Gemara Clarity

Niddah 2b

נדה ב׳ ע״ב

Learn Niddah 2b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Niddah 2b in Gemara Clarity

Topic

Retroactive status of a woman who sees blood, compared with a lacking מקוה and a barrel that turned to vinegar

Overview

This amud continues the argument between שמאי and הלל about whether a woman who sees blood is טמאה only from that moment or back to her last check. First the גמרא explains הלל: her own body produces blood, so her חזקה of purity is not reliable. Then it challenges both views from a משנה about a מקוה found lacking, where everything purified in it is retroactively and definitely טמא. After some back and forth, the גמרא answers that the מקוה case has two weak points: the item was טמא before, and the מקוה is lacking now. The woman has only one weak point, the blood seen now. The same pattern repeats with a barrel of wine that turned to vinegar, which challenges שמאי because the earlier days there are treated as a doubt. That case also has two weak points, the טבל status and the vinegar seen now. Finally the גמרא asks why the מקוה is definite but the barrel is only a doubt. רבי חנינא מסורא answers that the barrel ruling follows רבי שמעון, who treats the מקוה as a doubt too.

Opening lines

כֵּיוָן דְּמִגּוּפַהּ קָחָזְיָא —

Since she sees blood from her own body,

לָא אָמְרִינַן אוֹקְמַהּ אַחֶזְקָתַהּ.

we do not say: establish her on her presumptive status.

וּמַאי שְׁנָא מִמִּקְוֶה?

And how is this different from a ritual bath?

דִּתְנַן:

As we learned in a mishna:

The steps (27)

  1. Responseהלל's reason: her own body produces blood
  2. ChallengeHow is this different from a מקוה found lacking?
  3. ChallengeThe difficulty for שמאי: retroactive impurity
  4. ChallengeThe difficulty for הלל: certain impurity
  5. ResolutionThe impure item keeps its impure status
  6. ChallengeThe מקוה also has an earlier status
  7. ResolutionThe מקוה is lacking right now
  8. ChallengeThe woman's blood is also in front of you
  9. ResolutionShe may have just seen it now
  10. ChallengeThe מקוה may also have just become lacking
  11. ResolutionWater drains slowly, but blood does not
  12. RejectionBlood can also come out bit by bit
  13. ResolutionTwo weak points versus one
  14. ChallengeThe case of the barrel that turned to vinegar
  15. ResolutionThe produce keeps its untithed status
  16. ChallengeThe wine also has a presumption
  17. ResolutionThe vinegar is right in front of you
  18. ChallengeThe blood is also in front of you
  19. ResolutionShe may have only seen it now
  20. ChallengeThe wine may also have only soured now
  21. ResolutionWine sours slowly, but a woman does not see blood slowly
  22. RejectionMaybe she also saw blood little by little
  23. ResolutionThe barrel has two weak points, the woman only one
  24. ChallengeContradiction between the barrel and the מקוה
  25. ResolutionThe barrel case follows רבי שמעון
  26. ProofThe משנה: a short מקוה makes past purifications impure
  27. Proofרבי שמעון: public domain pure, private domain suspended