Shabbos 129a
Breaking Valuable Items to Save a Life on Shabbos
Part of Ein Yaakov · 13:59
A sugya permitting urgent, even costly, measures for a sick person on Shabbos -- including lighting a fire and selling a house for shoes after bloodletting.
Audio Transcript
realizes he doesn't have any money, and he has nothing. But he does have like this But you can't take it from him. Not you, the Beis Din will. Beis Din, whatever. It's supposed to help someone according to his standards? Yeah. What is standard? What the hell is standard? What is the peshat? ืืคืืื ืืคืืื ืืืืฉืื ืืืฉ ืจืฆืื ืืคื ืื, ืกืืก ืืจืืื ืขืืื, if he's used to having a horse to ride What's the peshat? What's the peshat today? Today is a normal life, a normal way that a person would live. I mean if a person lives A guy lives in a mansion. Yeah, but that's He's used to living a beautiful life, now he tells you he doesn't have. There's everything has ืืืืืืช. If a guy lives in a mansion that has 50 bedrooms, so mimeila you have to pay and give him money to He lost it. I know, but lost it, he lost it. Besides, something that's in the normal You can live like a pauper, you can live like a like a gavir, but you live in a normal way like a gavir doesn't mean that you have excess. Not for excess, but for enough to live a normal Not for 50 rooms. Not 50 rooms. In other words, you don't have to give him for so much, but you have to give him more than you would give a regular poor person. A regular poor person is enough if you give him that he can eat bread and water. And him, you have to give him bread to eat with with better stuff. ืืืื ืื
Gemara ืืืจ ืจื ืืืืื ืืืจ ืฉืืืื, it was in the name of ืฉืืืื, ืขืืฉืื ืืืืจื ืืืื ืืฉืืช, to a woman who gave birth, you're allowed to make a fire on ืฉืืช ืืืืืช ืืืฉืืื, wintertime. Why? Because she could get cold, and get cold, she can catch a cold, and it's dangerous, and her life, it's pashut life-threatening, so you're allowed to. But the way he said it, he said you're allowed to do to make ืืืืืช ืืืฉืืื to who? To this woman, a yoledet, if who gave birth. ืกืืืจ ืืื ื, also the chachamim, when they heard this, they thought ืืืื ืืื ืืืืื ืื, it's only for her, since she had given she gave birth to a baby, by her it's a special danger, but a regular sick person, you're not allowed. ืืืืืช ืืืฉืืื ืืื, ืืืืืช ืืืื ืื, seems like winter you're allowed, summer not. The truth is ืื ืืื, it's not true. ืื ืฉื ื ืืื ืืื ืฉื ื ืืืื, it makes no any even a sick person, a person who is sick, catching a cold, being cold is is is dangerous, and you're allowed to make a fire. ืื ืฉื ื ืืืืืช ืืืฉืืื, ืื ืฉื ื ืืืืืช ืืืื, no different summer or winter. And where do we know it from? ืืืืชืืจ, because we learned like this, ืืืจ ืจื ืืืื ืืจ ืืืื ืืืจ ืฉืืืื, ืจื ืืืื ืืจ ืืืื said in the name of ืฉืืืื, ืืงืื ืื ืื ืืฆื ื, a person let blood out. In those days, they used to let blood out for many reasons. Refuah. For a refuah. What is the refuah? I guess for high blood pressure and things like that. Even today, they recommend that. Iron, a man has too much iron, a woman doesn't have. A man has iron very high. That's very bad for the heart. So, you take out blood. Okay. Yeah. Even today, they do. So, if he makes if ืื ืืฆื ื, and he got cold, ืขืืฉืื ืื ืืืืจื ืืคืืื ืืชืงืืคืช ืชืืื. You have to right away make him a fire and warm him up afilu in the middle of Tamuz! What are you talking? What kind It's a hot day! You got to do it, because if he gets gets cold, it's very dangerous for him. And the Gemara tells a few stories of what they did. ืฉืืืื ืฆืืื ืืื ืชื ืชืืชืงื ืืฉืฉื.
Once when he let out blood and they didn't find wood to make a fire, so there was what he did was they took afilu a beautiful chair, which was a very expensive chair, and he told them, \"Break up the chair, and use the wood for because otherwise his life is in danger.\" ืจื ืืืืื ืฆืืื ืืื ืคืชืืจื ืืืื ื. ืคืชืืจื ืืืื ื is a type of wood, a special type of wood. It's a expensive type of wood. So, he told them to break it up and use it as firewood, even though it was wasting so much. Why? Because of the danger. It's all after he did ืืืืช ืื. ืืจืื ืฆืืื ืืื ืฉืจืฉืืคื. ืฉืจืฉืืคื is like a bench, or a footstool, which again was also expensive, and they broke it up for him in order to warm him up. ืืืืจ ืืื ืืืื, Abaye said to ืจืื, ืืื ืงื ืขืืจ ืืจ ืืฉืื ืื ืชืฉืืืช? Avar on ืื ืชืฉืืืช, you're ruining something that has a value. ืืืจ ืืื, he said, ืื ืชืฉืืืช ืืืืคื ืขืืืฃ ืื. To ruin my body is worse, mimeila it's worse to break this up and ruin this in order to save me. A person wanted okay to do it himself? Yeah, yeah. Why not? Because it tells you you do it. Himself probably is hard him to do. He's the sick guy, he's you can't do it. Well, if he could, he could, yeah. No problem. So, are we talking about on Shabbos? No. Yeah. No, even on Shabbos. What I'm saying Yeah, so the weekdays, too. Yeah, if you get cold, you got to do it. The problem is they let blood, then he got then he got really cold. So, I mean, like he caused himself to be in a He had to let the blood. He had to. Yeah, and then he got into a sakanah. Yeah, yeah. So, he did this Friday. How does it mean by the way it happened? They let out blood on Friday, and then at night he got cold. ืืืจ ืจื ืืืืื ืืืจ ืจื, Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav, he's also to show how important it is in in in in the game when you take out blood to take care. He said like this:
ืืขืืื ืืืืืจ ืืื ืงืืจืืช ืืืชื, a person should even sell his house, ืืืงื ืื ืขืืื ืืจืืืื, to buy shoes. Shoes are so important guess for the same reason, because if you're going to walk without shoes you're going to get, catch cold. A what? Have decent shoes. You need shoes outside you to walk outside your... No, you walk outside, sell even your house to buy shoes. And then he continues, ืืงืื ืื ืืืื ืื ืื ืืืื, ืืืืื, if you let out blood and you don't have what to eat, ืืืืืจ ืื ืขืืื ืฉืืจืืืื, sell even your shoes! Your shoes, that's so important, sell your shoes ืืืกืคืืง ืืื ืฆืจืื ืกืขืืื, and get some food, because it's so important to eat something after you let out blood. ืืื ืฆืจืื ืกืขืืื? What do you mean to get stuff for a seudah? What is it that you need for the seudah? ืจื ืืืจ ืืฉืจ, to eat meat. ืฉืืืื ืืืจ ืืืื, he says wine. They're both right. They're both right! ืจื ืืืจ ืืฉืจ, he says, why meat? Because ื ืคืฉ ืืืฃ ื ืคืฉ, meat, head and it's a life, so life gives you back life. And ืฉืืืื ืืืจ ืืื, Shmuel says wine, why? ืกืืืงื ืืืฃ ืกืืืงื, red brings back red, it was missing the blood, so if you drink red wine, it gives you back the koach of the blood that you had. So... Red meat you get blood. Huh? Mhm. Red meat makes blood, but red wine more than red meat. Well, I guess red wine has more. Where in ืื ืืชืื ืืงืืืฉ does it say to get shoes, sell the house to buy shoes? Yeah. Rambam holds, first thing you buy a house, you need before you can... Before you get married. Before you get married, yeah, yeah. But shoes is something else. Shoes you have to have. Shoes means just extension. I once spoke about it. Shoes is, once I spoke about it. What? I explained lately, I even spoke about it, I didn't bring this around, this Gemara, what's the inyan of shoes.
Shoes is to separate between yourself and the, and the gashmiyut. That's the most important thing. The most important thing in life is that you should, so there's, you have to know that even though you have to walk on the floor, the floor represents hagshamah, gashmiyut, but don't get into it, don't get stuck to it. Separate! Make a separation between your feet and this. And that's the yesod of everything. That's why when they went out from Mitzrayim, the Eibershter said to them, ื ืขืืืื ืืจืืืืื. You're going out now, you're starting off now as Yidden, have shoes on your feet. Have the separation. Moshe Rabbeinu, what did he tell him, the Eibershter? ืฉื ื ืขืืื ืืขื ืจืืืื, take off your feet, the shoes, because that's the whole point, the whole point. A ืืงืื ืงืืืฉ, ืคืืจืงืขืจื, you don't have shoes, shoes separate, you want to stick. In the Beis Hamikdash, they, they worked with the, kohanim without shoes! Why don't they take off the shoes in the shul like the Arabs? Where should we take off? In our house. In shul. Shul, might be shul, as holy as it is, it's not a Beis Hamikdash. But when you go to the Ohel, they take off the shoes. Only Chabad. Only Chabad, only Chabad. Only Chabad takes off? Yeah. You didn't know that only Chabad knows the truth of everything, dude? Chabad has all the seder of the Torah, all the reason, every good reason. Anyways. Adrabah, when you go to the ืคืจืืขืจืืืงืขืจ... Ohel, yeah. To the Alter Rebbe you take it off, yeah. Only to the Rebbeim. In Meron, no one takes off the shoes. In Lubavitch? Everybody's house takes off shoes. No, not in Lubavitch. Huh? What about Shacharit? In Shacharit we do Birkat Kohanim, yeah? Why don't you take off the shoes? Yeah, Kohanim, that's Kohanim, that's connected to the floor? No, but the point is that we are... But the floor is not, you pay them of ืงืืืฉื, but the, but the floor is not really ืงืืืฉ. You don't say the floor is ืงืืืฉ. In ืืืช ืืืงืืฉ, the floor was ืงืืืฉ. It was part of the avodah. ืืขืืื ืืฉืจืช, it says. The ืขืืื is part of the ืืฉืจืช. The avodah of the Kohanim was ืืขืืื, and it has, can't be chatzitzah, that's the peshat, but the, but the reason is because you can't separate, you shouldn't make a separation, a ืืงืื ืงืืืฉ. In the ืืืช ืืืงืืฉ you removed shoes? In the ืืืช ืืืงืืฉ, ืขืืื ืฆืคืืคืื? And the, the ืืฉืจืื when they went up, why? Yeah, no, I think so. So I'm just curious, when you go to the Kotel... The floor in front of the Kotel is holy? The floor is holy? Outside, you're outside the Kotel. The floor of where you are is not holy. The other side of the Kotel was holy. When you go to a, when you go to a ืงืืจ of another ืฆืืืง, do you also take off the shoes, you know? Depends which ืืงืื ืงืืืฉ. When you go to a ืงืืจ of a ืฆืืืง, but even when you go to a Chabad you would be... I don't remember what I did when I went to the ืืืจืืืืฉืืืขืจ. I think, I think we did. The Rambam? I think so, I'm not sure. And by the Rambam? We didn't. The Rebbe ever went to, to other ืงืืจืื? Not that we know. Good part in ืงืืจื ืฆืืืงืื in Poland, no one is doing that. No, it's not shayach. In the ืืืช ืืืงืืฉ everyone took off their shoes, not just the Kohanim? Yeah, the Rambam says even the Har HaBayit they took off their shoes. Why the Kohanim didn't catch cold? They did catch cold! You know, why did that... That's right, because they didn't put them back on, they had to keep work, they had to keep working. Yeah, but came here for five minutes, like you go to the ohel, you don't get sick. Okay, so the Gemara writes, ืฉืืืื ืืืืื ืืขืืื ืืืืชื, Shmuel the day that he did something, something meaning took out his blood, ืขืืื ืืื ืชืืฉืืื ืืืืื. What did he do? Took out blood, to make the ืื, he calls it ืืืืชื. So ืขืืื ืืื ืชืืฉืืื ืืืืื, they would make him food afterwards with a kind of food, a spleen? I don't know, that must be good, huh? The spleen, that must be good for bringing back the, back the, what is missing. What would taking the blood being nowadays, or what would be similar to it? Drawing blood. Drawing blood? Drawing blood, but not for... Well, not for the not for the reason that they used to do it. Now we have pills for high blood pressure, everything. But when you go, a lot of times, when you give blood. When you go donate blood, or when you get a blood test. Like a blood test. That, too. Have to take blood. Yeah. Right, really? It's a sakanah not to take blood. They had to, yeah, they had to go every, whatever, three months, or whatever it was. But we also do it, not like this, but when you take a blood test, you draw blood. No, but when you go to donate blood, you also give a pint, a pint. And mikol makom, we have to remember, as we always learn in Shulchan Aruch, at certain times you have to wash your hands. You go to the bathroom, you do this, and you go after after a ืืจืืฅ, after you draw blood, you have to. So when you go take a when you go a blood test, you got to People don't realize this. After you get a blood test, you got to go wash your hands. You got to You got to have negel vasser. It says when you take a haircut you got to take negel vasser, when you cut your nails, there was negel vasser. Huh? Not always, not always. Not always. But you have to go and wash your hands afterwards. ืจืื ืืืื ื ืฉืชื ืขื ืื ืคืืง ืจืืื ืืืื ืื. Rabbi Yochanan would drink He would drink with a berachah or no berachah? No berachah. Rabbi Yochanan would drink so much wine after he let blood till the smell would come out of his ears. ืจื ื ืืื ืฉืชื ืขื ืืืคื ืืืืื. He would drink so much that his tachol, his own spleen, was was soaking in blood, in in wine. ืจื ืืืกืฃ ืฉืชื ืขื ืื ืคืืง ืืืืื ืืืืกืืืชื. Rav Yosef would drink so much till the place where they took the blood, where there was I guess a hole in the body, the the wine would come out from there. That's how much he would drink. ืจืื ืืืืจ ืืืืจื ืืช ืชืืชื ืืจืคื. Rava would make sure to get wine that came from a bush, from a vine bush, that already gave out leaves three times. Wasn't orlah? Is it because of orlah? No. It's because then it's strong. Then the wine is strong.
ืืืจ ืืื ืจื ื ืืื ืืจ ืืฆืืง ืืจืื ื, Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak to the ืจืื ื, ืืืืืชื ืืื ืืืื, I beg you, ืืืืื ืืืงืืชืื, the day that you draw blood, ืืืจื ืืืืชืืืื, tell your family, ื ืืื ืืืงืืข ืืืื. Tell them Rav Nachman is coming to the house. Imagine you tell them Rav Nachman is coming for a visit. They would prepare a seudah. So there's the same thing here. You tell them Rav Nachman is coming, you could lie to them. Tell them Rav Nachman is coming to the house and you'll have a lot of food. ืืืืืื ืขืืจืืื ืืกืืจ, to to cheat is ืืกืืจ, ืืจ ืืืื ืขืืจืื ืืฉืจื. This that we're going to say now you're allowed to cheat. What are you allowed to do? ืืื ืืขืื ืืืืชื, someone who drew blood, ืืื ืืคืฉืจ ืืื, and he doesn't have enough money to go buy wine, what should he do? ืืืฉืงืื ืืืื ืืื, let him take if he has a coin that's not a good coin, that people don't take. And what do you do? ืืืืืื ืืฉืืข ืื ืืืชื, so go to a store, a wine store, say you want to buy some wine. And usually what they used to do is they used to give a little bit to taste. So you take a little bit of taste, you say, \"Yeah, I'm ready to buy.\" So he tastes a little bit. Then he says to them, \"Here, but all I have is this coin.\" They throw him out of the store. \"This coin you're not getting anything.\" Goes to the second store. He can go ืขื ืฉืืข ืื ืืืชื, seven stores, and each store they'll give you a little bit to taste ืขื ืืืฉืืื ืืฉืืขืืจ ืจืืืขืืช, until you have a ืจืืืขืืช. And normally you're not allowed to do this, to go and cheat, but this you're allowed to.
ืืื ืื, if he doesn't have that, ืืืืื ืฉืืข ืชืืจื ืืืืืชื, let him eat seven black dates, ืืืืฉืืฃ ืืฉืื ืืฆืืขืื, and take oil and smear it on the side of his head, ืื ืืื ื ืืฉืืฉื, and let him sleep out in the sun. Now why is that why is that okay, that deception? Because otherwise you're in danger. No, but but this is kind of stealing in a way. You think? The guy gave him to drink. And you go and taste it. You have to pay to buy? The money is still good? It's ืื ืืืช ืืขืช. It's not ืื ืืื, it's ืื ืืืช ืืขืช. You make it sound as if you're planning to buy and then you're not planning.