Commento su Ohalot 9:18

כוורת – that it has rims [at the bottom] and holds forty Se’ah in wet which are two KOR in dry, that it is susceptible to receive ritual defilement, and reclines on its side within the opening and part of it is outside and part of it is in the house.

Introduction Chapter nine deals with an empty beehive (or something shaped like it) that has impurity either in it, above it or below it and is found either in a house, in the doorway to a house or outside of a house. The beehive itself is one that is not susceptible to impurity. Within each scenario, the mishnah discusses various possibilities as to the exact position of the hive vis a vis the impurity. We should conceive of this chapter as not dealing with a practical/actual problem but as a kind of theoretical exercise of what happens when a smaller structure (the hive) is found within a larger structure (the house). We could even think of these mishnayot as an extended geometrical/scientific word problem; we know how impurity travels and we know how an ohel works. Now we just have to work out the results in various scenarios.

ופיה לחוץ – and its rim is inside.

The mishnah describes a beehive that is lying in the doorway to a house, open to the outside of the house. The beehive itself is one that is not susceptible to impurity. There will now be three different scenarios as to where the source of impurity is located with three different halakhot as to what is impure.

כזית מן המת נתון תחתיה – from outside.

[If the uncleanness is] within the house, nothing becomes unclean except that which is within the house. The piece of corpse is either above or below the hive, and is outside of the house. Everything that is above and below that piece of corpse is impure for vessels do not act as barriers to impurity (see 6:1). However, the impurity does not spread to the sides. Thus anything that is not directly above or below the piece of corpse remains clean. Anything in the hive is clean because the impurity cannot enter the hive since it does not receive impurity. Anything in the house is also pure.

כל שהוא כנגד הזית – if the olive’s bulk [of the corpse] is underneath it and vessels are on top of it opposite it, or the olive’s bulk [of the corpse] is upon it and vessels are underneath it opposite it.

[If the uncleanness is] within [the hive] everything becomes unclean. If the impurity is in the house, the house is of course impure. The contents of the hive are pure because its opening is to the outside.

תחתיה וגבה טמא – but what is within it is ritually pure. For even though the hive protects over what is within it, it does not protect on what is underneath it or on top of it opposite the olive’s bulk of defilement, for on what is within it, it is the law that it protects, for even if it is placed in the tent of a corpse it protects with a tightly-sealed cover/airtight lid, since it is not susceptible to receive ritual defilement, but what is underneath it and on its back it does not protect since it is a vessel, as is taught in the Mishnah above in Chapter 6 {Mishnah 1]: “Humans and vessels are made into tents to defile, but not to purify.”

If the uncleanness is within the hive everything is impure, meaning anything found in the hive, on top or below the hive or in the house. The hive does not act as an ohel to block the impurity but it does bring the impurity. This was stated explicitly in 8:3, where the mishnah listed things that bring impurity but do not block against it.

וכל שאינו כנגד הזית תוכה והבית טהור – this is what he said: vessels that are underneath it and on top of it that are not opposite the olive’s bulk of defilement, and within it, meaning to say, vessels that are within it and even if hey are opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement], and vessels also that are in the house, everything is ritually pure.

בבית אין טמא אלא הבית – if the olive’s bulk [of defilement] is in the house, there is nothing ritually impure other than the house, but the vessels that within the hive are pure, for its mouth is towards the outside.

בתוכה הכל טמא – if the olive’s bulk [of defilement] is within the hive, everything is ritually defiled, for we are dealing with a hive which is perforated from the walls with an opening of a handbreadth, as we are required to state further on [Mishnah 3] but rather that the incisions/holes are stopped up with straw, but the closing is not fastened, and it is the manner of the holes/incisions that the defilement goes out to the house since they are not fastened, and even vessels that are under it and on top of from the outside are ritually impure, for since the olive’s bulk [of defilement] we see it as is if it is filled with defilement, and a vessel cannot protect what is underneath it or on top of it. But when the defilement is in the house, we stated above [in this Mishnah] that there is no defilement other than the house, for the defilement does not enter in the hive through the incisions/holes even though they have an opening of a handbreadth, for since they are stuffed up, but it (i.e., the defilement) does not enter through its mouth for its mouth is towards the outside.

היתה גבוהה מן הארץ טפח – that now there is a tent of a handbreadth underneath it.

[In the case of the hive] being one handbreadth high off the ground, If the hive is one handbreadth high off the ground, then it will form an ohel over a piece of impurity that is found below it. This will cause the impurity to spread to the sides.

הכל טמא – that it brings the defilement into the house since it is a handbreadth high, and vessels that are on top of it, even those that are not opposite the defilement are also impure and even outside, for underneath it is like one that is full of defilement. And it doesn’t protect what on top of it, for the vessel does not protect. And similarly, if the defilement is also in the house everything is ritually impure from this reason, for the tent of the house brings the defilement to what is underneath it and doesn’t protect that which is on top of it. But if the defilement is on top of it, since it doesn’t protect over what is underneath it, we view what is beneath it as one that is filled with defilement, therefore, whatever is in the house and what is underneath it and what is on top of it -everything is impure.

If there is uncleanness below it or in the house or above it, everything becomes unclean except that which is within [the hive]. Thus if there is uncleanness underneath the hive, it will defile everything else underneath it and anything above it. Similarly, if there is impurity above the tent, the impurity will spread below for there is no barrier, and from there it will spread to the sides. It will even enter the house, as there is nothing sealing the house off. The only thing that will remain clean is the inside of the hive, as was the case in yesterday's mishnah.

אלא תוכה -that is to say, everything is impure except for what is within it (i.e., the house) which is pure.

[If the uncleanness is] within the hive everything becomes unclean. If there is a space of one handbreadth underneath the hive and there is impurity in the hive, everything is unclean, which is the same halakhah as in yesterday's mishnah.

בזמן שהוא כלי – that it was not hollowed out and was not nullified from the category of being a vessel. -

When do these rules apply? When the hive is a vessel and it is loosely placed in the door. The rules in the above two mishnayot apply only if the hive is a complete and unbroken vessel and it is loosely placed into the doorway.

מחולחלת (hollowed out – not packed entirely) – that the walls are perforated with an opening of a handbreadth. They normally make incisions in the walls of the hive in order the bees can enter and depart, and sometimes that the incisions/holes are stopped up with straw but that the stopper is not fastened tightly.

If it is defective, although [it may be] stopped up with straw or it is stuck to the side of the door What is "stuck? Anything which has no opening of one handbreadth : If the hive is defective, meaning a piece is missing, or it is stuck tightly into the door, then the rules are different. The rest of the mishnah outlines how the impurity spreads if these conditions hold.

היתה פחותה (if it was damaged) – that it was broken through/hollowed out and voided from the category of a vessel.

Then, if an olive-sized [portion] of a corpse is placed below it, [everything] directly [below the portion] to the depths becomes unclean; If there is impurity below, the impurity will defile all the way down to the depths, but it will not defile above. Since the hive is not a vessel, it acts as a barrier against the impurity.

ופקוקה בקש – in the place of the hollowing out. But its walls are complete that they are not hollowed out.

[If placed] above [the hive everything] directly above to the sky becomes unclean. The same is true if the impurity is above the hive. It will defile anything above it, but the hive acts as a barrier and things that are below are pure.

או אפוצה (or made narrower by squeezing the parts together – i.e., pressing the lid down) – or even if its walls were not complete but rather that it was made narrowed, meaning to say, that it was closed in the place where it is hollowed out/not packed entirely, and there isn’t a handbreadth of hollowed out area.

[If the uncleanness is] in the house, nothing becomes unclean except the house. This is the same rule as in mishnah one.

כנגדו עד התהום טמא – but all of the rest is pure. For since it is not considered a vessel like a tent to protect what is inside it and what is on top of it.

[If the uncleanness is] within [the hive] nothing becomes unclean except that which is within [the hive]. Since the hive offers a barrier, anything above or below is pure. Only that which is found in the hive is impure.

על גבה – if an olive’s bulk from a corpse is placed on top of it.

כנגדו עד הרקיע טמא – but all of the rest of pure, for it protects what is inside of it and what is below it. Since it is not a vessel.

בבית – if an olive’s bulk from the corpse is in the house.

אין טמא אלא הבית – and all of the rest is pure, for its opening/mouth is outside.

בתוכה – if the olive’s bulk from the corpse is within it (i.e., inside).

אין טמא אלא תוכה – and all the rest is pure, for the defilement does not enter into the house because it is not hollowed out and its mouth is towards the outside, and it protects also over what is underneath it and what is on top of it, since It is not a vessel.

תחתיה והבית טמא – for they bring the defilement from this (i.e., underneath the house) to that (i.e., the house).

Introduction Today's mishnah continues to discuss the hive that is either defective or stuck firmly into the doorway of the house. Similar to mishnah two, it adds in the scenario of the hive being slightly above ground level.

תוכה טהור – that which is inside [the house], since the its walls are outside, and what is on top of it is also pure, for it protects on what is outside, for it is not a vessel.

[In the case of such a hive] being [placed] one handbreadth high off the ground:
If there is uncleanness below it or in the house, [the space] below it and the house become unclean, but [the space] above and within remains clean. Since there is the space of a handbreadth beneath the hive, the hive acts as an ohel and conveys the impurity to the sides and it also enters the house. However, the inside of the hive and the space above it remain pure because the ohel acts as a barrier to impurity.

בתוכה – if the defilement is within it.

[If the uncleanness is] in the hive, nothing is unclean except what is within; If the impurity is within the hive, only the inside is unclean (as in mishnah three).

אין טמא אלא תוכה – and all the rest is ritually pure.

If above [the hive] what is directly above up to the sky becomes unclean. As in yesterday's mishnah, if the impurity is above the hive, the impurity travels up but not down.

היה פיה לפנים – that it was leaning on its side and its rims were outside and its mouth was inside. For now, we are speaking of the time when it is a hollowed-out vessel and is not higher from the ground a handbreadth. But there is no distinction whether its mouth is outside or whether its mouth is inside, but that when its mouth is outside as is taught above (i.e., Mishnah 4) regarding a house, nothing is impure other than the house, but here, when its mouth is inside, it (i.e., the Mishnah) teaches that everything is impure, because the defilement enters through its mouth.

When do these rules apply? When the mouth [of the hive is pointing] outwards If the mouth is [pointing] inwards [towards the house]: Our mishnah changes the scenario that we have been examining from mishnayot 1-4 so that the mouth of the hive is open inwards towards the house instead of to the outside. The mishnah now goes through all of the scenarios that we have already seen in the first four mishnayot. Instead of referring the reader to these mishnayot, for ease of reference, when the rules are the same, I have copied the commentary from there.

If an olive-sized portion of the corpse is placed below or above [that part of the hive which is] outside, everything directly below or above that olive-sized portion becomes unclean, and everything not directly [below or above it] and whatever is within [the hive] and the house, remains clean. The hive is totally blocking the house, with the opening of the hive facing inward. If impurity is found above or below, it will defile anything that is directly above or below it, but it won't spread to the sides because it is not in an ohel. It also does not defile inside the hive because the hive is not susceptible to impurity (see mishnah one).

[If the uncleanness is] within the hive or the house, everything becomes unclean. If the uncleanness is within the hive everything is impure, meaning anything found in the hive, on top or below the hive or in the house. While the hive does not act as an ohel to block the impurity but it does bring the impurity. This was stated explicitly in 8:3, where the mishnah listed things that bring impurity but do not block against it.

היתה גבוהה – above (see Mishnah 1), its walls are outside as its teaches [in the Mishnah] the defilement that is under it or in the house [or on top of it, everything is impure, other than what is within it,] but here its walls are within, everything is impure.

[In the case of the hive] being one handbreadth high off the ground, If there is uncleanness below it or in the house or above it, everything becomes unclean . If the hive is one handbreadth high off the ground, then no matter where the uncleanness is, it will defile everything. If there is uncleanness underneath the hive, it will defile everything else underneath it and anything above it. Similarly, if there is impurity above it, the impurity will spread below for there is no barrier, and from there it will spread to the sides and into the house, as there is nothing sealing the house off. The same is true if the impurity is inside the hive. And unlike the case in mishnah two, here no matter where it is, the impurity will enter the hive itself since the hive's mouth is open to the house and when the house is defiled, the inside of the hive is defiled. In other words, the interior of the hive is reckoned like the house.

בזמן שהוא כלי מחולחלת – freely, it (i.e., the Mishnah) took [the term] מחולחלת/hollow, loosely put in (i.e., not packed entirely) for it does not benefit being loosely put in other than its mouth being outside regarding the matter of removal of the defilement from within it to the house, but here, where its walls are inside, it (i.e., the defilement) goes out through its mouth. But since the first clause of the Mishnah taught מחולחלת/loosely put in (i.e., not packed entirely) while it is a vessel, it also took it (i.e., teaches it) here.

When do these rules apply? When the hive is a vessel and it is loosely placed in the door. The rules in the above two mishnayot apply only if the hive is a complete and unbroken vessel and it is loosely placed into the doorway.

כנגדו עד התהום טמא – but the rest is ritually pure. And we are speaking when it is not a handbreadth high from the ground.

If it is defective, although [it may be] stopped up with straw or it is stuck to the side of the door What is "stuck? Anything which has no opening of one handbreadth : If the hive is defective, meaning a piece is missing, or it is stuck tightly into the door, then the rules are different. The rest of the mishnah outlines how the impurity spreads if these conditions hold.

תוכה או בבית תוכה והבית טמאים – because its walls are inside. But above (see Mishnah 1), where its walls are outside, it is taught that the defilement is in the house, there is no impurity other than in the house, but the rest is pure.

Then, if an olive-sized [portion] of a corpse is placed below it, [everything] directly [below the portion] to the depths becomes unclean; If there is impurity below, the impurity will defile all the way down to the depths, but it will not defile above. Since the hive is not a vessel, it acts as a barrier against the impurity.

[If placed] above [the hive everything] directly above to the sky becomes unclean. The same is true if the impurity is above the hive. It will defile anything above it, but the hive acts as a barrier and things that are below are pure.

[If the uncleanness is] in the house or in the hive, whatever is in the house or hive becomes unclean. This is where the rule differs from mishnah three. Since the hive is opened to the inside, if there is uncleanness inside the hive or inside the house, it defiles whatever is in either place. Above and below are pure for a broken hive acts as an ohel and prevents the impurity from spreading above and below.

אלא גבה – but inside is impure when the defilement is in the house, because its walls are inside. But above (see Mishnah 1), its walls are outside, its inside and on top of it are pure.

[In the case of such a hive] being [placed] one handbreadth high off the ground:
If there is uncleanness below it, in the house or inside the hive everything is impure except for above it. The difference between this case and the case in mishnah four is if the mouth is open inward toward the house, then if the uncleanness is in the hive, it also spreads everywhere except for above the hive (and outside the house).

If above [the hive] what is directly above up to the sky becomes unclean. This is the same as mishnah four.

היתה ממלאה את כל הבית – for all of it (i.e., the defilement) is within the house inside and it sits on its rims and its mouth reaches the top of the beam, for there isn’t between it and the ceiling an opening of a handbreadth.

Introduction The mishnah now explores other possible spatial relationships between the house and the hive. Today's mishnah discusses what happens if the hive is entirely within the house.

טומאה בתוכה הבית טמא אמא בבית מה שבתוכה טהור – since this resembles a pipe/gutter that is arched/bent over underneath the house, that has an opening of a handbreadth, and there isn’t in its exiting an opening of a handbreadth as is taught in the Mishnah above in Chapter 3 [Mishnah 7].

[In the case when the hive] was entirely within the house and there is not a space of a handbreadth between it and the roof beams, if there is uncleanness within [the hive], the house becomes unclean. The hive is fully inside the house and its opening is less than one handbreadth's from the ceiling. If there is uncleanness is in the hive, then it will leave the hive and go out and defile the contents of the house.

בין עומדת – that is to say, this law is in vogue/practice whether it is standing and it reaches the beams, or whether it is lying on its side and there isn’t between its mouth and the wall of the house an opening of a handbreadth.

But if there is uncleanness in the house, what is within [the hive] remains clean, for the manner of the uncleanness is to go out and not to go in. However, the uncleanness will not enter the smaller space of the hive if it is found in the house. This accords with the principle we learned in mishnah 4:1, that impurity goes out to the outer space, but does not travel in to the inner space.

[Whether [the hive] is standing upright, or lying on its side, whether there is one [hive] or two. The same is true if the hive is lying on its side, with its mouth up against the wall. It is similarly true if there are two hives, one on top of the other and there is less than a handbreadth between the two hives, and less than a handbreadth between the top hive and the ceiling.

בין אחת בין שתים – this over that and there isn’t between the second opening to the beams an opening of a handbreadth, and similarly, there isn’t between the second rim and its mouth of the first an opening of a handbreadth.

הבית טהור – that the lintel descends and seals/stops up the mouth of the hive, and we are speaking of a case where the hive is not hollowed out. For if it is hollowed out, it is the manner of the hollowing out that the defilement would go out to the house like those mentioned above.

If it was standing upright in the doorway and there was not a space of one handbreadth between it and the lintel: In this scenario, the hive is standing upright in the doorway, and there is no significant space between the lintel and the opening of the hive.

טומאה בבית מה שבתוכה טהור – we have this reading. That the defilement goes outside and doesn’t enter in into the hive. But in most of the books we have the reading, that what is within it is impure because the defilement leaves from the house via its opening that defiles what is in the hive, and it stand within the doorway.

If there is uncleanness within it, the house remains clean. If there is uncleanness inside the hive, it protects it from going out and defiling the contents of the house.

But if there is uncleanness in the house, what is within [the hive] becomes unclean, for the manner of the uncleanness is to go out and not to go in. However, if there is uncleanness inside the house, it will go out the door and travel through the hive on its way. Therefore, the contents of the hive will be defiled. This is similar to the situation in 4:3 see there for a comparison.

באויר – in the courtyard or in the garden, where there isn’t a tent there. And its law is like of the hive that is in the midst of the doorway and its mouth is outside, as it is taught in the Mishnah at the beginning of the chapter (see Mishnah 1). And similarly, also if it is above the ground by a handbreadth, like it is above the ground a handbreadth of here at the beginning of the chapter (see Mishnah 2). But that of here, it doesn’t belong to mention a house, for we are dealing with a case where one is standing underneath the airspace.

If it was lying on its side in the open air: In this scenario, our beloved hive is outside of the house, so the contents of the house need not worry about being defiled.

If an olive-sized [portion] of a corpse was placed below it or above it, everything directly below or above the olive-sized [portion] becomes unclean; but everything that is not directly below or above, and what is within [the hive] remains clean. The rules here are exactly the same as in 1-4. If the impurity is above or below the hive, it goes down to the depths and up to the heavens, but it doesn't spread to the side because it is not found in any sort of ohel. See mishnah one.

[If the uncleanness is] within [the hive] everything becomes unclean. But if the impurity is inside the hive, it spreads the impurity around inside, but it doesn't act as an ohel to prevent it from spreading above and below. Thus everything inside, above and below the entire hive will be impure.

בזמן שהיא כלי – where it stands in the airspace it doesn’t belong to mention that which is loosely put in/hollow, and because of this, it does not teach here, “or it was made narrower by squeezing the parts together,” as is taught above (see Mishnah 3), for the issue of making it narrower by squeezing the parts together (i.e., pressing the lid down) only applies with something that is put in loosely.

[In the case where the hive is in the open air] and is one handbreadth high off the ground, if there is uncleanness below it or above it, everything becomes unclean except the inside. [If the uncleanness is] within, everything becomes unclean.
When do these rules apply? When [the hive is] a vessel.
If it is defective, although [it may be] stopped up with straw or according to the sages, it contains forty seahs
Then if an olive-sized [portion] of a corpse is placed below it, [everything] directly [below] to the depths becomes unclean;
[If placed] above, [everything] directly above to the sky becomes unclean.
[If the uncleanness is] is within [the hive] nothing is unclean except that which is within.
[If] it was one handbreadth high off the ground, if there was uncleanness below it, what is below becomes unclean;
[If the uncleanness] was within it, what is within becomes unclean;
Above it, [everything] directly [above] to the sky becomes unclean.
This mishnah continues to deal with the various possibilities of where the impurity will be found vis a vis a hive that is found in the open air (not in the house).
Section one: The hive acts as a tent to spread the impurity to the sides, both above and below the vessel. The inside remains pure because it is protected by the hive (because it is not susceptible to impurity).
If the uncleanness is within the hive, then it acts as an ohel to spread the impurity to the sides above and below.
Section two: Similar to mishnah two and seven, but here, since there is no house, it is not relevant to discuss it being jammed into a door.
Section three: If it can hold forty seahs then it counts as an ohel to provide a barrier for impurity.
Sections four-six: See mishnah seven.
Section seven: The hive acts as a barrier to the impurity and limits it to below.
Section eight: The hive acts as an ohel to keep the impurity inside.
Section nine: The impurity is not found in an ohel, and therefore the impurity does not spread. It is limited to defiling things directly above it.

או מחזקת ארבעים סאה כדברי חכמים – which is in conflict with the first Tanna/teacher as he holds that it holds forty Se’ah. When it is damaged, it is voided from the status of being like a vessel, but it protects what is underneath it and within it and above it.

כזית מן המת נתון תחתיה – its law is like it is damaged and it is not [a handbreadth] high and its mouth is towards the outside, as it is taught in the Mishnah (see Mishnah 3) above.

היתה גבוהה מן הארץ טפח – these also, its law is like that of a hive whose mouth is towards the outside and it is damaged and stuffed up [with straw] and above [the ground] a handbreadth as it is taught in the Mishnah (see Mishnah 5) above.

היתה יושבת על שוליה וכו' טומאה תחתיה או בתוכה או על גבה – everything that is on top of it. As we taught concerning the hive that is sitting on its rims and its mouth is above, that is, that the defilement overshadows outward [to it] above rom its mouth.

Introduction Today's mishnah discusses cases where a complete hive is outside of the house but instead of lying on its side, it is standing straight up, either right side up or upside down.

בוקעת ועולה – even though above (see Mishnah 11) when it is lying on its side, and the defilement is underneath it, or on top of it, it protects what is inside of it, here its wall is above for it doesn’t protect over what is outside of it [also] doesn’t protect on what is within it, since there is no interruption between the airspace that is within it to the airspace that is above and outside of it. But specifically, opposite the olive’s bulk of impurity and not from the sides, since it is damaged and is not a handbreadth above the ground, for there is no tent there to bring the defilement to the sides.

If it was resting on its bottom and it [retained the status of] a vessel: If there is uncleanness below it, within it or above it, the uncleanness cleaves upwards and downwards. If the hive is standing right side up and it is a vessel, meaning it is not defective, nor is it attached to the ground with mortar, the no matter where the impurity is located, it will only travel up and down and not to the sides. Since the hive is open, there is nothing to form a barrier against the impurity, no matter where it is found. If found within the hive, it is not trapped there, because the hive is open.

אבל היתה גבוהה טפח או מכוסה – even though it is not a handbreadth above [the ground].

[In the case where] it was one handbreadth high off the ground or covered or inverted [so as to stand] upon its mouth, if there is uncleanness below it, within it or above it, everything becomes unclean. There are three situations here: 1) the hive is one handbreadth off the ground; 2) it is covered but not with a tightly fitting lid; 3) it is inverted so that the mouth is on the ground. Situations two and three are similar. When the impurity goes up or down it will enter an empty space that is over one cubic handbreadth. Once this happens, the impurity will spread to the entire empty space and then from there it will defile anything above or below the empty space. The same is true if the hive is above the ground by more than a handbreadth. The space below is a cubic handbreadth; once it gets there the impurity will spread to the entire area of the hive, and from there it will defile anything above or below the hive.

או כפאה על פיה (or turned upside down on its mouth) – where there is a tent to bring the defilement.

הכל טמא – and the covering is not considered to interrupt/form a partition between the airspace within it to the airspace that is above it, and it is not similar at all to lying on its side. And specially when it is covered with an inverted vessel – divided into two vessels by the bottom between or with other vessels even though it is not susceptible to receive ritual impurity, but when it is covered by a board, even though the defilement is above it, the defilement does not break through the board, as is taught in the Mishnah above in Chapter 5 [Mishnah 6] concerning a hive which is within the house.

היתה פחותה – that it became damaged and it is voided from the category of being a vessel.

When do these rules apply? When [the hive retains the status of] a vessel. As we have done throughout, the mishnah now discusses the case where the hive is not a vessel or it can contain forty seahs, which makes it is not susceptible to impurity.

כדברי חכמים – which is in conflict with the first Tanna/teacher and compares something that holds forty Se’ah to something that is damaged and stuffed with straw.

[In the case of its] being defective, although [the deficiency may be] stopped up with straw, or according to the sages, [in the case of it] containing forty se'ahs, If the uncleanness is below it, within it or above it, the uncleanness cleaves upwards and downwards. Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Shimon say: uncleanness can neither ascend into [the defective hive] nor descend from it. According to the first opinion, the rules here are the same as they were in mishnah thirteen, for this is an "open ohel" and an open ohel does not form a barrier. Therefore, no matter where the impurity is found, it will only go directly up and down. For the first time in this chapter we now hear of a debate. Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Shimon hold that an "open ohel" can form a barrier. Therefore, if the impurity is found below, it stops at the bottom of the hive. If the impurity is found within or above, the bottom of the hive protects the space underneath the hive from becoming impure.

אין טומאה עלוה לה – at the time that the defilement is below it, it does not ascend into it.

If the hive is above the ground and it is not a vessel or it is not susceptible to impurity (because it can contain forty seahs), then the hive acts as a barrier. If there is impurity below, it remains there, although it does spread there to the sides. If there is impurity inside the hive or above it, since the hive is open, it doesn't spread to the sides. It defiles only that which is directly above or below. It also does not defile that which is below.

אף לא יורדת ממנה - at the time that the defilement is within it, it doesn’t descend underneath it.

תחתיה טמא – but inside it/within it and on top of it, it is pure.

כנגדו עד הרקיע טמא – but underneath it is pure.

ארון שהיא רחבה – this bier/casket is a cliff/peak of a rock that protrudes from the mountain and is hewn/chiseled into a bier that is wide from the bottom and narrow from the top and its mouth is above.

Finally a mishnah that discusses something besides this mysterious hive. Today's mishnah discusses a coffins of various shapes.
A coffin which is broad below and narrow above, and has a corpse within it: A person touching it below remains clean; But above becomes unclean. The first coffin described is broad below and narrow above. Above the narrow section is the cover of the coffin. The rabbis held that if one touched any portion that is directly below the opening, he is impure. So if he touches it below, on the sides of the broad portion, he is not touching anything that is directly below the opening. Therefore, he remains pure. But if he touches the walls of the narrow section he is impure for they are directly below the opening.

הנוגע בה מלמטה טהור – for what is opposite its mouth is considered like the bier/casket, but not that which is on the sides.

If it is broad above and narrow below, a person touching it anywhere becomes unclean. In this case the cover above is broader than the remainder of the coffin. Therefore, no matter where he touches the coffin it is below the cover and he is impure.

‘רחב מלמעלה וצר מלמטה – or that it was equivalent, a person who touches it from any place is impure, according to the words of Rabbi Eliezer. For the covering splits the defilement in all of it, that the defilement ascends up to the covering and returns and descends over the face of all of it.

If it was the same [above and below], a person touching it anywhere becomes unclean, the words of Rabbi Eliezer. But Rabbi Joshua says: a handbreadth and more below is clean, but from that handbreadth upwards is unclean. Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Joshua debate the case of a straight coffin. According to Rabbi Eliezer, since the entire coffin is below the covering, no matter where a person touches it he is impure. Rabbi Joshua holds that the dead body would be at least one handbreadth above the bottom of the coffin. Therefore, if a person touches from that point of the wall and below, he remains pure. If he touches above the one handbreadth mark, he is impure.

רבי יהושע מטהר – that it is not considered like a bier/coffin other than the handbreadth that is nearest to the cavity of the bier/coffin. Therefore, it does not burst forth from a handbreadth and below.

If it was made like a clothes-chest, a person touching it anywhere becomes unclean. A clothes chest opens to the top. On a coffin built in such a way, everything is below the opening. Therefore, no matter where he touches, he is impure.

העשויה כמין קמטרא (that is made like a chest/box – for clothes, books) – it is vessel whose covering covers the thickness of the walls. It is the Aramaic for (II Kings 10:22): “He [Jehu] said to the man in charge of the wardrobe: [“Bring out the vestments for all the worshippers of Baal],” for the one appointed over the chest/box.

If it was made like a case, a person touching it anywhere remains clean, except at the place where it opens. A "case" has its opening on the side. None of the coffin is below the opening. Therefore, he is impure only if he touches it on the side that opens.

הנוגע בה מכל מקום טמא – for all that is opposite the covering is impure, for its covering covers all of it.

כמין גלוסקוס הנוגע בה מכל מקום טהור – its covering is not other than opposite its cavity like a peg that is inserted in a hole/incision in an emergency.

חוץ ממקום פתחתה – with a covering that is opposite its cavity.

חבית שהיא יושבת – their jars are narrow above to the side of the their mouths, and below to the side of the rims and wide in their middles, and they are like a kind of wide stomach that protrudes from them in their middles from the outside.

Introduction The final mishnah of our chapter deals with an earthenware jar which cannot be defiled from the outside.

באויר – that is, in the airspace of the world, to exclude that which is under the tent.

A jar resting on its bottom in the open air: The jar discussed in the beginning of the mishnah is pure, it is open and it is standing on its bottom. The jar is pear-shaped, i.e. it has walls that expand in the middle, as jars often did (and still do).

קורקורתה (rimmed bottom of a vessel – corresponding to the bottom – under or on the rim of its bottom) – like its bottom and they are its rims.

If an olive-sized [portion] of a corpse is placed beneath it or within it directly [above] its bottom, the uncleanness cleaves upwards and downwards, and the jar becomes unclean. There is a source of impurity within the jar or directly below the jar, opposite the bottom of the jar and not opposite the protruding walls. In all of these cases the impurity goes directly up and down, but not to the sides. The inside of the jar is also impure because earthenware jars receive impurity through their airspace. Thus even if the impurity is not within the jar, since it enters the jar through the jar's mouth, anything in the jar is impure.

בוקעת ועולה בוקעת ויורד – and all the vessels that are opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement] are ritually impure, whether undeath it or whether above it or whether within it, something that is like the hive that is above [Mishnah 13] that sits o its rims. But that which is on the sides which is not opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement] are pure.

[If the uncleanness is] outside below a [protruding] side, the uncleanness cleaves upwards and downwards, but the jar remains clean. In this case, the impurity is outside the jar, above or below one of the jar's protruding sides. The impurity goes directly up and down, but it doesn't defile the inside of the jar because earthenware jars are not defiled from the outside and the impurity does not enter the jar rather it goes around the protruding wall.

והחבית טמאה – not that the jar itself is impure but we are dealing here with a jar that is not susceptible to receive ritual defilement as will be proven in the concluding clause [of the Mishnah], but that the jar is impure, meaning to say, even vessels that are outside of the jar opposite the defilement are impure, because a mere vessel,its mouth is wide like the measurement of its rimmed bottom and because there is no interruption between the airspace of its inside to the airspace that is on top of it above it [and] outside of it, because it doesn’t protect what is outside of it, it doesn’t protect what is inside/within it.

[If the uncleanness is] within [the jar] and underneath the protruding sides, If there is within the [cavity of] the side a space of a cubic handbreadth everything [within the cavity] becomes unclean, but what lies directly [below] the mouth remains clean. If there is not [a space of a cubic handbreadth] the uncleanness cleaves upwards and downwards. Here the impurity is inside the jar, but not directly below the opening. Rather it is inside one of the protruding walls. If the space formed by the protruding wall is a cubic handbreadth, then it is an ohel. Anything in this space is impure and the impurity spreads above and below as well. The jar is also impure. However, anything that is not directly above or below the sides remains clean. If the space is less than a cubic handbreadth, then it is not found in an ohel. In such a case the impurity goes up and down but it does not spread to the sides.

תחת דופנה מבחוץ טומאה בוקעת ועולה בוקעת ויורדת – and anything that is opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement] is impure outside of the jar.

והחבית טהורה – that is, what is within the jar, even opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement] for the walls of the jar protrude in the middle and when there is an olive’s bulk [of defilement] under the wall, its wall is similar to the hive which is lying on its side, that is inside is pure, because there is an interruption between the airspace of the inside that is opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement] to the airspace that is outside of opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement].

When do these rules apply? When the jar is clean. The above rules apply only if the jar is clean.

If it was unclean, or if it was one handbreadth high off the ground, or covered, or inverted [so as to stand] on its mouth, if there is uncleanness beneath it, within it or above it, everything becomes unclean. There are several situations listed here: 1) the jar is unclean before the piece of corpse is found in its proximity. In this case, it does not prevent impurity from entering and even if the impurity is beneath the protruding wall, it is as if it is beneath the jar itself. 2) If the jar is one handbreadth above the ground, then the same rules that we saw in mishnah thirteen apply. 3) If the jar is covered or inverted it becomes an ohel. Even if the impurity is below one of the walls, since the top is covered, there is no difference between the protruding walls and the body of the jar. In all of these cases, no matter where the impurity is found, everything, the contents of the jar, below and above the jar, is impure.

בתוכה ותחת דופנה – that is to say inside the cavity of its wall. We call it underneath its wall, because the wall goes and becomes narrow to the side of its mouth. And this excludes on its rim that is directed corresponding/opposite to its mouth.

אם יש בדפנות פותח טפח – that the belly of jar protrudes so much outward that there is in one place up until corresponding with the mouth of the jar a cubic handbreadth.

ואם לאו – but if there isn’t there a handbreadth.

טומאה בוקעת ועולה – and it is not impure other than opposite the olive’s bulk [of defilement].

במה דברים אמורים בטהורה – with a jar that is not susceptible to receiving ritual impurity.

אבל אם היתה טמאה – as for example, a mere jar that was smelted in a kiln/furnace, which does receive defilement.

או גבוהה אן הארץ טפח או מכוסה או כפויה – and even if it is pure.

וטומאה תחתיה או בתוכה או על גבה, הכל טמא – that if it susceptible to receive ritual impurity and sits on its rims and the defilement is underneath it or within it or on top of it, even though that an earthenware vessel is not defiled from above it, the jar itself is defiled here. Since this refers to vessels that are within after they are not surrounded by a tight-fitting lid, for a vessel does not protect even on wat is ithin it other than with walls of tents in a place where there isn’t an interruption from the airspace within to the airspace outside of it. And that which is below which is under its rims, and it doesn’t teach under its wall from the outside. But the jar itself is defiled, and since the jar itself is impure, all of the vessels that are within are defiled even that which is not opposite the defilement, for even though we hold that humans and vessels are not defiled from the airspace of an earthenware vessel, here, all the while that the olive’s bulk [of defilement] is underneath it, it defiles from the reason of attachments, since after the jar itself is impure. And similarly, something a handbreadth above from the ground even that is pure we view that which is underneath it as if it filled with defilement, and even the defilement above it. But now, all of these, their law is not equivalent (i.e., the same), for if the jar is susceptible to receive ritual defilement, whatever is within it, even if it is not opposite the defilement is impure. And one who overshadows over it from above, opposite the defilement is impure, but that which is not opposite the defilement is pure. But if it is a handbreadth above the ground or it is covered or turned upside down on its mouth, one who overshadows over it even that which is not opposite the defilement is impure. And we should not be astonished, that which is turned upside downs on its mouth and the defilement is above it, whatever is within it is like the pure vessels that are surrounded with a tight-fitting lid, but it is different here for there is no open space.