Avodah Zarah 76b (עו:) — the Talmud in English

Come and hear: As for that cauldron

that cauldron

that was

which was

in the house of

in the house of

Rav Akavya,

and Rav Akavya wished to kasher it by scalding,

he surrounded it

and attached to it

a strip of dough around its rim

a mass of dough around the mouth of the cauldron,

and filled it with water and boiled it

and filled it with water and boiled it, so that through the dough the water was absorbed and rose to the rim.

Rava said: Who is wise enough to do such a thing

who is the wise person who devises such a solution for kashering the cauldron,

if not

if not a man like

Rav Akavya, who is a great man.

He held

Rav Akavya held that the manner in which a vessel is kashered is:

As it absorbs

in the manner in which it absorbs

so it expels

the forbidden substance. And

what

the rim of the vessel

absorbs through splashes

through droplets of water that splashed onto its rim,

it likewise expels through splashes.

And by coating the rim of the cauldron with dough, he caused boiling water to reach the rim of the cauldron.

We learned in our Mishna:

A knife whose edge

has been filed and sharpened —

and it is pure.

Rav Ukva bar Hama said: And one must thrust it ten

times into the ground,

even after filing it.

Rav Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua, said: And in ground that has not been worked

that is, ground that has not yet been cultivated and plowed, and is still hard.

Rav Kahana said: And

this method of kashering is specifically

with a fine knife

that is smooth,

which has no depressions

and therefore the rubbing against the ground is uniform and removes all the forbidden grease adhering to the knife.

It was taught likewise in a beraita: A fine knife that has no depressions must be thrust ten times into the ground.

Rav Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua, said:

This method of kashering is effective only so that one may

eat cold food with it.

However, if one wishes to use it for hot food, it requires scalding with boiling water in a first vessel.

It was like this

and this is like the incident involving

Mar Yehuda and Bati bar Tuvi, who were sitting before

who were sitting before

King Shapur

King Shapur.

They brought an etrog before them

they brought an etrog before them.

He cut and ate

the king cut a piece from the etrog and ate it.

He cut and gave it

he cut another piece and gave it

to Bati bar Tuvi.

Then he thrust it ten times into the ground

the king again thrust the knife ten times into the ground, after which

he cut

a piece from the etrog, and

gave it

and gave it

to Mar Yehuda.

Bati bar Tuvi said to

the king:

“Is that man not a Jew?”

Is this man [that is, I] not a Jew, and do I not need to eat with a kosher knife? Why, then, does the king conduct himself in this manner only toward Mar Yehuda?

He said to him

the king said to him:

“Mar” [

Mar Yehuda],

“I know him”

I know that he is meticulous in his observance of the mitzvot, and therefore I am careful not to feed him anything forbidden.

“And

if

you, Mar,

you,

I do not know you

I do not know you to be truly careful about such matters. Therefore, I did not take care to kasher the knife for you.”

Some say: He said to him

the king said to Bati bar Tuvi,

“Remember what you did last night!”

Remember what you did at night.

The custom of the Persians was to give women to inn guests. Accordingly, at night the king sent a woman to Bati bar Tuvi, and he accepted her. Mar Yehuda, however, did not accept her.

Therefore, the king said to him, “Remember what you did at night,” and you have no right to raise an objection concerning the kashrut of the knife.

The chapter “One who hires a laborer” is concluded, and the tractate Avoda Zara is completed.