Zevachim Daf 73 זבחים דַף 73

Rav Pappa answers that our Mishnah, which holds that a disqualified animal is not בטל in any mixture of animals, is the Tanna of ליטרא קציעות – a litra of dried figs, who holds כל דבר שיש בו מנין – any item which is even occasionally sold by number is never בטל, even for an איסור דרבנן (such as terumah of dried figs). A Baraisa states: ליטרא קציעות שדרסה על פי עיגול – a litra of dried figs (of terumah) which one pressed into the mouth of a mold, ואינו יודע באיזו עיגול דרסה – but he does not know into which mold he pressed it, Rebbe Meir says that Rebbe Eliezer holds all the figs, even the lower ones (which are definitely not terumah), combine to nullify the upper ones. Rebbe Yehoshua says that only one hundred “mouths” (i.e., tops of molds) of permitted figs, which are all of doubtful status, can nullify the terumah. According to Rebbe Yehudah’s version, Rebbe Eliezer says that one hundred “mouths” of permitted figs nullify the terumah, and Rebbe Yehoshua says that even three hundred permitted mouths would not nullify the terumah, since they are occasionally counted, and so cannot be בטל. Rav Ashi answers that our Mishnah’s ruling is unanimous: בעלי חיים חשיבי ולא בטלי – living creatures are significant, and cannot be nullified.

The Gemara asks that although the disqualified animals are not nullified in the mixture, let us pull the animals individually from the group and sacrifice them one by one, and say that each one which left the mixture is from the (permitted) majority!? The Gemara replies that if an animal is removed from its place of mixture, it is קבוע – fixed in place, and כל קבוע כמחצה על מחצה דמי – anything fixed in place is considered like a safek of fifty-fifty, and not a majority! Therefore, the Gemara adjusts its question: ניכבשינהו דניידי – let us force [the animals] to move, so they will leave their place, ונימא כל דפריש מרובא פריש – and we can then say, “whatever separates from a mixture presumably separated from the majority” and is permitted, allowing us to sacrifice each animal individually!? Rava eventually answers: משום קבוע – we do not allow permitting the animals with this method because of a concern that one may mistakenly take an animal from its fixed place, where we do not follow the majority.

Rava said: השתא דאמרי רבנן לא נקריב – now that the Rabbis have said we may not offer any animals from this mixture containing disqualified animals, אי נקריב לא מרצי – if we do offer them, they do not achieve acceptance, and the korban is invalid. This is challenged from a Mishnah which states that if a חטאת העוף became confused with an עולת העוף, even among ten thousand, they must all die. If a Kohen sacrificed them both למעלה, the עולה is valid and the חטאת is פסול, and if both were brought למטה, the חטאת is valid and the עולה is פסול. If he brought one למעלה and one למטה, they are both פסול, since he may have brought the חטאת above and the עולה below. This Mishnah proves that korbanos brought when it was prohibited to do so (out of doubt) can nonetheless be valid!? The Gemara answers that Rava follows the Tanna who holds בעלי חיים נדחין – living creatures can become permanently rejected from being sacrificed if at any point they could not be sacrificed, whereas this Mishnah holds בעלי חיים אינן נידחין, so they are valid after the fact.