הלכות טומאת מת א׳Defilement by a Corpse 1

Halacha 1א׳

הַמֵּת מְטַמֵּא בְּמַגָּע וּבְמַשָּׂא וּבְאֹהֶל טֻמְאַת שִׁבְעָה. וְטֻמְאַת מַגָּע וְאֹהֶל מְפֹרָשִׁין בַּתּוֹרָה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (במדבר יט יא) "הַנֹּגֵעַ בְּמֵת לְכָל נֶפֶשׁ אָדָם וְטָמֵא שִׁבְעַת יָמִים". וְנֶאֱמַר (במדבר יט יד) "כָּל הַבָּא אֶל הָאֹהֶל וְכָל אֲשֶׁר בָּאֹהֶל יִטְמָא שִׁבְעַת יָמִים":

A corpse conveys impurity by contact, by carrying and by a tent, a seven-day impurity. The impurity of contact and the impurity of a tent are set out explicitly in the Torah, as it is said (Numbers 19:11), "One who touches a corpse, the body of any man, shall be impure seven days"; and it is said (Numbers 19:14), "Everyone that comes into the tent, and everything that is in the tent, shall be impure seven days."

Halacha 2ב׳

טֻמְאַת מַשָּׂא מִפִּי הַשְּׁמוּעָה. וְקַל וָחֹמֶר הַדְּבָרִים אִם נְבֵלָה שֶׁהִיא טֻמְאַת עֶרֶב וְאֵינָהּ מְטַמְּאָה בְּאֹהֶל מְטַמְּאָה בְּמַשָּׂא שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ויקרא יא כח) "וְהַנּשֵֹׁא אֶת נִבְלָתָם" הַמֵּת לֹא כָּל שֶׁכֵּן. וּמַה נְּבֵלָה שֶׁמַּגָּעָהּ טֻמְאַת עֶרֶב מַשָּׂאָהּ טֻמְאַת עֶרֶב אַף הַמֵּת שֶׁמַּגָּעוֹ טֻמְאַת שִׁבְעָה מַשָּׂאוֹ טֻמְאַת שִׁבְעָה. אֵין טֻמְאַת מַשָּׂא בְּמֵת מִדִּבְרֵי סוֹפְרִים אֶלָּא דִּין תּוֹרָה. וְיֵרָאֶה לִי שֶׁשָּׁתַק מִמֶּנָּה הַכָּתוּב כְּדֶרֶךְ שֶׁשָּׁתַק מֵאִסּוּר הַבַּת לְפִי שֶׁאָסַר בְּפֵרוּשׁ אֲפִלּוּ בַּת הַבַּת. וְשָׁתַק מֵאִסּוּר אֲכִילַת בָּשָׂר בְּחָלָב לְפִי שֶׁאָסַר בְּפֵרוּשׁ אֲפִלּוּ בִּשּׁוּלוֹ. כָּךְ שָׁתַק מִטֻּמְאַת מַשָּׂא בְּמֵת לְפִי שֶׁטִּמֵּא בְּפֵרוּשׁ אֲפִלּוּ טֻמְאַת אָהֳלוֹ כָּל שֶׁכֵּן מַשָּׂאוֹ:

The impurity of carrying is from tradition, and the matter follows a fortiori: if a carcass, which conveys an impurity until evening and does not convey impurity by a tent, nevertheless conveys impurity by carrying, as it is said (Leviticus 11:28), "and he who carries their carcass" — then a corpse, how much more so. And just as with a carcass, whose contact conveys an impurity until evening, its carrying conveys an impurity until evening, so too a corpse, whose contact conveys a seven-day impurity, its carrying conveys a seven-day impurity. The impurity of carrying in the case of a corpse is not from the words of the Scribes but is Torah law. And it appears to me that Scripture was silent about it in the same way that it was silent about the prohibition of one's daughter, since it forbade explicitly even a daughter's daughter; and was silent about the prohibition of eating meat with milk, since it forbade explicitly even its cooking. So too it was silent about the impurity of carrying a corpse, since it declared impure explicitly even one under its tent — how much more one who carries it.

Halacha 3ג׳

טֻמְאַת מַגָּע הָאֲמוּרָה בְּכָל מָקוֹם בֵּין בְּמֵת בֵּין בִּשְׁאָר הַמְטַמְּאִים הוּא שֶׁנָּגַע הָאָדָם בִּבְשָׂרוֹ בַּטֻּמְאָה עַצְמָהּ. בֵּין בְּיָדוֹ בֵּין בְּרַגְלוֹ בֵּין בִּשְׁאָר בְּשָׂרוֹ וַאֲפִלּוּ בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ הֲרֵי זֶה נִטְמָא. וְכֵן נִרְאֶה לִי שֶׁאִם נָגַע בְּצִפָּרְנָיו אוֹ בְּשִׁנָּיו נִטְמָא כֵּיוָן שֶׁהֵם מְחֻבָּרִים לַגּוּף הֲרֵי הֵם כְּגוּף. אֲבָל אִם תָּחַב אָדָם טֻמְאָה בְּכוּשׁ וְהִכְנִיסָהּ לְתוֹךְ גְּרוֹנוֹ שֶׁל אָדָם טָהוֹר וְלֹא נָגְעָה בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ. אוֹ שֶׁהִכְנִיסָהּ לְתוֹךְ מְעִי שֶׁל אִשָּׁה מִלְּמַטָּה וְלֹא נָגְעָה בִּבְשָׂרָהּ. לֹא נִטְמָא הַבּוֹלֵעַ מִשּׁוּם מַגָּע זֶה שֶׁהֲרֵי לֹא נָגְעָה בִּבְשָׂרוֹ. שֶׁנְּגִיעַת פְּנִים אֵינָהּ נְגִיעָה:

The impurity of contact spoken of everywhere, whether with a corpse or with the other things that convey impurity, is where a person touched the impurity itself with his flesh — whether with his hand, or with his foot, or with the rest of his flesh, and even with his tongue: he has become impure. And so it appears to me that if he touched it with his fingernails or with his teeth he has become impure, since these are joined to the body and are as the body. But if a man thrust an impure thing upon a spindle and brought it into the throat of a pure person and it did not touch his tongue; or brought it into a woman's inward parts from below and it did not touch her flesh — the one who swallowed it has not become impure through this contact, since it did not touch his flesh, for contact with inner surfaces is no contact.