What do you do with a worn-out Torah TB Baba Batra 20

Beginning on daf TB Baba Batra 19b and continuing on today’s daf  TB Baba Batra 20, the Gemara goes on a strange tangent. To understand the Gemara, we have to know some basic rules of corpse contamination, tumat met-טומאת מת. When a dead body is in a room, the tumah goes straight up to the ceiling, spreads over the ceiling, and then goes downward and contaminates everything in the room. Just in last week’s Torah portion Hukkat, we learn about this contamination and how to restore back to ritual readiness.

If two rooms or two houses have continuous walls, the corpse contamination does not that enter the second room or house. The wall serves as a barricade against the tumah. If there’s an open doorway between the two, the course contamination spreads to the second room or house. If there is a window (which is essential just a hole in the wall) that is larger than 3 tefakhim by 3 tefakhim, the corpse contamination spreads to the second room or house as well.

The Gemara discusses what things can be used as a barrier in a window to block corpse contamination. Things that can become ritually unready, tamai, like food or things that are not relatively permanent placed in the window do not block corpse contamination 

The Tosefta enumerates many effective barriers. One of them is a Sefer Torah. The Gemara challenges the idea that a Sefer Torah may be used. “The baraita teaches: A Torah scroll reduces the dimensions of a window. The Gemara challenges: But it is fit for reading; therefore, it might be removed. The Gemara answers: This is referring to a Torah scroll that is worn out and unfit for reading. The Gemara challenges: But one is required to place the Torah scroll in a repository (geniza-גניזה) for unusable sacred books; therefore, he will certainly remove it to be stored away. The Gemara answers: This is referring to one who determines that its repository will be there. In other words, it was placed in the window with the intent of storing it there in its worn-out state.” (Sefaria.org translation)

The answer that a window can serve as a geniza is difficult. We have previously learned “And Rava said: A Torah scroll that became worn out is interred and buried next to a Torah scholar, and in this regard, a Torah scholar is defined even as one who only studies the halakhot in the Mishna and the baraitot but is not proficient in their analysis. Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov said: And when it is buried, it is first placed in an earthenware vessel, as it is stated: “And put them in an earthenware vessel, that they may last for many days” (Jeremiah 32:14).” (TB Megilah 26b) If there is no Torah scholar, one buries the Sefer Torah in an earthenware vessel in the ground in a cemetery. The Sefer Torah is buried in an earthenware vessel so it won’t rot quickly. There are those who teach that an earthenware vessel is not the only appropriate casket for the Sefer Torah. A wooden one will work just as well.

The Ritba solves our difficulty. He affirms that the Sefer Torah needs to be buried in the ground and should be buried in a special place like next to a scholar. He writes that in our sugiyah the Sefer Torah is placed in a window for a long period of time until an appropriate geniza for its permanent resting place is available.