Mishnayos Shekalim Perek 8 Mishnah 1
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שקלים פרק ח׳ משנה א׳
The mishna discusses the ritual purity of items found either in the Temple or in Jerusalem and its environs, in continuation of the previous chapter’s discussion of found money, animals, or meat. All the spittle that is found in Jerusalem is ritually pure. Since neither ritually impure people nor gentiles were commonly present in Jerusalem, the Sages decreed an exception to the rule that spittle that is found is ritually impure since it presumably comes from one of those groups. This is the case except for spittle found in the upper marketplace, where gentiles and ritually impure Jews were likely to be present. This is the statement of Rabbi Meir. Rabbi Yosei says: On all the other days of the year, i.e., any day that is not on one of the three pilgrim Festivals, Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot, spittle that is found in the middle of the street is ritually impure, and spittle that is found on the sides of the street is ritually pure. According to Rabbi Yosei, it was common for people who were ritually impure to be present in the streets of Jerusalem. They would be careful to walk in the middle of the street, while the ritually pure who wished to remain so would walk on the sides. Therefore, it is reasonable to presume that spittle found in the middle of the street is from one who is impure, while spittle found on the side of the street is from one who is pure. But during the time of the Festival, when most of the people in Jerusalem were there for the Festival and were ritually pure, the spittle found in the middle of the street was ritually pure, and that found on the sides of the street was ritually impure. The difference is due to the fact that at the time of the Festival, the ritually impure minority moves to the sides of the streets.
כָּל הָרֻקִּין הַנִּמְצָאִים בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם טְהוֹרִין, חוּץ מִשֶּׁל שׁוּק הָעֶלְיוֹן, דִּבְרֵי רַבִּי מֵאִיר. רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר, בִּשְׁאָר יְמוֹת הַשָּׁנָה, שֶׁבָּאֶמְצַע טְמֵאִין וְשֶׁבַּצְּדָדִין טְהוֹרִין. וּבִשְׁעַת הָרֶגֶל, שֶׁבָּאֶמְצַע טְהוֹרִין וְשֶׁבַּצְּדָדִין טְמֵאִין, שֶׁמִּפְּנֵי שֶׁהֵן מֻעָטִין מִסְתַּלְּקִין לַצְּדָדִין:
Bartenura
כל הרוקין הנמצאים בירושלים טהורים. ולא מחזיקינן להו ברוקו של זב וזבה שהן מטמאין אדם וכלים, משום דאזלינן בתר רובה:
חוץ משל שוק העליון. לפי שכובסין נכרים היו מצוין שם, וחכמים גזרו על הנכרים שיהיו כזבין לכל דבריהן ורוקן טמא. ואית דאמרי, לפי ששוק העליון לא היתה דריסת הרגל מצויה שם וזבין וזבות שמתבודדין ומתרחקין מבני אדם היו מצויין שם:
שבאמצע טמאים. משום דזבין וזבות שכיחי ומהלכים באמצע דרכים, והטהורים מסתלקים לצדי הדרכים מקום שאין דריסת הרגל מצויה ומזהירין לכל טמא שלא יגע בהן. אבל בשעת הרגל שרוב ישראל טהורין, הטמאים מסתלקים לצדדים שלא יטמאו את העם, והטהורים הולכים באמצע הדרכים, הלכך בשעת הרגל רוקין הנמצאים באמצע טהורים ושבצדדים טמאין. והלכה כרבי יוסי:
כל הרוקין הנמצאים בירושלם אהורים – and we do not encourage the spittle of a man or woman suffering from an emission because they defile humans and utensils because we follow after the majority.
חוץ משל שוק העליון – because heathen launderers were found there and the Sages decreed concerning the heathens that they would be like men with a flux in all their matters, and their spittle is ritually impure. But there are those who state that that since the Upper Market did not have the benefit of the crossing found there (i.e., “foot traffic”) and men and women with a flux were alone and distanced themselves from other people that were found there.
שבאמצע טמאים – because men and women with a flux are frequently there and walk in the middle of the roads, and the ritually pure individuals remove themselves to the sides of the roads – in a place where there is not much walking found, and are careful of all ritually impure that they should not come in contact with them, but at the time of the Festival, when the majority of Jews are ritually pure, the ritually impure remove themselves to the sides so that they do not defile the people, and the ritually pure walk in the middle of the roads; therefore, at the time of the Festival, the spittle that is found in the middle of the road is ritually pure, but that which is on the sides is ritually impure, and the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yosi.