## Bava Batra Daf 22b

###### Bava Batra 22b:1
[Bava Batra 22b:1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:1)

הַבָּא לִסְמוֹךְ, לֹא יִסְמוֹךְ אֶלָּא אִם כֵּן הִרְחִיק מִמֶּנּוּ אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת. מַתְקֵיף לַהּ רָבָא: וְהָא ״מִי שֶׁהָיָה כּוֹתְלוֹ סָמוּךְ לְכוֹתֶל חֲבֵירוֹ״ קָתָנֵי!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**One who comes to place** a wall **close** to his neighbor’s wall **may place** that wall **close** to the neighbor’s wall **only if he distances** his wall **four cubits from the existing wall.** Accordingly, the mishna is discussing one constructing a wall close to his neighbor’s wall the first time. **Rava objects to this** explanation: **But** the mishna **teaches: One whose wall was near the wall of another,** which indicates that there had already been a wall there.


###### Bava Batra 22b:2
[Bava Batra 22b:2](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:2)

אֶלָּא אָמַר רָבָא, הָכִי קָתָנֵי: מִי שֶׁהָיָה כּוֹתְלוֹ סָמוּךְ לְכוֹתֶל חֲבֵירוֹ בְּרָחוֹק אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת, וְנָפַל, לֹא יִסְמוֹךְ לוֹ כּוֹתֶל אַחֵר – אֶלָּא אִם כֵּן הִרְחִיק מִמֶּנּוּ אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת. מַאי טַעְמָא? דְּדַוְושָׁא דְּהָכָא מְעַלֵּי לְהָתָם.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rather, Rava said** that **this** is what the mishna **is teaching:** In a case of **one whose wall was near the wall of another at a distance of four cubits and** it **fell, he may not place another wall close** to his neighbor’s wall **unless he distances** the wall **four cubits from it. What is the reason** that this distance must be observed? The reason is **that walking here benefits there,** i.e., the ground is strengthened by people walking on the land in the area between the walls.


###### Bava Batra 22b:3
[Bava Batra 22b:3](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:3)

אָמַר רַב: לֹא שָׁנוּ אֶלָּא כּוֹתֶל גִּינָה, אֲבָל כּוֹתֶל חָצֵר – אִם בָּא לִסְמוֹךְ, סוֹמֵךְ. רַבִּי אוֹשַׁעְיָא אוֹמֵר: אֶחָד כּוֹתֶל גִּינָּה וְאֶחָד כּוֹתֶל חָצֵר – אִם בָּא לִסְמוֹךְ, אֵינוֹ סוֹמֵךְ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rav says: They taught** that one must leave a space of four cubits between his wall and that of his neighbor **only** if he builds it alongside **the wall of** his neighbor’s **garden,** where people do not usually walk due to the seeds. **But** with regard to **the wall of a courtyard,** where people walk, **if he comes to place** his wall **close** by, **he may place** it **close** by. By contrast, **Rabbi Oshaya says:** With regard to **both the wall of a garden and the wall of a courtyard, if one comes to place** his wall **close** by, **he may not place** his wall **close** by.


###### Bava Batra 22b:4
[Bava Batra 22b:4](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:4)

אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹסֵי בַּר חֲנִינָא: וְלָא פְּלִיגִי – הָא בְּעִיר יְשָׁנָה, הָא בְּעִיר חֲדָשָׁה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rabbi Yosei bar Ḥanina said: And** the two *amora’im* **do not disagree,** as they are referring to different cases. **This** statement of Rav is referring **to an old city,** whose ground is well trodden and stable, and **that** statement of Rabbi Oshaya is referring **to a new city,** where even the wall of a courtyard requires walking on its adjacent ground to strengthen it.


###### Bava Batra 22b:5
[Bava Batra 22b:5](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:5)

תְּנַן: הַחַלּוֹנוֹת, בֵּין מִלְּמַעְלָן בֵּין מִלְּמַטָּן בֵּין מִכְּנֶגְדָּן – אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת. וְתָנֵי עֲלַהּ: מִלְּמַעְלָן – כְּדֵי שֶׁלֹּא יָצִיץ וְיִרְאֶה, מִלְּמַטָּן – שֶׁלֹּא יַעֲמוֹד וְיִרְאֶה, וּמִכְּנֶגְדָּן – שֶׁלֹּא יַאֲפִיל.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
With regard to the claim that the *halakha* of the mishna is due to the need for space for people to walk on the ground between the walls, the Gemara asks: **We learned** in the mishna: And one who desires to build a wall opposite **the windows** of a neighbor’s house must distance the wall **four cubits** from the windows, **whether above, below, or opposite. And it is taught** in a *baraita* **with regard to this** ruling: Concerning the requirement of a distance **above,** the wall must be high **enough so that one cannot peer** into the window **and see** into the window; concerning the requirement of a distance **below,** the wall must be low **so that he will not** be able to **stand** on top of it **and see** into the window; **and** concerning the requirement of a distance **opposite,** one must distance the wall from the windows **so that it will not darken** his neighbor’s house by blocking the light that enters the house through the window.


###### Bava Batra 22b:6
[Bava Batra 22b:6](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:6)

טַעְמָא שֶׁלֹּא יַאֲפִיל, אֲבָל מִשּׁוּם דַּוְושָׁא לָא! הָכָא בְּמַאי עָסְקִינַן – בְּבָא מִן הַצַּד.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara analyzes this statement: The **reason** that distance is required opposite the window is so **that he will not darken** his neighbor’s house by blocking the light that enters the house through the window, **but** it is **not due to** the fact that **walking** will strengthen the ground. The Gemara answers: **With what are we dealing here?** We are dealing with a wall **that is positioned to the side,** i.e., perpendicular to the wall with the window in it, and therefore it blocks the light from entering the house through the window but does not prevent walking along the length of the neighbor’s wall.


###### Bava Batra 22b:7
[Bava Batra 22b:7](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:7)

וְכַמָּה? אָמַר יֵיבָא, חֲמוּהּ דְּאַשְׁיָין בַּר נִדְבָּךְ, מִשְּׁמֵיהּ דְּרַב: כִּמְלֹא רֹחַב חַלּוֹן. וַהֲלֹא מֵצִיץ! אָמַר רַב זְבִיד: בְּמַדִּיר אֶת כּוֹתְלוֹ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: **And how far** must one distance his wall if it is perpendicular to the other wall? **Yeiva, the father-in-law of Ashyan bar Nidbakh, says in the name of Rav:** As much **as the full width of the window.** The Gemara asks: **But** why is this sufficient? **Can’t he** still **peer into** the window if he is that close? **Rav Zevid says:** This is referring **to one who slopes his wall,** i.e., he fashions an incline on the upper surface of the wall so that he will not be able to stand on top of it and look through the window.


###### Bava Batra 22b:8
[Bava Batra 22b:8](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:8)

וְהָא אֲנַן תְּנַן: אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת! לָא קַשְׁיָא: כָּאן מֵרוּחַ אַחַת, כָּאן מִשְׁתֵּי רוּחוֹת.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: **But didn’t we learn** in the mishna that one must keep the wall **four cubits** away from the window? The Gemara answers: This is **not difficult; here,** he builds the wall **on one side** of the window, whereas **there,** in the mishna, he builds walls **on two sides** of the window. In the latter case, if he builds the walls any closer he will block the light from entering the house through the window even if they are perpendicular.


###### Bava Batra 22b:9
[Bava Batra 22b:9](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:9)

תָּא שְׁמַע: וְאֶת הַכּוֹתֶל מִן הַמַּזְחֵילָה אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת, כְּדֵי שֶׁיְּהֵא זוֹקֵף אֶת הַסּוּלָּם. טַעְמָא מִשּׁוּם סוּלָּם, אֲבָל מִשּׁוּם דַּוְושָׁא לָא! הָכָא בְּמַאי עָסְקִינַן – בְּמַזְחֵילָה מְשׁוּפַּעַת, דְּאִי מִשּׁוּם דַּוְושָׁא הוּא – הָא קָא אָזֵיל וְאָתֵי תּוּתֵיהּ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara suggests: **Come** and **hear** a further difficulty from the mishna below with regard to the claim that the requisite gap between the walls is for the purpose of walking, as the mishna teaches: **And** one must distance his **wall four cubits from a roof gutter so that** his neighbor **can lean a ladder** in the empty space to clean and repair the gutter. The Gemara analyzes this statement: The **reason** this distance is required is **due to** the fact that he will be able to lean **a ladder, but** it is **not due to** the fact that **walking** will strengthen the ground. The Gemara answers: **With what are we dealing here?** We are dealing **with a sloping roof gutter,** which protrudes beyond the boundary of the wall. **As** in this case, **if** the reason for distancing the wall **is due to walking, one can walk back and forth beneath it.** Nevertheless, a distance of four cubits from the roof gutter is required so that repairs can be performed.


###### Bava Batra 22b:10
[Bava Batra 22b:10](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:10)

**מַתְנִי׳** מַרְחִיקִין אֶת הַסּוּלָּם מִן הַשּׁוֹבָךְ אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת, כְּדֵי שֶׁלֹּא תִּקְפּוֹץ הַנְּמִיָּיה. וְאֶת הַכּוֹתֶל מִן הַמַּזְחֵילָה אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת, כְּדֵי שֶׁיְּהֵא זוֹקֵף אֶת הַסּוּלָּם.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**MISHNA:** **One must distance** his **ladder four cubits from** a neighbor’s **dovecote so that a mongoose will not** be able to **jump** from the ladder to the dovecote and devour the birds. **And** one must distance his **wall four cubits from a roof gutter, so that** the neighbor **can lean a ladder** in the empty space to clean and repair the gutter.


###### Bava Batra 22b:11
[Bava Batra 22b:11](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:11)

**גְּמָ׳** לֵימָא מַתְנִיתִין דְּלָא כְּרַבִּי יוֹסֵי? דְּאִי רַבִּי יוֹסֵי, הָא אָמַר: זֶה חוֹפֵר בְּתוֹךְ שֶׁלּוֹ, וְזֶה נוֹטֵעַ בְּתוֹךְ שֶׁלּוֹ!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**GEMARA:** **Let us say that the mishna is not in accordance with** the opinion of **Rabbi Yosei, as, if** it were in accordance with the opinion of **Rabbi Yosei, doesn’t** he **say** with regard to planting a tree next to a neighbor’s cistern: **This one digs within his** land, **and that one plants within his** land, and neither individual need consider what is happening in the property of the other?


###### Bava Batra 22b:12
[Bava Batra 22b:12](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:12)

אֲפִילּוּ תֵּימָא רַבִּי יוֹסֵי, הָא אָמַר רַב אָשֵׁי: כִּי הֲוֵינַן בֵּי רַב כָּהֲנָא, הֲוָה אָמַר: מוֹדֵי רַבִּי יוֹסֵי בְּגִירֵי דִידֵיהּ; הָכָא נָמֵי, זִמְנִין דְּבַהֲדֵי דְּמַנַּח לֵיהּ – יָתְבָא בְּחוֹר וְקָפְצָה. וְהָא גְּרָמָא הוּא! אָמַר רַב טוֹבִי בַּר מַתְנָה, זֹאת אוֹמֶרֶת: גְּרָמָא בְּנִיזָּקִין אָסוּר.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara answers: **You** may **even say** that the mishna follows the opinion of **Rabbi Yosei,** as **didn’t Rav Ashi say: When we were** studying **in the study hall of Rav Kahana, he would say** to us that **Rabbi Yosei concedes with regard to his arrows,** i.e., he concedes that one must distance himself if his actions will cause damage to his neighbor. **Here too, sometimes when he places** the ladder, the mongoose might be **sitting in a hole and** will immediately **jump** up and climb the ladder to the dovecote. The Gemara challenges: **But that is indirect** damage, as he is not the immediate cause. **Rav Tovi bar Mattana said: That is to say** that it **is prohibited** to cause even **indirect damage.**


###### Bava Batra 22b:13
[Bava Batra 22b:13](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Bava%20Batra/r/22b:13)

רַב יוֹסֵף הֲוָה לֵיהּ הָנְהוּ תָּאלֵי, דַּהֲווֹ

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara relates: **Rav Yosef had certain small palm trees [*talei*],** and