Chullin 110a: Rami bar Dikuli from Pumbedisa came to Sura on Erev Yom Kippur. All the people took their udders and threw them out. He went and picked them up and ate them. They brought him before Rav Chisda, who asked him: “Why did you do that?” He said, “I am from the place of Rav Yehuda, who eats udders.”
רמי בר תמרי, דהוא רמי בר דיקולי מפומבדיתא, איקלע לסורא במעלי יומא דכפורי, אפקינהו כולי עלמא לכחלינהו שדינהו, אזל איהו ־ נקטינהו אכלינהו, אייתוה לקמיה דרב חסדא, אמר ליה: אמאי תעביד הכי? אמר ליה: מאתרא דרב יהודה אנא, דאכיל. אמר ליה: ולית לך נותנין עליו חומרי המקום שיצא משם וחומרי המקום שהלך לשם? אמר ליה: חוץ לתחום אכלתינהו. ובמה טויתינהו? אמר ליה: בפורצניֹ. ודלמא מיין נסך הויא? אמר ליה: לאחר שנים עשר חדש הווֹ. ודלמא דגזל הוה? אמר ליה: יאוש בעלים הוה, דקדחו בהו חילפיֹ. חזייה דלא הוה מנח תפילין, אמר ליה: מאי טעמא לא מנחת תפילין? אמר ליה: חולי מעיין הוא, ואמר רב יהודה חולי מעיין ־ פטור מן התפיליןֹ.
Rabbi Chaim Shmulevitz often surprised his listeners with unusual sources for his principles of mussar. A classic example of Rav Chaim’s mussar analyses of maamarei Chazal draws from the Gemara in Chullin 110a, which relates how Rami bar Dekuli of Pumbedisa was once visiting Sura on Erev Yom Kippur. When the townspeople threw away the udders of animals they had slaughtered for the Erev Yom Kippur feast, he collected them and ate them, in spite of the fact that there was a custom in Sura not to eat the udders of animals. Rami bar Dekuli was brought before Rav Chisda who asked him many questions about how, why and when he cooked and ate the udders. In the course of the discussion, Rav Chisda also asked why Rami bar Dekuli was not wearing tefillin, and he replied that he suffered from a stomach ailment.
Reb Chaim spent a long time explaining every single detail of the story. When he finished, the audience still could not work out the connection between the Gemara he was quoting and the rest of the shmuess. Finally, after a short pause, Reb Chaim continued:
“I am troubled by a very difficult question. Rav Chisda asked Rami bar Dekuli many questions, but one question he did not ask him: A Jew is suffering from a stomach ailment on Erev Yom Kippur. Why is he searching for discarded animal udders in garbage cans? In every Jewish home, people are sitting around the table eating the festive meal of Erev Yom Kippur. Why didn’t Rami bar Dekuli knock on somebody’s door? It seems that one does not ask such a question, for Rav Chisda understood very clearly the meaning of the words, אל תצטרך לבריות – do not take handouts from other people.”
Source: The Rosh Yeshiva, p. 185; Sichos Mussar p. 29.
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