Parshas Matos-Maasei 5786
- Torah Tavlin
- Jul 10
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 16
חולין דף עא. "טומאה בלועה"
Raba says, just like טומאה בלועה is not מטמא anything, so too טהרה בלועה can’t become טמא either. We see this from the following: If one ate נבלה and is טמא, after he is טובל he is טהור even though the נבלה is still in him and hasn’t been digested yet [עיכול] it does not make him טמא (again). So we see that a טמא item that is בלועה does not make other things טמא. So too, if one swallowed a טהור ring & entered a אהל המת, if he were to regurgitate the ring, it would remain טהור, because any item that is swallowed (בלועה) is protected & can’t become טמא.
The [יו"ד שעא,א'] ש"ך brings the רוקח: aאשת כהן who is pregnant, may enter a אהל המת and not be concerned she is making her fetus טמא because there is a ספק ספיקא. 1) Maybe it will be a נפל. 2) Even if it lives, it may be a female. The מגן אברהם [או"ח שמג,ב'] brings this רוקח and asks: based on our halacha that טהרה בלועה cannot become טמא, why does the רוקח need a ספק ספיקא to permit the אשת כהן to enter the אהל? The fetus is בלועה and can’t contract טומאה anyway? וצ"ע. The [שם] פרי מגדים asks on the ספק ספיקא of the רוקח, how can he say one of the ספקות is maybe she will miscarry, when we have a רוב against that, which says majority of women do not miscarry? עיי"ש.
The [פב' א'] אבני מלואים discusses the ענין of "עובר ירך אמו". The Gemara [יבמות עח:] says: if נכרית מעוברת שנתגיירה is טובל, her עובר will not need טבילה later. Even though there is a חציצה around the entire עובר, we say "היינו רביתיה" (this is how it lives) and it is not considered a חציצה and when born will not need its own טבילה. Based on this, he asks on the מ"א, the דין of טהרה בלועה does not apply here. Because just like a mother isn’t considered a חציצה regarding טבילה, she shouldn’t be חוצצת from the טומאה & the עובר should become טמא? And certainly, according to those that hold עובר ירך אמו the עובר should not be considered בלועה as he is a limb of his mother and the הלכות of בלועה should not apply at all?
The מנחת חינוך [רסג,ג'] says, since we say עובר ירך אמו, the דינים of כהונה are not שייך to the עובר. Even if he becomes טמא he is considered one of her limbs but not a כהן! He brings שיטת ר' יוסי that "עובר במעי אמו זר הוא". He concludes that the סוגיא of עובר ירך אמו is complex ואין כאן מקומו. [ק"ש ס' מא] ר' אלחנן answers the רוקח: It is אסור for a כהן (acc. to some שיטות) to be in a אהל המת even if he will not become טמא. This is evident from the דין that a כהן may not be in the same room as a גוסס even though a גוסס is not מטמא. So, the reason טהרה בלועה doesn’t become טמא isn’t because it’s not considered in the אהל המת, but rather it’s a גזירת המלך that בלועה protects it from טומאה. Here, true the עובר is protected from becoming טמא, but there still remains a איסור if he’s a כהן to be in the same אהל. For this we need the ס"ס of the רוקח to permit the mother to enter the אהל המת. The נתיב חיים answers differently: the רוקח discusses a mother who feels she will certainly give birth in the אהל המת meaning the עובר won’t be בלועה. Still, the רוקח permits entry based on the ס"ס. The משנ"ב [שמג,ס"ק ג'] paskens accordingly: a אשת כהן close to giving birth may enter a אהל המת even if she will likely give birth in the cemetery, relying on this ס"ס. [עיין שער הציון]