Eating Milchigs on Shavous

88 A M i M A g A z i n e / / m ay 1 2 , 2 0 1 3 / / 3 s i va n , 5 7 7 3

The Mysteries of Milchigs

What’s the reason for the minhag to eat milk products on Shavuos?

ami071.michlig.indd 88 5/10/13 12:33 AM

3 s i va n , 5 7 7 3 / / m ay 1 2 , 2 0 1 3 / / A M i M A g A z i n e 89

The Mysteries of Milchigs

By Rabbi Eliezer Brodt

E ating the vast array of customary dairy delicacies on Shavuos—in-cluding, of course, the now ubiquitous cheesecake—is a minhag that very few people find very difficult. But the reason for the minhag, and how and when the foods should be eaten, are less easily di-gested. This minhag, and the variety of explanations for it, goes back at least to the times of the Rishonim.

There are some mysteries at the bottom of that pie dish. Let’s dig in.1

Delicious dinimIt is very clear that the minhag of milchigs on Shavuos has been observed

widely in recent history. For example, an informative nineteenth-century Lith-uanian memoir describes the milk-based Yom Tov atmosphere:

“And at home there was roasting and baking, namely, many butter cakes! On this Holiday you especially ate all milk and butter dishes. The traditional cheese blintzes with sour cream, a kind of flinsen [Russian pancakes], were

essential.… On the second day of Shavuos…a happy mood prevailed; we drank fine aromatic coffee and ate butter cakes and blintshikes.”2

In Yeshivas Volozhin, after staying up the whole night, the whole yeshivah would take part

in a milchig kiddush at the house of the Netziv—Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Naf-

tali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin.3 We find the same thing in the

Lomza Yeshiva: After davening, they had

a kiddush with cheesecakes

and the



like.4

The question is, where did this minhag of eating milchigs on Sha-vuos come from?

In this article, I will trace some of the earliest known sources that we have for this minhag, and discuss some of the reasons that are given. This is not an attempt to cover all aspects of this rich minhag.

One of the earliest mentions of this minhag can be found in a Pesach drashah from the Rokeach (Rabbi Elazar of Worms, 1176-1238), which was printed from a manuscript for the first time just a few years ago.6

Another one of the earliest sources is found in the very interest-ing work, Malmed Hatalmidim, by Rav Yaakov Anatoli. Rav Anatoli was born around 1194 in Provence, in southern France. He mar-ried the daughter of Rav Shmuel Ibn Tibon, the famous translator of the Moreh Nevuchim into Hebrew. The Malmed Hatalmidim was only first printed in 1866, with the haskamos of many gedolim, but the manuscript form had been used before that by many Rishonim, most notably the Avudraham.

Rav Anatoli writes that the custom is to eat milk and honey on Shavuos. He explains that this is because Torah is compared to milk and honey. Since milk is a very important food, so too, the mitzvos of the Torah are food for the soul, he says.7

Another early source for eating milchigs on Shavuos is found in the work Even Bochen, from Rav Kalonymos ben Kalonymos (1286-1328),8 where he describes milchig breads made with honey and formed into the shape of a ladder. (We’ll return to the ladder-shaped breads shortly).

Yet another early source can be found in the writings of Rav Aha-ron Hacohen Miluneil (died around 1330), in his early work, Kol Bo, and in his later work, Orchos Chayim. He writes, like the Malmed Hatalmidim, that on Shavuos people have the custom to eat milk and honey because Torah is compared to milk and honey. Women also bake challahs with four heads, he says, as a zeicher to the lechem hapanim. Others dip matzahs left over from Pesach into the spice

known as zefrin since it causes happiness.9

Rav Avigdor Hatzorfati (died 1275) brings a remez (hint) from the Torah for the minhag. The passuk about Shavuos says, “Uvyom habikkurim b’hakrivchem minchah chadashah laShem b’shavuoseichem [In the day of the first fruits, when you bring a new meal offering unto Hashem in your feast of weeks]....” (Bamidbar 28:26). The be-ginning letters of the last three words spell out chalav (milk).10

This minhag is also discussed by the following: the minhagim of Rabbi Meir—the Maharam Merutenberg (written by a talmid of his),11 Terumas Hadeshen,12 the Maharil,13 Rav Isaac Tirana (born around 1380),14 Meshivas Nefesh from Rabbi Yochanan Luria (1482),15 Rama,16 Seder Hayom (Venice, 1599),17 Yosef Ometz (by Rabbi Joseph Juspa Hahn of Frankfurt, 1570-1637),18 and the Shelah Hakadosh (1565-1630).19

Aside from the reasons already mentioned, many additional rea-sons for this minhag have been given over the years. Recently, close to 150 reasons were collected by Rabbi Moshe Dinin in a small work called Kuntres Matamei Moshe. Here are a few of those reasons and some interesting points related to them:

Rav Elyakim Horowitz says that we eat milchigs because David Hamelech died on Shavuos. The halachah is that when a king dies, all of the Jews have the status of an onen and are not permitted to eat meat.20 Rabbi Shimon Falk also discusses this point.21

Rav Avraham Eliezer Hershovitz brings a mishnah at the end of Avos that says that one of the 48 ways the Torah is acquired is through not indulging oneself. Since meat is considered an indul-gence, we eat milk products during the chag of matan Torah as a reminder that this is the way to acquire Torah.22

Rav Mordechai Leib Zaks points out that in the parshah of Bik-kurim it says that Hashem gave us the land of milk and honey. Therefore, he suggests, the custom is to eat milchigs on the Yom Habikkurim to give thanks to Hashem for giving us this land, and as a reminder of the mitzvah of bikkurim, which only included the fruits of Eretz Yisrael, the land of milk and honey.23

the MYSteRIeS of MIlchIgS


Rabbi Yehoshua Singer in Zichron Basefer (printed in 1900) writes an interesting rea-son that he had heard. The Torah was given on Shabbos. The meat they had prepared before learning the halachos of shechitah was asur to eat. It is not permitted to shecht on Shabbos. Therefore, Bnei Yisrael had to eat milchigs, as they could not eat the food that they had prepared beforehand.24

The Mishnah Berurah mentions a similar reason, which the Chofetz Chaim heard in the name of a “gadol echad.” Immediately after Bnei Yisrael accepted the Torah, they were unable to eat anything but milchigs. The reason for that is because the prepa-ration of kosher meat is very involved. A kosher knife and kosher utensils are neces-sary. Since this takes a long time, they just cooked milchigs.25 Who is the “gadol echad” mentioned here? Rabbi Nachum Greenwald located this idea in the work Toldos Yitzchak, first printed in 1868. This idea is mentioned in the name of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Ber-ditchev. It is interesting that the Chofetz Chaim did not say the name of the person from whom he heard this idea.26 A similar idea can be found in the work Geulas Yis-rael, first printed in 1821.

Rabbi Kapach says that the Jews in Ye-men expressed wonder at those who ate just milchigs on Shavuos. They did not like the reason given (as we mentioned before) that the meat slaughtered prior to matan To-rah would be neveilah afterwards, because they argued that only the Eirev Rav were unable to shecht before matan Torah. The rest of the Jews, they claimed, were shecht-ing before matan Torah, just as we know that the Gemara says that Avraham Avinu kept all the mitzvos of the Torah before they were

given.27 However, this statement is not so simple, because even if they were shecht-ing and doing mitzvos before, it is heavily debated what that would be considered, since their status as Jews may have changed during matan Torah. According to many, it would follow that after matan Torah they would need to kasher the utensils and shecht new animals.28

Rav Yissachar Teichtal deals with a re-lated issue. He asks that, since the Torah was given on Shabbos when they couldn’t shecht, and their prior shechitah was not ko-sher, how did they fulfill the obligation of eating meat on Shabbos?29 Rav Teichtal first mentions the answer of the Zichron Basefer quoted above, which is that they didn’t eat meat that Shabbos. However, Rav Teichtel disagrees. He has an interesting answer to explain how they did indeed have meat on this Shabbos. Basing himself on various sources, he says that they had meat created through the Sefer Yetzirah. The Gemara re-lates that there were those who were able to create an animal via the Sefer Yetzirah; Rav Teichtal says that this was done here.30

Toldos Yitzchak, quoted above, from Reb Levi Yitzchak Berditchever, gives another answer. There is a concept in halachah called ho’il v’ishtrei ishtrei, which means that if something was permitted at one time, it remains muttar (permitted). It follows that they were permitted to eat anything they had prepared beforehand and did not have to throw away their dishes. Then he says that even though it was permitted, the Yid-den were stringent and didn’t eat the meat. Since they were accepting the Torah that day, they wanted to be machmir.

A similar idea is found when Moshe Rab-

This minhag of eating milchigs ties in with another minhag of

Shavuos.

DomesticFlightsCoach & Business

InternationalFlights

Business & First

[email protected]

T • R • A • V • E • L

T • R • A • V • E • L

T • R • A • V • E • L

T • R • A • V • E • L

LAST MINUTE TRAVEL?

SAME LOW PRICES!

FLAT RATE FARES

check out our complete list of fares & destinations at:

www.point2point.com

st d

esig

n 73

2-64

4-86

89



1 There are many collections of material on this is-sue. See, for example, Rabbi Pinchas Schwartz, Minchah Chadashah, pp. 38-44; Rabbi S. Deblitski, Kuntres Hamoadim, pp. 37-40; Kovetz Eitz Chayim (Bobov) 6 (2008), pp. 239-242; an excellent col-lection of material in Pardes Eliezer, pp. 227-316; Rabbi Freund, Moadim L’simchah 6, pp. 490-505; Rabbi Yitzchak Tessler, Peninei Minhag, pp. 292-319; Rabbi Oberlander, Kovetz Or Yisrael, 32:104-120, and later updated in his Minhag Avoseinu Beyadeinu. See also Yehudah Avidah in his work on Yiddish foods, Yiddishe Macholim, pp. 43-44; M. Kosover, Yiddishe Macholim, p. 75, 77, 98.

2 Pauline Wengeroff, Memoirs of a Grandmother, 2010, p. 150.

3 Reshumot 1, p. 340.4 See Pirkei Zichronos, (2004), p. 359.6 Drashah L’Pesach, ed. Simcha Emanuel (2006), p.

39, 110. See the important comment on this from my friend, M. M. Honig, in Peninei Minhag, p. 292.

7 Malmed Hatalmdim, p. 121b. I hope to return to this work in a future article; for now, see my article in Yeshurun, 24 (2011), p. 457.

8 Even Bochen, p. 34. Mahratz Chiyos, in his Kol Sifrei (p. 236), quotes this as an early source for eating milchigs. Both Matei Moshe (siman 692) and Mekor Chayim quote this work when talking about eat-ing milchigs on Shavuos. On Rav Kalonymos ben

Kalonymos, much has been written already. See: Y. Zinberg, Toldos Safrus Yisrael, vol. 1, pp. 411-427; Uberto Cassuto, in the intro. of the facsimile edi-tion of Mesechtas Purim printed by A. Haberman in 1978; A. Haberman, Toldos Hapiyut Ve-hashira, vol. 2, pp. 142-149; A. Haberman, Iyunim B’shira U’b’piut, pg. 162-179; C. Shirman, Toldos Ha-shira Haivirit Be’sefard, pp. 514-541.

9 Orchos Chayim, p. 78a; Kol Bo, siman 52. Most are not aware that this work was authored by the same person. There were actually those who thought the Kol Bo was authored by a woman; see my Bein Kes-seh L’asor (2010), p. 143.

10 See Rav Avigdor Hatzorfati, p. 478. See his Pirush Rav Avigdor Cohen Tzedek, printed in the Toras Chayim edition of Megillas Rus, 2011, p. 53. On Rav Avigdor Hatzorfati, see Simcha Emanuel, Shivrei Luchos, pp. 173-181; E. Kanarfogel, Peering Through the Lattices, pp. 107-109.

11 Minhaghim of Maharham, p. 30.12 Leket Yosher, p. 103.13 Minhaghim p. 85.14 Sefer Minhaghim, Reb Isaac Tirana (2000), p. 67-

68. To be more exact, this minhag is in the section that is called Hagahos haminhagim. It is unclear exactly who is the author of that section, but it is assumed to have been written rather early on. On all of this, see S. Spitzer in his introduction to this

edition, pp. 17-18. 15 Meshivas Nefesh, p. 185. On the dating of this

work, see Yakov Stahl, Deutsche 84, (2010) p. 6.16 See Igros Moshe OC 1:160.17 Seder Hayom, Shavuos, p.78. 18 Siman 854.19 Shelah, Mesechtas Shavuos, p. 30a. 20 Zichron Yerushalayim, p. 153. In Reshumot 1, p.

350, we find that some made a special seudah be-cause of this and finished Sefer Tehillim.

21 Shut Shem Mishomon, OC, 2:4, p.15.22 R’ Avraham Eliezer Hershovitz, Otzar Kol Minhagei

Yeshurun (St. Louis, 1918), p. 201.23 Zemanim, (1951) p. 53. See also his Mili Demor-

dechai, p. 125. For another connection between bikkurim and eating milchigs, see Rabbi Shlomo Schick, Seder Minhagim 1 (1880), pp. 83b-84a.

24 Zichron Basefer, p. 122. See Emes Leyakov (Shulchan Aruch), p. 215, where Rav Yaakov suggests this reason himself and adds some points.

25 Mishnah Berurah 494:12. See also Rav Tzvi Farber, Sefer Moadim, p. 26 (and see there for some other reasons). See also Rabbi Aron Misnik, Minchas Aharon, pp. 102-106; Pardes Eliezer, pp. 279-282.

26 The Chofetz Chaim did not have a problem quot-ing chasidic sources; he quotes the Shulchan Aruch Harav numerous times. On the Chofetz Chaim and chasidus, see what I wrote in the article “Cen-

beinu, as a baby, didn’t nurse from a non-Jew even though it was permissible. It appears that this idea is based on a concept found in numerous sources, called chinuch shanei. It means that the first time we do something, we do it in the best way possible, even if other ways are permitted. Moshe Rabbeinu could have been nursed from a non-Jew, but since he was the one who was going to get the Torah, he was kept from nursing from a non-Jew. Similarly, here the Yidden were machmir by not eating what was entirely permissible.

Speaking of Moshe Rabbeinu, an original reason for this minhag is given by Rabbi Yitzchak Weiss, who says that Moshe Rabbeinu was found by the daughter of Pharaoh on Shavuos. Since they tried to give him milk from a non-Jew and he refused, we eat dairy to remind us of that.31

Cheesecake on the clockRav Dunner, in a recent article on the topic, lists many gedolim

who ate the milchig seudah at night, including the Chazon Ish, Rav Aharon Kotler, Rav Yechezkel Abramsky and others.32 It is ques-tionable whether or not there is an obligation to eat meat at night on Yom Tov.33 In other sources, we see the opposite. There were people who specifically ate milchigs during the day—for example, the Volozhin and Lomza yeshivos, which I mentioned earlier, where there was a kiddush with cheesecake after davening.34 This is also what the Darchei Teshuvah suggests one should do, to avoid many different halachic issues.35

There is much discussion among the poskim concerning whether it is permitted to eat milchigs first during the day, and then wait and eat meat. There’s also discussion about how long to wait. Some wait an hour before eating meat. Other poskim deal with the question of whether there is an obligation to bentch after the milchig kiddush.36

For example, the Knesses Hagedolah (Rav Chaim Benbenishti, 1603-1673) writes that he ate milchigs and honey, then he bentched, and after he waited an hour, he ate fleishigs.37

What’s interesting is that certain mekubalim did not eat milk the same day they ate meat products. In his work, Totza’os Chayim, Rabbi Eliyahu de Vidas (d. 1579), author of the Reishes Chochmah, writes that one should wait 24 hours(!) after eating meat before eat-ing milk. According to this, it wouldn’t be possible to eat milk after meat on Shavuos!38

The Yosef Ometz quotes the Shelah, who says that he would wait 24 hours after meat to eat milk.39 But later on (in siman 854), he says that people were lenient about this on Shavuos.

Interestingly enough, the Tzror Hamor (Rabbi Abraham Saba, 1440-1508) even says that one should not eat meat within 24 hours of eating milk, and vice versa. According to this there would be no way to eat both milk and meat on Shavuos.40

The Toras Chayim is also very concerned with this issue of eating meat after milk; he says not to eat milchigs on Shavuos.41

However, other rabbanim were to the other extreme. The Rokeach writes that his great uncle used to eat cheese, then wash his mouth out and immediately eat meat.42 There is also a talmid of the Teru-mas Hadeshen who writes that his rebbe did the same.43

From honey to milkIt would appear that this minhag of eating milchigs ties in with an-

other minhag of Shavuos, and perhaps is derived from there.44 The talmid of the Maharam Merutenberg brings—among the minhagim of the Maharam—the minhag to eat milchigs on Shavuos, right after another minhag: “Special cakes with pesukim on them are made for children as they begin to learn on Shavuos. These are made to help

the MYSteRIeS of MIlchIgS


sorship in the Sefer Chofetz Chaim,” available on the Seforim Blog.

27 Halichos Teiman, p. 31. See also Keser Shem Tov, 4 p. 16 who has a similar issue.

28 The status of the Yidden before Matan Torah, and the mitzvos performed then has been discussed in numerous works. I hope to return to this topic at a later date. See also Rabbi Oberlander (above, note 1), p. 632- 633.

29 Shut Mishnas Sachir, siman 136.30 Much has been written on how one creates some-

thing based on the Sefer Yetzirah, and whether one can use what has been created through such a method for a mitzvah, etc. I hope to return to this topic at a future date.

31 Elef Kesav, 1, p. 64. 32 Kovetz Eitz Chayim (Bobov) 6 (2008), p. 240. 33 Ibid. See Darchei Tesuvah, 89:19.34 See Pirkei Zichronos, (2004) p. 359.35 Darchei Tesuvah, 89:19.36 See Darchei Tesuvah, 89:14; Derashos Mishnas Sa-

chir, 2, pp. 347-348.37 Shiurei Knesses Hagedolah, 494. See Shut Siach

Yitzchak, 234.38 See Totza’os Chayim, 2008, p. 79. In the back of

this edition there is a lengthy Peirush Ir Hachayim, pp. 245- 249, and for in-depth discussion of this topic, see the Pardes Eliezer, pp. 233- 238.

39 See Yosef Ometz, siman 137.40 Mishpatim, p. 440. 41 Toras Chayim, Chullin 83a. However, it is worth

pointing out that the Toras Chayim, in Bava Metzia 86b, says that the reason for eating milchigs on Sha-vuos is to show the malachim that we are careful about basar b’chalav and that when we eat milk we are careful to do everything the halachah says to do before we eat meat.

42 See Drashah of the Rokeach, p. 39.43 Leket Yosher, p. 103.44 This idea was suggested by my friend M.M. Honig.

Rabbi Oberlander (above, note 1) also suggests this point. D. Sperber, in his Minhagei Yisrael 3, p. 139, also connects the two.

45 See my article on this in Yerushasheinu, 5 (2011), pp. 337-360, especially pp. 344-347.

46 Shach, 245:8.47 See my article in Yerushasheinu (op. cit.), p. 347

note 65.48 Migdal Oz, p. 32.49 Others have different shapes and reasons. See Rav

Yehoshua Falk, Choshevei Machashavos p. 152. See also M. Gidman, HaTorah V’hachayim 3, 108; H. Pollack, Jewish Folkways in Germanic Lands (1648-1806), p. 102, 277.

50 Minhagei Yisrael 3, p. 139.

them have an open heart [for learning].” There are numerous sources in Rishonim

(such as Rokeach and Machzor Vitri) that on Shavuos, when a boy begins to learn, an elaborate ceremony is performed in which he eats from specially prepared cakes and dips his finger in honey while saying cer-tain pesukim.45 This is done to help the boy’s mind open up and is a special segulah to help him remember what he learns. (Some sources do not mention that this was done on Shavuos; most do.)

This ceremony was done on Shavuos because it is the day we received the To-rah. Interestingly, we find sources for a few hundred years in the Rishonim that this minhag continued, at least in Ger-man circles. But it appears to have even-tually been forgotten. The Shach cites the Rokeach as having mentioned the minhag but says that now it is not done.46 Rabbi Dovid Ginsburg writes that he only found out about this minhag later on in life and had he known about it earlier he would have definitely done it for his children.47 Rav Yaakov Emden writes that the reason that the children excelled in their Jewish education in earlier times, as opposed to in his times, was because during his times

they had stopped doing this ceremony quoted in the Rishonim!48 Recently, this minhag has been revived as part of the up-sherin/areinfirinish (hachnasas cheder) cer-emony.

Be that as it may, it is possible that this minhag of eating honey and sweets on Sha-vuos actually led to the minhag of eating milchigs, because honey has always been as-sociated with milchigs.

As mentioned earlier, some made spe-cial milchig breads in the shapes of ladders. In the aforementioned work, Even Bochen, from Rav Kalonymos ben Kalonymos, we find an explanation: that the gematria of sulam (ladder) is Sinai. The Yosef Ometz and others bring different reasons connect-ing a ladder and Shavuos. 49 Daniel Sperber suggests that the reason the bread is shaped in the form of a ladder is that it ties in with the ceremonies for children who begin learning. To get the children to ask what is going on, we make the breads in an interest-ing shape, similar to our methods of getting them to ask at the Pesach seder.50

In any case, make sure you enjoy the seudos on Shavuos. And remember—there is no rule that forbids trying some of the cheesecake beforehand.

www.meromyerushalayim.com

Merom YerushalayimSchneller

Sun Chen Exclusive Realtors [email protected]

+1-718-732-3609 | 074-7333733

fron

et.c

o.il

ניצני טל המועצה לשימור צמרת העיר

PrimeLocation

GreenOasis HistoricalSetting

Merom Yerushalayim is located amongst preserved, historical buildings each with their own

unique story. The combination of rural serenity and history on your doorstep is just one more reason

why Merom Yerushalayim is a once in a lifetime opportunity.


Eating Milchigs on Shavous

Documents

Transcript of Eating Milchigs on Shavous