The egg laid on Shabbos (Nolad) — to discover and understand
סימן שכ״ב
דין נולד בשבת
🌱 Initiation Level · מתחילים
✦ ❖ ✦
A first approach to Siman שכ״ב: the complete Hebrew text of the Mechaber, a fluent English translation, plain explanations of the halachic concepts, modern practical cases and a synthesis.
Subject : L'œuf pondu le Chabbat (Nolad) Source(s) : שולחן ערוך אורח חיים סימן שכ״ב (6 seifim)
Compilation : הרב יוסף חיים סממה DAAT · daattorah.com
📑 Study plan
1.The Shulchan Aruch text — the 6 seifim of the Mechaber
2.The general context: why this siman, and what is the question?
3.The key halachic concepts of this siman
4.The seifim in detail — one by one
5.The Mishnah Berurah — first entries
6.The position of the Rema — Ashkenazi vs Sephardi differences
7.Modern practical cases
8.Practical synthesis and rules to remember
9.Comprehension questions
1. The Shulchan Aruch text
Siman שכ״ב contains 6 seifim of the Mechaber (Rabbi Yosef Karo). Subject of the siman: the egg laid on Shabbos (nolad).
Seif א
דין נולד בשבת. ובו ו סעיפים: ביצה שנולדה בשבת אסור אפי' לטלטלה ואפי' נתערבה באלף כולן אסורות ויכול לכוף עליה כלי שלא תשבר ובלבד שלא יגע בה:
Translation: An egg laid on Shabbos — it is forbidden even to move it (it is מוקצה). And even mixed into a thousand [permitted eggs], all become forbidden — because it is a דבר שיש לו מתירין (something that will become permitted later, at the close of Shabbos), and such a thing is not nullified, even in a thousand. One may turn a vessel over it so that it not break, provided one does not touch it.
What this seif says:
An egg laid on Shabbat is forbidden — even to move it.
And even mixed into a thousand — all are forbidden.
He may invert a vessel over it so that it not break — provided he not touch it.
Seif ב
שבת שלאחר יום טוב או לפניו נולדה בזה אסורה בזה:
Translation: A Shabbos falling immediately after a Yom Tov (or immediately before): an egg laid on the one is forbidden on the other. (A gezeirah of the Sages: no distinction is drawn, to avoid confusion — and in fact an egg laid on a Yom Tov following Shabbos is forbidden by Torah law, having been "prepared" inside the hen since the day before.)
What this seif says:
A Shabbat following a festival day, or preceding it: what was born on the one is forbidden on the other.
They are two distinct sanctities, and what is born on one is not permitted on the other.
Seif ג
פירות שנשרו מן האילן בשבת אסורים בו ביום ולערב מותרים מיד:
Translation:Fruit that fell from the tree on Shabbos — forbidden that day (מוקצה, and out of concern that one might climb up to pick), but permitted as soon as night falls, immediately (without waiting "the time it would have taken to produce them", since no melacha was performed).
What this seif says:
Fruit that fell from the tree on Shabbat is forbidden that day.
And when evening comes — permitted at once.
Seif ד
אוכלי בהמה אין בהם משום תיקון כלי ולפיכך מותר לקטום אפילו בסכין קש או תבן ולחצוץ בו שיניו אבל קיסם שאינו אוכל בהמה אפילו ליטלו כדי לחצוץ בו שיניו אסור:
Translation:Animal fodder does not fall under the prohibition of תיקון כלי (fashioning a utensil); one may therefore cut straw or hay, even with a knife, and pick one's teeth with it. But a wood chip (קיסם) which is not animal food — even picking it up to clean one's teeth is forbidden (מוקצה; and shaping it with a tool would make a "utensil" → melacha).
What this seif says:
Cattle fodder does not fall under « fashioning a vessel ».
Therefore permitted to snip straw or stubble, even with a knife, and to pick his teeth with it.
But a wood splinter, which is not cattle fodder — even to take it up to pick his teeth is forbidden.
Seif ה
מותר לטלטל עצי בשמים להריח בהם ולהניף בהם לחולה ומוללו להריח בו אחד קשים ואחד רכים:
Translation: One may handle aromatic woods (עצי בשמים) in order to smell them, fan them towards a sick person [to refresh him], and crush them between the fingers to bring up their scent — whether they are hard or soft. (They are not מוקצה since they serve the sense of smell; but creating a new fragrance — for instance by impregnating a garment — remains forbidden.)
What this seif says:
Permitted to move fragrant woods in order to smell them, and to fan a sick person with them.
And he rubs it to smell it — the hard as the soft alike.
Seif ו
המחלק לבני ביתו מנות בשבת יכול להטיל גורל לומר למי שיצא גורל פלוני יהיה חלק פלוני שלו והוא שיהיו החלקים שוים ואינו עושה אלא כדי להשותם שלא להטיל קנאה ביניהם אבל עם אחרים אסור כיון שמקפידין זה על זה יבואו לידי מדה ומשקל אבל ליתן מנה גדולה כנגד מנה קטנה ולהטיל גורל עליהם אפילו בבני ביתו ובחול אסור משום קוביא ויש אומרים דעם בניו ובני ביתו מותר להטיל גורל אפי' על מנה גדולה כנגד מנה קטנה מפני שאין מקפידין: הגה ואסור להטיל גורל בשבת אפילו ע״י עכו״ם [מהרי״ל]:
Translation: One who distributes portions to his household on Shabbos may draw lots (גורל) — "whoever draws such a lot, such a portion shall be his" — provided the portions are equal, and that he does so only in order to even them out, so as not to arouse jealousy. But with others [outside his household] it is forbidden: being particular with one another, they would come to "measure and weight". To offer a large portion against a small one and draw lots on it — even within the family and even on a weekday — is forbidden on account of קוביא (games of chance, akin to theft). And some say that with one's children and household it is permitted even large against small, since they are not particular. Gloss (Rema): it is forbidden to draw lots on Shabbos, even through a non-Jew (Maharil).
Complete text: these 6 seifim constitute the whole of the Mechaber's codification on this subject. Each one specifies a case, a condition, or an exception.
What this seif says:
One who apportions shares to his household on Shabbat may cast lots — « to whom such a lot falls, such a share shall be his » — provided the shares be equal; he does so only to even them out, so as to raise no envy between them.
But with others it is forbidden — since they are particular with one another, they would come to measure and weight.
To set a large share against a small one and cast lots on them — forbidden even with his household, and even on a weekday, because of gambling; and some say that with his sons and his household it is permitted, since they are not particular. Rama:and it is forbidden to cast lots on Shabbat, even by a non-Jew.
2. The general context
What is this siman about?
Our siman deals with the egg laid on Shabbos (nolad). It belongs to the great corpus of הלכות שבת (the laws of Shabbos) in the Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim.
The fundamental question: what are the halachic conditions, permissions and prohibitions bearing on the egg laid on Shabbos (nolad)? Which structuring principles allow one to decide the borderline cases?
Place within Hilchos Shabbos
Siman שכ״ב is one of simanim 242-365 which cover Hilchos Shabbos. It has its own conceptual scope, but it works together with the neighbouring simanim.
3. The key halachic concepts
To understand this siman one must master a few structuring halachic concepts — which appear across the 6 seifim and the commentary of the Mishnah Berurah:
Recurring concepts in Hilchos Shabbos (worth knowing):
מלאכה (melacha) — the act of work forbidden on Shabbos
דאורייתא / דרבנן — forbidden by the Torah or by the Sages
פסיק רישא — an unavoidable consequence
דבר שאינו מתכוון — an unintended act
שבות — a secondary rabbinic prohibition
פיקוח נפש — mortal danger, which suspends the prohibition
Siman שכ״ב deploys some of these concepts in the context of the egg laid on Shabbos (nolad).
4. The seifim in detail — one by one
Let us take each seif of the Mechaber in turn and set out its practical import. For the in-depth pilpul (Talmudic sources, מחלוקות of the Rishonim, נפקא מינות), see Level 2 — Lamdan.
The siman gathers four subjects held together by a common thread: what one may or may not use and handle on Shabbos — מוקצה, נולד, תיקון כלי, and the drawing of lots.
Seifim א-ג — נולד: what "comes into being" on Shabbos
Cas
Règle
Raison (MB)
Egg laid on Shabbos (seif 1)
Forbidden even to move; mixed into 1000 → all forbidden
מוקצה + דבר שיש לו מתירין (will be permitted tonight → not nullified, ס״ק ב)
Shabbos adjoining a Yom Tov (seif 2)
Egg laid on the one, forbidden on the other
Gezeirah; on a Yom Tov after Shabbos, forbidden by Torah law (הכנה, ס״ק א)
Fruit fallen from the tree (seif 3)
Forbidden during the day, permitted from nightfall
מוקצה + concern that one might climb up to pick (ס״ק ז)
Seif ד — אוכלי בהמה and תיקון כלי
Animal food is never "a utensil in the making": cutting it (even with a knife) does not fall under תיקון כלי. But an inedible chip is מוקצה — and shaping it into a toothpick would amount to fashioning a utensil (a מחלוקת whether the prohibition is תיקון כלי or מחתך, see Level 2).
Seif ה — עצי בשמים (aromatic woods)
Permitted to handle them in order to smell them (they serve the sense of smell, hence not מוקצה), whether hard or soft; but forbidden to create a new fragrance — מוליד ריח — by impregnating a garment, for instance.
Seif ו — גורל (drawing lots for the portions)
Within the family, equal portions → permitted (no gain, no קוביא). With others, or a large portion against a small one → forbidden (קוביא / מדה ומשקל). Rema: forbidden even through a non-Jew.
5. The Mishnah Berurah — first entries
The Mishnah Berurah of Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan (Chafetz Chaim) has 25 entries on this siman. Here are the first ones — to better understand the meaning of the seifim:
משנה ברורה (א) — (א) אפילו לטלטלה - דכיון דלא חזי לאכילה כמוקצה דמיא והאי דאסורה באכילה [היינו לגומעה חיה] הוא משום גזירה שבת דמיקלע אחר יו״ט שאז ביצה הנולדה בה אסורה מדאורייתא באכילה דכל ביצה דמתילדא האידנא מאתמול גמרה לה ונמצא כשנאכלנה דיו״ט הכינה לשבת וזה אסור מדכתיב והיה ביום הששי והכינו את אשר יביאו וסתם ששי חול הוא להורות לנו דדוקא בחול צריך להכין לסעודת שבת וכן ליו״ט דגם הוא איקרי שבת אבל ביו״ט אסור להכין ל…
משנה ברורה (ב) — (ב) כולן אסורות - דהוי דבר שיש לו מתירין וקי״ל דדשיל״מ אפילו באלף לא בטיל והטעם דעד שעתה יאכלנה ויטלטלנה בחשש איסור יותר טוב שימתין עד שתחשך ויהיה כולם בהיתר וכן אם הוא ספק אם נולדה בשבת או מקודם ג״כ אסור מטעם זה אף דבכל דוכתא קי״ל דספיקא דרבנן להקל [לקמן בסימן תקי״ג וע״ש עוד במ״א ובמ״ב לענין אם נתערב הספק באחרות] אך אם השכים קודם עמוד השחר ומצא הביצה מונחת בהקינה של תרנגולת מותרת לטלטלה ולאכלה דר…
משנה ברורה (ג) — (ג) שלא יגע בה - היינו בהכלי וכ״ש בנגיעה בידיו והטעם דע״י שהיא עגולה היא מתנענעת ממקומה ועיין לעיל בסימן ש״ח ס״ג בהג״ה ובסימן ש״י ס״ו ובמה שכתבנו שם:
The Rema (Rabbi Moshe Isserles) adds here a single הגהה (gloss), on seif 6, concerning the drawing of lots:
The gloss of the Rema (seif 6) — the goral: it is forbidden to draw lots on Shabbos even through a non-Jew (Maharil). One does not circumvent the prohibition of קוביא by having a non-Jewish third party act.
Marker: Mechaber → Sephardim (Beis Yosef); Rema → Ashkenazim (Magen Avraham, Mishnah Berurah). This siman has no Level 4 Daat HaRav: the Alter Rebbe did not write it.
7. Modern practical cases
Siman שכ״ב touches daily Shabbos life. Here are a few concrete applications:
Situation
Reference
Conduct
Egg found in the coop on Shabbos
Seif 1 (ס״ק ב)
Do not move it or eat it; unless found before dawn in the nest → presumed laid the day before, permitted
Picking one's teeth
Seif 4
A toothpick prepared before Shabbos — permitted; shaping a chip on Shabbos — forbidden
Fruit fallen under the garden tree
Seif 3 (ס״ק ו)
Do not gather them on Shabbos; permitted from nightfall
Spices / fragrant wood (besamim)
Seif 5
Handling and crushing them to smell — permitted; perfuming a garment — forbidden (מוליד ריח)
Drawing lots (portions, who is called to the Torah)
Seif 6 (ס״ק כד)
Equal portions within the family — permitted; a lottery / large against small — forbidden (קוביא)
For halacha lema'aseh — in particular cases of מוקצה and of doubt (egg, fruit) — consult your Rav.
8. Practical synthesis of the siman
What Siman שכ״ב teaches, in 6 seifim:
The Mechaber codifies 6 cases around the subject: the egg laid on Shabbos (nolad)
The Mishnah Berurah adds 25 entries of clarification and sources
The Rema, where applicable, states the Ashkenazi nuances
Practical application requires staying attentive to the underlying halachic concepts
For halacha lema'aseh, consult your local Rav
9. Comprehension questions
Check your understanding:
What is the general subject of Siman שכ״ב?
How many seifim does this siman contain? What is the theme of each?
What is the difference between the Mechaber and the Rema (where there is one)?
Which structuring halachic concepts appear in this siman?
What is the practice to remember for daily life?
In which borderline cases must one consult a Rav?
Going further
If you want to go deeper into this siman:
📚 Level 2 — Lamdan: for the pilpul, the שיטות ראשונים, the חקירות יסודיות, and the Acharonim's nuances
✨ Level 3 — Synthesis: for review and quick memorisation with mnemonics
📜 Level 4 — Daat HaRav : la chitah de l'Admour HaZaken (Choulhan Aroukh HaRav siman שכ״ב)
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