## Sukkah Daf 4a

###### Sukkah 4a:1
[Sukkah 4a:1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:1)

וְאַף עַל גַּב דְּבַטְּלִינְהוּ [לְכוּלְּהוּ], מִשּׁוּם דְּבָטְלָה דַּעְתּוֹ אֵצֶל כׇּל אָדָם.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**And even though he nullified them all,** intending that for the duration of the Festival the halakhic status of these cushions and blankets is nothing more than that of dirt, it is not deemed a fit nullification **because his intention is** rendered **irrelevant by** the opinions of **all other people.** People do not typically do so, so the action of one who does so is discounted.


###### Sukkah 4a:2
[Sukkah 4a:2](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:2)

תֶּבֶן וּבִטְּלוֹ הָוֵי מִיעוּט, וְכׇל שֶׁכֵּן עָפָר וּבִטְּלוֹ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If one placed **straw** on the floor of his *sukka* in order to diminish its height, **and** verbally **nullified it** by saying that he will not use it for another purpose, **it is a decrease** of halakhic significance, as the halakhic status of adding straw is like that of adding dirt to the *sukka* floor and diminishing its height. The same is true, **all the more so,** if he placed **dirt** on the *sukka* floor **and nullified it.**


###### Sukkah 4a:3
[Sukkah 4a:3](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:3)

תֶּבֶן וְאֵין עָתִיד לְפַנּוֹתוֹ, וְעָפָר סְתָם — מַחְלוֹקֶת רַבִּי יוֹסֵי וְרַבָּנַן. דִּתְנַן: בַּיִת שֶׁמִּילְּאָהוּ תֶּבֶן אוֹ צְרוֹרוֹת וּבִיטְּלוֹ — מְבוּטָּל.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
A case where one placed **straw** on the *sukka* floor **and he does not intend to evacuate it** from there, although he did not nullify it, **and** a case where one placed **undesignated dirt** that was not nullified, **are** the subject of **a dispute** between **Rabbi Yosei and the Rabbis** with regard to whether the actions alone are effective as nullification. **As we learned** in a mishna: In **a house** in which there is a corpse or an olive-bulk of a corpse, the *halakha* is that if there is a handbreadth of space between the corpse and the roof, the roof serves as a barrier that prevents the ritual impurity from spreading beyond the roof. However, if there is less than a handbreadth of space between the corpse and the roof, the roof does not serve as a barrier, and the ritual impurity spreads upward. In a house of that sort **where one filled** the space between the corpse and the roof **with straw or pebbles** mixed with clods of dirt, **and** then **nullified** the straw or dirt, **it is** effectively **nullified,** and the ritual impurity spreads upward.


###### Sukkah 4a:4
[Sukkah 4a:4](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:4)

בִּיטְּלוֹ — אִין, לֹא בִּיטְּלוֹ — לָא. וְתָנֵי עֲלַהּ, רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר: תֶּבֶן וְאֵין עָתִיד לְפַנּוֹתוֹ — הֲרֵי הוּא כְּעָפָר סְתָם, וּבָטֵל. עָפָר וְעָתִיד לְפַנּוֹתוֹ — הֲרֵי הוּא כִּסְתַם תֶּבֶן, וְלָא בָּטֵיל.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
By inference, if **he** explicitly **nullified it, yes,** it is nullified; if **he did not nullify it, no,** it is not nullified. **And it is taught concerning** this mishna in the *Tosefta* that **Rabbi Yosei says:** If one placed **straw** on the *sukka* floor **and he does not intend to evacuate it, its** halakhic status **is like** that of **undesignated dirt and** it is **nullified.** If he placed **dirt** on the *sukka* floor **and he does intend to evacuate it, its** halakhic status **is like** that of **undesignated straw, and it is not nullified.** Apparently, the *tanna’im* already discussed this matter.


###### Sukkah 4a:5
[Sukkah 4a:5](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:5)

הָיְתָה גְּבוֹהָה מֵעֶשְׂרִים אַמָּה וְהוּצִין יוֹרְדִין בְּתוֹךְ עֶשְׂרִים אַמָּה, אִם צִלָּתָם מְרוּבָּה מֵחֲמָתָם — כְּשֵׁרָה, וְאִם לָאו — פְּסוּלָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If a *sukka* **was more than twenty cubits high, but** the ends of the **palm leaves [*hutzin*] fall within twenty cubits,** then the following distinction applies: **If** the **shade** provided solely by the leaves within twenty cubits of the ground **is greater than the sunlight** in the *sukka*, **it is fit. If not, it is unfit.**


###### Sukkah 4a:6
[Sukkah 4a:6](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:6)

הָיְתָה גְּבוֹהָה עֲשָׂרָה טְפָחִים, וְהוּצִין יוֹרְדִין לְתוֹךְ עֲשָׂרָה, סָבַר אַבָּיֵי לְמֵימַר אִם חֲמָתָם מְרוּבָּה מִצִּלָּתָם — כְּשֵׁירָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara applies the same principle to the opposite case. In a case where the *sukka* **was** only **ten handbreadths high,** the minimum height for a fit *sukka*, **but** the ends of **the palm leaves fall within ten** handbreadths, **Abaye thought to say** that the same calculation applies here: **If the sunlight** in the *sukka* **is greater than** the **shade** provided by the leaves within ten handbreadths of the ground, meaning that those leaves do not constitute a fit *sukka* on their own, the *sukka* **is fit.**


###### Sukkah 4a:7
[Sukkah 4a:7](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:7)

אֲמַר לֵיהּ רָבָא: הָא דִּירָה סְרוּחָה הִיא, וְאֵין אָדָם דָּר בְּדִירָה סְרוּחָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rava said to him:** That calculation does not apply in this particular case, as, if the branches fall within ten handbreadths of the ground, **that is** considered **a sagging [*seruḥa*] residence, and a person does not reside in a sagging residence.** Therefore, it cannot even be considered a temporary residence.


###### Sukkah 4a:8
[Sukkah 4a:8](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:8)

הָיְתָה גְּבוֹהָה מֵעֶשְׂרִים אַמָּה וּבָנָה בָּהּ אִיצְטְבָא כְּנֶגֶד דּוֹפֶן הָאֶמְצָעִי, עַל פְּנֵי כּוּלָּהּ וְיֵשׁ בָּהּ הֶכְשֵׁר סוּכָּה — כְּשֵׁרָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If a *sukka* **was more than twenty cubits high and one built a** raised **platform in it opposite the entire middle wall,** as typically a *sukka* has three walls and the fourth side is open as an entrance, **and** the platform **has** an area of at least a bit more than seven by seven handbreadths, the minimum area required for **fitness of a *sukka*,** the *sukka* is **fit.** Since the seven-by-seven-handbreadth section from the platform to the roof has three walls and it is less than twenty cubits high, that section is a fit *sukka* in and of itself, and the rest of the *sukka* beyond the platform is fit as far as the roofing continues.


###### Sukkah 4a:9
[Sukkah 4a:9](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:9)

וּמִן הַצַּד, אִם יֵשׁ מִשְּׂפַת אִיצְטְבָא לַכּוֹתֶל אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת — פְּסוּלָה, פָּחוֹת מֵאַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת — כְּשֵׁרָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**And** if one built the platform **along the side** wall of the *sukka*, then the following distinction applies: **If there are four** or more **cubits from the edge of the platform to the** opposite **wall,** the *sukka* **is unfit,** as the area of the platform has only two walls. However, if the distance to the opposite wall is **less than four cubits,** the *sukka* is **fit,** as the halakhic status of the roofing that covers the distance to the wall is that of a curved extension of the opposite wall.


###### Sukkah 4a:10
[Sukkah 4a:10](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:10)

מַאי קָא מַשְׁמַע לַן, דְּאָמְרִינַן דּוֹפֶן עֲקוּמָּה? תְּנֵינָא: בַּיִת שֶׁנִּפְחַת וְסִיכֵּךְ עַל גַּבָּיו, אִם יֵשׁ מִן הַכּוֹתֶל לַסִּיכּוּךְ אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת — פְּסוּלָה, הָא פָּחוֹת מִכָּאן כְּשֵׁרָה!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: **What is** this *halakha* **teaching us?** Is it **that we say** that the *halakha* of **a curved wall** applies to the *halakhot* of *sukka*? **We** already **learned** this *halakha* in a mishna (17a): In the case of **a house that was breached** by a hole in the middle of the roof, **and one roofed over** the breach, **if from the wall to the roofing there are four** or more **cubits** of the remaining original roof **it is** an **unfit** *sukka*. By inference, if the distance is **less than that, it is** a **fit** *sukka*. That is due to the *halakha* of a curved wall. The intact portion of the roof is considered an extension of the wall. As this *halakha* was already taught with regard to *sukka*, what is novel in the *halakha* of the platform?


###### Sukkah 4a:11
[Sukkah 4a:11](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:11)

מַהוּ דְּתֵימָא: הָתָם הוּא דְּחַזְיָא לְדוֹפֶן, אֲבָל הָכָא, דְּלָא חַזְיָא לְדוֹפֶן — אֵימָא לָא, קָא מַשְׁמַע לַן.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara explains that there is indeed a novel element to the *halakha* of the platform. **Lest you say** that one applies the *halakha* of a curved wall specifically **there,** in the case of a house that was breached, as the wall of the house **is suited to be the wall** of a *sukka* since it is less than twenty cubits high; **however, here,** in the case of the platform, **where** the opposite wall **is not suited to be the wall** of a *sukka* due to its excessive height, **say no,** the *halakha* of a curved wall does not apply. Therefore, **it teaches us** that in the case of the platform too, the roof is considered an extension of the wall.


###### Sukkah 4a:12
[Sukkah 4a:12](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:12)

הָיְתָה גְּבוֹהָה מֵעֶשְׂרִים אַמָּה וּבָנָה אִיצְטְבָא בְּאֶמְצָעִיתָהּ, אִם יֵשׁ מִשְּׂפַת אִיצְטְבָא וְלַדּוֹפֶן אַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת לְכׇל רוּחַ וָרוּחַ — פְּסוּלָה, פָּחוֹת מֵאַרְבַּע אַמּוֹת — כְּשֵׁרָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If the *sukka* **was more than twenty cubits high and one built a platform in the center of** the *sukka* **if there is from the edge of the platform to the wall in each and every direction** a distance of **four cubits, it is unfit,** as the platform has no walls. If the distance is **less than four cubits,** then it **is fit.**


###### Sukkah 4a:13
[Sukkah 4a:13](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:13)

מַאי קָא מַשְׁמַע לַן, דְּאָמְרִינַן דּוֹפֶן עֲקוּמָּה? הַיְינוּ הָךְ!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: **What is** this *halakha* **teaching us?** Is it **that we say** that the *halakha* of **curved wall** applies to the *halakhot* of *sukka*? Then **this** *halakha* **is** identical to **that** *halakha*, as we already learned that the *halakha* of a curved wall applies.


###### Sukkah 4a:14
[Sukkah 4a:14](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:14)

מַהוּ דְּתֵימָא: דּוֹפֶן עֲקוּמָּה מֵרוּחַ אַחַת — אָמְרִינַן, אֲבָל כׇּל רוּחַ וָרוּחַ — לָא, קָא מַשְׁמַע לַן.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara explains that there is indeed a novel element to the *halakha*. **Lest you say** that **we say** that the *halakha* of **a curved wall** applies only **in one direction,** with regard to one wall of the *sukka*; **but in each and every direction** with regard to all the walls of the *sukka*, **no,** the *halakha* does not apply; therefore, **it teaches us** that this *halakha* may be applied to consider the roof as an extension of all four walls.


###### Sukkah 4a:15
[Sukkah 4a:15](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sukkah/r/4a:15)

הָיְתָה פְּחוּתָה מֵעֲשָׂרָה טְפָחִים, וְחָקַק בָּהּ כְּדֵי לְהַשְׁלִימָהּ לַעֲשָׂרָה, אִם יֵשׁ מִשְּׂפַת חֲקָק וְלַכּוֹתֶל שְׁלֹשָׁה טְפָחִים — פְּסוּלָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
If the *sukka* **was less than ten handbreadths** high **and he dug** out an area **inside** the *sukka* **in order to complete** the requisite height of the *sukka* **to ten** handbreadths, **if from the edge of the dug-**out **area to the wall there is** a distance of **three handbreadths, it is unfit,** as in that case the edge of the dug-out area is not joined to the wall of the *sukka*. Therefore, even though the interior space is ten handbreadths high, its walls are not the requisite height to be considered a fit *sukka*.