Niddah 67a — the Talmud in English

Rav Shmuel bar Rav Yitzḥak said: A woman may not immerse ![](pamud.bmp "

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in a harbor,

because there is mud in it that intervenes .

And

even though now there is no

mud —

say that while she was stirring [the water]

with her feet,

it fell

the mud and gravel.

There is a difference between immersion in a spring of water that flows from the earth and immersion in rainwater that has collected.

The spring purifies even while its waters are flowing. The mikveh, however, purifies only when the collected waters stand in their place.

The waters of rivers are mixed from waters that flow from springs and from rainwater.

During the hot season, most of the water in rivers flows from springs, and therefore they purify even when they are flowing; whereas during the rainy season, most of the water in rivers is rainwater, and it can purify only if it is gathered in a place where it is collected, without flowing.

Shmuel’s father made

and prepared

for his daughters

for his daughters

mikvaot in the days of Nisan,

because during the winter season the rainwater in the rivers became greater than the spring water,

and mapatzot

and mats — he would place them for them because of the mud in the rivers themselves

in the days of Tishrei,

when the spring water, during the summer, became greater than the rainwater.

Rav Giddel said that Rav said:

A woman who

gave a cooked dish to her son

49, and immersed and emerged —

the immersion does not count for her,

lest some of the cooked dish adhered to her and intervened at the time of immersion. And

even though now

after the immersion

there is nothing

there is no intervening substance upon her, nevertheless there is concern that

perhaps

only

while stirring [the water],

perhaps while she was stirring in the water as she emerged from the immersion

it fell.

Rami bar Abba said: These scabs of bloodletting,

the scabs on the wound that form after bloodletting,

the first three days

they are soft and attached to the flesh, and they are regarded as part of it , and

do not intervene

during immersion.

From this point onward

they are hard and separate from the flesh, and therefore —

they intervene.

Mar Ukva said: Mucus

the discharge of moisture

in the eye, moist —

does not intervene; dry —

intervenes.

When is it called dry —

from the time it begins to turn green

to appear green .

Shmuel said: Eye paint

color

that

is placed

inside the eye

color that is placed inside the eye —

does not intervene

because it is moistened by the tears of the eye .

And that which is upon the eye,

which is dry —

intervenes.

If her eyes were blinking [Rashi explains two explanations: (a) that she continually opens and closes her eyes, and therefore the eye paint outside the eye also becomes softened; (b) that her eyes shed tears and soften the eye paint outside] —

even

the eye paint

upon the eye does not intervene.

Rabbi Yoḥanan said: If she opened her eyes excessively,

it is an intervention above her eyes.

Or if she closed her eyes excessively

for it is an intervention below her eyes —

the immersion does not count for her

because she must immerse in her natural form.

Reish Lakish said: A woman may immerse only in the manner of her growth,

her ordinary manner of marital relations and walking. Therefore, she should not press her arms against her body, nor her legs and thighs against one another. Likewise, she need not raise her arms and the like, because these are defined as “covered places,” since they are covered during her ordinary walking and marital relations and

as we learned

in the laws of leprosy, in which too a lesion found in a covered place does not convey impurity, as it is stated: “according to all that the eyes of the koen see”].

A man

who has a lesion in the armpit must be

visible

to the koen

like one hoeing.

That is, he is not obligated to raise his arm completely; rather, it is sufficient for him to raise it as one who is hoeing. If, in such a position, the koen does not see the lesion as impure, he is pure.

And if the lesion was in the genital area, he need not bend completely so that the koen can see it well; rather, it is sufficient for him to bend like

one who gathers olives.

And

the woman

who had a lesion in the armpit, it is sufficient for her to be

visible

to the koen when she raises her arm

like a weaver.

And if the lesion was in the genital area , it is sufficient for her to bend

like one nursing her son 56.

Rabba bar Rav Huna said: One hair that is tied

is tightly fastened, and therefore it

intervenes.