Separating: Whatcha Say’n’? (IV)

Last week we continued explaining the enigmatic statement of the Gemara (Shabbos 74a) that says, “If you have in front of you types of food: separate and eat, separate and put down.  And don’t separate.  And if you separate, you are chayav chatas”.

The fourth explanation of this statement is given by Rav Hamnunah.  He explains, “Separate food from unwanted [i.e. the unwanted element of the mixture] and eat, separate food from unwanted and put down.  And unwanted from food, don’t separate, and if you do separate, you are chayav chatas.”

Rav Hamnunah explains that the separate parts of the statement are referring to different ways of separating.  If you take the wanted from the unwanted, it is permitted.  And the opposite is prohibited.  Rashi (ד"ה אוכל) explains that if you take the wanted from the unwanted, this is not the standard way of separating.  Normally if you have a mixture that you want to use, you take out the parts that you don’t want.

Abaye asks on Rav Hamnunah for technical reasons that the statement makes no reference to the food or the unwanted part.  Next week we will discuss the final explanation, that of Abaye.