Introduction This mishnah continues the subject of yesterday’s mishnah, muktzeh.
A beast which was born on a festival all agree that it is permitted; and a chicken which was hatched from the egg all agree that it is forbidden. This section contains an elaboration of the dispute that was in the first section of the previous mishnah. There we saw that a dispute with regards to an egg born on a festival: Beth Shammai permitted its consumption and Beth Hillel forbid. In this mishnah we learn that there are two other similar instances where the two houses do not disagree. They both hold that a beast that was born on a festival is permitted. Although the beast was not born before the festival, and therefore might have been thought to be “muktzeh”, it in reality was available since if the mother had been slaughtered, the unborn young could have been eaten as well. The two houses also agree that a chicken hatched on the festival is forbidden. Even though Beth Shammai permits an egg that is laid, the chicken that is hatched is different because it was still in its shell the day before. Unlike the beast which was in its mother who could have been slaughtered and eaten, the chicken was not part of another animal that could have been eaten.
He who slaughters a wild animal or a bird on a festival Beth Shammai says: he may dig with a pronged tool and cover up [the blood] , but Beth Hillel says: he may not slaughter unless he has had earth made ready. But they agree that if he did slaughter he should dig with a pronged tool and cover up [the blood, and] that the ashes of a stove count as being prepared for the holiday. According to Leviticus 17:13, when one slaughters an undomesticated animal or any type of foul the blood must be poured out of the animal and covered with earth. One who slaughters an undomesticated animal or foul on the festival has a problem. Although it is permitted to slaughter if he doesn’t have any prepared earth to cover the blood, newly dug earth is “muktzeh” and cannot be used. Nevertheless, Beth Shammai permits one to dig up new earth and cover the blood. Beth Hillel says one cannot slaughter unless one has earth already prepared. However, they all agree that if he had already slaughtered the animal, even though Beth Hillel says he should not have done so without already prepared earth, he may still dig new earth to cover the blood. This is because the principle of “muktzeh” is only rabbinically ordained and the obligation to cover the blood is Biblical. When one has two competing commandments, one rabbinic and one Biblical, the latter takes precedence. The two houses also agree that the ashes in the oven are considered prepared for the festival, in other words they are not “muktzeh”. Since people used these ashes for different purposes, we can make the assumption that before the festival began he knew in his mind that he would use these ashes.