Daf Yomi - Heoros by Reb Dave

3a The Gemara says an egg is food, and fruits are food, as opposed to drinks or liquids. Rashi comments, when Chazal made their decree concerning dripping liquids, eggs were not included because it is not considered a liquid. It seems to me a proof can be brought from Sanhedrin 5b, where the Gemara states that “egg liquid cannot render something impure” ( mei beitzim ainam machshirim). Thus, another source for the idea that egg liquid is not considered liquid.

Interestingly, the Tiferres Yisrael states that the episode in Sanhedrin is the reason we pronounce the name of this Masechta as “Beiah”, rather than “ Beitzah”. Because the Gemara there asserts that the inhabitants of a certain town confused the law of egg liquid – “mei beitzim” with a completely different substance called - “mei betzaim”. He therefore says, in the introduction to Mishnayos Beiah, that in order not to make the same mistake we call this Masechta, “Beiah”. ( See also Tosfos in Sanhedrin, who elaborates a little further).



3b – “ Shehoyo Reb Meir Omar” – Scores of times throughout Shas, the Gemara introduces a comment from Reb Meir with this unusual formulation, “ Reb Meir was wont to say”. For no other individual do we find this _expression used so widely and frequently. My speculation is that it has something to do with the incident recorded at the end of Horayos, where Rav Meir disobeyed the will of the sages in a particular incident. The Gemara there states separately that two individuals also disobeyed the sages, and those sages are therefore referred to as “yesh omrim” and “acherim omrim”. My belief is that Chazal altered the way in which Rav Meir is quoted for the same reason. I have no support for this idea, but then, I have not found anyone who noted this phenomena with Reb Meir. ( There is a sefer called Ir Benyamin who notes it with regard to one particular passage in Megillah, but does not discuss the trend all over Shas)