Gemara Clarity

Chullin 4a

חולין ד׳ ע״א

Learn Chullin 4a step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Chullin 4a in Gemara Clarity

Topic

Trusting a כותי or a transgressor on שחיטה and מצוות: supervision, the eating test, accepted versus written מצוות, and רבא's checked-knife rule

Overview

This amud deals with when we may trust meat slaughtered by someone who is not fully careful about מצוות. It opens at the end of a ברייתא about a כותי's שחיטה. אביי and רבא read opposite halves of that ברייתא and disagree about a Jew who only goes out and comes in while the כותי slaughters. The גמרא then questions the ברייתא's test of having the כותי eat one bird's head. It asks how one head can prove all the birds are kosher, and whether the כותים even believe birds need שחיטה. The answer is that once the כותים accepted a מצוה, they keep it carefully. This leads to a ברייתא with three opinions about a כותי's מצה. The גמרא concludes that the תנא קמא trusts the כותים only on written מצוות, while רבן שמעון בן גמליאל also trusts them on unwritten מצוות they accepted. Finally, the גמרא explains רבא's rule that a Jew who eats נבילות out of appetite may slaughter with a knife we checked, and it begins a supporting ברייתא that continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

דְּקוּרְיָא שֶׁל צִפֳּרִים,

A string of birds,

קוֹטֵעַ רֹאשׁוֹ שֶׁל אֶחָד מֵהֶן וְנוֹתֵן לוֹ.

he cuts off the head of one of them and gives it to him.

אֲכָלוֹ – מוּתָּר לֶאֱכוֹל מִשְּׁחִיטָתוֹ,

If he ate it, it is permitted to eat from his slaughtering,

וְאִם לָאו – אָסוּר לֶאֱכוֹל מִשְּׁחִיטָתוֹ.

and if not, it is forbidden to eat from his slaughtering.

The steps (31)

  1. StatementThe string of birds: the כותי must eat one head
  2. Statementאביי and רבא each learn from a different half of the ברייתא
  3. Proofאביי's inference: only standing over him works
  4. Proofרבא's inference: going out and coming in is fine
  5. ChallengeChallenge to אביי from the סיפא
  6. Resolutionאביי: going out and coming in counts as 'came and found'
  7. ChallengeChallenge to רבא from the רישא
  8. Resolutionרבא: going out and coming in counts as standing over him
  9. StatementThe ברייתא's case of a string of birds
  10. ChallengeMaybe only that one bird was slaughtered properly
  11. ResolutionThe Jew hides the birds under his garment
  12. ChallengeMaybe the כותי marked the good bird
  13. ResolutionThe Jew crushes the head
  14. ChallengeMaybe the כותים think birds need no שחיטה
  15. RejectionThe details of שחיטה are not written either
  16. ResolutionOnce they took on a מצוה, they keep it fully
  17. StatementTrusting them on unwritten מצוות is a dispute among תנאים
  18. Statementרבי אלעזר forbids a כותי's מצה
  19. StatementA third opinion: כותים are extra careful with מצוות they accepted
  20. ChallengeWhy say a permitted מצה also counts for the מצוה?
  21. ResolutionThe extra words teach that כותים know how to guard מצה
  22. Statementרבי אלעזר's worry is about guarding the מצה
  23. ChallengeIsn't רבן שמעון בן גמליאל saying the same as the תנא קמא?
  24. ResolutionThey differ about a written מצוה the כותים never accepted
  25. ChallengeThen רבן שמעון בן גמליאל should have said 'if they took it on'
  26. ResolutionThe real difference: an unwritten מצוה the כותים took on
  27. Statementרבא's rule: check the knife, then the transgressor may slaughter
  28. ResponseWhy we trust him: he won't pick forbidden over permitted
  29. ChallengeThen why check the knife at all?
  30. ResolutionHe won't bother to get a better knife
  31. ProofThe רבנן offer רבא a supporting ברייתא about transgressors' חמץ