Study Beitzah folio 39A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
ורב אשי אמר: משום דהוי ליה דבר שיש לו מתירין, וכל דבר שיש לו מתירין — אפילו באלף לא בטיל.
And Rav Ashi said a different explanation as to why the spices, water, and salt are not subject to nullification: It is because any one of these ingredients is an object whose prohibition is temporary, as the prohibition against their being taken out of the Shabbat limits lapses once the Festival has passed, and the general principle is that anything whose prohibition is temporary cannot become nullified, even by one part in 1,000.
רבי יהודה פוטר במים. מים אין, מלח לא? והא תניא, רבי יהודה אומר: מים ומלח בטלין בין בעיסה בין בקדרה! לא קשיא: הא — במלח סדומית, הא — במלח אסתרוקנית.
§ It is taught in a Mishnah: R' Yehuda exempts one from travel limitations in the case of water. The Talmud asks: Does this mean to imply that water, yes, it is exempted by R' Yehuda, but salt, no, it is not? But isn’t it taught in a baraita: R' Yehuda says: Water and salt are both nullified, whether in a dough or in a pot of cooked food. The Talmud answers: This is not difficult. In this case of the Mishnah, the reference is to salt of Sodom, which is quite coarse and does not blend in easily with the dough, and, being noticeable in the final product, is not nullified. In that case of the baraita, the reference is to a type of fine salt known as isterokanit salt. Consequently, it is not noticeable in the final product and can be nullified.
והתניא, רבי יהודה אומר: מים ומלח בטלין בעיסה, ואין בטלין בקדרה מפני רוטבה! לא קשיא: הא — בעבה, הא — ברכה.
The Mishnah states that according to R' Yehuda water mixed into dough, and presumably into a cooked dish as well, is considered nullified. The Talmud challenges this: But isn’t it taught in a baraita that R' Yehuda says: Water and salt are nullified in dough but not in a pot, due to its sauce. The pot, unlike bread, ends up with liquid in it, so the borrowed water is still recognizable. The Talmud replies: This is not difficult. This case of the Mishnah, where R' Yehuda says that the water is nullified in the cooked food, is referring to a thick dish that has no liquid sauce. That case of the baraita, in which R' Yehuda said the water is not nullified, is referring to a thin dish with liquid sauce.