Yevamos 81b

יבמות פ״א ע״ב

Yevamot 81b

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Topic

Items too important to be canceled in a mixture: רבי מאיר's 'usually counted' rule, the את/כל wording dispute, and the ברייתא about a single impure holy piece

Overview

The גמרא quotes a משנה from מסכת ערלה about a forbidden item that got mixed into permitted food. רבי מאיר says anything usually sold by count is too important to be canceled (בטל), so the whole mixture must be burned. חכמים say only six specific items are that important, and רבי עקיבא adds a seventh: a homeowner's loaves. Next, רבי יוחנן and ריש לקיש argue about the exact wording of רבי מאיר's rule. 'את' would mean only things that are always counted, while 'כל' would include things that are sometimes counted. The גמרא then brings a ברייתא about an impure piece of a חטאת or of לחם הפנים mixed into a hundred pure pieces. The תנא קמא says it is canceled and רבי יהודה says it is not, but everyone agrees that a pure holy piece mixed into plain pieces is not canceled. The גמרא challenges ריש לקיש from the first half, and רבי חייא בריה דרב הונא answers that the piece was crushed. The גמרא then asks what רבי יהודה's reason could be, and the answer comes on the next amud.

Opening lines

The steps (10)

1. StatementThe whole mixture must be burned, or canceled at one in two hundred
2. StatementThe principle behind the argument: items that are usually counted
3. StatementThe list of the important items
4. StatementDid the משנה say 'that which' or 'anything'?
5. QuestionWhat case of 'a piece' is meant?
6. ResponseAn impure piece of a חטאת or of לחם הפנים in a mixture
7. ResponseThe ברייתא's ending: a pure holy piece is never canceled
8. ChallengeThe first half of the ברייתא says the impure piece is canceled
9. ResolutionThe piece had been crushed
10. ChallengeThen why does רבי יהודה say it is not canceled?