Daf Yomi Arcade, Bekhorot 11, 5 October 2026
עַיִן יָפָה בְּסֶלַע, עַיִן רָעָה בְּשֶׁקֶל, בֵּינוֹנִית בְּרִגְיָא
A firstborn donkey is redeemed with a lamb that goes to a kohen. Today's daf asks how much that lamb has to be worth, and then follows lambs, donkeys and piles of grain as they pass from hand to hand: through a stranger, a thief, a kohen grandfather, a gentile seller. At the end of each chain, someone is holding it. Your job is to say who.
Rabbi Yehuda Nesia sent his firstborn donkey to Rabbi Tarfon and asked how much he had to give the kohen. The rulings are in coins: a sela is 4 dinars, a shekel is 2, and a ma'a (דַּנְקָא) is a sixth of a dinar. Tap coins into the purse (tap a coin in the purse to take it back), then hand it over.
In the purse: 0
Each case is a chain of hands. Step the item along with Pass and read what happens at each hand. When it reaches the end, rule who ends up holding it.
Rav Naḥman ruled the kohen-grandfather inheritance twice: once for donkeys, once for untithed grain. The Gemara says both were needed (וּצְרִיכָא). Each ruling has a feature the other lacks. Set both dials to the real reasons and the lock opens.
Had he taught only the donkeys, I'd say the grandson keeps the lambs only because…
Had he taught only the grain, I'd say the grandson keeps the teruma only because…
Bekhorot 11 settles the value of the redemption lamb (any amount after the fact, a ragya if you ask), allows redeeming with money or goods worth the donkey, and proves from the thief's double payment that a firstborn donkey isn't treated like Temple property. It then follows Rav Naḥman's rulings in the name of Rabba bar Avuh about doubtful and inherited firstborn donkeys and untithed grain, Rabbi Ḥanina on smoothed grain piles bought from a gentile, and the Demai mishna about produce left with a gentile.
Part of the Daf Yomi Arcade, a new game from every daf. Texts and links via the Sefaria API.