Bava Basra - Daf 150
- The minimum requirement for ראשית הגז
On the previous Daf, Rav Yosef said the term "כל שהוא" should be understood literally, with no required minimum. Abaye challenged him from a Mishnah, where Rebbe Dosa ben Horkinas said: חמש רחלות גוזזות מנה מנה ופרס – five sheep, of which each is shorn a maneh and a half of fleece, are obligated in the law of ראשית הגז, which is given to a Kohen. But the Chochomim say: חמש רחלות גוזזות כל שהן – five sheep which are shorn even a minimal amount. Rav defined what "כל שהן" means: מנה ופרס – a total of a maneh and a half, ובלבד שיהו מחומשות – provided that they are at least fifths (i.e., each produced at least a fifth of a maneh and a half). This proves that "כל שהן" can have a minimum requirement!?
The Gemara answers that although the expression "כל שהן" should not have been used in that context, ואיידי דקאמר תנא קמא שיעורא רבה – but since the Tanna Kamma spoke of a large amount, אמר איהו נמי שיעורא זוטרא – and he spoke of a relatively small amount, he used the phrase "כל שהן" because it is comparatively so small.
- A slave whose master gave him all his property, but retained some, does not go free
The Gemara discusses what is included in a gift of all of one’s מטלטלין. It asks if a slave is considered like קרקע in this respect, since it has the halachah of קרקע for numerous laws (such as kinyan), or if they are referred to as מטלטלין, since they are physically movable. Ravina quoted a Mishnah which teaches that if one writes all his possessions over to his slave, his slave goes free (since he is one those possessions). שייר קרקע כל שהוא – If he retained land of even minimal size (meaning, he said he is retaining “some land”), לא יצא בן חורין – he does not go free, because the retained “land” may refer to the slave himself. Rebbe Elazar said: עשו מטלטלין שיור אצל עבד – they considered מטלטלין “retaining” with respect to a slave, so that even if the master says he is retaining “some מטלטלין,” the slave does not go free. Rav Nachman explained that a slave is referred to as מטלטלין, so the slave may be the "מטלטלין" which the master retained. Rav Ashi explained the Mishnah differently: משום דלאו כרות גיטא - because the separation between the slave and master is not sufficiently clear in the document, because of the (remote) possibility that he referred to the slave.
- חמשה עד שיכתבו כל נכסיהם, including מברחת
Rav Nachman said: חמשה עד שיכתבו כל נכסיהם – there are five people where the laws of their gifts only apply if they write over all their possessions. (1) A שכיב מרע, who can only retract from his gift upon recovery if he gave away all his possessions. (2) עבדו – his slave, as mentioned above, that if one gives all his possessions to his slave, he goes free. (3) אשתו – his wife, as taught on Daf 131b, that one who writes over all his possessions to his wife has merely made her an אפוטרופוס over the estate. (4) בניו – his sons, as taught on Daf 132b, that if one writes away all his property to his sons, but writes land of even minimal size to his wife, she forfeits the right to collect her kesubah from the properties given to the sons. (5) מברחת – one who “chases away,” referring to a widow who does not want her new husband to acquire rights in her property. Before remarrying, she gives her property away to someone whom she trusts to return it if her marriage ends. This insincere gift is ruled void, but צריכה שתכתוב כל נכסיה – she must write away all her property to demonstrate her intent.
