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26 ‎[1] All the utensils used for weaving, including the cords and the reeds, may be carried [according to the rules governing] other utensils that are used for forbidden tasks. An exception is made regarding the upper weaver's beam and the lower weaver's beam. They may not be carried, because they are [usually] fixed [within the loom].
Similarly, the pillars [of the loam] may not be moved, lest one fill the hole [in the earth created when they are removed]. It is permitted to move the other utensils of a weaver. ‎[2] Brooms made of date branches and the like, which are used to sweep the ground, are considered utensils that are used for a permitted purpose, since sweeping is permitted on the Sabbath.
Bricks that remain after a building [was completed] are considered utensils that are used for a permitted purpose, for they are fit to recline upon,, as is obvious from the fact that they are filed and adjusted for this purpose. If, however, one collects them, [it is evident] that they have been set aside [for building], and it is forbidden to carry them. ‎[3] A small shard may be carried, even in the public domain.[This leniency is granted] because it is fit to be used in a courtyard to cover the opening of a small utensil. [When] the stopper of a barrel has been cut off, both it and its broken pieces are permitted to be carried. If one threw it into a garbage dump before the commencement of the Sabbath, carrying it is forbidden.
When a utensil has been broken [but not shattered into pieces], one should not remove a shard from it to use to cover [another utensil] or to use as a support. ‎[4] It is permitted to bring three rounded stones into a lavatory to clean oneself. Of what size may they be? A fistful.A clod of earth, by contrast, which is likely to crumble, is forbidden to be taken to clean oneself.
It is permitted to take these stones up to a roof [so that one will be able] to clean oneself with them. When rain descends upon them and they sink in the mud, they may be taken if there is a distinct mark [showing their location].
[When] a stone has filth on it, one can be certain that it is used to clean oneself. Therefore, carrying it is permitted it even though it is large. ‎[5] Should a person have a choice of [using] a stone or an earthenware shard [to clean himself], one should use the stone.If, however, the shard comes from the handle of a utensil, one should use the shard.
[The following rules apply when] a person has a choice of [using] a stone or grass: If the grass is soft, one should use it. If not, one should use the stone. ‎[6] The remnants of mats that have become tattered are considered utensils that may be used for a permitted purpose, for they are fit to be used to cover filth. In contrast, the remnants of clothes that are less than three [thumbbreadths] by three [thumbbreadths], and have become tattered may not be carried, for they are not fit - neither for the poor nor for the rich.
The broken pieces of an oven are permitted to be carried; they are considered to be like all other utensils that are permitted to be carried. When, however, one leg of a range has slipped from its place, it may not be carried, lest one affix [it in its place]. ‎[7] A ladder leading to a loft is forbidden to be carried [on the Sabbath], since it is not considered to be a utensil. [A ladder leading] to a dovecote [by contrast, is not considered *muktzeh* and] is permitted to be tilted. One should not, however, carry it from one dovecote to another, lest one follow one's ordinary course of conduct and come to snare [the doves].
[The following rule governs the use of] a rod that is used to harvest olives: When it is categorized as a utensil, it is considered to be a utensil that is used for a forbidden purpose. [The following rule governs the use of] a reed that is adjusted by a homeowner to open and lock [his door]: When it is categorized as a utensil, it is considered to be a utensil that is used for a permitted purpose. ‎[8] [The following rules apply to] a door that once had a hinge - though at present it does not have a hinge - which is prepared to close a yard, but which drags on the ground when it is opened and closed: If the door is attached to and hanging on the wall, it may be used to close the space and may be locked. If not, it may not be used to close the space. If the door is [suspended] above the ground, it may be used to close the space. The same rules apply to a [partition made from] brambles or a mat that drags on the floor. ‎[9] [The following rules apply to] a door that is made from a single piece of wood and which is placed in [a doorway] to close it and removed [to open it]. If [the doorway] does not have a base at the bottom that resembles a doorstep that would indicate that [the door] is a utensil that is used for [opening and] closing, [the door] may not be used to close [the doorway]. If [the doorway] has a doorstep, one may use [the door].
Similarly, a bolt that has a bulb at its end that indicates that it is a utensil used to bolt a door, and is not merely an ordinary beam, may be used to bolt a door on the Sabbath. ‎[10] [The following rules apply to] a bolt that does not have a bulb at its end: If it is tied to the door and suspended from it, we may use it to bolt the door on the Sabbath. [This ruling] also applies when it is carried together with the rope attaching it to the door.
If, by contrast, the rope attaching it is fixed permanently to the door and the bolt is removed like a beam, placed in a corner, and then reattached when one desires, its use as a bolt is forbidden [on the Sabbath]. This is forbidden because [the bolt] is not considered to be a utensil, nor is there any indication [that it is being used as a utensil], for it is not attached to the door, nor is it connected to a rope. ‎[11] A candelabrum that is made of several separate parts may not be moved on the Sabbath. [This restriction applies] regardless of whether it is large or small. [Why was this prohibition instituted? As a safeguard] lest [it fall apart and] one reconstruct it on the Sabbath.
[The following rules apply when] a candelabrum has grooves and thus appears to resemble one that is made from several parts: If it is large and can be carried only with two hands, carrying it is forbidden because of its weight. If it is smaller than that, carrying it is permitted. ‎[12] We may remove a shoe from a shoemaker's block on the Sabbath. We may release a clothes press belonging to an ordinary person on the Sabbath. We may not, however, set the press in place. A press belonging to a launderer should not be touched at all; it is set aside not to be used, because of the financial loss [that might be incurred through its improper use].
Similarly, unprocessed rolls of wool may not be carried, because [their owner] objects [to their use for purposes other than spinning fabric]. Therefore, if they have been set aside for a particular purpose, it is permitted to use them. Unprocessed hides - regardless of whether they belong to a private person or to a [leather] craftsman - may be carried, because [their owner] does not object to their [use]. ‎[13] All filth - e.g., feces, vomit, excrement, and the like - that is located in a courtyard where [people] are dwelling may be removed to a dung heap or to a latrine. Such entities are referred to as a chamber pot. If it is located in another courtyard, it should be covered by a utensil so that a child will not become soiled by it.
One may step on spittle that is lying on the ground without taking any notice of it. One may carry a warming-pan because of its ash. [This leniency is granted] despite the fact that it contains chips of wood, because it is equivalent to a chamber pot.
At the outset, we may not bring about the creation of a repulsive entity on the Sabbath. If, however, [such an entity] comes about as a natural process, or one transgresses and creates it, it may be removed. ‎[14] It is permitted to partake of oil that flows from beneath the beam of an olive press on the Sabbath and from dates and almonds that are prepared to be sold. One may even begin to take grain from a storehouse or from a grain pile on the Sabbath, for food never becomes *muktzeh* on the Sabbath at all. On the contrary, all [types of food] are [always] prepared for use.
[There is, however, one] exception: figs and raisins that have been set aside to dry. Since they pass through an intermediate stage when they become repulsive and are unfit to eat, they are considered *muktzeh* and are forbidden [to be carried] on the Sabbath.
A barrel [of wine] or a watermelon that was opened may be carried and stored away, even though it is no longer fit to eat. Similarly, an amulet that has not proven its efficacy may be moved, although one is forbidden to go out [into the public domain] wearing it.
The oil that remains in a lamp or in a bowl that was kindled on a particular Sabbath may not be used on that Sabbath. It is *muktzeh* because of the forbidden [labor with which it was associated *beyn hash'mashot*]. ‎[15] Although taking [produce] from a storehouse of grain or of barrels of wine is permitted, it is forbidden to begin to empty [the storehouse] unless this is being done for a purpose associated with a mitzvah - e.g., emptying it to host guests or to establish a hall of study.
[In the latter situations,] how should the storehouse be emptied? Every person should take [out] four or five containers until it has been completely [cleared]. We may not sweep the floor of the storehouse, as has been explained.
[Even when one is forbidden to empty the storehouse,] one may enter and leave and create a path with one's feet by entering and leaving. ‎[16] Any substance that is fit to be used as food for an animal, beast, or fowl that is commonly found may be carried on the Sabbath. What is implied? One may carry dry *turmos* beans because they are food for goats. Fresh [*turmos* beans,] by contrast, may not [be carried]. [One may carry] *chatzav* because it is food for deer, mustard seed because it is food for doves,and bones because they are food for dogs.
Similarly, we may carry all the shells and seeds [of produce] that are fit to serve as animal fodder. Concerning those that are not fit to be eaten: One should eat the food and throw [the shells or seeds] behind one's back; carrying them is forbidden.
One may carry meat that has spoiled, for it is fit to be eaten by beasts. One may carry raw meat - whether salted or unsalted- because it is fit to be eaten by humans. This ruling applies to [raw] fish that has been salted. By contrast, carrying unsalted [raw] fish is forbidden. ‎[17] We may not carry broken pieces of glass even though they are edible by ostriches, nor bundles of twigs from a vine even though they are edible by elephants, nor *luf*, even though it is edible by ravens. [These restrictions were instituted] because these and similar [species] are not commonly found among most people. ‎[18] [The following rules apply to] bundles of straw, bundles of wood, and bundles of twigs: If they were prepared to be used as animal fodder, one may carry them. If not, one may not carry them.
If one brought in bundles of wild hyssop, madder, hyssop, or thyme to be used as kindling wood, one may not use them on the Sabbath. If one brought them in for use as animal fodder, one may use them. Similar rules apply to mint, rue, and other herbs. ‎[19] We may not rake food that was placed before an ox that is being fattened for slaughter. [This applies regardless of whether the food has been placed] in a feeding trough that is a [separate] utensil or in an earthen feeding trough. [Similarly,] one may not shift [the food] to the side so that [it does not become mixed with] feces. [These restrictions are] decrees, [instituted] lest one level grooves [in the floor].
One may take food that had been placed before a donkey and place it before an ox. One may not, by contrast, take food that had been placed before an ox and place it before a donkey. [This restriction was instituted] because the food that is before an ox becomes soiled by its spittle and is not fit to be eaten by another animal.
Leaves that produce a foul and repulsive odor and are not eaten by animals may not be carried. For similar reasons, carrying the hook on which fish are hung is forbidden. By contrast, the hook on which meat is hung is permitted to be carried. The same applies in all similar situations. ‎[20] Although carrying a corpse on the Sabbath is forbidden, one may anoint it and wash it, provided one does not move any of its limbs. We may slip out a pillow from underneath it so that it will be lying on the ground to enable it to remain without decomposing.
We may bring a utensil that will cool [a corpse] or a metal utensil and place it on the belly [of the corpse] so that [the corpse] will not swell. We may stop up [the corpse's] orifices so that air will not enter them. We may tie its jaw - not so that it will close - but so that it will not [open] further. We may not close [a corpse's] eyes on the Sabbath. ‎[21] When a corpse is lying in the sun, we may place a loaf of bread or a baby on it and carry it [into the shade]. Similarly, if a fire breaks out in a courtyard where a corpse is lying, we may place a loaf of bread or a baby on it and carry it [out from the fire].
Indeed, even if a loaf of bread or a baby are not available, one may save a corpse from a fire. [This leniency is granted] lest one extinguish the fire out of apprehension that the corpse not be consumed [by the flames].
[The leniency of carrying an entity with] a loaf of bread or a baby upon it is granted only in the case of a corpse, because a person is distraught over the corpse [of his loved ones]. ‎[22] [The following procedure should be adhered to when] a corpse is lying in the sun and there is no place to carry it, or [the people] do not desire to move it from its place: Two people should come and sit, one on either side [of the corpse]. If it is [too] warm for them [to sit on the ground], they may both bring couches and sit on them. If it is [too] warm for them [to sit in the sun], they may both bring mats and spread them over the couches.
[Afterwards,] they both may [depart], overturn their couches, and remove them [leaving the mats suspended over the corpse]. In this manner, the covering is created on its own accord, [as it were], for the two mats are next to each other and their two ends are located on the ground on either side of the corpse. ‎[23] When a corpse has decomposed in a house [to the extent that it produces a foul odor] and thus is being disgraced in the eyes of the living, and their honor is being compromised because of it, carrying it into a *carmelit is permitted*.
[This leniency was granted because] the honor of the creatures is great enough to supersede [the observance of] a negative commandment of the Torah, namely: "Do not swerve right or left from the words they tell you" [Deuteronomy 17:11].
If [the people in the home] have an alternative place to go, they may not remove the corpse. Instead, the corpse should be left in its place and they should depart.
Version: Mishneh Torah, trans. by Eliyahu Touger. Jerusalem, Moznaim Pub. c1986-c2007
Source: https://www.nli.org.il/he/books/NNL_ALEPH001020101/NLI
License: CC-BY-NC