Study Bava Batra folio 41A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
What is the status of a document detailing a gift that is without specification as to whether the giver desired that it be publicized? Ravina says: We are not concerned that it may be a concealed gift, and Rav Ashi says: We are concerned. And the halakha is that we are concerned.
Mishnah: Any possession that is not accompanied by a claim explaining how the possessor became the owner is not sufficient to establish the presumption of ownership. How so? If the prior owner said to the possessor: What are you doing in my land? And the possessor said to him in response: I am in
But if the possessor claimed: I am in possession of the land because you sold it to me, or: Because you gave it to me as a gift, or: Because your father sold it to me, or: Because your father gave it to me as a gift, these are valid claims to ownership. In these cases, his possession is sufficie
Talmud: The Talmud asks: Why does the Mishnah need to say this? Isn’t it obvious that one cannot establish the presumption of ownership absent a claim of ownership?
The Talmud answers: It is necessary for the Mishnah to state this, lest you say: That man had actually purchased this land that he possessed, and he had a bill of sale, but it was lost. And the reason that he said that he is in possession of the land because no person ever said anything to him, is t