Shulchan Aruch: Chapter 352 - [The Laws that Apply When] One Reads a Scroll and It Rolls Out from One Domain to Another

SECTION 352 [The Laws that Apply When] One Reads a Scroll and It Rolls Out from One Domain to Another (1-4)

1 [The following laws apply when a person situated] on a doorstep is reading a scroll of sacred writings that is rolled up in a manner that resembles a Torah scroll.1 [If] one end of the scroll rolls out of [the person’s] hand into the public domain [located] before the doorstep, [as long as] the other end remains in his hand, he may roll it back to himself even if it rolled outside [the doorstep], four cubits [into the public domain. See fig. 41.] Even though the doorstep is deemed a private domain since it has a lintel above it four [handbreadths] wide,2 license was granted [to roll back the scroll to prevent] the denigration of sacred writings,3 for [in a crowded public domain,] many people tread on the doorstep.4 [The rationale is that] rolling [the scroll] back does not violate a Scriptural prohibition, since the second end remained in [the person’s] hand. [Indeed,] whenever one throws an object into the public domain and its other end remains in his hand, if [the person] can draw [the object] back to him [by pulling the end remaining in his hand], he is exempt because [the object] has not [fully] come to rest in the public domain.5 Therefore, according to Scriptural Law, [one] would be permitted to [draw the object] back to himself. Nevertheless, the Sages forbade doing so with regard to other objects as a decree [instituted] lest [the object] fall from [the person’s] hand entirely, [dropping] into the public domain, and he go to retrieve it. However, this decree was not instituted [with regard to a scroll containing sacred writings,] because [of the possibility] of the sacred writings being denigrated.

If, however, the entire scroll falls from one’s hand, even if it falls into a karmelis, it is forbidden to bring it back to oneself.6 [For doing so constitutes] a shvus7in a complete sense, and [the Sages] did not lift [such a prohibition] because of [the possibility] of sacred writings being denigrated.

2 It is, [however,] forbidden to bring other objects8 back to one’s place even if they fall into a karmelis and [the person] is holding the other end [of the object]. (The statement9 that our Sages did not institute a decree [safeguarding the prohibition against transferring] in a karmelis, because it would be a gezeirah legezeirah, a compound Rabbinic decree,10 applies only in a situation that does not resemble a labor [forbidden by Scriptural Law], e.g., one who is standing in a private domain and drinks in the public domain, as stated in sec. 350[:2],11 or one who throws [an object] from one private domain to another private domain via a makom p’tur, as will be explained in sec. 353[:1],12 or one who goes out to the public domain while it is still day [on Friday] near nightfall while holding an object, as explained in sec. 252[:17-18].13 When, however, the situation resembles a forbidden labor, our Sages imposed prohibitive decrees even in a karmelis. Therefore, there are authorities who [even] forbid taking out an article from a private domain to a karmelis via a makom p’tur, as explained in sec. 346[:3]. Accordingly,14 [our Sages] forbade carrying [an object] less than four cubits [and then repeating that act] in a karmelis, as stated in sec. 349[:3. Similarly,] for this reason, [our Sages] forbade performing [a transfer that is] a melachah she’einah tzerichah legufah in a karmelis,15 as stated in sec. 311[:2, 5].16 The same applies to taking an article out in an abnormal manner17 and all analogous situations.)

3 [The following rules apply] if one is reading [from a scroll] on a roof, which is a private domain, and one end (of the scroll) rolls from his hand:18 When [the end of the scroll] has yet to reach the ten handbreadths closest to the ground, [the person] may roll it back to his [place], because [the end of the scroll is situated] in space that is a makom p’tur.19 Even if [the scroll] comes to rest on a projection, if [that projection] is not four [handbreadths by four handbreadths] in area, it is also a makom p’tur. [Moreover,] even if [the projection] is four [handbreadths by four handbreadths] in area, and [thus it] is deemed a private domain (or a karmelis in the manner to be described in sec. 253[:2], there is no prohibition against [the person] bringing [the scroll] back to [himself] from a karmelis to a private domain, since he is holding the other end [of the scroll], as will be explained).

[A more stringent ruling applies,] however, if [the scroll] reaches within ten handbreadths [of the ground], which is considered the free space of the public domain. Should the wall be [built leaning] in a manner that [the scroll] rests on it,20 [the person] is forbidden to roll [the scroll] back to himself, lest [the scroll] fall there entirely and he [then] bring it back, [performing a transfer for which] he would be liable.

[Our Sages’] statement that such a decree is not imposed when [dishonor to] sacred texts is involved21 applies only [when the person drops one end of the scroll from] a doorstep over which many people pass. This is a great disgrace [for the scroll], since many people pass [over the doorstep]. In the instance [described here], however, many people do not pass by. [Hence,] even though leaving the scroll lying in this manner in the public domain is denigrating to it, it is forbidden for [the person] to roll it back to himself. Instead, he should turn [the scroll] facedown so as to minimize the dishonor, for it is a greater dishonor when the sacred writing is visible.22

When does the above apply? When many people use the slope of the wall to load [their burdens]. Then [the wall] is deemed a public domain in a complete sense, as stated in sec. 345[:13]. If, [by contrast,] many people do not use [the slope of the wall] to load [their burdens], it is deemed a karmelis, and this prohibitive decree was not imposed in a karmelis when holy writings are found in denigrating circumstances. [Hence, in that situation, the person may roll the scroll back up to himself.]

If the wall is not sloped, as long as the scroll does not reach the ground,23 [the person] is permitted to roll it back to himself even though [the wall] is in the public domain and many people use it to load [their burdens],24 since the scroll has not come to rest on [the ground].25 [The rationale is that our Sages] did not impose a decree lest [the scroll] fall entirely [into the public domain] and one seek to bring it [back into the private domain in this instance], since even if the entire [scroll] would fall into the public domain, if it does not come to rest there, but rather, hangs in the open space of the public domain, it would be permitted to take [the scroll] from that open space and bring it into a private domain according to Scriptural Law. Nevertheless, if the entire [scroll] falls, it is forbidden to do this according to Rabbinic Law. [However,] when only part of [the scroll] falls, [our Sages] did not impose such a decree in a situation where holy writings would be left in denigrating circumstances.

4 [All of the above applies with regard to sacred writings.] With regard to other objects,26 by contrast, even if only a portion [of the object] falls into the open space of a public domain27 and [that portion] does not come to rest there, it is forbidden [for the person] to bring [the object] back to [himself]. If, however, [a portion of an object] falls into the open space of a karmelis and does not come to rest there, one is permitted to bring it back to himself as long as one end [of the object] remains in his hand. ([Indeed, following the same logic, even] initially, one is permitted to extend [one end of an object] into the open space of a karmelis as long as [the person] is holding the other end [of the object] in his hand in a private domain and [the entire object] is not extended outside [the private domain].)28