The Prohibition of Boneh on Yom Tov - Rabbi Eyal Peled shlita

00:02 Speaker 1 You’re listening to “Lema’an Yishme’u,” a podcast of Machon Halacha Chabad.

00:09 Speaker 2 Hello and welcome to all our dear viewers. Today we’re going to talk about the laws of Yom Tov. As I mentioned, we’ve already discussed several melachos in the laws of Yom Tov, and we’ll continue. Today we’ll focus mainly on the melachah of building on Yom Tov. We’ve already covered some of the basic principles: broadly speaking, there are two kinds of melachos on Yom Tov. There are melachos we’re permitted to do for the sake of food preparation. These are called food-preparation melachos, and they may be done on Yom Tov. We discussed the principle that since they were permitted for a need, they were also permitted even when there is no such need. This applies to melachos whose primary form is done with food. These melachos were permitted—cooking, baking, lighting a fire, and so on. We discussed that at length. Today we’re going to talk about the melachah of building, so perhaps we should say a little about its basic principle. On the face of it, building has nothing to do with food preparation. It isn’t a food-preparation melachah; it isn’t a melachah done with food. If I build a house or a building, there’s no connection to food preparation. Accordingly, it would seem that this melachah should not be permitted on Yom Tov. That is indeed the prevailing view, and that is the halachic ruling. All the poskim rule this way. But it’s worth knowing about another view, because it may help us with certain laws where we can perhaps rely on it. Tosafos in Tractate Beitzah holds that building does have a connection to food preparation. Tosafos derives this from making cheese. When a person makes cheese, whether on Shabbos or Yom Tov, it is considered the melachah of building—actually building. The person brings one part together with another, and that’s how the cheese forms,

02:14 Speaker 2 and Tosafos learns from this that since cheese is food, there is an aspect of the melachah of building that is connected to food preparation. So according to Tosafos, if, for example, I build a house for the sake of eating—I have nowhere to eat, and I want to build a house where I can eat—it isn’t prohibited by Torah law. There is a rabbinic prohibition, but not a Torah prohibition, because Tosafos holds that building, too, is considered a food-preparation melachah in a certain respect. That makes it more lenient. According to Tosafos, this melachah is treated more leniently than melachos with no connection at all to food preparation, such as sewing or writing. Of course, the halachah was not decided according to Tosafos. We hold that building is not a food-preparation melachah. Nevertheless, we may see later that there are situations where we can take Tosafos’s view into account in order to be lenient. So first of all, now that we know building is not a food-preparation melachah and may not be done on Yom Tov, we need to follow the rules for melachos that are not food-preparation melachos. A melachah that isn’t a food-preparation melachah may not be done on Yom Tov. However, in certain circumstances, if I could not have done it before Yom Tov, I may do it on Yom Tov for the sake of food preparation—even if it is building, for example, or another melachah that is not itself a food-preparation melachah. In halachic terminology, this is called

04:11 Speaker 2 machshirei ochel nefesh—things needed to enable food preparation. As we discussed, according to the Alter Rebbe, all these melachos that are not done with the food itself fall into the category of machshirei ochel nefesh. The rule is that if I could have done them before Yom Tov, I may not do them on Yom Tov. These melachos are not done to the food itself; they only make it possible to eat. They prepare the person and the circumstances so that eating is possible. Such melachos, of course, may not be done on Yom Tov. But if I could not have done them before Yom Tov, I may do them on Yom Tov. What does it mean that I could not have done them before Yom Tov? As we discussed, according to the Alter Rebbe, there has to be a serious circumstance beyond one’s control. It isn’t enough to say, “I forgot,” “I didn’t have time,” “I wasn’t free,” or “I was busy.” The Alter Rebbe says: You were busy, but you could have done it several days earlier. So that isn’t a reason. We’re talking about a serious circumstance beyond one’s control. If a person genuinely had a serious reason beyond his control and could not do certain melachos before Yom Tov, we tell him that he may do them on Yom Tov itself. Again, this is on condition that they are machshirei ochel nefesh: they have some connection to food preparation, even though they aren’t themselves food-preparation melachos. Another possibility is that the situation arose on Yom Tov. We’ll see examples of that shortly. So let’s take some examples. Take the example of repairing a utensil. Since we’re talking about building, part

05:54 Speaker 2 of the melachah of building also includes what is called repairing a utensil. Repairing a utensil might be associated with makeh bepatish; it might be a derivative of building or a derivative of makeh bepatish. In any case, these are all related melachos. So repairing a utensil falls under this rule as well. Let’s take an example given in halachah: a skewer. Today, too, there are times when we want to grill on Yom Tov, and we have a skewer we want to use to roast meat. In the past, skewers were made of iron; today they may be wooden. In any case, what happens if the skewer gets bent? May I straighten it—repair it? That is repairing a utensil, which is connected to building. May I do that on Yom Tov? When it comes to repairing a utensil, there is a point of disagreement. You could say that the Mishnah Berurah and the other commonly followed poskim take a particular approach, essentially that of the Ran. The Ran maintains that building—fully repairing a utensil—is forbidden on Yom Tov even if I could not have done it before Yom Tov. In his view, fully repairing a utensil is particularly serious and cannot be done on Yom Tov even if it could not have been done beforehand. The Alter Rebbe disagrees. The Alter Rebbe follows other views—Tosafos, the Rosh, and others—that repairing a utensil is like the other melachos of machshirei ochel nefesh: if I could not have done them before Yom Tov, I may do them on Yom Tov. What does this mean in practice? If my skewer gets bent, I ask myself: Did it get bent before Yom Tov, when I could have

07:42 Speaker 2 If I could have straightened it before Yom Tov, I cannot straighten it now on Yom Tov. That would not be permitted. But if this skewer bent on Yom Tov, then I had no way to fix it before Yom Tov, so I can fix it on Yom Tov itself. That is the rule for these melachos—building and the other melachos involved in preparing what is needed for food. Now, this does not apply only to a skewer. We can apply it to other objects that bend and need to be straightened. Take glasses that have bent, for example. Often an arm or some other part of a pair of glasses bends, or a key bends, or a needle bends, and so on. The same principle applies in all these cases. If it happened before Yom Tov, then there is virtually no way to straighten them on Yom Tov. But if it happens on Yom Tov itself—whether it is a fork or any other utensil that has bent and needs straightening—the same rule applies. If it happened on Yom Tov, I can fix it on Yom Tov; that is permitted. That said, the Alter Rebbe understands the stringency we mentioned—that, according to some opinions, repairing a utensil is forbidden on Yom Tov—as referring to making a new utensil. That is how the Alter Rebbe is understood in Ketzos Hashulchan, siman 495, subsection 5. The Alter Rebbe holds that we cannot introduce a permission to make an entirely new utensil on Yom Tov, since no such thing is mentioned by the halachic authorities, even if

09:38 Speaker 2 I could not possibly have made it before Yom Tov. And really, such a situation cannot arise, because you can always make a new utensil beforehand. It is not something that happens on Yom Tov, something forced upon you on Yom Tov, like an existing skewer that bends. A skewer might bend before Yom Tov, or it might bend on Yom Tov itself. But making a new utensil is up to you. So you cannot say that only now has a situation arisen requiring you to make a new utensil. In any event, the Alter Rebbe therefore says that making a new utensil on Yom Tov is forbidden in all circumstances, even if it could not have been done before Yom Tov. And as we said, such a situation is unlikely to exist. So, the Alter Rebbe says, if I want to make a new skewer, for example, or build a new utensil on Yom Tov, I cannot do that. If I already have a skewer that bent, I can repair it. If it bent on Yom Tov, I can repair it; if it bent before Yom Tov, I cannot. But I cannot make a new skewer or build a new utensil on Yom Tov. The Alter Rebbe agrees that this is not permitted. Now, let us take another example: a baby bottle. It often happens that you give a baby a bottle of formula, the baby starts drinking, and suddenly signals to you that nothing is coming out. The baby cannot get the food from the bottle into their mouth because the hole in the nipple is too small. That, for example, is something I could not have dealt with before Yom Tov, because

11:21 Speaker 2 I did not know there was a problem. Now, on Yom Tov, I have a new bottle. I give it to the baby, and it seems there should be no problem, but we discover that the hole is too small. We need to enlarge it. This, too, is an example of something permitted on Yom Tov: since I could not have done it before Yom Tov and was not aware of the problem then, I can do it on Yom Tov. There is no problem with enlarging the hole on Yom Tov. The question is whether one may make a new hole in the bottle. It says that one may not make a new hole in a barrel, and so on. I saw that [unclear][?] seems to be uncertain about this. What are the grounds for the uncertainty? We said that, according to the Alter Rebbe, one may repair a utensil on Yom Tov, but that means an existing utensil that has been damaged. Making a new utensil would be a problem even according to the Alter Rebbe. So if we are talking about a bottle with no hole, and you want to make a new hole so that the bottle can be used, perhaps that counts as making a new utensil and would be forbidden. That is how I understand his uncertainty. But in my opinion, this is not called making a new utensil. The Alter Rebbe is talking about making a new utensil. Here we have an existing utensil that is missing one feature that needs to be put right. It is hard to call that making a new utensil, and it would seem to be permitted according to the Alter Rebbe’s approach. We will continue with opening cans on Yom Tov. First of all, we know that opening cans is also an issue on Shabbos. By the way, what we are going to discuss now is mainly points where there is a difference between Shabbos and Yom Tov. We obviously cannot cover all the ordinary Shabbos issues as well; we would never finish. So, opening cans.

13:04 Speaker 2 There are several possible grounds for prohibiting the opening of cans. What people generally focus on are the issues of makeh b’patish, repairing a utensil, building, and so on. But the Chabad approach focuses more on the issue of demolishing involved in opening cans. Therefore, in practice, opening cans on Shabbos is a problem. It makes no difference even if I do it in a way that damages the can, because the problem is not building; the problem is demolishing. That follows the approach of Tehillah LeDavid, and we will not go into it now. Nevertheless, if there is a need, it is permitted even on Shabbos. But we are asking whether, on Yom Tov, I may open cans in the usual way. Here too, we apply the same principle. If I could have opened the can before Yom Tov, I cannot open it on Yom Tov. Again, this melachah—whether it is building, demolishing, or whatever the case may be—is not food preparation itself. It is only preparation of what is needed for food: I open the can so that I can eat. So if I could have done it before Yom Tov, it is a problem to do it on Yom Tov. I would need to open the can in a way that damages it, or something similar. Whether the issue is building or demolishing, I should initially try not to open it. But if there is a need, the guidance is to be lenient.

14:53 Speaker 2 If, however, opening this can before Yom Tov could spoil its contents, that changes things. This happens quite often: if I open a can of tuna or some other canned food and it dries out afterward, it will not taste as good. In such a case, this is considered something I could not have done before Yom Tov, because opening it then would have diminished the food’s flavor. So I may open the can on Yom Tov. Some still wish to be stringent, but in practice it seems that opening it on Yom Tov is permitted. Whether to open it normally or in a way that damages it depends on the type of can. There are cans in which I store the food after opening them; those I would have to open in a way that damages the can. With other cans that is not necessary. Ordinary small cans may also be opened normally. And again, why? Because I could not open them before Yom Tov. Why not? Because opening them then could have spoiled the contents, so I may do it on Yom Tov. There is another point connected to this, which gives us an important principle concerning the melachos involved in preparing what is needed for food. We said that if they could not be done before Yom Tov, they may be done on Yom Tov. We know that this permission has an accompanying rule. Its limitation is that it may be done only by someone who knows how to

16:47 Speaker 2 The permission. I can’t instruct someone to do it. This is called “it is the halachah, but we do not instruct people to act on it.” In general, the principle with activities needed to prepare food is that if I could have done them before Yom Tov, I cannot do them on Yom Tov; if I could not have done them before Yom Tov, I can do them on Yom Tov. So although I can do it, if someone comes to ask me, I cannot instruct him that it is permitted, because it is the halachah, but we do not instruct people to act on it. The reason is that people might come to be lenient and do these activities even when they could have done them before Yom Tov. We are concerned about that with people who are not knowledgeable and the like, so it is the halachah, but we do not instruct people to act on it. But here, for example, with opening cans, the Igros Moshe discusses this and establishes a principle that would allow us to instruct the public that it is permitted. His principle works like this: Why can’t I instruct the public that it is permitted? Because I’m concerned that they might then do activities needed to prepare food even when they could have done them before Yom Tov. They might make a mistake and do them on Yom Tov even though they could have done them beforehand. That applies in an ordinary case. But when doing it before Yom Tov would cause the food to spoil, as in the example we gave—opening cans when the contents would spoil if I opened them before Yom Tov—that concern does not apply. Why would a person do it before Yom Tov? On the contrary, he has a reason not to do

18:18 Speaker 2 it before Yom Tov, because it would spoil. So all these cases are examples of situations where we ask whether I can instruct people that it is permitted, or whether only someone who already knows may do it, but we cannot instruct others to do so. Here, too, the permission applies. According to the Igros Moshe, the principle is that if doing something before Yom Tov would cause a loss or spoilage, then in such cases I may also instruct the public to do that activity on Yom Tov itself, since it could not be done before Yom Tov. That is the Igros Moshe’s rule, and we can use it too. Let’s continue with another principle in the laws of Yom Tov that differs from the laws of Shabbos. In the laws of Shabbos, there is a rule about utensils made of parts that fit together. There are different kinds of connections, but generally speaking, we’re talking about utensils made of parts that fit together. For now, let’s say we’re not talking about screws; we’re talking about connections such as clips and other ways of fastening parts together. On Shabbos, there is a decree against doing this lest one fasten the parts firmly. That means even a utensil whose parts do not fit together tightly, so that by the strict letter of the law they could be put together—there is no prohibition of building or dismantling utensils when they are not assembled firmly. So in principle, one could put the parts of the utensil together on Shabbos. But on Shabbos, the Sages were concerned that if they permitted me to put them together even loosely, I might come to fasten them firmly, secure them tightly, and so on. Because of this decree, we cannot assemble utensils

20:04 Speaker 2 on Shabbos. But on Yom Tov, that decree does not apply. In other words, although, as we said, building and dismantling are prohibited on Yom Tov too, the decree lest one fasten something firmly does not apply on Yom Tov. So various utensils—yes, we can give an example: a wheel that has come off a baby carriage, or a table leg, which needs to be pushed back into place. You push it in somewhat snugly, but we’re not talking about screws or nails or anything like that. It is simply pushed in with a bit of pressure and holds there. On Yom Tov, I may do that. If it comes apart, I may put it back together. I do not have to worry about the decree lest I fasten it firmly. That is a halachah relating to Yom Tov. From here, let’s talk about something that may be more common: glasses whose screw has fallen out, or other items held together by screws that suddenly come apart on Yom Tov. What do we do? First, there is a fundamental disagreement about screws, between the Magen Avraham and the Taz: Is fastening a screw prohibited by Torah law or by rabbinic law? The Taz holds that it is prohibited by rabbinic law; it is not actual building. The Magen Avraham is stringent and considers it actual building—it is called [unclear]. The Alter Rebbe, too, is stringent like the Magen Avraham regarding screws. So the question arises when we are talking about glasses whose screw has fallen out, which can sometimes cause a lot of distress. A person without glasses can barely function. If you are used to wearing them and the screw falls out, you find yourself without glasses on Yom Tov. What can you do on Shabbos? That would be a problem. You cannot even put the screw in a little. But on Yom Tov, we ask: What if I want to put

21:58 Speaker 2 the screw in loosely, not fasten it firmly? After all, the prohibition is against fastening it so that it is firmly secured. But what if I put it in loosely, just so the glasses do not come apart completely, so they hold together for the time being? There is a question here. Nitei Gavriel is stringent about this; he does not agree that it is permitted. On the other hand, I saw that Piskei Teshuvos is lenient. He says that one may put the screw in loosely for the time being, because the concern lest one fasten it firmly does not apply. The question is whether his ruling also relies on the opinion of the Taz. But in my opinion, it should be all right, because ultimately the decree lest one fasten it firmly does not apply. If I do not fasten it firmly and attach it loosely, it is ultimately not actual building. And since this really does involve distress, if the person does not urgently need the glasses, perhaps it is better not to do it. But if he is used to wearing glasses and being without them causes him real distress, he may put the screw in loosely. There are authorities to rely on, and it can be permitted. The prohibition of building also applies to the human body. So the halachah tells us that one may not braid hair on Shabbos. Building applies to the human body too. It is written that when Hakadosh Boruch Hu created Chavah, He formed Chavah and braided the rib, and so on. That braiding is also a form of building. Therefore, one may not braid hair on Yom Tov either. Do not make braids, whether for children, girls, or adult women; we do not braid hair on Yom Tov. The same applies to a wig. Although

23:45 Speaker 2 building does not apply to a wig, since it is not part of the human body, braiding it involves the prohibition of weaving. So braiding a wig on Yom Tov is also a problem; we do not do it. Braiding challah, on the other hand, is fine. Building does not apply to food, so it is not considered building. One may braid challah on Yom Tov. Since we’ve mentioned food, let’s continue with that. We said that one does not make cheese on Yom Tov, but what about other things that might be similar to cheese, where I bring various parts together? For example, I want to make kneidlach or patties, or things like that. Yes, one may make them on Yom Tov; that is not building. It is not like cheese, where I gather parts together and create something new. Here I am only joining parts together, not creating something new. Also, what I make is only a mixture that is not yet ready to eat or use, and there are other reasons to be lenient as well. In any case, one may make kneidlach or patties on Yom Tov, and the like. One may also make mayonnaise on Yom Tov. Although on Shabbos that would be a problem of kneading, kneading is generally permitted on Yom Tov, so mayonnaise may be made on Yom Tov too. Now let’s talk about a sukkah that has come apart, which is something that can also happen. Perhaps it happens less often in Eretz Yisroel, but even there, there have been times when storm winds blew and a person suddenly found himself on the first day of Sukkos without a sukkah—everything had blown away in the wind. So what do we do? Can it be rebuilt or put back in order on Yom Tov, or not? Here, too, the issue is building. So can the sukkah be rebuilt on Yom Tov, or is it

25:35 Speaker 2 Is that possible? So it breaks down into a few parts. First, let’s talk just about the schach for now. Building the walls is more problematic, more serious. That is actual building. It really is building. Even if a person doesn’t attach anything to the ground—if I take stones and build a wall, even without joining them with mortar, that is a Torah prohibition. It is actual building. So putting up the walls, joining them to one another and so on, is building a partition. And this is a partition that permits the use of the sukkah. So that is actual building. But the schach is less problematic. It is considered a temporary shelter, which does not involve a Torah prohibition; there is a rabbinic prohibition here. If so, based on the principles we know, that a double rabbinic prohibition is permitted for the sake of a mitzvah, we can say that if my schach blows off on Yom Tov, I can call a non-Jew and ask him to put it back. I can’t tell him to fasten it down and so on, because then, once again, I get into building something permanent. But placing the schach on the sukkah—putting the slats in place and laying the schach on them—I can ask a non-Jew to do all of that for me on Yom Tov. It is a double rabbinic prohibition for the sake of a mitzvah. There is some room for doubt, because the Pri Megadim leaves open the question of whether putting up schach involves a Torah prohibition or a rabbinic prohibition, and so on. In one place, we see the Mishnah Berurah writes that it is permitted; elsewhere, he writes that one should be stringent. So the conclusion the poskim give is that it depends: if you never put up the schach, if you didn’t build a sukkah at all before Sukkos, then you didn’t,

27:22 Speaker 2 you didn’t put up schach before Sukkos. There is a degree of negligence here, so we won’t permit it—not even asking a non-Jew to put up the schach. But if someone prepared a sukkah and everything was fine, and then the schach blew off during the festival, or at the start of the festival, as it came in, or the like, he was prevented by circumstances beyond his control. He did what he was supposed to do, but winds came and blew his schach away. In that case, we permit him to ask a non-Jew to put the schach back on the sukkah. That is fine. He himself cannot put it up, but the non-Jew can, under the principle of a double rabbinic prohibition for the sake of a mitzvah. Now, all this is about the schach. But what if the walls were also blown down? That may be less common, but it can happen. Here, too, there are differing opinions. Nitei Gavriel, for example, says no: putting up the walls goes too far. Building the walls involves a Torah prohibition, so there is no double rabbinic prohibition on which to base a leniency. Don’t put up the walls, even through a non-Jew. That is his opinion. On the other hand, the Pri Megadim describes an incident involving a Yom Tov that fell on Shabbos. He says he had relied on the members of his household to put up a sukkah for him, and then, as Yom Tov arrived, he saw that everything had blown away. He was speaking there about the schach. He then began to consider whether perhaps he could rely on the Baal HaItur, who holds that even a single rabbinic prohibition is permitted for the sake of a mitzvah; and perhaps having the

29:14 Speaker 2 schach put up involves a rabbinic prohibition rather than a Torah prohibition; and he was in great distress, and it was needed for eating, and so on. He considered the matter from all sorts of angles and, apparently, ultimately agreed that, given his great distress, even on Shabbos he could ask a non-Jew to put up the schach. In any event, he discusses it as something that may involve a Torah prohibition, and still finds grounds to permit it. And here we come to what we mentioned earlier: the position of Tosafos. We discussed how, according to Tosafos, if I build a house for the purpose of eating on Yom Tov, there is no Torah prohibition—even if I build an actual house, not merely a temporary shelter. As we explained, Tosafos derives this from the case of curdling cheese. So, taking all this into account, the Igros Moshe writes that it would indeed be possible to have a non-Jew put up the walls as well on Yom Tov. Even if the walls came apart, a non-Jew could rebuild them on Yom Tov. In practice? I would say it really depends on how pressing the need is. There is certainly room to permit it, and it is also considered necessary for eating. You can’t eat outside the sukkah, and going to the neighbors isn’t much of a solution. A person could be in considerable distress. So if that is the situation, and it is really distressing, one can rely on this and have a non-Jew put up the walls too, so he can build the sukkah, and that settles it. Of course, when he builds it, you should tell him not to build it in a fully professional way, but to put it up as a temporary structure. By the way, on Chol Hamoed too, one may build a sukkah as a temporary structure,

31:06 Speaker 2 as a temporary structure—not with all sorts of professional construction methods. On this same point, the subject of making a utensil usable, there are also laws concerning kashering utensils with boiling water or immersing them in a mikveh. Both are considered to make a utensil usable. It isn’t a Torah prohibition, but it is a rabbinic prohibition: it looks like you are making the utensil usable, and that is prohibited. So the question is whether you can kasher a utensil that became non-kosher on Yom Tov. It may not be a very common situation, but it can happen: a utensil becomes non-kosher on Yom Tov, I want to use it, and I can’t find another one. Perhaps I have a brother somewhere who has guests, and suddenly a pot of his becomes non-kosher. How is he going to serve the food he needs to serve in that pot? There are all sorts of situations like that. So here, too, it is the same principle. Kashering a utensil is not food preparation itself; it is preparation for food preparation. We therefore follow the same rule: if the utensil became non-kosher before Yom Tov, you could have kashered it before Yom Tov, so you may not kasher it on Yom Tov. If it became non-kosher on Yom Tov, you may kasher it on Yom Tov. That concerns the kashering itself. The actual kashering can be done on Yom Tov; that is fine. But then there is heating the water in which to kasher the utensil. That presents a problem, because you could have heated the water before Yom Tov. The utensil became non-kosher on Yom Tov, but the water could have been heated before Yom Tov. So if you do have water that was already hot before Yom Tov, hot water standing on the fire, then there is no problem. You can kasher the utensil in that water. It is preferable that the water have sixty times the volume of the utensil, because the utensil was used within the past twenty-four hours. Then you can kasher it in that water. But if you don’t have water that was heated before Yom Tov, the solution is to heat water with the intention of using some of it for drinking as well. I’ll drink a cup of tea or coffee from it, and then I can also take the opportunity to kasher the utensil in that water. Now, as I’m speaking, I’m thinking...

32:57 Speaker 2 The Alter Rebbe discusses a situation involving certain utensils that we... After all, kashering doesn’t necessarily have to be done with boiling water. I can also use light libun, a form of heating over a flame, for utensils that became non-kosher. So perhaps... If I put a utensil on the fire, it isn’t apparent that I’m kashering it. I’m putting it on the fire because I want to cook with it. So perhaps, in certain situations, I could kasher it that way too. That is called libun, light libun, but it isn’t so simple. I’m just saying what occurred to me right now. By the way, heating this water or kashering this utensil that became non-kosher is something one may also instruct the public to do. Although we said that when preparation for food preparation could not have been done before Yom Tov, one may do it on Yom Tov, but “this is the law, yet we do not instruct people to follow it,” here, with kashering a utensil that became non-kosher, many authors hold that one may also instruct the public to do it on Yom Tov. If it really happened on Yom Tov and it is possible, one may instruct the public accordingly. Apparently, he

34:41 Speaker 2 This also rests on the principle of the Igros Moshe that we discussed earlier, regarding immersing utensils on Yom Tov. First, a word about immersing utensils. It is worth knowing that this, too, is subject to some dispute: even on Shabbos, not everyone agrees that immersing utensils is forbidden. In practice, though, the halachah is that it is forbidden. It depends, essentially, on whether the obligation to immerse utensils is from the Torah or not. In any case, the practical halachah is that one may not immerse utensils on Shabbos, and the same applies on Yom Tov. Except that on Yom Tov, we again follow the same principle: if I could have immersed this utensil before Yom Tov, I cannot immerse it on Yom Tov. But what if I could not have immersed it beforehand? Say a lot of guests arrive, and I do not have enough utensils for them. Then I remember that I have a new set in the kitchen cupboards that I have not yet used, and I really need it now—but these are utensils that require immersion. Or I turn to the neighbors, and they say, “We have a new set of utensils, but it needs to be immersed.” So this is a situation that arose on Yom Tov. In such a case, I can immerse the utensils, even on Yom Tov. But note that this, too, is one of those cases of “it is the halachah, but we do not instruct people to act on it.” If someone comes and asks me whether he may immerse a utensil on Yom Tov, I will not tell him that he may. It falls under that rule: these are preparations for food that could not have been done before Yom Tov and are permitted on Yom Tov, but only for someone who already knows the halachah. I cannot instruct someone who does not know it to do so.

36:19 Speaker 2 That is one point. Another point: even on Shabbos, there is a way to immerse new utensils, through what is called ha’aramah—doing it under the guise of something else. What does that mean? The halachah says that if it is a cup, for example, I can take it and act as though I am going to drink, immersing the cup in the process. That can be done even on Shabbos. But nowadays, saying that I am drinking from the mikveh does not sound very convincing. Nobody would buy that story. So there is another suggestion: if it is a utensil you could wash in the mikveh—for example, a knife, which you do not drink from—you can act as though you are washing it in the mikveh water and immerse it in the process. That is also possible. Another way of doing this, as we said, is to wash the utensil or use it to wash your hands. I can take a cup and wash my hands with it. That, too, is a form of ha’aramah that lets me immerse a utensil on Shabbos or Yom Tov. The thing is, when I do this on Shabbos, I cannot make the blessing for immersing utensils, because then it would be obvious that I am immersing the utensil. People would see me reciting the blessing, “Who sanctified us with His mitzvos and commanded us concerning the immersion of utensils,” and everyone would understand what I was doing. On Shabbos, that would indeed be forbidden. But the Nitei Gavriel offers a novel ruling that on Yom Tov I may even make the blessing over this immersion. Why? What does it matter if I make the blessing for immersing utensils? A person looks over and sees me making the blessing.

38:10 Speaker 2 Fine—perhaps this is a utensil that I could not immerse before Yom Tov. After all, immersing utensils on Yom Tov is permitted under certain circumstances. So who says I am doing something forbidden? Therefore, he maintains that on Yom Tov, even if I immerse the utensils in this manner, through ha’aramah, I may make the blessing over the immersion. Another point: when we are talking about glass utensils, for which the obligation to immerse is only rabbinic, the halachic authorities write that we may even instruct people to do so. If someone asks you whether glass utensils may be immersed on Yom Tov, and they could not have been immersed before Yom Tov, you may tell him that he can immerse them. That applies only to glass utensils, whose obligation is rabbinic. A clogged toilet: the Nitei Gavriel has a lengthy responsum in which he concludes that there are several options. First, if there is a non-Jew available whom you can ask to come and clear the blockage, that is what you should do. If not, he holds that it can be fixed in an unusual manner. What does that mean? Use your left hand instead of your right. If it is a tool you normally need to hold with both hands, hold it with one hand, using the back of your hand. He holds that making the repair in an unusual manner for a Yom Tov need is permitted. There is a basis for this in Shulchan Aruch, section 514, regarding a wick, which may be adjusted in an unusual manner for lighting on Yom Tov. From that, we can consider the case of a clogged toilet as well. Since we mentioned wicks: what about cutting a wick on Yom Tov? I have a wick that I want to use to light a candle, but it is long, and I want to cut it. I cannot—even doing it by hand is not possible. Admittedly, the prohibition here is rabbinic, but even by hand one may not fashion a utensil. Some want to say that if the wick is fit for lighting but does not look nice—its length is unattractive, and I only want to cut it for appearance’s sake—then it is permitted. But as far as I know, that does not quite work, because even a utensil I can use, if it is bent and inconvenient, may not be fixed. That prohibition, too, is rabbinic, but it is still forbidden. So one cannot cut a wick. The same goes for twisting cotton wool: I want to make a wick from cotton wool and twist it so that it will be fit for lighting. That is also forbidden. It, too, is a form of building or fashioning something, and so on. There is no problem with putting a wick into a floating-wick holder. That is possible; it is fine. Cutting the end of a candle because it is too long or does not fit into my candlestick, and the like, is also problematic, although some permit it. There is a collection of responsa called Be’er Moshe, and the Be’er Moshe argues that it may be done. He is not concerned about the prohibition of cutting to a specified size, and if you do it in an unusual manner, there is more room for leniency. So if someone needs to, he can rely on that as well: when there is a real need, one may be lenient and cut the end of the candle in an unusual manner. But warming a candle so that I can stick it to the candlestick is forbidden. That raises a problem of smoothing, and it cannot be done on Shabbos, and certainly not on Yom Tov either. On the other hand, if I want to press the candle tightly into a holder or candlestick so that it sits firmly there, that is fashioning something in an unusual manner for the sake of a mitzvah.

39:58 Speaker 2 Yes, you can’t do it by hand either. It is only prohibited by rabbinic law, but you still may not fix a utensil by hand. Some want to say that if the wick is fit for lighting but just doesn’t look nice—say it’s too long, and you want to cut it only for appearance’s sake—that would be permitted. But as I understand it, that doesn’t really add up, because even a utensil that I can use, if it’s bent and inconvenient, may not be fixed. That, too, is prohibited by rabbinic law, but it is still prohibited. So you can’t cut a wick. The same applies to twisting cotton wool. If I want to make a wick from cotton wool, twisting it so it will be fit for lighting and become a wick is also prohibited. That, too, is a form of boneh—making a utensil—and so on. There is no problem with putting a wick into a floating wick holder; that is permitted. Cutting the end of a candle because it is too long or won’t fit into the candlestick and the like is also problematic, although there is an authority who permits it. In a responsa work called Be’er Moshe, the author argues that it may be done. He is not concerned about the prohibition of cutting to size, and if you do it in an unusual way, there is more room for leniency. So if someone needs to, he can rely on that ruling: in a case of need, one may be lenient about cutting the end of a candle in a distinctly unusual way. But heating a candle to stick it to a candlestick is prohibited. That presents a problem of smoothing, and it may not be done on Shabbos, nor, certainly, on Yom Tov. On the other hand, pushing it in tightly—if I want to push the candle tightly into the glass holder or candlestick

41:46 Speaker 2 That is permitted. It happens in this unusual manner as I push it into the candlestick and thereby shape it so that it fits. That is possible. What about cleaning the tallow and wax out of the candle holders? I am not addressing the issue of muktzeh now, only the issue of fashioning a utensil. From that standpoint, there is no problem. I can clean out the tallow and wax. That is not considered fashioning something; it is just removing an obstruction. That is what the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch and several others write: there is no such problem, and it may be cleaned. There is no issue of fashioning a utensil. I am merely removing something in the way, and that is fine. That concludes our discussion of the melachah of building and fashioning utensils on Yom Tov.