Beasts of Land and Sea: Talmudic Reflections on Animal Habitats, Crossbreeding, and the Infamy of Several Babylonian Towns (Chullin 127a)

The Passage

Chullin.127a.12-19

Animals and their habitats; wickedness of residents of several Babylonian towns

The Talmud discusses animals and their habitats, stating that every land animal has a sea counterpart,¹ except for the weasel,² which only lives on land. This is supported by a verse in Psalms. 

תנו רבנן:

כל שיש ביבשה —

יש בים

חוץ מן החולדה

[...]

The Talmud continues to discuss creatures living in a particular environment.

A baraita states (Tosefta, Kilayim 5:10):

For every animal that exists on land —

there is an equivalent animal in the sea,

except for the weasel,

which exists only on land.

[...]

Rav Huna the son of Rav Yehoshua states that beavers (ביברי) in Neresh (נרש - a city in Babylonia) are not from “settled areas”.³ 

אמר רב הונא בריה דרב יהושע:

ביברי דנרש —

אינן מן הישוב

In continuation of the discussion of creatures living in a particular environment, Rav Huna the son of Rav Yehoshua said:

The beavers of the region of Neresh —

are not from the settled area,

because they live only in the water and not on dry land. Consequently, one who eats their meat is not liable to receive lashes for violating the prohibition: “And every creeping animal that creeps upon the earth is a detestable thing; it shall not be eaten” (Leviticus 11:41).

Rav Pappa criticizes the inhabitants of Neresh as wicked and deserving of excommunication,⁴ adding that they do not heed God’s word. 

אמר רב פפא:

בשמתא נרש --

1. תרביה,

2. משכיה,

3. ואליתיה

Apropos the region surrounding Neresh, Rav Pappa said:

The people of the city of Neresh shall be placed under excommunication, as they are all wicked, including

1. its fat,

2. its hide,

3. and its tail,

i.e., all types of people, both old and young.

(ירמיהו כב, כט) “ארץ ארץ ארץ,

שמעי דבר ה’”

אמר רב פפא:

לא אבה נרש שמוע דבר ה’

The Talmud continues to discuss Neresh. The verse states:

“Oh land, land, land

hear God’s word” (Jeremiah 22:29).

Rav Pappa said:

This verse is appropriate with regard to the inhabitants of Neresh, as Neresh does not want to listen to God’s word.

Rav Giddel, citing Rav, notes the treachery of the people from the Babylonian towns of Neresh, Nehar Pekod, and Pumbedita, warning of their deceitful behaviors.

אמר רב גידל, אמר רב: 

1. נרשאה נשקיך --

   1. מני ככיך 

2. נהר פקודאה לוייך --

   1. מגלימא שפירא דחזי עלך 

3. פומבדיתאה לוייך --

   1. אשני אושפיזך

Furthermore, Rav Giddel said that Rav said: 

1. If a resident of Neresh kisses you,

   1. count your teeth to make sure he did not steal one. 

2. And if a resident of the city of Nehar Pekod accompanies you on a journey,

   1. it is because of the beautiful robe (גלימא) that he sees on you and wants to steal from you. 

3. If a resident of Pumbedita accompanies you on a journey,

   1. change your lodging place (אושפיזך) because there is a concern that he will rob you.

Story of Rav Huna bar Torta

The Talmud recounts the visit of Rav Huna bar Torta⁵ visit to Va’ad,⁶ where he observed locals crossbreeding a snake with a lizard,⁷ resulting in the dangerous serpent or lizard called an arvad (ערוד). 

R' Shimon the Hasid (רבי שמעון החסיד) explains that this creature was not created by God but emerged due to the residents' actions of crossbreeding,⁸ leading to a divine punishment. 

אמר רב הונא בר תורתא: 

פעם אחת, 

הלכתי לוועד 

וראיתי נחש שהוא כרוך על הצב 

לימים, יצא ערוד מביניהם

The Talmud returns to discussing different types of creatures.

Rav Huna bar Torta said:

Once

I went to the city of Va’ad

and I saw that the locals were in the practice of placing a snake wrapped around a great lizard in order to breed the two.

After a period of time, an arvad, a snake that bites and kills people, emerged from between them.

וכשבאתי לפני ר' שמעון החסיד 

אמר לי: 

אמר הקב"ה: 

• הם

  • הביאו בריה שלא בראתי בעולמי

• אף אני

  • אביא עליהם בריה שלא בראתי בעולמי

[...]

And when I came before R' Shimon the Righteous, 

he explained why this crossbreeding created an arvad and said to me: 

God said: 

• These residents of Va’ad

  • caused the emergence of a creature that I did not create in My world by crossbreeding a snake and a great lizard; 

• so too, I

  • will bring upon them a punishment, the hazard of this uniquely dangerous creature that I did not create in My world, i.e., an arvad.

[...]

Appendix - The diversity of creatures adapted to mutually incompatible environments, sea vs. land and fire vs. air, demonstrates the greatness of God’s works (Chullin 127a)

Chullin/127a#9 thru #11

Baraita - “The great lizard after its kinds” extends the category of the 8 creeping animals to include the arvad, nefilim, and salamander - Leviticus 11:29

תנו רבנן:

״הצב למינהו״⁠ ⁠–

להביא

1. הערוד,

2. וכן הנפילים

3. וסלמנדרא.

§With regard to the topic of the 8 creeping animals mentioned in the Torah,

A baraita states:

The verse: “The great lizard after its kinds” (Leviticus 11:29)

includes in the category of creeping animals

1. the arvad, a type of snake,

2. and also the creeping animals called nefilim

3. and salamander [salamandera].

R’ Akiva - The diversity of creatures adapted to mutually incompatible environments, sea vs. land and fire vs. air, demonstrates the greatness of God’s works - Psalms 104:24

וכשהיה רבי עקיבא מגיע לפסוק זה,

אומר:

״מה רבו מעשיך ה׳״!

• יש לך בריות גדלות בים,

• ויש לך בריות גדלות ביבשה.

• שבים ⁠–

  • אילמלי עולות (ביבשה) [ליבשה] מיד מתות,

• שביבשה ⁠–

  • אילמלי יורדות לים מיד מתות.

Apropos the salamander, which was thought to generate from fire,⁹ the baraita continues:

When R’ Akiva would reach this verse in Leviticus, he would say in exclamation:

“How great are Your works, O YHWH” (Psalms 104:24).

• You have creatures that grow in the sea

• and you have creatures that grow on land.

• If those in the sea would ascend to the land

  • they would immediately die.

• If those that are on land would descend to the sea

  • they would immediately die.

• יש לך בריות גדלות באור,

• ויש לך בריות גדלות באויר.

• שבאור ⁠–

  • אילמלי עולות לאויר מיד מתות,

• שבאויר ⁠–

  • אילמלי יורדות לאור מיד מתות.

Similarly,

• you have creatures that grow in the fire

• and you have creatures that grow in the air.

• If those in the fire would ascend to the air

  • they would immediately die.

• If those in the air would descend to the fire

  • they would immediately die.

״מה רבו מעשיך ה׳״.

Therefore,

“how great are Your works, O YHWH.”

1. See Marine counterparts of land creatures - Wikipedia:

The idea that there are specific marine counterparts to land creatures, inherited from the writers on natural history in antiquity, was firmly believed in Islam and in Medieval Europe.

2. חולדה - alternatively: “rat”.

3. הישוב . Steinzaltz explains that the beavers live only in water, making their meat permissible. Alternatively, Jastrow interprets the word beivari to mean not beavers, but residents of a place called Berai or Beri.

4. שמתא - on Talmudic excommunication, see my previous series here.

5. רב הונא בר תורתא, compare this other sage with the same unusual surname:

רבי יוחנן בן תורתא – ויקיפדיה.

6. וועד - alternatively: “meeting house, beit midrash”.

7. צב - alternatively: “turtle”.

8. On the halachic prohibition of crossbreeding, see Kil'ayim (prohibition) - Wikipedia > “In animals”, and כלאי בהמה – ויקיפדיה

9. On this, see my recent piece: “Pt2 Idolatry in Speech, Practice, and Desire: Naming Foreign Gods, Mocking Idols, and Israel’s Attachment to Idol Worship (Sanhedrin 63b-64a)“, section “Hezekiah’s father attempted to burn him as a pagan sacrifice, but his mother protected him with salamander blood“, and see my note on the intro (in Part 1 of that series).