Nazir 38a (לח.) — the Talmud in English

And Rabbi Shimon

does not hold that disparate substances combine—

that is, according to Rabbi Shimon, who maintains everywhere that where no measure is stated for prohibitions with regard to lashes, one is liable even for consuming any amount, there is no need at all for prohibitions to combine with one another in order to complete the measure, since one is liable for lashes even for the smallest amount—

if so, this verse,

“from anything that he shall make”

“from the grapevine,”

what does he expound from it

[what does he derive from it]?

He could say to you,

Rabbi Shimon:

That—

the verse “from anything that he shall make from the grapevine”—

is needed for him

to teach:

He is never a nazirite unless he vows abstinence from all of them

[from all the prohibitions of a nazirite: shaving, ritual impurity, and products of the grapevine], as Rabbi Shimon maintains in the earlier beraita on 3b—

but the tanna of the beraita, who derives from this verse that the prohibitions of a nazirite combine with one another, follows the view of the Sages in the earlier Mishna on 3b: One who says, “I am hereby a nazirite from wine,” or from any of the other prohibitions of a nazirite, is a full-fledged nazirite, and all the details of naziriteship apply to him.

Rabbi Abbahu said that Rabbi Elazar said:

With regard to all prohibitions

in the Torah, permitted substance does not combine with prohibited substance

to complete the measure—

except for a quarter-log

of wine and other beverages that emerge from the grapevine

in the case of a nazirite, as the Torah said

“soaked,”

to teach the case of one who soaks his bread in wine, and there is enough in the bread and wine together to combine to a quarter-log measure, in which case he is liable.

And the Gemara explains:

What difference is there

[what practical difference is there]

between Rabbi Yohanan,

who said, “With regard to all prohibitions in the Torah, permitted substance does not combine with prohibited substance, except for the prohibitions of a nazirite, as the Torah said ‘soaked,’”

and Rabbi Elazar,

who said, “With regard to all prohibitions in the Torah, permitted substance does not combine with prohibited substance, except for a quarter-log of wine in the case of a nazirite”?

And we explain:

The difference between them is:

Rabbi Yohanan,

who said “except for the prohibitions of a nazirite,”

derives from the verse

and extends the law that permitted substance combines with prohibited substance

even

with regard to

foods

prohibited to a nazirite. This is what he said: “All the prohibitions of a nazirite.”

And

if, according to

Rabbi Elazar,

who said “except for a quarter-log of wine in the case of a nazirite,” only

beverages

prohibited to a nazirite are included,

not

indeed, does permitted substance combine with them to complete the prohibited measure. But

with regard to anything else

[foods prohibited to a nazirite],

no, permitted substance does not combine with them to complete their measure.

permitted join with them to complete their measure.

Rabbi Elazar said:

There are ten quarter-log measures,

in ten contexts we find a quarter-log measure, and he proceeds to explain them.

And Rav Kahana held a sign in his hand

[Rav Kahana grasped a mnemonic in his hand] so that this teaching would not be forgotten:

Five

of these quarter-log measures are measures of a beverage

that is red

[red], namely wine and blood.

And five

of these quarter-log measures are measures of a beverage

that is pale

[white], namely water and oil.

The five

quarter-log measures of a beverage

that is red

are:

a.

a nazirite;

b.

one who observes Pesaḥ;

c.

one who has issued a ruling;

d.

in the Temple;

e.

and the dead.

And the Gemara explains:

a.

A nazirite—

a quarter-log of wine

that the Torah prohibited

to a nazirite.

b.

One who observes Pesaḥ—

as Rabbi Yehuda said in the name of Shmuel: These four cups

of wine, which a person is obligated to drink on the night of Pesaḥ,

must contain a quarter-log.

c.

One who has issued a ruling—

a Sage who

drank a quarter-log of wine must not issue a ruling

on a matter of halakha until the effects of the wine have worn off.

As it is stated [Leviticus 10:9]: “Wine or strong drink you shall not drink, you nor your sons with you, when you enter the Tent of Meeting,” and immediately afterward it says [verse 11]: “And to teach the Children of Israel.”

d.

In the Temple—

if he drank a quarter-log of wine and entered

the Temple,

he is

liable to death,

as the Torah said: “Wine or strong drink you shall not drink, you nor your sons with you, when you enter the Tent of Meeting, lest you die.” And a quarter-log of wine causes intoxication.

e.

And the dead—

as it is taught in a beraita: From where is it derived that a quarter-log of blood that emerges from two corpses,

also

imparts impurity through a tent,

as does a quarter-log of blood that emerges from one corpse?

As it is stated

in the passage concerning the High Priest:

“And he shall not come upon any dead souls”

[in the tent of the dead].

The word “dead” indicates that there must be a measure of a quarter-log of blood from him, since this is the measure upon which a person’s life depends.

Since the verse says “dead souls,” it indicates that the measure of “dead” combines when a quarter-log of blood comes from two souls who died.

These are the five quarter-log measures that are of a red beverage, since all of them consist either of wine or of blood.

And

these are

five

quarter-log measures of the beverage

that is pale:

a.

the loaves;

b.

a nazirite;

c.

a leper;

d.

those that became disqualified;

e.

on Shabbat.

a.

The loaves—

a quarter-log of oil for the loaf

of a thanksgiving-offering.

Anyone who brings a thanksgiving-offering must also bring with it forty thanksgiving loaves, made from four types of bread, ten loaves of each type.

Of the forty thanksgiving loaves, thirty were unleavened loaves—ḥallot [ordinary loaves that had not leavened], wafers [flat unleavened loaves], and boiled loaves [loaves whose dough was scalded in boiling water before being baked]—and ten loaves were leavened.

A quarter of a log of oil must be given for the ten ḥallot and ten wafers of unleavened bread—

one-eighth of a log for the ḥallot and one-eighth of a log for the wafers.

And an additional quarter of a log for the boiled loaves.

This measure is a halakha given to Moses at Sinai.

b.

A nazirite—

a quarter-log of oil for a nazirite.

With regard to the offerings of a nazirite who has completed his period of ritual purity, it is stated: “And a basket of unleavened loaves of fine flour mixed with oil, and wafers of unleavened bread spread with oil.”

The nazirite brings ten ḥallot and ten wafers for his purification, and both types together require a quarter of a log of oil. This measure is a halakha given to Moses at Sinai.

c.

A leper—

a quarter of

“living

water”

for a leper.

As it is stated [Leviticus 14:2]: “This shall be the law of the leper on the day of his purification: He shall be brought to the priest, and the priest shall command, and he shall take for the one being purified two live, pure birds, cedar wood, crimson thread, and hyssop. The priest shall command, and he shall slaughter the one bird into an earthenware vessel over living water. As for the live bird, he shall take it, together with the cedar wood, the crimson thread, and the hyssop, and he shall dip them and the live bird in the blood of the slaughtered bird, over the living water. And he shall sprinkle upon the one being purified from the leprosy seven times”—

and the Gemara expounded from the verses [Sota 16b]: “He brings water in which the bird’s blood is discernible; and how much is that? A quarter-log.”

d.

Those that became disqualified—

as we learned in the Mishna: And all other beverages

that are

impure render the body unfit

[the body of a person who drinks them]

with a quarter-log.

For the Sages decreed that a person who drinks impure beverages becomes impure at the level of second-degree impurity until he immerses, and the measure of his drinking is a quarter-log. By Torah law, however, impure beverages do not render a person impure at all.

e.

On Shabbat—

in tractate Shabbat [76b], the Mishna explains the measure establishing liability for carrying beverages from one domain to another on Shabbat: wine—enough to dilute a cup; and the Mishna likewise explains the measures for carrying milk, honey, oil, and water.

And

if

all other beverages—

the measure for carrying them from one domain to another on Shabbat, in order to incur liability for them,

is a quarter-log.

And

likewise,

all wastewater

[foul water], the measure for carrying it

is a quarter-log.

And we challenge Rabbi Elazar, who said: “There are ten quarter-log measures”:

And is there no more!?

Are there not additional quarter-log measures?

But there is

that which we learned in the Mishna:

With a quarter-log of

water,

one may wash his hands for

one

person, and even for two!

That is, one person washes his hands from a vessel containing a quarter-log of water. If he did not wash his hands with all the water, the person who comes after him may wash from the remaining water even though it does not contain a quarter-log, since it is considered “the remnants of purification.”

And we answer:

It is a matter of dispute—

this quarter-log measure, which is subject to a dispute,

he did not discuss

[Rabbi Elazar did not discuss].

The Gemara continues to challenge him:

But there is

another quarter-log:

We learned [Sota 15b]:

The

priest

would bring a bowl

of earthenware

and place half a log of water into it

from the basin,

in order to erase into the water the passage concerning the sota, together with the Divine Name contained in it, and give it to the sota to drink.

And Rabbi Yehuda says: A quarter-log

of water would be placed into it!

And we answer: It is

a

matter that is subject to

dispute—

he did not discuss it.

We further challenge him: We learned in tractate Berakhot [25b]:

How much water does one place into it,

[into the vessel containing urine] so that he can pray beside it?—Water measuring

any amount.

Rabbi Zakkai says: A quarter-log

of water must be placed into it!

And we answer:

It is a matter of dispute—

he did not discuss it.

We further challenge him:

But there is

a quarter-log of water as the measure of a

mikveh,

since this measure is sufficient for immersing small needles and tubes!

And we answer:

Apart from that one!

That is, you may challenge him from any other halakha, except for that halakha.

Since

the Sages nullified

this halakha and said: Even impure needles and tubes must be immersed in a mikveh containing forty se’a.