Bava Metzia - Daf 64
- Advance purchase of produce which grows on its own
Rav once gave a shiur about one who gives money to a gardener for gourds, and the market price is ten gourds, each a half-amah long, for a zuz, but the gardener offered the buyer that if he paid immediately, he would later receive gourds an amah long. Rav ruled that if the gardener currently has larger gourds, it is permitted, but if not, it is forbidden. The novelty is that one could have thought that כיון דממילא קא רבו – since [the small gourds] he has will grow into large ones on their own, it is as if he has them now. Rav taught that this is not so. This is similar to a Baraisa, which teaches that if someone sells “whatever milk my goats produce,” or “whatever shearings my sheep produce,” or “whatever honey by beehives produce,” it is permitted (since the yield is not fixed and may be less than the payment). However, if he stipulated an amount of produce at a discount, it is forbidden, even though they are produced on their own. In another version, Rav ruled the gourd case permitted, because they grow on their own. The milk, shearings, and honey do not grow from the produce which exists initially, but replace it, whereas the gourds themselves grow larger.
- אי תקפה ברשותך אי יקרא אי זילא ברשותי
Abaye permitted to give someone money for a barrel of wine he has, to be given at a later date, and say: אי תקפה ברשותך – “If it sours before you give it to me, it belongs to you and my money must be refunded; אי יקרא אי זילא ברשותי – if it appreciates or depreciates in value, it belongs to me, and the sale remains in effect.” Rav Sheravya asked him: האי קרוב לשכר ורחוק להפסד הוא – But this should be prohibited as a transaction which is close to profit and far from loss, since he will gain if it appreciates in value, and will not lose if it sours. Because he does not assume all risk, it does not appear like a sale, and his advantage towards profit is the interest on his “loan”!? Abaye answered that since the buyer accepts the risk of depreciation, קרוב לזה ולזה הוא – it is considered near to both gain and loss.
- Using a borrower’s property for free or at a discount
The next Mishnah teaches about one who lends money: לא ידור בחצרו חנם – he may not live in [the borrower’s] courtyard for free, ולא ישכור ממנו בפחות – nor may he rent it from him for less, because either constitutes ribbis (although they were not original stipulations). Rav Nachman said that although one who lives in his fellow’s courtyard without the owner’s knowledge does not have to pay rent, because of the principle of זה נהנה וזה לא חסר, if someone lent money and then lived in the borrower’s courtyard, he must pay rent to avoid the appearance of ribbis. The Gemara asks that this ruling is explicit in our Mishnah and explains that the Mishnah could be where the courtyard is normally rented, and the lender normally rents space to live, which would be ribbis, since the borrower loses and the lender gains. Rav Nachman teaches that even where the courtyard is not normally rented out, and the lender does not normally rent living space, he must still pay rent to avoid the appearance of ribbis. In another version, Rav Nachman only required paying rent where the borrower originally stipulated that if he would lend him money, the lender could live in his courtyard.
