Yoma 79a (עט.) — the Talmud in English

Rav Pappa raised a dilemma:

The date that they stated

as the measure for eating on Yom Kippur—

with its pit,

together with the pit,

or without its pit?

And similarly, with regard to the measure of a bone of a corpse that imparts corpse impurity,

Rav Ashi raised

a similar question:

Regarding that which we learned, that

a bone

of a corpse imparts impurity when it contains a measure

the size of a barley grain—

is the reference to a barley grain

with its husk, or

a barley grain

without its husk?

And one must also consider whether the reference is

to a

barley grain

that is moist or one that is dry.

And the Gemara explains:

Rav Ashi did not raise Rav Pappa’s dilemma

with regard to the date on Yom Kippur, because “the large date”

was stated

in our Mishna. And this indicates

the larger it is,

that the larger the date, the greater its measure; therefore, its pit must also be included, since that makes it “larger.”

Whereas

Rav Pappa did not raise Rav Ashi’s dilemma,

who was uncertain about the measure of a bone the size of a barley grain, because a barley grain that is

moist—

is called a “stalk of grain”—

and only a dry one is called barley.

Similarly, a barley grain

without its husk

is called “ushla,”

and not barley.

Rabba said that Rav Yehuda said: The large date that they stated—

it is

larger than an egg.

And the Sages determined that with this measure—

his mind is settled,

a person’s mind is relieved of the affliction, whereas

less

than

this—

his mind is not settled.

Therefore, the measure stated here is not the ordinary measure of eating, which is an olive-bulk, but rather the measure that prevents affliction.

The following objection was raised

against Rav Yehuda from the Mishna in tractate Sukkah:

As we learned:

An incident

that occurred during the festival of Sukkot:

They brought Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai a dish to taste, and

similarly, an incident occurred during the festival of Sukkot, when they brought

Rabban Gamliel two dates and a bucket of water.

And

in both cases

they said: Take them up to the sukka!

And it was taught with regard to it,

in a beraita concerning this Mishna:

They did this not because that was the halakha,

that they were obligated to eat them in the sukka.

Rather,

only because

they wished to be stringent with themselves

and eat them in the sukka.

And the Mishna continues there:

And when they gave Rabbi Tzadok

bread,

food

that was

less than an egg-bulk,

he observed three leniencies with regard to it:

a. He did not wash his hands; rather,

he took it with a cloth.

b.

And he ate it outside the sukka.

d.

And he did not recite Birkat HaMazon after it,

even though it contained an olive-bulk.