The rabbis continue to discuss demai. Is this uncertainly tithed produce subject to ona'a or not? Rabbi Meir is most strict about these halachot, the rabbis argue. Are there certain conditions that would allow people to partake of demai produce? Might the shape or the temperature of the produce matter? What about demai that is handled by a chaver, one who keeps the halachot, versus an am ha'aretz, an average person?
A new Mishna teaches about a related issue: there are four things that do not follow the ordinary guidelines of ona'a, exploitation by over or undercharging during a sale:
- avadim, slaves
- shetarot, contracts/documents
- karka'ot, property/real estate
- hekdeshot, things that have been consecrated to the Temple
The rabbis teach us that Vaikra (25:14) specifies that ona'a is forbidden when an object is bought m'tad amitecha, from your fellow's hand. Land cannot be passed from hand to hand, and so it cannot be ona'a. Although Torah law requires no explanation, the rabbis suggest another reason that real estate is excluded from ona'a. Land is valued differently from other things for it lasts forever. Further, slaves cannot be subject to ona'a because they are permitted to benefit from the people brought into a household.
We also learn that the laws that apply to a thief are not followed in cases of ona'a, either. These are:
- the double payment (paying for the cost of the stolen item plus that amount again)
- the four/fivefold payment owed when an ox/sheep is stolen and then killed or sold
The rabbis wonder how one would steal immovable property. You can't pick up land and run away with it. They decide that we are discussing the case of one who has wrongly moved the border markings in a field, or the case of one who steals something that is connected to the ground, which is subject to the same laws as the land.
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