Chullin Daf 55 צולין דַף 55

The Mishnah on the previous Daf taught that ניטל הטחול – if the spleen was entirely removed, the animal is still kosher. Rav Avira quoted Rava that this is only true if it was removed, but ניקב – if it was punctured, it is a tereifah, because of the pain and illness caused by the puncture. The Gemara objects that a Mishnah teaches that if one cuts off part of a fetus inside an animal and shechts the mother, the shechitah still permits the entire fetus, but if one cut off part of the spleen or kidneys of the animal itself, it is prohibited (as אבר מן החי) even if it remained inside the animal during shechitah. This implies that the animal itself is permitted, despite having a cut spleen!? The Gemara first answers that the entire animal is actually prohibited, but the Mishnah discussed the severed piece because it did so in the first case. Alternatively, although a punctured spleen makes the animal a tereifah, נחתך – a cut [spleen] does not. Rebbe Nechunya reported that the halachah does not follow Rav Avira where the spleen was punctured בקולשיה – in its thin part, but if it was punctured בסומכיה – in its thick part, it is a tereifah, unless a dinar’s thickness of the spleen remained unpunctured.

It was said in Eretz Yisroel: כל הפוסל בריאה כשר בכוליא – whatever passuls in the lung is kosher in the kidney, because a punctured lung is a tereifah, whereas a punctured kidney is not. The Gemara infers that wherever a lung remains kosher with its defect, certainly a kidney with such a defect remains kosher! However, Rebbe Tanchuma objected: וכללא הוא – is this a legitimate rule? But in the case of מוגלא – pus, which does not make a tereifah in the case of a lung, is a tereifah in the case of a kidney!? Rav Ashi concludes: טרפות קא מדמית להדדי – are you comparing tereifos cases to one another? אין אומרים בטרפות זו דומה לזו – We do not say regarding tereifos questions that this case is similar to that one, i.e., inferences from one case of tereifah cannot be drawn from another, שהרי חותכה מכאן ומתה – for when one cuts it here (e.g., the סימנים, or the neck sinews), it dies, חותכה מכאן וחיתה – yet if one cuts it here (e.g., on the shoulder), it lives. Thus, it is possible that a defect which does not make the lung a tereifah can still make the kidney a tereifah.

In the Mishnah on Daf 54a, Rebbe Meir ruled that הגלודה – a flayed [animal] is kosher, but the Chochomim say it is a tereifah. However, Rebbe Shimon ben Elazar reports in a Baraisa that Rebbe Meir retracted, and concedes that it is a tereifah. Rebbe Tarfon said: אם נשתייר בו כסלע כשרה – if a sela’s size of skin remained, it is kosher. The Gemara records five opinions as to the location of this skin which can regenerate and save the animal: (1)על פני השדרה כולה – [a סלע’s width] along the entire spine. (2) ראשי פרקים – [a סלע’s size of skin] on each of the main joints of the body. (3) מקום טיבורו – at the place of the navel. [The Gemara asks, according to these opinions, what the halachah is if only the skin of these critical places is missing, and concludes: תיקו] (4) כל העור כולו מציל בגלודה – any skin anywhere the size of a סלע saves an animal from being ruled a tereifah when it is flayed, except for skin of בית הפרסות – the place of the hooves, which is very soft and not considered skin. (5) Even the skin of the בית הפרסות is considered skin and saves it from being a tereifah.