impurity in this case because the oven or stove counts as a second attached stone. This is similar to the situation in yesterday's mishnah.

עליה ועל האבן – that is one that is [affixed] with plaster and one that is not [affixed] with plaster.

[If he set the pot] on it and on another stone, on it and on a rock, or on it and on a wall, it is not susceptible to impurity. And such was the stove of the Nazirites in Jerusalem which was set up against a rock. In this case he sets the other side of the pot not on another oven or stove, but on another stone which was unattached to the ground with clay or on a rock which was part of the ground, or on a wall. These do not count as a "second stone attached to the ground" which as we learned in yesterday's mishnah causes both stones to be susceptible to impurity. Rather in this case the stone which is attached to the ground with clay is susceptible. At the end of his/her term of naziriteship a nazirite must bring a shelamim offering. To prevent the sacrifice from being defiled, they would cook it in a stove made of one stone attached to the ground and the other side of the pot resting on the wall.

ועל הסלע – that is attached from the Six Days of Creation.

As regards the stove of the butchers, where the stones are placed side by side, if one of the stoves contracted impurity, the others do not become unclean. Butchers would make a line of stoves made of stones attached to the ground. Each stone, except for the outer ones, could be used to hold up two pots, one to the left and one to the right. The mishnah looks at each pair of stones as an independent unit such that if one stone becomes impure, the pair next to it retains its purity.

טהורה – as it is written (Leviticus 11:35): “[an oven or stove] shall be smashed. They are impure [and impure they shall remain for you],” that which has a breaking up/cutting out has [ritual] defilement; that which does not have breaking up/cutting out does not have [ritual] defilement. From here, they (i.e., the Rabbis) stated that a stone that he was placing the cooking pot over and on the oven, or on it and on the portable stove on feet with caves for two pots , or on it and on the small stove with room for only one pot, are impure, because they have a breaking up/cutting out; [but] upon it and on the stone, upon it and upon a rock, upon it and upon the wall, it is [ritually] pure, because they don’t have breaking up/cutting out.

כירת הנזירים – to cook the peace offerings of a Nazir that the Kohen takes from them the cooked shoulder (see Deuteronomy 18:3 and Tractate Hullin, Chapter 10, Mishnah 1).

כירת טבחים – that they sell to the masses and they arrange many stones one after another and places the upon them many pots, where there is found one stone for two pots, but when one [of the stones] is defiled, the others are pure, this is a matter that is like the double inkstand that is taught in the Mishnah above in Chapter 2 [Mishnah 7], that if one of them is defiled, the other rest of them are not defiled.

שלש אבנים שעשאן שתין כירים – and the middle stone services both this one (i.e., the portable stove with caves for two pots) and that one (i.e., the other portable stove with caves for two pots).

Introduction This mishnah continues the subject of stones lined up in a row to make multiple stoves.

האמצעית המשמשת את הטמאה – half of the middle one (i.e., stove) that services the outer one which is [ritually] impure is impure. But the half that services the outer one that is pure is pure.

If one made two stoves of three stones and one of the outer ones was defiled the half of the middle one that serves the unclean one is unclean but the half of it that serves the clean one remains clean. The structure described here consists of three stones, each attached either to the ground with clay or to each other. This will make two stoves, one between each stone. If one of the outer stones is defiled, then the half of the middle stone facing the impure stone is impure. But the side facing the pure stone remains pure.

נחלטה האמצעית לטמאה – and all of it (i.e., all three stones) are impure.

If the clean one was removed, the middle one is regarded as completely transferred to the unclean one. If he removed the clean stone on the outside, then the middle stone is used entirely with the unclean stone. Therefore the middle one is now entirely unclean.

לשפות עליהן – [to set upon] the two outer ones (i.e., stones).

If the unclean one was removed, the middle one is regarded as completely transferred to the clean one. Similarly, if the unclean stone is removed, the middle stone is entirely pure because it is only used with the pure stone.

החזירה – [if he restored] the middle one (i.e., stone)

Should the two outer ones become defiled, if the middle stone was large, each outer stone is allowed such a part of it as suffices for the support of a pot and the remainder is clean. But if it was small all of it is unclean. If both outer stones are defiled, then the parts of the middle stone that are used with the outer stones are also considered defiled, but if there remains unused space in between the used portions, the unused space is pure. If the middle stone was small and all of it was used to rest the pots whose other side was placed on the outer stones, then the entire stone is impure.

טהורה – for the first portable stove on feet with caves for two pots/כירה is abolished and it is as if he placed on it the large pot of the cauldron/kettle.

Should the middle stone be removed, if a big kettle can be set on the two outer stones they are unclean. If the middle stone is removed, the outer stones remain impure if they can still be used to heat up a large vat.

מקבלת טומאה משיסיקנה – for it (if plastered) requires heating like a new portable stove on feet with caves for two pots.

If the middle stone is returned they all become clean again. If it was plastered with clay it becomes susceptible to impurity when it is heated to a degree that suffices for the cooking of an egg. If after removing the middle stone he returns it, the entire structure becomes pure again. We look at this stove as if it was first destroyed, which causes it to shed its impurity and then was rebuilt. In such cases the vessel does not return to its original impurity. In order for this stove to again become susceptible to impurity, he must plaster it with clay to attach it to the ground and heat up all three stones such that they could be used to cook an egg. In other words this is a new stove.

סמך לזו אבן אחת מכאן ולו אבן אחת מכאן – and they were found now three portable stoves with caves for two pots, the middle one is [ritually] impure and the outer ones are pure. Therefore, the two middle stones – half of this one and half of that one [of the pure side] is pure and he uses the pure [sections].

If two stones were made into a stove and they became defiled, and a stone was set up near the outer side of the one and another stone near the outer side of the other, [the inner half] of each [inner stones] remains unclean while [the outer] half of each [of these stones] is clean. At the outset there are simply two stones attached to the ground and made into a stove. These stones become defiled. Then he put another stone on each side, creating three stoves made of four stones. The inner half of each of the original stones remains impure because it serves the inside stove. The outer half which faces the pure stone becomes pure because it has now been made into a new stove.

ניטלו החיצונות הטהורות – the middle ones return to their impurity as at the beginning, and all of them are impure, for behold there isn’t here any used for purity.

If the clean stones are removed the others revert to their impurity. If he then removes the outer stones, the inner stones revert to their earlier state of impurity which means they are completely impure.