Nidah 13b: Rebbi said, "There was a deaf lady in our neighborhood who not only did bedikos herself, but when her neighbors saw [mar'os] they brought them to her for examination."
Rashi: She was an expert in [distinguishing] dam tamei from dam tahor.
The Mishna says a chareshes cannot do bedikos herself. The gemara challenges this din based on the evidence of the chareshes neighbor of Rebbi. The gemara answers that there is no contradiction: a chareshes who is a deaf-mute cannot do bedikos (this is the classic case of chareshes who is treated as lacking da'as); the chareshes who was Rebbi's neighbor was simply deaf.
In the context, why do they mention her deafness?
ReplyDeleteThe Mishna says a chareshes cannot do bedikos herself. The gemara challenges this din based on the evidence of the chareshes neighbor of Rebbi. The gemara answers that there is no contradiction: a chareshes who is a deaf-mute cannot do bedikos (this is the classic case of chareshes who is treated as lacking da'as); the chareshes who was Rebbi's neighbor was simply deaf.
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