Today in Jewish History:
• Passing of R. Chayim ben Attar (Ohr HaChayim) (1743)
Passing of the famed Torah scholar and mystic Rabbi Chayim ben Attar (1696-1743), author of the Ohr HaChayim commentary on the Torah. Born in Morocco, he also lived and taught in Algiers, Italy, Acco and Jerusalem, where he settled a year before his passing. Many stories are told of his holiness and greatness, and of the repeated unsuccessful attempts by Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov to reach the Holy Land and meet with him in the belief that together they could bring the Moshiach and the final redemption.
Daily Quote:
The more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and the more they grew.[Exodus 1:12]
Daily Study:
Chitas and Rambam for today:
Chumash: with Rashi
• Chapter 23
13Balak said to him, "Come with me to another place from where you will see them; however, you will see only a part of them, not all of them and curse them for me from there. יגוַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו בָּלָק לְךָ נָּא אִתִּי אֶל מָקוֹם אַחֵר אֲשֶׁר תִּרְאֶנּוּ מִשָּׁם אֶפֶס קָצֵהוּ תִרְאֶה וְכֻלּוֹ לֹא תִרְאֶה וְקָבְנוֹ לִי מִשָּׁם:
curse them for me: Heb. וְקָבְנו ֹלִי. This term is in the imperative: Curse them for me! וקבנו לי: לשון צווי, קללהו לי:
14He took him to the field of the lookouts, to the peak of the mountain, and he built seven altars and offered up a bull and a ram on [each] altar. ידוַיִּקָּחֵהוּ שְׂדֵה צֹפִים אֶל רֹאשׁ הַפִּסְגָּה וַיִּבֶן שִׁבְעָה מִזְבְּחֹת וַיַּעַל פָּר וָאַיִל בַּמִּזְבֵּחַ:
the field of the lookouts: There was a high spot from where a lookout stands on guard in case an army approaches the city. שדה צופים: מקום גבוה היה ששם הצופה עומד לשמור אם יבא חיל על העיר:
to the peak of the mountain: Balaam was not as great a diviner as Balak. Balak foresaw that a breach was destined to break into Israel from there, and indeed, Moses died there. He thought that the curse could take effect upon them there, and [he thought,]“This is the breach that I see.” - [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 13, Num. Rabbah 20:19] ראש הפסגה: בלעם לא היה קוסם כבלק, ראה בלק שעתידה פרצה להפרץ בישראל משם ששם מת משה. כסבור ששם תחול עליהם הקללה, וזו היא הפרצה שאני רואה:
15He said to Balak, "Stand here next to your burnt offering and I will be chanced on here. טווַיֹּאמֶר אֶל בָּלָק הִתְיַצֵּב כֹּה עַל עֹלָתֶךָ וְאָנֹכִי אִקָּרֶה כֹּה:
I will be chanced on here: By the Holy One, blessed is He. אקרה כה: מאת הקב"ה:
I will be chanced on: Heb. אקָּרֶה in the passive form. אקרה: לשון אתפעל:
16The Lord chanced upon Balaam and placed something into his mouth. He said, "Return to Balak and so you shall speak." טזוַיִּקָּר יְהֹוָה אֶל בִּלְעָם וַיָּשֶׂם דָּבָר בְּפִיו וַיֹּאמֶר שׁוּב אֶל בָּלָק וְכֹה תְדַבֵּר:
and placed something into his mouth: What is meant by this placing? What would Scripture had lacked had it [simply] said, “Return to Balak and so shall you speak”? However, when he [Balaam] heard that he was not permitted to curse, he said, “Why should I return to Balak to upset him?” So the Holy One, blessed is He, put a bridle and a bit into his mouth, [so to speak,] as a man goads his beast with a bit to lead it wherever he wants. He [God] said to him, You shall return to Balak against your will. — [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 13, Num. Rabbah 20:20] וישם דבר בפיו: ומה היא השימה הזאת, ומה חסר המקרא באמרו שוב אל בלק וכה תדבר, אלא כשהיה שומע שאינו נרשה לקלל, אמר מה אני חוזר אצל בלק לצערו. ונתן לו הקב"ה רסן וחכה בפיו כאדם הפוקס בהמה בחכה להוליכה אל אשר ירצה. אמר לו על כרחך תשוב אל בלק:
17When he came to him, he was standing next to his burnt offering, and the Moabite dignitaries were with him, and Balak said to him, "What did the Lord speak?" יזוַיָּבֹא אֵלָיו וְהִנּוֹ נִצָּב עַל עֹלָתוֹ וְשָׂרֵי מוֹאָב אִתּוֹ וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ בָּלָק מַה דִּבֶּר יְהֹוָה:
and the Moabite dignitaries were with him: Above (verse 6) it says, “ all the Moabite dignitaries.” However, since they saw that there was no hope, some of them left, and only some of them remained. — [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 13, Num. Rabbah 20:20] ושרי מואב אתו: ולמעלה הוא אומר וכל שרי מואב, כיון שראו שאין בו תקוה הלכו להם מקצתם, ולא נשארו אלא מקצתם:
What did the Lord speak?: This is an expression denoting derision, as if to say, You are not your own master. — [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 13, Num. Rabbah 20:20] מה דבר ה': לשון צחוק הוא זה, כלומר אינך ברשותך:
18He took up his parable and said, "Arise, Balak, and hear; listen closely to me, son of Zippor. יחוַיִּשָּׂא מְשָׁלוֹ וַיֹּאמַר קוּם בָּלָק וּשֲׁמָע הַאֲזִינָה עָדַי בְּנוֹ צִפֹּר:
Arise, Balak: Since he saw that he was mocking him, he intended to taunt him,“Stand on your feet; you have no right to sit, for I have been sent to you as an emissary of the Omnipresent!” - [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 13, Num. Rabbah 20:20] קום בלק: כיון שראהו מצחק בו, נתכוון לצערו עמוד על רגליך, אינך רשאי לישב ואני שלוח אליך בשליחותו של מקום:
son of Zippor: Heb. בְּנו ֹצִפֹּר. This [use of the ‘vav’ as a suffix to denote the construct form] is biblical style, as in,“beasts (חַיְתוֹ) of the forest” (Ps. 104:20);“beasts (וְחַיְתוֹ) of the earth” (Gen. 1:24);“to a spring (לְמַעְיְנוֹ) of water” (Ps. 114:8). בנו צפר: לשון מקרא הוא זה, כמו (תהלים קד, כ) חיתו יער, (בראשית א, כד) וחיתו ארץ, (תהלים קיד, ח) למעינו מים:
19God is not a man that He should lie, nor is He a mortal that He should relent. Would He say and not do, speak and not fulfill? יטלֹא אִישׁ אֵל וִיכַזֵּב וּבֶן אָדָם וְיִתְנֶחָם הַהוּא אָמַר וְלֹא יַעֲשֶׂה וְדִבֶּר וְלֹא יְקִימֶנָּה:
God is not a man that He should lie: He has already promised them to bring them to and give them possession of the land of the seven nations, and you expect to kill them in the desert?- [See Mid. Tanchuma Mass’ei 7, Num. Rabbah 23:8] לא איש אל וגו': כבר נשבע להם להביאם ולהורישם ארץ שבעה אומות, ואתה סבור להמיתם במדבר:
Would He say…: Heb. הַהוּא. This is in the form of a question. And the Targum [Onkelos] renders,“who later relent.” They reconsider and change their minds. ההוא אמר וגו': בלשון תימה, ותרגומו תייבין ומתמלכין, חוזרים ונמלכין לחזור בהם:
20I have received [an instruction] to bless, and He has blessed, and I cannot retract it. כהִנֵּה בָרֵךְ לָקָחְתִּי וּבֵרֵךְ וְלֹא אֲשִׁיבֶנָּה:
I have received [instruction] to bless: You ask me, What did God speak? [My answer is] I received from Him [instruction] to bless them. ( הנה ברך לקחתי: אתה שואלני מה דבר ה', קבלתי ממנו לברך אותם:
to bless: Heb. בָרֵ, used in the sense of לְבָרֵ“to bless.”) וברך ולא אשיבנה: הוא ברך אותם ואני לא אשיב את ברכתו:
and He has blessed, and I cannot retract it: He has blessed them, and I will not retract His blessing. וברך: כמו וברך וכן הוא גזרת רי"ש, כמו (תהלים עד יח) אויב חרף, כמו חרף, וכן (שם י ג) ובוצע ברך, המהלל ומברך את הגוזל ואומר, אל תירא כי לא תענש, שלום יהיה לך, מרגיז הוא לקב"ה. ואין לומר ברך שם דבר, שאם כן היה נקוד בפתח קטן וטעמו למעלה, אבל לפי שהוא לשון פעל הוא נקוד קמץ, וטעמו למטה:
and He has blessed: Heb. וּבֵרֵ, like וּבִרֵ. This is the rule of the letter ‘reish’ as in אוֹיֵב חֵרֵף (Ps. 74:18), like חִרֵף and similarly, וּבֹצֵע בֵּרֵ (ibid. 10:3)-one who praises and blesses the thief, saying,“Do not be afraid because you will not be punished; you will be all right,” angers the Holy One, blessed is He. But one cannot say that וּבֵרֵ is a noun, for if so, it would be punctuated with a short ‘pathach’ [’segol’] and the accent would be on the first syllable וּבֵרֶ. However, since it is a verb in the active form, it is punctuated with a short ‘kamatz’ [’tzeireh’], and the accent is on the last syllable. :
21He does not look at evil in Jacob, and has seen no perversity in Israel; the Lord, his God, is with him, and he has the King's friendship. כאלֹא הִבִּיט אָוֶן בְּיַעֲקֹב וְלֹא רָאָה עָמָל בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהָיו עִמּוֹ וּתְרוּעַת מֶלֶךְ בּוֹ:
He does not look at evil in Jacob: According to the Targum [Onkelos it means: I have looked. There are no idol worshippers in Jacob]. Another interpretation: Its literal meaning can be expounded beautifully. The Holy One, blessed is He, does not look at evil in Jacob. When they transgress His word, He does not deal punctiliously with them to scrutinize their wicked deeds and their iniquity in violation of His law. — [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 14, Num. Rabbah 20:20] לא הביט און ביעקב וגו': כתרגומו. דבר אחר אחרי פשוטו הוא נדרש מדרש נאה. לא הביט הקב"ה און שביעקב, כשהן עוברין על דבריו אינו מדקדק אחריהם להתבונן באוניות שלהם ובעמלן שהן עוברין על דתו:
perversity: Heb. עָמָל connotes transgression, as in“conceives mischief (עָמָל) ” (Ps. 7:15) [and as in]“For You look at mischief (עָמָל) and provocation” (ibid. 10:14), since a transgression is distressing for the Omnipresent [and עָמָל primarily means hardship and toil]. עמל: לשון עבירה, כמו והרה עמל (תהלים ז טו), כי אתה עמל וכעס תביט (שם י יד) לפי שהעבירה היא עמל לפני המקום:
the Lord, his God, is with him: Even if they anger Him and rebel against Him, He does not move from their midst. ה' אלהיו עמו: אפילו מכעיסין וממרים לפניו אינו זז מתוכן:
and he has the king’s friendship: וּתְרוּעַת, an expression denoting love and friendship, as in,“the friend of (רֵעֶה) David” (II Sam. 15:37), and in“and has given her to his companion (לְמֵרֵעֵהוּ)” (Jud. 15:6). Similarly, Onkelos renders, “the Presence of their King is among them.” ותרועת מלך בו: לשון חבה ורעות כמו רעה דוד (שמואל ב' טו לז) אוהב דוד, ויתנה למרעהו (שופטים טו, ו) וכן תרגם אונקלוס ושכינת מלכהון ביניהון:
22God has brought them out of Egypt with the strength of His loftiness. כבאֵל מוֹצִיאָם מִמִּצְרָיִם כְּתוֹעֲפֹת רְאֵם לוֹ:
God has brought them out of Egypt: You said,“Behold the people coming out of Egypt” (22:11). They did not come out by themselves, but God brought them out. — [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 14, Num. Rabbah 20:20] אל מוציאם ממצרים: אתה אמרת הנה עם יצא ממצרים, לא יצא מעצמו אלא הא-להים הוציאם:
with the strength of His loftiness: Heb. כְּתוֹעֲפֹת רְאֵם, in accordance with the power of His loftiness (רוּם) and height. Similarly,“and… abundant silver (תּוֹעָפוֹת)” (Job 22:25); they are terms denoting strength. I maintain that it תּוֹעֲפוֹת is a term cognate with [a similar word in the phrase]“and let the birds fly (יְעוֹפֵף)” (Gen. 1:20) [which denotes] something flying to lofty heights, expressing great power. Thus, כְּתוֹעֲפֹת רְאֵם means flying high. Another interpretation: כְּתוֹעֲפֹת רְאֵם means the power of 're’emim’ and our Rabbis say (Git. 68b) that this refers to demons. כתועפות ראם לו: כתוקף רום וגובה שלו, וכן וכסף תועפות (איוב כב כה), לשון מעוז המה, ואומר אני שהוא לשון ועוף יעופף (בראשית א כ), המעופף ברום וגובה ותוקף רב הוא זה ותועפות ראם עפיפות גובה. דבר אחר תועפות ראם תוקף ראמים, ואמרו רבותינו אלו השדים:
23For there is no divination in Jacob and no soothsaying in Israel. In time it will be said to Jacob and Israel, 'What has God wrought?' כגכִּי לֹא נַחַשׁ בְּיַעֲקֹב וְלֹא קֶסֶם בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל כָּעֵת יֵאָמֵר לְיַעֲקֹב וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵל מַה פָּעַל אֵל:
For there is no divination in Jacob: They are worthy of blessing since there are no diviners or soothsayers among them. כי לא נחש ביעקב: כי ראוים הם לברכה שאין בהם מנחשים וקוסמים:
In time it will be said to Jacob and Israel: There will come another time like this, when the love [God has] for them will be revealed to all, for they will be seated before Him and learn Torah from His mouth. Their place will be further in [closer to the Divine Presence] than the ministering angels. They will ask them, “What has God wrought?” This is the meaning of what is stated,“your eyes shall behold your Teacher” (Isa. 30:20). Another interpretation: [The phrase] יֵאָמֵר לְיַעֲקֹב is not in the future tense [“it shall be said to Jacob”] but in the present tense. [Thus, the meaning is:] They have no need for a diviner or sorcerer, for any time it is necessary to tell Jacob and Israel what God has wrought and what decrees He enacted on high, they do not need diviners or soothsayers, but the decrees of the Omnipresent are transmitted to them through their prophets, or the Urim and Tummim inform them [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 14, Num. Rabbah 20:20]. Onkelos , however, does not render [it in] this manner.[Onkelos renders: For the diviners do not wish that good should be bestowed upon Jacob, nor do soothsayers desire the greatness of Israel. At this time, it will be told to Jacob what God has wrought.] כעת יאמר ליעקב וגו': עוד עתיד להיות עת כעת הזאת אשר תגלה חבתן לעין כל שהן יושבין לפניו ולמדים תורה מפיו ומחיצתן לפנים ממלאכי השרת, והם ישאלו להם מה פעל אל, וזהו שנאמר והיו עיניך רואות את מוריך (ישעיה ל כ). דבר אחר יאמר ליעקב אינו לשון עתיד, אלא לשון הוה, אינן צריכין למנחש וקוסם כי בכל עת שצריך להאמר ליעקב ולישראל מה פעל הקב"ה ומה גזרותיו במרום, אינן מנחשים וקוסמים אלא נאמר להם על פי נביאיהם מה היא גזרת המקום, או אורים ותומים מגידים להם, ואונקלוס לא תרגם כן:
24Behold, a people that rises like a lioness (See Malbim) and raises itself like a lion. It does not lie down until it eats its prey and drinks the blood of the slain." כדהֶן עָם כְּלָבִיא יָקוּם וְכַאֲרִי יִתְנַשָּׂא לֹא יִשְׁכַּב עַד יֹאכַל טֶרֶף וְדַם חֲלָלִים יִשְׁתֶּה:
Behold, a people that rises like a lioness: When they awaken from their sleep in the morning they show the vigor of a lioness and a lion in grasping mitzvoth, to don a ‘tallith ’ [prayer shawl], recite the shema and put on ‘tefillin’ [phylacteries]. — [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 14, Num. Rabbah 20:20] הן עם כלביא יקום וגו': כשהן עומדים משנתם שחרית, הן מתגברין כלביא וכארי לחטוף את המצות, ללבוש טלית לקרוא את שמע ולהניח תפילין:
It does not lie down: [I.e., a Jew does not lie down] on his bed at night until he consumes and destroys any harmful thing that comes to tear him. How so? He recites the shema on his bed and entrusts his spirit to the hand of the Omnipresent. Should an army or a troop come to harm them, the Holy One, blessed is He, protects them, fights their battles and strikes them [their attackers] down dead.[Mid. Tanchuma Balak 14, Num. Rabbah 20:20] Another interpretation: “Behold a people that rises like a lioness…” as the Targum [Onkelos] renders [it: namely, It will not settle in its land until it destroys (the enemy) and takes possession of the land of the nations]. לא ישכב: בלילה על מטתו עד שהוא אוכל ומחבל כל מזיק הבא לטרפו. כיצד, קורא את שמע על מטתו ומפקיד רוחו ביד המקום, בא מחנה וגייס להזיקם, הקב"ה שומרם ונלחם מלחמותם ומפילם חללים. דבר אחר הן עם כלביא יקום וגו'. כתרגומו:
and drinks the blood of the slain: He prophesied that Moses would not die until he would strike down the Midianite kings dead, and he [Balaam] would be slain with them, as it says,“Balaam the son of Beor the soothsayer did the children of Israel slay with the sword with those that were slain by them” (Josh. 13:22). - [Mid. Tanchuma Balak 14, Num. Rabbah 20:20] ודם חללים ישתה: נתנבא שאין משה מת עד שיפיל מלכי מדין חללים ויהרג הוא עמהם, שנאמר ואת בלעם בן בעור הקוסם הרגו בני ישראל בחרב על חלליהם (יהושע יג כב):
25Balak said to Balaam, "You shall neither curse them nor shall you not bless them." כהוַיֹּאמֶר בָּלָק אֶל בִּלְעָם גַּם קֹב לֹא תִקֳּבֶנּוּ גַּם בָּרֵךְ לֹא תְבָרֲכֶנּוּ:
You shall neither curse them nor shall you not bless them: The first גַּם [literally, also, in the clause,“You shall neither…”] adds something to the second גַּם [in the clause“nor shall you curse”] and the second גַּם adds something to the first גַּם [as if he said, Neither bless them nor curse them; neither curse them nor bless them]. Similarly,“It shall be neither mine (גַּם לִי) nor yours (גַּם לְ) ” (I Kings 3:26) and similarly,“both the youth (גַּם בָּחוּר) and the maiden (גַּם בְּתוּלָה)” (Deut. 32:25). גם קב לא תקבנו: גם ראשון מוסיף על גם השני, וגם השני על גם ראשון, וכן גם לי גם לך לא יהיה (מלכים א' ג כו), וכן גם בחור גם בתולה (דברים לב כה):
26Balaam answered and said to Balak, "Have I not spoken to you, saying, 'Everything the Lord speaks that I shall do." כווַיַּעַן בִּלְעָם וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל בָּלָק הֲלֹא דִּבַּרְתִּי אֵלֶיךָ לֵאמֹר כֹּל אֲשֶׁר יְדַבֵּר יְהֹוָה אֹתוֹ אֶעֱשֶׂה:Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 77 - 78
• Chapter 77
1. For the Conductor, on the yedutun,1 by Asaph, a psalm.
2. [I raise] my voice to God and cry out; [I raise] my voice to God and He will listen to me.
3. On the day of my distress I sought my Lord. My wound oozes at night and does not abate; my soul refuses to be consoled.
4. I remember God and I moan; I speak and my spirit faints, Selah.
5. You grasped my eyelids; I am broken, I cannot speak.
6. I think of olden days, of ancient years.
7. During the night I recall my music, I meditate with my heart, and my spirit searches:
8. Is it for eternity that my Lord forsakes [me], nevermore to be appeased?
9. Has His kindness ceased forever? Has He sealed the decree for all generations?
10. Has God forgotten mercy? Has He in anger restrained His compassion forever?
11. I said, "It is to ter- rify me that the right hand of the Most High changes.”
12. I remember the deeds of Yah, when I remember Your wonders of long ago.
13. I meditate on all Your works, and speak of Your deeds.
14. O God, Your way is in sanctity; what god is as great as God?
15. You are the God Who works wonders; You make Your might known among the nations.
16. You redeemed Your people with a mighty arm, the children of Jacob and Joseph, Selah.
17. The waters2 saw You, O God, the waters saw You and trembled; even the deep shuddered.
18. The clouds streamed water, the heavens sounded forth, even Your arrows flew about.
19. The sound of Your thunder was in the rolling wind; lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked.
20. Your way was through the sea, Your path through the mighty waters; and Your footsteps were not known.3
21. You led Your people like a flock, by the hand of Moses and Aaron
Chapter 78
This psalm recounts all the miracles that God wrought for Israel, from the exodus of Egypt to David's becoming king over Israel.
1. A maskil1 by Asaph. Listen, my people, to my teaching; incline your ear to the words of my mouth.
2. I will open my mouth with a parable, I will utter riddles of long ago;
3. that which we have heard and know [to be true], and that our fathers have told us.
4. We will not withhold from their children, telling the final generation the praises of the Lord, and His might, and the wonders He has performed.
5. He established a testimony in Jacob, and set down the Torah in Israel, which He commanded our fathers to make known to their children,
6. so that the last generation shall know; children yet to be born will rise and tell their children,
7. and they shall put their hope in God, and not forget the works of the Almighty; and they shall guard His commandments.
8. And they shall not be like their fathers, a wayward and rebellious generation, a generation that did not set its heart straight, and whose spirit was not faithful to God.
9. The children of Ephraim, armed archers, retreated on the day of battle.2
10. They did not keep the covenant of God, and refused to follow His Torah.
11. They forgot His deeds and His wonders that He had shown them.
12. He performed wonders before their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.3
13. He split the sea and brought them across; He erected the waters like a wall.
14. He led them with a cloud by day, and all night long with the light of fire.
15. He split rocks in the wilderness, and gave them to drink as if from the abundant depths.
16. And He brought forth flowing waters from the rock, and caused waters to descend like rivers.
17. Yet they again continued to sin against Him, to provoke the Most High in the parched land.
18. And they tested God in their hearts, by requesting food for their craving.
19. They spoke against God; they said, "Can God set a table in the wilderness?
20. True, He hit the rock and waters flowed, streams gushed forth; but can He also give bread? Will He prepare meat for His people?”
21. And so the Lord heard and was enraged; a fire was kindled against Jacob; wrath, too, flared against Israel.
22. For they did not believe in God and did not trust in His salvation,
23. [though] He had commanded the skies above, and opened the doors of heaven.
24. He had rained upon them manna to eat, and given them grain of heaven.
25. Man ate the bread of angels; He sent them [enough] provisions to satiate.
26. He drove the east wind through the heaven, and led the south wind with His might.
27. He rained meat upon them like dust, winged birds like the sand of seas;
28. and He dropped them inside His camp, around His dwellings.
29. And they ate and were very satiated, for He brought them their desire.
30. They were not yet estranged from their craving, their food was still in their mouths,
31. when the wrath of God rose against them and slew their mighty ones, and brought down the chosen of Israel.
32. Despite this, they sinned again, and did not believe in His wonders;
33. so He ended their days in futility, and their years in terror.
34. When He slew them they would seek Him, they would return and pray to God.
35. They remembered that God is their rock, God the Most High, their redeemer.
36. But they beguiled Him with their mouth, and deceived Him with their tongue.
37. Their heart was not steadfast with Him; they were not faithful to His covenant.
38. Yet He is compassionate, pardons iniquity, and does not destroy; time and again He turns away His anger, and does not arouse all His wrath.
39. He remembered that they were but flesh, a spirit that leaves and does not return.
40. How often they provoked Him in the desert, and grieved Him in the wasteland!
41. Again and again they tested God, and sought a sign from the Holy One of Israel.
42. They did not remember His hand, the day He redeemed them from the oppressor;
43. that He set His signs in Egypt, and His wonders in the field of Zoan.
44. He turned their rivers to blood, and made their flowing waters undrinkable.
45. He sent against them a mixture of beasts which devoured them, and frogs that destroyed them.
46. He gave their produce to the grasshopper, and their toil to the locust.
47. He killed their vines with hail, and their sycamores with biting frost.
48. He delivered their animals to the hail, and their livestock to fiery bolts.
49. He sent against them His fierce anger, fury, rage, and affliction; a delegation of messengers of evil.
50. He leveled a path for His anger, and did not spare their soul from death; He delivered their animals to pestilence.
51. He struck every firstborn in Egypt, the first fruit of their strength in the tents of Ham.4
52. He drove His nation like sheep, and guided them like a flock in the desert.
53. He led them in security and they did not fear, for the sea covered their enemies.
54. And He brought them to the boundary of His holy place, this mountain which His right hand acquired.
55. He drove out nations before them, and allotted them an inheritance [measured] by the cord; He settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.
56. Yet they tested and defied God, the Most High, and did not keep His testimonies.
57. They regressed and rebelled like their fathers; they turned around like a deceptive bow.
58. They angered Him with their high altars, and provoked Him with their idols.
59. God heard and was enraged, and He was utterly disgusted with Israel;
60. And He abandoned the Tabernacle of Shilo, the Tent where He had dwelled among men.
61. He put His might into captivity, and His glory into the hand of the oppressor.
62. He delivered His nation to the sword, and was enraged with His inheritance.
63. Fire consumed His young men, and His maidens had no marriage song.
64. His priests fell by the sword, and their widows did not weep.5
65. And the Lord awoke like one who had been asleep, like a warrior shouting [to sober himself] from wine.
66. He beat His enemies into retreat, and dealt them eternal disgrace.
67. He was disgusted with the tent of Joseph, and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68. He chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loves.
69. And He built His Sanctuary [permanent as] the heavens; like the earth, He established it forever.
70. And He chose David His servant, and took him from the sheep corrals.
71. From following the nursing ewes, He brought Him to shepherd His nation Jacob, Israel His inheritance.
72. And he tended them with the integrity of his heart, and led them with the skill of his hands.
Tanya: Igeret HaTeshuva , middle of Chapter 4• Lessons in Tanya
• Thursday, Tammuz 15, 5775 · July 2, 2015
Today's Tanya Lesson
Igeret HaTeshuva , middle of Chapter 4
וביאור הענין
To explain:
What characteristics of the soul also characterize Havayah, the Four-Letter Name of G‑d, and thus indicate that the soul is indeed a part of that Name? In answer to this question, the Alter Rebbe now explains that just as the Ten Sefirot are included within the Tetragrammaton, so, too, there are ten corresponding faculties that are intrinsic to the soul.
כנודע מאמר אליהו: אנת הוא דאפיקת עשר תיקונין, וקרינן להון עשר ספירן, לאנהגא בהון עלמין סתימין וכו׳
There is a well-known statement of Eliyahu, in the passage entitled Patach Eliyahu, in the introduction to Tikkunei Zohar: “You are He Who elicited the ten tikkunim (lit., ‘garments’) which we call the Ten Sefirot, by which to conduct the concealed worlds…[and the revealed worlds...].1
אנת הוא חכים, ולא בחכמה ידיעא
You are wise, but not with a knowable attribute of wisdom;
אנת הוא מבין, ולא בבינה ידיעא וכו׳
You understand, but not with a knowable attribute of understanding; and so on“ — with regard to the remaining Sefirot.
וכל הי׳ ספירות נכללות ונרמזות בשם הויה ברוך הוא
All the Ten Sefirot are included and represented in their source, the Tetragrammaton.
The Alter Rebbe now shows how the various Sefirot find expression in the four letters that comprise this Divine Name, Havayah.
כי היו״ד, שהיא בחינת נקודה לבד, מרמזת לחכמתו ית׳
The yud, which is a simple point, extending in neither length nor breadth, indicates G‑d’s Wisdom, the Sefirah of Chochmah,
שהיא בבחינת העלם והסתר קודם שבאה לבחינת התפשטות וגילוי ההשגה וההבנה
which is the state of concealment and obscurity, before it develops into a state of expansion and revelation in comprehension and understanding.
והקו׳ שעל היו״ד רומז לבחינת רצון העליון ברוך הוא, שלמעלה מעלה ממדרגת בחינת חכמה עילאה כנודע
(2The “thorn” above3 the yud indicates the Supreme Will, this being the level ofKeter, which transcends by far the level of Chochmah Ila‘ah, Supernal Wisdom, as is known.)
ואחר שבאה לבחינת התפשטות וגילוי ההשגה וההבנה לעלמין סתימין
When [the seminal “point” of Chochmah] is eventually amplified and revealed as something comprehensible to the concealed worlds, i.e., when it descends to the level and Sefirah of Binah,
נכללת ונרמזת באות ה׳, שיש לה בחינת התפשטות לרוחב, המורה ומרמז על הרחבת הביאור וההבנה
it is then contained and represented in the letter hei of the Tetragrammaton. This letter extends in breadth, implying a breadth of explanation and understanding, which is the function of Binah.
וגם לאורך, המורה על בחינת ההמשכה וההשפעה מלמעלה למטה לעלמין סתימין
[The letter hei] also extends in length, to indicate extension and flow downward into the concealed worlds.
The hidden worlds are nourished from the level of Binah, so that they may have an understanding of G‑dliness.
ואחר כך, כשנמשכה המשכה והשפעה זו יותר למטה לעלמין אתגליין
In the next stage, when this extension and flow are drawn still lower into the revealed worlds,
וכמו האדם שרוצה לגלות חכמתו לאחרים על ידי דבורו, על דרך משל
which may be compared, by way of analogy, to one who wishes4 to reveal his thoughts to another through his speech,
נכללת ונרמזת המשכה זו באותיות ו״ה
this extension is contained and represented in the [final] letters vav and hei [of the Tetragrammaton].
כי הוי״ו מורה על ההמשכה מלמעלה למטה
For the letter vav, which is shaped like a vertical line, indicates downward extension.
There is another connection between this stage and the letter vav:
וגם המשכה זו היא על ידי מדת חסדו וטובו ושאר מדותיו הקדושות, הנכללת בדרך כלל במספר שש שבפסוק: לך ה׳ הגדולה וגו׳ עד לך ה׳ הממלכה, ולא עד בכלל
Also, this downward flow into the revealed worlds is effected through the Divine traits of benevolence and goodness and [G‑d’s] other holy traits, included in general terms in the six attributes, the numerical equivalent of vav, in the verse,5“Yours, O G‑d, is greatness...,” — until “Yours, O G‑d, is sovereignty...,” but not including it.
כי מדת מלכותו ית׳ נקראת בשם דבר ה׳
For His attribute of sovereignty is called the “Word of G‑d” (and speech is not one of the middot, the spiritual emotive attributes),
כמו שכתוב: באשר דבר מלך שלטון
as in the verse,6 “Wherever the word of the king holds sway.”
Supernal speech, then, is related to Malchut, G‑d’s sovereignty.
ונכללת ונרמזת באות ה׳ אחרונה של שם ה׳
This [attribute of sovereignty] is contained and represented in the final hei of the Tetragrammaton, in the following manner:
כי פנימיות ומקור הדבור הוא ההבל העולה מן הלב, ומתחלק לה׳ מוצאות הפה: אחה״ע מהגרון וכו׳
The internal aspect and the source of speech is the breath that rises from the heart, then is particularized into the five oral articulations (five being the numerical equivalent of the letter hei). [One of these produces the bracket of letters] alef, chet, hei and ayin from the throat, another produces the bracket of letters beit, vav, mem andpei from the lips, and so on.
At any rate, the internal aspect of speech is breath.
וגם הברת הה״א היא בחינת הבל לבד
In particular, the enunciation of the letter hei is solely unvocalized breath,
כמו שכתוב: אתא קלילא דלית בה מששא
as in the phrase,7 “A light letter without substance.”
Emanating, as it does, solely from the breath, it alludes to the level of Malchut and speech whose internal aspect is “breath”.
ואף שאין לו דמות הגוף חס ושלום
Now “He has no corporeal form,” G‑d forbid.
How, then, can one differentiate Above between those letters that possess substance and those that do not?
אך דברה תורה כלשון בני אדם
Nevertheless, “the Torah speaks as in the language of men.”
Since on the mortal plane this differentiation exists, it is also applied to the Divine plane, for spiritually, too, there exists a corresponding difference between the letter hei and the other letters.
בשגם
Moreover (i.e., there is yet another reason why this analogy is apt, notwithstanding the fact that G‑d has no corporeal form):
שגם דבר ה׳ כ״ב אותיות המתחלקות לה׳ חלקי המוצאות, ובהן נברא כל יצור
for G‑d’s speech as well consists, as it were, of twenty-two letters that separate into the five articulations that produce the Divine speech from which all beings were created.
וכמו שכתוב בליקוטי אמרים חלק ב׳ פי״א ביאור ענין אותיות אלו
(8For a discussion of these letters and their significance, see Likutei Amarim,Part II, ch. 11.)
We thus see that all the Ten Sefirot are included and represented within the Tetragrammaton. The Alter Rebbe now goes on to explain that likewise within the soul, which is part of the Tetragrammaton, there exist ten corresponding levels or faculties.
| FOOTNOTES | |
| 1. | The Rebbe asks the following question: The statement that the purpose of the Ten Sefirot(which, as he shall soon say, are included within the Tetragrammaton) is “to conduct the concealed worlds,” seems to contradict the earlier statement that the Tetragrammaton transcends by far the state of “letters” (from which the various worlds and their creatures come into being). The Alter Rebbe resolves this, explains the Rebbe, by now going on to quote, “You are wise, but not with a knowable attribute of wisdom; You understand, but not with a knowable attribute of understanding....” This cannot possibly refer to the state of “letters”, since their purpose is to make known and to reveal (as oft stated in Part II of Tanya). Rather, the above-mentioned conduct of the worlds first relates only to the “concealed worlds,” worlds that are “not known.” |
| 2. | Parentheses are in the original text. |
| 3. | Note of the Rebbe: “The Alter Rebbe stresses ‘above’, for the ‘thorn’ that projects beneath the yud has a different significance.” |
| 4. | Note of the Rebbe: “In the analogy the Alter Rebbe speaks of ‘one who wishes to reveal his thoughts to another,’ for this mirrors the ‘Divine traits of benevolence and goodness’ that are mentioned below.” |
| 5. | I Divrei HaYamim 29:11. |
| 6. | Kohelet 8:4. |
| 7. | From the hymn entitled Akdamut. |
| 8. | Parentheses are in the original text. |
• Sefer Hamitzvos: Daily Mitzvah
Important Message Regarding This Lesson
The Daily Mitzvah schedule runs parallel to the daily study of 3 chapters of Maimonides' 14-volume code. There are instances when the Mitzvah is repeated a few days consecutively while the exploration of the same Mitzvah continues in the in-depth track.
Positive Commandment 107 (Digest)
Ritual Impurity Contracted through Contact with a Corpse
We are commanded regarding the ritual impurity contracted through contact with a human corpse. [I.e., if contracted, one must follow all the laws associated with this impurity.]
The 107th mitzvah1 is that we are commanded regarding the tumah conveyed by a dead body.2 This mitzvah includes all the laws relating to tumas meis.3
Rabbi Berel Bell is a well-known educator, author and lecturer. He and his family reside in Montreal, Canada.
From "Sefer Hamitzvot in English," published by Sichos in English.
FOOTNOTES
1.In the order given here, following the order of Mishneh Torah, P107 is the first of the commandments dealing with tumah and taharah (ritual purity and impurity). In the order of Sefer HaMitzvos, however, P96 is the first of these mitzvos, and there the Rambam gives a general introduction to all these mitzvos.
2.Num. 19:11ff.
3.Such as which parts of the body convey tumah, how it is conveyed, etc. See Hilchos Tumas Meis.
Translation of (the unabridged text of) Sefer Hamitzvot by Rabbi Berel Bell, member of the Rabbinical Court of Montreal and director of Teacher Training for the Jewish Learning Institute.
_________________________________________________________________
• 1 Chapter: Ta'aniyot Ta'aniyot - Chapter Three
Hayom Yom:
• Thursday, Tammuz 15, 5775 · 02 July 2015
"Today's Day"
Sunday Tamuz 15 5703
Torah lessons: Chumash: Pinchas, first parsha with Rashi.
Tehillim: 77-78.
Tanya: However, all this (p. 351) ...on laws of Fasts. (p. 351).
My father writes in one of his maamarim: Fatness of the body can result from the spiritual pleasure and delight derived from G-dliness. They say of R. Nachum of Chernobil that he became corpulent from answering amein y'hei sh'mei raba.
• 1 Chapter: Ta'aniyot Ta'aniyot - Chapter Three
Ta'aniyot - Chapter Three
Halacha 1
[We should adhere to the following procedure when] no rain at all has descended from the beginning of the rainy season onward: If the seventeenth of Marcheshvan arrives and no rains have descended, the Torah scholars should begin to fast, [starting on] a Monday [and continuing on] the [following] Thursday, and the [following] Monday. All students [of the Torah] are fit to accept these [fasts] upon themselves.
Commentary Halacha 1
[We should adhere to the following procedure when] no rain at all has descended from the beginning of the rainy season onward: - Ta'anit 6a relates that the rainy season in Eretz Yisrael begins in the month of Marcheshvan. The third of the month is considered to be the earliest time rain can be expected to descend.
In other lands, such fasts should be held when, ע"ל, they are necessary according to the local needs and climate (Halachah 10; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 575:9).
If the seventeenth of Marcheshvan arrives and no rains have descended -The rains have already been delayed. To hasten the manifestation of Divine blessing
the Torah scholars should begin to fast - and repent. Nevertheless, the situation is not serious enough to alarm the people at large.
[starting on] a Monday - i.e., the Monday closest to the seventeenth of Marcheshvan, for, as explained in Chapter 1, Halachah 5, a series of communal fasts should always begin on a Monday.
[and continuing on] the [following] Thursday, and the [following] Monday. - These fasts begin at dawn; work, anointing oneself, wearing shoes, and sexual relations are permitted.
The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 575:1) emphasizes that these fasts are considered individual fasts and not communal fasts.
All students [of the Torah] are fit to accept these [fasts] upon themselves. - At certain times, ordinary students are advised to refrain from accepting stringencies intended for the Torah sages, lest they appear overly proud. In this instance, however, Ta'anit 10b suggests that all students of the Torah accept these fasts if possible.
Halacha 2
If Rosh Chodesh Kislev arrives without the rains having descended, the court should decree three communal fasts, [starting on] a Monday, [and continuing on] the [following] Thursday, and the [following] Monday. It is permitted to eat and drink at night. The men serving in the [weekly] priestly watch should not fast with them because they are involved in the Temple service.
On these days, the entire people should enter the synagogue, pray, cry out [to God], and make supplications as is customary on all fasts.
Commentary Halacha 2
If Rosh Chodesh Kislev arrives without the rains having descended - The drought is considered serious enough to warrant that
the court should decree three communal fasts, [starting on] a Monday - If, however, Rosh Chodesh Kislev itself falls on a Monday, the fast is not held until the Monday of the following week.
[and continuing on] the [following] Thursday, and the [following] Monday. - As mentioned in Chapter 1, Halachah 5, when necessary the court ordains a series of three fasts to evoke Divine favor.
It is permitted to eat and drink at night - until dawn, or until one goes to sleep. (See Chapter 1, Halachah 8.)
The men serving in the [weekly] priestly watch - See Hilchot Klei Hamikdash3:9, which states that the prophet Samuel and King David ordained 24 priestly watches, which rotated in the Temple service. Each week, a different watch would serve.
should not fast with them, because they are involved in the Temple service. - This leniency includes even the members of the families who are not obligated to serve in the Temple on that day, for many sacrifices may be brought unexpectedly and they may be called to assist in the service. Were they to be fasting, they would not be able to perform this service properly (Ta'anit2:6).
On these days, the entire people should enter the synagogue, pray, cry out [to God] - i.e., the prayer Anenu is recited in the Shemoneh Esreh, and other supplicatory prayers are recited.
and make supplications as is customary on all fasts. - The trumpets, however, are not sounded.
Halacha 3
If these [fasts] pass without [their prayers] being answered, the court should decree an additional three communal fasts. On these fasts, we eat and drink while it is still day [on the day before the fast], as on the fast of Yom Kippur.
The men serving in the [weekly] priestly watch should fast for part of the day, but should not complete the fast. The men of the beit av - those individuals who are involved in the Temple service that day - should not fast at all.
On a fast for which we are required to cease eating while it is still day, once a person has ceased eating and decided not to eat any more, he may not change his mind and eat, even though there is still time during the day.
Commentary Halacha 3
If these [fasts] pass without [their prayers] being answered - By choosing this wording (quoted from Ta'anit 1:6), the Rambam teaches us a lesson in the service of God. It could have said, "If these fasts pass without rain having descended." The Rambam and the Mishnah, however, want to emphasize that the ultimate reason why rain descends or does not descend is not dependent on natural factors, but rather on God's mercies.
the court should decree an additional three communal fasts - of a more severe nature.
There are some texts of the Mishneh Torah that read "[starting on] a Monday, [and continuing on] the [following] Thursday, and the [following] Monday," and other texts read "[starting on] Thursday, [and continuing on] the [following] Monday, and the [following] Thursday."
The difference between these two versions depends on the difference of opinion mentioned in the commentary on Chapter 1, Halachah 5, concerning the question: Should the second series of fasts begin on a Thursday or not?
On these fasts, we eat and drink while it is still day [on the day before the fast], as on the fast of Yom Kippur. - I.e., as on Yom Kippur, we are forbidden to eat and drink after sunset. The Magen Avraham 575:2, however, explains that unlike Yom Kippur (Hilchot Sh'vitat Esor 1:6), there is no obligation to begin the fast before sunset.
The men serving in the [weekly] priestly watch should fast for part of the day - because these fasts are more severe and also because, at the beginning of the day, it was less likely that they be called to assist in the Temple service
but should not complete the fast - lest they become weak and be unable to serve in the Temple when called.
The men of the beit av - those individuals who are involved in the Temple service that day - should not fast at all - for the above reason.
On a fast for which we are required to cease eating while it is still day, once a person has ceased eating - concluded his meal
and decided not to eat any more - for this is considered as if he accepted the fast upon himself
he may not change his mind and eat, even though there is still time during the day. - The Ramban and the Maggid Mishneh differ with the Rambam on this point and maintain that as long as one has not made an explicit statement to the fact that one has accepted the fast, one is allowed to change one's mind and eat. The rationale for their ruling is that, as explained above, on these fasts, in contrast to Yom Kippur, there is no obligation to begin the fast before sunset.
With regard to the laws of Tish'ah B'Av - and from there we can extrapolate to the instance at hand - the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 553:1) accepts the Ramban's ruling. The Mishneh Berurah 553:2, however, states that a mental resolve to accept the fast is also sufficient to cause one to be forbidden to eat further.
Halacha 4
On these three fasts, all people are forbidden to perform work during the day, but they are permitted during the [previous] night. It is forbidden for a person to wash his entire body in hot water, but one may wash one's face, hands, and feet. For this reason, the bathhouses are closed.
It is forbidden to anoint oneself. One may, however, do so to remove filth. Sexual relations are forbidden, as is wearing shoes in a city. One may, however, wear shoes on a journey. We pray in the synagogues, cry out [to God], and make supplications as is customary on all fasts.
Commentary Halacha 4
On these three fasts, all people are forbidden - As the Rambam mentions in Chapter 1, Halachah 4, all the fasts mentioned in this text are Rabbinic in origin. The only fast mentioned in the Torah is Yom Kippur. Accordingly, when the Sages instituted communal fasts, they used Yom Kippur as a paradigm. Therefore, just as it is forbidden to perform work, wash, anoint oneself, engage in sexual relations, or wear shoes on that holy day, these activities were also forbidden on other fast days.
Nevertheless, on fast days other than Yom Kippur, certain leniencies were instituted, and these restrictions were not enforced to the same degree as on Yom Kippur.
to perform work during the day - Ta'anit 12b brings support for this concept from the exegesis of Joel 2:15: "Sanctify the fast day; call an assembly, and collect the elders." The word for "assembly," עצרה, resembles the Biblical name for the holiday of Shavuot, עצרת. Just as it is forbidden to work on Shavuot, so too, it is forbidden to work on a fast day.
but they are permitted during the [previous] night. - Ta'anit, ibid., continues using exegesis to show that, in contrast to Shavuot, working on the night of a fast day is permitted.
It is forbidden for a person to wash his entire body in hot water - but one may wash one's body with cold water (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 575:3).
but one may wash one's face, hands, and feet - even in hot water (loc. cit.).
For this reason, the bathhouses are closed - to ensure that this prohibition is observed.
It is forbidden to anoint oneself - for the sake of pleasure.
One may, however, do so to remove filth - or for medicinal reasons (Mishnah Berurah 575:7).
Sexual relations are forbidden - This applies even on the night of a woman's ritual immersion (Mishnah Berurah 575:8).
as is wearing shoes in a city. One may, however, wear shoes on a journey - for making a journey without proper shoes is extremely uncomfortable.
We pray in the synagogues - As opposed to the following sequence of fasts, whose prayer services are held in the streets of the city, as explained in Chapter 4.
cry out [to God], and make supplications as is customary on all fasts. -The trumpets, however, are not sounded.
Halacha 5
If these [fasts] pass without [their prayers] being answered, the court decrees another seven communal fasts, [beginning on the next] Monday, [and continuing as follows]: Thursday, Monday, Thursday, Monday, Thursday, and Monday.
Halacha 6
On these seven fasts the men serving in the [weekly] priestly watch should fast for the entire day. The men of the beit av should fast for a portion of the day, but should not complete their fast.4 All the prohibitions in force during the second set of fasts are also in force during these last seven fasts.5
Halacha 7
There are additional dimensions [of severity] to these [fasts]: it is on these alone that we sound the trumpets, pray in the street of the city, call on an elder to admonish the people [and motivate] them to repent from their [evil] ways, add six blessings in the morning and afternoon prayers - thus, we recite twenty-four blessings, and close the stores.
On Mondays, the doors of the stores are left slightly ajar towards evening and they may be opened [for business]. On Thursdays, [the stores] may be opened the entire day [to allow people to purchase food] in honor of the Sabbath. If a store has two entrances, one entrance should be opened and the other closed. If the store has a display area in front of it, it may be opened in the normal manner on a Thursday without concern [for the above restriction].
Commentary Halacha 7
There are additional dimensions [of severity] to these [fasts] - The first four points mentioned in this halachah are described at length in Chapter 4.
it is on these alone that we sound the trumpets - as required in a time of distress (Chapter 1, Halachah 1). In Chapter 4, Halachot 14-17, the manner in which the trumpets are sounded is explained.
pray in the street of the city - See Chapter 4, Halachah 1
call on an elder to admonish the people [and motivate] them to repent from their [evil] ways - See Chapter 4, Halachah 2
add six blessings in the morning - See Chapter 4, Halachot 7-14
and afternoon prayers - Although the Talmud does not mention that these six blessings were added in both prayer services, were this not to be the case, it would have been proper to state that they were added only in the morning service (Maggid Mishneh).
thus, we recite twenty-four blessings - More precisely 25. The Rambam is quoting the Mishnah (Ta'anit 2:2), which refers to the era before the nineteenth blessing was added to the daily Shemoneh Esreh. (See Hilchot Tefillah 2:1.)
and close the stores - with the leniencies to be mentioned. The stores are closed to intensify the people's consciousness of the fast (Rashi, Ta'anit 14b).
On Mondays, the doors of the stores - From the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 575:4), the Ramah, and other commentaries, it appears that the leniencies mentioned here refer only to stores that sell food, but not those that carry other merchandise.
are left slightly ajar towards evening - but they should not be opened completely
and they may be opened [for business] - to allow people to purchase food for the evening meal. There are, however, certain restrictions; for example, the products in the store may not be taken out to the store's display area (Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, Ta'anit 1:6).
On Thursdays, [the stores] may be opened the entire day [to allow people to purchase food] in honor of the Sabbath. - The following restriction should be adhered to:
If a store has two entrances, one entrance should be opened and the other closed. - From the Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah (loc. cit.), it appears that this restriction applies on Mondays as well as on Thursdays.
If the store has a display area - a bench for the storekeeper and/or customers to sit and a place for merchandise to be placed
in front of it, it may be opened in the normal manner on a Thursday without concern [for the above restriction]. - Rashi, Ta'anit 14b, explains that the display area prevents the entrances to the store from being seen. Hence, there is no difficulty in leaving them both open.
Halacha 8
If these [fasts] pass without [their prayers] being answered, we should minimize our commercial activity, construction projects associated with joy - e.g., those involving decorative patterns on the ceilings and walls, plantings associated with joy - e.g., that of myrtle trees, and the erection of tents.
We also minimize betrothals and marriages, unless one has not fulfilled the mitzvah of being fruitful and multiplying. Whoever has fulfilled this mitzvah is forbidden to engage in sexual relations in a year of famine.
We also reduce the exchange of greetings, and the Torah sages should not exchange greetings at all. Rather, [they should conduct themselves as people] who have been rebuffed and ostracized by God. When a common person greets them, they may return the greeting in a weak and concerned tone.
Commentary Halacha 8
If these [fasts] pass without [their prayers] being answered - no other communal fasts are ordained, as explained in the following halachah. The fact that no other fasts are called does not mean that the community may return to their ordinary pattern of conduct. Quite the contrary: the period is regarded as one of Divine disfavor. Hence,
we should minimize our commercial activity - The restrictions that follow were instituted to reduce joy. In contrast, this restriction appears to include all commercial activity, even that which is not directed associated with happiness (Lechem Mishneh). Seemingly, the intent is that since the time is not favorable, it is unwise to invest money and effort in commercial endeavors (Kinat Eliyahu).
There are, however, authorities who maintain that here also, the restriction involves only commercial activity associated with joy - e.g., preparing for a child's wedding or purchasing valuable articles, but ordinary business activities are permitted (Mishnah Berurah 575:18).
construction projects associated with joy - e.g., those involving decorative patterns on the ceilings and walls - In his Commentary on the Mishnah (Ta'anit 1:7), the Rambam states that this refers to ornate buildings erected by the wealthy. There is, however, no restriction on ordinary building projects necessary for one's everyday purposes.
The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 575:7) describes the prohibition as applying to "buildings of joy." The Mishnah Berurah 575:18 (based on the Tur) explains that this refers to all buildings that are unnecessary and are constructed for beauty and comfort.
plantings - In this instance, the differences between Hebrew and English have caused our translation to be non-literal. In Hebrew, the word נטיעה refers to both planting trees and setting up tents.
associated with joy - e.g., that of myrtle trees - In his Commentary on the Mishnah (ibid.), the Rambam explains that this refers to spice and flower gardens planted for pleasure. One may, however, plant orchards for the purpose of growing fruit. There are no restrictions on such activity.
and the erection of tents. - This also refers to tents set up for festive purposes; there is no restriction against pitching tents for ordinary purposes.
We also minimize betrothals and marriages - The Beit Yosef (Orach Chayim575) interprets this to mean that a person who has fulfilled the mitzvah of fathering children should not become betrothed or marry at all.
unless one has not fulfilled the mitzvah of being fruitful and multiplying. - This involves fathering a son and a daughter. (See Hilchot Ishut 15:4.)
Whoever has fulfilled this mitzvah is forbidden to engage in sexual relations in a year of famine. - Ta'anit 11a derives this concept from Genesis 41:50, which states that Joseph's children were born before the famine. One can infer that during the famine he did not engage in relations.
This restriction was instituted because it is proper to reduce our indulgence in pleasure in a time of communal distress.
We also reduce the exchange of greetings, and the Torah sages should not exchange greetings at all. - Needless to say, frivolity and jests are also forbidden.
Rather, [they should conduct themselves as people] who have been rebuffed and ostracized by God. - A person under a ban of ostracism is forbidden to greet others or to return greetings. Hence the above prohibition.
Ta'anit 14b states that it is proper to cover one's head with a cloak as mourners do. Nevertheless, neither the Rambam nor the Shulchan Aruch quotes this obligation (perhaps because even mourners did not generally observe this custom after the Talmudic era).
When a common person greets them, they may return the greeting - lest the person become offended (Rashi, Ta'anit 14b); but when doing so, they should respond
in a weak and concerned tone - so that he will appreciate that the greeting was not in place.
Halacha 9
The Torah scholars alone continue to fast, [beginning on the next] Monday, [and continuing on the following] Thursday and Monday [in this manner] until the month of Nisan - as determined in relation to the spring season - passes. This is not, however, required of the community. No more than these thirteen communal fasts are decreed because of a lack of rainfall.
When these individuals fast until Nisan passes, they are allowed to eat at night and are allowed to perform work, to wash, to anoint themselves, to engage in sexual relations, and to wear shoes as on other fast days. They do not fast on Rashei Chodashim, nor on Purim.
After the month of Nisan, as determined in relation to the spring season, passes - i.e., when the sun enters the sign of the bull - they should cease fasting. Since no rain has descended from the beginning of the year, rain in this season would be a sign of a curse.
Commentary Halacha 9
The Torah scholars alone continue to fast - The commentaries do not mention whether it is preferable that all the students of the Torah join in these fasts, as was stated in Halachah 1. One might presume, however, that they should. Indeed, the entire community should have been required to observe these fasts, and it is only because the Rabbis thought that this would be too difficult for them that they were released from this obligation.
[beginning on the next] Monday, [and continuing on the following] Thursday and Monday - As mentioned in the commentary on Chapter 1, Halachah 5, and in Halachah 3 of this chapter, there are opinions that maintain that if a cycle of fasts ends on Monday - as does the cycle of the seven communal fasts - the next cycle of fasts may be started on the Thursday of that week. Other opinions - and these are followed by the standard published text of the Mishneh Torah - maintain that all cycles of fasts begin on Monday. Hence, if a cycle of fasts ends on Monday, the next cycle begins on the following Monday.
This difference of opinion involves much more than one day, for these fasts are decreed in series of three. Thus, according to the opinion followed by the standard texts, the scholars would fast three days in every two weeks for the duration of the period. The other view, in contrast, would require them to fast on every Monday and Thursday.
[in this manner] until the month of Nisan - Ta'anit 1:7 states that these fasts should continue "until Nisan passes." In the Jerusalem Talmud's explanation of this Mishnah, it is explained that this refers to Nisan
as determined in relation to the spring season - which always begins in the month of Nisan. In Hilchot Kiddush HaChodesh 9:3, the Rambam defines the beginning of spring as the time the sun enters the zodiac constellation of the goat. This is the beginning of April according to the secular calendar.
passes. This is not, however, required of the community. No more than these thirteen communal fasts are decreed because of a lack of rainfall. -Ta'anit 14b considered thirteen fasts as the maximum a community should be required to undertake for this reason. More fasts would be considered an excessive burden. (Significantly, according to Kabbalah, the number thirteen is identified with God's attributes of mercy.)
As mentioned in the commentary on Chapter 1, Halachah 4, this limit applies only regarding fasts decreed because of a lack of rain. When communal fasts are decreed because of other distressing circumstances, we should continue fasting until our prayers are answered.
When these individuals fast until Nisan passes, they are allowed to eat at night - i.e., the fast begins at dawn. See Chapter 1, Halachah 8.
and are allowed to perform work, to wash, to anoint themselves, to engage in sexual relations, and to wear shoes as on other fast days. -These restrictions apply only on Yom Kippur, Tish'ah B'Av, and the latter ten fasts decreed because of a lack of rain.
They do not fast on Rashei Chodashim, nor on Purim. - As mentioned in Chapter 1, Halachah 9, an individual should not fast on these days. Although many individuals may participate in these fasts, they are still deemed individual - and not communal - fasts.
After the month of Nisan, as determined in relation to the spring season, passes - i.e. - one month after the spring season begins
when the sun enters the sign - i.e., the zodiac constellation
of the bull - This is at the beginning of the secular month of May.
they should cease fasting. Since no rain has descended from the beginning of the year, rain in this season would be a sign of a curse. -Since the land has already become parched, the rain will be of no benefit. For God to display His beneficence at such a time, after the time had passed when the rain could have helped, is a further sign of Divine disfavor (Rav Ovadiah of Bertinoro).
Halacha 10
Where does the above apply? In Eretz Yisrael and in similar lands.6 In contrast, in places where the rainy season begins before or after the seventeenth of Marcheshvan,7 when the time [for the rains] arrives and no rain descends, individuals should [begin a series of three] fasts, [starting on] Monday [and continuing on the following] Thursday and Monday. They should not fast on Rashei Chodashim, Chanukah, or Purim.8
Halacha 11
[The following laws apply to] all the communal fasts decreed in the diaspora: It is permitted to eat during the night,11 and they are governed by the same laws as other fasts.12 A communal fast resembling Yom Kippur is decreed only inEretz Yisrael,13 and only because of [a lack of] rain.14 This refers to the latter ten fasts - i.e., the middle series of three fasts and the final series of seven fasts.
| FOOTNOTES | |
| 1. |
The Rambam, based on his interpretation of Ta'anit 14a, does not consider the nature of the situation during the first two sets of fasts serious enough to warrant that these women fast. During these seven fasts, in contrast, the drought has become a real danger. Hence, they are also required to fast.
This ruling is not accepted by many other authorities. Most follow Rashi's interpretation of the passage, which requires these women to fast during the second set of three fasts only. The rationale for that ruling is that he feels that the drought has already become serious enough to warrant their fasting during the second set of three fasts. In principle, these women should also fast during the final seven fasts, but the Rabbis felt that such a long period of fasting would be too taxing for them. Hence, they restricted their fasts to the second set alone. This is the ruling quoted by the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 575:5).
|
| 2. |
The same applies to other individuals who are ill and would suffer from the fast.
|
| 3. |
It is significant to mention the statement of the Ramah (Orach Chayim, ibid.), "It is forbidden for them to be stringent with themselves and fast."
|
| 4. |
Because of the severity of the situation, the leniencies that applied in the previous sets of fasts were withdrawn, and the men of the priestly watch who were not required to serve in the Temple that day were required to complete the fast. Even those who were required to serve in the Temple on that day (the men of the beit av) were obligated to fast for a portion of the day.
|
| 5. |
Nevertheless, with the exception of the factors mentioned in the following halachah, these fasts are also not more severe. Hence, the leniencies with regard to work, washing, anointing oneself, and wearing shoes mentioned in the previous halachah also apply.
|
| 6. |
As mentioned, in Eretz Yisrael, the rainy season should begin at the start of Marcheshvan.
|
| 7. |
The Mishnah Berurah 575:24 states that this applies even if a country's rainy season begins after Shavuot. Note also Hilchot Tefillah 2:16-17, in which the Rambam discusses the question of requesting rain in lands other than Eretz Yisrael. This question is particularly relevant in regard to countries in the southern hemisphere.
|
| 8. |
For individual fasts should not be held on these days.
|
| 9. |
This is approximately the time between the conclusion of the three fasts begun on the seventeenth of Cheshvan, and the beginning of the second series of fasts after Rosh Chodesh Kislev. (See Kessef Mishneh.)
|
| 10. |
As explained in the following halachah, there are, however, certain differences in the severity of the fasts.
|
| 11. |
Until dawn. See Chapter 1, Halachah 8.
|
| 12. |
See Halachah 9. Thus, there are no prohibitions against work, washing, anointing oneself, sexual relations, and wearing shoes on these fasts.
|
| 13. |
Ta'anit 11b states, "There is no communal fast in Babylon other than Tish'ah B'Av" - i.e., in Babylon, there is no fast as severe as Yom Kippur, with the exception of Tish'ah B'Av. Significantly, Tosafot (loc. cit.) and Rashi (Pesachim 54b) explain that this refers to the land of Babylon, where rains were always plentiful and there was never a need for fasts.
The Rambam - and other commentaries and authorities, including the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 575:10) - explain that the law which applies to Babylon, applies to the entire diaspora. It is not that there can be no need for a communal fast of this nature, but rather that, outside of Eretz Yisrael, the Jewish court lacks the authority to declare such a fast. (See the Jerusalem Talmud,Ta'anit 2:1.)
The Ramban explains that the reason for the lack of authority is that there is no Nasi in the diaspora, and the declaration of a communal fast would require his approval. The Rashba states that the lack of authority stems from the lack of judges who have received the semichah(ordination) extending back in a chain to Moses. (See Hilchot Sanhedrin, Chapter 4.) According to these opinions, even in Eretz Yisrael today it is impossible to ordain communal fasts of this nature. Note the gloss of the Birkei Yosef on the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 575), where this concept is discussed and a rationale is given for fasting in Eretz Yisrael today.
(Homiletically, it can be explained that the unity necessary to establish a community is possible only in Eretz Yisrael. In contrast, in the diaspora our greater involvement with material affairs prevents the establishment of true oneness among our people.)
|
| 14. |
Thus, such severe fasts are not ordained for any of the other difficulties mentioned in the second chapter. Although the Ramban differs with the Rambam on this point, the Rambam's view is accepted as halachah.
|
Tum'at Met - Chapter 18
Halacha 1
The following rules apply when a person held one hand over a corpse and one hand over keilim or he touched a corpse and held his hand over keilim. If each of his hands cover a handbreadth of space, the keilim are impure. If they are smaller, they are pure.
Similarly, if there are two buildings near each other and there is a portion of a corpse the size of half an olive in each of them and a person inserted one hand into one building and the other into the second building, if each of his hands cover a handbreadth of space, he has joined the impurity together. Everything is considered as one ohel and he and the buildings are impure. If they are smaller, he does not join the impurity together.
Halacha 2
When a person looks out from a window and leans over impurity, he conveys impurity to the house in which he is located. The entire house becomes impure. If he was lying on the doorstep, part of his body being in the house and part being outside the house and impurity was positioned above the portion outside the house, the house is impure, because a person is hollow and the upper portion of his body is a handbreadth high. Since impurity was held over him, it is as if he stood over it and he conveys the impurity.
Similarly, if there was impurity within a house and pure people stood over the portion of a man lying outside, over the doorstep, they are impure. The rationale is that he is considered as if he is covering impurity and a person conveys impurity, but does not intervene against it, as we explained.
Halacha 3
The following rules apply when the people carrying a corpse passed under anexedra, one of them closed the door to a house and locked it with a key so that the house would not become impure or if there was a person inside or outside who closed the door. If the door could stand close by itself, the house is pure. If not, the house is impure. The rationale is that in the latter situation, it was the person who intervened in the face of ritual impurity. As we explained, a person and keilim convey ritual impurity and do not intervene in the face of it.
Halacha 4
When an oven standing in a house has a dome-shaped opening that extends outside, if people carrying a corpse carried it over the opening that extends outside, the oven is impure, but the house is pure. The rationale is that the oven is not upraised above the ground so that it would bring impurity to the house.
When an oversized closet standing in an entrance opens to the outside and there is impurity in it, the house is pure. When there is impurity in the house, what is in the closet is impure, because it is open in the entrance and it is the nature of impurity to depart and not to enter. If its drawer was extended behind it, projecting less than a handbreadth, and could not be separated from the closet and there was impurity there opposite the boards of the roof of the house, the house is pure. The rationale is that even though it projects outward, it cannot be separated and it does not extend a handbreadth. This applies provided it is a handbreadth by a handbreadth and a handbreadth in height. If the drawer does not have an empty space of a handbreadth, the impurity is considered as flush within the house and the house is impure.
If the closet was standing in the house itself and there was impurity in it or in a chest within it, even though there is not an opening of a handbreadth through which the impurity could depart, the house is impure. If there is impurity in the house, everything in the closet is pure. The rationale is that the nature of impurity is to depart and not to enter.
Halacha 5
If there are keilim between the closet and the ground, between it and the wall, or between it and the ceiling, they are impure if there is a handbreadth of empty space there. If not, they are pure, because we considered it is if the beams of the ceiling descend and close the space between it and the closet.
Halacha 6
If there is impurity under the closet, between it and the earth, between it and the boards of the ceilings, or between it and the wall, the house is impure whether there is an open space of a handbreadth or not.
If the closet was standing under the open air and there was impurity in it, thekeilim within the breadth of its walls are pure. If there is impurity within the breadth of its walls, the keilim inside of it are pure.
Halacha 7
All the slanted walls of tents are considered as the tents themselves.
What is implied? When a tent slants downward and ends within a fingerbreadth of the ground and there is impurity in the tent, the keilim under the slanted side are impure. If there is impurity under the slanted wall, the keilim in the tent are impure.
If there is impurity within the slanted wall, one who touches its inner side contracts impurity that lasts a week. One who touches its outer side contracts impurity that lasts until the evening, for the outer side of the slanting wall is considered as an k'li that touches a tent that has become impure.
If there is impurity on the outer side of the slanted wall, one who touches its outer side contracts impurity that lasts a week. One who touches the inner side of the slanting wall contracts impurity that lasts until the evening.
If there was half an olive-sized portion of a corpse inside the tent and half behind it, one who touches it - whether from inside or outside - contracts impurity that lasts until the evening. The tent itself contracts impurity that lasts for seven days.
Halacha 8
If the edges of the tent were spread out on the ground and there was impurity on the ground under an edge of the tent spread out or above it, the impurity pierces through and ascends, pierces through and descends.
Tum'at Met - Chapter 19
Halacha 1
The following rules apply with regard to a beehive-like container lying on the ground, in the entrance of a building with its opening facing the outside and an olive-sized portion of a corpse under or on top of the portion outside the building. Whatever is directly under or above the olive-sized portion below or above the container is impure. Whatever is in its inner space is pure except ank'li that is directly above or below the impurity. The building is pure.
If there is impurity in the building, only the building is impure, but keilim that are in the container or under it or above it outside of the building are pure. If there was impurity in the container, everything is impure, i.e., everything in the building and everything in the container, everything above it and everything below it that is opposite the impurity, as we explained.
If the container was raised a handbreadth above the ground and there was impurity under it, in the building, or above it, everything is impure, i.e., everything in the building, everything below it and everything above it. Whatever is in its inner space, by contrast, is pure except an k'li that is directly above or below the impurity. If there was impurity in the container, everything is impure, i.e., everything in the container and everything in the building, everything below it and everything above it. The rationale is that keilim or people who become anohel over impurity or who have impurity above them convey impurity and do not intervene in the face of it, as we explained.
When does the above apply? When the container is an k'li and hollow. Different laws apply, however, if it was damaged and broken open and the open portion was plugged with straw and thus it is not considered as an k'li, or it was filled with straw so there was not an empty space of a handbreadth by a handbreadth and a handbreadth high, but instead, it was stuffed and there was not an empty space of a handbreadth in one place. If it was a handbreadth raised above the ground and there was impurity under it or in the building, the building and all the space under it are impure, because everything constitutes one ohel. Its inner space and anything on top of it on the outside of the building are pure, because it is considered an ohel of wood and it is not a container. If there was impurity inside of it, only what is inside of it is impure. If the impurity was above it, the space above it until the heavens is impure.
If such a container was placed on the ground, it opened to the outside, and an olive-sized portion of a corpse was under it, the space under it until the depths is impure. If the impurity was above it, the space above it until the heavens is impure. If there was impurity in the building, only the building is impure. If there is impurity within the container, only its inner space is impure.
Halacha 2
When a beehive-like container is lying on the ground in the entrance to a building, it opens up to the inside of the building, it is intact and hollow and there is an olive-sized portion of a corpse below it or above it, everything that is directly below the olive-sized portion of impurity or over it is impure. Everything that is in its inner space is impure except those keilim that are directly above or directly below the impurity and the building is pure.
If it was raised a handbreadth above the ground and there was impurity under it, in it, above it, or in the building, everything is impure: everything that is in the building and everything under it, because it and the building constitute one ohel.
If it was damaged and broken opened and the open portion was plugged with straw or stuffed, was raised a handbreadth above the ground and there was impurity under it, in the building, or in it, everything is impure except the articles above it. If the impurity was above it, the space above the impurity until the heavens is impure, but its inner space is pure and the space under it, the building, and everything in them is pure. Since it is not an k'li, it intervenes in the face of impurity.
If such a container
Halacha 3
The following laws apply when there is a beehive-like container inside a building, it fills the entire height of the building, its opening is positioned toward the ceiling of the building, and it reaches the ceiling so that there is less than a handbreadth of space between it and the ceiling. If there is impurity in it, the building is impure. If there is impurity in the building, its contents are pure. The rationale is that when there is less than a handbreadth of open space, it is the nature of impurity to depart towards the building, but not to enter the container.
This law applies whether the container was standing upright or leaning on its side, with its opening to the wall and there was less than a handbreadth between it and the wall, whether there was one beehive-like container or two beehive-like containers, one above the other, and there was not a handbreadth of empty space between the upper container and the ceiling or the upper container and the wall.
When such a container was standing in the entrance to a building with its opening facing upward and there was less than a handbreadth between it and the lintel, if there is impurity in it, the building is pure. If there is impurity in the building, the contents of the container are impure. The rationale is that it is the nature of impurity to depart and not to enter.
Halacha 4
The following laws apply when there is a hollow beehive-like container that is intact and resting on its side in the open and there is an olive-sized portion of a corpse below it or above it. Anything that is directly above or directly below the olive-size portion is impure. Whatever is within its inner space, is pure except what is directly above or below the impurity. Whatever is not directly above or below the impurity inside the container is pure. If there is impurity inside of it, everything is impure: everything inside of it and everything below the container or above it that is directly above or below the impurity.
If it was raised a handbreadth above the ground and there was impurity under it or above it, everything that is below it and everything that is above it is impure, but everything that is inside of it is pure except an k'li that is directly above or below the impurity.
If there is impurity inside of it, everything is impure, everything inside of it, everything below it, and everything resting upon it from above. The rationale is that keilim convey ritual impurity, but do not intervene in the face of it, as we explained. Accordingly, if this beehive-like container that was lying on the earth was damaged and then plugged with straw or it is an oversized wooden container and there is an olive-sized portion from a corpse under it, anything below it until the depths is impure. If the impurity is on top of it, anything above it until the heavens is impure. If the impurity is inside of it, only the keilim inside of it are impure.
If such a container was raised a handbreadth above the earth that an oversized wooden container is considered as an ohel and not as an k'li. Therefore, it intervenes in the face of impurity.
Halacha 5
When an intact beehive-like container was resting on its base in the open space and there was impurity under it, inside of it, or on top of it, the impurity pierces through and ascends and pierces through and descends. If, however, it was raised a handbreadth above the ground, covered, or standing upside down and there was impurity below it, in it, or above it, everything is impure: everything inside of it, everything below it, everything above it if the impurity was below it, for an k'li conveys ritual impurity and does not intervene in the face of it, as we explained.
Accordingly, if the container was damaged and plugged with straw and there is impurity under it, in it, or above it, the impurity pierces through and ascends and pierces through and descends. If it was raised a handbreadth above the ground
Halacha 6
If there is a camel standing in the open space and there was impurity below it, the keilim above it are pure. If there is impurity above it, the keilim under it are pure. If it was lying down and there was impurity under it, the impurity pierces through and ascends and pierces through and descends. Similarly, if there was impurity flush under its foot or above its foot, the impurity pierces through and ascends and pierces through and descends.
We already explained in Hilchot Nizirut that if a nazirite and an olive-size portion of a corpse were both under a camel, a bed, or another similar k'li, even though he contracts impurity that lasts seven days, he does not shave. From this, we can derive that all of the impurity mentioned with regard to an ohel created by a person, an animal, or an k'li have their source in the words of the Sages. Some of them are part of the Oral Tradition and others are decrees and safeguards. Therefore a nazirite does not shave because of any of these impurities and one is not liable for karet for entering the Temple or partaking of consecrated food. All of the statements regarding the impurity conveyed in this manner are relevant only with regard to the ritual impurity of terumah and sacrificial foods, as we explained.
Tum'at Met - Chapter 20
Halacha 1
There are three conditions that protect an entity located under the same ohelas a corpse from contracting impurity: a sealed covering, an ohel, and the fact that something was swallowed. Being swallowed prevents pure entities from contracting impurity and prevents impurity that was swallowed from departing and spreading that impurity. In contrast, a sealed cover and an ohel prevent pure entities from contracting impurity, but they do not prevent the impurity from departing and causing other entities to become impure.
What is implied? If there is a container that is sealed in a house that is impure, everything in the container is pure. Similarly, if there is an ohel in such a house, all of the keilim in that ohel are pure. If, however, there was an olive-sized portion from a corpse placed in containers that were sealed close and then they were brought into a house, the house is impure. Similarly, if there was one ohelinside another ohel and an olive-sized portion of a corpse in the inner ohel, all of the keilim in the outer ohel are impure.
Halacha 2
In contrast, when entities are swallowed, pure articles are prevented from contracting impurity and impurity is prevented from spreading.
What is implied? When a dog ate the flesh of a human corpse and entered a house, the house is pure. When a ring was swallowed, even by a person, and then the person who swallowed it entered an ohel where a corpse was located, even though the person contracts the impurity that lasts seven days, the ring remains pure. Similarly, the fact that an entity was swallowed by a beast, a domesticated animal, a fowl, or a fish prevents it from contracting impurity as long as they are alive. If, however, they die and the flesh of a human corpse orkeilim are in their intestines, it is as if these articles were not swallowed.
Halacha 3
If the majority of one of a fowl's determining signs for ritual slaughter was slit or the majority of both an animal's signs were sli, even though the living beings were still in their death throes, they are considered as dead. They no longer protect the keilim that are swallowed in their intestines, nor do they prevent impurity that is in their intestines from spreading outward and imparting impurity.
Halacha 4
How long may the impurity remain in their intestines and still impart impurity when they die? For a dog three full days, i.e., three twenty-four hour periods. For other wild beasts, domesticated animals, fowl, or fish, one full day.
When does the above apply? When the flesh of the corpse remains in their intestines. If, however, a wolf swallows a baby and then expels it through its anus, the flesh is pure, but the bones are impure.
Halacha 5
Entities that are swallowed are protected from impurity only in the digestive organs of a living creature, as we explained. Those, however, which are concealed in the body of a k'li or a stone are not protected.
What is implied? If there is a spindle in which a metal hook was concealed, into which the iron point was driven, or a brick in which a ring was found that were brought into an ohel in which a corpse was found, the articles are impure even though they are not visible and they are covered. The rationale is that articles encompassed by keilim are protected from impurity only by a sealed cover.
Similarly, if there was a pin or a ring covered in the clay used to reinforce an oven and the oven became impure because it was in an ohel where a corpse was located or a dead crawling animal fell into its inner space, the keilim in the clay become impure. If, however, the oven was sealed close, since the oven itself is pure, the keilim that are covered up by the clay on top of it are also pure.
Similarly, if a jug is sealed closed and there is a needle or a ring in the clay sealing at its side, they are impure, and they are not saved in an ohel where a corpse was located. If they were in the sealing of the jug over its opening and they could be seen from the inside of the jug, but do not enter its inner space, they are pure. If they enter its inner space, they are impure. The rationale is that an earthenware container that is sealed close does not protect the keilimthat are inside of it, as will be explained. If there is a layer of clay, even as thin as a garlic shell under them, they are pure, even though they project into the inner space of the jug.
Halacha 6
All keilim that are embedded in the earth of a house are impure and they are not protected. The rationale is that the earth of an ohel has the same status of the ohel itself until the very depths of the earth. This does not apply with regard to its walls, as will be explained.
What is implied? If there is impurity in a house and there are keilim embedded in its earth, even if they are deeper than 100 cubits, they are impure. If, however, there is a handbreadth by a handbreadth by a handbreadth of empty space in their place, they are pure, because it is as if they are in another ohel. To what can the matter be compared? To a loft that is built over a house. If there is impurity in the loft, the house is pure.
Similarly, if one divided a house with a partition that runs parallel to the ground and there was impurity between the partition and the earth, the keilim that are in the house above the partition are impure, because an ohel does not prevent the spread of impurity, as we explained. If there was impurity above the partition, the keilim between the partition and the earth are pure, because theohel protects them. If there is not a space of a handbreadth between the partition and the ground, the keilim are considered as if they are embedded in the earth of the house and they are impure.
Halacha 7
The following laws apply when there is a covered drain extending under a house and the drain is a handbreadth by a handbreadth by a handbreadth and its opening outside the house is a cubic handbreadth in size. If there is impurity in the drainage channel, the house is pure. If there is impurity in the house, the contents of the drainage channel are pure.
If the drain was a cubic handbreadth in size, but its opening on the outside was not a cubic handbreadth in size and there was impurity in it, the house is impure. If there is impurity in the house, the contents of the drainage channel are pure. The rationale is that it is not the way of impurity to enter a secondary entity like a drain.
If the drain was not a cubic handbreadth in size and its opening on the outside was not a cubic handbreadth in size and there was impurity in it, the house is impure. It is as if the impurity is in the house. If there is impurity in the house, the contents of the drain are impure. The rationale is that they are considered like keilim buried in the earth and the earth of a house has the same status as the house itself until the very depths.
Halacha 8
When there are two jugs, each containing half of an olive-sized portion of a corpse and each is sealed close, placed within a house, they are pure, because a partial measure of impurity does not impart impurity. The house is impure, because there is an olive-sized portion of a corpse in the house and a sealed cover does not prevent the spread of impurity outward. The jugs do not become impure because of the house, because they are sealed close. If one of the jugs are open, it and the house are impure and the other jug is pure.
Similarly, if there are two rooms open to each other and to the main room of a house and there is half of an olive-sized portion of a corpse in the inner room or the middle room and half of an olive-sized portion of a corpse in the outer room, the outer room is impure. The inner room and the middle room are pure. If there is half of an olive-sized portion of a corpse in the inner room and half of an olive-sized portion of a corpse in the middle room, the inner room is pure. The middle and the outer rooms are impure, because it is the way of impurity to depart and not to enter.
• Thursday, Tammuz 15, 5775 · 02 July 2015
"Today's Day"
Sunday Tamuz 15 5703
Torah lessons: Chumash: Pinchas, first parsha with Rashi.
Tehillim: 77-78.
Tanya: However, all this (p. 351) ...on laws of Fasts. (p. 351).
My father writes in one of his maamarim: Fatness of the body can result from the spiritual pleasure and delight derived from G-dliness. They say of R. Nachum of Chernobil that he became corpulent from answering amein y'hei sh'mei raba.
Daily Thought:
Not About You
If you want to change anything in this world, you need to know it’s all in your hands.
If the change you want to make is going to be real, you need to know it’s not about you.
It’s about what has to be done.[Kfar Chabad #1406, p. 31.]
____________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment