- משיאין על פי בת קול
The next Mishnah states regarding testifying to a man’s death to permit his wife to remarry: משיאין על פי בת קול – we permit a woman to remarry based on a bas kol, without the person making the statement being seen. There was an incident where someone stood on top of a mountaintop and proclaimed: איש פלוני בן פלוני ממקום פלוני מת – “Ploni ben Ploni, from such-and-such a place, died.” They went up and found no one there, yet the Rabbanon permitted the wife to remarry. When the Gemara asks why she was permitted to remarry, when perhaps the voice was that of a sheid - a demon, Rav Yehudah said in the name of Rav: שראו לו דמות אדם – the case was where the people who heard the voice saw a human form. When the Gemara countered that sheidim also have a human form, it answers that the people saw the shadow of the speaker. When again the Gemara objects since sheidim also have shadows, it answers that they saw the shadow of the shadow, and Rebbe Chanina related that Yonasan the sheid said that demons do not have shadows of shadows.
- Why the testimony of the פונדקית was believed
The next Mishnah teaches that Rebbe Akiva originally held that we do not permit a woman to remarry based on the testimony of a woman, slave or shifchah. The final Mishnah of the Masechta brings the challenge that was brought to Rebbe Akiva, based on an incident where one from a group of Leviim who were travelling got sick, and was brought to an inn. When the group returned later to the inn and asked where their colleague was, the woman innkeeper said he had died and she had buried him, and based on that testimony, his wife was permitted to remarry. Rebbe Akiva was asked, ולא תהא כהנת כפונדקית – Now should a Koheness not be believed like the woman innkeeper? Rebbe Akiva replied, לכשתהא כפונדקית נאמנת – when her testimony will be like the woman innkeeper, she will be believed. הפונדקית הוציאה להם מקלו ותרמילו וספר תורה – for the woman innkeeper brought out the Levi’s staff, pouch, and Sefer Torah that he had. The Gemara clarifies that the פונדקית was an idolater ומסיחה לפי תומה – and she was speaking offhandedly, and that is why she was believed. When the Gemara challenges this, since they had asked her where their friend was, it answers that as soon as she saw them, she started to cry, which is what prompted them to ask where he was.
- מחלוקת אם בודקין עדי נשים בדרישה וחקירה
It was taught in a Baraisa: אין בודקין עדי נשים בדרישה וחקירה – We do not check witnesses who testify for women that their husbands died with cross-examination and questioning, according to Rebbe Akiva. But Rebbe Tarfon says: בודקין – we do check them. The Gemara clarifies that the machlokes is based on understanding how to apply what Rebbe Chanina said, which was: דבר תורה אחד דיני ממונות ואחד דיני נפשות בדרישה ובחקירה – Under Torah law, both monetary and capital cases get derishah v’chakirah, for the passuk states: "משפט אחד יהיה לכם" – There shall be one law for you. The reason the Rabbanon said the witnesses for monetary cases do not get checked, is שלא תנעול דלת בפני לוין - so that you will not close the door in the face of borrowers. Rebbe Akiva holds that since in the case of testifying that a woman’s husband died, there will be collection of the kesubah, it is like a monetary case, whereas Rebbe Tarfon holds that since we are permitting the woman to marry someone else, it is similar to דיני נפשות. Rashi explains that it is because a man who has relations with a married woman gets חנק – strangulation.
