The Eddie B Sit edition presents an audio series of the Talmud Bavli. Today, we delve into Masechet Chullin, dedicated by our dear friend Mr. Joey Jamal and his wife in honor of their son Jack's engagement to Shirley Sutton. May they marry, Bezrat Hashem, at a fortunate and successful time, and may the merit of the study we engage in over the coming months in Masechet Chullin bring them joy, peace, prosperity, and all blessings. Amen.
Today's study, Daf Gimmel, is dedicated to the elevation of the souls of Avraham ben Ester and Rabbi Moshe ben Nunah, as well as for the success of Rabbi Yaakov ben Yosef's match. We begin today's daf on bet amud bet, two lines from the bottom. We learned from the mishna according to the opinion of Rabbah bar Ulla that a shochet who wishes to slaughter an animal while tamei must use a long knife to ensure that he does not render the basar or the animal tamei.
Now, we seek to understand the logistics involved. What type of tumah can a person possess that would allow him to render the knife or the animal tamei? The gemara begins: “This tamei that you mentioned in the mishna, how did he become tamei? If you will say he became tamei by touching a met, the gemara explains that the Torah states, ‘not only if you touch the met, but if you touch the sword that the met was killed with.’ This is derived from the verse: ‘the sword is considered like the chalal (corpse).’”
Here lies a significant teaching of the Torah: a person who touches a met becomes an av hatumah, the highest level of tumah. If someone touches a met, he becomes an av hatumah, and similarly, if he touches the sword, he too becomes an av hatumah. Thus, if a person touches the corpse, the chalal, or the sword, he becomes an av. An av has the ability to transfer tumah to kelim, thereby rendering the knife tamei rishon. The knife can then go and render the basar tamei. Therefore, we must be cautious regarding the knife, as it could still transfer tumah to the meat.
The gemara continues: “But what if the shochet became tamei from a sheretz? A sheretz is also an av hatumah, yet a rishon cannot render a knife tamei. Hence, the basar would not become tamei unless he directly touches it.” Rashi explains that if he became tamei through a sheretz, he would be a rishon, which does not transfer tumah to kelim.
Now, the gemara suggests that the shochet could have indeed become tamei from a met. However, if he slaughtered with a wooden item, such as a hollow reed, it cannot become tamei. The gemara states that you can slaughter with anything, even with a rock or glass, and therefore, there is no concern regarding tumah in this case.
The mishna states that everyone can perform shechita, even a kuti (a convert). However, this is only true when a Jew is standing over him. If the Jew is coming and going, he should not slaughter. If he does, you must give him a piece of meat to taste. If he eats it, it is permissible to eat from his slaughtering; if he does not eat it, it is prohibited.
The gemara continues to clarify that a kuti is careful with certain commandments, but not all. Therefore, if he is supervised properly, he can be trusted to slaughter. However, if he is not supervised properly, he may not be trusted.
Next, the gemara discusses the exceptions: a cheresh (deaf-mute), a shoteh (fool), and a katan (minor) are disqualified from performing shechita, even post-factum, due to concerns that they may not perform the slaughter correctly. The gemara further elaborates that if they slaughter, it must be with someone knowledgeable watching them, otherwise, the slaughter is invalid.
As we conclude today’s study, we recognize the intricate discussions surrounding the tumah involved in shechita and the careful considerations required to ensure that the meat remains permissible for consumption. This study reinforces the importance of supervision and understanding the nuances of halacha in our daily practices.