Bava Kamma - Daf 32

• שתי פרות ברה"ר אחת רבוצה ואחת מהלכת

Reish Lakish said: שתי פרות ברה"ר אחת רבוצה ואחת מהלכת – If there are two cows in רשות הרבים, one squatting and one walking, בעטה מהלכת ברבוצה פטורה – if the walker kicked the squatter, [its owner] is exempt, רבוצה במהלכת חייבת – but if the squatter kicked the walker, [its owner] is liable.

The Gemara attempts to support this ruling from the final case of the Mishnah, which teaches that if someone is walking with a barrel in front of someone carrying a beam, and the one carrying the barrel stops, and the beam strikes and breaks the barrel, the owner of the beam is exempt. The one who stopped (thereby acting unusually) is analogous to the animal squatting, and the one walking normally is analogous to the animal walking, which shows that if the one acting abnormally is damaged, the damager is not liable!? The Gemara rejects the proof, saying that whereas in the Mishnah, the owner of the beam is not liable for damage he caused while walking normally, in Reish Lakish’s case, the squatter can “say” to the walker: נהי דאית לך רשות לסגויי עלי – Granted, you have permission to walk on me normally, לבעוטי בי לית לך רשותא – but to kick me you have no permission.

• Running in רשות הרבים, and on Friday at twilight

The next Mishnah states that if one person was running in רשות הרבים and another was walking, or both were running, and they were damaged by one another, they are not liable. The Gemara initially says this disagrees with Issi ben Yehudah, who said: רץ חייב מפני שהוא משונה – one who runs is liable, because he is acting irregularly. He agrees that one who runs on Friday at twilight is exempt, מפני שרץ ברשות – because he is running with permission, to prepare for Shabbos. Rebbe Yochanan says the halachah follows Issi, and explains that the Mishnah which exempts someone running is referring to Friday at twilight (and the second case, where both people are running, includes an ordinary weekday).

The Gemara illustrates the permit to run on Friday at twilight with the practice of Rebbe Chanina, who would call out: בואו ונצא לקראת כלה מלכתא – Come, let us go out and greet the bride, the queen! (in another version, he said, “…to greet Shabbos, the bride, the queen”). Rebbe Yannai would cloak himself in finery and say: בואי כלה בואי כלה – Come, bride, come, bride!

• If one enters a carpenter’s shop with permission and is struck by a chip of wood

In a Baraisa it was taught that if one entered a carpenter’s shop without permission, and a chip of wood flies off and strikes him, killing him, the carpenter is exempt from exile. ואם נכנס ברשות חייב – But if he entered with permission, [the carpenter] is liable. Rebbe Yose bar Chanina explains: חייב בד' דברים ופטור מגלות – he is liable for the four [payments] made for injuring a person, in addition to damages, but is exempt from exile if he died. After the first reason given is rejected, Rava explains: מאי פטור מגלות – what is the meaning of “he is exempt from exile”? דלא סגי ליה בגלות – That exile is not sufficient to atone for him, because his sin is too great; therefore, he does not go to גלות. The reason is: משום דהוי ליה שוגג קרוב למזיד – because [the carpenter] is an unintentional murderer who is nearly intentional, since he was reckless for not ensuring no one was present while he was chopping wood.

Later, Rav Pappa records another version of Rebbe Yose bar Chanina’s statement.