Daf Ditty Eruvin 44- Outer Limits of Halachic Boundaries
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Daf Ditty Eruvin 44: the outer limits of Halachic boundaries MISHNA: With regard to one who was permitted to leave his Shabbat limit, i.e., he went out to testify that he had seen the new moon or for some life-saving purpose, and they said to him along the way: The action has already been performed, and there is no need for you to travel for that purpose, he has two thousand cubits in each direction from the location where he was standing when this was told to him. 1 If he was within his original limit, it is considered as if he had not left his limit, and he may return to his original location. The Sages formulated a principle: All who go out to battle and save lives may return to their original locations on Shabbat. RASHI Abaye said to Rabba: Do you not hold that the subsuming of Shabbat limits is something significant? And what if he established residence in a cave that has entrances at its two ends, which on the inside of the cave is four thousand cubits across, but atop its roof it is less than four thousand cubits across? Is it not the case that he may walk the entire length of the roof and two thousand cubits outside it in either direction? The entire interior of the cave is considered as if it were four cubits, and he is permitted to walk another two thousand cubits in each direction from each of its entrances. Consequently, he is permitted to walk along the roof, two thousand cubits from the eastern entrance in the direction of the western entrance and vice versa. However, since the distance across the roof is less than four thousand cubits, these two limits are subsumed within one another, and he is 2 permitted to walk the entire length of the roof, given that when two limits are subsumed within one another, one may pass from one to the other. Abaye said to Rabba: Do you not hold that the subsuming of Shabbat limits is something significant? And what if he established residence in a cave that has entrances at its two ends, which on the inside of the cave is four thousand cubits across, but atop its roof it is less than four thousand cubits across? Is it not the case that he may walk the entire length of the roof and two thousand cubits outside it in either direction? The entire interior of the cave is considered as if it were four cubits, and he is permitted to walk another two thousand cubits in each direction from each of its entrances. Consequently, he is permitted to walk along the roof, two thousand cubits from the eastern entrance in the direction of the western entrance and vice versa. However, since the distance across the roof is less than four thousand cubits, these two limits are subsumed within one another, and he is permitted to walk the entire length of the roof, given that when two limits are subsumed within one another, one may pass from one to the other. 3 Rav Avrohom Adler writes:1 The Mishna in Rosh Hashanah states that when the witnesses came to Beis Din on the Shabbos to testify about having seen the new moon, originally they were not permitted to leave, but Rabban Gamliel established a rule permitting them free access to the entire city of Yerushalayim, as well as travel within the 2000 perimeter around the city. 1 http://dafnotes.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Eiruvin_44.pdf 4 Furthermore, this ruling was applied to others who travel outside of their techum boundary for a mitzvah, including a midwife who comes to deliver a baby, or someone who comes to save others from a fire, avalanche or flood.] If a man who was permitted to do so went out beyond the techum (his Shabbos limit) and was then told (while he was on his way) that the deed (which he intended to do) had already been performed, he is entitled to move within two thousand amos in any direction. If he was within the (original) techum, he is regarded as if he had not gone out. All who go out to save people may return to their original places. The Gemora asks: What does the Mishna mean when it stated that if he was within the (original) techum, he is regarded as if he had not gone out? [Isn’t this obvious; he didn’t go out of the techum!?] Rabbah replied: It is this that was meant: If he was within the (original) techum, he is regarded as if he had not keft his house (and he still has 2000 amos from his house, and not from the place where he is presently located). The Gemora asks: Isn’t this obvious as well (for so long as a man has not gone beyond his techum, he is, of course, entitled to his original rights of movement)? It might have been presumed that as he has uprooted himself from his original residence, he has thereby uprooted himself completely from it (and his techum will be based upon his location); therefore we were informed that if he was within the (original) techum, he is regarded as if he had not left his house. Rav Shimi bar Chiya replied: The Mishna meant as follows: If the techum which was given to him by the Rabbis (after he had reached his permissible destination) overlapped with his original techum, he is regarded as if he had not left his original techum (and may return there and make complete use of it). The Gemora notes the principle that they differ on: One master (Rav Shimi) is of the opinion that the overlapping of the techum is of significance, while the other master maintains that it is of no consequence. Abaye said to Rabbah: Are you not of the opinion that the overlapping of techum limits is of significance? What if a man spent the Shabbos in a cave, whose interior was four thousand amos but that of its roof was less than four thousand amos? [Two of the cave’s opposite walls were sloping upwards towards one another; this reduced the length of the roof, in which there were two entrances, one at the side of either wall.] Would he not be able to move all along its roof and two thousand amos beyond it (in either direction, from either entrance)? [If one entrance, for instance, was on the east side of the cave and the other on its west side, the former would enable the man to move a distance of two thousand amos from the east side of that 5 entrance and another two thousand amos from its west side, while the latter entrance would similarly enable him to move along equal distances from both its sides. But since the western limit of the eastern entrance overlaps along the roof with the eastern limit of the western entrance, the man is permitted to move along a distance of more than four thousand amos, beginning in the east at a point two thousand amos from the eastern entrance and extended along the roof to a point in the west two thousand amos distant from the western entrance. If the two techum limits, however, had not overlapped along the roof as would be the case where the roof of the cave, like its floor, was four thousand amos long, the man on leaving the eastern entrance would have been allowed to move to a limit of two thousand amos in either direction but no further, and a similar distance and no further if he left by the western entrance. How then could Rabbah maintain that overlapping is of no consequence? Chazal allowed certain people to exceed the 2000 amah limit of Techum Shabbos.2 According to Rashi here, this includes witnesses who are on their way to testify concerning the new moon, people going to save a person from bandits or from drowning, or a midwife who is going to assist a woman in labor. In Sefer HaPardes, Rashi adds that it is also permissible to go beyond the techum in order to save a Sefer Torah. R' Yosef Engel posits that if it is permissible to go beyond the techum in order to save a Sefer Torah, it is also permitted, once the person reaches his destination, to go 2000 amos in all directions from that place. However, R' Shlomo Zalman Auerbach notes that the basis of this leniency is the Rabbis’ concern that if they do not allow the person some leeway, then the next time a similar situation arises, he will avoid it (see Mishnah Berurah 407:3). 2 Daf Digest 6 Hence, they could only permit this leniency in regard to their own decree. Hence, since most Rishonim are of the opinion that there is a Torah law prohibition to exceed 12 mil (2000 amos x 12; see Mishnah Berurah 404:7), the Rabbis cannot extend the techum beyond that limit. Thus, if a person had to travel for one of the permitted reasons, and he traversed 11.5 mil to get to his destination, he can only walk the additional 1000 amos to the 12 mil limit, and no more (Nishmas Avraham, Orach Chaim507:1 — see there that in the end R' Shlomo Zalman is inclined to give even the person in this situation 2000 amos from his destination.) Divrei Yechezkel (7:26) deals with this very question. He suggests that according to the Bavli, a person who violates the Torah prohibition of exceeding 12 mil is not violating a prohibition to leave a certain domain or area.