Thursday, November 16, 2017

Chabad.org Calendar of New York, New York, United States - TODAY IN JUDAISM: 27 Cheshvan, 5778 - Thursday, November 16, 2017 - - - ב"ה - Today in Judaism - Today is Thursday, 27 Cheshvan, 5778 · November 16, 2017

Chabad.org Calendar of New York, New York, United States - TODAY IN JUDAISM: 27 Cheshvan, 5778 - Thursday, November 16, 2017 -  -  - ב"ה - Today in Judaism - Today is Thursday, 27 Cheshvan, 5778 · November 16, 2017
Torah Reading:
Toldot: Genesis 25:19 - 26:5
Toldot: Genesis 25:19 Here is the history of Yitz’chak, Avraham’s son. Avraham fathered Yitz’chak. 20 Yitz’chak was forty years old when he took Rivkah, the daughter of B’tu’el the Arami from Paddan-Aram and sister of Lavan the Arami, to be his wife. 21 Yitz’chak prayed to Adonai on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. Adonai heeded his prayer, and Rivkah became pregnant. 22 The children fought with each other inside her so much that she said, “If it’s going to be like this, why go on living?” So she went to inquire of Adonai, 23 who answered her, “There are two nations in your womb. From birth they will be two rival peoples. One of these peoples will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.”
24 When the time for her delivery came, there were twins in her womb. 25 The first to come out was reddish and covered all over with hair, like a coat; so they named him ‘Esav [completely formed, that is, having hair already]. 26 Then his brother emerged, with his hand holding ‘Esav’s heel, so he was called Ya‘akov [he catches by the heel, he supplants]. Yitz’chak was sixty years old when she bore them.
27 The boys grew; and ‘Esav became a skillful hunter, an outdoorsman; while Ya‘akov was a quiet man who stayed in the tents. 28 Yitz’chak favored ‘Esav, because he had a taste for game; Rivkah favored Ya‘akov.
29 One day when Ya‘akov had cooked some stew, ‘Esav came in from the open country, exhausted, 30 and said to Ya‘akov, “Please! Let me gulp down some of that red stuff — that red stuff! I’m exhausted!” (This is why he was called Edom [red].) 31 Ya‘akov answered, “First sell me your rights as the firstborn.” 32 “Look, I’m about to die!” said ‘Esav. “What use to me are my rights as the firstborn?” 33 Ya‘akov said, “First, swear to me!” So he swore to him, thus selling his birthright to Ya‘akov. 34 Then Ya‘akov gave him bread and lentil stew; he ate and drank, got up and went on his way. Thus ‘Esav showed how little he valued his birthright.
26:1 A famine came over the land, not the same as the first famine, which had taken place when Avraham was alive. Yitz’chak went to G’rar, to Avimelekh king of the P’lishtim. 2 Adonai appeared to him and said, “Don’t go down into Egypt, but live where I tell you. 3 Stay in this land, and I will be with you and bless you, because I will give all these lands to you and to your descendants. I will fulfill the oath which I swore to Avraham your father — 4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, I will give all these lands to your descendants, and by your descendants all the nations of the earth will bless themselves. 5 All this is because Avraham heeded what I said and did what I told him to do — he followed my mitzvot, my regulations and my teachings.”
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Today in Jewish History:
• Flood ends (2104 BCE)

On the 27th of Cheshvan of the year 1657 from creation (2104 BCE) "the earth dried" (Genesis 8:14) completing the 365-day duration of the great flood that wiped out all life on earth save for the eight human beings and and the animals (two of each species) in Noah's ark; on this day G-d commanded Noah to "Come out of the ark" and repopulate, settle and civilize the earth.
[See entry for Cheshvan 17 for a Chronology of the Flood.]
Links: Life in a Box; Lunar Flood, Solar Year; The Discovery of Planet Earth; Noach Parshah Page
Daily Quote: Desire is beyond rationale; on a desire one cannot ask any questions (Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi)
Daily Torah Study:
Chumash: Toldot, 5th Portion Genesis 26:30-27:27 with Rashi
English / Hebrew Linear Translation
Video Class
Daily Wisdom (short insight)

Genesis Chapter 26
30So he made a feast for them, and they ate and drank. לוַיַּ֤עַשׂ לָהֶם֙ מִשְׁתֶּ֔ה וַיֹּֽאכְל֖וּ וַיִּשְׁתּֽוּ:
31And they arose early in the morning, and they swore one to the other, and Isaac escorted them, and they went away from him in peace. לאוַיַּשְׁכִּ֣ימוּ בַבֹּ֔קֶר וַיִּשָּֽׁבְע֖וּ אִ֣ישׁ לְאָחִ֑יו וַיְשַׁלְּחֵ֣ם יִצְחָ֔ק וַיֵּֽלְכ֥וּ מֵֽאִתּ֖וֹ בְּשָׁלֽוֹם:
32And it came to pass on that day, that Isaac's servants came and told him about the well that they had dug, and they said to him, "We have found water." לבוַיְהִ֣י | בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֗וּא וַיָּבֹ֨אוּ֙ עַבְדֵ֣י יִצְחָ֔ק וַיַּגִּ֣דוּ ל֔וֹ עַל־אֹד֥וֹת הַבְּאֵ֖ר אֲשֶׁ֣ר חָפָ֑רוּ וַיֹּ֥אמְרוּ ל֖וֹ מָצָ֥אנוּ מָֽיִם:
33And he named it Shibah; therefore, the city is named Beer sheba until this very day. לגוַיִּקְרָ֥א אֹתָ֖הּ שִׁבְעָ֑ה עַל־כֵּ֤ן שֵֽׁם־הָעִיר֙ בְּאֵ֣ר שֶׁ֔בַע עַ֖ד הַיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה:
Shibah: Because of the covenant [shevuah in Hebrew means oath].
שבעה: על שם הברית:
34And Esau was forty years old, and he married Judith, the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite. לדוַיְהִ֤י עֵשָׂו֙ בֶּן־אַרְבָּעִ֣ים שָׁנָ֔ה וַיִּקַּ֤ח אִשָּׁה֙ אֶת־יְהוּדִ֔ית בַּת־בְּאֵרִ֖י הַֽחִתִּ֑י וְאֶת־בָּ֣שְׂמַ֔ת בַּת־אֵילֹ֖ן הַֽחִתִּֽי:
forty years old: Esau was compared to a swine, as it is said (Ps. 80:14): “The boar from the forest gnaws at it.” This swine, when it lies down, stretches out its hooves, as if to say, “See, I am a clean (kosher) animal.” So do these [the chiefs of Esau] rob and plunder and then pretend to be honorable. During the entire forty years, Esau kidnapped wives from their husbands and violated them. When he was forty years old, he said:“My father married at forty; I, too, will do the same.” [From Gen. Rabbah 65:1]
בן ארבעים שנה: עשו היה נמשל לחזיר, שנאמר (תהלים פ יד) יכרסמנה חזיר מיער, החזיר הזה כשהוא שוכב פושט טלפיו לומר ראו שאני טהור, כך אלו [אלופי עשו] גוזלים וחומסים ומראים עצמם כשרים. כל ארבעים שנה היה עשו צד נשים מתחת בעליהן ומענה אותם, כשהיה בן ארבעים אמר אבא בן ארבעים שנה נשא אשה, אף אני כן:
35And they were a vexation of the spirit to Isaac and to Rebecca. להוַתִּֽהְיֶ֖יןָ מֹ֣רַת ר֑וּחַ לְיִצְחָ֖ק וּלְרִבְקָֽה:
a vexation of the spirit: Heb. מֹרַת רוּחַ, an expression of defiance of spirit הַמְרָאַתרוּחַ like (Deut. 9:24):“You have been rebellious מַמְרִים.” All their deeds were to provoke and to grieve. [From Targum Onkelos]
מורת רוח: לשון המראת רוח, כמו (דברים ט כד) ממרים הייתם כל מעשיהן היו לעצבון:
to Isaac and to Rebecca: for they worshipped idols. [From Midrash Tanchuma, Toledoth 8]
ליצחק ולרבקה: שהיו עובדות עבודה זרה:
Genesis Chapter 27
1It came to pass when Isaac was old, and his eyes were too dim to see, that he called Esau his elder son, and he said to him, "My son," and he said to him, "Here I am." אוַֽיְהִי֙ כִּֽי־זָקֵ֣ן יִצְחָ֔ק וַתִּכְהֶ֥יןָ עֵינָ֖יו מֵֽרְאֹ֑ת וַיִּקְרָ֞א אֶת־עֵשָׂ֣ו | בְּנ֣וֹ הַגָּדֹ֗ל וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֵלָיו֙ בְּנִ֔י וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אֵלָ֖יו הִנֵּֽנִי:
were too dim: Because of the smoke of these [wives of Esau] (who would burn [incense] to the idols) (Tanchuma, Toledoth 8; Pesiktha Rabbathi 12). Another explanation: When Isaac was bound on the altar, and his father was about to slaughter him, the heavens opened, and the ministering angels saw and wept, and their tears fell upon Isaac’s eyes. As a result, his eyes became dim (Gen. Rabbah 65:6). A third explanation: to enable Jacob to take the blessings (Gen. Rabbah 65:8).
ותכהין: בעשנן של אלו. דבר אחר כשנעקד על גבי המזבח והיה אביו רוצה לשחטו, באותה שעה נפתחו השמים וראו מלאכי השרת והיו בוכים וירדו דמעותיהם ונפלו על עיניו, לפיכך כהו עיניו. דבר אחר כדי שיטול יעקב את הברכות:
2And he said, "Behold now, I have grown old; I do not know the day of my death. בוַיֹּ֕אמֶר הִנֵּה־נָ֖א זָקַ֑נְתִּי לֹ֥א יָדַ֖עְתִּי י֥וֹם מוֹתִֽי:
I do not know the day of my death: Rabbi Joshua ben Korchah said: If a person reaches the age of [the death of] his parents, he should worry five years beforehand and five years afterwards, and Isaac was one hundred and twenty-three years old. He said, “Perhaps I will reach the age of [the death of] my mother, and she died at one hundred and twenty-seven, and I am thus within five years of her age; therefore, ”I do not know the day of my death," -perhaps [I will die] at my mother’s age and perhaps at my father’s age. [From Gen. Rabbah 65:121]
לא ידעתי יום מותי: אמר רבי יהושע בן קרחה אם מגיע אדם לפרק אבותיו ידאג חמש שנים לפניהם וחמש לאחר כן, ויצחק היה בן מאה עשרים ושלש, אמר שמא לפרק אמי אני מגיע, והיא מתה בת מאה עשרים ושבע והריני בן חמש שנים סמוך לפרקה, לפיכך לא ידעתי יום מותי, שמא לפרק אמי, שמא לפרק אבא:
3So, now, sharpen your implements, your sword [and take] your bow, and go forth to the field, and hunt game for me. גוְעַתָּה֙ שָׂא־נָ֣א כֵלֶ֔יךָ תֶּלְיְךָ֖ וְקַשְׁתֶּ֑ךָ וְצֵא֙ הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה וְצ֥וּדָה לִּ֖י צָֽיִד (כתיב צידה) :
your sword: Heb. תֶּלְי‏ְ, your sword, which is usually hung לִתְלוֹתָה.
תליך: חרבך שדרך לתלותה:
So, now, sharpen: שָׂא נָא an expression of sharpening, as we learned in the Mishnah (Beizah 28a):“We may not sharpen a knife [on a whet-stone] but we may sharpen it (מַשִּׂיאָה) against another one [on Yom-Tov].” [Isaac said]: “Sharpen your knife and slaughter properly, lest you feed me neveila ” [an animal not slaughtered according to ritual law] (Gen. Rabbah 65: 13).
שא נא: לשון השחזה כאותה ששנינו (ביצה כח א) אין משחיזין את הסכין אבל משיאה על גבי חברתה, חדד סכינך ושחוט יפה, שלא תאכילני נבלה:
and hunt for me: from ownerless [game], and not from stolen [animals]. [Gen. Rabbah 65:13]
וצודה לי: מן ההפקר ולא מן הגזל:
4And make for me tasty foods as I like, and bring them to me, and I will eat, in order that my soul will bless you before I die." דוַֽעֲשֵׂה־לִ֨י מַטְעַמִּ֜ים כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֥ר אָהַ֛בְתִּי וְהָבִ֥יאָה לִּ֖י וְאֹכֵ֑לָה בַּֽעֲב֛וּר תְּבָֽרֶכְךָ֥ נַפְשִׁ֖י בְּטֶ֥רֶם אָמֽוּת:
5But Rebecca overheard when Isaac spoke to Esau his son, and Esau went to the field to hunt game, to bring [it]. הוְרִבְקָ֣ה שֹׁמַ֔עַת בְּדַבֵּ֣ר יִצְחָ֔ק אֶל־עֵשָׂ֖ו בְּנ֑וֹ וַיֵּ֤לֶךְ עֵשָׂו֙ הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה לָצ֥וּד צַ֖יִד לְהָבִֽיא:
to hunt game, to bring: What is the meaning of“to bring” ? If he would not find game, he intended to bring [meat] from stolen [animals]. - [from Gen. Rabbah 65:13]
לצוד ציד להביא: מהו להביא, אם לא ימצא ציד יביא מן הגזל:
6And Rebecca said to Jacob her son, saying, "Behold I have heard your father speaking to Esau your brother, saying, ווְרִבְקָה֙ אָ֣מְרָ֔ה אֶל־יַֽעֲקֹ֥ב בְּנָ֖הּ לֵאמֹ֑ר הִנֵּ֤ה שָׁמַ֨עְתִּי֙ אֶת־אָבִ֔יךָ מְדַבֵּ֛ר אֶל־עֵשָׂ֥ו אָחִ֖יךָ לֵאמֹֽר:
7'Bring me game and make me tasty foods, and I will eat, and I will bless you before the Lord before my death.' זהָבִ֨יאָה לִּ֥י צַ֛יִד וַֽעֲשֵׂה־לִ֥י מַטְעַמִּ֖ים וְאֹכֵ֑לָה וַֽאֲבָֽרֶכְכָ֛ה לִפְנֵ֥י יְהֹוָ֖ה לִפְנֵ֥י מוֹתִֽי:
before the Lord: with His consent, that He will approve of what I do.
לפני ה': ברשותו שיסכים על ידי:
8And now my son, hearken to my voice, to what I am commanding you. חוְעַתָּ֥ה בְנִ֖י שְׁמַ֣ע בְּקֹלִ֑י לַֽאֲשֶׁ֥ר אֲנִ֖י מְצַוָּ֥ה אֹתָֽךְ:
9Go now to the flock, and take for me from there two choice kids, and I will make them tasty foods for your father, as he likes. טלֶךְ־נָא֙ אֶל־הַצֹּ֔אן וְקַח־לִ֣י מִשָּׁ֗ם שְׁנֵ֛י גְּדָיֵ֥י עִזִּ֖ים טֹבִ֑ים וְאֶֽעֱשֶׂ֨ה אֹתָ֧ם מַטְעַמִּ֛ים לְאָבִ֖יךָ כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֥ר אָהֵֽב:
and take for me: [“לִי” indicates that] they are mine, and they are not stolen, because so had Isaac written for her in her marriage contract, that she might take two kids every day (Gen. Rabbah 65:14).
וקח לי: משלי הם ואינם גזל, שכך כתב לה יצחק בכתובתה ליטול שני גדיי עזים בכל יום:
two choice kids: Now did Isaac’s menu consist of two kids? But [the explanation is that] he sacrificed one as a Paschal offering, and one he made into tasty foods. [This is found] in Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer (ch. 32).
שני גדיי עזים: וכי שני גדיי עזים היה מאכלו של יצחק, אלא האחד הקריב לפסחו והאחד עשה מטעמים. בפרקי דרבי אליעזר (פרק לב):
as he likes: for the taste of a kid is like the taste of a deer.
כאשר אהב: כי טעם הגדי כטעם הצבי:
10And you shall bring [them] to your father that he may eat, in order that he bless you before his death." יוְהֵֽבֵאתָ֥ לְאָבִ֖יךָ וְאָכָ֑ל בַּֽעֲבֻ֛ר אֲשֶׁ֥ר יְבָֽרֶכְךָ֖ לִפְנֵ֥י מוֹתֽוֹ:
11And Jacob said to Rebecca his mother, "Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, whereas I am a smooth man. יאוַיֹּ֣אמֶר יַֽעֲקֹ֔ב אֶל־רִבְקָ֖ה אִמּ֑וֹ הֵ֣ן עֵשָׂ֤ו אָחִי֙ אִ֣ישׁ שָׂעִ֔ר וְאָֽנֹכִ֖י אִ֥ישׁ חָלָֽק:
a hairy man: Heb. אִישׁ שָׂעִר, one possessing hair.
איש שער: בעל שער:
12Perhaps my father will touch me, and I will appear to him as a deceiver, and I will bring upon myself a curse and not a blessing." יבאוּלַ֤י יְמֻשֵּׁ֨נִי֙ אָבִ֔י וְהָיִ֥יתִי בְעֵינָ֖יו כִּמְתַעְתֵּ֑עַ וְהֵֽבֵאתִ֥י עָלַ֛י קְלָלָ֖ה וְלֹ֥א בְרָכָֽה:
will touch me: Heb. יְמֻשֵּׁנִי, similar to (Deut. 28:29):“feeling (מְמַשֵּׁשׁ) at noon.”
ימשני: כמו (דברים כח כט) ממשש בצהרים:
13And his mother said to him, "On me is your curse, my son. Only hearken to my voice and go, take [them] for me." יגוַתֹּ֤אמֶר לוֹ֙ אִמּ֔וֹ עָלַ֥י קִלְלָֽתְךָ֖ בְּנִ֑י אַ֛ךְ שְׁמַ֥ע בְּקֹלִ֖י וְלֵ֥ךְ קַח־לִֽי:
14So he went, and he took, and he brought [them] to his mother, and his mother made tasty foods, as his father liked. ידוַיֵּ֨לֶךְ֙ וַיִּקַּ֔ח וַיָּבֵ֖א לְאִמּ֑וֹ וַתַּ֤עַשׂ אִמּוֹ֙ מַטְעַמִּ֔ים כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֖ר אָהֵ֥ב אָבִֽיו:
15And Rebecca took the costly garments of Esau, her elder son, which were with her in the house, and she dressed Jacob, her younger son. טווַתִּקַּ֣ח רִ֠בְקָ֠ה אֶת־בִּגְדֵ֨י עֵשָׂ֜ו בְּנָ֤הּ הַגָּדֹל֙ הַֽחֲמֻדֹ֔ת אֲשֶׁ֥ר אִתָּ֖הּ בַּבָּ֑יִת וַתַּלְבֵּ֥שׁ אֶת־יַֽעֲקֹ֖ב בְּנָ֥הּ הַקָּטָֽן:
the costly: הַחַמוּדֹת [means] the clean ones, as the Targum renders: דַּכְיָתָא [clean ones]. Another explanation: The ones [garments] that he had coveted [שֶׁחָמַד] from Nimrod. [From Gen. Rabbah 65:16]
החמודות: הנקיות, כתרגומו דכייתא. דבר אחר שחמד אותן מן נמרוד:
which were with her in the house: But He [Esau] had many wives, [with whom to entrust his garments] and yet he entrusted them [his garments] with his mother?! He was well aware of their deeds, and he was suspicious of them. [From Gen. Rabbah 65:16]
אשר אתה בבית: והלא כמה נשים היו לו והוא מפקיד אצל אמו, אלא שהיה בקי במעשיהן וחושדן:
16And the hides of the kids she put on his hands and on the smoothness of his neck. טזוְאֵ֗ת עֹרֹת֙ גְּדָיֵ֣י הָֽעִזִּ֔ים הִלְבִּ֖ישָׁה עַל־יָדָ֑יו וְעַ֖ל חֶלְקַ֥ת צַוָּארָֽיו:
17And she gave the tasty foods and the bread that she had made, into the hand of Jacob her son. יזוַתִּתֵּ֧ן אֶת־הַמַּטְעַמִּ֛ים וְאֶת־הַלֶּ֖חֶם אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָשָׂ֑תָה בְּיַ֖ד יַֽעֲקֹ֥ב בְּנָֽהּ:
18And he came to his father and said, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am. Who are you, my son?" יחוַיָּבֹ֥א אֶל־אָבִ֖יו וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אָבִ֑י וַיֹּ֣אמֶר הִנֶּ֔נִּי מִ֥י אַתָּ֖ה בְּנִֽי:
19And Jacob said to his father, "I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you have spoken to me. Please rise, sit down and eat of my game, so that your soul will bless me." יטוַיֹּ֨אמֶר יַֽעֲקֹ֜ב אֶל־אָבִ֗יו אָֽנֹכִי֙ עֵשָׂ֣ו בְּכֹרֶ֔ךָ עָשִׂ֕יתִי כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֥ר דִּבַּ֖רְתָּ אֵלָ֑י קֽוּם־נָ֣א שְׁבָ֗ה וְאָכְלָה֙ מִצֵּידִ֔י בַּֽעֲב֖וּר תְּבָֽרֲכַ֥נִּי נַפְשֶֽׁךָ:
I am…Esau…your firstborn: [He meant]: I am the one who is bringing you [food] and Esau is your firstborn. [From Tanchuma Buber]
אנכי עשו בכורך: אנכי המביא לך, ועשו הוא בכורך:
I have done: many things, as you have spoken to me.
עשיתי: כמה דברים כאשר דברת אלי:
sit down: Heb. שְׁבָה, an expression of sitting around the table [at a meal]. Therefore, it is rendered [by Onkelos] אִסְתְּחַר.
שבה: לשון מיסב על השלחן, לכך מתורגם אסתחר:
20And Isaac said to his son, "How is it that you have found [it] so quickly, my son?" And he said, "Because the Lord your God prepared it before me." כוַיֹּ֤אמֶר יִצְחָק֙ אֶל־בְּנ֔וֹ מַה־זֶּ֛ה מִהַ֥רְתָּ לִמְצֹ֖א בְּנִ֑י וַיֹּ֕אמֶר כִּ֥י הִקְרָ֛ה יְהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לְפָנָֽי:
21And Isaac said to Jacob, "Please come closer, so that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not." כאוַיֹּ֤אמֶר יִצְחָק֙ אֶל־יַֽעֲקֹ֔ב גְּשָׁה־נָּ֥א וַֽאֲמֻֽשְׁךָ֖ בְּנִ֑י הַֽאַתָּ֥ה זֶ֛ה בְּנִ֥י עֵשָׂ֖ו אִם־לֹֽא:
Please come closer, so that I may feel you: Isaac said to himself, “Esau does not usually mention the name of Heaven with frequency, but this one said: ‘Because the Lord your God prepared it….’” [from Gen. Rabbah 65:19]
גשה נא ואמשך: אמר יצחק בלבו אין דרך עשו להיות שם שמים שגור בפיו, וזה אמר (פסוק כ) כי הקרה ה' אלהיך:
22So Jacob drew near to Isaac his father, and he felt him, and he said, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau." כבוַיִּגַּ֧שׁ יַֽעֲקֹ֛ב אֶל־יִצְחָ֥ק אָבִ֖יו וַיְמֻשֵּׁ֑הוּ וַיֹּ֗אמֶר הַקֹּל֙ ק֣וֹל יַֽעֲקֹ֔ב וְהַיָּדַ֖יִם יְדֵ֥י עֵשָֽׂו:
the voice of Jacob: who speaks entreatingly: “Please rise,” but Esau spoke harshly, “Let my father arise!” [From Tanchuma Buber, Toledoth 15]
קול יעקב: שמדבר בלשון תחנונים (פסוק יט) קום נא, אבל עשו בלשון קנטוריא דבר (פסוק לא) יקום אבי:
23And he did not recognize him because his hands were hairy like the hands of his brother Esau, and he blessed him. כגוְלֹ֣א הִכִּיר֔וֹ כִּֽי־הָי֣וּ יָדָ֗יו כִּידֵ֛י עֵשָׂ֥ו אָחִ֖יו שְׂעִרֹ֑ת וַיְבָֽרֲכֵֽהוּ:
24And he said, "Are you [indeed] my son Esau?" And he said, "I am." כדוַיֹּ֕אמֶר אַתָּ֥ה זֶ֖ה בְּנִ֣י עֵשָׂ֑ו וַיֹּ֖אמֶר אָֽנִי:
And he said, “I am.”: He did not say, “I am Esau,” but “I am.” [From Num. Rabbah 10:6]
ויאמר אני: לא אמר אני עשו אלא אני:
25And he said, "Serve [it] to me that I may eat of the game of my son, so that my soul will bless you." And he served him, and he ate, and he brought him wine, and he drank. כהוַיֹּ֗אמֶר הַגִּ֤שָׁה לִּי֙ וְאֹֽכְלָה֙ מִצֵּ֣יד בְּנִ֔י לְמַ֥עַן תְּבָֽרֶכְךָ֖ נַפְשִׁ֑י וַיַּגֶּשׁ־לוֹ֙ וַיֹּאכַ֔ל וַיָּ֧בֵא ל֦וֹ יַ֖יִן וַיֵּֽשְׁתְּ:
26And his father Isaac said to him, "Please come closer and kiss me, my son." כווַיֹּ֥אמֶר אֵלָ֖יו יִצְחָ֣ק אָבִ֑יו גְּשָׁה־נָּ֥א וּֽשֲׁקָה־לִּ֖י בְּנִֽי:
27And he came closer, and he kissed him, and he smelled the fragrance of his garments, and he blessed him, and he said, "Behold, the fragrance of my son is like the fragrance of a field, which the Lord has blessed! כזוַיִּגַּשׁ֙ וַיִּשַּׁק־ל֔וֹ וַיָּ֛רַח אֶת־רֵ֥יחַ בְּגָדָ֖יו וַיְבָֽרֲכֵ֑הוּ וַיֹּ֗אמֶר רְאֵה֙ רֵ֣יחַ בְּנִ֔י כְּרֵ֣יחַ שָׂדֶ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר בֵּֽרֲכ֖וֹ יְהֹוָֽה:
and he smelled, etc.: Is it not so that there is no odor more offensive than that of washed goat skins? But this teaches us that the fragrance of the Garden of Eden entered with him. [From Tanchuma Buber 16]
וירח וגו': והלא אין ריח רע יותר משטף העזים, אלא מלמד שנכנסה עמו ריח גן עדן:
is like the fragrance of a field, which the Lord has blessed: for He gave it a pleasant fragrance, and this is a field of apples. So did our Sages explain it. [From Ta’anith 29b]
כריח שדה אשר ברכו ה': שנתן בו ריח טוב, וזה שדה תפוחים, כן דרשו רבותינו ז"ל:
Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 120 - 134
Hebrew text
English text

Chapter 120
This psalm rebukes slanderers, describing how the deadly effect of slander reaches even further than weapons.
1. A song of ascents. I have called out to the Lord in my distress, and He answered me.
2. O Lord, rescue my soul from the lips of falsehood, from a deceitful tongue.
3. What can He give you, and what [further restraint] can He add to you, O deceitful tongue?
4. [You resemble] the sharp arrows of a mighty one, and the coals of broom-wood.1
5. Woe unto me that I sojourned among Meshech, that I dwelt beside the tents of Kedar.
6. Too long has my soul dwelt among those who hate peace.
7. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.
FOOTNOTES
1.Which remain hot on the inside while appearing cool to the touch (Rashi).
Chapter 121
This psalm alludes to the Lower Paradise, from which one ascends to the Higher Paradise. It also speaks of how God watches over us.
 
1. A song of ascents. I lift my eyes to the mountains-from where will my help come?
2. My help will come from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth.
3. He will not let your foot falter; your guardian does not slumber.
4. Indeed, the Guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.
5. The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is your protective shade at your right hand.
6. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
7. The Lord will guard you from all evil; He will guard your soul.
8. The Lord will guard your going and your coming from now and for all time.
Chapter 122
The psalmist sings the praises of Jerusalem and tells of the miracles that happened there.
1. A song of ascents by David. I rejoiced when they said to me, "Let us go to the House of the Lord.”
2. Our feet were standing within your gates, O Jerusalem;
3. Jerusalem that is built like a city in which [all Israel] is united together.
4. For there the tribes went up, the tribes of God-as enjoined upon Israel-to offer praise to the Name of the Lord.
5. For there stood the seats of justice, the thrones of the house of David.
6. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; may those who love you have peace.
7. May there be peace within your walls, serenity within your mansions.
8. For the sake of my brethren and friends, I ask that there be peace within you.
9. For the sake of the House of the Lord our God, I seek your well-being.
Chapter 123
The psalmist laments the length of time we have already suffered in exile.
1. A song of ascents. To You have I lifted my eyes, You Who are enthroned in heaven.
2. Indeed, as the eyes of servants are turned to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to the Lord our God, until He will be gracious to us.
3. Be gracious to us, Lord, be gracious to us, for we have been surfeited with humiliation.
4. Our soul has been overfilled with the derision of the complacent, with the scorn of the arrogant.
Chapter 124
1. A song of ascents by David. Were it not for the Lord Who was with us-let Israel declare-
2. were it not for the Lord Who was with us when men rose up against us,
3. then they would have swallowed us alive in their burning rage against us.
4. Then the waters would have inundated us, the torrent would have swept over our soul;
5. then the raging waters would have surged over our soul.
6. Blessed is the Lord, Who did not permit us to be prey for their teeth.
7. Our soul is like a bird which has escaped from the fowler's snare; the snare broke and we escaped.
8. Our help is in the Name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Chapter 125
1. A song of ascents. Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion which never falters, but abides forever.
2. Mountains surround Jerusalem, and the Lord surrounds His people from this time and forever.
3. For the rod of wickedness will never come to rest upon the lot of the righteous; therefore the righteous need not stretch their hand to iniquity.
4. Be beneficent, O Lord, to the good and to those who are upright in their hearts.
5. But as for those that turn to their perverseness, may the Lord lead them with the workers of iniquity. Peace be upon Israel.
Chapter 126
The psalmist speaks of the future, comparing our Divine service in exile to one who sows arid land, then cries and begs God to send rain upon it so that the seed not be wasted. When he merits to reap the crop, he offers thanks to God.
1. A song of ascents. When the Lord will return the exiles of Zion, we will have been like dreamers.
2. Then our mouth will be filled with laughter, and our tongue with songs of joy; then will they say among the nations, "The Lord has done great things for these.”
3. The Lord has done great things for us; we were joyful.
4. Lord, return our exiles as streams to arid soil.
5. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.
6. He goes along weeping, carrying the bag of seed; he will surely return with songs of joy, carrying his sheaves.
Chapter 127
King David instructs his generation, and especially his son Solomon, to be sure that all one's actions be for the sake of Heaven. He also criticizes those who toil day and night in pursuit of a livelihood.
1. A song of ascents for Solomon. If the Lord does not build a house, then its builders labor upon it in vain. If the Lord will not guard a city, the vigilance of its watchman is in vain.
2. It is in vain for you, you who rise early, who sit up late, and who eat the bread of tension, for in fact He gives His loved ones sleep.
3. Behold, the heritage of the Lord is children; the fruit of the womb is a reward.
4. As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of youth.
5. Fortunate is the man who has his quiver full of them; they will not find themselves shamed when they speak with enemies in public places.
Chapter 128
This psalm extols one who enjoys the fruits of his own labor, avoiding theft and deception, even refusing gifts. It also describes behavior appropriate to the God-fearing.
1. A song of ascents. Fortunate is every man who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways.
2. When you eat of the labor of your hands, you will be happy, and you will have goodness.
3. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in the inner chambers of your house; your children will be like olive saplings around your table.
4. Behold, so will be blessed the man who fears the Lord.
5. May the Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the goodness of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
6. And may you see children [born] to your children; peace upon Israel.
Chapter 129
The psalmist laments the troubles of Israel.
1. A song of ascents. Much have they persecuted me from my youth on. Let Israel declare it now-
2. "Much have they persecuted me from my youth on, [but] they have not prevailed against me.”
3. The plowmen plowed upon my back; they wished to make their furrow long.
4. But the Lord is just; He cut the cords of the lawless.
5. They will be humiliated and will be turned back, all the haters of Zion.
6. They will be as grass upon the rooftops that withers before one plucks it,
7. wherewith the reaper has never filled his hand, nor the sheaf-binder his arm;
8. and of which the passers-by never have said: "The blessing of the Lord be upon you; we bless you in the name of the Lord."
Chapter 130
The psalmist prays for an end to this long exile.
1. A song of ascents. Out of the depths I call to You, O Lord.
2. My Lord, hearken to my voice; let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my pleas.
3. God, if You were to preserve iniquities, my Lord, who could survive?
4. But forgiveness is with You, that You may be held in awe.
5. I hope in the Lord; my soul hopes, and I long for His word.
6. My soul yearns for the Lord more than those awaiting the morning wait for the morning.
7. Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is kindness; with Him there is abounding deliverance.
8. And He will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Chapter 131
In this prayer, David declares that never in the course of his life was he haughty, nor did he pursue greatness or worldly pleasures.
1. A song of ascents, by David. O Lord, my heart was not proud, nor were my eyes haughty; I did not seek matters that were too great and too wondrous for me.
2. Surely I put my soul at peace and soothed it like a weaned child with his mother; my soul was like a weaned child.
3. Let Israel hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever.
Chapter 132
David composed this psalm while he and the elders of Israel wore sackcloth, in mourning over the plague that had descended upon the land, and their being distant from the Holy Temple. David therefore offers intense prayers, entreating God to remember the hardship and sacrifice he endured for the sake of the Temple.
1. A song of ascents. O Lord, remember unto David all his suffering,
2. how he swore to the Lord, and vowed to the Mighty Power of Jacob:
3. "I will not enter into the tent of my house; I will not go up into the bed that is spread for me;
4. I will not give sleep to my eyes, nor slumber to my eyelids;
5. until I will have found a place for the Lord, a resting place for the Mighty Power of Jacob.”
6. Lo, we heard of it in Ephrath; we found it in the field of the forest.
7. We will come to His resting places; we will prostrate ourselves at His footstool.
8. Ascend, O Lord, to Your resting place, You and the Ark of Your might.
9. May Your priests clothe themselves in righteousness, and may Your pious ones sing joyous songs.
10. For the sake of David Your servant, turn not away the face of Your anointed.
11. For the Lord has sworn to David a truth from which He will never retreat: "From the fruit of your womb will I set for you upon the throne.
12. If your sons will keep My covenant and this testimony of mine which I will teach them, then their sons, too, will sit on the throne for you until the end of time.
13. For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation.
14. This is My resting place to the end of time. Here will I dwell, for I have desired it.
15. I will abundantly bless her sustenance; I will satisfy her needy with bread.
16. I will clothe her priests with salvation, and her pious ones will sing joyous songs.
17. There I will cause David's power to flourish; there I have prepared a lamp for My anointed.
18. His enemies will I clothe with shame, but upon him, his crown will blossom."
Chapter 133
1. A song of ascents, by David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell together.
2. Like the precious oil [placed] upon the head, flowing [in abundance] down the beard, the beard of Aaron which rests upon his garments.
3. Like the dew of Hermon which comes down upon the mountains of Zion, for there the Lord has commanded blessing, life unto eternity.
Chapter 134
The psalmist exhorts the scholarly and pious to rise from their beds at night, and go to the House of God.
1. A song of ascents. Behold: Bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who stand in the House of the Lord in the nights.
2. Lift up your hands in holiness and bless the Lord.
3. May the Lord, Who makes heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.
Tanya: Kuntres Acharon, Essay 1
English Text (Lessons in Tanya)
Hebrew Text
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Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5778 · November 16, 2017
Today's Tanya Lesson
Kuntres Acharon, Essay 1
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Kuntres Acharon, Essay One
The contents of this Kuntres Acharon al Kamah Perakim (“Later Booklet on Several Chapters”) are not near as homo-eneous as one might expect.
The ninth printing1 of the Tanya, which included Iggeret HaKodesh and Kuntres Acharon for the second time, was introduced by an “Approbation of the ... sons of the illustrious author.”2 This Approbation describes Kuntres Acharon as a work based “on certain chapters, which he wrote when he composed the Sefer Likutei Amarim” (i.e., the first part of Tanya). It is described as consisting of “profound discussions and insights in passages in the Zohar, Etz Chayim and Pri Etz Chayim, which appear to contradict one another, and in his understanding spirit [the Alter Rebbe] resolves each passage according to its context as explained in Likutei Amarim.”
As the Rebbe notes, however, close to half of the essays printed in current editions under the heading of Kuntres Acharon, beginning with Essay 6, appear to be letters of the Alter Rebbe that are quite unconnected with matters discussed in Tanya, Zohar, Etz Chayim, etc., and hence, seemimgly out of place in Kuntres Acharon. And, indeed, when Iggeret HaKodesh and Kuntres Acharon were first included in Tanya (in the eighth edition; Koenigsburg, 1811), these essays were in fact not printed as part of Kuntres Acharon, but were grouped with Iggeret HaKodesh.
* * *
The first essay of Kuntres Acharon answers two questions:
(a) How does a Jew become connected with Supernal Wisdom (Chochmah of Atzilut) by reading the narratives of the Torah?
(b) What is meant by the statement of the Zohar that “thought accomplishes nothing”? (I.e., that if one merely thinks about words of Torah but does not articulate them vocally, he does not effect an “arousal from below” that elicits an “arousal from above.”)
As to question (a): We can readily understand how when a Jew studies the reasoning and the laws of the Torah he is connected with Supernal Wisdom, for the Torah is “G-d’s Will and Wisdom.” But what of the narrative passages? True enough, in addition to their truth as narrative (for3 “A verse never departs from its plain meaning”), these passages of course simultaneously allude to spiritual truths in the higher worlds. But if a reader knows nothing of this beyond the simple story, how is he thereby connected with Supernal Wisdom?
The Alter Rebbe answers this query by quoting Sefer HaKavanot of the AriZal, who states that at the very same moment at which a Jew is engaged in Torah in this world, the “likeness” of Supernal Man above (the source of the soul of this Jew) is also engaged in Torah. The source of this individual’s soul is thus bound up with Supernal Wisdom.
Now, this applies when this individual merely meditates upon words of Torah, in silence. When, however, he actually verbalizes them, then the sound of these words pierces the heavens, and ascends to the spiritual level to which that sound is related, i.e., the level which matches the level of service of the person involved. If he is a tzaddik who, like a chariot, has no independent will but waits to be steered by its Rider, then the sound of his Torah study rises to the World of Atzilut (as explained in Tanya, ch. 39); if he serves G‑d with intellectually-generated love and awe, the sound of his Torah study rises to the World of Beriah; if his love and awe of G‑d are innate, the sound of his Torah study rises to the World of Yetzirah (as explained in Tanya, ch. 16).
As to question (b), regarding the inability of unvoiced thought (on words of Torah) to elicit an illumination from above, the Alter Rebbe will presently explain that it is nevertheless expressly thought that can elevate one’s Torah study and one’s performance of the commandments to the higher realms.
This, however, appears to be contradicted by a teaching in the Zohar,4 that the kind of “arousal from below” that draws down the reciprocal “arousal from above,” is effected specifically by “deed and speech,” as distinct from unvoiced thought.
The Alter Rebbe therefore clarifies: It is true that the Zohar here teaches that thought alone cannot draw down the flow of Divine light. That is why, even when one serves G‑d with love and fear through the spiritual toil of the soul, he will not have fulfilled his obligation to perform the accompanying mitzvah unless these spiritual emotions find simultaneous expression in actual deeds or words (cf. Tanya, ch. 35). For the soul descended into this world in order to draw down Divine light, and thereby to refine and rectify the body and the animal soul. (The Divine soul itself is by definition not in need of rectification.) And it is only through “deed and speech” — the actual performance of mitzvot or articulated Torah study, for5 “the movement of the lips is also a [minor] deed” — that one draws the Divine light down into this world.
However, when it comes to the separate task of elevating one’s Torah study and performance of the commandments, this is accomplished specifically by means of positive thoughts, which include one’s devout intent (kavanah), and one’s love and awe of G‑d.
Examine6 Likkutei Amarim, ch. 40
The Alter Rebbe explained in ch. 407 that the love and fear of G‑d are mere “wings”.8 Though wings enable a bird to fly aloft, they are not its essence. Indeed, even “if its wings were removed, [a bird] is kosher,”9 so long as its head and body are intact.
So, too, Supernal Unions (yichudim) are effected through Torah and mitzvot themselves. Love and awe, which are their wings, merely elevate the Torah and mitzvot to that spiritual level where a particular union is to take place. It is at that level that there is revealed within one’s Torah and mitzvot an infinite Divine illumination that cannot be revealed in this physical world.
Thus, on one hand we say that love and fear do not bring about a Supernal Union, for they are mere “thought” and intent. On the other hand, we also say that it is specifically through one’s intent that one’s Torah and mitzvotare elevated to a height they could never ascend to unaided; once there, they bring about a Supernal Union and its resultant diffusion of Divine light.
להבין איך הקורא בסיפורי מעשיות שבתורה, הוא מקושר בחכמה עילאה
To understand how a person reading narratives in the Torah becomes connected with Chochmah Ila’ah (“Supernal Wisdom”):
When a Jew studies Torah intellectually, it stands to reason that he is then bound up with Supernal Wisdom — the Sefirah of Chochmah (the loftiest Divine emanation) in the World of Atzilut — for Torah law is “G‑d’s Will and Wisdom”; the rationale underlying a law is G‑d’s wisdom, while the ruling itself is G‑d’s will.
This is explained in ch. 5 of Tanya: “It so arose in His will that if, for example, Reuven would claim thus and Shimon thus, such and such should be the verdict between them.” Even if this litigation should never come to pass, still it is G‑d’s will that in such an instance the verdict should be such and such — in accordance with His will. The very knowledge of the ruling thus makes one aware of G‑d’s will.
Suppose, however, that instead of studying legal issues one merely reads the narratives of the Torah. While it is true that these narratives allude to spiritual matters in the higher worlds,10 yet since he perceives nothing beneath their seemingly simplistic surface, how is he thereby connected with Supernal Wisdom?
When, for example, the Alter Rebbe looked at the verse,11 “And Jacob kissed Rachel and lifted up his eyes and wept,” he saw12 that Jacob, who represents the attribute of Mercy of Atzilut, arouses compassion from the Supernal Source of Mercy upon Rachel, who personifies Malchut of Atzilut, the fount of all souls.
However, when one is unaware of the inner meaning of this verse, and merely follows the simple story, how is he then bound to Supernal Wisdom?
על פי מה שכתוב בכוונות, דף ט״ז עמוד ב׳: כמו שהאדם עוסק למטה, כך דיוקן האדם העליון למעלה כו׳
[This matter may be understood] in the light of what is written in the Kavanot, p. 16b13 — that just as a man is engaged [in Torah study] below, so too is the likeness of the Supernal Man [engaged in Torah study] above.
As the Alter Rebbe will soon explain, this “likeness” refers to the source of a man’s soul, which is rooted in the Sefirot above. This is known as Supernal Man, for in the Kabbalah a complete configuration — a partzuf (lit., “visage”) of ten intellective and emotive Divine Sefirot — is referred to as a “Man”.14 Supernal Man occupies Himself in Torah above, at the same time that mortal man does so below. When one is engaged in Torah, be it even in the narratives of the Torah, he is thus connected with Supernal Wisdom, inasmuch as his “likeness” above is bound up with Supernal Wisdom.
According to this explanation, however, he is connected with Supernal Wisdom only by virtue of his connection with his likeness above, and not through his actual study. The Alter Rebbe therefore now goes on to state that this is so only when his study of the Written Torah remains in the realm of thought. If, instead, the individual verbalizes the words audibly, the very sound of his voice enables the letters here below to ascend even to the highest of levels, the World of Atzilut.
כן יש לומר, בהרהור באותיות הכתובות
This [vicarious connection] applies [only] when one is thinking about the written letters [of the Torah’s narratives].
אבל הדבור, יש לומר דבוקע וסליק לאצילות ממש
But as to articulated speech, we may say that it pierces and ascends to the actual [World of] Atzilut;
The Alter Rebbe here seeks to distinguish between “the actual World of Atzilut,” and the highest level (the “relative Atzilut”) within each of the lower worlds. As explained above, the uttered words of a consummate tzaddik — like the rest of his Torah and mitzvot — ascend to the actual World of Atzilut.
או לבריאה, בדחילו ורחימו שכליים
alternatively, [the articulated speech of one’s Torah study rises] to Beriahthe world of comprehension, when impelled by intellectually-generated love and fear (i.e., a love and fear of G‑d that result from comprehending Him);
או ליצירה, בדחילו ורחימו טבעיים
or else [this speech rises] to Yetzirahthe world of emotions, when motivated by the innate awe and love of G‑d that are the heritage of every Jew.
This refers to the level of “concealed love” (ahavah mesuteret) that also includes fear.
ובמקרא
And through Scripture, i.e., when its words are merely uttered out of an acceptanc3e of G‑d’s yoke, without any of the above three levels of motivation,
סליק מעולם הזה ליו״ד ספירות דעשיה, משום דבקע אוירין וכו׳
[this speech] rises from This World to the Ten Sefirot of Asiyahthe level that relates to Torah andmitzvot that are performed merely out of acceptance of G‑d’s yoke,15 for “it pierces the atmospheres16...” between physical and spiritual Asiyah.
מה שאין כן בהרהור, אלא הדיוקן, שהוא שרש נשמתו וכו׳
In contrast, one’s [unvoiced] thought [does not ascend to the higher worlds; it affects] only the “likeness” which is the source of his soul..., and which at that time is also engaged above in Torah, thereby connecting him with Supernal Wisdom.
ומה שכתוב בזהר, חלק ג׳ דף ק״ה, דהרהור לא עביד מידי כו׳
As to the statement in the Zohar, Vol. III, p. 105, that “thinking achieves nothing,...”
והיינו, אפילו לטב
i.e., not even a beneficial effect, if the “arousal from below” of deed or speech are lacking,
Speaking of thought, the Zohar there refers to improper thoughts that “achieve nothing.” For it is only when one actually speaks (and not merely thinks) of mundane matters on Shabbat17 that he causes a blemish in the spiritual realms, since his speech ascends aloft and introduces mundanity within the sanctity of Shabbat above. In the same way, the Alter Rebbe adds, thought alone — unless it is accompanied by words or deeds — has no positive effect above.
עיין שם, ובדף ל״א עמוד ב׳
examine closely there, as well as p. 31b.
For the Zohar says there that in order to receive the sanctity and joy of the Jewish festivals, there must first be an “arousal from below” through deed or speech. It then goes on to say that mundane talk during Shabbat will cause a blemish above, though not mundane thoughts.
We thus see that the Zohar is speaking of the inability of thought alone to produce either positive or negative effects.
The same is true of the statement in Zohar III, 31b, that a deed below inspires a deed above. A holy deed brings forth an arousal of holiness from above that descends upon the doer, while a deed stemming from impurity causes a spirit of impurity to descend upon him. The Zohar concludes there, that whatever depends upon action affects action, while whatever depends upon speech affects speech.
This, too, indicates that both a positive and a negative impact can be made only through action or speech, and not through disembodied thought alone.
Now, if thought alone “accomplishes nothing,” how does this square with the earlier statement that when one reads the narratives of the Torah, even if he does so only in his thought, he causes the “likeness” of Supernal Man to study Torah, and thereby the person involved is united with Supernal Wisdom?
The Alter Rebbe resolves this seeming contradiction as follows: The Zohar only means that thought has no effect in drawing down illumination from above: it is true that it is not an “arousal from below” that elicits an “arousal from above.” However, thought does have a vital effect above: one’s thought and intention are indispensable in elevating one’s Torah study and performance of the commandments, and in effecting the consequent Supernal Unions.
To return now to the above-quoted statement that “thinking accomplishes nothing”:
יש לומר דהיינו לאתערא לעילא, שיומשך משם לתתא
We may say, that this [disability] refers only to arousing a reaction Above, to call forth a downward flow [of Divine light];
רק מחשבתו נשארה שם
the thought that rises above simply remains there,
ומוסיפה שם אור גדול
greatly increasing the illumination there.
בתוספת וריבוי האור באצילות, על ידי מקרא ומצות מעשיות שבעשיה
[This] increased illumination in Atzilut is brought about through the verbal study of Scripture and the practice of active mitzvot in Asiyah,
שעיקר היחוד הוא למעלה
for the [consequent] Union takes place primarily above, within Atzilut.
רק הפירות בעולם הזה, על ידי המשכת אור מעט מזעיר למטה על ידי הדבור ומעשה
Only [its] fruits reach this world, through the illumination that is called forth in minute measure, here below, by speech and deed, that serve as an “arousal from below” to draw down the “arousal from above.”
מה שאין כן בהרהור, לא נמשך כלום
Through thinking [alone], however, nothing is called forth [below]: the above-mentioned increased illumination remains entirely above.
ולכן לא יצא ידי חבותו
Hence, if one merely thinks the words of the Shema and does not verbalize them vocally, he has not fulfilled his obligation
מה שירדה נשמתו לעולם הזה, רק להמשיך אורות עליונים למטה
for which his soul descended into This World: viz., only to draw supernal illuminations into the lower world.
כמו שכתוב בעץ חיים, שער כ״ו: להמשיך אור
In the words of Etz Chayim, Shaar 26, [the purpose of the soul’s descent is] “to call forth illumination.”
The G‑dly soul does not descend into this world for its own sake, for it is not in need of any rectification. Rather, it descends here in order to rectify and refine the body and the animal soul, by drawing supernal illumination down into this otherwise dark world.
אבל להעלות ממטה למעלה
But to elevate [one’s Torah and mitzvot] from below upward,
הוא דוקא על ידי מחשבה טובה
there must be “good thought” — the positive intent that stems from love and fear of G‑d,
דבלא דחילו ורחימו, לא פרחא לעילא
for without awe and love, [his divine service in Torah and mitzvot] does not fly upward.
וכמו שכתוב בשער הנבואה, פרק ב׳: והמחשבה טובה כו׳
As is stated in Shaar HaNevuah, sec. 2, “And the good thought [is that which raises Torah and mitzvot aloft].”
But here we appear to have a contradiction.
ומה שכתוב: דבקע רקיעין וכו׳
Now, we have an expression, quoted in the Zohar above, [that the sound of Torah study] “pierces firmaments...,”
והיינו, אפילו בלא דחילו ורחימו
and this is true even when [the sound of Torah study] is without awe and love,
במכל שכן מדברים בטלים
by a fortiori reasoning from the case of idle words,
If idle or mundane words spoken on the Sabbath ascend and cause a blemish above, surely holy words ascend, even when they are not accompanied by awe and love of G‑d.18
דמדה טובה, מרובה
since19 “the measure of good is more generous [than its opposite].”
How are we to reconcile this with the statement that “without awe and love one’s [Torah study] does not fly upward”?
The Alter Rebbe now answers:
היינו, רקיעין דוקא, שהן ההיכלות והבתים
This refers only to “firmaments”, meaning the chambers and abodes, i.e., the external aspects of Supernal Man,
ולא בגוף האדם העליון
but not the “body” of Supernal Man.
I.e., if one’s Torah study is not propelled by a love and awe of G‑d, it does not ascend to the “body” of Supernal Man, which comprises the Ten Sefirot of the world involved.
וכל שכן בנפש רוח ונשמה
It certainly [does not ascend] to the Nefesh, Ruach and Neshamah of Supernal Man, the light of Atzilut that illumines that world,
אפילו באדם דעשיה, שהן יו״ד ספירות, אורות וכלים
even not of the Supernal Man of Asiyah, meaning the Ten Sefirot, both its lights and vessels.
Without awe and love, one’s Torah study cannot ascend even to this level.
וזהו שכתוב בתקונים, דבלא דחילו ורחימו, לא יכלא לסלקא ולמיקם קדם ה׳ דוקא
This is the intention of the Tikkunim,20 that without fear and love it cannot ascend or stand before G‑d.
This means that it is capable of ascending to a higher world, but not before the G‑dliness of that world, i.e., the Sefirot of that world. In order for it to ascend there, there must be awe and love.

FOOTNOTES
1.Shklov, 1814; see the Bibliographical Listing by the Rebbe, reproduced (in Hebrew) in the Bi-Lingual Edition of Tanya, p. 714.
2.It appeared in the Shklov edition of 1814 for the first time. See its English translation in Vol. I of the present series, p. 10.
3.Shabbat 63a.
4.III, 105a and 31b.
5.Sanhedrin 65a.
6.Note of the Rebbe: “[Examine], not simply See.”
7.See Vol. II above, p. 558ff.
8.R. Chayim Vital, in Shaar HaYichudim, ch. 11.
9.Note of the Rebbe in He’arot veTikkunim: “In the Mishnah (Chullin 3:4) we find, ‘If its wings were broken....’ [From this we learn that the same law applies] ‘when its wings were removed’; see the Bach and Taz, Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah, beginning of sec. 53.”
10.Actually, this may be viewed the other way around: The real subject of such a narrative is a spiritual truth; this is echoed by the physical aspects of the corresponding episode as it took place below. In the words of Asarah Maamarot (Maamar Chikur Din 3:22), “The Torah speaks on high and hints at matters below.”
11.Bereishit 29:11.
12.Tanya, ch. 45.
13.I.e., Sefer HaKavanot of the AriZal (ed. Venice, 5380/1620).
14.Cf. Yechezkel 1:26.
15.Alternatively, it may be said that the degree of elevation varies with the subject of one’s study. If it is Kabbalah, which extends no further “down” than Atzilut, then one’s study is elevated as far “up” as Atzilut. If it is Talmud, which extends down to Beriah, then one’s study is elevated as far up as Beriah. If Mishnah, it is Yetzirah; if Scripture, it is Asiyah; — as the Alter Rebbe explains in the Note at the conclusion of ch. 40 in Tanya. The Alter Rebbe makes a point of noting there, that in fact all the above categories of Torah study belong in Atzilut, except that Scripture emanates all the way downward until Asiyah, Mishnah — only as far as until Yetzirah, and Talmud — until Beriah, while Kabbalah remains within the World of Atzilut. (See also Torah Or, p. 17a.)
16.Note of the Rebbe: “This expression is also found in Et’haleich [Liozna], [which is a book of discourses that includes these essays from Kuntres Acharon]. [However,] this warrants a critical comparison of early editions and manuscripts, for in many places (Tanya, ch. 40; Zohar III, as cited there; et al.), [the expression used is not ‘pierces atmospheres’ but ‘pierces] heavens.”’
17.Cf. Yeshayahu 58:13: “If you honor it by...refraining...from speaking [worldly] things....”
18.
At this point, the standard edition of Kuntres Acharon interpolates a phrase in brackets [זה אינו, דגם שם יש איזו תאוה], followed by a publisher’s note that this phrase does not appear in certain manuscripts.
The interpolation means: “This is not the case, for there, too, there is some measure of desire.” In other words: The above proof, which relates to idle talk on Shabbat, does not withstand scrutiny, for there, too, there is some measure of desire. Since this motivating desire counts as a certain measure of spirituality, this speech is not an exclusively physical activity; if it were, it would not be able to ascend to a spiritual world.
19.Sotah 11a.
20.Tikkun 10, p. 25b.
Rambam:
• Sefer Hamitzvot:
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Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5778 · November 16, 2017
Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
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Positive Commandment 159
Resting on the First Day of Passover
"And on the first day, there shall be a holy convocation"—Exodus 12:16.
We sanctify the fifteenth of Nissan, the first day of Passover, by resting on that day—defined as abstaining from any creative work, with the exception of work needed for food purposes.
Full text of this Mitzvah »

Resting on the First Day of Passover
Positive Commandment 159
Translated by Berel Bell
The 159th mitzvah is that we are commanded to refrain from doing melachah on the first day1 of Pesach.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement (exalted be He),2 "The first day [of Pesach] shall be a sacred holiday."
Keep in mind the following introduction: in every case where the Torah says, "sacred holiday" [mikra kodesh], our Sages explain that the intention is, "one must sanctify it" [kadsheihu]. This means that one may not do any melachah unless it involves preparation of food, as explained in Scripture.3
We have already explained4 the statement of our Sages, "The term Shabbason indicates a positive commandment," i.e. for every day which is called Shabbason, it is as if it is written, "rest," or "you shall rest," all being commands to cease melachah. [A similar phrase,] Shabbsos Hashem,5 is used to refer to all the "special times," i.e. the Yomim-Tovim.
In many places in the Talmud6 it is said, "Yom-Tov is both a positive and a negative commandment." This means that refraining from melachah on every Yom-Tov is a positive commandment, and doing a prohibited melachah on Yom-Tov is a prohibition. Therefore, anyone who performs a melachah on Yom-Tov transgresses both a positive and a negative commandment.
The details of refraining from these types of melachah are explained in Tractate Yom-Tov [i.e. Beitzah].
FOOTNOTES
1.Outside of Israel, this mitzvah is for two days. This applies for all other Yomim Tovim as well.
2.Lev. 16:29.
3.Ex. 12:16. "The only [work] that you may do is that which is needed so that everyone will be able to eat." Nevertheless, there are many laws regarding the conditions necessary in order to be able to perform such a melachah. See the Shulchan Aruch for the relevant details.
4.See P165, notes and footnotes there.
5.Lev. 23:38.
6.Shabbos 25a. Beitzah 8b.
Negative Commandment 323
Working on the First Day of Passover
"No manner of work shall be done"—Exodus 12:16.
It is forbidden to engage in creative work -- with the exception of work needed for food purposes -- on the fifteenth of Nissan, the First Day of Passover.
Full text of this Mitzvah »

Working on the First Day of Passover
Negative Commandment 323
Translated by Berel Bell
The 323rd prohibition is that we are forbidden to perform melachah on the first day1 of Pesach.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement,2 "No melachah may be done on these days" [i.e. the first and the seventh days of Pesach].
Negative Commandment 324
FOOTNOTES
1.Ex. 12:16.
2.Outside of Israel, this mitzvah is for two days.
Positive Commandment 160
Resting on the Seventh Day of Passover
"And on the seventh day [of Passover] there shall be a holy convocation"—Exodus 12:16.
We are commanded to rest on the 21st of Nissan, the Seventh Day of Passover, by abstaining from any creative work, with the exception of work needed for food purposes.
Full text of this Mitzvah »

Resting on the Seventh Day of Passover
Positive Commandment 160
Translated by Berel Bell
The 160th mitzvah is that we are commanded to refrain from doing melachah on the seventh1 day of Pesach.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement,2 "The seventh day [of Pesach] shall be a sacred holiday."
FOOTNOTES
1.Outside of Israel, this mitzvah is for the seventh and eighth day.
2.Ibid.
Negative Commandment 324
Working on the Seventh Day of Passover
"No manner of work shall be done"—Exodus 12:16.
It is forbidden to engage in creative work -- with the exception of work needed for food purposes -- on the 21st of Nissan, the Seventh Day of Passover.
Full text of this Mitzvah »

Working on the Seventh Day of Passover
Negative Commandment 324
Translated by Berel Bell
The 324th prohibition is that we are forbidden to perform melachah on the seventh day of Pesach.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement,1 "No melachah may be done on these days," i.e. the first and the seventh days [of Pesach].
FOOTNOTES
1.Ibid.
Rambam:
• 1 Chapter A Day: Teshuvah Teshuvah - Chapter Three
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Teshuvah - Chapter Three
1
Each and every person has merits and sins. A person whose merits exceed his sins is [termed] righteous. A person whose sins exceed his merits is [termed] wicked. If [his sins and merits] are equal, he is termed a Beinoni.
The same applies to an entire country. If the merits of all its inhabitants exceed their sins, it is [termed] righteous. If their sins are greater, it is [termed] wicked. The same applies to the entire world.
א
כל אחד ואחד מבני האדם יש לו זכיות ועונות מי שזכיותיו יתירות על עונותיו צדיק ומי שעונותיו יתירות על זכיותיו רשע מחצה למחצה בינוני וכן המדינה אם היו זכיות כל יושביה מרובות על עונותיהן הרי זו צדקת ואם היו עונותיהם מרובין הרי זו רשעה וכן כל העולם כולו:
2
If a person's sins exceed his merits, he will immediately die because of his wickedness as [Jeremiah 30:14] states: "[I have smitten you...] for the multitude of your transgressions."
Similarly, a country whose sins are great will immediately be obliterated as implied by [Genesis 18:20]: "The outcry of Sodom and Amorah is great....
In regard to the entire world as well, were its [inhabitants'] sins to be greater than their merits, they would immediately be destroyed as [Genesis 6:5] relates: "God saw the evil of man was great... [and God said: `I will destroy man....']"
This reckoning is not calculated [only] on the basis of the number of merits and sins, but also [takes into account] their magnitude. There are some merits which outweigh many sins as implied by [I Kings 14:13]: "Because in him, there was found a good quality." In contrast, a sin may outweigh many merits as [Ecclesiastes 9:18] states: "One sin may obscure much good."
The weighing [of sins and merits] is carried out according to the wisdom of the Knowing God. He knows how to measure merits against sins.
ב
אדם שעונותיו מרובין על זכיותיו מיד הוא מת ברשעו שנאמר על רוב עונך וכן מדינה שעונותיה מרובין מיד היא אובדת שנאמר זעקת סדום ועמורה כי רבה וגו' וכן כל העולם כולו אם היו עונותיהם מרובין מזכיותיהן מיד הן נשחתין שנאמר וירא ה' כי רבה רעת האדם ושקול זה אינו לפי מנין הזכיות והעונות אלא לפי גודלם יש זכות שהיא כנגד כמה עונות שנאמר יען נמצא בו דבר טוב ויש עון שהוא כנגד כמה זכיות שנאמר וחוטא אחד יאבד טובה הרבה ואין שוקלין אלא בדעתו של אל דעות והוא היודע היאך עורכין הזכיות כנגד העונות:
3
Anyone who changes his mind about the mitzvot he has performed and regrets the merits [he has earned], saying in his heart: "What value was there in doing them? I wish I hadn't performed them" - loses them all and no merit is preserved for him at all as [Ezekiel 33:12] states "The righteousness of the upright will not save him on the day of his transgression." This only applies to one who regrets his previous [deeds].
Just as a person's merits and sins are weighed at the time of his death, so, too, the sins of every inhabitant of the world together with his merits are weighed on the festival of Rosh HaShanah. If one is found righteous, his [verdict] is sealed for life. If one is found wicked, his [verdict] is sealed for death. A Beinoni's verdict remains tentative until Yom Kippur. If he repents, his [verdict] is sealed for life. If not, his [verdict] is sealed for death.
ג
כל מי שניחם על המצות שעשה ותהה על הזכיות ואמר בלבו ומה הועלתי בעשייתן הלואי לא עשיתי אותן הרי זה איבד את כולן ואין מזכירים לו שום זכות בעולם שנאמר וצדקת הצדיק לא תצילנו ביום רשעו אין זה אלא בתוהה על הראשונות וכשם ששוקלין זכיות אדם ועונותיו בשעת מיתתו כך בכל שנה ושנה שוקלין עונות כל אחד ואחד מבאי העולם עם זכיותיו ביום טוב של ראש השנה מי שנמצא צדיק נחתם לחיים ומי שנמצא רשע נחתם למיתה והבינוני תולין אותו עד יום הכפורים אם עשה תשובה נחתם לחיים ואם לאו נחתם למיתה:
4
Even though the sounding of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah is a decree, it contains an allusion. It is as if [the shofar's call] is saying:
Wake up you sleepy ones from your sleep and you who slumber, arise. Inspect your deeds, repent, remember your Creator. Those who forget the truth in the vanities of time and throughout the entire year, devote their energies to vanity and emptiness which will not benefit or save: Look to your souls. Improve your ways and your deeds and let every one of you abandon his evil path and thoughts.
Accordingly, throughout the entire year, a person should always look at himself as equally balanced between merit and sin and the world as equally balanced between merit and sin. If he performs one sin, he tips his balance and that of the entire world to the side of guilt and brings destruction upon himself.
[On the other hand,] if he performs one mitzvah, he tips his balance and that of the entire world to the side of merit and brings deliverance and salvation to himself and others. This is implied by [Proverbs 10:25] "A righteous man is the foundation of the world," i.e., he who acted righteously, tipped the balance of the entire world to merit and saved it.
For these reasons, it is customary for all of Israel to give profusely to charity, perform many good deeds, and be occupied with mitzvot from Rosh HaShanah until Yom Kippur to a greater extent than during the remainder of the year.
During these ten days, the custom is for everyone to rise [while it is still] night and pray in the synagogues with heart-rending words of supplication until daybreak.
ד
אע"פ שתקיעת שופר בראש השנה גזירת הכתוב רמז יש בו כלומר עורו ישינים משנתכם ונרדמים הקיצו מתרדמתכם וחפשו במעשיכם וחזרו בתשובה וזכרו בוראכם אלו השוכחים את האמת בהבלי הזמן ושוגים כל שנתם בהבל וריק אשר לא יועיל ולא יציל הביטו לנפשותיכם והטיבו דרכיכם ומעלליכם ויעזוב כל אחד מכם דרכו הרעה ומחשבתו אשר לא טובה לפיכך צריך כל אדם שיראה עצמו כל השנה כולה כאילו חציו זכאי וחציו חייב וכן כל העולם חציו זכאי וחציו חייב חטא חטא אחד הרי הכריע את עצמו ואת כל העולם כולו לכף חובה וגרם לו השחתה עשה מצוה אחת הרי הכריע את עצמו ואת כל העולם כולו לכף זכות וגרם לו ולהם תשועה והצלה שנאמר וצדיק יסוד עולם זה שצדק הכריע את כל העולם לזכות והצילו ומפני ענין זה נהגו כל בית ישראל להרבות בצדקה ובמעשים טובים ולעסוק במצות מראש השנה ועד יוה"כ יתר מכל השנה ונהגו כולם לקום בלילה בעשרה ימים אלו ולהתפלל בבתי כנסיות בדברי תחנונים ובכיבושין עד שיאור היום:
5
When a person's sins are being weighed against his merits, [God] does not count a sin that was committed only once or twice. [A sin] is only [counted] if it was committed three times or more.
Should it be found that [even] those sins committed more than three times outweigh a person's merits, the sins that were committed twice [or less] are also added and he is judged for all of his sins.
If his merits are equal to [or greater than the amount of] his sins committed which were committed more than three times, [God] forgives his sins one after the other, i.e., the third sin [is forgiven because] it is considered as a first sin, for the two previous sins were already forgiven. Similarly, after the third sin is forgiven, the fourth sin is considered as a "first" [sin and is forgiven according to the same principle].
The same [pattern is continued] until [all his sins] are concluded.
When does the above apply? In regard to an individual as can be inferred from [Job 33:29] "All these things, God will do twice or three times with a man." However, in regard to a community, [retribution for] the first, second, and third sins is held in abeyance as implied by [Amos 2:6] "For three sins of Israel, [I will withhold retribution,] but for the fourth, I will not withhold it." When a reckoning [of their merits and sins] is made according to the above pattern, the reckoning begins with the fourth [sin].
[As mentioned above,] a Beinoni [is one whose scale is equally balanced between merit and sin]. However, if among his sins is [the
neglect of the mitzvah of] tefillin [to the extent that] he never wore them even once, he is judged according to his sins. He will, nevertheless, be granted a portion in the world to come.
Similarly, all the wicked whose sins are greater [than their merits] are judged according to their sins, but they are granted a portion in the world to come for all Israel have a share in the world to come as [Isaiah 60:21] states "Your people are all righteous, they shall inherit the land forever." "The land" is an analogy alluding to "the land of life," i.e., the world to come. Similarly, the "pious of the nations of the world" have a portion in the world to come.
ה
בשעה ששוקלין עונות אדם עם זכיותיו אין מחשבין עליו עון שחטא בו תחלה ולא שני אלא משלישי ואילך אם נמצאו עונותיו משלישי ואילך מרובין על זכיותיו אותם שתי עונות מצטרפים ודנין אותו על הכל ואם נמצאו זכיותיו כנגד עונותיו אשר מעון שלישי ואילך מעבירים כל עונותיו ראשון ראשון לפי שהשלישי נחשב ראשון שכבר נמחלו השנים וכן הרביעי הרי הוא ראשון שכבר נמחל השלישי וכן עד סופן בד"א ביחיד שנאמר הן כל אלה יפעל אל פעמים שלש עם גבר אבל הצבור תולין להן עון ראשון שני ושלישי שנאמר על שלשה פשעי ישראל ועל ארבעה לא אשיבנו וכשמחשבין להן על דרך זה מחשבין להן מרביעי ואילך הבינונים אם היה בכלל מחצה עונות שלהן שלא הניח תפילין מעולם דנין אותו כפי חטאו ויש לו חלק לעולם הבא וכן כל הרשעים שעונותיהן מרובים דנין אותן כפי חטאיהם ויש להן חלק לעולם הבא שכל ישראל יש להם חלק לעולם הבא אע"פשחטאו שנאמר ועמך כולם צדיקים לעולם יירשו ארץ ארץ זו משל כלומר ארץ החיים והוא העולם הבא וכן חסידי אומות העולם יש להם חלק לעולם הבא:
6
The following individuals do not have a portion in the world to come. Rather, their [souls] are cut off and they are judged for their great wickedness and sins, forever:
the Minim,
the Epicursim,
those who deny the Torah,
those who deny the resurrection of the dead and the coming of the [Messianic] redeemer,
those who rebel [against God],
those who cause the many to sin,
those who separate themselves from the community,
those who proudly commit sins in public as Jehoyakim did,
those who betray Jews to gentile authorities,
those who cast fear upon the people for reasons other than the service of God,
murderers,
slanderers,
one who extends his foreskin [so as not to appear circumcised].
ו
ואלו הן שאין להן חלק לעולם הבא אלא נכרתים ואובדין ונידונין על גודל רשעם וחטאתם לעולם ולעולמי עולמים:
המינים והאפיקורוסין והכופרים בתורה והכופרים בתחיית המתים ובביאת הגואל המורדים ומחטיאי הרבים והפורשין מדרכי צבור והעושה עבירות ביד רמה בפרהסיא כיהויקים והמוסרים ומטילי אימה על הצבור שלא לשם שמים ושופכי דמים ובעלי לשון הרע והמושך ערלתו:
7
Five individuals are described as Minim:
a) one who says there is no God nor ruler of the world;
b) one who accepts the concept of a ruler, but maintains that there are two or more;
c) one who accepts that there is one Master [of the world], but maintains that He has a body or form;
d) one who maintains that He was not the sole First Being and Creator of all existence;
e) one who serves a star, constellation, or other entity so that it will serve as an intermediary between him and the eternal Lord.
Each of these five individuals is a Min.
ז
חמשה הן הנקראים מינים:
האומר שאין שם אלוה ואין לעולם מנהיג והאומר שיש שם מנהיג אבל הן שנים או יותר והאומר שיש שם רבון אחד אבל שהוא גוף ובעל תמונה וכן האומר שאינו לבדו הראשון וצור לכל וכן העובד כוכב או מזל וזולתו כדי להיות מליץ בינו ובין רבון העולמים כל אחד מחמשה אלו הוא מין:
8
Three individuals are described as Epicursim:
a) one who denies the existence of prophecy and maintains that there is no knowledge communicated from God to the hearts of men;
b) one who disputes the prophecy of Moses, our teacher;'
c) one who maintains that the Creator is not aware of the deeds of men.
Each of these three individuals is an Epicurus.
There are three individuals who are considered as one "who denies the Torah":
a) one who says Torah, even one verse or one word, is not from God. If he says: "Moses made these statements independently," he is denying the Torah.
b) one who denies the Torah's interpretation, the oral law, or disputes [the authority of] its spokesmen as did Tzadok and Beitus.
c) one who says that though the Torah came from God, the Creator has replaced one mitzvah with another one and nullified the original Torah, like the Arabs [and the Christians].
Each of these three individuals is considered as one who denies the Torah.
ח
שלשה הן הנקראים אפיקורסין:
האומר שאין שם נבואה כלל ואין שם מדע שמגיע מהבורא ללב בני האדם והמכחיש נבואתו של משה רבינו והאומר שאין הבורא יודע מעשה בני האדם כל אחד משלשה אלו הן אפיקורוסים שלשה הן הכופרים בתורה:
האומר שאין התורה מעם ה' אפילו פסוק אחד אפילו תיבה אחת אם אמר משה אמרו מפי עצמו הרי זה כופר בתורה וכן הכופר בפרושה והוא תורה שבעל פה והמכחיש מגידיה כגון צדוק ובייתוס והאומר שהבורא החליף מצוה זו במצוה אחרת וכבר בטלה תורה זו אע"פ שהיא היתה מעם ה' כגון ההגרים כל אחד משלשה אלו כופר בתורה:
9
Among Israel, there are two categories of apostates: an apostate in regard to a single mitzvah and an apostate in regard to the entire Torah.
An apostate in regard to a single mitzvah is someone who has made a practice of willfully committing a particular sin [to the point where] he is accustomed to committing it and his deeds are public knowledge. [This applies] even though [the sin] is one of the minor ones. For example, someone who has made a practice of constantly wearing sha'atnez or cutting off his sideburns so that it appears that, in regard to him, it is as if this mitzvah has been nullified entirely. Such a person is considered an apostate in regard to that matter. This applies [only] if he [commits the sin] with the intent of angering God.
An example of an apostate in regard to the entire Torah is one who turn to the faith of the gentiles when they enact [harsh] decrees [against the Jews] and clings to them, saying: "What value do I have in clinging to Israel while they are debased and pursued. It's better to cling to those who have the upper hand." Such an individual is an apostate in regard to the entire Torah.
ט
שנים הם המומרים מישראל:
המומר לעבירה אחת והמומר לכל התורה כולה מומר לעבירה אחת זה שהחזיק עצמו לעשות אותה עבירה בזדון והורגל ונתפרסם בה אפילו היתה מן הקלות כגון שהוחזק תמיד ללבוש שעטנז או להקיף פאה ונמצא כאלו בטלה מצוה זו מן העולם אצלו הרי זה מומר לאותו דבר והוא שיעשה להכעיס מומר לכל התורה כולה כגון החוזרים לדתי העובדי כוכבים בשעה שגוזרין גזרה וידבק בהם ויאמר מה בצע לי להדבק בישראל שהם שפלים ונרדפים טוב לי שאדבק באלו שידם תקיפה הרי זה מומר לכל התורה כולה:
10
[The category of] "those who cause the many to sin" includes those who cause them to commit a severe sin like Jeroboam, Tzadok, or Beitus; and also, those who cause them to commit a slight sin, even the nullification of a positive command.
It includes [both] those who force others to sin like Menasheh who would kill the Jews if they did not worship idols and those who entice others and lead them astray.
י
מחטיאי הרבים כיצד אחד שהחטיא בדבר גדול כגון ירבעם וצדוק ובייתוס ואחד שהחטיא בדבר קל אפילו לבטל מצות עשה ואחד האונס אחרים עד שיחטאו כמנשה שהיה הורג את ישראל עד שיעבדו עבודת כוכבים או שהטעה אחרים והדיחם:
11
A person who separates himself from the community [may be placed in this category] even though he has not transgressed any sins. A person who separates himself from the congregation of Israel and does not fulfill mitzvot together with them, does not take part in their hardships, or join in their [communal] fasts, but rather goes on his own individual path as if he is from another nation and not [Israel], does not have a portion in the world to come.
"Those who proudly commit sins in public as Jehoyakim did," whether they commit slight sins or severe ones, have no portion in the world to come. Such behavior is referred to as "acting brazen-facedly against the Torah," for he acted insolently, in open [defiance], without feeling any shame despite the Torah's words.
יא
הפורש מדרכי צבור ואף על פי שלא עבר עבירות אלא נבדל מעדת ישראל ואינו עושה מצות בכללן ולא נכנס בצרתן ולא מתענה בתעניתן אלא הולך בדרכו כאחד מגויי הארץ וכאילו אינו מהן אין לו חלק לעולם הבא העושה עבירות ביד רמה כיהויקים בין שעשה קלות בין שעשה חמורות אין לו חלק לעולם הבא וזהו הנקרא מגלה פנים בתורה מפני שהעיז מצחו וגילה פניו ולא בוש מדברי תורה:
12
There are two categories of "those who betray Jews to gentiles:" one who betrays a colleague to the gentiles so that they may kill him or beat him; and one who gives over a colleague's money to gentiles or to a person who commandeers property and is, therefore, considered like a gentile.
Neither of the two has a portion in the world to come.
יב
שנים הם המוסרין:
המוסר חבירו ביד עכו"ם להורגו או להכותו והמוסר ממון חבירו ביד עכו"ם או ביד אנס שהוא כעכו"ם ושניהם אין להם חלק לעוה"ב:
13
"Those who cast fear upon the people for reasons other than the service of God" - This refers to one who rules the community with a strong hand and [causes] them to revere and fear him. His intent is only for his own honor and none of his desires are for God's honor; for example, the gentile kings.
יג
מטילי אימה על הצבור שלא לשם שמים זה הרודה צבור בחזקה והם יראים ומפחדים ממנו וכוונתו לכבוד עצמו וכל חפציו שלא לכבוד שמים כגון מלכי העכו"ם:
14
All the twenty four individuals listed above will not receive a portion in the world to come even though they are Jewish.
There are other sins which are less severe than those mentioned. Nevertheless, our Sages said that a person who frequently commits them will not receive a portion in the world to come and [counseled] that these [sins] be avoided and care be taken in regard to them. They are:
one who invents a [disparaging] nickname for a colleague; one who calls a colleague by a [disparaging] nickname;
one who embarrasses a colleague in public;
one who takes pride in his colleague's shame;
one who disgraces Torah Sages;
one who disgraces his teachers;
one who degrades the festivals; and
one who profanes sacred things.
When does the statement that these individuals do not have a portion in the world to come apply? When they die without having repented. However, if such a person repents from his wicked deeds and dies as a Baal-Teshuvah, he will merit the world to come, for nothing can stand in the way of Teshuvah.
Even if he denies God's existence throughout his life and repents in his final moments, he merits a portion in the world to come as implied by [Isaiah 57:19] "`Peace, peace, to the distant and the near,' declares God. `I will heal him.'"
Any wicked person, apostate, or the like, who repents, whether in an open, revealed manner or in private, will be accepted as implied by [Jeremiah 3:22] "Return, faithless children." [We may infer] that even if one is still faithless, as obvious from the fact that he repents in private and not in public, his Teshuvah will be accepted.
יד
כל אחד ואחד מעשרים וארבעה אנשים אלו שמנינו אף על פי שהן מישראל אין להם חלק לעוה"ב ויש עבירות קלות מאלו ואעפ"כ אמרו חכמים שהרגיל בהן אין להם חלק לעוה"ב וכדי הן להתרחק מהן ולהזהר בהן ואלו הן:
שם לחבירו והקורא לחבירו בכינויו והמלבין פני חבירו ברבים והמתכבד בקלון חבירו והמבזה תלמידי חכמים והמבזה רבותיו והמבזה את המועדות והמחלל את הקדשים במה דברים אמורים שכל אחד מאלו אין לו חלק לעוה"ב כשמת בלא תשובה אבל אם שב מרשעו ומת והוא בעל תשובה הרי זה מבני העולם הבא שאין לך דבר שעומד בפני התשובה אפילו כפר בעיקר כל ימיו ובאחרונה שב יש לו חלק לעולם הבא שנאמר שלום שלום לרחוק ולקרוב אמר ה' ורפאתיו כל הרשעים והמומרים וכיוצא בהן שחזרו בתשובה בין בגלוי בין במטמוניות מקבלין אותן שנאמר שובו בנים שובבים אע"פ שעדין שובב הוא שהרי בסתר שב ולא בגלוי מקבלין אותו בתשובה:
Rambam:
• 3 Chapters A Day: Shevitat Yom Tov Shevitat Yom Tov - Chapter One, Shevitat Yom Tov Shevitat Yom Tov - Chapter Two, Shevitat Yom Tov Shevitat Yom Tov - Chapter Three
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Shevitat Yom Tov - Chapter One
Introduction to Hilchos Shevitat Yom Tov
They contain twelve mitzvot: six positive commandments and six negative commandments. They are:
1) To rest on the first day of Pesach;
2) Not to perform work on it;
3) To rest on the seventh day of Pesach;
4) Not to perform work on it;
5) To rest on the festival of Shavuot;
6) Not to perform work on it;
7) To rest on Rosh HaShanah;
8) Not to perform work on it;
9) To rest on the first day of the festival of Sukkot;
10) Not to perform work on it;
11) To rest on the eighth day of that festival;
12) Not to perform work on it;
These mitzvot are explained in the chapters [that follow].
הלכות שביתת יום טוב - הקדמה
יש בכללן שתים עשרה מצות. שש מצות עשה. ושש מצות לא תעשה. וזהו פרטן:
א) לשבות בראשון של פסח.
ב) שלא לעשות בו מלאכה.
ג) לשבות בשביעי של פסח.
ד) שלא לעשות בו מלאכה.
ה) לשבות ביום חג השבועות.
ו) שלא לעשות בו מלאכה.
ז) לשבות בראש השנה.
ח) שלא לעשות בו מלאכה.
ט) לשבות בראשון של חג הסכות.
י) שלא לעשות בו מלאכה.
יא) לשבות בשמיני של חג.
יב) שלא לעשות בו מלאכה:
וביאור מצות אלו בפרקים אלו:
1
The six days on which the Torah forbade work are the first and seventh days of Pesach, the first and eighth days of the festival of Sukkot, the festival of Shavuot, and the first day of the seventh month.1 They are referred to as holidays.
The [obligation to] rest is the same on all these days; it is forbidden to perform all types of servile labor,2 with the exception of those labors necessary for [the preparation of] food, as [implied by Exodus 12:16]: "Only that [labor] from which all souls will eat [may you perform]."
א
ששת ימים האלו שאסרן הכתוב בעשיית מלאכה שהן ראשון ושביעי של פסח וראשון ושמיני של חג הסוכות וביום חג השבועות ובאחד לחדש השביעי הן הנקראין ימים טובים. ושביתת כולן שוה שהן אסורין בכל מלאכת עבודה חוץ ממלאכה שהיא לצורך אכילה שנאמר אך אשר יאכל לכל נפש וגו':
2
Anyone who rests from "servile labor" on one of these days fulfills a positive commandment,3 for [the Torah] describes them as Sabbaths - i.e., days of rest.4
Whoever performs a labor that is not for the sake of [the preparation of] food on one of these days - e.g., he builds, destroys, weaves, or the like5 - negates [the performance of] a positive commandment and violates a negative commandment6, as [Leviticus 23:7] states: "You shall not perform any servile labor," and [Exodus 12:6] states: "You shall not perform any work on them."
If a person performs [a forbidden labor when observed] by witnesses and [after] receiving a warning, the Torah prescribes that he receive lashes [as punishment].7
ב
כל השובת ממלאכת עבודה באחד מהן הרי קיים מצות עשה שהרי נאמר בהן שבתון כלומר שבות. וכל העושה באחד מהן מלאכה שאינה לצורך אכילה כגון שבנה או הרס או ארג וכיוצא באלו הרי בטל מצות עשה ועבר על לא תעשה, שנאמר כל מלאכת עבודה לא תעשו, כל מלאכה לא יעשה בהן. ואם עשה בעדים והתראה לוקה מן התורה:
3
When a person performs several forbidden labors on a holiday after being warned once - e.g., he sows, builds, destroys, and weaves - after receiving a single warning,8 he receives only a single [set of] lashes. There is a distinction between the categories of forbidden labor on the Sabbath, but there is no such distinction on the holidays.9
ג
העושה אבות מלאכות הרבה ביום טוב בהתראה אחת כגון שזרע ובנה וסתר וארג בהתראה אחת אינו לוקה אלא אחת. חילוק מלאכות לשבת ואין חילוק מלאכות ליום טוב:
4
A person may be [punished by] lashes for performing on a holiday any labor for which he is liable on the Sabbath, if it is not necessary for the preparation of food, with the exception of the transfer of articles from one domain to another and the kindling of a fire.10
[With regard to these two forbidden labors, an exception is made.11] Since it is permitted to transfer articles for the sake of [the preparation of] food [on holidays], [this activity] was permitted even when it is not necessary for [the preparation of] food. Therefore, it is permitted to transfer an infant, a Torah scroll, a key, or the like from one domain to another. Similarly, it is permitted to kindle a fire, even though it is not for the purpose of [the preparation of] food.12
With regard to the other forbidden labors, [the following principles apply:] Whenever the activity is necessary for [the preparation of] food - e.g., slaughter, baking, kneading, or the like - it is permitted. If it is not necessary for [the preparation of] food - e.g., writing, weaving, building, and the like - it is forbidden.
ד
כל מלאכה שחייבין עליה בשבת אם עשה אותה ביום טוב שלא לצורך אכילה לוקה חוץ מן ההוצאה מרשות לרשות וההבערה שמתוך שהותרה הוצאה ביום טוב לצורך אכילה הותרה שלא לצורך אכילה. לפיכך מותר ביום טוב להוציא קטן או ספר תורה או מפתח וכיוצא באלו מרשות לרשות. וכן מותר להבעיר אע"פ שאינו לצורך אכילה.ושאר מלאכות כל שיש בו צורך אכילה מותר כגון שחיטה ואפייה ולישה וכיוצא בהן. וכל שאין בהן צורך אכילה אסור כגון כתיבה ואריגה ובנין וכיוצא בהן:
5
Whenever it is possible to perform a labor on the day prior to the holiday without causing any loss or inadequacy, our Sages forbade13 performing such a labor on the holiday itself, even if it is performed for the sake of [the preparation of] food.
Why was this forbidden? This was a decree [instituted], lest a person leave for the holiday all the labors that he could have performed before the holiday, and thus spend the entire holiday performing those labors. Thus, he will be prevented from rejoicing on the holidays and will not have the opportunity to [take pleasure in] eating and drinking.14
ה
כל מלאכה שאפשר להעשות מערב יום טוב ולא יהיה בה הפסד ולא חסרון אם נעשית מבערב אסרו חכמים לעשות אותה ביום טוב אף על פי שהיא לצורך אכילה.ולמה אסרו דבר זה גזירה שמא יניח אדם מלאכות שאפשר לעשותן מערב יום טוב ליום טוב ונמצא יום טוב כולו הולך בעשיית אותן מלאכות וימנע משמחת יום טוב ולא יהיה לו פנאי לאכול:
6
For this very reason, [our Sages] did not forbid transferring articles on a holiday, although the transfer of all [articles] is a task that could be performed before the holiday.
Why was this not forbidden? To increase our festive joy, so that a person can send and bring anything he desires, and thus fulfill his wants, and not feel like someone whose hands are tied.15 With regard to other labors that are possible to be performed on the day before the holiday, since they involve [prolonged] activity, they should not be performed on a holiday.
ו
ומזה הטעם עצמו לא אסרו ההוצאה ביום טוב ואע"פ שכל ההוצאה היא מלאכה שאפשר לעשותה מערב יום טוב ולמה לא אסרוה כדי להרבות בשמחת יום טוב ויוליך ויביא כל מה שירצה וישלים חפציו ולא יהיה כמי שידיו אסורות. אבל שאר מלאכות שאפשר לעשותן מערב יום טוב הואיל ויש בהן עסק אין עושין אותן ביום טוב:
7
What is implied? On a holiday, we do not harvest, thresh, winnow, separate, or grind grain, nor do we sift [flour].16 For all these and any similar activities can be performed on the day prior to the holiday without causing any loss or inadequacy.
ז
כיצד אין קוצרין ולא דשין ולא זורין ולא בוררין ולא טוחנין את החטים ולא מרקדין ביום טוב שכל אלו וכיוצא בהם אפשר לעשותן מערב יום טוב ואין בכך הפסד ולא חסרון:
8
We may, however, knead, bake, slaughter, and cook on a holiday, since if these activities had been performed on the previous day, the taste would be adversely affected. For warm bread or food that is cooked today does not [taste] the same as bread or food that was cooked the day before. Similarly, meat that is slaughtered today does not [taste] the same as meat slaughtered on the previous day. The same rules apply in all analogous situations.17
Similarly, when it would be detrimental for subsidiary activities [involved in the preparation] of food to be performed on the day [before the holiday] - e.g., grinding spices and the like - they may be performed on the holiday.
ח
אבל לשין ואופין ושוחטין ומבשלין ביום טוב. שאם עשה אלו מבערב יש בכך הפסד או חסרון טעם. שאין לחם חם או תבשיל שבשל היום כלחם שנאפה מאמש וכתבשיל שנתבשל מאמש. ולא בשר שנשחט היום כבשר שנשחט מאמש. וכן כל כיוצא באלו. וכן מכשירי אוכל נפש שיש בהן חסרון אם נעשו מבערב עושין אותן ביום טוב. כגון שחיקת תבלין וכיוצא בהן:
9
It is forbidden to bake or cook food on a holiday [that one intends] to eat during the week,18 because work necessary for [the preparation of] food was permitted solely so that pleasure could be derived from it on a holiday. If, however, one [cooks food] to be eaten on the holiday, and there is food left over, the remainder may be eaten during the week.19
ט
אין אופין ומבשלין ביום טוב מה שיאכל בחול. ולא הותרה מלאכה שהיא לצורך אכילה אלא כדי ליהנות בה ביום טוב. עשה כדי לאכול ביום טוב והותיר מותר לאכול המותר בחול:
10
A woman may fill a pot with meat although she needs only one piece.20 A baker may fill an entire drum with water [to boil] although he needs only one jug.21 And a woman may bake an entire oven full of bread although she needs only a single loaf, for when there is a large quantity of bread in an an oven, it bakes better.22
[Similarly,] a person may salt several pieces of meat23 although he only needs one piece.24 The same applies in all similar situations.
י
ממלאה אשה קדרה בשר אף על פי שאינה צריכה אלא לחתיכה אחת. ממלא נחתום חבית של מים אע"פ שאינו צריך אלא לקיתון אחד. וממלאה אשה תנור פת אף על פי שאינה צריכה אלא לככר אחד. שבזמן שהפת מרובה בתנור היא נאפת יפה. ומולח אדם כמה חתיכות בשר בבת אחת אף על פי שאינו צריך אלא לחתיכה אחת. וכן כל כיוצא בזה:
11
When a person cooks or bakes on a holiday with the intent of eating the food on that day, or he has invited guests and they did not come, and cooked food or bread remains, [the food] is permitted to be eaten on the following day, whether it is a weekday or the Sabbath,25 provided one does not act with guile.26
If, however, one acts with guile, he27 is forbidden [to partake of the food], even on a Sabbath that follows the holiday. For greater stringency is shown with one who acts with guile than with one who violates the prohibition [against preparing food for the following day on a holiday] intentionally.28
יא
המבשל או האופה ביום טוב כדי לאכול בו ביום או שזימן אורחים ולא באו ונשאר התבשיל והפת הרי זה מותר לאכול למחר בין בחול בין בשבת. ובלבד שלא יערים. ואם הערים אסור ואפילו בשבת שאחר יום טוב מפני שהחמירו במערים יותר מן המזיד:
12
A person who has an animal that is dangerously ill29 should not slaughter it on a holiday unless he knows that he will be able to eat30 [at least] an olive-sized [portion] of roasted meat before the holiday is completed. [In this way,] he will not be slaughtering [an animal] on a holiday to partake of its meat on an ordinary day. The same principles apply in other similar situations.
יב
מי שהיתה לו בהמה מסוכנת לא ישחוט אותה ביום טוב אלא א"כ יודע שיכול לאכול ממנה כזית צלי מבעוד יום. כדי שלא ישחוט ביום טוב מה שיאכל בחול וכן כל כיוצא בזה:
13
We may not bake and cook on a holiday in order to feed gentiles31 or dogs, as [indicated by Exodus 12:16]:32 "This alone is permitted for you" - i.e., [the leniency is] "for you" and not for gentiles, "for you" and not for dogs.
For this reason, it is permitted to invite a gentile [to share one's meal] on the Sabbath, but not on a holiday, lest one add [more food] for him.33 If, however, a gentile comes [to a Jewish household on a holiday] on his own initiative, he may eat [the food] they eat together with them, for it has already been prepared.
יג
אין אופין ומבשלין ביום טוב כדי להאכיל כותים או כלבים שנאמר הוא לבדו יעשה לכם ולא לכותים לכם ולא לכלבים. לפיכך מזמנין את הכותי בשבת ואין מזמנין אותו ביום טוב גזירה שמא ירבה בשבילו. אבל אם בא הכותי מאליו אוכל עמהן מה שהן אוכלין שכבר הכינוה:
14
On a holiday, it is permissible to slaughter an animal that is owned partially by a Jew and partially by a gentile. [This is permitted although the gentile benefits,] because it is impossible [for the Jew] to partake of an olive-sized portion [of the meat belonging to him] without slaughtering the animal.
When, by contrast, dough is owned partially by a Jew and partially by a gentile, it is forbidden to bake it [on a holiday], because the dough can be divided.
[The following rule applies when] the soldiers [of a gentile army] give flour to a Jew and request that he bake them bread on a holiday: If they do not object to giving some of the bread to a baby, it is permitted for him to bake on the holiday. For every loaf of bread is fit to be given to the baby.34
When the shepherds also eat from the loaves they give to the dogs, these loaves may be baked on a holiday.35
יד
בהמה שחציה של כותי וחציה של ישראל מותר לשוחטה ביום טוב שאי אפשר לאכול ממנה כזית בשר בלא שחיטה. אבל עיסה שחציה לכותים וחציה לישראל אסור לאפות אותה מפני שיכול לחלק הבצק. בני החיל שנתנו קמח לישראל לעשות להם פת ביום טוב. אם כשנותנין פת ממנה לתינוק אין מקפידין מותר לאפותו להן ביום טוב שכל פת ופת ראוי לתינוק. עיסת הכלבים בזמן שהרועים אוכלין ממנה נאפית ביום טוב:
15
A person who cooks on a holiday for gentiles, for an animal or to keep for a weekday should not be given lashes, because if guests came, the cooked food would be fit to serve them.36 If a person prepares [food] for himself and [food] remains, he is permitted to give it to a gentile or to an animal.
טו
המבשל ביום טוב לכותים או לבהמה או להניח לחול אינו לוקה שאילו באו לו אורחים היה אותו תבשיל ראוי להן. עשה לנפשו והותיר מותר להאכיל ממנו לכותים ולבהמה:
16
Bathing and anointing37 oneself are considered in the general category of eating and drinking. They are permitted on a holiday [as indicated by Exodus 12:16]: "Only that [labor] from which all souls will eat [may you perform]" - i.e., all the needs of the body [are permitted].38
Therefore, one may heat water on a holiday and wash his hands and feet. It is, however, forbidden to wash one's entire body. This is a decree,39 [instituted to prevent the use of] bathhouses.40
When water was heated before the commencement of a holiday, one may wash one's entire body with it on the holiday.41 This was prohibited only on the Sabbath.42
טז
רחיצה וסיכה הרי הן בכלל אכילה ושתיה ועושין אותן ביום טוב שנאמר אך אשר יאכל לכל נפש לכל שצריך הגוף. לפיכך מחמין חמין ביום טוב ורוחץ בהן פניו ידיו ורגליו. אבל כל גופו אסור משום גזירת מרחץ. וחמין שהוחמו מערב יום טוב רוחץ בהן כל גופו ביום טוב שלא גזרו על דבר זה אלא בשבת בלבד:
17
All [activities] that are forbidden on the Sabbath, whether because they resemble a [forbidden] labor, might lead to a forbidden labor, or are placed in the category of sh'vut,43 are forbidden on a holiday unless they are necessary for the preparation of food and the like, or for other purposes that are permitted on a holiday, as will be explained in these laws.
Everything that is forbidden to be carried on the Sabbath,44 is forbidden to be carried on a holiday, except for the purpose [of the preparation] of food and the like. Whatever [activities] may be carried out on the Sabbath may be carried on the holidays. There is, however, [a category of prohibitions] that apply on the holidays, but do not apply on the Sabbath: the prohibitions against muktzeh.45
Muktzeh is forbidden on a holiday, but permitted on the Sabbath. [The rationale is] since the [restrictions pertaining to] the holidays are more lenient than those of the Sabbath, [our Sages] forbade muktzeh, lest one come to treat the holidays with disrespect.46
יז
כל שאסור בשבת בין משום שהוא דומה למלאכה או מביא לידי מלאכה בין שהוא משום שבות הרי הוא אסור ביום טוב אלא אם כן היה בו צורך אכילה וכיוצא בה. או דברים שהם מותרים ביום טוב כמו שיתבאר בהלכות אלו. וכל שאסור לטלטלו בשבת אסור לטלטלו ביום טוב אלא לצורך אכילה וכיוצא בה. וכל שמותר בשבת מותר ביום טוב. ויש ביום טוב מה שאין בשבת איסור מוקצה שהמוקצה אסור ביום טוב ומותר בשבת מפני שיום טוב קל משבת אסרו בו המוקצה שמא יבוא לזלזל בו:
18
What is implied? When a chicken is set aside to lay eggs, an ox is set aside to plow, and doves in a dovecote47 or produce are set aside for sale, these and any similar articles are considered to be muktzeh and may not be eaten on a holiday.
[For them to be permitted,] it is necessary to prepare them on the previous day and have the intent that one will partake of them.48On the Sabbath, by contrast, everything is considered to be prepared and there is no need for preparation.
Just as muktzeh is forbidden on a holiday, so too, an object that first came into existence on the holiday is forbidden.
יח
כיצד תרנגולת העומדת לגדל ביצים ושור העומד לחרישה ויוני שובך ופירות העומדין לסחורה כל אלו וכיוצא בהן מוקצה הן ואסור לאכול מהן ביום טוב עד שיכין אותם מבערב ויחשוב עליהם לאכילה. אבל בשבת הכל מוכן אצל שבת ואינו צריך הכנה. וכשם שהמוקצה אסור ביום טוב כך הנולד אסור:
19
[Food] may be prepared49 on a weekday for the Sabbath and [food] may be prepared on a weekday for a holiday, but [food] may not be prepared on a holiday for the Sabbath, nor may [food] be prepared on the Sabbath for a holiday.
Therefore, an egg that was laid on a holiday that follows the Sabbath is forbidden50 - even though the chicken is set aside to be eaten51 - since the egg was finished on the previous day and thus the Sabbath would be preparing for a holiday.
[Our Sages] forbade [eating] an egg that was laid on any holiday. [This is] a decree, [lest one eat an egg laid] on a holiday that follows the Sabbath. Similarly, [our Sages] forbade [eating] an egg that was laid on any Sabbath. [This is] a decree, lest one eat an egg laid] on a Sabbath that follows a holiday.52
יט
חול מכין לשבת וחול מכין ליום טוב אבל אין יום טוב מכין לשבת ולא שבת מכינה ליום טוב. לפיכך ביצה שנולדה ביום טוב אחר השבת אסורה. ואע"פ שהתרנגולת עומדת לאכילה. הואיל ומאמש נגמרה הביצה נמצא שבת מכין אותה ליום טוב. ואסרוה בכל יום טוב גזירה משום יום טוב שאחר שבת. וכן ביצה שנולדה בכל שבת אסורה גזרה משום שבת שאחר יום טוב:
20
Just as it is forbidden to partake of this [egg], so too, is it forbidden to carry it.53 Even if it becomes mixed with a thousand [other eggs], they are all forbidden. For on the morrow, they will all be permitted, and [the existence of] any forbidden article that will ultimately become permitted is never considered inconsequential, even when mixed with thousands of thousands.54
When a person slaughters a chicken on a holiday and within the chicken finds eggs that already have a shell, it is permitted [to partake of] them, for this is not a frequent circumstance. And [our Sages] did not institute decrees regarding infrequent circumstances that occur only incidentally.55
כ
וכשם שאסור לאכלה כך אסור לטלטלה ואפילו נתערבה באלף כולן אסורות שהרי למחר יותרו הכל וכל דבר שיש לו מתירין אפילו באלף אלפים אינו בטל. השוחט תרנגולת ביום טוב ומצא בה ביצים גמורות הרי אלו מותרות. שאין זה דבר מצוי תמיד ודבר שאינו מצוי אלא אקראי בעלמא לא גזרו בו:
21
Our celebration of every holiday for two days in the diaspora is merely a custom.56 For the second day of the holiday is a Rabbinic institution, innovated during the exile. The inhabitants of Eretz Yisrael observe a holiday for two days only on Rosh HaShanah.57
In Hilchot Kiddush HaChodesh in this volume the fundamental principles pertaining to this custom and the rationale why Rosh HaShanah is universally observed for two days will be explained.
כא
זה שאנו עושין בחוצה לארץ כל יום טוב מאלו שני ימים מנהג הוא. ויום טוב שני מדברי סופרים הוא ומדברים שנתחדשו בגלות. ואין עושין בני ארץ ישראל שני ימים טובים אלא בראש השנה בלבד. ובהלכות קידוש החדש מספר זה נבאר עיקר מנהג זה ומאי זה טעם עושין ראש השנה שני ימים בכל מקום:
22
Although the second day of a holiday is merely a Rabbinic institution, everything that is forbidden on the first day is forbidden on the second. Whoever desecrates the second day of a holiday, even the second day of Rosh HaShanah,58 whether with regard to a prohibition in the category of sh'vut, the performance of a forbidden labor, or by proceeding beyond the [2000-cubit city] limits should be punished by stripes for rebelliousness or should be placed under a ban of ostracism,59 unless [the violator] was a student [of the Torah].60
Just as it is forbidden to deliver eulogies or to fast on the first day of a holiday and we are obligated to rejoice on that day,61 so too, [these same prohibitions and obligations apply] on the second day. There is no difference between them except with regard to [the care of] a corpse.
כב
יום טוב שני אע"פ שהוא מדברי סופרים כל דבר שאסור בראשון אסור בשני. וכל המחלל יום טוב שני ואפילו של ראש השנה בין בדבר שהוא משום שבות בין במלאכה בין שיצא חוץ לתחום מכין אותו מכת מרדות או מנדין אותו אם לא יהיה מן התלמידים. וכשם שהראשון אסור בהספד ותענית וחייב בשמחה כך השני ואין ביניהן הפרש אלא לענין מת בלבד:
23
What is implied? On the first day of a holiday gentiles should be involved62 with the burial of a corpse,63 and on the second day these activities should be performed by a Jew.64
Everything necessary [for the burial] may be performed - e.g., making a bier, sewing shrouds, picking herbs, and the like. With regard to a corpse, the second day of a holiday is considered to be an ordinary weekday. This applies even to the second day of Rosh HaShanah.
כג
כיצד המת ביום טוב ראשון יתעסקו בקבורתו הכותים וביום טוב שני יתעסקו בו ישראל. ועושין לו כל צרכיו כגון עשיית המטה ותפירת התכריכין וקציצת הבשמים וכל כיוצא בזה. שיום טוב שני לגבי המת כחול הוא חשוב ואפילו בשני ימים טובים של ראש השנה:
24
The two days observed in the diaspora are considered two separate expressions of holiness and are not considered to be a single [extended] day.65 Therefore, an entity that was considered muktzeh on the first day, or first came into existence on the first day, is permitted on the second day if it was designated [for use on that day].
What is implied? An egg that was laid on the first day of a holiday may be eaten on the second. [Similarly,] beast or fowl that were trapped on the first day may be eaten on the second day. [Produce] that was attached to the ground on the first day and separated from it [on that day] may be eaten on the second day. Similarly, one may paint one's eyes on the second day,66 even though one does not feel infirmity.
When does the above apply? To the second days of holidays observed [only] in the diaspora. The two days of Rosh HaShanah are considered to be a single expression of holiness; they are considered to be one [long] day67 with regard to all matters, with the exception of [burying] the dead. An egg that is laid on the first day of Rosh HaShanah is forbidden on the second day. The same applies in all similar instances.
When either the Sabbath or a holiday follows directly after the other, an egg laid on one is forbidden on the other. The same applies with regard to all similar situations.68 Even if an egg was laid on the second day [of a holiday, and that second day] is followed by the Sabbath, the egg should not be eaten on the Sabbath.
כד
שני ימים טובים אלו של גליות שתי קדושות הן ואינן כיום אחד לפיכך דבר שהיה מוקצה ביום טוב ראשון או שנולד בראשון אם הכין אותו לשני הרי זה מותר. כיצד ביצה שנולדה בראשון תאכל בשני. חיה ועוף שניצודו בראשון יאכלו בשני. דבר המחובר לקרקע שנעקר בראשון יאכל בשני. וכן מותר לכחול את העין ביום טוב שני ואע"פ שאין שם חולי. במה דברים אמורים בשני ימים טובים של גליות אבל שני ימים של ראש השנה קדושה אחת הן וכיום אחד הן חשובים לכל אלו הדברים אלא לענין המת בלבד. אבל ביצה שנולדה בראשון של ראש השנה אסורה בשני וכן כל כיוצא בזה. שבת הסמוכה ליום טוב ונולדה ביצה באחד מהן אסורה בשני וכן כל כיוצא בזה. ואפילו נולדה ביום שני לא תאכל בשבת הסמוכה לו
FOOTNOTES
1.I.e., Rosh HaShanah, the first of Tishrei, which is the seventh month when counting from Nisan. Significantly, the name Rosh HaShanah is not mentioned in the Torah at all.
2.Our interpretation of the words מלאכת עבודה as "servile labor" is based on the gloss of the Maggid Mishneh on Halachah 5. There he interprets it as referring to tasks that a person would hire a servant to do rather than perform himself.
In his commentary on the Torah (Leviticus 23:7), the Ramban explains that with the expression "servile labor," the Torah intends to distinguish between work performed to prepare food (which he terms "gratifying labor") and the other forms of labor. According to the Ramban, the Torah never forbade the performance of the activities included in the labors necessary for the preparation of food. Any restrictions placed on them are Rabbinic in nature.
The Ramban's conception is also reflected in the statements of Rashi (Beitzah 12a), who interprets the Talmud's ruling (see Halachah 4), "Since [these labors] were permitted for the sake [of preparing food], they are permitted even when [they are performed] without such an intent," as meaning that, according to the Torah, there is no prohibition against performing these labors at all.
Tosafot (Beitzah, loc. cit.) differs and explains that for the performance of a labor to be allowed by the Torah, it must in some way contribute to the pleasure of the holiday. Otherwise, it is forbidden. According to this conception, all the thirty-nine labors forbidden on the Sabbath are prohibited on the holidays as well. There is, however, special dispensation to perform these labors when doing so will increase our holiday pleasure.
The Maggid Mishneh interprets the Rambam's citation of the expression "servile labor" as an indication that he follows the perspective shared by Rashi and the Ramban. Other authorities (e.g., the Lechem Mishneh and the Pri Chadash) do not agree with the Maggid Mishneh's interpretation and explain that the Rambam favors the other position. [See also the Chemdat Yisrael, who explains that the Rambam's statements in Sefer HaMitzvot (Negative Commandment 328) do not concur with the Maggid Mishneh's conception of the Rambam's position.] Note the treatment of this subject in the Or Sameach and in Likkutei Sichot, Vol. XI. (See also the notes on Halachah 4.)
3.Sefer HaMitzvot (Positive Commandments 159-160, 162-163, 166-167) and Sefer HaChinuch (Mitzvot 297, 300, 308, 310, 318, 321) include these six in the reckoning of the Torah's 613 mitzvot.
4.Note Sefer HaMitzvot (Positive Commandment 159), which in addition to the term shabbaton, "day of rest," also mentions the phrase mikra kodesh, "holy convocation," as indicating that one is commanded to sanctify the day by ceasing to perform labor.
5.I.e., any of the 28 of the 39 labors forbidden on the Sabbath that do not involve the preparation of food. (See Hilchot Shabbat 7:1.)
6.Sefer HaMitzvot (Negative Commandments 323-326, 328-329) and Sefer HaChinuch (Mitzvot 298, 301, 309, 311, 319 and 323) include these six in the reckoning of the Torah's 613 mitzvot.
7.This is the minimum punishment given for the violation of a negative commandment that involves a deed.
8.Pesachim 48a, moreover, states that even if a person is given separate warnings for each forbidden labor, each activity is not considered to be a separate violation.
9.The Rambam is referring to the ruling (Hilchot Shabbat 7:7-8) that requires a person who performs activities that fall into two different categories of forbidden labor on the Sabbath to bring two different sin offerings. The performance of an activity from each category of forbidden labor is considered to be a separate violation. Such a distinction does not apply with regard to the performance of forbidden labors on the holidays.
10.The Maggid Mishneh explains the Rambam's position as follows: All the labors forbidden on the Sabbath that involve preparation of food are not prohibited on the holidays. In addition, there are two forbidden labors, kindling a flame and transferring articles, which do not necessarily involve the preparation of food. Nevertheless, since they are sometimes necessary for the preparation of food, they are permitted without any restriction.
Other authorities (e.g., Pri Chadash, Pri Megadim) interpret the Rambam's statements as meaning that even the forbidden labors involved with the preparation of food are permitted only for that purpose. If, however, one performs one of these labors for other reasons - e.g., one cooks food solely to give to animals - one is liable. Moreover, if one performs a forbidden labor that is not usually involved in the preparation of food for the purpose of preparing food, one is liable.
There is a third interpretation, that of the Mabit. (In his Responsum 124, however, he follows the second view.) According to the view he expresses in Kiryat Sefer, even if one performs a forbidden labor (that is not usually involved in the preparation of food) for the purpose of preparing food, one is not liable. As proof, he cites the example of making cheese, an act that the Rambam (Hilchot Shabbat 10:13) considers a derivative of the forbidden labor of building. Nevertheless, making cheese on a holiday is not considered a violation of a forbidden labor and is forbidden only as a sh'vut.
11.The reason for these two exceptions is as follows: Both are often involved in the preparation of food. Alternatively, the transfer of articles is considered "an inferior labor" (Tosafot, Beitzah 12a), and Exodus 35:3: "Do not kindle fire... on the Sabbath day," is interpreted also as an exclusion, indicating that kindling fire is forbidden on the Sabbath, but not on holidays.
12.As mentioned in the notes on Halachah 1, Tosafot requires that the activity bring a person some pleasure. This view is also reflected in the Ra'avad's gloss.
13.The Maggid Mishneh quotes the Ra'avad as stating that this prohibition has its source in the Torah itself. Indeed, the Jerusalem Talmud (Beitzah 1:10) and certain passages in the Babylonian Talmud (Shabbat 95a; Chaggigah 18a) support this view. Nevertheless, most later authorities accept the Rambam's view that the prohibition is Rabbinic in origin.
14.The Ra'avad gives a different rationale: that the extra effort involved in the performance of these activities is out of place on a holiday.
15.The Ra'avad differs with the extent of the leniency granted by the Rambam, restricting it to sending containers and food. He also differs regarding the rationale, explaining that sending the articles on the holiday is a greater expression of honor and respect. The Rambam's ruling is quoted by the later authorities.
16.All these labors, although necessary for the preparation of food, are not intended for the preparation of a particular cooked dish or loaf of bread. Rather, one performs these activities for several days in advance. Therefore, our Sages desired that these activities should not be performed on the festival itself.
It must be noted that these forbidden labors are specifically mentioned in the passage from the Jerusalem Talmud cited above, which states that the prohibition against performing such activities stems from the Torah itself.
17.The Rambam's rationale depends on the concept of freshness. Food that is not fresh loses a certain amount of its flavor. The Ra'avad questions this principle, noting that produce harvested today is also fresher and tastier than produce harvested on the day before. Several authorities offer different observations to counter the Ra'avad's thesis.
18.See Tz'ror HaChayim, which mentions various opinions concerning whether this prohibition has its origin in the Torah itself or in Rabbinic decree. In conclusion, he favors the opinion that the prohibition is Scriptural in origin. (See also Halachah 15.) The doubt exists only with regard to the Rambam's position. Tosafot and others maintain that the prohibition is Scriptural in origin (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 503:1).
19.If, however, one cooked food on a holiday with the intent of eating it on the following day, many authorities (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 503:13) allow the food to be eaten after the holiday. (See also Halachah 11 and notes.)
20.The reason is that the meat is tastier when cooked with many pieces together (Maggid Mishneh).
21.This gives us a second rationale for the leniency of preparing a larger quantity of food than one needs immediately: when, as in the instance mentioned, there is no extra work involved in preparing a large quantity as compared to a small quantity. If either of these two rationales applies, leniency may be taken and the extra amount prepared.
Once, however, the water is left to boil, an additional amount may not be added (Ramah, Orach Chayim 103:2).
22.Rabbenu Yonah explains that this applied in Talmudic times, when the ovens were small. In such an instance, a large number of loaves were placed in the oven at the same time, and it took longer for them to bake, producing a better flavor. If, as was the case with regard to the larger ovens used in the medieval period, adding to the number of loaves does not increase the flavor, it is forbidden to do so. (See Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 507:6.)
23.The salting is intended to drain off the blood so that it is permitted to cook the meat, as stated in Hilchot Ma'achalot Asurot, Chapter 6.
24.Here, also, the leniency is granted because there is no additional difficulty in salting the other pieces. Alternatively, the leniency is allowed so that the remainder of the meat will not spoil. Compare to Chapter 3, Halachah 4.
25.As explained in Chapter 6, just as it is forbidden to prepare food on a holiday for a weekday that follows, our Sages forbade preparing food on a holiday for a Sabbath that follows directly after the holiday, or for the second day of the holiday itself. Nevertheless, as explained in that chapter, our Sages did provide the leniency of establishing an eruv tavshilin.
26.I.e., invite guests although he knows that they will not come, or prepare a large quantity of food when one knows that one will be unable to eat it all, and then use the remainder for the following day.
Shulchan Aruch HaRav 503:7 notes that it has become common practice to cook a meal for the night of the second day of a holiday on the afternoon of the first day, relying on the leniency that one will taste some of the food. He criticizes this practice and explains that women should be taught to discontinue it and prepare the food before the commencement of the holiday.
27.He and the members of his family may not partake of it; other Jews, however, are not restricted (Mishnah Berurah 527:79).
28.The rationale for this stringency is that the example shown by a person with guile might be copied by others, while few will emulate brazen transgression. Moreover, even with regard to the person himself, if he were not punished, a person who acts with guile would never really appreciate the seriousness of his transgression, and would repeat it. When, however, a person willfully violates the Sages' decree, he will not be able to rationalize his conduct. Hence, there is the possibility he will recognize his error (Rashi, Beitzah 17b; Mishnah Berurah 527:78).
29.We are speaking about an instance where the person has already eaten, and hence would not ordinarily consider slaughtering the animal. Nevertheless, because it is dangerously ill, he fears that it will die before the conclusion of the holiday. Our Sages were fearful that he would slaughter the animal regardless, rather than suffer the loss of having it die without ritual slaughter. They therefore established directives that would allow slaughter in most instances (Maggid Mishneh; Rashi, Beitzah 25a). (See also Chapter 6, Halachah 10.)
30.Although the Rambam's wording might be interpreted as indicating that it is necessary to eat at least this amount of meat, the Maggid Mishneh and the later halachic authorities (Shulchan Aruch Harav 498:11; Mishnah Berurah 498:34) explain that it is not necessary to partake of the meat on the holiday.
31.See the Mishnah Berurah 512:2, which states that a Jew who worships false gods or desecrates the Sabbath is considered like a gentile in this regard.
32.The Rambam's citation of a verse from the Torah as a proof-text for this prohibition is interpreted as an indication that he follows the position (see the notes on Halachot 1 and 4) that the labors necessary to prepare food are forbidden by the Torah on the holiday unless one is preparing food for a Jew. As mentioned, others consider the prohibitions to be Rabbinic in origin.
33.This rationale is not applicable on the Sabbath, for then it is not permitted to cook at all.
34.I.e., as long as a portion of the loaf can be given to a baby, one is not cooking solely for the gentiles.
The Maggid Mishneh notes that many (e.g., Tur, Orach Chayim 512) have objected to the Rambam's ruling, based on Beitzah 21a, which appears to establish a correlation between the permission to bake bread for these soldiers and the laws mentioned in the previous halachah regarding inviting gentiles as guests. It appears from that passage that the Sages who forbid inviting guests also forbid baking bread for the soldiers, for the same principle is involved: one is cooking additional food for a gentile.
The Maggid Mishneh, however, explains that there is no contradiction and that the two views can be reconciled. The Jew can be considered to be baking for the sake of the child. For if he did not bake for the soldiers, they would not allow him to bake for the child.
The Rishon LeTzion amplifies the difference between the two situations, explaining that because the person is not baking solely for the gentiles, the prohibition against doing so is merely Rabbinic in origin and can be waived with regard to baking for a gentile army, since the person could suffer substantial financial loss if he refused. In contrast, when inviting guests, one does so on one's own volition, with no loss involved.
As emphasized by Shulchan Aruch HaRav 512:6, this leniency was granted only in this situation, because of the risk of confrontation with the military authorities. One should not apply it to other circumstances. (See also Mishnah Berurah 512:15.)
35.Here also, since one is not baking solely for the dogs, one may bake the bread on a holiday. Although one is adding to the loaf one is baking for the dogs, since it would be possible to satisfy them by giving them meat, it appears that the shepherds are baking the loaf because they want to partake of it themselves (Maggid Mishneh).
As emphasized by the Mishnah Berurah 512:22, this leniency applies even when one has no other food immediately available for the dogs.
36.The Rambam's wording appears to indicate that although the activity is forbidden by the Torah, punishment is not given, because it is possible that his activity might ultimately serve a permitted purpose.
37.The Maggid Mishneh states that anointing oneself is mentioned because it is often necessary to heat oil used to anoint oneself. Anointing oneself with cold oil for pleasure is permitted even on the Sabbath (Hilchot Shabbat 21:23).
38.The Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah (Beitzah 2:5) explains that the Hebrew יאכל has the connotation of all physical pleasure, not necessarily merely eating or drinking. Note the explanation in Sefer HaMitzvot, negative commandment 187.(See also the Yereim, section 113.)
39.The Jerusalem Talmud (Shabbat 3:3) appears to indicate that the prohibition has its source in the Torah itself. Although Tosafot (Shabbat 39b) accept this view, Rabbenu Yitzchak Alfasi and the Rashba differ and maintain that this prohibition is a Rabbinical decree.
40.As the Rambam explains in Hilchot Shabbat 22:2, our Sages instituted restrictions against bathing on the Sabbath because the attendants would heat up the water on the Sabbath and claim that they had done so on the preceding day. On holidays, although the rules are more lenient, certain restrictions remain. For a discussion concerning the laws of ritual immersion on a holiday, see the notes on Hilchot Shabbat 23:8.
41.Based on the position of Tosafot mentioned previously, the Ramah (Orach Chayim 511:2) forbids washing one's entire body on a holiday as a safeguard, even when the water was heated before the commencement of the holiday. The subsequent Ashkenazic authorities accepted the Ramah's ruling, but were slightly more lenient and allowed washing one's entire body, portion by portion. Greater leniency is, however, shown with regard to washing a baby.
42.See Hilchot Shabbat, loc. cit.
43.See Hilchot Shabbat, Chapters 21-23, which list activities forbidden by the Sages for every category of forbidden labor.
44.See Hilchot Shabbat, Chapters 25 and 26.
45.The term muktzeh as popularly used with regard to the Sabbath prohibitions is not a precise application of the term. Muktzeh literally means "set aside." As used in the context here, it applies to articles that a person did not intend to use on a holiday. Rather, he "set them aside" to be used in the future.
As the Rambam explains in the following halachah, on the Sabbath it is not necessary to have a specific intention to use an object on the Sabbath. As long as there is no reason that prevents one from using it on that day - e.g., the prohibitions mentioned in Hilchot Shabbat, Chapters 25 and 26 - one may carry it on the Sabbath.
46.The Ra'avad differs and states that there are authorities who maintain that articles that are muktzeh are permitted to be carried on holidays. The Rambam's view is quoted by the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 495:4), while the Tur and the Ramah cite the more lenient view. Shulchan Aruch HaRav 495:13 states that although it is customary to follow the more lenient view, it would be preferable to follow the more stringent ruling.
47.See Chapter 2, Halachah 5.
48.See Chapter 2, Halachah 9.
49.The preparation we are speaking about here is preparation through natural means, and not preparation accomplished by man through performance of labor. As mentioned previously in the chapter, it is forbidden to perform any activities on a holiday that involve the preparation of food for the days that follow. (See the Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, Beitzah 1:1.)
50.Based on Pesachim 47a, several Rabbis (Ramban; Shulchan Aruch HaRav 513:1; Mishnah Berurah 513:1) maintain that the prohibition against nolad is Scriptural in origin.
In his Commentary on the Mishnah (loc. cit.), by contrast, the Rambam explicitly states that it is a Rabbinic decree. Nevertheless, since the Commentary on the Mishnah was not widely studied, different perspectives about the Rambam's view have been offered, including that of the Minchat Chinuch (Mitzvah 295), who states that the Rambam would require a person to be punished by lashes for eating such an egg.
51.If the chicken is not set aside to be eaten on the holiday, the egg is forbidden regardless, because of the prohibition against muktzeh (Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, loc. cit.).
52.There is no prohibition against eating an egg laid on a weekday that follows a holiday or on a Sunday. Since weekday meals are not significant, we are not concerned that a holiday or a Sabbath prepares for them.
53.The Tur and the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 513:1) state: "It is forbidden to touch it." Although the prohibition is ordinarily against moving muktzeh, and touching it is permitted, the prohibition is made more severe in the present instance because an egg is round, and even the slightest touch is likely to cause it to roll.
54.Generally, when a forbidden substance becomes mixed with a permitted substance, the presence of the forbidden substance is considered inconsequential (and the mixture permitted) when the taste of the forbidden substance can no longer be recognized, or when it is mixed with more than sixty times its weight of permitted food.
More stringent rulings are made, however, with regard to a forbidden substance that will ultimately become permitted (davar sheyesh lo matirin). The rationale is that since the entire mixture will be permitted within a short time, there is no reason to seek leniencies and partake of it while a portion (although inconsequential) is forbidden (Hilchot Ma'achalot Asurot, chapter 15).
55.The decrees our Sages instituted were meant to serve as safeguards, and a safeguard is necessary only when a situation occurs frequently.
56.See Hilchot Kiddush HaChodesh 5:5, which explains that in the time when the calendar was established on the basis of the testimony of witnesses, the observance of the second day of a holiday in the distant diaspora was necessary because of a doubt regarding the days on which the holidays were to be celebrated. Nevertheless, in the present era, when we use a fixed calendar, the observance of the second day of a holiday in the diaspora is merely a custom. (See also Chapter 6, Halachah 14.)
57.As explained in Hilchot Kiddush HaChodesh 5:7, even when the calendar was established on the basis of the testimony of witnesses, Rosh HaShanah was generally observed for two days throughout Eretz Yisrael. Since it is forbidden to travel beyond 2000 cubits on a holiday, only those living in the immediate vicinity of Jerusalem had the possibility of knowing whether or not the new month had been sanctified.
58.The word "even" has attracted the attention of the commentaries for, as mentioned in Halachah 24, the observance of the second day of Rosh HaShanah is more severe than that of the second day of other holidays. The Lechem Mishneh explains that the intent is that even the observance of the second day of Rosh HaShanah does not warrant a more severe punishment.
59.See Hilchot Talmud Torah, Chapters 6 and 7.
60.The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 496:1) quotes the Tur, who states "If [the violator] is a Torah scholar, we do not punish him so severely as to place him under a ban of ostracism. He is to be beaten." (See Sha'ar HaTziyun 496:5, which focuses on the difference between these two rulings.)
61.See Chapter 6, Halachah 17.
62.There is a difference of opinion among the Rabbis whether only the actual burial and those activities that involve performance of a forbidden labor must be performed by gentiles, or whether this involves all activities associated with the burial, including the ritual purification of the body, dressing it in shrouds and the like.
The Maggid Mishneh explains that all activities associated with the burial must be performed by a gentile. The Hagahot Maimoniot, by contrast, maintain that any activity that does not actually involve a forbidden labor should be performed by a Jew. The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 526:1) follows this view.
63.Rashi (Shabbat 139b) and the Baal Halachot Gedolot explain that the leniency of allowing gentiles to bury a Jew on a holiday was instituted as a token of respect for the human body, the repository of the soul. If the body were left unburied, it would decompose and become an aspersion to the dignity of mankind. Therefore, they maintain that if the corpse is not likely to decompose, it should not be buried by gentiles.
Rabbenu Asher and others differ and maintain that the mitzvah of burying the corpse on the day the person dies is the source for this ruling (see Hilchot Sanhedrin 15:8). Therefore, even when the body is not likely to decompose, it should be buried on the first day. The Shulchan Aruch (loc. cit. 526:1) follows this view.
64.The Tur and the Ramah (loc. cit.:4) mention a custom practiced by Rabbenu Tam, which equates the first and second days of a holiday in this regard. The Ramah agrees to this custom when it is possible to find a gentile to perform these labors, but maintains that if it is impossible to perform these labors, they should be performed by Jews.
In practice at present, in some observant communities burials are conducted on the holidays. Nevertheless, the prevailing custom at large - particularly when burying the dead might lead to the unnecessary violation of the laws of the holidays by some - is to postpone the burial until the following day.
65.Originally, the observance of the holidays for two days came as a result of doubt: If the first day was actually the holiday, the second day was an ordinary day. Conversely, if the second day was actually the holiday, the first day was an ordinary day. Therefore, they were considered to be two different expressions of holiness. (See Chapter 6, Halachah 12.)
66.The Ramah (Orach Chayim 496:2) interprets this as referring to an irritation that does not involve any danger. As such, tending to it by a Jew is forbidden on the first day of a holiday. On the second day, because it brings a person relief from pain, leniency is shown. The same law applies to all other remedies of this nature.
67.Since they were universally observed, even within Eretz Yisrael.
68.I.e., all instances of nolad.
Shevitat Yom Tov - Chapter Two
1
A chick that is hatched on a holiday is forbidden [to be handled], because it is muktzeh.1 [A different rule applies,] however, when a calf is born on a holiday: If its mother was designated to be eaten, the calf is also permitted,2 for it is considered to be designated, because of its mother. If its mother had been slaughtered [on a holiday], the calf in her womb would also have been permitted [to be eaten] on the holiday, even though it had not been born.3
א
אפרוח שנולד ביום טוב אסור מפני שהוא מוקצה. ועגל שנולד ביום טוב אם היתה אמו עומדת לאכילה מותר מפני שהוא מוכן על גבי אמו ואילו שחט אמו היה זה שבמעיה מותר ביום טוב אף על פי שלא נולד:
2
When animals graze beyond the [2000-cubit] limits granted to a city, but return and spend the night inside the city, they may be designated [for our use on the holiday]. We may take these [animals] and slaughter them on a holiday.
When, by contrast, they both graze and spend the night4 beyond the [2000-cubit] limits granted to a city, we may not slaughter them on a holiday if they come to the city on that day. They are muktzeh, and the attention of the inhabitants of the city is not focused on them.
ב
בהמות שיוצאות ורועות חוץ לתחום ובאות ולנות בתוך התחום הרי אלו מוכנין ולוקחין מהן ושוחטין אותן ביום טוב. אבל הרועות ולנות חוץ לתחום אם באו ביום טוב אין שוחטין אותן ביום טוב מפני שהן מוקצין ואין דעת אנשי העיר עליהם:
3
Similarly, when a consecrated animal5 became blemished on a holiday, since one did not intend to eat the animal on the previous day, it may not be slaughtered on a holiday.
For this reason, it is forbidden to inspect the blemishes of a consecrated animal on a holiday.6 [This is] a decree, [instituted] lest the sage consider the blemish [permanent] and hence permit [the animal to be used for mundane purposes], and its owner will slaughter it immediately. When, however, a sage has inspected a blemish on the day prior to the holiday, he may [render a decision] on the holiday, permitting or forbidding [its use].
ג
וכן בהמת קדשים שנולד בה מום ביום טוב הואיל ולא היתה דעתו עליה מערב יום טוב אסור לשוחטה ביום טוב. לפיכך אסור לראות מומי קדשים ביום טוב גזירה שמא יתירם החכם במומן ויבא זה לשחוט בו ביום. אבל רואה הוא המום מערב יום טוב ולמחר מתיר או אוסר:
4
When [on the day of a holiday] a firstborn animal is born with a blemish, it is considered as if it were prepared [to be slaughtered].7 Nevertheless, [the blemish] may not be inspected on the holiday.8 If, however, one transgressed and had the blemish checked, and [the sage ruled that] the animal is permitted to be slaughtered, one is permitted to slaughter it and partake of its meat.
When a firstborn animal falls into a cistern [on a holiday], one should give it the [necessary] nourishment while in the cistern. One is not allowed to pull it out, because it is not fit to be slaughtered on the holiday.9
[The following rules apply when] a cow and its calf both fall into a cistern [on a holiday]:10 We may take one out with the intent of slaughtering it, and then refrain from slaughtering it. One may then act with guile, and take the other out with the intent of slaughtering it, and then slaughter either of them that one desires.11 We are permitted to act with guile, because of the suffering the animal endures.12
An unconsecrated animal that fell from a roof and stood for an entire day13 requires inspection [before we are allowed to partake of it].14 Nevertheless, it may be slaughtered on a holiday and then inspected, for the possibility exists that it is kosher, and then its [meat] could be eaten.
ד
בכור שנולד ומומו עמו הרי זה מוכן ואין מבקרים אותו ביום טוב. ואם עבר וראה מומו ובקרו והתירו הרי זה שוחט ואוכל. בכור שנפל לבור עושה לו פרנסה במקומו שהרי אינו יכול להעלותו מפני שאינו ראוי לשחיטה ביום טוב. אותו ואת בנו שנפלו לבור מעלה את הראשון על מנת לשוחטו ואינו שוחטו. ומערים ומעלה את השני על מנת לשוחטו ושוחט את אי זה מהן שירצה. משום צער בעלי חיים התירו להערים. בהמת חולין שנפלה מן הגג ועמדה מעת לעת והרי היא צריכה בדיקה שוחטין אותה ביום טוב ותבדק אפשר שתמצא כשירה ותאכל:
5
[All] ducks, chickens, and doves [kept] in one's home are considered to be prepared [to be slaughtered], and need not be designated. Doves [kept in] a dovecote, [wild] doves that nest in one's loft, and [other] fowl that nest in basins,15 on buildings, or in orchards, are considered muktzeh.16
[To slaughter them on a holiday,] it is necessary on the previous day to designate them and say, "I will take these and these." There is no need actually to shake [the nest or the doves].
ה
אווזין ותרנגולין ויונים שבבית הרי אלו מוכנין ואין צריכין זימון. אבל יוני שובך ויוני עליה וצפרים שקיננו בטפיחין או בכירה ובפרדס הרי אלו מוקצה. וצריך לזמן מבערב ולומר אלו ואלו אני נוטל ואינו צריך לנענע:
6
[The following rules apply when] one designated both black and white doves, and on the following day found the white doves in the place of the black ones and the black ones in the place of the white ones. It is forbidden to take them, because it is possible that [the doves that were designated] flew away and these are others. [Therefore, we follow the principle:] Whenever there is a doubt whether [doves] have been designated or not, they are forbidden.17
If he designated two and found three, they are all forbidden.18If he designated three and found two, they are permitted. If he designated doves inside the nest, but found them in front of the nest, he is permitted to take them, provided that these were the only doves in the nest, and they are unable to fly. Although there is another nest within fifty cubits19 at a diagonal, these doves are permitted, for doves that waddle, waddle only in a straight line to their nests.
ו
זימן שחורים ולבנים ומצא שחורים במקום לבנים ולבנים במקום שחורים אסורים שאני אומר שמא אותן שזימן פרחו להן ואלו אחרים הן וכל ספק מוכן אסור. זימן שנים ומצא שלשה הכל אסור. שלשה ומצא שנים מותרין. זימן בתוך הקן ומצא לפני הקן אם אין שם בקן אלא הן ואינן יכולין לפרוח אע"פ שיש שם קן אחר בקרן זוית בתוך חמשים אמה הרי אלו מותרין שאין המדדה מדדה אלא כנגד קנו בשוה:
7
[The following rules apply to] fish in large ponds,20 beasts and fowl in large pens, and any other beast that has to be snared to the point where it is necessary to say, "Bring a net so that we can snare it": [Such a living creature] is considered muktzeh and may not be snared on a holiday.21 If it is snared, it may not be eaten.
[By contrast,] every [living creature that can be snared] without a net is considered to be designated. It may be snared on a holiday and we may partake of it.
Similarly, when a wild beast establishes its home in an orchard near a city,22 its small offspring that do not require [effort to] capture need not be designated, because one has in mind [to take] them [for food for the holiday].
ז
דגים שבביברין גדולים וכן חיה ועוף שבביברין גדולים כל שהוא מחוסר צידה עד שאומרים הבא מצודה ונצודנו הרי זה מוקצה ואין צדין אותן ביום טוב ואם צד לא יאכלו. וכל שאינו צריך מצודה הרי זה מוכן וצדין אותו ביום טוב ואוכלין אותו. וכן חיה שקיננה בפרדס הסמוך לעיר ילדיה כשהן קטנים שאינן צריכין צידה אינם צריכים זימון מפני שדעתו עליהן:
8
Although on the day before a holiday a [hunter] set snares for a beast, fowl, or for fish, on the holiday itself he should not take the living creatures that were captured unless he knows that they were captured before the holiday.23
When a person makes a dam in a water conduit24 on the day before the holiday, and gets up early the next morning and finds fish there, they are permitted. They were already trapped before the commencement of the holiday. [Hence,] they are considered to be designated [to be eaten].
ח
מצודות חיה ועופות ודגים שפרסן מערב יום טוב לא יטול מהן ביום טוב אלא אם כן יודע שניצודו מערב יום טוב. הסוכר אמת המים מערב יום טוב ולמחר השכים ומצא בה דגים הרי אלו מותרין שכבר ניצודו מערב יום טוב והרי הן מוכנין:
9
When a [closed] building was filled with produce that had been designated [for use] and was opened [by natural forces on a holiday], one is permitted to take [produce] from the opening.25
A person who stands and surveys fruit set out to dry on the day prior to a holiday26 in the Sabbatical year,27 when all the produce is ownerless, must make a mark and say, "I will take [the produce] from here to here." If he did not make a mark,28 he may not take [the produce].
ט
בית שהיא מלא פירות מוכנין ונפחת נוטל ממקום הפחת. העומד על המוקצה מערב יום טוב בשנה השביעית שכל הפירות הפקר צריך שירשום ויאמר מכאן ועד כאן אני נוטל ואם לא רשם לא יטול:
10
[The following rules apply] when a gentile brings a present29 [of food] for a Jew on a holiday: If some of the type of produce that he brings is still attached to the ground30 [in the fields], or if he brought an animal, fowl, or fish that could possibly have been snared on the day [of the holiday], they are forbidden31 until the evening.32 [Moreover, one must wait] enough time for it to have been possible to perform [the forbidden activity after the conclusion of the holiday].33 Even [if the gentile brings] a myrtle or the like, one should not smell its fragrance until the evening, after waiting the time necessary [to pick it].
If none of the type of produce that he brings remains attached to the ground, or it is clear from the form [of the produce] that it was picked on the previous day, or it is clear from the form [of the fish or the animal] that they were caught on the previous day, they are permitted, provided they were brought from within [the city's 2000-cubit] limit. If they were brought from outside [the city's 2000-cubit] limit, they are forbidden.
Food that was brought from outside [the city's 2000-cubit] limit for one Jew is permitted to be eaten by another.34
י
כותי שהביא תשורה לישראל ביום טוב אם יש מאותו המין במחובר לקרקע או שהביא חיה או עופות או דגים שאפשר לצודן בו ביום הרי אלו אסורין עד לערב וימתין בכדי שיעשו. ואפילו הדס וכיוצא בו אינו מריח בו לערב עד שימתין בכדי שיעשו. ואם אין מאותו המין במחובר לקרקע או שהיתה צורתו מוכחת עליו שמאתמול נעקר או נצוד אם הביאו מתוך התחום מותר ואם הביאו מחוץ לתחום הרי זה אסור. והבא בשביל ישראל זה מחוץ לתחום מותר לישראל אחר:
11
When branches fall from a palm tree on a holiday, it is forbidden to use them as firewood, because of the prohibition of nolad. If, however, they fell [directly] into an oven, one may add a larger quantity of wood prepared [for kindling], and may kindle them.35
One may not begin taking from a pile of straw or a storage pile of wood36 [on a holiday] unless one prepared to do so on the previous day, for they are muktzeh. If the straw is mixed with thorns it is permitted, for its only [possible] use is for kindling.
יא
עצים שנשרו מן הדקל ביום טוב אסור להסיקן מפני שהן נולד. ואם נשרו לתוך התנור מרבה עליהן עצים מוכנין ומסיקן. ערימת התבן ואוצר של עצים אין מתחילין בהן ביום טוב אלא אם כן הכין מבערב מפני שהן מוקצה. ואם היה התבן מעורב בקוצים שהרי אינו ראוי אלא לאש הרי זה מוכן:
12
It is forbidden to chop wood that had been placed in a pile of beams, for it is muktzeh.37 Nor may one [chop wood] from a beam that broke on a holiday, because it is nolad.38Similarly, utensils that broke on a holiday may not be used for kindling,39 because they are nolad.40
However, one may use utensils that are intact41 or utensils that were broken before the commencement of a holiday for kindling, for they were prepared to be used for purposes [other than that for which they were originally suitable] before the holiday.
Similarly, when nuts or almonds were eaten before the commencement of a holiday, their shells may be used for kindling on the holiday. If, however, they were eaten on the holiday, their shells may not be used for kindling.42
There are, however, versions [of the Talmud] that read: If they were eaten before nightfall, we may not use their shells for kindling, because they have become muktzeh.43 If, by contrast, they were eaten on the holiday, they may be used for kindling, because they are considered to be designated for use, because of the food [they contained].44
יב
אין מבקעין עצים מסוואר של קורות מפני שהן מוקצה. ולא מן הקורה שנשברה ביום טוב מפני שהיא נולד. וכן כלים שנשברו ביום טוב אין מסיקין בהן מפני שהן נולד. אבל מסיקין בכלים שלמים או בכלים שנשברו מערב יום טוב שהרי הוכנו למלאכה אחרת מבערב. כיוצא בו אגוזים ושקדים שאכלן מערב יו"ט מסיקין בקליפיהן ביום טוב. ואם אכלן ביום טוב אין מסיקין בקליפיהן. ויש נוסחאות שיש בהן שאם אכלן מבערב אין מסיקין בקליפיהן שהרי הוקצו ואם אכלן ביום טוב מסיקין מפני שהן מוכנין על גב האוכל:
13
A freshly-cut thorny [branch] is muktzeh, because it is not fit for kindling.45 Therefore, one may not use it as a spit for roasting meat. The same applies in all similar situations.
יג
קוץ רטוב הרי הוא מוקצה מפני שאינו ראוי להסקה. לפיכך אסור לו לעשות כמו שפוד לצלות בו בשר וכן כל כיוצא בזה:
14
We may take wood that is placed next to the walls46 of a hut47 to use for kindling, but we may not bring it from the field, even if it had been collected there on the day before [the holiday].48 One may, however, collect wood lying before him in the field and kindle it there.49
One may also bring [wood] that was stored in a private domain, even one that was not enclosed for the purpose of human habitation, provided it has a fence with a gate, and is located within the Sabbath limits. If even one of these conditions is not met,50 [the wood] is muktzeh.
יד
נוטלין עצים הסמוכים לדופני הסוכה ומסיקין בהן. אבל אין מביאים מן השדה אפילו היו מכונסין שם מבערב. אבל מגבב הוא בשדה מלפניו ומדליק שם. ומביאין מן המכונסין שברשות היחיד ואפילו היתה מוקפת שלא לשם דירה ובלבד שיהיה לה פותחת ותהיה בתוך תחום שבת. ואם חסר אחד מכל אלו הרי הן מוקצה:
15
Although the leaves of reeds or vines have been collected in an enclosure, since they can be dispersed by the wind it is considered as if they have already been dispersed, and [using them] is forbidden.51 If, however, one placed a heavy utensil over them before the holiday, they are permitted [to be used].52
טו
עלי קנים ועלי גפנים אע"פ שהן מכונסין בקרפף כיון שהרוח מפזרת אותן הרי הן כמפוזרין ואסורין. ואם הניח עליהן כלי כבד מערב יום טוב הרי אלו מוכנין:
16
[The following rules apply when] an animal dies on a holiday: If it was very ill on the day before the holiday, one may cut it up [and feed it] to the dogs.53 If not, since he had not had it in mind, it is muktzeh and should not be moved.
When a consecrated animal dies54 or terumah becomes impure [on a holiday],55 it may not be moved.
טז
בהמה שמתה ביום טוב אם היתה מסוכנת מערב יום טוב הרי זה מחתכה לכלבים. ואם לאו הואיל ולא היתה דעתו עליה הרי זה מוקצה ולא יזיזנה ממקומה. בהמת קדשים שמתה ותרומה שנטמאת לא יזיזנה ממקומה:
17
Fish, fowl, and beasts that are muktzeh may not be given water on a holiday, nor is it permitted to place food before them.56 [This is a safeguard instituted] lest one come and take them.57
Any [objects or living creatures] that are forbidden to be eaten or used on a holiday because they are muktzeh are also forbidden to be carried.
יז
דגים ועופות וחיה שהן מוקצה אין משקין אותן ביום טוב ואין נותנין לפניהם מזונות שמא יבא ליקח מהן וכל שאסור לאכלו או להשתמש בו ביום טוב מפני שהוא מוקצה אסור לטלטלו:
18
When a person brings earth into his domain on the day before a holiday, it is considered to be prepared for use, provided that he designates a corner of his courtyard as its place. It may then be carried and used for all his needs.58
Similarly, ash that [came from fuel] burned on the previous day is considered to be prepared for use. If it [came from fuel] burned on the holiday itself, it is permitted for use as long as it is warm enough to cook an egg, for it is still considered to be fire. If it is not [that warm], carrying it is forbidden, because it is nolad.59
[The following rules apply when] a person has an iron shaft implanted in the ground before the holiday, and he pulls it out60on the holiday, uprooting earth: If the earth is powdery,61 it may be used to cover [any spills], and it may be carried for that purpose. If, however, the person raised up a clod of earth, it may not be crumbled on the holiday.62
יח
המכניס עפר מערב יום טוב אם ייחד לו בחצירו קרן זוית הרי זה מוכן ומותר לטלטלו ולעשות בו כל צרכיו. וכן אפר שהוסק מערב יום טוב מוכן. ושהוסק ביום טוב כל זמן שהוא חם כדי לצלות בו ביצה מותר לטלטלו שעדיין אש הוא. ואם לאו אסור לטלטלו מפני שהוא נולד. מי שהיה לו דקר נעוץ מערב יום טוב ונתקו ביום טוב והעלה עפר אם היה אותו עפר תיחוח הרי זה מכסה בו ומטלטלו. אבל אם העלה גוש עפר הרי זה לא יכתוש אותו ביום טוב
FOOTNOTES
1.Since one could not know whether the chick would be hatched on the holiday itself or not, there is no way one could designate it as food. Hence, it falls into the category of muktzeh. Indeed, even the more lenient opinions that allow muktzeh to be used on a holiday forbid slaughtering such a chick, since before it was hatched it was not useful for any purpose whatsoever (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 513:19; Mishnah Berurah 513:36).
2.This applies only when we know that the calf has undergone a full period of gestation. If not, it is forbidden to be slaughtered on the day it was born (Hilchot Ma'achalot Asurot 4:4).
3.For the slaughter of the mother also causes the calf to be permitted (Ibid. 5:13-14).
4.The Rambam is employing the wording of the Mishnah, Beitzah 5:6. In his Commentary on the Mishnah (based on Beitzah 40a), the Rambam explains that this refers to animals that graze outside the city limits from the spring until the beginning of the rainy season. This interpretation also changes the definition of animals that "return and spend the night inside the city," to refer to those that return to the city occasionally. These definitions are reflected in the decisions of Shulchan Aruch HaRav 498:5 and the Mishnah Berurah 498:12,14.
5.This refers to a firstborn animal, which is consecrated by birth. Alternatively, the intent is the tenth animal after a herd has been tithed. These animals may not be offered as a sacrifice, because the Temple is destroyed. The law is that the firstborn must be given to a priest, who may not slaughter it until it acquires a permanent blemish. The tithed animal may be kept by its owner, who may slaughter it after it acquires a blemish. The designation of a blemish as permanent or not must be made by a sage trained in this field.
6.The Rambam maintains that even if the animal had acquired the blemish before the holiday, it must be inspected before the holiday, and not on the holiday itself (Maggid Mishneh).
7.For until birth, the animal could have been eaten by slaughtering its mother.
8.The animal may not be checked by an experienced sage to see whether the blemish is permanent or not. This restriction is an extension of the Rabbinic safeguard mentioned in the previous halachah.
9.As such, moving the animal is forbidden. Therefore, the only alternative is to wait until the conclusion of the holiday and in the interim, to feed the animal while it is in the cistern.
10.As Leviticus 22:28 states, it is forbidden to slaughter both these animals on the same day. Thus, it would seem that we could take only one out of the cistern, and the other would be considered muktzeh.
11.From the wording chosen by the Rambam, it appears that it is necessary to slaughter one of the animals. The Maggid Mishneh cites a passage from the Jerusalem Talmud (Beitzah 3:4), from which one might infer that this is not necessary, but he cites the opinion of the Rashba, who recommends slaughtering one of the animals.
12.See Hilchot Shabbat 21:9-10 for other examples of leniencies granted by our Sages in consideration of the suffering endured by an animal. See also the Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah (Beitzah 3:4), which states that consideration of the suffering endured by an animal is a Scriptural obligation.
13.Although this phrase appears in the standard printed texts of the Mishneh Torah, we have placed it in brackets, because a) it is omitted from many authoritative manuscripts and early printings, and b) it does not fit the Rambam's statements regarding the subject in Hilchot Shechitah 9:19.
One might justify the inclusion of the bracketed phrase by explaining that according to the Rambam, the possibility that the animal may not be kosher does not disqualify its slaughter on the festival. Nevertheless, the prevailing opinion (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 498:8) is that we are allowed to slaughter an animal on a festival only when it is likely to be kosher.
14.See Hilchot Shechitah 9:9,17, where the Rambam states that an animal that falls from a roof and is unable to walk afterwards must be inspected after it was slaughtered to see whether any of its vital inner organs were crushed.
15.In the Talmudic era, basins were built into the facades of homes for doves to nest.
16.The Maggid Mishneh states that there is a difference of opinion among the Rabbis regarding whether this law refers to large doves that are able to fly, or to small doves that are unable to do so.
The more stringent view maintains that since the doves are able to fly away, they must be snared, and this labor is forbidden. The more lenient view maintains that since the doves have nested in these places, great effort is not required to snare them, and this is permitted on a holiday. From the Rambam's wording, it appears that he subscribes to the more lenient view. The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 497:9) follows the more stringent opinion.
17.As a rationale for this stringency, the Maggid Mishneh explains that the doves will be permitted for eating on the following day with no restrictions. Therefore, we are required to wait until then to partake of them, as explained in Chapter 1, Halachah 20.
18.In his Commentary on the Mishnah (Beitzah 1:3), the Rambam explains two reasons for this restriction:
a) It is possible that this entire group is made up of new doves that came from afar;
b) Even if two of the doves were the ones designated on the previous day, the entire group is forbidden because they were joined by a third dove who is not distinguished from them.
19.It is an accepted principle that doves will not waddle further than 50 cubits. Even within these 50 cubits, they will not walk on a diagonal.
20.The Ra'avad explains that this restriction also applies to fish in small ponds. Since fish cannot always be seen easily and are difficult to snare even in a small pond, greater stringency is applied with regard to them. His opinion is cited by the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 497:1).
21.It would appear that the reason that snaring is forbidden is not the fact that it is one of the 39 forbidden labors, for it is necessary for the preparation of food. Rather, it is forbidden as a result of the Rabbinic prohibition against muktzeh (Meiri, P'nei Yehoshua, Beitzah 23b).
22.This leniency does not apply when the animals make their home more than 70 cubits beyond the city limits (Shulchan Aruch, loc. cit.:8), for then a person would not be likely to have these animals in mind for his holiday meals.
23.This ruling depends on the principle mentioned in Halachah 6, that whenever there is doubt whether or not an article had been designated for use on a holiday, it is forbidden.
24.As explained by the Ramah (Orach Chayim 497:5), Shulchan Aruch HaRav 497:1 and the Mishnah Berurah 497:14, this refers to a narrow waterway that has been dammed at both ends. Hence, there is no difficulty in catching the fish, and they can be considered to be designated before the commencement of the holiday.
25.We do not say that since the building was closed before the commencement of the holiday, the produce is no longer considered designated for use. There are authorities (Rashba, Rabbenu Asher) who follow a more stringent view, and maintain that the produce is permitted only when it appeared that the building would open. Nevertheless, according to the Rambam (as well as Rabbenu Yitzchak Alfasi and the Ramban), the fact that it is located in a closed building does not alter the status of the produce. When, as in the instance described, it is possible to take it, doing so is permitted. The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 518:9) quotes the Rambam's ruling.
26.The Mishnah (Beitzah 4:7) mentions this instance with regard to the Sabbath. Since the Rambam maintains that the prohibitions against muktzeh do not apply on the Sabbath, he cites these laws with regard to the holidays.
27.The Sabbatical year is mentioned because there is no obligation to tithe in that year. In other years, the produce would not be considered to be designated for use until it had been tithed, and it is not customary to tithe fruit that has been set out to dry until it is fully dried. (See the Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, Beitzah, loc. cit.)
28.I.e., the person must make a mark on the ground to designate the area from which he desires to take produce. In Halachah 5, the Rambam does not require a person to perform a deed while designating doves to be eaten (thus negating the opinion of the School of Shammai). In this instance, however, since people do not generally eat fruit left out to dry until it is completely dry, it is necessary for him to perform a deed to clarify his intent. The Ramah (495:4) differs and does not require that a deed be performed even in this instance.
29.The same laws apply with regard to gentile merchants who desire to sell produce or other types of food on a holiday.
30.When this type of produce is still growing in the ground, there is the possibility that the gentile harvested it on the holiday itself.
31.There are two reasons why these foods are prohibited: a) because a Jew may not have a gentile perform forbidden labors on the Jew's behalf on a holiday,
b) because the food he brings is muktzeh.
32.There is a difference of opinion among the Rabbis if, in the diaspora, an object that became forbidden for these reasons on the first day of a holiday is permitted to be used on the second day or not. The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 515:1) allows it to be used on the second day of the holiday after one waits enough time to perform the forbidden labor. The Ramah requires the person for whom the gentile brought the produce to wait until after the conclusion of the holiday. In times of need, however, he enables the produce to be used by the person's guests on the second day.
33.This safeguard ensures that one will derive no benefit at all from the gentile's activity, nor ask him to perform such a labor again.
34.Although such food is also forbidden to all the members of the household of the person for whom it was brought.
35.Beitzah 4b explains that the restrictions applying to an entity that will become permitted at a later date do not apply with regard to this wood, since the benefit one receives from the wood comes after it has been consumed by the flames. It is permitted to add the larger quantity of permitted wood because we are allowed to nullify the existence of a prohibited entity if the prohibition is Rabbinic in origin. (See also Hilchot Ma'achalot Asurot 15:26.)
Rabbenu Nissim states that this leniency is granted only when there is also some permitted wood in the oven. If not, one may not nullify the prohibited wood. His opinion is quoted by the Shulchan Aruch HaRav 507:3 and the Mishnah Berurah 507:7).
36.This refers to straw or wood that has been set aside to be sold.
37.This refers to wood that has been set aside to be used for construction (Rashi, Beitzah 31b).
38.Before the holiday the beam was part of a building, and only on the holiday itself did the possibility of its being used for other purposes arise. Therefore, it is considered to be nolad.
39.If, however, it is still possible to use the pieces to perform the task originally performed with the utensil, the pieces are still permitted to be used for kindling or for any other purpose (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 501:11; Mishnah Berurah 501:29).
40.Although the utensil existed beforehand, no one considered using it for kindling while it was intact. Only when it became broken was it considered to be fit for kindling. Hence, it is considered to be nolad.
41.If a person desires to use an intact utensil for kindling, there is no difficulty. Since the utensil is intact, carrying it is permitted.
42.Because the possibility of using them for kindling arose only on the holiday, they are considered to be nolad.
43.For it is uncommon to use nut shells for any material purpose. See Hilchot Shabbat 25:6,12.
44.The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 501:7) quotes the former version as halachah.
45.Wood is not fit for kindling until it dries out. (See Chapter 4, Halachah 11.)
46.We may not, however, take wood that is used for the walls themselves, for by doing so we would be destroying a building (Beitzah 30b).
47.We have translated the term sukkah as hut, because this law applies throughout the year, not only to the sukkot constructed on the holiday of that name. (See Kessef Mishneh; Mishnah Berurah 518:38.)
48.From the Rambam's mention of this law in the chapter dealing with the subject of muktzeh, it would appear that he considers muktzeh as the rationale for this restriction as well. Other authorities have offered other rationales; among them, that collecting wood in the field is forbidden because it is a mundane activity unfit for the sacred atmosphere of the holidays. Alternatively, it resembles the forbidden labor of me'amer, collecting sheaves (Mishnah Berurah 501:11).
49.Several later authorities (Rav Shlomo Luria; Shulchan Aruch HaRav 501:7) are more stringent, and rule that since it is usual to collect wood from a field, doing so on a holiday bears too close a resemblance to the forbidden labor of me'amer. Hence, this leniency is allowed only in an open courtyard.
50.I.e., it is forbidden if the wood is scattered in a courtyard, or the courtyard is beyond the Sabbath limits or lacks a fence with a gate.
51.In this instance as well, it appears that the Rambam considers this restriction as an outgrowth of the prohibition against muktzeh. Since it is possible that they will become dispersed, one does not rely on their remaining in their place.
Other authorities explain that the restriction is a safeguard against performing the forbidden labor of me'amer. (See Mishnah Berurah 501:18,20.)
52.Even if they are dispersed. By placing the heavy utensil upon them, the person indicated his intent that the leaves be used for kindling. This leniency is not accepted by the authorities who explain that the restriction is a safeguard against performing the forbidden labor of me'amer.
53.I.e., since it was ill, the person considered the likelihood that it would die. Even before the holiday began, he had it in mind to feed the carcass to his dogs.
54.A consecrated animal that dies may not be used for any mundane purposes; its corpse must be buried. Therefore, even if it was sick on the day before the holiday, it may not be moved on the holiday (Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, Beitzah 3:5).
55.Terumah that becomes impure must be given to a priest, who can use it for kindling or feed it to his animals. Nevertheless, it is forbidden to perform either of these activities on a holiday. Hence, the impure terumah may not be used that day, and thus becomes muktzeh (Rashi, Beitzah 27b).
56.This applies even to living creatures for which the person is required to provide food. The restriction involves placing the food directly before the animals. It is permitted to place it far from the usual place, for this departure from the norm will remind one not to pick up the animals (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 497:5; Mishnah Berurah 497:5).
57.For this reason, this prohibition does not apply to feeding non-kosher animals (Maggid Mishneh).
58.As mentioned in the first halachah of the following chapter, earth was necessary for covering the blood of fowl and wild beasts that were slaughtered. In Talmudic times, when the homes had earthen floors, earth was also used to cover spills, excrement, and other filth. Since the earth was not flattened, we do not say that the person brought it in to use as part on the floor. Instead, we allow him to use it for other purposes (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 498:17).
59.The Shulchan Aruch (loc. cit.:15) states that, after the fact (בדבעיד), if one has already slaughtered a fowl or beast, it is preferable to use even cold ash, rather than negate the mitzvah of covering the blood.
60.The Rambam's statements should not be interpreted as license to, in fact, implant a shaft in the ground and pull it out on the holiday. The Rambam (as is his source, the Mishnah, Beitzah 1:2) is speaking after the fact (בדבעיד) - i.e., the person has already uprooted the earth and is questioning whether or not he may use it. This ruling is cited by the Shulchan Aruch (loc. cit.:14).
61.If the earth is powdery, uprooting it from the ground is not considered to be digging a hole (Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, Beitzah 1:2). This powdery earth can - in contrast to clods of earth - be used to cover the blood.
62.Crumbling the earth is a derivative of the forbidden labor of grinding.
Shevitat Yom Tov - Chapter Three
1
A person who has earth that has been prepared or ash that has been prepared and that may be carried1 may slaughter a fowl or a beast2 and cover their blood [on a holiday]. If he does not have earth that is prepared or ash that may be carried, he should not slaughter [a fowl or a beast on a holiday]. If he transgresses and does in fact slaughter [a fowl or a beast on a holiday], he should not cover its blood until the evening.3
Similarly, on a holiday one should not slaughter an animal concerning which there is a doubt whether it is a wild beast or a domestic animal.4 If a person does slaughter [such an animal on a holiday], he should not cover the blood until the evening.5 [This applies] even when one had earth that was prepared or ash [available],6 lest an observer conclude, "This animal is definitively categorized as a beast, and its blood was therefore covered on the holiday." The observer might then [err] and consider the fat of [this animal] to be permitted.7
א
מי שהיה לו עפר מוכן או אפר מוכן שמותר לטלטלו הרי זה שוחט חיה ועוף ומכסה דמם. ואם אין לו עפר מוכן או אפר הראוי לטלטלו הרי זה לא ישחוט ואם עבר ושחט לא יכסה דמם עד לערב. וכן בריה שהוא ספק אם חיה היא אם בהמה אין שוחטין אותה ביום טוב ואם שחט לא יכסה דמה עד לערב. אפילו היה לו עפר מוכן או אפר. שמא יאמר הרואה חיה ודאית היא ולפיכך כסה דמו ביום טוב ויבא הרואה להתיר חלבו:
2
Similarly, if a person slaughtered a beast or a fowl before a holiday [and did not cover the blood at that time], he may not cover it on the holiday.
If a person slaughtered both a domestic animal and a beast or a fowl on a holiday,8 and their blood became mixed, he should not cover it until the evening [following the holiday]. If he had earth that was prepared or ash, and it is possible for him to cover all [the blood] with one shovelful,9 he should do so.
ב
וכן השוחט חיה ועוף מערב יום טוב לא יכסה דמם ביום טוב. שחט בהמה חיה ועוף ביום טוב ונתערב דמם לא יכסה אותו עד לערב. ואם היה לו עפר מוכן או אפר ויכול לכסות הכל בדקירה אחת הרי זה יכסהו:
3
A person who slaughters an animal on a holiday is permitted to pull off the wool by hand10 from the place where he wishes to slaughter it, provided he does not remove it from its place, but rather leaves it there tangled with the remainder of the wool of the animal's neck.
[When slaughtering] a fowl, by contrast, one may not pull out the feathers, for [doing so by hand] is the usual procedure. Thus, one would be performing [the forbidden labor of] pulling out [feathers] on a holiday.
ג
השוחט בהמה ביום טוב מותר לו לתלוש צמר למקום הסכין בידו. ובלבד שלא יזיזנו ממקומו אלא ישאר שם מסובך כשאר צמר הצואר. אבל בעוף לא ימרוט מפני שהוא דרכו ונמצא תולש ביום טוב:
4
When a person skins the hide of an animal on a holiday, he should not salt it. For [salting] is one of the leather-making processes,11 and thus one would be performing a forbidden labor that is not necessary for [the preparation of] food.
One may, however, deposit it12 in a place where people will tread on it,13 so that it will not spoil.14 This leniency was permitted only for the sake of the holiday celebrations, so that a person will not refrain from slaughtering [an animal].15
It is permitted to salt meat to be roasted on this hide. One may act with guile regarding this matter. What is implied? One may salt a small portion of meat on this place, another small portion in another place, until the entire hide has been salted.
ד
המפשיט עור בהמה ביום טוב לא ימלחנו שזה עיבוד הוא ונמצא עושה מלאכה שלא לצורך אכילה. אבל נותנו לפני בית הדריסה כדי שידרסו עליו ולא יפסד. ולא התירו דבר זה אלא מפני שמחת יום טוב כדי שלא ימנע מלשחוט. ומותר למלוח בשר לצלי על גבי העור. ומערימים בדבר זה. כיצד מולח מעט בשר מכאן ומעט מכאן עד שימלח העור כולו:
5
When does the above apply? When one is salting the meat for roasting, and much salt is not required. If, however, one [is salting it for] cooking, [and much salt is required],16 it is forbidden to salt [the meat] on a hide.
Similarly, it is forbidden to salt fats, nor may one flip them or spread them on staves in the wind, because they are not fit to be eaten.17
ה
במה דברים אמורים במולח לצלי שאינו צריך מלח הרבה אבל לקדירה אסור למלוח על העור. וכן אין מולחין את החלבים ואין מהפכין בהן ואין שוטחין אותן ברוח על גבי יתדות מפני שאינן ראויין לאכילה:
6
When a person skins an animal on a holiday, he should not employ the technique referred to as regol. What is meant by regol? The person removes all the meat from [a hole made] at one foot, leaving the entire hide intact, without being torn. [This is forbidden] because this means of skinning involves great effort, and it is not necessary for the holiday.
Similarly, it is forbidden to cut a handle into the meat.18 [The prohibition applies] only when the handle is made with a knife, thus restricting [the butcher] from following his ordinary practice. [A butcher] may, however, make a sign in the meat.19
ו
המפשיט את הבהמה לא ירגיל ביום טוב. כיצד הוא המרגיל זה המוציא כל בשר מרגל אחת כדי שיוציא כל העור שלם ולא יקרע. מפני שטורח בהפשט זה טורח גדול ואין בו צורך למועד. וכן אסור לעשות בית יד בבשר והוא שיעשה בסכין שלא יעשה כדרך שהוא עושה בחול. ומותר לעשות סימן בבשר:
7
We may pour hot water over the head and the feet [of a slaughtered animal] and singe it with fire [to remove its hair]. We may not, however, apply lime, clay, or loam [for that purpose]. Nor may we trim it with scissors.
We may not pare a vegetable in a decorative fashion. We may, however, trim food that has thorns - e.g., artichokes or cardoon - in a decorative fashion.
ז
מולגין את הראש ואת הרגלים ומהבהבין אותן באור. אבל אין טופלין אותן בסיד ובחרסית ולא באדמה ואין גוזזין אותן במספרים. וכן אין גוזזין את הירק בתספורת שלו אבל מתקנין את האוכל שיש בו קוצים כגון קונדס ועכביות בתספורת:
8
It is permitted to knead a large dough on a holiday.20 If a person kneaded dough on the day before a holiday, he may not separate challah21 from it on the holiday.22 If he kneaded it on the holiday, he may separate challah and give it to a priest.23
If the dough is impure,24 or the challah became impure, the challah should not be baked, for we are allowed to bake on a holiday only for the sake of eating, and this [challah] must be burned.
We may not burn it on a holiday, because we do not burn sacred food that became impure on a holiday.25 For the burning of sacred food that became impure is a positive commandment, as [Leviticus 7:19] states: "And you shall burn it with fire"; and performing a [forbidden] labor [on a holiday] that is not necessary for the sake of [the preparation of] food and the like [nullifies] both a positive commandment and a negative commandment.26 And the fulfillment of a positive commandment does not override the fulfillment of both a positive commandment and a negative commandment.
ח
מותר ללוש עיסה גדולה ביום טוב. והלש עיסה מערב יום טוב אינו מפריש ממנה חלה ביום טוב. ואם לשה ביום טוב מפריש ממנה חלה ונותנה לכהן. ואם היתה עיסה טמאה או שנטמאת החלה לא יבשל את החלה שאין מבשלין ביום טוב אלא לאכול וזו לשרפה עומדת. וכן אין שורפין אותה ביום טוב שאין שורפין קדשים שנטמאו ביום טוב. ששריפת קדשים שנטמאו מצות עשה שנאמר באש ישרף ועשית מלאכה שאינה לצורך אכילה וכיוצא בהן עשה ולא תעשה ואין עשה דוחה את לא תעשה ועשה:
9
What should one do with [this impure challah]? Leave it until the evening and burn it [then].27
On the holiday of Pesach, when leaving [the challah unburned until the day after the holiday] will cause it to become leavened, one should not separate the challah [from] the dough. Instead, one should bake the entire impure loaf, and then separate the challah after it has already [been baked as matzah].
ט
כיצד יעשה בה יניחנה עד הערב וישרוף אותה. היה יום טוב של פסח שאם יניחנה תחמיץ לא יפריש את החלה בצק אלא יאפה את כל העיסה הטמאה ואחר כך יפריש החלה לחם:
10
We may not bake in a new earthenware oven on a holiday. [This is] a decree [instituted] lest [the oven] crack open, spoiling the bread, and tainting the person's festive joy.
We may not rake out [the coals and ash28] of an oven or a range; we may, however, press them down.29 If baking or roasting in it is impossible unless we rake out [the coals and ash], it is permitted to do so.30
We may seal the opening of an oven with mud or sediment from a river bank, provided it was made soft on the previous day. It is forbidden to mix mud on a holiday. We may, however, mix ashes with water [to form a clay-like mixture] to seal the opening of an oven.31
י
אין אופין בפורני חדשה גזירה שמא תפחת ותפסיד הלחם וימנע משמחת יום טוב. אין גורפין תנור וכירים אבל מכבשין את האפר שבהן. ואם אי אפשר לאפות בו או לצלות אלא אם כן גרף מותר. וסותמין פי התנור בטיט ורפש שבסביבות הנהר והוא שרככו מאמש אבל לגבל טיט ביום טוב אסור. ומותר לגבל את האפר לסתום בו פי התנור:
11
We may not apply oil to a new range or oven on a holiday, nor may we rub it with a cloth, nor apply cold water to it [after heating it] to seal it.32 When it is necessary [to apply cold water to lower an oven's temperature] so that one can bake [within], it is permitted to do so.33
We may not heat stones34 [with the intent] of roasting or baking upon them, because this seals them. We may heat or bake in an earthenware oven and heat water in a cauldron.35
יא
תנור וכירים חדשים אין סכין אותן בשמן ביום טוב. ואין טשין אותן במטלת. ואין מפיגין אותן בצונן כדי לחסמן. ואם בשביל לאפות בהן מותר. אין מלבנין את האבנים לצלות או לאפות עליהן מפני שמחסמן. ומסיקין ואופין בפורני ומחמין חמין באנטיכי:
12
We may not make cheese on a holiday. For cheese will not lose its flavor if it is prepared on the day before the holiday.36 In contrast, one may crush spices in the ordinary manner [on a holiday], for if they were crushed before the holiday, they would lose flavor. Salt, however, may not be crushed on a holiday unless one tilts the pestle, crushes it in a bowl, or deviates from the norm in another way. [This restriction was instituted] because salt will not lose its flavor if crushed before the holiday.
We may not grind pepper in a pepper mill.37 Instead, we must crush it in a pestle like other spices.
יב
אין עושין גבינה ביום טוב שאם גבן מערב יום טוב אין בזה חסרון טעם אבל דכין את התבלין כדרכן שאם ידוך אותן מבערב יפוג טעמן. אבל מלח אינו נידוך ביום טוב אלא אם כן הטה המכתש או שידוך בקערה וכיוצא בה כדי שישנה. שאם שחק המלח מערב יום טוב לא יפוג טעמו. ואין שוחקין את הפלפלין בריחיים שלהן אלא דך אותן במדוכה ככל התבלין.
13
We may not crush groats in a large grinder. We may, however, crush them in a small grinder,38 this being the [required] deviation from the norm. In Eretz Yisrael, it is forbidden to do so using even a small grinder, for the grain [that grows there] is of a higher quality, and will not lose [its flavor] if crushed before the holiday.39
יג
אין כותשין את הריפות במכתשת גדולה. אבל כותשין במכתשת קטנה שזה הוא השינוי שלה. ובארץ ישראל אפילו בקטנה אסור שהתבואה שלהן טובה היא ואם כותשין אותם מערב יום טוב אין בכך הפסד:
14
Although flour was sifted on the day prior to the holiday, and its bran removed, it may not be sifted again on a holiday unless a pebble, a sliver of wood, or the like fell into it.40 This is permitted, however, if one deviates from the norm by sifting with the back of the sifter,41 sifting over the table, or the like.
יד
הקמח אף על פי שרקדו מערב יום טוב והסיר ממנו הסובין אין מרקדין אותו פעם שנייה ביום טוב אלא אם כן נפל בתוכו צרור או קיסם וכיוצא בהם. ואם שינה מותר כגון שירקד מאחורי הנפה או שריקד על גבי השלחן וכיוצא בשינוי זה
15
One may remove grain from husks, remove legumes from their pods, and blow air over them [to cause the husks to fall], using both hands with all one's power, and then partake of them. One may use a tray, or a pot with compartments,42 but not a sifter or a strainer.43
Similarly, a person who separates [the pods of legumes from] the legumes [themselves] on a holiday may separate them in an ordinary way44 in his bosom, and in a pot. He may not, however, use a strainer, a tablet, or a sifter.
טו
מוללין מלילות ומפרכין קטנית ביום טוב ומנפח על יד על יד בכל כחו ואוכל ואפילו בקנון או בתמחוי אבל לא בנפה ולא בכברה. וכן הבורר קטניות ביום טוב בורר כדרכו בחיקו ובתמחוי אבל לא בנפה ולא בטבלא ולא בכברה:
16
When does the above apply? When there is more food than waste.45 When, however, there is more waste than food, one should separate the food and leave the waste. If, however, more difficulty is involved in separating the waste from the food than in separating the food from the waste,46 one should separate the food from the waste even when there is more food than waste.
טז
במה דברים אמורים כשהאוכל מרובה על הפסולת אבל אם היתה הפסולת מרובה על האוכל בורר את האוכל ומניח את הפסולת. ואם היה טורח בברירת הפסולת מן האוכל יתר מטורח בברירת האוכל מן הפסולת אע"פ שהאוכל מרובה בורר את האוכל ומניח את הפסולת:
17
We may not filter mustard using a filter designated for that purpose, since it appears that one is [performing the forbidden labor of] selecting.47 We may, however, [mix] a raw egg [with mustard] in a mustard strainer, and [the mustard] will undergo a process of refinement naturally.48
If a filter was already hanging [over a container before the commencement of the holiday], it is permitted to filter wine through it on the holiday. By contrast, a person may not hang a filter on a holiday, so that he will not be following his weekday practice. One may, however, act with guile, and hang the filter to hold pomegranates, use it for that purpose,49 and then hang the dregs of wine in it [so that the wine will filter through].
יז
אין מסננין את החרדל במסננת שלה מפני שנראה כבורר. אבל נותנין ביצה במסננת של חרדל והוא מסתנן מאליו. ואם היתה המשמרת תלויה מותר ליתן לה יין ביום טוב. אבל לא יתלה בתחלה שלא יעשה כדרך שהוא עושה בחול. ומערים ותולה את המשמרת לתלות בה רמונים ותולה בה רמונים ואחר כך נותן לתוכה שמרים
FOOTNOTES
1.See the final halachah of the previous chapter.
2.In contrast to a behemah, a domesticated animal (e.g. a cow, sheep, or goat), when a fowl or wild animal (e.g., a deer) is slaughtered, its blood must be covered with earth. (See Hilchot Shechitah, Chapter 14.)
3.See the notes on the final halachah of the previous chapter, which touch on this issue.
4.Most authorities consider this to be referring to an animal that is a crossbreed between a goat and a deer. The Rambam (Commentary on the Mishnah, Chulin 6:1), however, considers this an independent species that the Sages were unable to classify as either an animal or a beast. (See also Hilchot Shechitah 14:4.)
5.The Ramah (Orach Chayim 498:18) states that this ruling applies only when the person slaughtered this animal in a corner. If, however, he slaughtered it in the middle of a courtyard and earth has been prepared and is available, it is permitted to cover its blood on the holiday, just as it is permitted to remove an unpleasant object from sight.
6.In his Commentary on the Mishnah (Bikkurim 2:9), the Rambam w rites that it is forbidden to take this earth, because there is a doubt regarding the animal's classification. This can be interpreted as an indication that even if earth was prepared for use, it may be carried only for a valid reason.
7.As the Rambam explains in Hilchot Ma'achalot Asurot 7:3, we are forbidden to eat only the fat of cows, sheep, and goats. The fat of all other kosher animals and beasts is permitted. Since the animal in question could be considered to be a goat, it is forbidden to eat its fat.
8.Although it is necessary to cover the blood of the beast or fowl, it is not necessary to cover the blood of the domestic animal.
9.Shulchan Aruch HaRav 498:36 and the Mishnah Berurah 498:103 explain that "one shovelful" need not be interpreted literally. The intent is that one would not have to engage in any additional effort to cover the extra blood coming from the animal.
10.This is the key to the leniency. Since one would normally cut the wool away with shears, pulling it away by hand represents a departure from one's ordinary procedure and is therefore permitted. Shearing the wool with a utensil is indeed prohibited.
The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 498:12) rules more stringently, and forbids intentionally tearing the wool away. According to this view, one may merely smooth it to the sides with one's hands. If, however, it is torn off in the process, that is of no consequence.
11.See Hilchot Shabbat 11:5.
12.A hide from an animal slaughtered on a holiday, in contrast to the hide of an animal slaughtered before the holiday began (Maggid Mishneh; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 499:3).
13.By the people's treading on it, the tanning process will begin, and it will not spoil.
14.Similarly, one is permitted to place it in the shade or in a cool place so that it will not spoil (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 499:3; Mishnah Berurah 499:4).
15.Because of the fear that its hide will spoil. Our Sages feared that this financial loss would deter a person from slaughtering an animal on the holiday.
16.The Rambam describes the difference between the manner in which meat is salted for cooking and for roasting in Hilchot Ma'achalot Asurot 6:12.
17.Shulchan Aruch Harav 499:10 permits the fats to be carried to a cool shady place, lest their loss prevent the person from slaughtering.
18.To cut the meat in such a way that it will be easier for a customer to carry it home (Rashi, Beitzah 28a).
19.To distinguish meat purchased by one customer from that purchased by another (ibid.).
20.Although the School of Shammai forbids this, the halachah follows the School of Hillel, which rules that baking such a loaf is permitted (Beitzah 22b). The rationale is that a loaf tastes better when cooked in an oven which is full.
21.Numbers 15:20 requires us to separate a portion of dough and give it to the priest as challah. This offering is governed by the rules pertaining to terumah and hence may not be eaten when either the dough or the person partaking of it is impure. In such an instance, it must be burned.
22.On a holiday, one may, however, bring a priest challah that had been separated before the holiday (Chapter 4, Halachah 26; Ramah, Orach Chayim 506:3).
The Ramah also mentions that in the present age, in the diaspora, dough that has been kneaded before the holiday is permitted to be baked on the holiday, and a small portion of bread is left over, from which challah will be separated on the following day.
23.It is ordinarily forbidden to separate the consecrated articles that are due the priests on a holiday (Chapter 4, Halachah 26). Nevertheless, an exception was made in this instance, to allow people the option of eating fresh bread on a holiday.
24.This is the ruling that must be followed in the present age, for we are all ritually impure, and convey ritual impurity to the dough.
25.See Hilchot Pesulei HaMukdashim 19:5.
26.See Chapter 1, Halachah 2.
27.The Noda Biy'hudah (Vol. II, Orach Chayim, Responsum 96) notes that according to Hilchot Pesulei HaMukdashim, loc. cit., it is also forbidden to burn certain sacrificial meats that became disqualified - e.g., piggul and notar - at night. The Rambam does not mention such a restriction, however, with regard to consecrated articles that become impure.
There are, nevertheless, other authorities who differ and forbid the burning at night of consecrated articles that have become impure. (See Be'ur Halachah 506 and the sources mentioned there.)
28.Our translation follows the Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah (Beitzah 4:5). Beitzah 32b and the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 507:4) speak of an instance where a brick or part of the lime covering of the oven wall fell and disturbed the cooking process.
29.By hand (Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, loc. cit.), seemingly implying that it is forbidden to use a utensil unless necessary.
30.The Maggid Mishneh states that this is permitted even though in the process one will extinguish the coals. Although Chapter 4, Halachah 2, states that it is forbidden to extinguish a fire on a holiday, it is possible to explain that a distinction can be made in this instance, for by extinguishing the flame it becomes possible to cook.
31.This follows the Rambam's position (Hilchot Shabbat 8:16) that one is not liable for mixing clay if one uses ashes. The Ra'avad differs with the Rambam both in Hilchot Shabbat and in this halachah. The Shulchan Aruch (loc. cit.:7) follows the Rambam's view.
32.Contact with cold water after being heated will seal the walls of an earthenware oven.
33.These prohibitions are instituted because these tasks are mundane matters that are not directly associated with the preparation of food on a holiday.
34.All the commentaries see this as a reference to the Mishnah (Beitzah 4:7), which forbids heating "tiles." They question why the Rambam deviated from the wording used there.
35.This refers to a cauldron used during the Talmudic period, made of heavy copper. It was made up of two receptacles, the upper one for water, and the lower one for the coals used to heat the water (Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah, Shabbat 3:3).
Since the cauldron is large and remains hot for a very long time, one might think that its use would be forbidden on a holiday, lest one create the impression that one is preparing hot water for the day following the holiday (Maggid Mishneh).
36.As mentioned in Chapter 1, Halachot 5-7, our Sages forbade the performance of any labors on a holiday even for the sake of the preparation of food, if it is possible to perform these labors before the holiday begins.
37.The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 504:1) states that this is forbidden because it is a mundane activity that is inappropriate for a holiday. Others explain that, as stated in Chapter 1, Halachah 7, grinding is forbidden on a holiday.
38.The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayim 504:3) states that at present, we are unaware which is considered a small grinder and which a large grinder. Therefore, it is forbidden to use all grinders.
39.Although he accepts the law stated by the Rambam, the Ra'avad differs with the rationale, and explains that in Eretz Yisrael it was always customary to use a small grinder. Therefore, employing one on a holiday is not considered to be a deviation from the norm.
40.Although there are opinions that permit removing the pebble or the sliver by hand, Shulchan Aruch HaRav 506:4 and the Mishnah Berurah 506:12 forbid removing it by hand (for this would be removing waste matter from food as in Halachah 17), and require that the flour be sifted again.
41.If, however, the flour had not been sifted on the previous day, it may not be sifted on the holiday (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 506:2). It is, however, permissible to have a gentile sift the flour, provided he deviates from the ordinary practice (Ramah).
42.Our translation of these terms is taken from the Rambam's Commentary on the Mishnah (Keilim 16:3). Most other authorities follow different interpretations.
43.The Maggid Mishneh explains that since it is customary to prepare a large quantity using these utensils, it appears as if the person were preparing on the holiday for the weekdays that follow. The Rashba offers another rationale: Since performing this function with these utensils on the Sabbath violates the prohibition against a forbidden labor, the Sages did not want to allow this leniency on the holidays. These reasons are also given for the prohibitions in the clause that follows.
44.I.e., one is thus separating the waste matter from the food.
45.And thus it is likely to be easier to separate the small amount of waste matter, than to separate all the food.
46.When the waste matter is thin and difficult to separate.
47.Which our Rabbis prohibited on a holiday, even when it is performed for the purpose of preparing food.
48.In his Commentary on the Mishnah (Shabbat 20:2), the Rambam explains that when raw eggs are mixed with coarse foods, they cause the lighter matter to rise above the heavier, coarse matter. Thus, mixing the egg with the mustard will cause the dregs of the mustard to be separated.
49.If, however, one does not use the filter for another purpose, one may not use it to filter wine afterwards.
Hayom Yom:
English Text | Video Class
Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5778 · 16 November 2017

"Today's Day"
Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5704
Torah Lesson: Chumash: Tol'dot, Chamishi with Rashi.
Tehillim: 120-134.
Tanya: Examine Etz Chayim (p. 595) ...as is known. (p. 597).
R. Aizik Homiler related: When I came to Lyozna I met elder chassidim who had been chassidim of the Maggid and of R. Menachem Mendel of Horodok. They used to say:
Have affection for a fellow-Jew and G-d will have affection for you;
do a kindness for a fellow-Jew and G-d will do a kindness for you;
befriend a fellow-Jew and G-d will befriend you.
Daily Thought:
Open Wide
You can choose to believe in a G‑d aloof from all things;
a distant G‑d that leaves you in the hands of so many worldly troubles.
Or you can put your trust in a G‑d who carries you as a nursing mother carries her suckling infant by her bosom;
as a father carries his child high upon his shoulders;
as an eagle carries its fledgling young upon its wings.
As large as your trust will be,
so will be the space that He will fill.
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