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Bava Metzia 11b

בבא מציעא י״א ע״ב

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Topic

Does a חצר acquire only when its owner stands next to it? The ship story of רבן גמליאל, and the difference between a find, a gift and a גט.

Overview

עולא taught that a person's חצר acquires an object for him only if he is standing next to it. רבי אבא challenged this from the story of רבן גמליאל on the ship. רבן גמליאל gave away his tithes by renting out the spot where the produce lay, even though everyone was far away at sea. A scholar in סורא answered that the tithes were acquired through קנין אגב, together with the land, and not through חצר. רבא argued that רבי אבא was right to reject this answer, and the גמרא pushed back, explaining that tithes must be 'given' and that קנין אגב counts as a strong form of giving. רב פפא offered another defense of עולא: when another person is giving the item, the חצר works even from far away, and the גמרא brings a proof from the case of a gift. רב שימי challenged this from a גט, and רב פפא answered that a גט works even against her will. רב ששת בריה דרב אידי turned that answer around with a קל וחומר, so רב אשי begins a new explanation that continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

וּמְקוֹמוֹ מוּשְׂכָּר לוֹ.

and its place is rented to him.

וְעִישּׂוּר אַחֵר שֶׁאֲנִי עָתִיד לָמוֹד,

And another tenth that I will measure out in the future

נָתוּן לַעֲקִיבָא בֶּן יוֹסֵף,

is given to Akiva ben Yosef,

כְּדֵי שֶׁיִּזְכֶּה בּוֹ לַעֲנִיִּים,

so that he will acquire it for the poor,

The steps (17)

  1. ProofEnd of the ship story: the tithe for the poor goes to רבי עקיבא
  2. ChallengeThey were not standing next to the field
  3. Rejectionעולא brushes off the question
  4. Statementרבי אבא retells the exchange in סורא
  5. ResolutionA scholar answers: it worked through land, not through חצר
  6. Conclusionרבי זירא accepts the answer, רבי אבא does not
  7. Challengeרבא supports רבי אבא against the transfer-with-land answer
  8. RejectionTithes need real giving, so exchange fails but land works
  9. Resolutionרב פפא: a gift from another person is different
  10. ProofSource for the distinction: the field and the running people
  11. QuestionRabbi Yirmeya asks about a gift
  12. ResponseA gift is acquired even if he can't catch them
  13. ConclusionThe reason must be that a gift from another person is different
  14. ChallengeChallenge from the case of a bill of divorce
  15. ResolutionA bill of divorce is different because it works against her will
  16. ChallengeA קל וחומר knocks down the 'against her will' answer
  17. Resolutionרב אשי offers a new explanation