In appreciation of toilet paper TB Shabbat 81

Much of the discussion today’s on daf TB Shabbat 81revolves around the uses of stones to clean oneself after a bowel movement on Shabbat. “Our Sages taught in a baraita with regard to Shabbat: Three sharpened stones may be taken into the bathroom. And what is their measure? Rabbi Meir says: A nut-bulk; Rabbi Yehuda says: An egg-bulk.” (Sefaria.org translation) According to Rashi one begins with the smallest stone, followed by the middle size stone, and finishes with the largest stone. Studying all the ins and outs that people had to do to clean themselves on this page, should give us a greater appreciation of toilet paper. Because we have a greater appreciation of toilet paper, I believe hoarding it during this pandemic is absolutely forbidden. We should buy what we need and allow the next person to buy what he or she needs as well. Who wants to go back to using stones?!

I want to share with you a very interesting Rashi. The Gemara on TB Shabbat 81b wants to know if you can learn from a statement made by Reish Lakish that one is permitted to carry a perforated flowerpot (פָּרְפִּיסָא) on Shabbat. Rashi writes that he found in the Responsa of the Goanim people would make woven baskets out of date fronds for each one of the children in the household. They would fill them with dirt and fertilizer. 22 or 15 days before Rosh Hashanah they would plant Egyptian beans or legumes and would call it parpeesa (פָּרְפִּיסָא). These plants would sprout. Erev Rosh Hashanah each head of the household would wave one of these parpeesa over the head of a child and say seven times “This in place of this. Let this be my exchange, let this be my substitute.” Then they would throw the parpeesa into the river.

Sounds a lot like Kapparot and Tashlich all rolled into one. Could this be the source of our tradition? I don’t know, but this tells us that Jews were doing this custom sometimes between 589 C.E.-1038 C.E.