Beitzah 33a — the Talmud in English

And likewise

the same law applies to

an egg [

egg], which they place upon a hollow vessel, and place the vessel upon the coals so that the egg will be roasted: he should not place the vessel first and afterward put the egg upon it, for this is a manner of building; rather, he should hold the vessel in his hand, place the egg upon it, and afterward place the vessel upon the coals.

And likewise

the same law applies to

a pot

that they set upon two barrels, with the fire beneath it: only if he first holds the pot in the air and afterward places the barrels beneath it is this permitted. But if he places the barrels first and afterward puts the pot upon them, it is forbidden.

And likewise

the same law applies to

a puryata,

which is a disassembled bed of ministers: they insert long beams [the long beams of the bed] into the legs of the bed at both ends, spread out the hide upon which one lies, and tie it to those long beams. He should not make it in its usual manner, placing the legs, inserting the long beams into them, and tying the hide, since that is a manner of building. Rather, he should stretch out the hide first, bring the long beams, tie the hide to them, and afterward set up the legs of the bed and insert the long beams into them.

And likewise

the same law applies to

a barrel [

barrel], when arranging the barrels in a storehouse and placing one barrel upon two barrels: he should not arrange the lower ones first and place the upper one upon them; rather, he should hold the upper barrel in his hand and arrange the two barrels beneath it.

We learned in the Mishna:

And one may not support the pot with a piece of wood, and likewise with a door:

The initial understanding in the interpretation of our Mishna was: And one may not support the pot with a piece of wood, and likewise one may not support the pot with a door. Therefore the Gemara was astonished:

Could it enter your mind that one supports a pot

with a door?!

Is there anyone who supports a pot with a door? Would it not break [Rashi]?!

Rather, say

as follows:

And likewise the door,

one may not support it with a piece of wood.

The Sages taught:

One may not support the pot with a piece of wood.

And likewise

he should not support

the door

with a piece of wood,

because wood was designated only for kindling,

as was explained in the Mishna.

And Rabbi Shimon,

who does not hold of muktze,

permits.

We learned in the Mishna:

And one may not lead an animal with a stick on a Festival, but Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon permits:

And the Gemara left it understood that the reason of the first tanna, who forbids it, is because of muktze, since wood was designated only for kindling.

And we raised a difficulty concerning it: If so,

let us say that Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon,

who permits, does so because

he holds as his father [

Rabbi Shimon],

who holds that there is no muktze?

And we reject this:

No.

This is not the reason, as we had assumed, that the first tanna forbids it because of muktze, and that Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon, who permits it, holds like his father Rabbi Shimon, who does not hold of muktze, and on this basis permits it. Rather, according to the first tanna as well, there is no prohibition against using a stick on account of the laws of muktze; it is because of another matter.

And conversely,

in this matter,

in leading an animal with a stick on a Festival, it may be that

even Rabbi Shimon,

the father of Rabbi Elazar, who does not hold of muktze,

agrees

that it is forbidden, as the first tanna says.

For the reason for the prohibition against leading an animal with a stick on a Festival is

because

it appears that he is about to lead it to a distant place, for which a stick is needed, and

it appears as though he is going to the changa,

and he appears to be one who is going to sell it in the marketplace, which is called a “chol” [because people circle and walk about in it, like women who circle in dances].

And if so, Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon, who permits, is unrelated to the position of his father, who does not hold of muktze.

The Sages permitted moving wood on a Festival for the purpose of kindling.

At first glance, there is no need to arrive at a special permission to kindle with wood, since kindling is permitted on a Festival, and wood has a use on a Festival as kindling wood; if so, it is not like stones and earth. And Rashi explains [below, on page 33b, s.v. “he should not take”] that ordinary wood is designated for making vessels from it, which is something forbidden to do on a Festival, and because of this it should have been muktze. The Sages came and permitted taking it for the purpose of kindling. The amoraim now disagreed in the Gemara concerning the status of wood with regard to additional uses that are permitted on a Festival: whether the Sages also permitted using wood for those purposes, or whether they prohibited it on account of muktze.

And the Gemara brings that the amoraim disagreed concerning the law of taking

a chazara [

a sharp branch of wood], not for the purpose of kindling, but in order to insert it into a roast like a spit, and roast with it:

Rav Naḥman forbade it

on a Festival, as he will explain and proceed.

And Rav Sheshet permits

—he permitted it.

And the Gemara explains with regard to which chazara they disagreed, and the reason for their disagreement:

With regard to

a chazara

that is moist [

a wet branch]—

everyone agrees that it is forbidden,

since it is not fit to move even for kindling, because one does not kindle with moist wood.

When they disagree is with regard to

a chazara

that is dry,

a dry branch that is fit to move for kindling. And this is the reason for their disagreement:

The one who forbids,

Rav Naḥman,

can say to you: Wood was designated only for kindling,

since ordinary wood is designated for the prohibition of making vessels from it; the Sages permitted moving it only for kindling.

And the one who permits can say to you: What difference is there whether one roasts with it,

making it into a spit with which to pierce the meat in order to roast it, or

what difference is there whether one roasts with its coal?

Just as they permitted kindling it and roasting with its coal, so they permitted roasting with it.

Some say:

With regard to dry wood,

which is fit for kindling—

everyone agrees that it is permitted,

for what difference is there whether one roasts with it or roasts with its coal?

When they disagree is with regard to moist wood:

The one who forbids,

his reason is that

it is not fit for kindling,

and therefore it is no longer applicable to say concerning it: What difference is there whether one roasts with it or roasts with its coal?

And the one who permits can say to you: It is fit

—moist wood is fit

for a great fire,

in which it burns; and what difference is there whether one roasts with it or roasts with its coal?

And the halakha is,

according to the one who holds of muktze—this is the halakha with regard to chazara [Rashi]:

A chazara

that is dry is permitted, but a chazara

that is

moist is forbidden.

Rava expounded,

who holds like Rabbi Yehuda, who holds of muktze:

a.

A woman may not enter the wood storehouse to take an “ud,”

a piece of wood with which to rake the oven, because wood was designated only for kindling, unless it was made into a vessel before the Festival by designating it for this purpose.

And an ud

that was prepared on the eve of the Festival for raking the oven [and it is a vessel!]—if it happened

that

it

broke

on the Festival,

it is forbidden to kindle with it

as mere wood

on the Festival.

Because one kindles with whole vessels

but

one does not kindle with broken vessels,

because of muktze, as was explained above, 31a.

And we wondered: Do you intend

to say that Rava

holds like Rabbi Yehuda, who holds of muktze?!

But Rava said to his attendant [

his servant]:

Roast a small goose for me and throw its entrails to the cat [

roast a small goose for me and throw its innards to the cat]!

But according to Rabbi Yehuda it is forbidden to move the innards, since from the previous day they had been prepared for a person and not for dogs; so how did Rava permit moving the innards?!

And we answer:

There,

with regard to the innards,

since they become putrid [

they become putrid] if he does not give them to the cat on that same day,

from the previous day his mind was upon them

—his mind was upon them to throw them to the cat.

Mishna:

Rabbi Eliezer says: A person may take a splinter from

wood

that is before him

in the house in order

to pick

his

teeth,

for everything that is in the courtyard is prepared, and it is permitted to move it, even not for kindling.

And

also

gathers [

collects] thin and hard splinters

from the courtyard,

although he troubles himself to collect them from it,

and kindles

since

everything that is in the courtyard—

is prepared!

And we do not say: Since he troubles himself to gather them, they are not considered prepared.

And the Sages say: He gathers

only thin splinters

that are before him, and

only

kindles,

but he does not pick his teeth with them.

And Rabbi Eliezer and the Sages disagreed in two matters:

a. According to Rabbi Eliezer, he gathers thin splinters even from the courtyard, whereas according to the Sages he gathers them only from that which is before him, for since they are thin and he troubles himself to gather them, they were not designated for this from the previous day.

b. According to Rabbi Eliezer, it is permitted to take a splinter even from wood in the courtyard, whereas according to the Sages it is permitted only to kindle with them and not to pick one’s teeth with them, for in their view wood was designated only for kindling.

One may not produce

on a Festival

the fire [

one does not create a new fire], because by doing so he “gives birth” to a new fire that did not exist before the Festival; and kindling a new fire was not permitted, since it is possible to make it before the Festival. Therefore one may not produce fire on a Festival—

not from wood,

by rubbing one piece of wood against another, or by striking one piece of wood against another until the fire emerges.

And not from

the rubbing

of stones.

And not from earth [

hard ground, which when it is dug produces fire].

And not from roof tiles,

the Bach erased.

And not from water [

sunbeams passing through water found in a glass vessel are capable of igniting tinder touching the hot glass].

And one may not whiten the roof tiles [

with which they cover the roof] in fire in order

to roast with them [

upon them], and the reason will be explained in the Gemara.