1) COUNTING THE SEVEN CLEAN DAYS
QUESTION: Rav maintains that before a Zavah counts seven days of Taharah, she may make a Hefsek Taharah on the night before the beginning of the seven Tahor days and examine herself (and find herself clean of blood) either on the first day alone or on the seventh day alone. Rav does not require "Sefurin Lefaneinu" -- she does not need to examine herself on both the first and seventh days.
The Gemara challenges Rav's opinion from the Halachah of "To'ah." If a woman gave birth but does not know when she gave birth and thus does not know when to perform Tevilah to become Tahor from Tum'as Leidah, Beis Din instructs her to perform a series of Tevilos, as the Beraisa describes. However, she does not need to immerse during the first seven days due to the possibility that she gave birth after seeing a discharge of Zov, since she is not yet certain that she has experienced seven Tahor days.
According to Rav, who considers a woman to be Safek Tehorah when seven Tahor days might have passed even though she is not certain that they were Tahor days, the Beraisa should require her to immerse on each of the first seven days out of doubt.
What is the Gemara's question? In the case of To'ah, the woman did not perform a Hefsek Taharah and did not establish a Chazakah that she was no longer bleeding. Rav agrees that without such a Chazakah, she cannot begin to count seven Tahor days! (MAHARSHA)
ANSWER: The MAHARSHA answers that this requirement -- to perform a Hefsek Taharah and establish a Chazakah that she is not bleeding in order to begin her count of seven Tahor days -- applies only to her status of Tehorah in order to be permitted to her husband. In order to be permitted to him, she must be definitely Tahor. However, with regard to immersing in a situation of a Safek (in order to fulfill "Tevilah b'Zemanah Mitzvah"), she immerses even when she is Safek Tehorah. If she did not perform a Hefsek Tehorah, she is still Safek Tehorah according to Rav, and she must perform Tevilah on each of the first seven days in order to fulfill the Mitzvah of Tevilah in its proper time.
69b----------------------------------------69b
2) HALACHAH: THE NUMBER OF DAYS THAT A "ZAVAH" MUST EXAMINE HERSELF
OPINIONS: The Gemara discusses the law of "Sefurin Lefaneinu," the requirement that the days that a woman counts in order to become Tahor be days that were proven to be Tahor with no bleeding, and not days on which she is not certain if she experienced bleeding.
What is the Halachah if a woman, during her seven Tahor days, examined herself only on the first day, or only on the seventh day, and not on all seven days? This is the subject of dispute between Rav and Rebbi Chanina. Rav maintains that it suffices for the woman to examine herself only on the first day or the seventh day. Rebbi Chanina requires her to examine herself on both the first and seventh days.
(a) The ROSH (10:5) writes that the fact that the Gemara discusses the opinion of Rav at length implies that the Halachah follows his opinion. Accordingly, the woman will be Tahor b'Di'eved when she examined herself only on the first day or on the seventh day. (Even though the Gemara's conclusion seems to reject Rav's opinion (when it refutes an answer offered to a question posed against Rav), the Rosh maintains that this is a "Dichuya b'Alma" to which the Gemara had responses which it did not bother to express.)
The Rosh adds that the RA'AVAD and the BA'AL HA'ME'OR conclude that if she examined herself once in the middle of the seven days, she is also Tahor b'Di'eved.
(b) TOSFOS (7b, DH Rebbi Eliezer) rules like Rebbi Chanina. The woman must perform at least two examinations, one on the first day and one on the seventh day. This is also the ruling of the SEMAG and SEFER HA'TERUMAH.
HALACHAH: The SHULCHAN ARUCH (YD 196:4) writes that l'Chatchilah a woman must examine herself twice on each of the seven days, once in the morning and once in the evening. This is based on the words of the SEFER HA'TERUMAH as cited by the TUR.
With regard to the case of a woman who examined herself only on the first day or only on the seventh day, the Shulchan Aruch cites both opinions (Rashi and Tosfos). This implies that we are to take into account the more stringent opinion and require a minimum of two examinations, one on the first day and one on the seventh day.
The DAGUL MEREVAVAH points out that the first examination does not need to be performed on the first day. It may be performed on any of the first six days. A single examination on either the first day or seventh day does not suffice because too many days pass without an examination. Performing an examination anytime within the first six days solves this problem.
(It remains unclear, however, why these examinations are sufficient. According to Rebbi Chanina, she should be required to examine herself specifically on the first day in order to establish a Chazakah that she is Tahor for the next six days. The Dagul Merevavah should have said that the first examination must be on the first day, while the second examination may be on any of the remaining days. -M. KORNFELD.)
The SHACH (YD 192:2) rules that a bride (who is preparing to immerse for the first time before her marriage) may be lenient and rely on a single examination when necessary.
3) FAINTING BEFORE DEATH
QUESTION: The Mishnah teaches that the corpses of a Zav, Zavah, Nidah, Yoledes, and a Metzora are Metamei through Masa (one who carries them becomes Tamei) until the flesh disintegrates ("Nimok ha'Basar"), at which point he or she is certainly dead and is no longer Metamei like a Zav (or Zavah, etc.). (The CHIDUSHEI CHASAM SOFER points out that this refers to the beginning of the disintegration of the flesh, and not to the total decay of the flesh, as he proves from the words of Rebbi Eliezer in the Gemara.)
The Gemara explains that when the Mishnah states that these corpses are Metamei b'Masa, it does not refer to the ordinary form of Tum'as Masa, because every Mes is Metamei through Masa and not only these. Rather, the Mishnah refers to the Tum'ah of "Even Mesama." As RASHI explains, this refers to a Mes that was on top of a very heavy stone, and beneath the stone were utensils. Since the Mes cannot be carried together with the stone (because it is too heavy to lift), the stone does not transfer Tum'ah to the utensils (by carrying the Mes). However, the types of Mesim listed in the Mishnah do make the utensils beneath the stone become Tamei through the unique form of Tum'ah of Even Mesama. The Rabanan decreed that a Zav, Zavah, Nidah, Yoledes, and Metzora are Metamei through Even Mesama even after they die because of a concern that these Tamei people will faint (and not die), and one who faints appears similar to a Mes. If the Halachah would be that a dead Zav is not Metamei the utensils beneath the stone on which his body rests, one might think that a live Zav who merely fainted is also not Metamei the utensils. Therefore, the Rabanan enacted that every Zav (and Zavah, etc.) is Metamei with Even Mesama until the flesh disintegrates, at which point it is clear that the person is certainly dead.
Why is there a doubt about the point in time at which the Zav (Zavah, etc.) mentioned in the Mishnah is considered to be certainly dead? The Gemara in Yoma (85a) teaches a clear way to determine the moment of death. If a building collapses on a person on Shabbos, we are to examine the person's nose for signs of life. If we discern that there is no air coming through the nose, then the person is considered dead and we may not desecrate Shabbos in order to attempt to save him. The Gemara there says that the primary force of life is evident in the breath of the nose, as the verse states, "Everything that has the Neshamah of the spirit of life in its nose" (Bereishis 7:22).
Why, then, should there be any concern that the body of the Zav on the stone is alive until the flesh disintegrates? It should suffice to determine that the Zav is dead simply by checking his nose for a flow of air!
ANSWER: The CHASAM SOFER (Teshuvos YD 338) answers that before the experts (who understand how to discern the moment of death according to the cessation of breathing, as mentioned in Yoma) pronounce death, the body might lie still like a stone for a few hours, or even for a day or two, in a state of fainting close to death, and all of the senses and vital signs have ceased. Those who deal with the dying person watch over him and wait for the moment when his soul leaves the body, according to the knowledge that they possess through tradition (when they no longer discern the slightest sign of breathing or pulse). However, to non-experts, who do not know how to discern the slightest flow of air in the nose of the dying person, there appears to be no difference between how the body looks before the Neshamah leaves and how it looks a few hours after death. Only when the flesh begins to disintegrate do they know for certain that the person is dead. However, sometimes a day or two may pass between the fainting and the disintegration of the flesh. Even though the experts know when the breathing stops, the ordinary people in the house with the Mes do not know for certain that he is dead until the flesh disintegrates. If the Zav is not Metamei with Even Mesama before the state of "Nimok ha'Basar," the people in the house might assume that the Zav is also not Metamei even during the period of fainting, when he is in fact alive. Therefore, the Rabanan decreed that he is Metamei with Even Mesama until "Nimok ha'Basar," by which time everyone knows that he is dead. (D. BLOOM)