Today's Daf Yomi
March 13, 2023 | כ׳ באדר תשפ״ג
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Masechet Nazir is sponsored by the family of Rabbi Howard Alpert, HaRav Tzvi Lipa ben Hillel, in honor of his first yahrzeit.
Nazir 49
Today’s daf is sponsored by Gershon, Jack, Rivka, Itzik, Yoni, Rafi and Tami in honor of Naomi Cohen’s birthday. “We are all so proud and inspired by your dedication to and love of Torah.”
According to Rabbi Akiva why was it necessary for the verse to include both a father and a mother – why couldn’t we learn one from the other? The Gemara explains differences between the two. What does Rabbi Akiva learn from the verse, “he shall not go in to any dead bodies” that is mentioned in the verses of the kohen gadol? If the nazir comes in contact with a dead body in a way that makes him impure by Torah law, he stops his count toward nezirut, purifies himself, brings sacrifices and then begins his count toward nezirut from the beginning. The Mishna lists all the ways of becoming impure that would make the nazir impure at this level. When Rabbi Meir died, Rabbi Yehuda requested that his students not allow students of Rabbi Meir to come into the beit midrash as they were only coming to question Rabbi Yehuda with their halakhot. Sumchus pushed his way in and began quoting the beginning of our Mishna. Rabbi Yehuda immediately questioned his language as he said an olive bulk of flesh from a dead body and a dead body. Obviously, the dead body was unnecessary as it was included in the olive bulk from a dead body!
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ולרבי עקיבא מכדי לא שנא כהן גדול לחודיה ולא שנא כהן גדול והוא נזיר נפקא מלאחיו לאביו ולאמו למה לי
The Gemara asks: And according to the derivation of Rabbi Akiva, now consider, it is no different whether the individual was a High Priest alone, and it is no different if he was a High Priest who was also a nazirite; the halakha that he must become impure to bury a met mitzva is derived from the phrase “for his brother,” stated with regard to a nazirite (Numbers 6:7). But if so, why do I need the expression “for his father, or for his mother” (Numbers 6:7)? The general prohibition against contracting impurity from any corpse should suffice.
צריכי דאי כתב אביו הוה אמינא היינו טעמא דלא מיטמא ליה משום דחזקה בעלמא הוא אבל אמו דידעין דילידתיה ליטמא לה
The Gemara answers: Both are necessary, as had the verse written only “for his father,” I would say that this is the reason that a nazirite may not become impure for his father: Because it is merely a presumption that he is his father, as one cannot be absolutely sure of the identity of one’s father. However, with regard to his mother, whom we know gave birth to him, perhaps let him become impure to bury her. The verse therefore states: “His mother.”
ואי כתב רחמנא אמו הוה אמינא אמו לא ליטמא לה דלאו אזיל זרעה בתרה אבל אביו כיון דאמר מר למשפחותם לבית אבותם אימא ליטמא ליה קא משמע לן
And conversely, had the Merciful One written only “for his mother,” I would say that it is solely to bury his mother that he may not become impure, as her seed does not follow her, i.e., a man’s lineage is determined by his father, not his mother. However, with regard to his father, since the Master said with regard to the verse “by their families, by their fathers’ house” (Numbers 1:2) that one’s family ancestry follows his father, you might say: Let him become impure to bury him. The verse therefore teaches us that a nazirite may not become impure to bury his father either.
ועל כל נפשות מת לא יבא למה לי
The Gemara asks: According to the derivation of Rabbi Akiva, why do I need the words “neither shall he go in to any dead bodies” (Leviticus 21:11), stated with regard to a High Priest?
על כל לאפוקי רחוקים מת לאפוקי קרובים נפשות לאפוקי רביעית דם שיצא משני מתים שמטמא באהל שנאמר על כל נפשות מת לא יבא:
“In to any” serves to exclude contracting impurity to bury distant people, for whom a High Priest may not become impure; “dead” comes to exclude relatives; “bodies” comes to exclude a quarter-log of blood that emerges from two corpses, for it renders people and objects impure in a tent, as it is stated: “Neither shall he go in to any dead bodies” (Leviticus 21:11). The plural “bodies” teaches that the blood of two people combines to form the minimum quantity for ritual impurity.
מתני׳ על אלו טומאות הנזיר מגלח על המת ועל כזית מן המת ועל כזית נצל ועל מלא תרווד רקב על השדרה ועל הגולגולת ועל אבר מן המת ועל אבר מן החי שיש עליו בשר כראוי ועל חצי קב עצמות ועל חצי לוג דם
MISHNA: A nazirite shaves for having become impure from these following sources of ritual impurity: For having become impure with impurity imparted by a corpse; and for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk of a corpse; and for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk of fluid [netzel] from a corpse; and for impurity imparted by a full ladle [tarvad] of dust from a corpse; and for impurity imparted by the spine; and for impurity imparted by the skull; and for impurity imparted by a limb from a corpse or for impurity imparted by a limb severed from a living person, upon either of which there is a fitting quantity of flesh; and for impurity imparted by a half-kav of bones from a corpse; and for impurity imparted by a half-log of blood.
ועל מגען ועל משאן ועל אהילן ועל עצם כשעורה על מגעו ועל משאו
And a nazirite shaves in each of these cases for becoming impure by coming into contact with them; and for becoming impure by carrying them; and for becoming impure by their tent, i.e., if he was positioned like a tent over them, or if he entered a tent that contains them, or if they served as a tent over him. And as for a bone that is a barley-grain-bulk, he shaves for becoming impure by coming into contact with it and by carrying it. However, he is not rendered impure with the impurity imparted in a tent, i.e., by being under the same roof as the bone.
על אלו הנזיר מגלח ומזה בשלישי ובשביעי וסותר את הקודמין ואינו מתחיל למנות אלא עד שיטהר ומביא את קרבנותיו:
For all of these occurrences, a nazirite shaves, and a priest sprinkles the ashes of the red heifer on him on the third and on the seventh days to purify him from the impurity imparted by a corpse. And he negates all the previous days he counted toward his naziriteship, and he begins counting his term of naziriteship again only after he becomes pure and brings his offerings.
גמ׳ תנו רבנן אחר פטירתו של רבי מאיר אמר להן רבי יהודה לתלמידיו אל יכנסו תלמידי רבי מאיר לכאן מפני שקנתרנין הן ולא ללמוד תורה הן באין אלא לקפחני בהלכות הן באין דחק סומכוס ונכנס
GEMARA: The Sages taught: After Rabbi Meir’s death, Rabbi Yehuda said to his students: Do not let the students of Rabbi Meir enter here, into the house of study, because they are vexatious and they do not come to study Torah, but they come to overwhelm me with their halakhot. Nevertheless, Sumakhos, a student of Rabbi Meir, forced his way and entered the house of study.
אמר להם כך שנה לי רבי מאיר על אלו טומאות הנזיר מגלח על המת ועל כזית מן המת כעס רבי יהודה ואמר להן לא כך אמרתי לכם אל יכנסו תלמידי רבי מאיר לכאן מפני שקנתרנין הן על כזית מן המת מגלח על המת לא כל שכן
When they reached the topic of the mishna, Sumakhos said to them: Rabbi Meir taught me like this: A nazirite shaves for becoming impure from these following sources of ritual impurity: For impurity imparted by a corpse and for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk from a corpse. Rabbi Yehuda grew angry and said to his disciples: Didn’t I say to you like this: Do not let the students of Rabbi Meir enter here because they are vexatious? He explained his annoyance. The clause: For a corpse, is unnecessary, as, if a nazirite must shave for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk from a corpse, is it not all the more so that he must shave for impurity imparted by an entire corpse?
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Masechet Nazir is sponsored by the family of Rabbi Howard Alpert, HaRav Tzvi Lipa ben Hillel, in honor of his first yahrzeit.
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Nazir 49
The William Davidson Talmud | Powered by Sefaria
ולרבי עקיבא מכדי לא שנא כהן גדול לחודיה ולא שנא כהן גדול והוא נזיר נפקא מלאחיו לאביו ולאמו למה לי
The Gemara asks: And according to the derivation of Rabbi Akiva, now consider, it is no different whether the individual was a High Priest alone, and it is no different if he was a High Priest who was also a nazirite; the halakha that he must become impure to bury a met mitzva is derived from the phrase “for his brother,” stated with regard to a nazirite (Numbers 6:7). But if so, why do I need the expression “for his father, or for his mother” (Numbers 6:7)? The general prohibition against contracting impurity from any corpse should suffice.
צריכי דאי כתב אביו הוה אמינא היינו טעמא דלא מיטמא ליה משום דחזקה בעלמא הוא אבל אמו דידעין דילידתיה ליטמא לה
The Gemara answers: Both are necessary, as had the verse written only “for his father,” I would say that this is the reason that a nazirite may not become impure for his father: Because it is merely a presumption that he is his father, as one cannot be absolutely sure of the identity of one’s father. However, with regard to his mother, whom we know gave birth to him, perhaps let him become impure to bury her. The verse therefore states: “His mother.”
ואי כתב רחמנא אמו הוה אמינא אמו לא ליטמא לה דלאו אזיל זרעה בתרה אבל אביו כיון דאמר מר למשפחותם לבית אבותם אימא ליטמא ליה קא משמע לן
And conversely, had the Merciful One written only “for his mother,” I would say that it is solely to bury his mother that he may not become impure, as her seed does not follow her, i.e., a man’s lineage is determined by his father, not his mother. However, with regard to his father, since the Master said with regard to the verse “by their families, by their fathers’ house” (Numbers 1:2) that one’s family ancestry follows his father, you might say: Let him become impure to bury him. The verse therefore teaches us that a nazirite may not become impure to bury his father either.
ועל כל נפשות מת לא יבא למה לי
The Gemara asks: According to the derivation of Rabbi Akiva, why do I need the words “neither shall he go in to any dead bodies” (Leviticus 21:11), stated with regard to a High Priest?
על כל לאפוקי רחוקים מת לאפוקי קרובים נפשות לאפוקי רביעית דם שיצא משני מתים שמטמא באהל שנאמר על כל נפשות מת לא יבא:
“In to any” serves to exclude contracting impurity to bury distant people, for whom a High Priest may not become impure; “dead” comes to exclude relatives; “bodies” comes to exclude a quarter-log of blood that emerges from two corpses, for it renders people and objects impure in a tent, as it is stated: “Neither shall he go in to any dead bodies” (Leviticus 21:11). The plural “bodies” teaches that the blood of two people combines to form the minimum quantity for ritual impurity.
מתני׳ על אלו טומאות הנזיר מגלח על המת ועל כזית מן המת ועל כזית נצל ועל מלא תרווד רקב על השדרה ועל הגולגולת ועל אבר מן המת ועל אבר מן החי שיש עליו בשר כראוי ועל חצי קב עצמות ועל חצי לוג דם
MISHNA: A nazirite shaves for having become impure from these following sources of ritual impurity: For having become impure with impurity imparted by a corpse; and for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk of a corpse; and for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk of fluid [netzel] from a corpse; and for impurity imparted by a full ladle [tarvad] of dust from a corpse; and for impurity imparted by the spine; and for impurity imparted by the skull; and for impurity imparted by a limb from a corpse or for impurity imparted by a limb severed from a living person, upon either of which there is a fitting quantity of flesh; and for impurity imparted by a half-kav of bones from a corpse; and for impurity imparted by a half-log of blood.
ועל מגען ועל משאן ועל אהילן ועל עצם כשעורה על מגעו ועל משאו
And a nazirite shaves in each of these cases for becoming impure by coming into contact with them; and for becoming impure by carrying them; and for becoming impure by their tent, i.e., if he was positioned like a tent over them, or if he entered a tent that contains them, or if they served as a tent over him. And as for a bone that is a barley-grain-bulk, he shaves for becoming impure by coming into contact with it and by carrying it. However, he is not rendered impure with the impurity imparted in a tent, i.e., by being under the same roof as the bone.
על אלו הנזיר מגלח ומזה בשלישי ובשביעי וסותר את הקודמין ואינו מתחיל למנות אלא עד שיטהר ומביא את קרבנותיו:
For all of these occurrences, a nazirite shaves, and a priest sprinkles the ashes of the red heifer on him on the third and on the seventh days to purify him from the impurity imparted by a corpse. And he negates all the previous days he counted toward his naziriteship, and he begins counting his term of naziriteship again only after he becomes pure and brings his offerings.
גמ׳ תנו רבנן אחר פטירתו של רבי מאיר אמר להן רבי יהודה לתלמידיו אל יכנסו תלמידי רבי מאיר לכאן מפני שקנתרנין הן ולא ללמוד תורה הן באין אלא לקפחני בהלכות הן באין דחק סומכוס ונכנס
GEMARA: The Sages taught: After Rabbi Meir’s death, Rabbi Yehuda said to his students: Do not let the students of Rabbi Meir enter here, into the house of study, because they are vexatious and they do not come to study Torah, but they come to overwhelm me with their halakhot. Nevertheless, Sumakhos, a student of Rabbi Meir, forced his way and entered the house of study.
אמר להם כך שנה לי רבי מאיר על אלו טומאות הנזיר מגלח על המת ועל כזית מן המת כעס רבי יהודה ואמר להן לא כך אמרתי לכם אל יכנסו תלמידי רבי מאיר לכאן מפני שקנתרנין הן על כזית מן המת מגלח על המת לא כל שכן
When they reached the topic of the mishna, Sumakhos said to them: Rabbi Meir taught me like this: A nazirite shaves for becoming impure from these following sources of ritual impurity: For impurity imparted by a corpse and for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk from a corpse. Rabbi Yehuda grew angry and said to his disciples: Didn’t I say to you like this: Do not let the students of Rabbi Meir enter here because they are vexatious? He explained his annoyance. The clause: For a corpse, is unnecessary, as, if a nazirite must shave for impurity imparted by an olive-bulk from a corpse, is it not all the more so that he must shave for impurity imparted by an entire corpse?
