Today's Laws & Customs:
• "The Three Weeks"
During the Three Weeks, from 17th of Tamuz to the 9th of Av, we commemorate the conquest of Jerusalem, the destruction of the Holy Temple and the dispersion of the Jewish people.
Weddings and other joyful events are not held during this period; like mourners, we do not cut our hair, and various pleasurable activities are limited or proscribed. (The particular mourning customs vary from community to community, so consult a competent halachic authority for details.)
Citing the verse (Isaiah 1:27) "Zion shall be redeemed with mishpat [Torah] and its returnees with tzedakah," the Rebbe urged that we increase in Torah study(particularly the study of the laws of the Holy Temple) and charity during this period.
Links:
The Three Weeks
Today in Jewish History:
• Passing of R. Shlomo of Karlin (1792)
Rabbi Shlomo (1738-1792), Chassidic Rebbe in the town of Karlin, Russia (near Pinsk), was killed in the pogroms which accompanied the Polish uprising against Russia.
Daily Quote:
"And you shall overlay [the Ark] with pure gold, inside and outside" (Exodus 25:11). This is to teach us that any Torah scholar whose inside is not like his outside is no Torah scholar.[Talmud, Yoma 72b]
Daily Study:
Chitas and Rambam for today:
Chumash: Pinchas, 5th Portion Numbers 28:1-28:15 with Rashi
• Chapter 28
1The Lord spoke to: Moses, saying: אוַיְדַבֵּר יְהֹוָה אֶל משֶׂה לֵּאמֹר:
2Command the children of Israel and say to them: My offering, My food for My fire offerings, a spirit of satisfaction for Me, you shall take care to offer to Me at its appointed time. בצַו אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם אֶת קָרְבָּנִי לַחְמִי לְאִשַּׁי רֵיחַ נִיחֹחִי תִּשְׁמְרוּ לְהַקְרִיב לִי בְּמוֹעֲדוֹ:
Command the children of Israel: What is stated above? “Let the Lord…appoint” (27:16). The Holy One, blessed is He, said to him, “Before you command me regarding My children, command My children regarding Me.” This is analogous to a princess who was about to depart from the world and was instructing her husband about her children, [and he replied, “Before you instruct me about them, instruct them about me,”] as it is stated in Sifrei Pinchas 24. צו את בני ישראל: מה אמור למעלה (כז, טז) יפקוד ה'. אמר לו הקב"ה עד שאתה מצוני על בני, צוה את בני עלי. משל לבת מלך שהיתה נפטרת מן העולם והיתה מפקדת לבעלה על בניה וכו', כדאיתא בספרי:
My offering: This refers to the blood. — [Sifrei Pinchas 25] קרבני: זה הדם:
My food: This refers to the sacrificial parts, as it says, “the priest shall burn them [the fat-portions] on the altar; it is the food of the fire-offerings” (Lev. 3:16). - [Sifrei Pinchas 25] לחמי: אלו אימורין, וכן הוא אומר (ויקרא ג, טז) והקטירם הכהן המזבחה לחם אשה:
My fire-offerings: which are put on the fires of My altar. לאשי: הנתנין לאשי מזבחי:
you shall take care: The Kohanim , Levites, and Israelites shall stand over them [to watch them]; hence they instituted the ma’amodoth [representatives of the people who were present at the sacrificial services]. — [Sifrei Pinchas 26, Taanith 26a] תשמרו: שיהיו כהנים ולוים וישראלים עומדין על גביו מכאן למדו ותקנו מעמדות:
at its appointed time: Each day is the appointed time prescribed for the continual offerings. — [see Sifrei Pinchas 26] במועדו: בכל יום הוא מועד התמידים:
3And you shall say to them: This is the fire offering which you shall offer to the Lord: two unblemished lambs in their first year each day as a continual burnt offering. גוְאָמַרְתָּ לָהֶם זֶה הָאִשֶּׁה אֲשֶׁר תַּקְרִיבוּ לַיהֹוָה כְּבָשִׂים בְּנֵי שָׁנָה תְמִימִם שְׁנַיִם לַיּוֹם עֹלָה תָמִיד:
And you shall say to them: This is an admonition to the [rabbinical] court. — [Sifrei Pinchas 27] ואמרת להם: אזהרה לבית דין:
two…each day: Heb. שְׁנַיִם לְיוֹם. [To be understood] according to its simple meaning [that two sacrifices were to be offered up every day]. Primarily, however, it comes to teach that they should be slaughtered opposite the sun [also known as יוֹם]; the continual sacrifice of the morning to the west, and the one of the afternoon to the east of the rings [set in the floor of the Temple courtyard]. — [Yoma 62b] שנים ליום: כפשוטו ועיקרו בא ללמד שיהיו נשחטין כנגד היום, תמיד של שחר במערב ושל בין הערבים במזרחן של טבעות:
4The one lamb you shall offer up in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer up in the afternoon. דאֶת הַכֶּבֶשׂ אֶחָד תַּעֲשֶׂה בַבֹּקֶר וְאֵת הַכֶּבֶשׂ הַשֵּׁנִי תַּעֲשֶׂה בֵּין הָעַרְבָּיִם:
the one lamb: Even though this is already stated in the portion of Ve’attah Tetzaveh ; “This is what you shall offer [upon the altar…The one lamb you shall offer up in the morning]” (Exod. 29:38, 39), that was an instruction for the days of the investitures [of the kohanim], whereas here He commanded it for all generations. את הכבש אחד: אף על פי שכבר נאמר בפרשת ואתה תצוה (שמות כט, לח) וזה אשר תעשה וגו', היא היתה אזהרה לימי המלואים, וכאן צוה לדורות:
5And one tenth of an ephah of fine flour for a meal offering, mixed with a quarter of a hin of crushed [olive] oil. הוַעֲשִׂירִית הָאֵיפָה סֹלֶת לְמִנְחָה בְּלוּלָה בְּשֶׁמֶן כָּתִית רְבִיעִת הַהִין:
fine flour for a meal-offering: The meal-offering of the libations [which accompanied the sacrifice]. סלת למנחה: מנחת נסכים:
6A continual burnt offering, as the one offered up at Mount Sinai, for a spirit of satisfaction, a fire offering to the Lord. ועֹלַת תָּמִיד הָעֲשֻׂיָה בְּהַר סִינַי לְרֵיחַ נִיחֹחַ אִשֶּׁה לַיהֹוָה:
offered up at Mount Sinai: Like those offered up during the days of the investitures (Exod. 29:38-43). Another interpretation: “offered up at Mount Sinai” : the continual burnt offering is compared to the continual offering of Mount Sinai, the one offered before the giving of the Torah, about which it is written, “he put it [the blood] into the basins” (Exod. 24:6). This teaches us that it [the continual burnt offering] requires a vessel [for its blood]. — [Torath Kohanim , Tzav 18:8] העשיה בהר סיני: כאותן שנעשו בימי המלואים. דבר אחר העשויה בהר סיני, הקיש עולת תמיד לעולת הר סיני אותה שנתקרבה לפני מתן תורה שכתוב בה (שמות כד, ו) וישם באגנות מלמד שטעונה כלי:
7Its libation shall be one quarter of a hin for each lamb, to be poured on the holy [altar] as a libation of strong wine to the Lord. זוְנִסְכּוֹ רְבִיעִת הַהִין לַכֶּבֶשׂ הָאֶחָד בַּקֹּדֶשׁ הַסֵּךְ נֶסֶךְ שֵׁכָר לַיהֹוָה:
Its libation: of wine. ונסכו: יין:
on the holy: They shall be poured on the altar. בקדש הסך: על המזבח יתנסכו:
a libation of strong wine: Intoxicating wine, [this comes] to exclude wine straight from the winepress [which has not fermented]. — [B.B. 97a] נסך שכר: יין המשכר פרט ליין מגתו:
8And the second lamb you shall offer up in the afternoon. You shall offer it up with the same meal offering and libation as the morning [sacrifice], a fire offering with a spirit of satisfaction to the Lord. חוְאֵת הַכֶּבֶשׂ הַשֵּׁנִי תַּעֲשֶׂה בֵּין הָעַרְבָּיִם כְּמִנְחַת הַבֹּקֶר וּכְנִסְכּוֹ תַּעֲשֶׂה אִשֵּׁה רֵיחַ נִיחֹחַ לַיהֹוָה:
a spirit of satisfaction: It is gratifying for Me that I spoke, and My will was carried out. — [Zev . 46b, Sifrei Pinchas 38] ריח ניחח: נחת רוח לפני שאמרתי ונעשה רצוני:
9And on the Sabbath day, two unblemished lambs in the first year, and two tenths fine flour as a meal offering, mixed with oil, and its libation. טוּבְיוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת שְׁנֵי כְבָשִׂים בְּנֵי שָׁנָה תְּמִימִם וּשְׁנֵי עֶשְׂרֹנִים סֹלֶת מִנְחָה בְּלוּלָה בַשֶּׁמֶן וְנִסְכּוֹ:
10[This is] the burnt offering of each Sabbath on its Sabbath, in addition to the continual burnt offering and its libation. יעֹלַת שַׁבַּת בְּשַׁבַּתּוֹ עַל עֹלַת הַתָּמִיד וְנִסְכָּהּ:
The burnt offering of each Sabbath on its Sabbath: But not the burnt offering of this Sabbath on another Sabbath. For if they did not offer one up on this Sabbath, I might think that two should be offered up on the following Sabbath. Scripture therefore says, “on its Sabbath” to instruct us that if its day passes, its offering is canceled. — [Sifrei Pinchas 40] עלת שבת בשבתו: ולא עולת שבת זו בשבת אחרת, הרי שלא הקריב בשבת זו שומע אני יקריב שתים לשבת הבאה, תלמוד לומר בשבתו, מגיד שאם עבר יומו בטל קרבנו:
in addition to the continual burnt offering: This refers to the additional [musaf] offerings, besides those two lambs of the continual burnt offering. And it teaches us that they [the additional sacrifices] may be offered only between the two continual offerings. Similarly, in the case of all the additional offerings it says, “In addition to the continual burnt offering” for this teaching. — [Sifrei Pinchas 40] על עלת התמיד: אלו מוספין, לבד אותן שני כבשים של עולת התמיד. ומגיד שאין קרבין אלא בין שני התמידין, וכן בכל המוספין נאמר על עולת התמיד לתלמוד זה:
11And on the beginning of your months, you shall offer up a burnt offering to the Lord: two young bulls, one ram, and seven lambs in the first year, [all] unblemished. יאוּבְרָאשֵׁי חָדְשֵׁיכֶם תַּקְרִיבוּ עֹלָה לַיהֹוָה פָּרִים בְּנֵי בָקָר שְׁנַיִם וְאַיִל אֶחָד כְּבָשִׂים בְּנֵי שָׁנָה שִׁבְעָה תְּמִימִם:
12Three tenths fine flour as a meal offering, mixed with oil for each bull, and two tenths fine flour as a meal offering, mixed with oil for each ram. יבוּשְׁלשָׁה עֶשְׂרֹנִים סֹלֶת מִנְחָה בְּלוּלָה בַשֶּׁמֶן לַפָּר הָאֶחָד וּשְׁנֵי עֶשְׂרֹנִים סֹלֶת מִנְחָה בְּלוּלָה בַשֶּׁמֶן לָאַיִל הָאֶחָד:
Three tenths: As is the case with the libations brought with a bull, for thus they are fixed in the portion dealing with libations [see 15:9]. ושלשה עשרונים: כמשפט נסכי פר, שכן הן קצובין בפרשת נסכים:
13And one tenth of fine flour mixed with oil as a meal offering for each lamb. A burnt offering with a spirit of satisfaction, a fire offering to the Lord. יגוְעִשָּׂרֹן עִשָּׂרוֹן סֹלֶת מִנְחָה בְּלוּלָה בַשֶּׁמֶן לַכֶּבֶשׂ הָאֶחָד עֹלָה רֵיחַ נִיחֹחַ אִשֶּׁה לַיהֹוָה:
14And their libations: a half of a hin for each bull, a third of a hin for each ram, and a quarter of a hin for each lamb wine; this is the burnt offering of each new month in its month, throughout the months of the year. ידוְנִסְכֵּיהֶם חֲצִי הַהִין יִהְיֶה לַפָּר וּשְׁלִישִׁת הַהִין לָאַיִל וּרְבִיעִת הַהִין לַכֶּבֶשׂ יָיִן זֹאת עֹלַת חֹדֶשׁ בְּחָדְשׁוֹ לְחָדְשֵׁי הַשָּׁנָה:
This is the burnt offering of each new month in its month: However, once the day passes, its offering is canceled, and there is no way to make it up. — [Sifrei Pinchas 43] זאת עלת חדש בחדשו: שאם עבר יומו בטל קרבנו ושוב אין לו תשלומין:
15And one young male goat for a sin offering to the Lord; it shall be offered up in addition to the continual burnt offering and its libation. טווּשְׂעִיר עִזִּים אֶחָד לְחַטָּאת לַיהֹוָה עַל עֹלַת הַתָּמִיד יֵעָשֶׂה וְנִסְכּוֹ:
And one young male goat…: All the additional-offering goats were brought to atone for defiling the Sanctuary and it holy sacrifices, as is outlined in the Tractate of Shevuoth (9a). The young male goat [brought] on the first day of the month differs insofar as with regard to it Scripture says, “to the Lord.” This teaches you that it atones for a case where there is no awareness [of the person’s uncleanness] either before [entering the Temple or eating sacrificial food] or after [the sin has been committed]. The only One aware of the sin is the Holy One, blessed is He. We derive [the law of] the other young male goats from this one. In the Aggadah , it is expounded thus: The Holy One, blessed is He, said, “Bring atonement for Me because I diminished [the size of] the moon.” - [Shev. 9a] \b it shall be offered up in addition to the continual burnt offering\b0 This entire offering [not just the young male goat]. ושעיר עזים וגו': כל שעירי המוספין באין לכפר על טומאת מקדש וקדשיו, הכל כמו שמפורש במס' שבועות (דף ט א). ונשתנה שעיר ראש חדש שנאמר בו לה', ללמדך שמכפר על שאין בו ידיעה לא בתחילה ולא בסוף, שאין מכיר בחטא אלא הקב"ה בלבד, ושאר השעירין למדין ממנו. ומדרשו באגדה אמר הקב"ה, הביאו כפרה עלי על שמעטתי את הירח:
and its libation: [The phrase] “and its libation” does not refer to the young male goat because sin-offerings have no libations. על עלת התמיד יעשה: כל הקרבן הזה:Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 106 - 107
• Chapter 106
The psalmist continues the theme of the previous psalm, praising God for performing other miracles not mentioned previously, for "who can recount the mighty acts of God?" Were we to try, we could not mention them all!
1. Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord for He is good, for His kindness is everlasting.
2. Who can recount the mighty acts of the Lord, or proclaim all His praises?
3. Fortunate are those who preserve justice, who perform deeds of righteousness all the time.
4. Remember me, Lord, when You find favor with Your people; be mindful of me with Your deliverance;
5. to behold the prosperity of Your chosen, to rejoice in the joy of Your nation, to glory with Your inheritance.
6. We have sinned as did our fathers, we have acted perversely and wickedly.
7. Our fathers in Egypt did not contemplate Your wonders, they did not remember Your abundant kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, at the Sea of Reeds.
8. Yet He delivered them for the sake of His Name, to make His strength known.
9. He roared at the Sea of Reeds and it dried up; He led them through the depths, as through a desert.
10. He saved them from the hand of the enemy, and redeemed them from the hand of the foe.
11. The waters engulfed their adversaries; not one of them remained.
12. Then they believed in His words, they sang His praise.
13. They quickly forgot His deeds, they did not wait for His counsel;
14. and they lusted a craving in the desert, they tested God in the wilderness.
15. And He gave them their request, but sent emaciation into their souls.
16. They angered Moses in the camp, and Aaron, the Lord's holy one.
17. The earth opened and swallowed Dathan, and engulfed the company of Abiram;
18. and a fire burned in their assembly, a flame set the wicked ablaze.
19. They made a calf in Horeb, and bowed down to a molten image.
20. They exchanged their Glory for the likeness of a grass-eating ox.
21. They forgot God, their savior, Who had performed great deeds in Egypt,
22. wonders in the land of Ham, awesome things at the Sea of Reeds.
23. He said that He would destroy them-had not Moses His chosen one stood in the breach before Him, to turn away His wrath from destroying.
24. They despised the desirable land, they did not believe His word.
25. And they murmured in their tents, they did not heed the voice of the Lord.
26. So He raised His hand [in oath] against them, to cast them down in the wilderness,
27. to throw down their progeny among the nations, and to scatter them among the lands.
28. They joined themselves to [the idol] Baal Peor, and ate of the sacrifices to the dead;
29. they provoked Him with their doings, and a plague broke out in their midst.
30. Then Phineas arose and executed judgement, and the plague was stayed;
31. it was accounted for him as a righteous deed, through all generations, forever.
32. They angered Him at the waters of Merivah, and Moses suffered on their account;
33. for they defied His spirit, and He pronounced [an oath] with His lips.
34. They did not destroy the nations as the Lord had instructed them;
35. rather, they mingled with the nations and learned their deeds.
36. They worshipped their idols, and they became a snare for them.
37. They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons.
38. They spilled innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan; and the land became guilty with blood.
39. They were defiled by their deeds, and went astray by their actions.
40. And the Lord's wrath blazed against His people, and He abhorred His inheritance;
41. so He delivered them into the hands of nations, and their enemies ruled them.
42. Their enemies oppressed them, and they were subdued under their hand.
43. Many times did He save them, yet they were rebellious in their counsel and were impoverished by their sins.
44. But He saw their distress, when He heard their prayer;
45. and He remembered for them His covenant and He relented, in keeping with His abounding kindness,
46. and He caused them to be treated mercifully by all their captors.
47. Deliver us, Lord our God; gather us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to Your Holy Name and glory in Your praise.
48. Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, forever and ever. And let all the people say, "Amen! Praise the Lord!"
Chapter 107
This psalm speaks of those who are saved from four specific perilous situations(imprisonment, sickness, desert travel, and sea travel) and must thank God, for their sins caused their troubles, and only by the kindness of God were they saved. It is therefore appropriate that they praise God and tell of their salvation to all.
1. Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His kindness is everlasting.
2. So shall say those redeemed by the Lord, those whom He redeemed from the hand of the oppressor.
3. He gathered them from the lands-from east and from west, from north and from the sea.
4. They lost their way in the wilderness, in the wasteland; they found no inhabited city.
5. Both hungry and thirsty, their soul languished within them.
6. They cried out to the Lord in their distress; He delivered them from their afflictions.
7. He guided them in the right path to reach an inhabited city.
8. Let them give thanks to the Lord, and [proclaim] His wonders to the children of man,
9. for He has satiated a thirsting soul, and filled a hungry soul with goodness.
10. Those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, bound in misery and chains of iron,
11. for they defied the words of God and spurned the counsel of the Most High-
12. He humbled their heart through suffering; they stumbled and there was none to help.
13. They cried out to the Lord in their distress; He saved them from their afflictions.
14. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and sundered their bonds.
15. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His kindness, and [proclaim] His wonders to the children of man,
16. for He broke the brass gates and smashed the iron bars.
17. Foolish sinners are afflicted because of their sinful ways and their wrongdoings.
18. Their soul loathes all food, and they reach the gates of death.
19. They cried out to the Lord in their distress; He saved them from their afflictions.
20. He sent forth His command and healed them; He delivered them from their graves.
21. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His kindness, and [proclaim] His wonders to the children of man.
22. Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and joyfully recount His deeds.
23. Those who go down to the sea in ships, who perform tasks in mighty waters;
24. they saw the works of the Lord and His wonders in the deep.
25. He spoke and caused the stormy wind to rise, and it lifted up the waves.
26. They rise to the sky, plunge to the depths; their soul melts in distress.
27. They reel and stagger like a drunkard, all their skill is to no avail.
28. They cried out to the Lord in their distress, and He brought them out from their calamity.
29. He transformed the storm into stillness, and the waves were quieted.
30. They rejoiced when they were silenced, and He led them to their destination.
31. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His kindness, and [proclaim] His wonders to the children of man.
32. Let them exalt Him in the congregation of the people, and praise Him in the assembly of the elders.
33. He turns rivers into desert, springs of water into parched land,
34. a fruitful land into a salt-marsh, because of the wickedness of those who inhabit it.
35. He turns a desert into a lake, and parched land into springs of water.
36. He settles the hungry there, and they establish a city of habitation.
37. They sow fields and plant vineyards which yield fruit and wheat.
38. He blesses them and they multiply greatly, and He does not decrease their cattle.
39. [If they sin,] they are diminished and cast down through oppression, misery, and sorrow.
40. He pours contempt upon distinguished men, and causes them to stray in a pathless wilderness.
41. He raises the needy from distress, and makes their families [as numerous] as flocks.
42. The upright observe this and rejoice, and all the wicked close their mouth.
43. Let him who is wise bear these in mind, and then the benevolent acts of the Lord will be understood.
Tanya: Igeret HaTeshuva , end of Chapter 7• Lessons in Tanya
• Thursday, Tammuz 22, 5775 · July 9, 2015
Today's Tanya Lesson
Igeret HaTeshuva , end of Chapter 7
ואף מי שלא עבר על עון כרת וגם לא על עון מיתה בדי שמים
Even one who has never violated a sin punishable by excision or a sin incurring death by divine agency,
שהוא הוצאת זרע לבטלה וכהאי גוונא
such as vain emission and the like,
אלא שאר עבירות קלות
but other less severe sins,
אף על פי כן, מאחר שהן פוגמים בנשמה ונפש האלקית
nonetheless, since they cause a defect in the spirit and Divine soul,
וכמשל פגימת ופסיקת חבלים דקים כנ״ל
as in the analogy of the fine strands of rope that are defective or severed, as noted above — in ch. 5, which describes the 613 strands that together comprise the lifeline of the soul, and when one transgresses one of the 613 commandments, one of these strands is severed,
הרי בריבוי החטאים יכול להיות פגם כמו בלאו אחד שיש בו כרת ומיתה
therefore, through an accumulation of sins there can eventually be a defect as grave as from one prohibition involving excision or death.
ואפילו בכפילת חטא אחד פעמים רבות
This would be true even when a single sin is repeated numerous times.1
Far from merely damaging the selfsame strand repeatedly, the repetition of even the same sin weakens and jeopardizes the rope as a whole.
כמו שהמשיל הנביא החטאים לענן המאפיל אור השמש
In this manner the prophet compares sins to a cloud that dims the light of the sun.
כמו שנאמר: מחיתי כעב פשעיך
As the verse states,2 “I have erased your transgressions like a thick cloud” (that can dissipate).
הם עבירות חמורות, המבדילות בין פנימית השפעת שם הוי׳ ברוך הוא לנפש האלקית
This refers to the grave sins (3that are barriers) between the internal aspect of the power flowing forth from the Tetragrammaton, and the Divine soul.
כהבדלת ענן עב וחשוך המבדיל בין השמים לאר׳ ולדרים עליה, על דרך משל
This is like the separation of a thick, dark cloud that stands between the sun and the earth with its inhabitants.4
וכענן חטאתיך, הן עבירות קלות שאדם דש בעקביו
[The above verse continues:] “…and your sins like a cloud.” These are the lesser sins that man tramples under his heel,
המבדילות כהבדלת ענן קל וקלוש, על דרך משל
[sins] that obscure as does a thin and wispy cloud.
והנה, כמו שבמשל הזה, אם משים אדם נגד אור השמש בחלון מחיצות קלות וקלושות לרוב מאד, הן מאפילות כמו מחיצה אחת עבה, ויותר
In the illustration, if one obscures the sunlight streaming through a window with many fine and flimsy curtains, they will darken as much as one thick curtain will, and even more.
וככה ממש הוא בנמשל
This is exactly so in the analogue,
בכל עונות שאדם דש בעקביו
with all those cloud-like sins upon which man tramples indifferently, because they seem to be of little import: they obscure the Divine light by their multitudinous repetition as do many fine curtains, “darkening as much as one thick curtain will, and even more”;
ומכל שכן המפורסמות מדברי רז״ל, שהן ממש כעבודה זרה וגילוי עריות ושפיכות דמים
and certainly with those sins that our Sages often warned against, that are actually like idolatry, immorality and bloodshed.
כמו העלמת עין מן הצדקה
For example:5 ignoring the needy,
כמו שכתוב: השמר לך פן יהיה דבר עם לבבך בליעל וגו׳
concerning which Scripture writes,6 “Beware lest there be in your heart something unworthy….”
ובליעל היא עבודת אלילים וכו׳
Beliyaal (here translated “unworthy”) is used in reference to idolatry7..., from which we learn that ignoring the needy is likened to idolatry.
והמספר בגנות חבירו, היא לשון הרע, השקולה כעבודה זרה וגילוי עריות ושפיכות דמים
Or talebearing, the evil tongue, that is equated to idolatry, immorality, and bloodshed.8
וכל הכועס כאילו עובד עבודה זרה
Likewise, the vile-tempered is like the idolatrous,9
וכן מי שיש בו גסות הרוח
and so is the arrogant.10
וכהנה רבות בגמרא
There are many such cases described in the Talmud — of sins whose punishment is not as severe as that of idolatry and the like, but which nonetheless effect a similar spiritual blemish,
ותלמוד תורה כנגד כולן
and [the sin of neglecting] the study of the Torah equals them all.
כמאמר רז״ל: ויתר הקב״ה על עבודה זרה וכו׳
As our Sages assert,11 “G‑d has overlooked idolatry, [immorality and bloodshed, but has not overlooked the sin of neglecting Torah study].”
Thus, sins such as ignoring the needy, talebearing, and so on, though not carrying the punishment of excision or death by the hand of heaven, nonetheless sever the soul from its Divine source.
ולכן סידרו בקריאת שמע שעל המטה, לקבל עליו ד׳ מיתות בית דין וכו׳
For this reason it was ordained that in the course of Keriat Shema at the bedside12 one should accept the four executions of the court, and so on.
This acceptance is recited even by those who have never committed capital sins, because many other sins blemish the soul to the same degree as do those which are punishable by any of the four executions administered by the court.
מלבד שעל פי הסוד כל הפוגם באות יו״ד של שם הוי׳ כאילו נתחייב סקילה
Besides, according to Sod, the mystical dimension of the Torah, causing a defect in the yud of the Tetragrammaton is like incurring lapidation;
והפוגם באות ה״א כאילו נתחייב שריפה
causing a defect in the hei is like incurring burning;
ובאות וי״ו כאילו נתחייב הרג
[causing a defect] in the vav is like incurring the sword;
ובאות ה״א אחרונה כאילו נתחייב חנק
and [causing a defect in] the latter hei is like incurring strangulation.
והמבטל קריאת שמע פוגם באות יו״ד, ותפילין באות ה״א
Neglecting the Shema impairs the yud, and tefillin the hei,
וציצית באות וי״ו ותפלה באות ה״א וכו׳
tzitzit the vav, and prayer the latter hei, and so on.
We thus see that according to the Kabbalah the soul can be blemished through other sins just as by a capital sin. Undertaking the “four executions” clears the soul of these blemishes.
ומזה יוכל המשכיל ללמוד לשאר עונות וחטאים
From this a thinking man can infer for other sins and transgressions (The Rebbe adds: “…which one of the letters of the Tetragrammaton they are related to, and thus, to which manner of execution”),
וביטול תורה כנגד כולן
and for [the sin of] neglecting the study of the Torah, which is equivalent to them all.
All the above lends the thinking person a contrite heart, as he grows aware of the blemish caused even by his supposedly lesser sins.
This contrition is the second preparatory step along the “true and direct” path to the lower level of repentance. For contrition crushes the kelipot and sitra achra and enables a man to repent truthfully, earnestly regretting his past misdeeds and firmly resolving to better his future ways.
| FOOTNOTES | |
| 1. | Note of the Rebbe: “The proof of the Ran is well known (and it appears as an actual point of law in the Shulchan Aruch of the Alter Rebbe, Orach Chayim 328:16) — that the repeated transgression of a prohibition of the Torah involving a quantity that is less than the minimal punishable amount, is more serious than transgressing a prohibition that incurs death by lapidation! (Incidentally, this serves to prove (cf. below) that a multitude of seemingly lesser sins can ‘darken as much..., and even more.’)” |
| 2. | Yeshayahu 44:22. |
| 3. | Parentheses are in the original text. |
| 4. | Note of the Rebbe: “This phrase would appear to be superfluous. Possibly it relates to two details in the analogue: the lower hei (Malchut, earth); the divine soul (‘with its inhabitants’).” |
| 5. | Note of the Rebbe: “Ketubbot 68a.” |
| 6. | Devarim 15:9. |
| 7. | Note of the Rebbe: “Until here, as in the Gemara, loc. cit., and Sanhedrin 111b.” |
| 8. | Note of the Rebbe: “Arachin 15b.” |
| 9. | Zohar II, 182b; Rambam, Hilchot De‘ot 2:3. |
| 10. | Cf. Sotah 4b. |
| 11. | Introduction to Eichah Rabbah, beg. of Sec. 2; Yerushalmi, Chagigah 1:7. |
| 12. | Note of the Rebbe: “Even though it is not the function of Iggeret HaTeshuvah to explain the prayers, this comment is relevant here because one of the themes of the bedside Keriat Shema is stocktaking and teshuvah. (See also Part I, end of ch. 7.)” |
• Sefer Hamitzvos:
Thursday, Tammuz 22, 5775 · July 9, 2015
Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
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 108
The Purifying Waters of the Red Heifer
We are commanded regarding the laws of the Mei Nidah [the waters in which the ashes of the Red Heifer have been mixed]; the conditions under which they purify [one who is ritually impure as a result of contact with a corpse] and the conditions under which they cause ritual impurity [to the one who handles them].
The Purifying Waters of the Red Heifer
Positive Commandment 108
Translated by Berel Bell
The 108th mitzvah is that we are commanded to follow the laws regarding mei niddah:1 that in some cases it will make [something which was previously tameh] tahor, and in other cases make [something which was previously tahor] tameh, as explained in the section dealing with this mitzvah.2
You should be aware that the 13 forms of tumah listed above3 — namely, neveilah, sheratzim, foods, niddah, a woman who has given birth, a leprous person, a leprous garment, a leprous house, zav, zavah, semen, a deadly body, and mei niddah — as well as the purification procedure for each, are all explicitly stated in Scripture. Each mitzvah contains numerous verses, laws and conditions, as written in the Torah portions Vay'hi BaYom HaShemini,4 Ishah Ki Tazriah,5 Zos Tihiyeh,6 and Vayik'chu Eilechah Parah Adumah.7 These four Torah portions contain all the verses which speak of the forms of tumah.
However, the laws governing these forms of tumah in general, and the details regarding each one in particular are all found in Seder Taharos. Some categories are covered in particular tractates, such as tractate Taharos, Machshirim and Uktzin. These three tractates deal solely with, and were written to explain the tumah of foods. Any mention of other forms of tumah is incidental. Tractate Niddah includes the laws of tumas niddah, zavah, and a woman who has given birth. Tractate Kerisus also contains some laws of a woman who has given birth. Tractate Negaim contains the laws of leprous people, garments and houses. Tractate Zavim contains the laws regarding a zav, zavah and semen. Tractate Ohalos contains the laws of tumas meis. Tractate Parah contains the laws of mei niddah — when it conveys tumah and when taharah.
The tumah of neveilah and sheretz, however, are not limited to any particular tractates. Their laws are scattered throughout this Seder [i.e. Taharos], mostly and primarily in Keilim and Taharos. Tractate Ediyos also deals with many questions of this sort.
We have already written a commentary on this entire Sefer, i.e. Taharos,8 that makes it unnecessary to consult any other book for anything related to tumah and taharah.
FOOTNOTES
1.Well water which has the ashes of the red heifer mixed in. See P113.
2.See Hilchos Parah Adumah, Ch. 15. In general, when sprinkled on a person who is tameh, it will make him tahor. If the person was tahor, and the water was not yet used, it will make him tameh.
3.In the order of Sefer HaMitzvos, this mitzvah is the last among the forms of tumah (P96 — P108). In general, the Rambam writes by each mitzvah where in the Mishneh or Gemara it is discussed. Here, the Rambam lists the sources for all 13 mitzvos together.
4.Lev. 11.
5.Ibid., 12-13.
6.Ibid., 14-15.
7.Num. 19.
8.I.e. the Rambam's commentary to the Mishneh. ____________________________________________________
Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
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 108
The Purifying Waters of the Red Heifer
We are commanded regarding the laws of the Mei Nidah [the waters in which the ashes of the Red Heifer have been mixed]; the conditions under which they purify [one who is ritually impure as a result of contact with a corpse] and the conditions under which they cause ritual impurity [to the one who handles them].
The Purifying Waters of the Red Heifer
Positive Commandment 108
Translated by Berel Bell
The 108th mitzvah is that we are commanded to follow the laws regarding mei niddah:1 that in some cases it will make [something which was previously tameh] tahor, and in other cases make [something which was previously tahor] tameh, as explained in the section dealing with this mitzvah.2
You should be aware that the 13 forms of tumah listed above3 — namely, neveilah, sheratzim, foods, niddah, a woman who has given birth, a leprous person, a leprous garment, a leprous house, zav, zavah, semen, a deadly body, and mei niddah — as well as the purification procedure for each, are all explicitly stated in Scripture. Each mitzvah contains numerous verses, laws and conditions, as written in the Torah portions Vay'hi BaYom HaShemini,4 Ishah Ki Tazriah,5 Zos Tihiyeh,6 and Vayik'chu Eilechah Parah Adumah.7 These four Torah portions contain all the verses which speak of the forms of tumah.
However, the laws governing these forms of tumah in general, and the details regarding each one in particular are all found in Seder Taharos. Some categories are covered in particular tractates, such as tractate Taharos, Machshirim and Uktzin. These three tractates deal solely with, and were written to explain the tumah of foods. Any mention of other forms of tumah is incidental. Tractate Niddah includes the laws of tumas niddah, zavah, and a woman who has given birth. Tractate Kerisus also contains some laws of a woman who has given birth. Tractate Negaim contains the laws of leprous people, garments and houses. Tractate Zavim contains the laws regarding a zav, zavah and semen. Tractate Ohalos contains the laws of tumas meis. Tractate Parah contains the laws of mei niddah — when it conveys tumah and when taharah.
The tumah of neveilah and sheretz, however, are not limited to any particular tractates. Their laws are scattered throughout this Seder [i.e. Taharos], mostly and primarily in Keilim and Taharos. Tractate Ediyos also deals with many questions of this sort.
We have already written a commentary on this entire Sefer, i.e. Taharos,8 that makes it unnecessary to consult any other book for anything related to tumah and taharah.
FOOTNOTES
1.Well water which has the ashes of the red heifer mixed in. See P113.
2.See Hilchos Parah Adumah, Ch. 15. In general, when sprinkled on a person who is tameh, it will make him tahor. If the person was tahor, and the water was not yet used, it will make him tameh.
3.In the order of Sefer HaMitzvos, this mitzvah is the last among the forms of tumah (P96 — P108). In general, the Rambam writes by each mitzvah where in the Mishneh or Gemara it is discussed. Here, the Rambam lists the sources for all 13 mitzvos together.
4.Lev. 11.
5.Ibid., 12-13.
6.Ibid., 14-15.
7.Num. 19.
8.I.e. the Rambam's commentary to the Mishneh. ____________________________________________________
Positive Commandment 101
Ritual Impurity of a Metzora
The mitzvah regarding the ritual impurity of the metzora (a person suffering from tzaraat, a skin discoloration described in the Torah). This mitzvah includes all the laws applicable to this impurity: what types [of discolorations render a person] impure, and [what types do not]; which types of this impurity require quarantine, and which do not; the laws associated with the quarantine, i.e., shaving [the hair surrounding a tzaraat lesion in an area of hair]; and all other laws associate with tzaraat and the gradations of its impurity.
• 1 Chapter: Ishut Ishut - Chapter One The mitzvah regarding the ritual impurity of the metzora (a person suffering from tzaraat, a skin discoloration described in the Torah). This mitzvah includes all the laws applicable to this impurity: what types [of discolorations render a person] impure, and [what types do not]; which types of this impurity require quarantine, and which do not; the laws associated with the quarantine, i.e., shaving [the hair surrounding a tzaraat lesion in an area of hair]; and all other laws associate with tzaraat and the gradations of its impurity.
Ritual Impurity of a Metzora
Positive Commandment 101
Translated by Berel Bell
The 101st mitzvah is that we are commanded regarding the tumah of leprous person. This mitzvah includes all the laws regarding a leper — which cases are tameh and which tahor; when and when not the person is placed in quarantine; when shaving, known as tiglachas hanesek,1 is required along with the quarantine and the other details including how the tumah is conveyed.
FOOTNOTES
1.One shaves the hair surrounding the affected area to determine if it has grown.
Ishut - Chapter One
Halacha 1
Before the Torah was given, when a man would meet a woman in the marketplace and he and she decided to marry, he would bring her home, conduct relations in private and thus make her his wife. Once the Torah was given, the Jews were commanded that when a man desires to marry a woman, he must acquire her as a wife in the presence of witnesses. [Only] after this, does she become his wife. This is [alluded to in Deuteronomy 22:13]: "When a man takes a wife and has relations with her...."
Halacha 2
This process of acquisition fulfills [one of] the Torah's positive commandments.1The process of acquiring a wife is formalized in three ways: through [the transfer of] money, through [the transfer of a] formal document and through sexual relations.
[The effectiveness of] sexual relations and [the transfer of a] formal document have their origin in the Torah [itself], while [the effectiveness of transfer of] money is Rabbinic in origin.2
This process of acquisition is universally referred to as erusin ("betrothal") orkiddushin ("consecration"). And a woman who is acquired in any of these three ways is referred to as mekudeshet or me'ureset.
Halacha 3
Once this process of acquisition has been formalized and a woman has become mekudeshet, she is considered to be married even though the marriage bond has not been consummated and she has not entered her husband's home. Should anyone other than her husband engage in sexual relations with her, he is liable to be executed by the court. If her husband desires to divorce her, he must compose a get [a formal bill of divorce].
Halacha 4
Before the Torah was given, when a man would meet a woman in the marketplace, and he and she desired, he could give her payment, engage in relations with her wherever they desired, and then depart. Such a woman is referred to as a harlot.3
When the Torah was given, [relations with] a harlot became forbidden, as [Deuteronomy 23:18] states: "There shall not be a harlot among the children of Israel."4 Therefore, a person who has relations with a woman for the sake of lust, without kiddushin, receives lashes as prescribed by the Torah, because he had relations with a harlot.
Halacha 5
Whenever it is forbidden to engage in relations from the Torah, and engaging in relations makes one liable for karet - i.e., the [forbidden relationships] mentioned in Parashat Acharei Mot, such as a person's mother, his sister, his daughter and the like - these relations are called arayot, and each particular forbidden relationship is called an ervah.5
Halacha 6
There are other women with whom relations are forbidden according to the Oral Tradition; these prohibitions are Rabbinic in origin. These women are calledshniyot (prohibitions of a secondary nature). There are twenty such women, including:
a) one's maternal grandmother; this prohibition continues upward without interruption: a person's maternal grandmother's maternal grandmother - and also those further removed - are also forbidden;
b) the mother of a person's maternal grandfather; this prohibition applies to her alone [and not her forbears];
c) a person's paternal grandmother; this prohibition continues upward without interruption: a person's paternal grandmother's maternal grandmother - and also those further removed - are also forbidden;
d) the mother of his paternal grandfather; this prohibition applies to her alone [and not her forbears];
e) the wife of his paternal grandfather; this prohibition continues upward without interruption; the wife of our Patriarch Jacob is forbidden to any one of us;
f) the wife of his maternal grandfather; this prohibition applies to her alone;
g) the wife of his father's maternal brother;
h) the wife of his mother's brother, whether a paternal or a maternal brother;
i) his son's daughter-in-law; this prohibition continues downward without interruption; any one of our wives is forbidden to our Patriarch Jacob;
j) the daughter-in-law of one's daughter; this prohibition applies to her alone;
k) the daughter of one's son's daughter; this prohibition applies to her alone;
l) the daughter of one's son's son; this prohibition applies to her alone;
m) the daughter of one's daughter's daughter; this prohibition applies to her alone;
n) the daughter of one's daughter's son; this prohibition applies to her alone;
o) the daughter of the son of one's wife's son; this prohibition applies to her alone;
p) the daughter of the daughter of one's wife's daughter; this prohibition applies to her alone;
q) the maternal grandmother of one's wife's father; this prohibition applies to her alone;
r) the paternal grandmother of one's wife's mother; this prohibition applies to her alone;
s) the maternal grandmother of one's wife's mother; this prohibition applies to her alone;
t) the paternal grandmother of one's wife's father; this prohibition applies to her alone.
Thus, the categories of shniyot that continue without interruption are four: one's maternal grandmother - this continues upward without interruption; one's paternal grandmother - this continues upward without interruption; the wife of one's paternal grandfather - this continues upward without interruption; and the wife of one's son's son - this continues downward without interruption.
Halacha 7
All relations with women that are forbidden by the Torah, but that are not punishable by karet, are referred to as issurei lavin (prohibitions forbidden by negative commandments); they are also referred to as issurei kedushah(prohibitions [that encourage] holiness).
They are nine: relations between a widow and a High Priest;6 those between a divorcee, a zonah,7 or a chalalah8 and either a High Priest or an ordinary priest,9 those between a bastard10 and a native-born Jewish male or female, those between a native-born Jewish woman and a Moabite or Ammonite convert,11 those between a man and his divorcee after she has been married to another person,12 those between a native-born Jewish woman and a man with crushed testicles or a cut member,13 and those between a yevamah and a man other than [one of her deceased husband's brothers] while she is still obligated to them.14
According to Rabbinic decree, an equation is established between a divorcee and a woman who undergoes chalitzah, and the latter is also forbidden [to engage in relations] with a priest. The Rabbis also placed netinim in the same status as bastards. In Hilchot Issurei Bi'ah, we will explain who the netinimare.15
Halacha 8
There are certain relationships for which there is a prohibition resulting from a positive commandment [issurei aseh], but they are not prohibited by a negative commandment. There are three such prohibitions: the first and second generations of Egyptian or Edomite converts, both men and women [to all native-born Jews and Jewish women], and a woman who is not a virgin to a High Priest.
In these instances, there are no verses that state "He shall not enter [the congregation of God]..." or "he may not take...." The prohibition [against the marriage of the Edomite and Egyptian converts] is instead derived [fromDeuteronomy 23:9], which states that "in the third generation they may enter the congregation of God." This implies that the first and second generations may not enter [this marriage group].
Similarly, from [the positive commandment, Leviticus 21:13]: "He [the High Priest] shall marry a virgin," we can derive that he is forbidden to marry a woman who is not a virgin. A prohibition that is derived from a positive commandment has the status of a positive commandment.
| FOOTNOTES | |
| 1. |
Sefer HaMitzvot (Positive Commandment 213) and Sefer HaChinuch (Mitzvah 552) include this as one of the Torah's 613 commandments.
|
| 2. |
The Ra'avad and others object to this statement, noting that Kiddushin 4b derives the concept that the transfer of money is an effective means of formalizing a marriage bond from a gezerah shavah, a correlation between two verses in the Torah, indicating that this practice also has its source in the Torah.
The Maggid Mishneh and the Kessef Mishneh draw attention to the Rambam's statements in Sefer HaMitzvot (General Principle 2), which state that any law that is not explicitly stated in the Torah, but rather derived through the Thirteen Principles of Biblical exegesis, is considered to be Rabbinic in origin (midivrei soferim). This classification does not, however, in any way diminish the status of this practice, and it is as if it were explicitly stated in the Torah. Thus, a marriage bond formalized through the transfer of money has the same status as one formalized through either of the other means mentioned by the Rambam.
Rav Kapach differs and states that the Rambam altered the text in his later years, and the correct version states, "All three are from the Torah." In explanation, he draws attention to the Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah (Kiddushin 1:1) and to one of the Rambam's responsa, and on this basis differs with the above principle.
He maintains that whenever the Rambam uses the expression midivrei soferim, he means that the practice is Rabbinic in origin and does not have the status of Torah law. The only practices that are considered to be ordained by the Torah are those explicitly stated in the Torah or mentioned by the Sages as having the status of Torah law.
In this context, he explains the Rambam's approach. Originally [as evidenced by the Rambam's statements in Sefer HaMitzvot (Positive Commandment 213)], the Rambam thought that sexual relations are the only kiddushin that are effective according to the Torah. For not only the effectiveness of the transfer of money, but also that of the transfer of a legal document is derived by the Sages only through Biblical exegesis. Afterwards, on the basis of certain passages that state that the effectiveness of the transfer of a legal document has the status of a Torah practice, the Rambam changed his opinion and wrote that the transfer of a document is also effective according to the Torah. This opinion is reflected in the Commentary on the Mishnah and the original version of the Mishneh Torah. Even later, the Rambam accepted the opinion that the effectiveness of the transfer of money also stems from the Torah itself. This is reflected in Chapter 3, Halachah 20, and the corrected text mentioned above.
(See Birkat Avraham, Responsum 44, in which the Rambam's son, Rabbenu Avraham, substantiates Rav Kapach's version of the Mishneh Torah.)
|
| 3. |
The Ra'avad and others differ and maintain that a woman is not considered to be a harlot unless she is a professional prostitute. The difference between this approach and the Rambam's involves only the severity of the prohibition. Both agree that sexual relations outside the context of marriage are forbidden. With regard to a pilegesh, a woman one designates as a sexual partner but who is not consecrated as a wife, see Hilchot Melachim 4:4.
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| 4. |
Sefer HaMitzvot (Negative Commandment 355) and Sefer HaChinuch (Mitzvah 570) include this as one of the Torah's 613 commandments.
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| 5. |
These include incestuous and adulterous relationships as mentioned in Leviticus, Chapter 18. The forbidden relationships that are punishable by execution are discussed in Hilchot Issurei Bi'ah, Chapter 1, and those for which one is liable for karet and for which lashes are given are discussed in Hilchot Sanhedrin, Chapter 19.
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| 6. |
See Leviticus 21:14.
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| 7. |
Hilchot Issurei Bi'ah 18:1 defines this term as meaning either a woman who is not Jewish, a Jewish woman who has engaged in relations with a man she is forbidden to marry, or one who engages in relations with a challal (a male born from relations between a priest and a woman he is forbidden to marry).
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| 8. |
A woman who engages in relations with a priest despite a prohibition against doing so, or a female born from relations between a priest and a woman he is forbidden to marry (Hilchot Issurei Bi'ah19:1).
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| 9. |
See Leviticus 21:7, 21:14.
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| 10. |
A bastard is defined as a person born from any of the forbidden sexual relations that are punishable by execution or karet, with the exception of relations with a woman in the niddah state. This term does not refer to a child born out of wedlock. Deuteronomy 23:3 forbids a bastard from marrying a native-born Jewish male or female.
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| 11. |
See Deuteronomy 23:4.
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| 12. |
See Deuteronomy 24:4.
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| 13. |
See Deuteronomy 23:2.
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| 14. |
A yevamah is a childless widow, who is obligated to marry one of her deceased husband's brothers or to be discharged of that obligation through the rite of chalitzah. Until she and her brother-in-law fulfill this rite, she is forbidden to marry anyone else. (See Deuteronomy 25:5-10.)
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| 15. |
The netinim are the Givonites, who were forbidden to marry into the Jewish people even after their conversion by Joshua. King David reinforced the ban against them. (See Hilchot Issurei Bi'ah12:22-23.)
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Parah Adummah - Chapter 14
Halacha 1
When an earthenware container that held the ashes of a red heifer was touched by the carcass of a crawling animal on its side, it is pure, for an earthenware container does not contract impurity from its outside, even with regard to this purification process. If, however, one placed the container on top of the carcass of the crawling animal, the ashes contract impurity, even though the container remains pure, as indicated by Numbers 19:9: states: "And he shall place them down outside the camp in a pure place," and this is not a pure place.
Not only does placing the ashes on the carcass of a crawling animal render them impure, they contract impurity even if they are placed on food which is a secondary derivative of impurity or the like which are less substantial types of impurity originating in Rabbinic decrees. For it is written: "A pure place," i.e., that they should not be placed on any impurity whatsoever.
Similar rulings apply if an earthenware container holding the ashes of the red heifer was placed on an aperture in an impure house. If the container was hanging within the inner space of the house, the ashes contract impurity even if the aperture was not a handbreadth by a handbreadth in size. If it was not hanging into the inner space of the house, it is impure if the aperture is a handbreadth by a handbreadth in size.
Halacha 2
If the container was made of stone, the ashes are pure, whether the aperture is a handbreadth by a handbreadth or not.
Halacha 3
Similarly, when a container that has the ashes of the red heifer or sanctified water was sealed closed and placed under the same shelter as a corpse, the ashes and/or the water are impure. The rationale is that articles associated with the purification process of the red heifer are not protected by a closed seal, for with regard to them, it is written: "a pure place," and this is not a pure place.
Halacha 4
Similarly, sacrificial foods and liquids are not protected from impurity by being in a sealed container. Nevertheless, water that had not been sanctified and an empty container that was purified for use in this purification process are protected by a sealed container.
When does the above apply? When the owner was pure. If, however, the owner contracted impurity, the water is disqualified, no matter where it is located.
What is implied? If a person's water was in a sealed container and he and it were both under the same shelter as a corpse, they are both impure. If he is outside and water that is not sanctified is inside, they are both pure. If he is inside and the water is outside, just as he becomes impure, his water is also disqualified.
Halacha 5
The following laws apply when a person who had purified himself for the sake of this purification process was standing on an oven or a similar implement that had not been purified for this process and he extended his hands outside the space of the oven while holding a receptacle containing the water for this purification process. Similar laws apply if a bar was placed over an oven and receptacles holding water for this purification process were hanging from either side. The receptacles are impure, because they are not in a place that is pure for this purification process. Since they are supported by the oven, it is as if they are placed on top of it.
If, however, one was standing on an oven while holding an empty receptacle that was purified for this purification process or water that was not yet sanctified, their prior state of purity remains unchanged. If one was standing away from an oven and stretched out his hand and took a container that had water sanctified for this purification process and carried it over the oven, it remains pure. Similarly, if when one sprinkled this water, it passed over an impure place, e.g., a place where one sits or lies that became impure or the like, it is pure.
Halacha 6
When a receptacle containing water for the purification process involving the ashes of the red heifer touches a receptacle containing consecrated food, the receptacle that contains the sanctified water and everything inside of it is considered as impure. The receptacle containing sacrificial food, by contrast, remains pure. Similarly, if a person who purified himself for this purification process touched both of these receptacles, each one with one of his hands while they are placed on the ground, the receptacle containing the sanctified water, becomes impure. The rationale is that the person who had purified himself for this process contracted impurity when touching a container that had not been purified for this purpose, as we explained, and then, he imparts impurity to the sanctified water.
Halacha 7
If he lifted up both receptacles, each with a different hand, they are both impure. The receptacle containing the sanctified water becomes impure because it was touched by a person who touched a container that was not purified for the sake of this purification process. And the one containing the sacrificial food became impure because it was lifted up by a person who became impure by carrying sanctified water. For the water conveys impurity when carried, because it contracted impurity from the receptacle containing sacrificial food.
For this reason, if the receptacle containing the sacrificial food was wrapped in paper and he lifted it up in the paper without touching the receptacle itself, and he lifted up the receptacle containing the sanctified water in his other hand, they are both pure. He did not contract impurity with regard to the purification process involving the ashes of the red heifer since he did not touch the other receptacle. If, however, he touched the receptacle containing the sacrificial food with his hand, they both contract impurity even though the receptacle containing the sanctified water was wrapped in paper.
Halacha 8
If he moved the two receptacles with his hands simultaneously without touching them, they are both pure. For a receptacle that was not purified for this purification process does not impart impurity to a person who purified himself for that purpose unless he touches it with his hands unless it is fit to contract impurity when a zav lies or sits upon it, as we explained.
Halacha 9
In all of the situations where there is a question with regard to impurity and the ruling is that one is pure with regard to terumah, as will be explained, he is also considered pure with regard to this purification process. With regard to all of the situations where terumah is left for its status to be determined, were such a situation to occur with regard to the water or the ashes designated for this process, they should be disposed of.
If pure entities were used on the above utensils or if a person became involved in such a situation where the doubt causes the ashes and/or the water to be disposed of, the status of the pure entities is left in the balance. Rafters are not considered as utensils. Hence, they are pure with regard to terumah, sacrificial foods, and the purification process involving the ashes of the red heifer.
Halacha 10
The following laws apply when a dried fig that is terumah fell into water sanctified for this purification process and then it was taken out and eaten. If it is the size of an egg, the water becomes impure whether the fig was impure or pure. The rationale is that all foods, even sanctified foods, are not pure with regard to this purification process. One who partakes of it is liable for death, because he partook of terumah after contracting impurity from the sanctified water. If the fig is not the size of an egg, the water remains pure, because food does not impart impurity to other entities unless it is the size of an egg. This applies with regard to terumah, to sacrificial foods, and to this purification process.
Parah Adummah - Chapter 15
Halacha 1
Any person or article which touches sanctified water for a purpose other than sprinkling contracts impurity. The person does not impart impurity to his clothes, however, even when touching the water, as Numbers 19:21 states: "One who touches the sprinkling water will become impure until the evening." Thus it is derived that the sprinkling water is a primary source of impurity according to Scriptural Law and even the slightest amount of it imparts ritual impurity.
If there is enough water to sprinkle, it imparts impurity when touched and when carried and one who touches it or carries it for a purpose other than sprinkling imparts impurity to his clothes when touching it or carrying it until he separates himself from the source of his impurity, as implied by ibid. which states: "One who sprinkles the water shall launder his garments." Now this is not speaking about someone who sprinkles water on an impure person, for if he purifies an impure person, one can certainly infer that he himself remains pure. According to the Oral Tradition, it was taught that the Torah's statement "One who sprinkles the water shall launder his garments" was stated only to teach the measure that imparts impurity; i.e., that if one touches or carries a measure of sanctified water that could be sprinkled for an intent other than sprinkling, he is impure and he imparts impurity to his garments according to Scriptural Law.
How much is a measure of sprinkling? Enough to immerse the tops of the stalks of hyssop in the water.
When does the statement that the water for this purification imparts impurity apply? When one touched it or carried it for an intent other than sprinkling before they were used for their mitzvah. After they were used for their mitzvah, by contrast, they do not impart impurity at all.
What is implied? One immersed the hyssop in the sanctified water and sprinkled it on an impure person or keilim and the water was dripping and descending from the impure person to the ground or when he sprinkled the water, water was sprinkled on the ground or on a pure person, that water is pure and one who touches or carries it is pure.
If one immersed the hyssop to sprinkle water on an object that is not susceptible to ritual impurity, the water which drips from it are fit to be sprinkled again, as we explained. Therefore they impart the impurity of sanctified water to one who touches or carries them because they were not used for their mitzvah, for the immersion of the hyssop was for the intent of sprinkling on something that is not susceptible to ritual impurity.
Halacha 2
The water for the purification process involving the ashes of the red heifer does not impart impurity to anything before its mitzvah is performed unless it is pure and acceptable to be used for sprinkling. Different rules apply, however, if this water was disqualified - e.g., other water was mixed with it, an animal drank from it, or other factors that disqualify it arose. If a person who is pure with regard to terumah touches it, he contracts impurity whether he touches it with his hand or with other parts of his body. If a person who is pure with regard to this purification process touches it, even with his hand, he remains pure, as he was originally.
Halacha 3
If sanctified water contracted impurity and a person who was pure with regard to terumah touched it, whether with his hands or with his body, after it contracted impurity, he contracts impurity. If a person who had purified himself for this purification process touches it with his hands, he contracts impurity. If he touches it with the remainder of his body, he remains pure, as he was originally.
Halacha 4
The following rules apply if water from a spring, a mikveh, or fruit juice falls into sanctified water. If the majority is sanctified water, the mixture imparts impurity when carried. If the majority is fruit juice, it does not impart impurity. If it is half and half, it imparts impurity.
The following laws apply if the ashes of the red heifer become mixed with ashes from an oven and a person sanctified water with the entire mixture. If the majority of the mixture are the ashes of the red heifer, the water imparts impurity like sanctified water. If the majority are oven ashes, the water does not impart impurity when touched, but does impart impurity when carried.
Halacha 5
When acceptable ashes were sprinkled on water that was not fit to be sanctified and then a person who was pure with regard to terumah touched the water with his hands or with his body, he contracts impurity. If a person who purified himself for this purification process touched such water, even with his hands, he remains pure, as he was originally.
Halacha 6
When sanctified water is disqualified, it should not be mixed with mud, so as not to create a stumbling block for others, lest they touch the mud and become impure. For the sanctified water does not become nullified in the mud, as implied by Numbers 19:9: "It is a sin-offering."
Halacha 7
When a cow drinks from sanctified water, its meat is pure even if it was slaughtered within 24 hours of drinking, as can be inferred from ibid.: "as safekeeping, as water for sprinkling." Implied is that when the water is kept safe, it is not nullified. If, however, a cow drank from it, it is nullified, because it was not kept safe.
Halacha 8
When water is sprinkled on a person from a window from which water is sprinkled on many individuals, he entered the Temple, and then it is discovered that the water was disqualified, he is exempt. The rationale is that one can assume that the water that is sprinkled on many people is acceptable. Hence, he is considered as one who transgressed because of factors beyond his control.
If, however, water was sprinkled on a person from the window of a private individual and he entered the Temple and afterwards, it was discovered that the water was disqualified, he is obligated to bring an adjustable guilt-offering. The rationale is that he should have investigated the status of the water and only afterwards, entered the Temple.
Even if people would slip on water that had been sprinkled from a window from which water is sprinkled on many individuals and was flowing on the ground and they would tread on them, they would enter the Temple without being concerned that they had been disqualified.
Halacha 9
When a person sprinkles such water, using a hyssop that is impure with regard to this sacrificial process, if it is the size of an egg, the water is impure and the sprinkling is unacceptable. If it is less than the size of an egg, the water is pure, but the sprinkling is unacceptable. This hyssop can impart impurity to another, and that other, to still another, even when the chain reaches 100, because levels of impurity are not counted with regard to the purification process involving the ashes of the red heifer.
Halacha 10
When a person lifts up an k'li upon which this water has been sprinkled and enough water to be sprinkled remains upon it, he is pure. Once the water has performed its mitzvah, it does not impart impurity, as we explained.
Tum'at Tsara`at - Chapter 1
HILCHOT TUM'AT TZARA'AT
The Laws of the Impurity Imparted by Tzara'at
Included in this text are eight commandments: six positive commandments and two negative commandments. They comprise the following:
1) to rule with regard to tzara'at that afflicts a human according to the laws stated in the Torah;
2) not to cut off the signs of tzara'at impurity;
3) not to shave the hair of a blemish of tzara'at impurity;
4) that a person afflicted by tzara'at should be distinguished by having his clothes torn, his hair covered, and cloaking himself until his lips;
5) the purification of a person afflicted by tzara'at;
6) that a person afflicted by tzara'at should shave all his hair when he is purified;
7) the laws pertaining to tzara'at on garments;
8) the laws pertaining to tzara'at on homes.
These mitzvot are explained in the ensuing chapters.
Halacha 1
When there is a tzara'at affliction of human skin, the skin turns white, becoming as white as the membrane of an egg or whiter. Whiteness that is not as white as this membrane is not deemed tzara'at, but is instead a bohak.
Halacha 2
There are four shades of white that appear on human skin that cause a person to be deemed afflicted by tzara'at:
a) very intense white that resembles snow on human skin; it is called baheret.
b) a white that is slightly darker than that; it resembles the cleaned wool of a newborn sheep; it is called si'ait;
c) a white that is slightly darker than si'ait; it resembles the lime of the Temple building; it is a derivative of the baheret and is called sapachat;
d) a white that is slightly darker than the lime of the Temple building and which resembles the membrane of an egg; it is a derivative of the si'ait and is also called sapachat.
Thus one has learnt that the shade that is like the lime of the Temple building is a sapachat of the baheret and the shade that is like the membrane of an egg is a sapachat of the si'ait. For the meaning of the term sapachat is subsidiary. Based on the above, our Sages said: "The shades of tzara'at blemishes are two which are four:" baheret and its subsidiary and si'ait and its subsidiary.
Halacha 3
These four shades of tzara'at blemishes can all be joined with each other and are considered as a single blemish, whether this produces a more lenient ruling or a more stringent ruling, whether at the beginning of the observation of the blemish or at the conclusion of the seven days, whether after the person afflicted with tzara'at was released from impurity or definitely categorized as afflicted.
What is implied? Whether a blemish is entirely white like snow or like the lime of the Temple building or like clean wool or like the membrane of an egg or a blemish was varied in appearance, part of its whiteness was the shade ofbaheret and part was like the shade of si'ait, and part like the shade ofsapachat, they are all considered as one appearance.
If so, why did the Sages count them and say, "The shades of tzara'at blemishes are two which are four?" So that one will understand the different appearances. For any priest who does not recognize the different appearances and their names when he is taught and informed, should not assess a blemish until he understands them and recognizes them and can say: "This is baheret and this is its subsidiary. This is si'ait and this is its subsidiary."
Halacha 4
If in one of these four shades of a white hue there is a slight redness mixed in, it is also considered as a tzara'at blemish, as Leviticus 13:19 states: "a whitebaheret with redness." This also applies to si'ait and to the subsidiary of si'aitand to the subsidiary of baheret. This hue that is a mixture of whiteness with a little redness is called petuch.
What is the appearance of petuch in these four shades? It is as if there are four cups filled with milk. In the first was mixed two drops of blood; in the second, there were four drops; in the third, eight drops; and in the fourth, sixteen drops. The petuch of a baheret is the fourth shade; the petuch of si'ait is the shade of the third cup; the petuch of the sapachat of a baheret is the shade of the second cup, and the petuch of the sapachat of si'ait is the shade of the first cup.
Halacha 5
All of these shades - whether the white or the petuch - can be joined with each other and are considered as a single appearance. This applies whether the blemish was entirely white or part of it was white and part with redness, it is all considered as a single blemish whether this leads to a more lenient ruling or a more stringent one.
Halacha 6
Any appearance of tzara'at on the skin of human flesh is not considered as a blemish and does not impart impurity unless the appearance of the blemish is deep, under the surface of the skin of the flesh. The intent is not only a blemish that can be felt as deep in the flesh, but also one that appears such; it appears like the sun's light that appears to the eye to be deeper than a shadow. If, however, the white shade or the petuch is on the same level as the remainder of the flesh or raised above the flesh, it is not a tzara'at blemish, but rather a rash like other rashes that erupt on the body.
Halacha 7
The minimum measure for all blemishes of tzara'at, whether tzara'at of humans or tzara'at of garments, is the size of a Cilikian gris, which is square. This is a square place on the skin of the flesh where 36 hairs could grow, i.e., six hairs in length and six hairs in width. Anything smaller than this is not considered as atzara'at blemish.
Halacha 8
When the width of a blemish is only a place to grow five hairs, it is pure and it is not considered as a tzara'at blemish, even if it was a cubit in length. It must be at least a square gris in size. All of the minimum measures are halachot transmitted to Moses at Sinai.
Halacha 9
Whenever a baheret is spoken of, the same laws apply to the remainder of the four shades of white or those of a petuch, provided the blemish is a gris in size and is deeper than the surface of the skin of the flesh. This is what we refer to as a baheret without further explanation.
A baheret that is very intense white, like snow appears dark on the flesh of an albino. And one that is dark appears intensely white on a black man. Therefore we consider the shade as it would appear on a person of average complexion, neither an albino or a black man.
Halacha 10
There are three signs that indicate ritual impurity with regard to tzara'at on the skin of human flesh: white hair, healthy flesh in the midst of a blemish, and expansion. All three are explicitly mentioned in the Torah.
What is implied? If a baheret erupts on a person's skin and in its midst there is white hair or a portion of healthy flesh, when the priest sees it, he will rule definitely, saying: "He is impure." If it does not have either white hairs or healthy flesh, he should be isolated for seven days. On the seventh day, the priest sees him again. If the baheret grew white hair or healthy flesh or if it expanded and increased, he is definitively categorized as impure. If neither white hair nor healthy flesh grew, nor did the baheret expand on his skin, he should be isolated for a second week. If any of the three signs occur, he is definitively categorized as impure. If not, he is pure and he is sent away. The rationale is that blemishes on the skin of human flesh do not require isolation for more than two weeks. If the blemish expands - or white hair or healthy flesh grows in it - after he was sent away and deemed pure, he is definitively categorized as impure.
Halacha 11
When a baheret was originally intensely white like snow and, after isolation, it appeared only as the membrane of an egg, or, originally, it appeared like the membrane of an egg and its intensity increased and it appeared as snow, it is considered in its original state, for an increase in the intensity of the appearance of a blemish is not a sign of impurity, nor is a darkening of it a sign of purity unless it becomes darker than the four shades described above, i.e., darker than the membrane of an egg. In such an instance, it is classified as abohak and he is pure. If so, what is meant by the Torah's statement: "The blemish became darker and did not expand on the flesh, the priest should declare him pure?" That if it became darker than the four shades, he is pure, Similarly, if it did not become darker, but did not expand, nor grew white hair or healthy flesh, he is pure.
• Thursday, Tammuz 22, 5775 · 09 July 2015
"Today's Day"
Sunday Tamuz 22 5703
Torah lessons: Chumash: Matot-Massai, first parsha with Rashi.
Tehillim: 106-107.
Tanya: Ch. 5. Bringing (p. 361) ...as will be noted). (p. 363).
My father said:
A chassidic aphorism makes the head clear and the heart clean;
a chassidic virtuous practice fills the home with light;
a chassidic melody fortifies hope and trust, brings joyousness, and places the home and family in a state of "light."
Daily Thought:
The Thick Lagoon of Ego
He has an opinion of how each person should be, how each thing should be done. Those who follow his choreography are his friends, those who dare dance their own dance are his enemies; and few, if any, are left without a label.
In truth, he has neither enemies nor friends. He has only himself, for that is all that exists in his world.
“If you don’t want to be so lonely,” we tell him, “make some room for the rest of us.”[Maamar Heichaltzu 5659.]
____________________________
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