Avoda Zara 12: Idol-Worshippers, Water

To recap yesterday's daf, the Gemara examines stories of Onkelos and conversions to Judaism, kings' customs, and contact with Gentiles during festivals.  It also introduces a new Mishna which teaches that Jews are permitted to do business with those who live outside of the city if the city houses many active idol-worshippers.  

Similarly, Jews can do business with city dwellers if active idol-worship is happening outside of the city.  Road designated only to travel to those who worship idols are not permitted.  However, roads that pass through or beside idol-worshipping cities are permitted for Jews to use.

The rabbis wonder why we should be kept separate from our neighbours.  Could a Gentile drop non-kosher food into our pot if we were cooking close to each other?  Could food splatter?  It is the rabbis' discussion of travel to and from these towns that we understand their explanation of the Sages' rulings.  

As Jews, not only are we obliged not to worship idols, but we cannot be seen to be worshipping idols.  Thus we cannot bend down to remove a thorn from our food, pick up coins, or drink from a fountain that is carved with the face of an idol -- as long as someone is present.  If no-one is seeing us, we are permitted to bend over, for no one will believe that we are bowing to an idol.  If any of these actions might save a life, however, we are permitted to risk being seen as an idol-worshipper.

We are taught a number of halachot regarding water.  

• We should avoid drinking water straight from a pond or river with our mouths or hands.  This is because we might accidentally drink a leech.  

• If we do swallow a leech, we should drink vinegar until water has been heated for us to drink.  Because this is a life/death situation, it is permitted to heat that water on Shabbat.

• If we swallow a hornet we will die from internal stings; however, we are still permitted to break halachot of Shabbat in order to prolong our lives long enough to state of our last instructions.

• We should avoid drinking water at night because of the shavriei, the evil spirit that follows water.  If we must drink, we can ask another person for the water or we can knock on the jug and state that we have been warned by our mother about the power of the shavriei found in white cups.

A second Mishna teaches us that in a town of idol-worshippers, there may be stores decorated for the holidays and stores that are not.  It is permitted for us to shop intones that are not decorated for the holidays.  The Gemara begins by suggesting that only stores decorated with roses and myrtle should be avoided, for they are the ones that provide us with the benefit of sweet aromas because of idol-worship.