הבורר קטנית ביום טוב, בית שמאי אומרים: בורר אוכל ואוכל ובית הלל אומרים: בורר כדרכו בחיקו, בקנון ובתמחוי, אבל לא בטבלא ולא בנפה ולא בכברה. רבן גמליאל אומר: אף מדיח ושולה.
S/he who sorts out pulses on a festival day, Beth Shammai say: S/he makes her/his selection of food and eats it [right away]; and Beth Hillel say: S/he makes her/his selection in the usual way, [putting it down using] her/his lap, a basket, or a dish; but not [using] a board, sifter, or sieve [and preparing a large quantity for the next day]. Rabban Gamli’el says: S/he also swills and separates [the husks].
איתיביה אביי: המולל מלילות מערב שבת למחר , מנפח מיד ליד ואוכל, אבל לא בקנ ון ולא בתמחוי. המולל מלילות מערב יום טוב למחר , מנפח יד על יד על ואוכל, אפילו בקנון ואפילו בתמחוי, אבל לא בטבלא ולא בנפה ולא בכברה.
Abbayye questioned: S/he who rubs ears of corn on the eve of Shabbat for Shabbat sifts them from hand to hand and eats [them]. But [s/he does] not [put them] into a basket or into a dish. S/he who rubs ears of corn on the day before the festival for the festival sifts them by hand and eats, even with a basket and even with a dish, but not with a board nor with a sifter nor with a sieve.
המולל מלילות מערב שבת מנפח על יד על יד ואוכל אבל לא בקנון ולא בתמחוי. המולל מלילות מערב יום טוב מנפח בקנון ובתמחוי אבל לא בטבלה ולא בנפה ולא בכברה כדרך שעושה בחול. המולל מלילות בשבת מנפח על יד על יד ואוכל אבל לא בקנון ולא בתמחוי.
S/he who rubs ears of corn on the eve of Shabbat sifts them by hand and eats [them]. But [s/he does] not [put them] into a basket or onto a dish. S/he who rubs ears of corn on the day before the festival puts them into a basket or into a dish, but not onto a board, sifter, or sieve, as s/he does on an ordinary day. S/he who rubs ears of corn on Shabbat does so by hand and eats them. But s/he does not [do so by collecting] them in a basket or a dish.
מערב יום טוב, אין, ביום טוב, לא. אפילו תימא: ביום טוב, ואיידי דתנא רישא: מערב שבת, תנא סיפא נמי: מערב יום טוב. כן אם מצינו תרומה שזכאי בהרמתה, ותנן: לא, אם אמרתם בתרומה, שאינו זכאי בהרמתה וכו' (מ' ביצה א ו) לא קשיא [...]
[Now] only on the eve of the festival [is the rubbing of corn permitted] but not on the festival day [itself]. You may even say [that it may be done] on the festival day [itself], but because he states in the first part [of the passage]: On the eve of Sabbath, he also states in the concluding part: On the eve of a festival. If so, we find that one has the right to separate [on a festival day] and we have learned: No! If you say that with respect to terumah, which he has no right to separate. (mBets 1:6) This is no difficulty [...].
תנן התם: המקלף שעורין מקלף אחת אחת ואוכל, ואם קלף ונתן לתוך ידו, חייב. אמר רבי אלעזר: וכן לשבת. איני? והא רב מקלפא ליה דביתהו כסי, כסי, ורבי חייא מקלפא ליה דביתהו כסי, כסי. אלא, אי אתמר, אסיפא אתמר: המולל מלילות של חטים מנפח על יד על יד, ואוכל, ואם נפח ונתן לתוך חיקו, חייב. אמר רבי אלעזר: וכן לשבת.
We have learnt elsewhere: S/he who hulls barley, may hull it grain by grain and eat [it]; but if s/he hulls [it] and lays [the grains] in her/his hand, s/he is liable [to give tithe]. Said Rabbi Ele‘azar: And it is likewise with respect to Shabbat. But is this so? For Rav’s wife hulled cupfuls for him, and likewise Rabbi Hiyya’s wife hulled cupfuls for him! Rather if this has been said: It was said with respect to the second clause: S/he who rubs ears of wheat may winnow them from one hand to the other and eat them [without tithing]; but if s/he winnows them and lays them on her/his lap s/he is liable. Said Rabbi Ele‘azar: And it is likewise with respect to Shabbat.
תניא, אמר רבן גמליאל: במה דברים אמורים? כשהאוכל מרובה על הפסולת, אבל פסולת מרובה על האוכל, דברי הכל: נוטל את האוכל ומניח את הפסולת. פסולת מרובה על האוכל, מי איכא מאן דשרי? לא צריכא, דנפיש בטרחא וזוטר בשיעורא.
רבן גמליאל אומר: אף מדיח ושולה. תניא: אמר רבי אלעזר ברבי צדוק: כך היה מנהגן של בית רבן גמליאל: שהיו מביאין דלי מלא עדשים ומציפין עליו מים, ונמצא אוכל למטה ופסולת למעלה. והתניא איפכא? לא קשיא. הא בעפרא, הא בגילי.
It was taught: Rabban Gaml’iel said: In what [case] were these words said? [Only] when the food exceeds the waste but [if] the waste exceeds the food all agree that s/he [must] take [out] the food and leave the waste. [In a case where] the waste exceeds the food, is there anyone who allows [the food to be taken out]? [This] is not [a difficulty, for this ruling is] necessary when [taking out the waste involves a] greater effort [than taking out the food], but the amount of waste is smaller [than the amount of food].
Rabban Gamli’el says: S/he may also swill and separate [the husks]. It was taught: Rabbi Ele‘azar ben Rabbi Tsadoq said: Such was the custom of the […] of the house of Rabban Gamli’el: They would bring a bucket full of lentils and cause water to float [above the lentils] and the result would be food at the bottom and impurities at the top. But the opposite was [also] taught. [This is] not a difficulty. This [second baraita] deals with [a mixture of food and] earth [whereas] this [first baraita] deals with [a mixture of food and] straw.
תני: אין בוררין ולא טוחנין ולא מרקדין. הבורר והטוחן והמרקד בשבת, נסקל, וביום טוב, סופג את הארבעים. והתנינן: בורר כדרכו בחיקו ובתמחוי? א"ר חנינה ענתנייה: דרבן גמליאל היא, דרבן גמליאל אמ': אף מדיח ושולה.
והא תני: של בית ר"ג היו שוחקין פילפלין בריחים שלהן. ומותר לטחון ואסור לבור. א"ר יוסי בי ר' בון: לא הותרה טחינה כדרכה.
It was taught: One does not select, grind, or sift. S/he who selects, grinds, or sifts on Shabbat is put to death by stoning, and [if s/he did so] on a festival day, s/he incurs forty lashes. But have we not learned: S/he makes her/his selection in her/his usual way, putting it down, [using] her/his lap, or a dish; [but not using a board, sifter, or sieve]? Said Rabbi Hanina of Antonia: [The former represents the view] of Rabban Gamli’el, for Rabban Gamali’el says: S/he swills and separates the husks.
And we have learned: The […] of the house of Rabban Gamli’el would crush pepper in their pepper mill on the festival day. [There is no contradiction]: It is permitted to grind, but prohibited to make a selection. Rabbi Yosi in the name of Rabbi Bun said: It is not permitted to grind in the usual way.
(כא) הבורר קטנית ביום טוב, ר' יהודה או': בית שמיי אומ': אם היו צרורות מרובין על האוכלין, בורר את האוכלין ומניח את הצרורות. בית הלל אומ': בורר אי זה מהן שירצה.
(כב) אמ' ר' לעזר בי ר' צדוק: של בית רבן גמליאל היו ממלין דלי עדשים ומציף מימן ושולה, והצרורות יורדין למטה, והאוכלין למעלה.
(21) S/he who sorts out pulses on a festival day, Rabbi Judah says: Beth Shammai say: If the pods were more numerous than the kernels, s/he selects the kernels and leaves the pods. Beth Hillel say: S/he selects whichever one of them s/he wants.
(22) [Said] Rabbi Ele‘azar bar Rabbi Tsadoq: The […] of the House of Rabban Gamali’el would fill a bucket with lentils and pour water and soak them. And the pods would sink to the bottom, and the kernels would rise to the top.
@Manuscript evidence
והא רב מקלפא ליה דביתהו כסי, כסי ורבי חייא מקלפא ליה דביתהו כסי, כסי
For Rav's wife hulled cupfuls for him, and likewise Rabbi Hiyya’s wife hulled cupfuls for him: MSS Vatican 134 and München 95 only report the actions of the wife of Rav and not additionally those of the wife of Rabbi Hiyya.
@General observations
On a festival day, one is only allowed to prepare a small amount of kernels. The above-cited baraita speaks of separating the chaff from the kernels before the festival day. Therefore, Abbayye says that before a festival this act is permitted, but it is not permitted on the festival day itself.
Furthermore, Rabbi Ele‘azar states that if a person peels one barley kernel at a time and eats it, s/he is not held liable for having performed labor on Shabbat, but if s/he peels a few kernels and collects them in his/her hands, s/he is liable. The gemara then brings proof of why it is nevertheless permitted to peel more than one kernel at a time.
@Feminist observations
Again, at the beginning of the above-cited sugya women are not directly mentioned. The Mishnah as well as the Tosefta and both talmudim speak about the בורר, the person who peels barley or rubs ears of grain, in masculine terms. Nevertheless, women are obviously implied in this discussion. Although, in the Yerushalmi, stories were told in which women had the responsibility of tithing food (yDem 1:3, 22c), the Yerushalmi states, without referring to any women, that it is forbidden to peel kernels on festival days. In contrast to the Yerushalmi, the Bavli concludes its discussion in a surprising fashion: As part of its counter-argument (prohibiting the peeling of more than one kernel of barley at a time), the Bavli asks: “Is that so [that one is allowed to prepare only one barley at a time]?” and then provides evidence that it is permitted by referring to the wives of Rabbi Hiyya and Rav. On the basis of these women’s actions, the gemara concludes the discussion in a totally different manner; that is, it approves as halakhically correct the actions of the rabbis’ wives. Furthermore, we can also recognize that Rav and Rabbi Hiyya obviously endorsed their wives’ practices – the stamp of approval explicitly being the attribution of the women’s practices to their two famous rabbi-husbands.
The Bavli also records in other cases the stories of women who peeled barley or soaked grain and who prepared lentils (see, for instance, bMQ 16b; bPes 39b). The same is true for the female members of the House of Rabban Gamli’el (see this commentary Mishnah 3. mBetsah 1:8 and also the parallel in the Yerushalmi cited above). Apparently, women were experts in preparing food and also adhered to the halakhah. It is clear, though, that the understanding of the halakhah gradually changed precisely as a result of their actions. The fact that the Bavli adduces proof from these women shows that they were considered reliable and well versed in the complex laws of food preparation and that they surely stood at the center of the discussion of this issue. The cited passage clearly indicates that women, even when not explicitly mentioned, knew the halakhic prohibitions regarding festivals and Shabbat. Nevertheless, male authorization was always needed, and it was a man who translated their actions into “official” halakhah.[1]