Chukas 19:16 · unit 6 — teeth, nails and hair are excluded

Parashas Chukas · Aliyah 1 · Passuk 16

The Complete Passuk

וְכֹ֨ל אֲשֶׁר־יִגַּ֜ע עַל־פְּנֵ֤י הַשָּׂדֶה֙ בַּֽחֲלַל־חֶ֔רֶב א֣וֹ בְמֵ֔ת אֽוֹ־בְעֶ֥צֶם אָדָ֖ם א֣וֹ בְקָ֑בֶר יִטְמָ֖א שִׁבְעַ֥ת יָמִֽים׃

And whoever in the open field touches one who is slain with a sword, or a dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days.

Chabad.org — 19:16

Source Citation

Torah Temimah: Niddah 55a — Everything in a corpse conveys impurity except the teeth, the nails and the hair, as it is written “or a bone” — similar to a bone: just as a bone was created with him and its stock does not regenerate, so everything that was created with him and whose stock does not regenerate. This excludes the teeth, which were not created with him, and hair and nails, which, although created with him, their stock regenerates.

Sefaria — Niddah 55a

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text
כָּל שֶׁבַּמֵּת מְטַמֵּא חוּץ מִן הַשִּׁנַּיִם וְהַצִּפֹּרֶן וְהַשֵּׂעָר, דִּכְתִיב אוֹ בְעֶצֶם, דּוּמְיָא דְּעֶצֶם, מַה עֶצֶם שֶׁנִּבְרָא עִמּוֹ וְאֵין גִּזְעוֹ מַחֲלִיף אַף כָּל שֶׁנִּבְרָא עִמּוֹ וְאֵין גִּזְעוֹ מַחֲלִיף, יָצָא הַשִּׁנַּיִם שֶׁלֹּא נִבְרְאוּ עִמּוֹ, יָצָא שֵׂעָר וְצִפֹּרֶן שֶׁאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁנִּבְרְאוּ עִמּוֹ – גִּזְעָן מַחֲלִיף.

English: Everything in a corpse conveys impurity except the teeth, the nails and the hair… This excludes the teeth, which were not created with him, and hair and nails, which, although created with him, their stock regenerates.

Type of Learning

Exclusion based on creation-with and non-regeneration criteria.

What Is Learned

Teeth, nails and hair of a corpse do not convey corpse impurity.