Musings on the Torah

This piece attempts to identify two distinct conceptions of how to most accurately define yahadus, with a geirus related innovation and dispute falling into place Rambam writes (issurei biah 13:17) גֵּר שֶׁלֹּא בָּדְקוּ אַחֲרָיו אוֹ שֶׁלֹּא הוֹדִיעוּהוּ הַמִּצְוֹת וְעָנְשָׁן וּמָל וְטָבַל בִּפְנֵי שְׁלֹשָׁה הֶדְיוֹטוֹת הֲרֵי זֶה גֵּר. His wording implies that letting a would-be convert know about the mitzvos is not necessary for the conversion to be valid, see magid mishnah there: גר שלא בדקו אחריו וכו' – זה פשוט שאין הודעת המצות מעכב דיעבד.  When Shulchan Aruch quotes this (YD 268:12) he changes the wording ever so slightly: וְאִם לֹא בָּדְקוּ אַחֲרָיו, אוֹ שֶׁלֹּא הוֹדִיעוּהוּ שְׂכַר הַמִּצְוֹת וְעָנְשָׁן, וּמָל וְטָבַל בִּפְנֵי ג׳ הֶדְיוֹטוֹת, הֲרֵי זֶה גֵּר אֲפִלּוּ נוֹדַע שֶׁבִּשְׁבִיל דָּבָר הוּא מִתְגַּיֵּר, הוֹאִיל וּמָל וְטָבַל יָצָא מִכְּלַל הָעוֹבְדֵי כּוֹכָבִים. R. Karo is apparently unwilling to countenance the notion that informing the potential ger about mitzvos isn...

The following is an observation of some peculiarities in the transmission of impurity with an attempt at explanation based on their unique commonality  It is axiomatic to the transmission of tumah that it gets downgraded one level each time it transfers*.  For example, an avi avos will become an av and an av a rishon.  There are two exceptions to this rule where the same level of tumah can be transferred to the recipient. They are tumas keri and tumas niddah. The former (the baal keri) is a rishon and unable to contaminate adam vkeilim and the latter (the niddah) is an av and contaminates adam vkeilim for one day.  The above is limited to regular modes of transmission (eg magah), however, when a man and women engage is intimate relations, different rules apply. When a man cohabits with a tehorah (kdarkah with ejaculation) they both assume the status of a rishon ltumah (although semen is an av, that is not what contaminates her, as it is magah beis hasitarim which is ...