Introduction Chapter five continues to list disputes between Beth Shammai and Beth Hillel in which Beth Shammai were more lenient. The difference between these lists and those in the previous chapter is that in this chapter individual Sages state the lists as opposed the lists in the previous chapter which were not ascribed to anyone in particular. The first mishnah is Rabbi Judah’s list. It contains six disputes.
Rabbi Judah says: there are six instances of lenient rulings by Beth Shammai and stringent rulings by Beth Hillel.
The blood of a carcass: Beth Shammai pronounces it clean, And Beth Hillel pronounces it unclean. Everyone holds that the flesh of a carcass (an animal which was not properly slaughtered) is impure. Beth Shammai holds that the blood of a carcass is not like the flesh, and it is not impure, whereas Beth Hillel holds that it is impure.
An egg found in a [bird’s] carcass: if the like of it were sold in the market, it is permitted, and if not, it is forbidden, according to the opinion of Beth Shammai. And Beth Hillel forbids it. But they agree in the case of an egg found in a trefa [bird] that it is forbidden since it had its growth in a forbidden condition. 3+4) The blood of a non-Jewish woman and the blood of purity of a leprous woman: Beth Shammai pronounces clean; And Beth Hillel says: [it is] like her spittle and her urine. If an egg is found in the carcass of a bird, the question arises, can one eat the egg? The bird is forbidden, but we need to know is the egg still part of the bird, in which case it too is forbidden, or is it a separate entity, in which case it is permitted. According to Beth Shammai, if this egg is fully-formed such that it is similar to eggs sold in the market, it is a separate entity and is permitted. Beth Hillel states that the egg is forbidden in any case. The mishnah notes that the two houses agree in the case of an egg found in a “trefah” that it is forbidden. A “trefah” is an animal suffering from a wound or illness that will cause it to die within 12 months. Since the egg grew in an animal that was definitely going to be forbidden to eat, even if it was slaughtered properly, the egg is forbidden. The egg which was found in the carcass of the dead bird, had the potential to be a kosher egg, and therefore, according to Beth Shammai, if the egg was fully formed, it is permitted to eat.
One may eat fruits of the seventh year with an expression of thanks and without an expression of thanks [to the owner of the field], according to the opinion of Beth Shammai. But Beth Hillel says: one may not eat with an expression of thanks. Sections three and four: This section discusses the purity of the menstrual or gonorrheal blood of a non-Jewish woman and the blood of a gonorrheal Jewish woman during the first 40 days (for a boy) or 80 days (for a girl) after giving birth. According to Rabbinic law, fluids flowing from gentiles are impure. However, Beth Shammai argues that this is only with regards to their spit and urine, fluids which are always present. The decree of the Rabbis that their fluids are impure does not apply to their blood flows. With regards to the gonorrheal Jewish woman, she is normally impure. However, the blood flow of women is always pure during this period after childbirth. Beth Shammai says that the blood of a gonorrheal woman is also pure. Beth Hillel says that the blood flows of both of these women is like their urine and spit: they are all impure.
During the Sabbatical year all of the produce grown in the fields is considered ownerless, and may be eaten by anyone. Beth Shammai holds that when one eats such produce one may express his thanks to the owner of the field, or one may not choose not to express thanks. Beth Hillel holds that one may not express thanks to the owner of the field. These fruits are ownerless; giving thanks to the owner of the field may give people the impression that he is the one giving them, whereas in truth it is the Torah’s laws which have given them to the person eating. [I have explained the mishnah according to some versions of the text, which Albeck believes are correct.]
As we have stated many times, a vessel cannot receive impurity unless it is functional. Our mishnah discusses a waterskin. According to Beth Shammai, the waterskin receives impurity only if it is tied up and standing upright, so that it will retain the water which is inside. Beth Hillel holds that as long as it is upright, it need not be tied up to receive impurity.