Overview
Chullin 128 continues the Mishnah from the previous daf about ืืืจ ืืืืืืื (a limb hanging from a living animal) and ืืฉืจ ืืืืืืื (partially detached flesh). The Gemara tries to understand the dispute between Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Shimon regarding whether the animalโs shechitah can give that limb hechsher tumah and what status that limb has after the animal dies.
The daf then moves into a major sugya:
What exactly is the source that an ever min hachai (a limb from a living animal) can transmit tumah?
The Dispute: Why Does Shechitah Help?
The Mishnah taught:
- Rabbi Meir says the blood of the shechitah can prepare the hanging limb for tumat ochlin.
- Rabbi Shimon disagrees.
The Gemara offers several explanations.
Rabbah: Can the Animal Serve as a Handle?
Rabbah explains:
The dispute is whether the rest of the animal can function as a yad (handle) for the hanging limb.
Rabbi Meir
- The animal is a valid handle.
- Therefore the blood of shechitah reaches the limb halachically.
Rabbi Shimon
- A living animal cannot serve as a handle.
- Therefore no hechsher occurs.
Abaye: Holding a Small Part
Abaye gives another explanation.
The case involves grabbing a smaller piece, where the larger piece does not rise with it.
The question is:
Is the attached small piece considered part of the larger unit?
Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Shimon disagree on that point.
Can One Limb Be a Handle for Another?
The Gemara asks several conceptual questions:
Can a living animal be a handle for a detached limb?
Can one object be a handle for another object?
Can one attached branch serve as a handle for another?
The Gemara repeatedly leaves these questions unresolved:
ืชืืงื
These become classic unresolved sugyot.
After the Animal Dies
The Mishnah taught:
The hanging limb is:
- Ever min hachai
- Not ever min haneveilah
The Gemara asks:
What practical difference does that make?
A Piece Breaking Off
The answer:
Suppose meat breaks off the hanging limb.
If it is Ever Min HaChai
The detached meat does not become tamei.
If it is Ever Min HaNeveilah
The detached meat can become tamei.
Thus the classification matters greatly.
Source for Tumat Ever Min HaChai
The Gemara asks:
Where do we learn that ever min hachai transmits tumah?
Rav Yehudah in the name of Rav derives it from:
โืืื ืืืืช ืื ืืืืืโ
The Torahโs extra wording teaches two laws simultaneously.
The Famous Derashah
The Gemara compares:
- A complete animal
- A limb removed from a living animal
and seeks to identify which structures are included.
Several Tannaim debate what qualifies:
Rabbi Yose HaGelili
The comparison is to something that cannot regenerate.
Rabbi Akiva
Must contain:
- Bones
- Sinews
Rebbi
Must contain:
- Flesh
- Bones
- Sinews
This creates important practical differences.
The Knee Joint and Internal Organs
The Gemara identifies practical cases where the Tannaim disagree:
- The knee joint (arkuvah)
- A kidney (kulya)
- Soft tissue such as the lips
Do these parts possess the status of an โeverโ?
The answer depends on which definition of limb one adopts.
Parallel Sugya by Sheratzim
The Gemara then brings a parallel beraita regarding sheratzim.
Just as:
- Meat removed from a living animal does not transmit tumah,
so too:
- Flesh removed from a living sheretz does not yet possess tumah.
The same Tannaitic dispute appears there as well.
The Final Mishnah Case
The Gemara discusses:
Someone cuts off a kezayit from an ever min hachai.
If he cuts it first and only later designates it as food:
- It remains tahor.
If he first intends to use it as food and then cuts it:
- It can become tamei.
This introduces the role of machshavah (intent) in creating tumat ochlin and leads into the next daf.
Big Idea of the Daf
The central theme of Chullin 128 is:
A limb is more than meat. It is a halachic structure composed of flesh, sinews, and bones.
The Gemara spends the daf defining:
What makes an โeverโ an ever?
and when something attached to a living animal becomes a separate halachic entity.
Quick Daf Yomi Takeaway
Three major points to remember:
- Rabbi Meir vs. Rabbi Shimon โ can a living animal serve as a yad for a hanging limb?
- Ever Min HaChai is a unique source of tumah derived from โืืื ืืืืช ืื ืืืืืโ.
- The Tannaim debate whether an โeverโ requires:
- bones and sinews,
- or flesh, bones, and sinews.