| פרק א - משנה ג | |
| פרס עליה סדין | If one spread a sheet over it (the s'chach) |
| מפני החמה | because of the sun |
| או תחתיה מפני הנשר | or beneath it because of the leaves |
| או שפרס על גבי הקינוף | or if it was spread over a four posted bed |
| פסולה | it renders the succah invalid |
| אבל פורס הוא | however it may be spread |
| על גבי נקליטי המיטה | on the two posts of a [two-posted] bed |
| פרק א - משנה ד | |
| הדלה עליה את הגפן | If one drew a grapevine atop it (the succah) |
| ואת הדלעת | or [the vine of] a gourd |
| ואת הקיסום | or ivy |
| וסיכך על גבה | and placed s'chach on top of it |
| פסולה | it is invalid; |
| ואם היה סיכוך הרבה מהן | but if the s'chach exceeded them |
| או שקצצן | or he cut them |
| כשרה | it is valid; |
| זה הכלל | this is the rule: |
| כל שהוא מקבל טמאה | anything that is susceptible to tumah |
| ואין גידולו מן הארץ | and anything that does not grow from the ground |
| אין מסככין בו | we do not use for s'chach |
| וכל דבר שאינו מקבל טמאה | and anything that is not susceptible to tumah |
| וגדולו מן הארץ | and grows from the ground |
| מסככין בו | we may use for s'chach. |
NOTES
משנה ג
סדין - A sheet is מקבל טמאה, and so it is פסול when used as s'chach. (Note that the sheet is a problem only when used because of sun or leaves, but a strictly decorative sheet would not be a problem when suspended just below the s'chach.) However there is a difference of opinion as to what the case of our mishna is. Most מפרשים follow רש"י in learning that the we are talking about cases where the sheet used to protect people in the succah, either from the sun or from falling leaves. However תוס׳ disagrees, reasoning that if a sheet is used merely to shield the succah's occupants, either from the sun or falling leaves, then it would be no worse than a sheet used for decoration, which we know does not render the succah invalid. As such, ר"ת learns that our mishna is dealing with a case where the sheet is there for the sake of maintaining the סכך - either from above to keep the sun from drying out its leaves, or from below to hold leaves in place. In both cases according to this פשט, as the sheet is being used in the service of the סכך by keeping it from becoming פסול when leaves would otherwise dry up and/or fall out, letting in more sunlight than shade, and the sheet is itself פסול for use as סכך, its use in this fashion renders the entire succah פסול.
או שפרס על גבי הקינוף - The problem here, unlike the first cases of the mishna, is not of סכך פסול; rather the flat canopy over the bed creates a separate אהל within the succah. Anyone beneath this אהל is considered to be occupying an space distinct from the succah and so is not יוצא the מצוה. Another distinction here is that although it may be for decorative purposes only, this canopy is too far below the סכך to be permitted; another difference is that this פסול only applies to the bed's occupants, and not to the entire succah.
נקליטי המיטה - This bed has only two posts , one at its head and one at its foot. Any sheet suspended from those two posts would form a peaked, tent-like covering without a flat and level surface one טפח wide, and as such would not qualify as an אהל.
משנה ד
הדלה עליה ... פסולה - As these are still מחובר לקרקע, they are פסול.
ואם היה סיכוך הרבה מהן - In this case the vines that are still attached to the ground would have to be mixed up with and indiscernible from the valid s'chach in order for them to be בטל.
או שקצצן - If the vines are cut after they were stretched over the succah, רע"ב says the cut vines would have to be raised and lowered to avoid the problem of תעשה ילא מן העשוי for it to be valid.
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