Study Kiddushin folio 66B with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
מנא אמינא לה, דתנן: אמר רבי שמעון: מעשה במגורה של דסקים ביבנה שהיתה עומדת בחזקת שלימה, ומדדו ונמצאת חסירה –
From where do I say my claim that one does not rely on a lone witness in matters of forbidden sex? As we learned in a baraita: R' Shimon said: An incident occurred with regard to a water reservoir of Diskim in Yavne, which had the presumptive status of being complete, i.e., they thought it contained 40 se’a, the requisite amount for a mikveh, and they measured it after a time and it was found to be deficient, as it contained less than that amount.
כל טהרות שנעשו על גבה היה רבי טרפון מטהר, ורבי עקיבא מטמא. אמר רבי טרפון: מקוה זה בחזקת שלם הוא עומד, מספק אתה בא לחסרו – אל תחסרנו מספק. אמר רבי עקיבא: אדם זה בחזקת טמא הוא עומד, מספק אתה בא לטהרו – אל תטהרנו מספק.
With regard to all immersions of ritual purification performed in the reservoir before it was measured, R' Tarfon would render them ritually pure, and R' Akiva would render them ritually impure. The two rabbis discussed the matter. R' Tarfon said: This mikveh retained the presumptive status of being whole throughout this period, and you are coming to declare it deficient in the past out of uncertainty. Do not deem it deficient out of uncertainty. R' Akiva said in response: This person who immersed himself in that mikveh retained the presumptive status of being ritually impure before he immersed. You are coming to purify him out of uncertainty. Do not deem him ritually pure out of uncertainty.
אמר רבי טרפון: משל לעומד ומקריב על גבי המזבח, ונודע שהוא בן גרושה או בן חלוצה, שעבודתו כשירה. אמר רבי עקיבא: משל לעומד ומקריב על גבי המזבח ונודע שהוא בעל מום, שעבודתו פסולה.
R' Tarfon said in response: There is a parable that illustrates this. A priest was standing and sacrificing offerings on the altar, and it became known that he is the son of a divorced woman or the son of a ḥalutza. The halakha is that his earlier service before this discovery remains valid. R' Akiva said: A more accurate parable is that of a priest who was standing and sacrificing on the altar, and it became known that he is blemished. In this case, the halakha is that his earlier service is disqualified.