Talking Talmud

A case of a person who is eating non-sacred food at the level of purity of sacrificial food - which doesn't really give off that impurity to the next level. Plus, the hierarchy of impurity means that something that is pure in and of itself can be regarded as impure in comparison to something that is pure with a higher standard of purity. Also, on the susceptibility of impurity - will shechitah...

More on how to understand the mishnah -- and whether the level of sanctity raised there is potentially really that of terumah, or perhaps that of sacrificial offerings (and how that would be determined). Note that terumah is only ever a gift from one's produce - that which grows from the ground, and it would not be confused with meat (in contrast to the sacrificial meat as compared to regular...

A new mishnah! What happens if the animal doesn't bleed at the time of shechitah? Apparently, that's a kosher shechitah. And one's impure hands won't render the meat impure (unless the slaughtering itself made it susceptible to impurity, and not just the liquid of the blood). The Gemara reexplains the mishnah to explain that the mishnah could not be talking about sacrificial foods,...

2 mishnayot! 1 - A person is slaughtering an animal and the knife falls and he picks it up to complete the slaughtering... as long as the shechitah is completed in the time that it would take to slaughter the animal to begin with, that's kosher. If it takes more time, then it's not a valid shechitah. But different animals - and fowl - take different amounts of time to do the shechitah. Doe...

A new mishnah! In the case of a knife fell and slaughtered the animal officially correctly, the shechitah is not actually kosher because a person must be involved doing the slaughtering. But if a person dropped the knife, even without intent, then the person is there as an agent, and the shechitah may well be kosher. The question is whether intent is required for shechitah to be valid. Also, the c...

If there's more than one incision in the pipe, can that be kosher shechitah? It's a machloket. What about 2 people holding the knife for one animal's slaughter? That's one incision, but 2 people with 2 knives, which means 2 incisions, and it has all kinds of insecurities associated with it - and could result in non-kosher shechitah, but we really don't worry about that, and all...

More on the question of when a siman is cut precisely halfway across - is that 50/50 considered the majority or not? (it's still a machloket). With the parallel to the requirement that at least half of the population of the Jews need to be pure to be able to participate in the Pesach sacrifice. That 50/50 seems to be acceptable, rather than leaving a full half of the people to make up the sacr...

On the bird's "one siman" being severed, does it make a difference which of the esophagus or the trachea is cut? It's a machloket, whether "either one" is enough or one specific one needs to be cut. The Gemara provides a mnemonic to support 5 different arguments, half of which support the one view above and the other half the other view. Plus, the order of when the sima...

Chapter 2! A new mishnah... On slaughtering a "bird," where cutting one "siman" (windpipe or gullet) is sufficient for kosher shechitah, or an "animal" - that requires both simanim for kosher shechitah. Which leads to a discussion of partial completion of cutting, and how much must be cut to be considered as if it were cut in full for a kosher shechitah. Plus, sourcin...

Another 2 mishnayot: 1 - In the case of a girl who's to be sold to be a servant, if she is sold, then her father would not receive a fine in the event of her being raped or seduced, because it's a full sale. And vice versa. 2 - In the case of refusal, there's no halitzah, and vice versa. But there is a case of refusal, where a non-minor girl can refuse, and also would be eligible for h...

2 small mishnayot: 1. On vessels of wood and metal, how they each have that which is stringent and that which is lenient, as compared to the other. 2. On bitter almonds and sweet almonds, how they each have that which is obligated in the one and exempt in the other, and vice versa. Note the two different kinds of almond trees. And note that roasting almonds counteracts the cyanide at its core. Als...

2 tiny mishnayot: 1 - There is that which is problematic for kohanim - to do the Temple service (namely blemishes) - that are not a problem for levi'im (Levites), and vice versa, where Levites can only serve at certain ages of majority and not for life. 2 - There is that which is impure for earthenware vessels that is pure for all other vessels, and vice versa. The Gemara goes on to explain th...

One who takes an oath to offer a burnt offering of a ram -- that is, at least 13 months old -- or a lamb -- 12 months, and then offers a "palgeis" -- the animal during that month from age 12 to 13 months. Has he fulfilled his oath? Given that he also brings the accompanying elements, like the grain offering and libations, one might think yes, but he didn't fulfill his own word. Plus,...

A new mishnah! On bird offerings - and at what age they are suitable for offerings, depending on whether they are "doves" or "pigeons." What about the transition age? Note that both ages need to be stipulated because logic might steer us astray otherwise. Also, the Torah is specific to prevent us to think that all doves and/or all young pigeons would be acceptable. With key yel...

If a neckbone of person were person - in parallel to the bird's neck the other day - the question arises as to whether or when the status of impurity kicks in. With the example of Eli the high priest of the Book of Samuel (I), who fell, whose neckbone broke, and who died, "because he was old." Also, a beraita on the melikah of a bird burnt-offering. And how it's different from a...

Diving into the details of melikah -- specifically the process, and the debated points of that process. Also, some ways in which melikah is different from shechitah, the slaughtering of the animals that are not birds. Also, on what happens if the bird's neckbone breaks in such a way that it cuts the flesh as well, then there's no shechitah - and the animal is a "neveilah" - with...

A descriptive daf... of details of slaughtering. That is, cutting the trachea in ways that are not obviously kosher, but may be so, and that leads to disputes over how and when which cutting took priority to determine the kashrut of the shechitah. Plus, a description of the sages sitting in rows and learning, considering different permutations where the shechitah is kosher or not. Also, what if th...

In the case of a person who doesn't send his knife to be approved by a Torah scholar, the shochet should be ostracized or, alternatively, removed from his position, depending on whose opinion or the specific circumstances. And "removing from his position" doesn't stop there - he can't sell his meat as kosher, and it is to be wiped with feces so that it can't be sold to no...

On the phrasing of everyone can slaughter, everywhere and when, and with anything that can do proper slaughter (for example, a shard of glass). The Gemara shifts the focus from the animal to the person during the slaughtering - to include the Samaritan and a sinner, for example. Plus, Shmuel's father sent a knife and a question about it to the sages in the land of Israel to determine the permissib...

What if one accomplishes shechitah by means of a mechanism that slaughters the animal - is that shechitah kosher? The answer lies in how much human involvement there is to activate that mechanism. Also, parsing the statements that "all are slaughtered" -- namely, every animal needs proper slaughtering. Plus, how eating meat in the wilderness was not allowed because shechitah wasn't p...

More on Hilkhot Shabbat - with a baraita that connects between Hullin and Shabbat. One who cooks on Shabbat without intent, one can eat that food (though the person who cooked it may have to wait until after Shabbat, depending on whom you ask) - even before the end of Shabbat. If it was intentional, then the food can't be eaten, even after Shabbat, by anyone. Also, what about doing shechitah f...

A new mishnah (a tiny one)! One who slaughters an animal on Shabbat or Yom Kippur is liable for a death sentence, but the shechitah itself is kosher. But that would only hold true in the case where nothing could have been done to prepare the same shechitah before Shabbat (at the latest, some time on Friday) -- otherwise, it has to be prepared in advance. Especially if meat were to be given to dogs...

A case where one brings produce to the roof of a building to keep it away from insects, but it gets wet from dew, which makes the produce eligible to become impure. Plus, the ways in which intent (or lack thereof) has impact on the kashrut of one's shechitah (or one's sacrifice). Also, two very brief mishnayot: 1. If a non-Jew slaughters an animal in a way that would be kosher if it were d...

Do you need to see the entire process of shechitah to be able to trust that it was done properly? The Gemara has a case that does require one to see the entirety of the process, but we know that that isn't usually how it works (so often, we do not see any of the process of shechitah!), so the sages delve into the particulars of the case. Perhaps it's a question of whether you know the shoc...

A quantifiable majority determines the outcome of an unknown, as per the biblical verse: "Follow the majority." But with an unquantifiable majority - what is the source for the principle to apply in those cases as well? Note that the Gemara supports this principle with 9 examples -- that is, 9 sources as possibilities from which it is understood or derived. Note also that checking the re...