Leftovers – Tzav
וְהַנּוֹתָר בַּבָּשָׂר וּבַלָּחֶם בָּאֵשׁ תִּשְׂרֹפוּ. (ויקרא ח, לב).
There are myriad halachot that apply to korbanot, one of these is the concept of נּוֹתָר.
Each korban has a defined set of parameters. What to sacrifice, where, when, by whom, etc. One of these parameters is a fixed time limit for eating the remains/leftovers of a korban. Some korbanot have no leftovers, they are burned entirely on the Mizbeach, like a korban Olah. Other korbanot are partially burned on the Mizbeach and the remaining leftovers are eaten by the Kohanim, and/or the person bringing the korban. Some korbanot (e.g. Lechem HaPanim) are not brought on the Mizbeach at all and are eaten entirely (by the Kohanim).
Different korbanot have different time limits, for example – a korban Toda and korban Pesach must be eaten within one day, a Shelamim must be eaten within three days, etc. Strictly speaking, according to the Torah, the time limit extends the whole night, until just before dawn of the time limit. To prevent error, however, the Chachamim shortened the time limit (made it earlier), until midnight.
Let's take the korban Pesach for example. A korban Pesach is sacrificed on the 14th of Nisan, the eve of Pesach. The passuk says וְלֹא תוֹתִירוּ מִמֶּנּוּ עַד בֹּקֶר וְהַנֹּתָר מִמֶּנּוּ עַד בֹּקֶר בָּאֵשׁ תִּשְׂרֹפוּ (שמות יב, י). Any leftovers of the korban Pesach after dawn on the 15th of Nisan (the first day of Pesach), must be burned. The Chachamim reduced the time limit, i.e. the korban Pesach must be eaten by midnight and not before dawn.
The reason the Chachamim made this decree is because the punishment for eating נּוֹתָר is the severe punishment of כָּרֵת. There is a machloket exactly what כָּרֵת is – dying before one's time, remaining childless, not meriting עוֹלָם הַבָּא, or a combination of the above.
There are 9 sins in the Mikdash that warrant כָּרֵת –
1. Someone impure who eats Kodesh
2. Someone who enters the Azara while impure
3. Someone who eats a korban sacrificed inappropriately (פִּגּוּל)
4. Someone who offers a sacrifice outside the Mikdash
5. Someone who prepares שֶׁמֶן הַמִּשְׁחָה for themselves
6. Somone who anoints themselves with שֶׁמֶן הַמִּשְׁחָה
7. Someone who prepares קְטֹרֶת for themselves
8. Someone who purposely refrains from eating korban Pesach
9. Someone who eats נּוֹתָר
The question is "Why is נּוֹתָר punishable by such a severe punishment?" What does it matter if the person did not eat the korban in its allotted time?
The Sefer HaChinuch (פרשת צו, מצוה קמג) gives two reasons that the Torah places a time limit on eating the korbanot –
The first is because the nature of fresh meat is that it rapidly decays and begins to give off a bad smell. Therefore, the Torah commands us to burn it before it begins to exude this bad smell. The second reason is related to our bitachon in HKB"H, that we should not store/stockpile food, but rather trust in HKB"H that He will provide the food when we need it.
In either case, says the Chinuch, HKB"H commanded that we totally burn any leftovers of the korban beyond the time limit, so that neither man nor beast may eat/benefit from it.
Both explanations of the Chinuch raise questions.
If the reason is smell related, then how do we reconcile the Mishna (Avot 5,5) that lists ten miracles that occurred in the Mikdash? One of these is וְלֹא הִסְרִיחַ בְּשַׂר הַקֹּדֶשׁ מֵעוֹלָם. The meat of the Kodesh never gave off a bad smell. Under normal circumstances the meat would give off a bad smell, but there was a miracle in the Mikdash - that this never happened.
If the reason for נּוֹתָר is that the meat should not give off a bad smell, and that is why it was burned, then the lack of a bad smell from the meat in the Mikdash was because of burning the נּוֹתָר - there was no miracle involved at all. So why is it listed as one of the miracles in the Mishna?
You could say that the Mishna is only referring to Kodesh, meat that may only be eaten by the Kohanim. However, there were a number of korbanot that were not eaten (only) by the Kohanim, that were not Kodesh, like the korban Pesach for example, which was eaten by all of Am Yisrael, or the korban Toda, etc. You could say that the miracle of the lack of smell applied only to the Kodesh but to prevent the smell of the non-Kodesh leftovers there was no miracle involved and that is why it had to be burned.
However, that is not a good answer, because the commandment to burn the נּוֹתָר applies equally to both Kodesh and also non-Kodesh.
The second reason given by the Chinuch to not leave leftovers from the korban beyond the time limit, is to have bitachon in HKB"H, that He will provide our daily sustenance. Obviously (although not stated) the Chinuch derives this principle from the Mann in the Midbar, where Am Yisrael were forbidden to leave leftovers of Mann for the following day (except Shabbat), because HKB"H wanted to instill within us a sense of bitachon that HKB"H is the source of all our sustenance.
That is understandable for when Am Yisrael were in the Midbar. However, when we entered Eretz Yisrael, the Mann ceased. Am Yisrael began to become involved with their food supply. They began to farm land to grow crops, they tended livestock to provide meat. To be sure HKB"H wanted them to continue to remember the principle from the Midbar that He is the source of all food. However, HKB"H didn't tell the farmer – only grow food for one day at a time, only keep one sheep/cow at one time, not a whole flock/herd. We know for a fact that Am Yisrael grew acres upon acres of crops that would last them months. They kept flocks/herds of livestock for a similar reason.
If so, what difference did it make in the Mikdash if the person left the leftovers beyond the time limit? If the regular farmer was stockpiling food and still managing to retain his bitachon that HKB"H was the source of all food, then why could a person who brought a korban in the Mikdash and left it for more than the time limit not also do the same? Just like the regular farmer could preserve his crops by drying/stewing them, or preserve the meat by drying/salting, so that they did not decay and begin to smell, so too could the person bringing the korban preserve the leftovers and eat them at a later date. Why does that detract from one's bitachon in HKB"H any more than a regular farmer?
After that introduction we can now begin the shiur.
The concept of נּוֹתָר is a very important concept that is directly related to Pesach, which is why I have devoted this shiur to it. There are many aspects related to Pesach that are limited by time. We already discussed the korban Pesach above. Another is matzot.
The whole raison d'etre of eating matzot on Pesach is because of חִפָּזוֹן, haste – doing something with a time limit. Am Yisrael had to hurriedly leave Egypt, so they could not leave their dough to rise as it normally would. They had to bake it before it rose.
In fact, the very foundation of Pesach is urgency – time limits.
Pesach is a festival of seven days (eight in galut). Why is it important to finish the korban Pesach before midnight on the first night of Pesach? A baby sheep/goat is a big animal. What harm is there in having less people in the "chabura", the group who ate each korban? The halacha is that the group should be large enough to polish off the entire korban (each must eat a minimum of a kezayit) so that there are no leftovers (רמב"ם, הל' קרבן פסח, ב, ד).
Why not have fewer people in each group, have meat left over so that you can eat it for lunch on the first day of Pesach? Meat that is roasted and salted can easily remain fresh for 24 hours. Less cooking for the wife - who is overloaded anyway on Pesach! (BTW, if anyone wants to participate in a "chabura" and reserve a kezayit in a korban Pesach, through Machon HaMikdash, you may do so at this link).
The answer is obviously – because that is the way it happened in Egypt! We brought the korban Pesach on the eve of the night before we left. We left with the dough strapped to our belts before it had risen. That is a good answer, but it doesn't really answer the question.
The real question is - why did HKB"H want it to be that way? Why couldn't HKB"H have commanded us to sacrifice the korban Pesach two days before? a week before? HKB"H knew which day we would be leaving, why didn't He give us time to make our bread normally, without rush?
HKB"H designed it that way specifically so that it would all be one big rush! And the question is why?
The answer is that there are two specific circumstances where HKB"H wants everything to be a big rush. One is Pesach and the other is in the Beit HaMikdash.
Undoubtedly יְצִיאַת מִצְרַיִם had to take place in a rush. Chazal say if Am Yisrael had remained one moment more in Egypt they would have been irredeemable. They were teetering on the brink of the 49th lowest level of טֻמְאָה. The Haggah says that HKB"H חִשֵּׁב אֶת הַקֵּץ, and knew exactly when the point of no-return would occur and redeemed us in the nick of time.
However, the question remains – why wait so long? Why not redeem us one year before when we were not on the brink, without the rush? And the answer is that HKB"H wanted it to be a rush. It had to be a rush, otherwise Pesach would not achieve the purpose for which it was created.
The entire purpose of Pesach is to atone for the sin of Adam HaRishon. We have discussed this in many shiurim, quoting Meir Panim, how Adam HaRishon was lax in performing HKB"H's mitzvot, which resulted in the sin of the עֵץ הַדַּעַת. It is a very complex sugya involving many factors - שִׁמְחָה, כֹּחִי וְעֹצֶם יָדִי, bread, responsibility etc., however the root cause of it all was the mistaken notion - that there was no rush! If that mindset had not existed, the sin would never have happened. To atone for that, the כַּפָּרָה had to be centered around the exact opposite. יְצִיאַת מִצְרַיִם is characterized by a mindset of urgency, חִפָּזוֹן. That is Pesach.
The Mikdash is also centered around a mindset of urgency. There is a well-known concept throughout the Shas that כֹּהֲנִים זְרִיזִין הֵן, which loosely translated means that the Kohanim are "quick" or "diligent" (a more accurate interpretation is that the Kohanim are meticulous and precise in their work). The Beit HaMikdash is a copy of Gan Eden, in which Adam HaRishon sinned. If Adam HaRishon would have served HKB"H in Gan Eden like the Kohanim serve in the Beit HaMikdash, we would all still be in Gan Eden living the reality of the Geulah. Therefore, things in the Mikdash have set time frames, so that what went wrong with Adam HaRishon will not recur. The purpose of the avodah in the Mikdash is to atone for that sin.
So, we see that Pesach and the Mikdash are both one big rush. However, it is not a mad rush, it is more of a - comfortable pace with a time limit.
The עוֹלֵי הָרֶגֶל do not have to gulp down the korban Pesach in 3 seconds, almost choking as they go (the only thing anyone could possibly choke on during Pesach is the מָרוֹר). Allowing Am Yisrael to finish eating the korban Pesach until midnight allows everything to be conducted calmly, with יִשּׁוּב הַדַּעַת, while enjoying the simcha of the chag. The focus is not hysteria, but rather avoiding distractions.
Similarly, when making matzot. You might think that the 18-minute time limit creates a work atmosphere of pandemonium, everyone tripping over everyone else trying to finish in time. It is not like that, at least in well trained hand-made matzo factories. The pace is brisk to be sure, but it is not hysterical. It is task focused with no distractions.
The same thing in the Beit HaMikdash. The avodah is not running around furiously like sprinters. Running is not allowed in the Mikdash. Kohanim walk gracefully and purposefully עָקֵב בְּצַד גּוּדָל (סנהדרין סב, ע"ב), placing the heel of one foot in front of the big toe of the other foot. The daily schedule of the avodah is well defined, not for the purpose of getting as much done in a short time, but rather to remain totally focused and not get distracted. The Gemara only criticizes one Beit Av for not adhering to this regimen, מִשְׁמֶרֶת בִּלְגָּה (סוכה נו, ע"א), who always arrived late for their shift.
From this we see a pattern. HKB"H demands from us that we lead lives of avodat Hashem without distraction, that we focus entirely on serving HKB"H every minute of the day. This applies year-round, but is accentuated during Pesach and in the Mikdash.
This does not mean that we should never sleep, eat, drink, go to the bathroom, spend time with the family, work for a parnasa, take a vacation, keep up to date with the news, etc. We are not angels who need to do none of these things. We are also not all David HaMelech who used to sleep only שִׁתִּין נִשְׁמִין each night (60 breaths – around half an hour, שולחן ערוך, אורח חיים ד, טו).
HKB"H does not want us to live lives of pandemonium, scurrying around like chickens without a head. He wants us to live lives of יִשּׁוּב הַדַּעַת, calm focus. There is no problem with eating, sleeping, working etc. All HKB"H requires from us is that while we are doing these things, which are essential to living a normal life, that our minds remain focused on one thing and one thing only - that we are doing all these things as part of our service of HKB"H.
We eat in order to have energy to perform mitzvot and study Torah. We sleep so we will be alert to perform mitzvot and study Torah. We work to make a parnasa, so that we will be able to perform mitzvot and study Torah. We take a vacation to recharge our batteries so that we can perform mitzvot and study Torah. And so on. It is not so much the activity as the mindset.
When a person lives their life that way, they remain focused on their purpose in life and are not distracted. Distracted people are easy prey for the yetzer hara.
The Sefer HaChinuch's reasons for the mitzva of נּוֹתָר were spot on. It is not that the korban needs to be eaten before the meat of the korban begins to smell, it must be eaten before we begin to "smell", before we allow the yetzer hara to get control over us making us "smell bad". It is not that we are forbidden to stockpile food for fear of losing bitachon in HKB"H, it is preserving our constant mindset of being fully focused on HKB"H, not delaying for a later time things that can be done now.
Certain "times" are designed to be more focused and productive.
Shabbat is a special time during which everything we do has the potential to be greatly amplified and distilled. One minute of Torah study on Shabbat is equivalent to 1000 minutes of Torah study during the week (בן איש חי, שנה שנייה, הקדמה לפרשת שמות). The entire week is blessed by virtue of the 24 hours of Shabbat. We can spend most of Shabbat sleeping or we can use it wisely to amplify the bracha for the rest of the week.
Pesach is a special week during which the Gates of Heaven are wide open and the degree of bracha is highly amplified compared to the rest of the year, תַּרְעִין פְּתִיחִין (זהר, פרשת תצוה, חלק יז). This is why Yitzchak chose to bless Eisav davka on Pesach הַלַּיְלָה הַזֶּה אוֹצְרוֹת טְלָלִים נִפְתָּחִים (פרקי דרבי אליעזר פרק לא). We have a unique opportunity on Pesach to grab extra bracha for the entire year. This is why Pesach has so many more halachot than any other festival, to keep us more focused, allowing less room for distraction.
The question is if we choose to capitalize on this, by studying more Torah, doing more mitzvot than normal, spending more quality time with the family and strengthening family bonds, doing more chessed with our neighbors, fostering peace and achdut, etc. The after effects of Pesach will carry forward to the rest of the year, both in a positive way if we use it correctly and also in a negative way, if we don't.
This year again, like last year, we celebrate זְמַן חֵרוּתֵנוּ with a latent tear in our eye, as we remember all those in Am Yisrael who are still not בְּנֵי חֹרִין. The remaining hostages suffering in Gaza - fewer than last Pesach b"H, but still too many, Rachmana litzlan. The frightening proportion of Am Yisrael who have become so totally removed from their Yiddishkeit, Rachmana litzlan.
The freedom we celebrate on Peach is not limited to physical freedom, but also includes freedom from the yetzer hara. It is incredible and heartwarming to see how many of the hostages who have already been physically freed - managed, while in captivity, to rediscover their Yiddishkeit and to achieve true freedom, despite the physical hardships. This is the true meaning of Pesach.
Let us use our time this Pesach wisely, remaining focused and not getting distracted by the yetzer hara. Devoting our time entirely to grabbing as many mitzvot as we can, uplifting Am Yisrael, bringing people together rather than driving them apart, healing rather than damaging - reuniting our nation.
Bizchut zeh, we will merit the release of all the hostages בְּהֶרֶף עַיִן and בְּיָד רָמָה. We will merit becoming once again Am Yisrael, a nation united as one כְּאִישׁ אֶחָד בְּלֵב אֶחָד, and we will merit the Geulah in our lifetime, בִּמְהֵרָה בְּיָמֵינוּ אָמֵן, כֵּן יְהִי רָצוֹן.
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Kasher ve'Sameach
Eliezer Meir Saidel
Machon Lechem Hapanim
No comments:
Post a Comment