Commento su 'Orlah 3:13

בגד שצבאו בקליפי ערלה – such as the husks/peelings of nuts and pomegranates, for the husks/peelings are also prohibited to derive benefit [from them] as we expound (Talmud Berakhot 36b): “[When you enter the land and plant any tree for food, you shall regard] its fruit [as forbidden/to be uncircumcised]” (Leviticus 19:23), that which is secondary to its fruit.

Introduction The prohibition of orlah extends not only to eating fruit from an orlah tree, but to deriving any benefit from such fruit, or even from the peel of the fruit. The next several mishnayot deal with various objects that can become prohibited by making use of orlah.

ידלק – for it is forbidden to [derive] benefit, as it is written (Leviticus 19:23): “you shall regard its fruit as uncircumcised”, that you shall not benefit, and not dye nor kindle with a candle with it.

A garment dyed with peels of orlah [fruit] must be burned. Dyes would occasionally be made from the peels of pomegranates or from the shells of various types of nuts. If a garment was dyed using dye made from orlah peels, the garment must be burned because it is forbidden to derive any benefit from it.

כולם ידלקו – Rabbi Meir, according to his reasoning that he stated further on (see Mishnah 7 of this chapter): “what normally is counted [when being sold] renders [other food mixed with it] sanctified (forbidden, so that all of the food in the mixture must be burned), and clothing that was dyed that was normally counted [when being sold].

If it became mixed up with other [garments], all of them shall be burned, the words of Rabbi Meir. If a garment that had been dyed with peels of orlah fruit or shells from orlah nuts becomes mixed up with other garments that had been dyed with permitted dyes, then Rabbi Meir holds that all of the garments must be burned. As we shall see below in mishnah seven, Rabbi Meir holds that important objects are not nullified, as are food items which are nullified in ratios of 100-1 or 200-1, depending upon the prohibition. Since the garment is not nullified, it doesn’t matter how many garments got mixed up with it, they all are prohibited.

וחכ"א יעלה באחד ומאתים – according to their reasoning as they say further on in our chapter (see Mishnah 7)only six foods render [other foods] sanctified. And the Halakha is according to the Sages.

But the sages say: it becomes neutralized in two-hundred-and-one. The other rabbis hold that the same ratio that nullifies orlah fruit can also serve to nullify garments dyed with orlah dyes. Thus if there are 200 non-orlah garments, the orlah garment is nullified and they are all permitted.

מלא הסיט – it is according to the suspension between the fore-arm to the finger – all what he is able to widen it, and the suspension that is between the thumb to the finger, all that he one is able to widen it, which is a double “sit” (the double size of the “sit” – the distance between the tip of the thumb and that of the index finger when held apart, or between the root of the thumb and the tip of the index finger, when the former is leaning against the latter – see also Tractate Shabbat, Chapter 13, Mishnah 4), because it is double from what lies between the forearm and the finger. And within the distance of a “sit” is an important measurement for prohibition. Therefore, when they have weaved in the cloth, and it is not known which it is, Rabbi Meir states, according to his reasoning, that it (i.e., the entire cloth) should be burned, and the Sages state that it is neutralized in one and two-hundred , according to their reasoning as seen in the dispute of above (see Mishnah 1 of this chapter).

If one dyed a thread the whole [length] of a sit with orlah peels, and wove it into a garment, and it is not known which [thread] it is:
Rabbi Meir says: the garment must be burned;
But the sages say: it becomes neutralized in two-hundred-and-one.
Our mishnah deals with a single thread that was dyed with orlah dye and then woven into a garment. The length of this thread is the length of a sit which is explained by some to mean the distance between one’s thumb and forefinger, while others explain it to be the distance between one’s forefinger and middle finger when they are as spread apart as possible.
According to Rabbi Meir, if one thread dyed with shells or peels of orlah becomes woven into a garment and it is not known which thread it was, the entire garment must be burned, even if there is a 200-1 ratio of permitted to prohibited threads. To Rabbi Meir even such a small thread is still considered an “important item” and therefore it doesn’t become nullified in any ratio.
The sages say that the prohibited thread is nullified in a ratio of 200-1, as they said with regard to an entire garment dyed with orlah thread in yesterday’s mishnah.

מצמר הבכור – and it is prohibited to shear the first born [sheep], as it states (Deuteronomy 15:19): “or shear your firstling sheep,” and it is speaking about a first born with a defect, and for this reason, it requires the distance of the breadth between the tip of the thumb and of the index finger when held apart, for had it been a simple firstling, they are sanctified, as it is taught (in this Mishnah): [hair from other] Holy Things, it renders sanctified [prohibited] in any quantity whatsoever [even less than a “sit’s” length].

Introduction This mishnah deals with threads that come from various prohibited sources and the consequences of their being woven into garments.

משער הנזיר – and its hair is prohibited [to derive] benefit from it, as it states (Numbers 6:5): “it shall remain consecrated,… the hair of his head being left to grow untrimmed;” the growth of his hair will be holy.

If one wove thread the whole [length] of a sit from [the wool of a] first-born animal into a garment, the garment must be burned. It is forbidden to shear wool from a first-born goat or sheep (see Deuteronomy 15:19), and it is forbidden to derive any benefit from wool that was shorn from such an animal. Any garment that has even a thread from a first-born animal must be burned.

ופטר חמור – after breaking the neck of the heifer (see Deuteronomy 21:4), all the world admits that it is prohibited to [derive from it] benefit for we draw a conclusion by analogy of "עריפה עריפה" from the heifer whose neck was broken (Deuteronomy 21:6).

[If from] the hair of a nazirite or of the first-born of a donkey into sack-cloth, the sack-cloth must be burned. Similarly, it is forbidden to derive benefit from the hair of a person who took a nazirite vow. At the end of the term of naziriteship the nazirite is supposed to shave his/her hair and then burn it (see Numbers 6:18). The first-born of a donkey must be redeemed with a sheep (Exodus 13:13) and until this donkey has been redeemed it is prohibited to derive any benefit from it. Hence, if one wove sack-cloth with a sit’s length of the hair of a nazirite or of a first-born donkey that had not yet been redeemed, the sack-cloth must be burned.

בשק – concerning the wool, it teaches [in the Mishnah] the cloth, and concerning the hair, it teaches [in the Mishnah], sack, for this is the [normal] manner.

And if even the smallest amount [from wool or hair of] consecrated [animals], that which it is woven into] is consecrated. The law regarding wool that comes from consecrated animals, such as animals that have been dedicated to the Temple or set aside to be sacrifices, is stricter. Even if the smallest amount of such wool is used in a garment, the entire garment must be treated as if it was consecrated. This garment cannot be used at all, however, it can be redeemed and therefore it does not necessarily have to be burned.

ידלק – the additional value of the wood in the cooked food, and similarly in the bread.

Introduction This mishnah deals with a cooked dish that was heated up by burning shells from orlah nuts or peels from orlah fruit.

יעלה בא' ומאתים – and in this Rabbi Meir admits this is not from the ten important things that Rabbi Meir considers that we sanctify [and forbidden – so that all of the food in the mixture must be burned], as is proved in the Jerusalem Talmud.

A dish which one cooked with shells of orlah must be burned. Just as the garment that was dyed with orlah dye must be burned (mishnah one), so too must the dish that was heated up and cooked with orlah kindling. Although this prohibited benefit did not get into the dish, since the dish was cooked with it, it is forbidden.

If [the dish] became mixed up with other [dishes], it becomes neutralized in two-hundred-and-one. If the dish became mixed up with other dishes, then if there are 200 dishes not cooked using orlah kindling for every one cooked using orlah kindling, then the orlah is neutralized. If there is less than such a ratio, then all of the dishes must be burned. Note that in this case, unlike that in mishnah one concerning the garment dyed with orlah dyes, Rabbi Meir agrees that the orlah can be neutralized. This is because a cooked dish or a loaf of bread (see mishnah five below) are not important items, whereas the garment was. Important items cannot, according to Rabbi Meir, be neutralized.

An oven that was lit with shells of orlah, and then one baked bread in it, the bread must be burned.
If it became mixed up with other [loaves] it becomes neutralized in two-hundred-and-one.
This mishnah is nearly identical to mishnah four, except it deals with bread baked in an oven lit with shells of orlah nuts (or peels of orlah fruit). Like the cooked dish in mishnah four, this bread cannot be eaten and must be burned. If it becomes mixed up with other permitted loaves of bread, it can be neutralized in a 200-1 ratio.

חבילי תלתן – a bundle is not less than twenty-five bunches.

Introduction In this mishnah we see another case in which Rabbi Meir says that when one prohibited item becomes mixed in with other items they all must be burned, whereas the other rabbis say that the prohibited item is neutralized in a ratio of 200-1.

נתערבו באחרים – we have the reading of נתערבו באחרים/they were mixed with other [permitted bunches] but not others with others, but if we had that reading (i.e., אחרים באחרים/others with others), one must say that those others were combined with others that was only one that was doubtful, and it comes to teach us that even though there are two fenugreek, it is prohibited.

If one has bundles of fenugreek of kilayim of the vineyard, they must be burned. If one grows fenugreek in a vineyard it is prohibited to derive any benefit from the fenugreek because this is a case of “kilayim” (mixed seeds) in a vineyard. The bundle of fenugreek must be burned.

כולם ידלקו – and that we don’t say that all of them should be sold except for the value of that [volume] which is prohibited in them, as stated by Rabbi Shimon ben Gamaliel in the [concluding] chapter (five) of [Tractate] Avodah Zarah (see Mishnah 10) concerning libation wine because here we are concerned with all of it, lest an idolater return and sell it to an Israelite, what he cannot do with libation wine, for we should not be concerned with this.

If they became mixed up with others, all of them must be burned, the words of Rabbi Meir. If the bundle of kilayim fenugreek becomes mixed up with bundles of permitted fenugreek, Rabbi Meir says that they are all prohibited. According to Rabbi Meir, the fenugreek is considered an “important item” and therefore, no matter what the ratio of permitted fenugreek to prohibited fenugreek, they are all prohibited and they all must be burned.

But the sages say they become neutralized in two-hundred-and-one. The other rabbis again hold that the prohibited fenugreek is neutralized in a ratio of 200-1.

שדרכו למנות – for a person does not sell them other than by number, because of their importance.

Introduction In this mishnah we finally hear the basis for the disagreement between Rabbi Meir and the other sages.

פרך ובדן – these are names of places. But I heard that the nuts of Perekh are nuts whose husks/rinds are soft and peeled.

For Rabbi Meir used to say: anything that is normally [sold] by counting causes [a mixture] to become consecrated [in even the smallest amount]. According to Rabbi Meir anything that is sold by being counted out at the marketplace (as opposed to being sold by weight or volume) is an important item and therefore it prohibits a mixture no matter how little of the prohibited item is in the mixture. This would explain why bundles of orlah fenugreek cause a mixture to be prohibited no matter how small the ratio of prohibited fenugreek to permitted fenugreek. The word “consecrated” in this mishnah is used synonymously with “prohibit” because oftentimes things that are “consecrated” become prohibited from use. This was the same verb used in mishnah three.

חלפי תרדין – leaves from the side of the species of beet.

But the sages say only six things consecrate [a mixture in even the smallest amount], and Rabbi Akiba says seven [things]. The sages agree that some items cause mixtures to be prohibited in even the smallest ratios. However, they limit this to only six items, to which Rabbi Akiva adds a seventh. These items seem to have been more valuable than general items that are sold by count, such as bundles of fenugreek. Since these items are of great significance, the laws are stricter with regard to them.

קלסי כרוב – cabbage stalks in the Land of Israel which are large and good.

And these are they: Nuts with soft shells; badan pomegranates; stopped-up casks; beet shoots; cabbage-heads; Greek pumpkins. This is a list of the six items. The stopped up casks contain orlah wine.

של בעה"ב – which are large but of small bakers.

Rabbi Akiba says: also loaves [baked by] a householder. Rabbi Akiva adds in bread baked by a householder which is more valuable than bread baked by a professional baker.

הראוי לערלה – such as nuts and pomegranates and closed (earthen) wine jugs.

To those to which orlah applies [they prohibit the mixture] as orlah, [to those of which] kilayim of the vineyard apply [they prohibit the mixture as] kilayim of the vineyard. Orlah applies to only some of the above items, namely pomegranates, nuts, and wine. So if the mixture contains even the smallest amount of one of these items and it is orlah, the whole mixture is prohibited. Kilayim in the vineyard applies to the other items in the list, so if one of them is kilayim and it becomes mixed in with other permitted items it prohibits the mixture even if it is only a very small amount.

הראוי לכלאי הכרם – such as beet shoots and cabbage stalks and Greek gourds, but the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Meir nor according to Rabbi Akiva.

נתפצעו האגוזים – We have the reading, “crushed nuts” and we don’t have the reading, “How?” And our Mishnah comes to teach us that specifically whole are not nullified but not broken or crushed.

Introduction This mishnah provides an exception to the rule in yesterday’s mishnah.

נתפרסו הככרות – this anonymous teaching is according to Rabbi Akiva, and the Halakha is according to him.

If the nuts cracked, or if the pomegranates burst open, or the casks became unstopped, or the pumpkins were cut, or the loaves were broken up, they become neutralized in two-hundred-and-one. In yesterday’s mishnah we learned that certain items can not be neutralized in a mixture of two hundred. Here we learn that this is true only if they are whole. This is because they are “important items” only when they are whole. If they are in some way broken up, then they lose their importance and they will be neutralized in a mixture of 200 and one, as is the usual rule when it comes to orlah and kilayim.

ספק ערלה – such as an idolater who has plants of Orlah in his garden, and in his hand are fruit and it is not known if they are of Orlah or something older (i.e., past the fourth year).

Introduction The final mishnah in tractate Orlah is concerned with the status of doubtful orlah and kilayim in the land of Israel and outside of it.

בארץ ישראל – that it is doubtfully from the Torah, for stringency.

Doubtful orlah: in the land of Israel is prohibited, in Syria is permitted, and outside the land one may go down and purchase [from a non-Israelite] as long as he has not seen him gathering it. If one has some produce and doesn’t know whether it is orlah or not, inside the land of Israel, where the prohibition of orlah is from the Torah (deoraita) the produce is prohibited. In Syria, where some of the agricultural laws apply and some don’t (see Demai 6:11; Sheviit 6:2) the produce is permitted. Outside the land of Israel, meaning outside Syria, the law is even more lenient. One may go into the field of a non-Jew and purchase from him produce that may be orlah, as long as the Jew does not see the non-Jew actually pluck the orlah fruit from the orlah tree. In such a case this would not be “doubtful orlah” but rather “certain orlah” which is prohibited derabanan even outside the land of Israel.

בסוריא מותר – because it is the conquest of an individual (i.e., David – and not a national conquest – so as to give the land the sacred character of the land of Israel – see Talmud Gittin 8b), and they were stringent with it somewhat.

A vineyard planted with vegetables [which are kilayim], and they [the vegetables] are sold outside of it: in the land of Israel these are prohibited, and in Syria they are permitted; outside the land one may go down and purchase them as long as he does not gather [them] with [one’s own] hand. The rules for kilayim are similar. The vegetables that are described here were possibly grown in a vineyard, because we know that the non-Jew has grown vegetables in his vineyard. However, they are not certain kilayim because they are being sold outside of the vineyard. Inside the land of Israel they are prohibited, because the prohibition of kilayim within Israel is deoraita and therefore we are strict even with doubtful kilayim. In Syria these vegetables are permitted. Outside of Israel one can go down to a vineyard and even see the non-Jew harvest these vegetables as long as he doesn’t gather them with his own hands. This law is even more lenient than the law concerning doubtful orlah, for here one can even see the non-Jew harvest the kilayim. Perhaps the reason that the law is more lenient is that the prohibition of kilayim outside of Israel is only an “enactment of the scribes” as we shall learn in section five.

ובחוצה לארץ יורד ולוקט – in the midst of the garden and he purchases from the idolater from that which he harvested already, just as long as he doesn’t see him harvesting.

New [produce] is prohibited by the Torah in all places. The end of this mishnah gives three different levels concerning the status of various prohibitions outside of the land of Israel. It is prohibited to eat new produce until the Omer (barley harvest) has begun to be offered on the second day of Pesah (see Hallah 1:1). This prohibition is “deoraita” even outside the land of Israel. This is indeed explicitly stated in Leviticus 23:13.

ובחו"ל יורד ולוקט – the idolater goes down and harvests in the presence of the Israelite, and the Israelite purchases it from him, as long is the Israelite does not harvest it by [his own] hand.

And orlah is a halachah. The prohibition of orlah is a “halakhah”. There are two opinions in the Talmud as to what this means. Some interpret it to mean “the halakhah/law of the land.” This would give it the status of a custom. Others interpret it to mean a “halakhah to Moses at Sinai.” This would give it the status of ancient oral law.

בכל מקום – and even in the Diaspora, as it is written (Leviticus 23:14 – though the text itself has a printing error in listing chapter 24): “You shall eat no bread or parched grain or fresh ears…in all your settlements.”

And kilayim are an enactment of the scribes. Finally, kilayim are prohibited outside the land of Israel by an enactment of the sages. This refers only to mixed seeds in the vineyard, from which it is even prohibited to derive benefit in the land of Israel. The law regarding different types of seeds that were planted together is more lenient in the land of Israel (one can eat such seeds, just not plant them) and therefore the law outside of Israel is more lenient as well. Yoking together two different types of animals (such as a donkey and an ox) and cross-breeding animals and trees is prohibited by the Torah in all places. For more information concerning kilayim look at my introduction to tractate Kilayim. Congratulations! It is a tradition at this point to thank God for helping us finish learn the tractate and to commit ourselves to going back and relearn it, so that we may not forget it and so that its lessons will stay with us for all of our lives. One of the aspects of Orlah that I found interesting was the chapter on forbidden mixtures. Many of our laws of kashrut stem from sources in this chapter and other places in Zeraim. Interestingly, there is far more information in tannaitic sources concerning prohibited agricultural produce such as orlah, kilayim and terumah then there is about prohibited animals and the prohibition of the mixture of milk and meat. When later rabbis (in the Talmudic and post-Talmudic periods) came to codify when something is not kosher (meaning it is either a mixture of milk and meat or stems from a prohibited animal) they often were forced to rely on sources that are from Seder Zeraim, and many from tractate Orlah. Thus this tractate is actually quite practical. Tomorrow we begin Tractate Bikkurim, the last tractate in Seder Zeraim.

והערלה הלכה – a usage dating from Moses as delivered from Sinai/a traditional interpretation of a written law, that it is forbidden outside the Land [of Israel] and nevertheless if there is a doubt [regarding it], it is permitted, for such was stated that a usage dating from Moses as delivered from Sinai, that a doubt regarding it will be permitted outside the Land [of Israel].

והכלאים מדברי סופרים – especially mixed seeds from the vineyard, since in the Land [of Israel] they are strict and prohibit [deriving from it] benefit from the Torah; outside the Land [of Israel], the Rabbis decreed regarding this. But mixed seeds that are in the Land [of Israel] they permitted in deriving benefit; outside the Land [of Israel] the Rabbis did not decree regarding them. But the grafting of the tree is forbidden outside the Land [of Israel] from the Torah, as it is written (Leviticus 19:19): “[You shall observe My laws.] You shall not let your cattle mate with a different kind; you shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed.” Just as your cattle with mating, so your seed with grafting; just as your cattle whether in the Land [of Israel] or outside the Land [of Israel], even your field with regard to grafting, whether in the Land [of Israel] or outside the Land [of Israel].