Hullin, Chapter 6, Mishnah 2

Hullin, Chapter Six, Mishnah Two



This mishnah is very similar to 5:3, so see above for more references.


Mishnah Two

1)      If a person slaughtered [a wild animal or a bird] and it was found to be terefah, or if he slaughtered [it as an offering] to idols, or if he slaughtered that which was unconsecrated inside the sanctuary or that which was consecrated outside, or if he slaughtered a wild animal or a bird that was condemned to be stoned:

a)      Rabbi Meir makes him liable to cover up the blood;  

b)      But the sages make him exempt.

2)      If he slaughtered [a wild animal or a bird] and it became nevelah under his hand, or if he stabbed it, or tore away [the organs of the throat], he is exempt from covering up [the blood].



Section one: In all of these cases, the animal was slaughtered with the proper technique, but nevertheless it could not be eaten. Most of these categories were explained above in 5:3. This mishnah adds two categories: a consecrated bird slaughtered outside the Temple or an unconsecrated bird or wild animal slaughtered inside the Temple. In both cases, the animal/bird cannot be eaten.

Rabbi Meir holds that since the animal was slaughtered, the blood must be covered. In other words, the mitzvah of covering the blood is not dependent upon the edibility of the animal.

The other sages hold that slaughtering causes one to be liable to cover the blood only if the animal is made edible by the slaughtering. Slaughtering that is ineffective is not considered to be slaughtering (this is like Rabbi Shimon in 5:3).

Section three: In these cases he didnt even slaughter the animal, at least not properly. Therefore, he is not liable to cover the blood because covering the blood is a mitzvah only for an animal that was slaughtered.