[48a - 44 lines; 48b - 48 lines]
1)[line 2]לשם עבודת כוכביםL'SHEM AVODAS KOCHAVIM- for the sake of being worshipped as Avodah Zarah
2a)[line 3]גידעוGID'O- he trimmed it[s branches and shoots]
b)[line 3]ופיסלוPISLO- he cut it[s excess parts] (see YOSEF DA'AS)
3)[line 3]והחליףHECHELIF- it replaced [and grew back branches where they were trimmed]
4)[line 4]נוטל מה שהחליףNOTEL MAH SHE'HECHELIF- he must remove [only] that which grew back
5)[line 4]העמיד תחתיה עבודת כוכביםHE'EMID TACHTEHA AVODAS KOCHAVIM- he erected beneath it an idol
6)[line 6]דבי רבי ינאיD'VEI REBBI YANAI- those of the Yeshiva of Rebbi Yanai
7a)[line 6]שהבריךHIVRICH- he placed shoots of the original tree into the ground by "bending them over" with their ends sticking out of the ground to produce a new plant (once they have rooted, the connecting shoot is severed)
b)[line 6]והרכיבHIRKIV- he grafted a branch from the original tree onto another tree (by drilling a hole into a second tree and placing the branch into that hole)
8a)[line 8]ביטולBITUL- removal of the forbidden growth of the Asheirah, leaving the rest permitted (this does not refer to the nullification of the Avodah Zarah portion of the Asheirah, which may only be performed by a Nochri - see Background to Avodah Zarah 52:6:b)
b)[line 8]לענין ביטול איתמרL'INYAN BITUL ITMAR- the statement of d'Vei Rebbi Yanai was said with regard to Bitul, removal of the forbidden growth of the Asheirah (that is, even if the worshipper performed Havrachah or Harkavah (see entry #7) using the actual tree, it is sufficient to remove the new growth, and the rest of the tree remains permitted - RABEINU CHANANEL)
9)[line 13]תוספתיה אסורהTOSEFTEI ASURAH- its additions [that grow on it] are forbidden
10)[line 16]אמר לך שמואלAMAR LECHA SHMUEL- Shmuel would answer to you (the Gemara, and not Shmuel himself, is offering this answer for Shmuel - RASHI)
11)[line 21]ובעיקרוIKARO- its trunk (which existed before the tree was worshipped)
12)[line 36]בצידןTZIDON- Sidon, a city on the Mediterranean coast, to the north of modern-day Israel. It was the capital of Phoenicia. It is within the northwest boundary of the Holy Land (Bamidbar 34:7).
13)[line 37]גלGAL- a heap [of sand and stones]
14)[line 38]צורהTZURAH- a graven image [of an idol]
15)[line 42]שכומריםKOMARIM- idolatrous priests
16)[line 43]לבי נצרפיBEI NATZROFI- the house of Natzrofi, the name of an idol (RASHI, ARUCH)
17)[line 43]דרמי ביה שיכרא ושתיD'RAMI BEI SHICHRA V'SHASI- for they make beer with it (the dates) and they drink it [on their festival]
18)[last line]סבי דפומבדיתאSAVEI D'FUMBEDISA- the elders of Pumbedisa. This refers to Rav Yehudah and Rav Eina (Sanhedrin 17b). Pumbedisa was a town in Bavel (lit. Mouth of Bedisa, a canal of the Euphrates), the location of a great Yeshiva that existed for approximately 800 years. The scholars of Pumbedisa were known for their keen intellect (Bava Metzia 38b). To emphasize its importance as a Torah center, Rabah and Rav Yosef stated that just as one is prohibited from leaving Eretz Yisrael to Chutz la'Aretz, so, too, is one prohibited to leave Pumbedisa (Kesuvos 111a).
48b----------------------------------------48b
19a)[line 5]לצל צילהTZEL TZILAH- (lit. the shade of its shade) the relatively weak (less dark) shadow that appears when the shadow is very long (in the early morning and late afternoon hours, when the sun is close to the horizon, which allows for a greater amount of scattered light to enter the shadow).
b)[line 5]דבצל קומתהTZEL KOMASAH- (lit. the shade of its height) the strong, dark shadow that appears when the shadow is equal to or less than the size of the tree itself (such as when the sun is nearly directly overhead, and less scattered light enters the shadow).
20)[line 17]"וַיִּצָּמְדוּ לְבַעַל פְּעוֹר, וַיֹּאכְלוּ זִבְחֵי מֵתִים""YA'YITZAMDU L'VA'AL PE'OR, VA'YOCHLU ZIVCHEI MESIM"- "They attached themselves to Ba'al Pe'or, and they ate sacrifices of the dead" (Tehilim 106:28).
21)[line 18]מת מטמא באהלMES METAMEI V'OHEL (TUM'AS OHEL)
(a)A k'Zayis of the flesh of a Mes (corpse) is an "Avi Avos ha'Tumah" and is Metamei through Maga (contact), Masa (carrying), and Ohel (being in the same room (lit. tent). An Ohel is defined as a covered space that is at least one Tefach in length, width, and height. If a person becomes Tamei with Tum'as Mes, he must wait seven days to go to the Mikvah. Furthermore, on the third and seventh days he must have Mei Chatas (water mixed with ashes of the Parah Adumah - see Background to Avodah Zarah 46:19) sprinkled on him.
(b)In an Ohel ha'Mes, the house or room becomes Tamei even if the Mes is passing through it and does not stop moving. A person who enters an Ohel ha'Mes becomes Tamei even if only a bit of his body enters, even when entering backwards. A Mechitzah (partition) in an Ohel ha'Mes only prevents the spread of Tum'ah if it reaches the ceiling. (RASH to Keilim 1:4)
(c)The bones of a Mes are only Metamei through Ohel under one of three conditions: 1. They constitute a quarter of a Kav (Rova ha'Kav); 2. They are the majority of the human body (whether they are the majority of the build (Rov Binyano) of the body or the majority of the number (Rov Minyano) of 248 bones; 3. The bone is a complete skull or a complete spinal column. In order to be Metamei through Maga and Masa, it is enough for the bone to be the size of a Se'orah (a grain of barley).
(d)When an object that can be Metamei b'Ohel is located in an Ohel, the Ohel makes everything in it Tamei and protects anything that is above it from becoming Tamei. That is, an Ohel is Mevi Tum'ah (spreads Tum'ah inside of it) and is Chotzetz from Tum'ah (intervenes between the Tum'ah and the space above the Ohel, preventing Tum'ah from spreading above it). If the object of Tum'ah in our Sugya is located below the tree, the branches above it create an Ohel over the Tum'ah.
(e)However, not all objects that cover Tum'ah are Mevi and Chotzetz. There are objects that are Mevi and not Chotzetz and other objects that are Chotzetz and not Mevi and even others that are neither Mevi nor Chotzetz (Ohalos 8:5). An object that is flying through the air, such as a bird or a Talis that is carried or caught up by the wind, is not an Ohel and is not Mevi or Chotzetz, even if it is one Tefach wide.
22a)[line 21]עברAVAR- he passed (that is, if, b'Di'eved, he passed below such a tree, then he remains Tahor, but he is not permitted to pass below such a tree l'Chatchilah)
b)[line 22]עוברOVER- he may pass (that is, even l'Chatchilah he may pass below such a tree and he remains Tahor)
23)[line 25]לשמעיהSHAM'EI- his servant, attendant
24)[line 25]כי מטית להתםKI MATIS L'HASAM- when you arrive there (at the Asheirah tree that bends over the public domain)
25)[line 26]ארהיטניARHITNI- guide me quickly (lit. run me)
26)[line 30]ירקותYERAKOS- vegetables
27)[line 31]והחזיריןCHAZIRIN- (O.F. laitugue) lettuce
28)[line 33]שהנביה נושרת עליהןHA'NEVIYAH NOSHERES ALEIHEN- the foliage falls down upon them
29)[line 34]לזבלZEVEL- fertilizer
30)[line 35]זה וזה גורםZEH V'ZEH GOREM
(a)If two objects - one forbidden ("Isur") and one permitted ("Heter") - combine to produce a third object, the Tana'im argue as to whether the third object is forbidden or permitted.
(b)In our case, the vegetables underneath the Asheirah tree grow as a result of the ground beneath them (which is permitted) and the foliage from the Asheirah tree that falls upon them (which is forbidden).
31a)[line 37]שוחק וזורה לרוחSHOCHEK V'ZOREH LA'RU'ACH- he may grind it (the object that was worshipped as an Avodah Zarah) and disperse it into the wind
b)[line 38]מטיל ליםMATIL LA'YAM- throw it into the sea
32)[line 39]"[וְ]לֹא יִדְבַּק בְּיָדְךָ מְאוּמָה מִן הַחֵרֶם""LO YIDBAK B'YADCHA ME'UMAH MIN HA'CHEREM"- "Nothing shall remain in your hand from the banned property" (Devarim 13:18)
33)[line 44]מה שמשביח בעור, פוגם בבשרMAH SHE'MASHBI'ACH BA'OR, POGEM BA'BASAR- that which improves the hide, damages the meat. This refers to skinning the hide of an animal of Hekdesh that became Pasul. It is prohibited to skin such an animal in the manner that is used in order to make a water-sack, whereby instead of peeling back the skin from the head to the feet, one cuts the skin by the feet and proceeds to peel back the skin towards the head, this is considered a disgrace to Hekdesh (Temurah 24a). Even though skinning the animal in such a manner will produce a more valuable hide, it damages the flesh and there is no net gain for Hekdesh.
34)[line 46]יחורYICHUR- branch
35)[line 46]ערלהORLAH
(a)In the first three years after a fruit tree is planted, its fruits are called Orlah and are Asurim b'Hana'ah, as it states in Vayikra 19:23. The branches are permitted.
(b)If a person eats a k'Zayis of Orlah fruit, he receives Malkus. If he derives benefit from Orlah (or any other food that is Asur b'Hana'ah), according to most Rishonim he is punished with Malkus (TOSFOS Chulin 120a DH Ela), while according to others, he is only punished with Makas Mardus, a Rabbinic institution of Malkus. (RAMBAM Hilchos Ma'achalos Asuros 8:16 - see also Mishneh l'Melech to Hilchos Yesodei ha'Torah 5:8)
36)[line 46]אגוזEGOZ- nut