Sukkah, Daf Yod Gimmel, Part 1
Daf Yod Gimmel continues where we left off, discussing types of vegetation that can or cannot be used as skhakh.
אמר רב חנן בר רבא: הני היזמי והיגי מסככין בהו. אביי אמר: בהיזמי מסככינן, בהיגי לא מסככינן. מאי טעמא – כיון דנתרי טרפייהו שביק לה ונפיק.
R. Hanan b. Rava said: Izma and hegeh (two types of prickly shrubs) may be used as skhakh.
Abaye said: Izma may be used, but not hegeh. What is the reason? Since their leaves fall off, one might leave the Sukkah and depart.
R. Hanan b. Rava allows one to use both of these types of prickly bushes as skhakh. Abbaye, similar to his statement in yesterday’s section, says that if the skhakh might do something to cause the person to leave the sukkah, it can’t be use. Evidently the leaves of the hegeh would fall off and assumedly land in a person’s food. Therefore, this type of shrub cannot be used.
אמר רב גידל אמר רב: האי אפקותא דדיקלא מסככין בהו, אף על גב דאגידי – אגד בידי שמים לא שמיה אגד. אף על גב דהדר אגיד להו – איגד בחד לא שמיה אגד.
R. Gidal said in the name of Rav: The forked portion of a palm tree may be used as skhakh, even though [the branches] are joined together, [since] a natural joining is not considered a joining; and even if one later joined them [the skhakh is valid, since] joining of one thing [to itself] is not considered a joining.
Earlier in this chapter the mishnah stated that one could not use bundles of twigs or straw as skhakh. Here, R. Gidal allows one to use the branch of a palm tree whose branches look like they are bundled together for two reasons. First of all, something that is naturally bundled does not halakhically count as bundled. Second, even if one ties the ends by hand, bundling is only when two different things have been bundled together. If one ties together the end of one branch, this is not halakhically speaking considered "bundling."
אמר רב חסדא אמר רבינא בר שילא: הני דוקרי דקני מסככין בהו, אף על גב דאגידי נינהו – אגד בידי שמים לא שמיה אגד, אף על גב דהדר אגיד להו – איגד בחד לא שמיה אגד. תניא נמי הכי: קנים ודוקרנין מסככין בהן. קנים פשיטא! – אימא: קנים של דוקרנין מסככין בהן.
R. Hisda said in the name of Ravina b. Shila: Forked reeds may be used as skhakh even though they are joined, [since] a natural joining is not considered a joining; and even though one later joins them, the joining of one thing [to itself] not considered as a proper joining.
It was also taught in a baraita: Reeds and forked reeds may be used as skhakh.
As to reeds, this is obvious? Say: Forked reeds may be used as a Sukkah-covering.
This teaching is basically the same as above, just related to a different species of plant.
The Talmud then cites a baraita that also allows reeds and forked reeds to be used as skhakh. The difficulty is then raised: isn’t it obvious that one can use forked reeds? The Talmud answers this by slightly emending the baraita. Instead of saying "reeds and forked reeds" it just says "forked reeds."