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18 [1] A person who transfers an article from a private domain into the public domain, or from the public domain into the private domain is not liable, unless he transfers an amount that will be beneficial [to accomplish a purpose]. The following are the minimum amounts for which one is liable for transferring:
Human food, the size of a dried fig. This quantity may include a combination of [different types of foods], provided the amount of food itself is the size of a dried fig. The shells, the seeds, the stems, the chaff, and the bran are not included [in this measure]. [2] [The minimum measure for which one is liable for transferring] wine is a quarter of a *revi'it*; if it has congealed, a *k'zayit*. For the milk of a kosher animal, a gulp. For non-kosher milk, enough to apply to one eye. For a woman's milk and egg-white, enough to put in an ointment. For oil, enough to anoint the the small toe of a newborn infant.
Dew, enough to serve as a base for an eye ointment. An eye ointment, enough to be mixed with water [and be applied to an eye]. Water, enough for washing the surface of a mortar. Honey, enough to apply to a wound. Blood, all other liquids, and all sewage water, a *revi'it*. [3] [The minimum measure for which one is liable for transferring] straw from grain is a cow's mouthful. Straw from beans, a camel's mouthful. If, however, one transfers bean straw with the expressed purpose of feeding it to a cow, one is liable for transferring a cow's mouthful. Eating that involves difficulty is still considered to be eating. Straws from the ears of grain, a lamb's mouthful. Grass, a kid's mouthful.
Leaves of garlic and leaves of onion when fresh are considered to be human food. Hence, their measure is the size of a dried fig. When they are dry, their measure is a kid's mouthful.
[Should one take out a combination of these substances,] their amounts should not be combined to hold one liable according to the more stringent measure. They should, however, be combined to hold one liable according to the more lenient measure. What is implied? When a person takes out both straw from grain and straw from beans, if the amount he takes out is enough to fill a cow's mouth, he is not liable. If it is enough to fill a camel's mouth, he is liable. The same applies regarding all similar dimensions of the Sabbath laws. [4] [The minimum measure for which one is liable for transferring] wood is the amount necessary to cook a portion of a chicken's egg the size of a dried fig, when the egg is beaten and mixed with oil and placed in a pot.
A person who transfers a reed is liable when it is large enough to make a pen that reaches to the top of his fingers. If, however, the reed is thick or crushed, [and thus is unfit for use as a pen,] the measure [for which one is liable] is the same as for wood. [5] [The minimum measure for which one is liable for transferring] spices is the amount necessary to spice an egg. [Different] spices can be combined [to make up this measure].
Pepper, even the slightest amount. Pine sap, even the slightest amount. A substance with a pleasant fragrance, even the slightest amount. A substance with an unpleasant fragrance, even the slightest amount. Perfumes, even the slightest amount. Fine purpled dye, even the slightest amount. Rosebuds, one.
Pieces from utensils made from hard metal - e.g., bronze or iron - even the slightest amount. [Chips] from the stones of the altar, or from the earth of the altar, [pieces] of decayed scrolls or their wrapping cloths, even the slightest amount, for [these articles] are [required to be] entombed.
A coal, even the slightest amount. A person who transfers a flame is not liable. [6] A person who transfers seeds of garden plants that are not fit for human consumption is liable for [transferring] a measure that is almost the size of a dried fig. [A person is liable for transferring] two cucumber seeds, two gourd seeds, and five Egyptian bean seeds.
[A person who] transfers coarse bran [is liable for transferring a quantity] fit to place on the opening of the crucible of a gold refiner. [The measure for which a person is liable for transferring] fine bran [depends on his intent]: If [he intends to use the bran as] food [for humans], the measure is the size of a dried fig. As food for animals, a kid's mouthful. For paint, enough to paint a small cloth.
The buds of shrubs and carobs that have not yet become sweet, the size of a dried fig. After they become sweet, a mouthful of a kid. In contrast, *luf*, mustard, *turmos*,and all other foods that are pickled, whether they have become sweet or not, [the measure for which one is liable is] the size of a dried fig. [7] [When a person] transfers seeds to eat, [he is liable for transferring] five. [If his intent] is to use them as fuel, they are considered to be wood. For counting, two, for sowing, two.
[Similarly, the measure for which a person is liable for transferring] hyssop [depends on his intent]. If [his intent] is for human consumption, he is liable for [an amount equal to] the size of a dried fig. For animal consumption, a kid's mouthful. For fuel, the measure of wood; for sprinkling, the measure acceptable for sprinkling. [8] [A person who] transfers nut shells, pomegranate shells, isatis, pu'ah, and other dyes [is liable for transferring a quantity] that is sufficient to dye a small garment - e.g., the hairnet young girls place on their heads.
Similarly, one who transfers urine that is forty days old, Alexandrian niter, soap, *cimonia*, *ashlag*, and all other cleansing agents [is liable for transferring] the amount necessary to wash a small garment - e.g., the hairnet young girls place on their heads.
A person who transfers herbs that are soaking [is liable for transferring] an amount sufficient to dye a sample for a weaver. [9] A person who transfers ink on a quill [is liable for transferring] a measure sufficient to write two letters. If, however, a person removes [the dried concentrate used to make] ink or ink in an inkwell, a larger amount is necessary [for him to be liable], i.e., the amount necessary for a person to dip a pen in and write two letters.
If [a person transfers] enough [ink] to write one letter in an inkwell and enough [ink] to write one letter on a quill or enough dry ink to write one letter and enough ink to write one letter on a quill, there is a doubt whether he is liable or not.
[When a person takes out enough ink to write] two letters and writes them as he is walking, he is liable. Writing them is considered to be placing them down. [When a person takes out enough ink to write] one letter and writes and then takes out [enough ink to write] a second letter and writes it, he is not liable. For [the ink for] the first letter is lacking. [10] [A person who transfers] eye paint, whether for medicinal or cosmetic purposes, [is liable for transferring an amount sufficient] to paint one eye. In places where [a woman] would not apply eye paint to less than two eyes as a cosmetic practice, a person who takes out eye paint for cosmetic purposes is not liable unless he takes out a quantity sufficient to paint two eyes.
Tar or sulfur, enough to make a hole. Wax, enough to place on a small hole. Paste, enough to place on a board to catch birds. Fat, enough to grease [a space] the size of a *sela* under a cake [in an oven]. [11] [A person who transfers] red clay [is liable for transferring an amount] sufficient to make a seal for a letter.Clay, enough to make the opening of a crucible.
Manure or fine sand, enough to fertilize a leek. Coarse sand, enough to mix with a full trowel of lime. Firm clay, enough to make the opening of a goldsmith's crucible. Hair, enough to mix with clay to make the opening of a goldsmith's crucible. Lime, enough to apply to a girl's smallest finger. Dust or ash, enough to cover the blood of a small bird. A pebble, enough for an animal to feel if it was thrown at it - i.e., the weight of ten *zuzim*. A shard, enough to contain a *revi'it*. [12] [A person who transfers] rope [is liable for transferring an amount] sufficient to make a handle for a container. Reeds, enough to make a hook to hang a sifter or a sieve. Palm leaves, enough to make a handle for an Egyptian basket. Palm bast, enough to use as a stopper for a small pitcher of wine. Unprocessed wool, enough to make a ball the size of a nut.
Bone, enough to make a spoon. Glass, to sharpen the point of a weaver's needle or to cut two threads at once. [13] [A person] is liable for transferring two hairs from the tail of a horse or of a cow. If he transfers one bristle from a pig's [back], he is liable. Fibers from a date palm, two. The bark of the date branches, one.
From cotton, from silk, camel's wool, rabbit's wool, wool from an animal of the sea, or any other fibers that can be spun, enough to spin a thread four handbreadths long.
When a person transfers cloth, sack, or leather, the same minimum measurements that apply with regard to the laws of ritual purity also apply with regard to transferring [on the Sabbath]: [The size of] a cloth for which one is liable for transferring] is three [fingerbreadths] by three [fingerbreadths]; sackcloth, four [handbreadths] by four [handbreadths]; leather, five [handbreadths] by five [handbreadths]. [14] When a person transfers an animal hide that was not processed at all and is thus soft, the measure [for which he is liable] is enough to wrap a small weight the size of a *shekel*. When [it is in the first stages of being processed - i.e.,] salt has been applied to it, but not flour and gall-nut juice, the measure [for which one is liable] is enough to make an amulet. If flour has been applied to it, but not gall-nut juice, the measure is enough to write a bill of divorce upon it. If it has been processed entirely, its measure is five [handbreadths] by five [handbreadths]. [15] [A person who transfers] processed parchment [is liable for transferring a piece] sufficient for the passage from *Shema* to *uvish'arecha*. *Duchsustos*, enough to write a *mezuzah* on it.
Paper, enough to write on it two letters for a customs officer's receipt. These two letters are larger than the letters we [usually write]. A person who transfers a customs officer's receipt is liable even though he has already shown it to the customs officer and has been exempted because of it, for it will serve forever as proof [of his having paid].
A person who transfers a promissory note that has been paid or a paper that has been erased [is liable for transferring] enough to wrap around a small flask of perfume. If it has a portion of clean paper large enough to write two letters for a custom officer's receipt, he is liable. [16] A person who transfers an animal, a wild beast, or a fowl is liable even if it is alive. A living person, by contrast, is not considered to be a burden. Nevertheless, if he is bound or sick, a person who transfers him is liable.
A woman may walk her son if he can pick up one foot and place down the other. [17] A person who transfers a living child with a purse hanging around his neck is liable, because of the purse, for the purse is not considered to be subsidiary to the child. If, however, one transfers an adult who is wearing clothes and rings on his hands, one is not liable, for everything is considered to be subsidiary to him. If, by contrast, his garments were folded [and held] on his shoulder, a person who carries him is liable. [18] [A person who transfers] a live locust of the smallest size [is liable]. If it is dead, [he is liable for transferring an amount] the size of a dried fig. [For transferring] "a bird of the vineyards," [one is liable for transferring] even the smallest amount, regardless of whether it is alive or dead, since it is preserved for medicinal purposes. The same applies in all similar cases.
The minimum measure for which one is liable for transferring [flesh from] a human corpse, [flesh from] the carcass of an animal, or [flesh from] a dead crawling animal is the same as the minimum amount of these substances capable of imparting ritual impurity: From a human corpse and from an animal carcass, the size of an olive. From a crawling animal, the size of a lentil. [19] If there is exactly an olive-sized portion [of an animal carcass in one place] and a person removes a portion half the size of an olive from it, he is liable. [This decision is rendered,] because his actions are effective in reducing [the amount of impure substance to the extent] that the minimum amount that can convey impurity is no longer present.
If, however, he removes a quantity aproximately half the size of an olive from a quantity that is one and a half times the size of an olive, he is not liable. The same principles apply with regard to other sources of impurity. [20] When does [the abovementioned rule,] that a person is liable only when he transfers the minimum of a standard measure of a substance, apply? When the person transfers the substance without any specific intent. If, however, a person transfers a [seed] to sow, or a substance for medicinal purposes, to show as an example, or the like, he is liable for the slightest amount. [21] Should a person who stores a substance to use as seed, or to use for medicinal purposes, or a substance to be shown as a sample, [afterwards,] forget the reason for which he stored the substance, and remove it without any specific intent, he is liable regardless of its size. Another person, by contrast, is not liable [if he transfers this article] unless it is of the prescribed measure.
If after transferring the article [for the intent he originally had], the person throws it into a storeroom, even if it is [set aside] in a distinct place, his original intent is considered to have been nullified. Therefore, if he brings in the article afterwards, he is not liable unless it is of the prescribed measure. [22] When an entity is not usually stored away, nor is it fit to be stored away - e.g., a woman's menstrual discharge - a person who stores it and then transfers it is liable. Other people, by contrast, are exempt for [transferring] such an article, for [in general] one is not liable unless one transfers an article that is fit to be stored and that people generally store. [23] A person who transfers half of the prescribed measure [of a substance] is not liable. Similarly, a person who performs half the measure of any of the other [forbidden] labors is not liable.
If a person transfers half of the prescribed measure [of a substance], places it down, and then returns and transfers the second half, he is liable. If, however, he picks up the first half before he places down the second half, it is as if [the first half] were burned, and he is not liable.
When a person transfers half of the prescribed measure [of a substance], places it down, and then returns and transfers the second half, passing it over the first [half without placing it on the ground], he is liable [if the second half] is [held] within three handbreadths of the first half. [The rationale is] that transferring is considered equivalent to placing the object down on a substance.
If, by contrast, he throws the second half, he is not liable unless it comes to rest on a substance [within the domain where the first half was placed]. [24] [When a person] transfers half the prescribed measure [of a substance], and afterwards transfers another half of the prescribed measure [of that substance] to the same domain in a single period of unawareness, he is liable.
[Different rules apply if] he transfers [the two half-measures] to two different domains. If there is a domain into which one would be liable [for transferring an article interposed] between [the two domains], one is not liable [for transferring these two halves]. If there is a *carmelit* between them, they are considered to be a single domain, and [the person who transfers the two half-measures] is liable to bring a sin offering. [25] When a person transfers less than the prescribed measure [of a substance], but before he places it down, [the substance] swells in size and reaches the prescribed measure [he is not liable]. Similarly, one is not liable if one transfers more than the prescribed measure [of a substance], but before he places it down [the substance] diminishes in size and becomes less than the prescribed measure. [26] [The following rule applies when] a person transfers a portion [of a food] the size of a dried fig with the intent of eating it, but before he places it down it diminishes in size: If he [reconsiders and] decides to use it to sow, or for medicinal purposes, he is liable, because of the intent he had at the time he placed it down.
If a person transfers [a quantity of seeds] smaller than the size of a dried fig with the intent of sowing them, but before he places them down, changes his mind and decides to eat them, he is not liable. If [the seeds] swell in size before they are placed down and reach the size of a dried fig before he changes his mind [and decides to] eat them, he is liable. Even if he had not change his mind, he would still have been liable because of his original intent. [27] When a person transfers a portion [of a food] the size of a dried fig with the intent of eating it, it diminishes in size, and then it swells [to the size of a dried fig] again before it is placed down, there is a question [whether he is liable or not]: [Does the fact that in the interim, it was not of sufficient size for its transfer to incur liability cause that liability] to be deferred [forever] or not?
When a person throws a portion of the food the size of an olive into a house that is impure and by doing so, complements the quantity of food that was already in the house, causing there to be an amount [of food] the size of an egg [in the impure house], there is a question [whether he is liable or not]: Is he liable for transferring [the portion of] food that is equivalent to the size of an olive, because he completed the measure of food that is significant with regard to the laws of ritual impurity, or is he not liable? [28] A person who transfers less than the standard measure [of a substance] is not liable even though he transfers it in a container. [The rationale is that] the container is subsidiary [to its contents]; [when the person transfers it,] he is concerned not with the container, but with its contents.
Accordingly, if a person transfers a man who is alive and who is not bound on a bed, he is not liable, for the bed is considered to be subsidiary to the man. These principles apply in all similar situations.
A person who transfers a perfumer's box is liable for only a single [sin offering], although it contains many different types [of scents]. [Similarly,] even if he transfers [several items] in his hand, he is liable for only a single sin offering, for [he has performed] a single act of transfer.
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