Kelim 5:7
How does one purify an oven?
转谞讜专 砖谞讟诪讗, 讻讬爪讚 诪讟讛专讬谉 讗讜转讜, 讞讜诇拽讜 诇砖诇砖讛 , 讜讙讜专专 讗转 讛讟驻诇讛 注讚 砖讬讛讗 讘讗专抓.专讘讬 诪讗讬专 讗讜诪专 讗讬谞讜 爪专讬讱 诇讙专讜专 讗转 讛讟驻诇讛, 讜诇讗 注讚 砖讬讛讗 讘讗专抓, 讗诇讗 诪诪注讟讜 诪讘驻谞讬诐 讗专讘注讛 讟驻讞讬诐 .专讘讬 砖诪注讜谉 讗讜诪专, 讜爪专讬讱 诇讛住讬注讜.讞诇拽讜 诇砖谞讬诐, 讗讞讚 讙讚讜诇 讜讗讞讚 拽讟谉, 讛讙讚讜诇 讟诪讗 讜讛拽讟谉 讟讛讜专.讞诇拽讜 诇砖诇砖讛, 讗讞讚 讙讚讜诇 讻砖谞讬诐, 讛讙讚讜诇 讟诪讗, 讜砖谞讬诐 讛拽讟谞讬诐 讟讛讜专讬谉.
How to purify an oven that had become impure? Divide it into three sections, and then scrape the inner lining down to the ground. Rabbi Meir says that it is unnecessary to scrape the lining, and not to the ground, but rather just to reduce it within by four hand breadths. Rabbi Shimon says, he must separate [the three sections]. If [the oven] is divided in two parts, one large and the other small, the large part remains impure, but the small part is pure. If [the oven] is divided in three parts, one that is larger than the other two combined, the large part is impure, and the small ones are pure.
Comments
The final division of the Mishnah, Tohorot, deals with extremely arcane rules of ritual purity and impurity. The first and largest tractate, Kelim (utensils) examines the different levels of purity and impurity, how they affect various substances and are transmitted. When an earthen vessel is contaminated, the only way to purify it is to break it, so that it is no longer a functional vessel. Ovens in the Talmudic era were often made of stones set on the ground and coated with plaster inside. This Mishnah reviews how thoroughly the oven should be disassembled before being considered pure. If one section remained large enough to function as a separate oven, it apparently required further disassembly.
Questions
- If we can treat this oven as a metaphor for moral purity, what does it teach about the stages necessary for purification?
- This protocol for purification differs from that of kashering utensils, which are typically scoured and heated. What does the difference indicate about the separate concerns of purity and kashrut?
