Parshas Beshalach (Shira) 5786
- Torah Tavlin
- Jan 28
- 3 min read
מנחות דף יח. "מליחה"
All קרבנות and מנחות must be salted before הקרבה as it says, [ויקרא ב,יג'] "על כל קרבנך תקריב מלח". The רמב"ם: [איסורי מזבח פ"ה,יב'] paskens if a קרבן is brought without מלח, one is oiver a לאו and חייב מלקות because it says, "ולא תשבית מלח ברית אלקיך". However, the קרבן is still כשר והורצה, except by a מנחה, where מליחה is מעכב. The רמב"ן [ויקרא ב,יג] suggests the reason for מליחה is it is not proper to offer קרבנות to הקב"ה not fit and tasty to us. This is found where the נביא gives מוסר to כלל ישראל for bringing בעלי מומין and sick animals as קרבנות. He says: "הקריבהו נא לפחתך", would you offer this (quality) to your governor’s? The [קיט] חינוך explains: salt is a preservative and prevents loss, so we are מרמז that when one brings a קרבן it is מציל one from הפסד and is שומר נפשו. רש"י explains the the pasuk "מלח ברית אלקיך": this ברית was made מששת ימי הבראשית with the מים התחתונים. They were guaranteed they would be brought up on the מזבח through their salt and ניסוך המים בחג.
The [או"ח קסז,ה'] רמ"א says: it is a מצוה to bring salt to the table before one makes המוציא. Because our שולחן is דומה למזבח and our אכילה is כקרבן, it says, "על כל קרבנך תקריב מלח". Also it is מגן מן הפרעניות. The משנ"ב explains: בזמן שבית המקדש קיים the מזבח was מכפר, now our tables are מכפר, when we give food from it to עניים and also when we say דברי תורה. The משנ"ב brings another reason to have salt at the table; the מדרש says, when we are sitting around the table quietly, and waiting for everyone to finish washing נטילת ידים we are without מצות and the שטן is מקטרג at that time, so salt on the table alludes to the ברית מלח and is מגין us from the שטן. The Gemara [כא.] learns from "במלח תמלח ולא תשבית", that we should use מלח that is not שובתת. Rashi explains: Salt that is always available, in the summer and winter. This is מלח סדומית, that the sea throws onto the shore and is not mined בידי אדם, so it’s considered always available. The Gemara says,בדיעבד if מלח סדומית is not available, one may use מלח איסתרוקנית i.e.; salt that is mined from the earth by people, this is not considered always available as people don’t work and mine by night or on שבת, but בדיעבד it is acceptable.בשם רבינו הלל .
The [קיט] מנחת חינוך quotes רש"י על החומש that the ברית מלח was with the מים התחתונים, and says it’s משמע from this מדרש that the salt being used, should originate from water. But this is only a לכתחילה as the Gemara is דורש from the pasuk that בדיעבד salt-mined from קרקע may be used. **It seems the גרי"ז is learning the מדרש differently, because he says מלח from water is only a הידור מצוה, but not a לכתחילה. The מנח"ח also brings the הלכות קטנות that says if there is no מלח available to salt the קרבנות, sugar may be used, because it also has preservative qualities. שו"ת תורה לשמה [שאלה ת"ק] says: based on above הלכות קטנות, even though dipping לחם into salt at one’s table is a סוד וכוונה עמוקה, if one doesn’t have salt for his table, he may dip his לחם into sugar. עיי"ש where he brings Gematrias and points out that מלח and לחם are the same אותיות.