In Mishnah 6 we return to the main topic of this part of the tractate - the Asham Talui. First we will clarify the definition of the sacrifice itself: the animal brought for an Asham is a ram, meaning a male sheep in its second year - from the age of thirteen months and one day. This is the Torah's definition of a ram, and this is the sacrifice a person would bring for each of the four guilt offerings brought to atone for a sin: Asham Talui, Asham Me'ilos, Asham Gezeilos and Asham Shifchah Charufah.
In addition to this, these four guilt offerings must have a value of two sela'im. The verses use the term shekalim, and the shekel of the Chumash is the sela in the language of the Mishnah, and we will stick to its terminology. These requirements do not apply to the two other guilt offerings, which are brought as a sacrifice for a nazir and a metzora.
Our Mishnah deals with a person who designated two sela coins in order to buy the ram with them later, and it presents three cases regarding what happened after the designation.
The first case - he bought two rams with them for an Asham:
This person went and bought two separate rams for an Asham, even though one would have been enough for him, and now both animals are sanctified with the sanctity of an Asham. The fundamental requirement is that the Asham he brings must be worth two sela'im, while he paid one sela for each of them. In such a case, his decision was mistaken, and he must start again: to buy a new ram for two sela'im and bring it as his Asham Talui.
As for the two rams upon which the sanctity of an Asham took effect - he will never be able to sacrifice them, since they are not worth enough. Therefore, he must leave them to graze until they develop a blemish, and then he will redeem their sanctity. The remaining money, which is called 'mosar asham' - money that was designated for guilt offerings that cannot be sacrificed - is brought to the Temple and placed in the shofarot, the public collection boxes from which they purchase 'kayitz hamizbe'ach', communal burnt offerings that are sacrificed whenever the altar is vacant.
However, our Mishnah presents a convenient case: the prices of rams spiked immediately after the purchase, and therefore even though he spent only one sela on the animal, its market value now stands at two sela'im. The halachah is that since it is worth two sela'im, it is fit to be sacrificed as the Asham he was required to bring. The second ram, whose status is like a mosar asham and cannot be brought as an Asham, he must leave to graze; once it develops a blemish he will redeem its sanctity onto money, the money will be brought to the Temple and allocated for a nedavah, and the ram, which has lost its sanctified status, is permitted to be eaten.
The words of the Mishnah:
"Hamafrish shtei sela'im le'asham" - a person who designates two sela'im in order to buy his Asham with them, and let us assume we are talking about an Asham Talui.
"Velakach bahen shenei eilim le'asham" - in the end he bought two separate rams with them, and both of them were sanctified with the sanctity of an Asham.
"Im hayah echad meihen yafeh shtei sela'im" - if conveniently one of the two is worth two sela'im, whether because the price of rams went up or because he managed to buy a ram worth two for one sela.
"Yikrav le'ashmo" - since this is a ram worth two sela'im, it is valid, and he may sacrifice it as his Asham.
"Vehasheni yir'eh ad sheyista'av" - the second ram will continue to graze until it develops a blemish.
"Veyimaheir veyippelu damav lenedavah" - he will sell the blemished ram, transfer its sanctity onto the money, and the money will pass to the public fund to bring freewill burnt offerings in the Temple, while the animal loses its sanctified status.
The second case - he bought two rams with them for chullin:
Here he designated the two sela'im, but instead of buying an Asham with them he used them for his personal needs, and this is me'ilah. The consequences of me'ilah are threefold:
Asham Me'ilos: He must bring a separate ram for the me'ilah. Thus this person, who started with one obligation of a ram for an Asham Talui, is now obligated in a second ram for an Asham Me'ilos.
Keren: He must return the money he misappropriated. If he used the value of two sela'im, he must bring two sela'im and give them to the Temple as compensation for using its money.
Chomesh: An addition of twenty-five percent on the me'ilah.
Let us do the math: there are four zuz in a sela, which means that two selas are eight zuz - this is the value of the required asham. If he designated eight zuz to purchase an asham and used them for his own needs, he must bring eight zuz for the principal and another two zuz for the fifth, for a total of ten zuz as financial compensation. In addition, he must bring two rams: one for the asham talui that he was originally obligated to bring, and the second for an asham me'ilos.
The Mishnah's case here is sophisticated and contains a major novel point: even though he took the two selas and bought rams with them, he did not buy them in order to offer them, but rather as chullin meat for consumption. Since the purchase was not made for the sake of an asham and no sanctity took effect on them, this constitutes me'ilah, even though we are dealing with rams.
The text of the Mishnah:
"Lakach bahen shnei eilim lechullin" - he took the two selas and bought two rams with them for chullin, for meat.
"Echad yafeh shtei sela'im" - one of the two rams that he bought with a sela is now worth two selas, due to a price increase or because he managed to buy it cheaply.
"V'echad yafeh la'asarah zuz" - and the second ram is now worth ten zuz, again due to an increase in the price of rams.
"Hayafeh shtei sela'im yikrav le'ashamo" - he may bring the one that is worth two selas as the asham he was originally obligated to bring.
We must reflect on this point: he had two ways to fulfill the obligation of the asham talui - to designate two selas and buy a ram with them, or to bring a ram worth two selas that is already in his possession. And this is what happened here: he went to the market and bought a ram, and committed me'ilah in this purchase, as he used hekdesh funds to buy a chullin lamb; but since the ram is now in his possession and is worth two selas, he is allowed to use it as his offering, and bring it for his asham talui.
And the second ram is worth ten zuz, which is exactly the amount of the principal of the eight zuz he committed me'ilah with, which are owed to hekdesh, plus the fifth. He could have paid hekdesh ten zuz in coins, or given them any object worth ten zuz, but since he has a ram of this value in his possession, he gives it as the financial compensation of the principal and the fifth. This is what the Mishnah means when it says "v'hasheni lime'ilato".
The Mishnah concludes here, but it would have been appropriate to add an asterisk: although he brought the ram for an asham talui, and although he returned ten zuz of principal and a fifth for his me'ilah with the two selas (eight zuz principal plus two zuz for the fifth), he is still obligated to bring an additional ram as an asham me'ilos, and this is not mentioned in the Mishnah. This means that the Mishnah is referring here only to the monetary payment, and he gives a ram worth ten zuz instead of paying with coins.
The third case - one for an asham and one for chullin:
Here too, he designated two sela coins to purchase the asham he was obligated to bring, and bought two rams with them, except that he bought one with the intention of bringing it for an asham. If it is only worth one sela, it is of no use, and he must leave it to graze with everything that entails, and he will have to buy a completely new ram. For this ram is invalid, just like the law of someone who bought a ram and it became invalid, who has no choice but to start anew. However, if conveniently that same ram he purchased for a sela became worth two selas due to a spike in prices - he may bring it as his asham.
Meanwhile, regarding the second ram, which he purchased for a sela for chullin and consumption, he committed me'ilah with its purchase. Therefore, due to this purchase, he becomes obligated in three things: the principal, which is a new sela; a fifth, which is an additional zuz; and a ram to be brought as an asham me'ilos. And if that second ram he bought for chullin, which is now in his courtyard, is worth two selas due to a price increase - he may use the ram itself as his asham me'ilos.
The text of the Mishnah:
"Echad le'asham v'echad lechullin" - with the two sela coins he designated for the asham talui, he used one to purchase an asham and the second to purchase a chullin ram.
"Im hayah shel asham yafeh shtei sela'im - yikrav le'ashamo" - if the ram he bought in order for asham sanctity to take effect upon it is now worth two selas, he may bring it as his asham, and the fact that he only paid one sela does not prevent this, since its value is now two.
"V'hasheni lime'ilato" - if that second chullin ram is now worth two selas due to a price increase, he may bring it as his asham me'ilos.
It is worth noting and remembering: in this sentence, the meaning of the word "lemeilato" is the ram that he brings as a sacrifice for his trespass, whereas in the previous sentence, "lemeilato" referred to the money used to pay the principal and the fifth. Thus, the Mishnah utilized both meanings.
And since he brought the first ram for his original asham talui obligation, and used the second for his new obligation of an asham meilos, he remains obligated to repay the principal and the fifth - one sela and the additional fifth. And this is what the Mishnah says: "Veyavi imah sela vechumshah" - with the asham meilos, he brings the principal and its fifth.
In summary: In this Mishnah, we learned the law of one who designates two selas for an asham, whose sacrifice is a ram worth two selas, in three cases: He bought two rams with them for the sake of an asham - the one that increased in value and is worth two selas is offered for his asham, and the second grazes until it becomes blemished, and its value goes to a nedavah; he bought two rams with them for chullin and committed meilah - the one worth two selas is offered for his asham, and the second, worth ten zuz, is given as payment for the principal and the fifth, and he is still obligated to bring a ram for an asham meilos; and he bought one for an asham and one for chullin - the one for the asham is offered for his asham, and the one for chullin is offered as an asham meilos, and with it he brings a sela and its fifth.