[Avodah] Zeh VeZeh Gorem

[Rabbi Meir G. Rabi via Avodah]

The principle of ZVZGo is illustrated in the following case described by
the Gemara, Chullin 58a.

A chicken with a broken wing for example, is a Tereifah even though it
continues to live. When a chicken becomes Tereif all the eggs within it are
also Tereif. Rashi explains this is based upon the principle that an Ubbar,
a foetus, is part of - is an extension of - its mother, Ubbar Yerech Imo.

After these Tereifah eggs have all been laid, the eggs that follow might be
Kosher notwithstanding that the hen is still a Tereifah, if we can apply
the principle of ZVZGo. Eggs if fertilised by a Kosher rooster, have two
Gormim, two energies contributing to their development, one being Kosher
the other being Tereif. The rule of ZVZGo determines that the eggs will be
Kosher. Notwithstanding that the Kosher Gorem is utterly unrecognisable in
the egg that has been laid. Fertilised eggs are indistinguishable [before
being incubated] from unfertilised eggs.

Upon closer observation, there is an obvious problem - the eggs in the
chicken which becomes a Tereifa ought to be Kosher as they too are
fertilised by a Kosher rooster. Why does the rule of ZVZGo not apply? Why
does the Gemara differ between eggs that are conceived before and those
that are conceived after the hen becomes a Tereifa? It seems there is a
contradiction between the principles of ZVZGo [which indicates it is
Kosher] and Ubbar Yerech Imo [which indicates it is Tereif].

Furthermore, even if the first clutch of eggs are not fertilised, they are
nevertheless not just the growth of the hen as a Tereifah; they were
growing inside that same hen before it became a Tereifah. So all the eggs
are ZVZGo from BT [before Tereifah onset] and AT [after Tereifah onset]

The guideline appears to be that it is the moment when a Halachic decision
must be made that determines how we make that decision. At the moment the
hen becomes a Tereifah we must determine the status of the eggs inside it.
What happened in the past is not relevant. So we apply the rule of Ubbar
Yerech Imo. On the other hand, when new eggs are formed within this
Tereifah hen, it is at their moment of conception that a Halachic decision
must be made, which is ZVZGo.

BTW this too points to the principle that if it is not discernible Halacha
deems it non-existent - as all the eggs that the chicken will ever lay are
already in existence in the ovaries of the hen, yet we do not apply the
rule of UYImo to them when the hen becomes a Tereifa.
Alternatively, they perhaps do become Tereifa but undergo a significant
transformation and therefore lose their connection to their previous
identity - as we see from the Tereifa fertilised eggs which produce Kosher
chickens when they hatch.

Best,

Meir G. Rabi

0423 207 837
+61 423 207 837
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