Monday 23 April 2018

Zevachim 10: Rabbi Yochanan, Reish Lakish and Pigul/Sprinkling Blood as Proofs

If a person thinks about throwing the blood on the altar while he is slaughtering, is the sacrifice valid?  Rabbi Yochanan says that it is invalid because if one thinks about a different process while doing one process, we learn from pigul that it is invalid.  Pigul states that if in any of the four processes (slaughter, collecting blood, carrying blood, sprinkling blood).  

Reish Lakish says that even in this case, the sacrifice is kosher.  He suggests that the case of pigul refers to when the offering can be eaten.  Thus we cannot use pigul as a proof text.  Further, he argues that if while slaughtering an animal one thinks about idolatry, then of course the offering is invalid. 

One argument is that we should be permitted to use arguments regarding sprinkling the blood as proof texts for imperfect slaughter.  But we learn that pigul happens inside the sanctuary while these processes happen outside.  And how could the slaughter be valid? This person we refer to must be an idolater.  The rabbis teach that if a person is evil on one occasion, that is not enough to invalidate his slaughter.  Also, an act of evil is one done consciously and out of spite.  If a person thinks of idolatry spitefully while slaughtering an offering, his/her offering is agreed to be invalid.

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