א בְּרִיָּה, דְּהַיְנוּ כְּגוֹן נְמָלָה אוֹ עוֹף טָמֵא, וְגִיד הַנָּשֶׁה, וְאֵבֶר מִן הַחַי, וּבֵיצָה שֶׁיֵּשׁ בָּהּ אֶפְרוֹחַ וְכַיּוֹצֵא בָהֶם, אֲפִלּוּ בְּאֶלֶף לֹא בָּטֵל. וְאֵין לוֹ דִּין בְּרִיָּה, אֶלָּא אִם כֵּן הוּא דָּבָר שֶׁהָיָה בּוֹ חַיּוּת, לַאֲפוּקֵי חִטָּה אַחַת שֶׁל אִסוּר. וְכֵן צָרִיךְ שֶׁיְּהֵא דָּבָר שֶׁאָסוּר מִתְּחִלַּת בְּרִיָּתוֹ, לַאֲפוּקֵי עוֹף טָהוֹר שֶׁנִּתְנַבֵּל וְשׁוֹר הַנִּסְקָל. וְכֵן צָרִיךְ שֶׁיִּהְיֶה דָּבָר שָׁלֵם, שֶׁאִם יֵחָלֵק אֵין שְׁמוֹ עָלָיו, לַאֲפוּקֵי חֵלֶב. וְכֵן צָרִיךְ. שֶׁיִּהְיֶה שָׁלֵם. הַגָּה: וְעִקַּר גִּיד הַנָּשֶׁה אֵינוֹ אֶלָּא עַל הַכַּף בִּלְבַד, וְהוּא כְּרֹחַב ד' אֶצְבָּעוֹת, וְאִם הוּא שָׁלֵם מִקְרֵי בְּרִיָּה. (בְּאָרֹךְ כְּלָל כ"ח).
1 A creature (that is, something like an ant or an unkosher bird, or a sciatic nerve, or a limb of a living animal, or an egg with a chick inside, and such things) is never nullified even in 1000 times. Something will not be considered a "creature" in this context unless it is something which has had life, thus a single grain of forbidden wheat would not count. It must also be something which was forbidden at its creation (thus excluding a kosher bird which died a a natural death [and is thus unkosher only because it had no shechita], and an ox which was put to death under a court ruling). Also it must be a whole thing, such that it would be called something different were it to be split apart (thus excluding forbidden animal fats). And it must also be whole. NOTE: The main forbidden sciatic nerve is only on the /kaf/, and it is about 4 fingerbreadths wide, and if it is whole it *is* called a "creature".If the [beriah] fell into a pot of soup and was lost, it is all forbidden.