Muktzah on Yom Tov - Rabbi Eyal Peled shlita

00:02 Speaker 1 You’re listening to the Lema’an Yishme’u podcast from Machon Halacha Chabad.

00:09 Speaker 2 Greetings to all our dear viewers. Today we’re going to discuss the laws of Yom Tov, but not specifically melachah. We’ve spent a lot of time on the various melachos. Today we’ll discuss a rabbinic prohibition that is central to both Shabbos and Yom Tov: muktzeh. There are many, many details, and there are some differences between muktzeh on Shabbos and muktzeh on Yom Tov. As I said, we’ll focus mainly on the aspects of this prohibition that are particular to Yom Tov. First, it’s important to know that certain things aren’t muktzeh on Yom Tov in the first place. On Shabbos, for example, frozen meat is muktzeh—strictly muktzeh. Various raw food ingredients that need cooking or baking, flour and the like, are all completely muktzeh. But that doesn’t apply on Yom Tov, because I’m allowed to bake and cook on Yom Tov. So all these products aren’t muktzeh to begin with. The same goes for cooking utensils. On Shabbos, I’m not allowed to cook, so a pot is a utensil whose primary use is for a prohibited activity. But on Yom Tov there’s no such problem, because I’m allowed to cook, and therefore I’m also allowed to move cooking utensils for that purpose. Likewise, candles are completely muktzeh on Shabbos; they’re items whose primary use is for a prohibited activity. On Yom Tov, though, you may move those candles as usual, because you may light a fire from an existing flame on Yom Tov. We’ll talk a bit more about that later. But there is one point that marks a fundamental difference between muktzeh on Yom Tov and muktzeh on Shabbos.

02:10 Speaker 2 First, it’s worth knowing that, in general, the rules of muktzeh on Yom Tov are meant to be stricter. The reason is that people tend to take Yom Tov less seriously. If we made this prohibition—which is specifically a rabbinic prohibition—the same as on Shabbos, people might become even more lenient and treat it lightly. So a special stringency was applied to muktzeh on Yom Tov that doesn’t apply on Shabbos. What is that stringency? There are opinions—and this is the view of the Shulchan Aruch, which would apparently mean that Sephardim should follow it—that, generally speaking, muktzeh on Yom Tov may not be moved, whether to use the item itself or because you need the space it occupies. According to the Shulchan Aruch’s approach, there is a stringency across all types of muktzeh. But the Rema, and the Vilna Gaon as well, rule that the Yom Tov stringency applies only to one type of muktzeh, called nolad: something that is permitted on Shabbos but prohibited on Yom Tov. Now, what is the definition of nolad? First, even on Shabbos itself there are two types of nolad. One is called complete nolad, and that is muktzeh even on Shabbos. What is complete nolad? The classic example is ash from a stove. We baked and cooked, and the wood turned into ash. It’s something entirely new, a new substance. That is complete nolad, and it may not be moved even on Shabbos. You could say that water produced by an air conditioner is also complete nolad. There’s a discussion in the Gemara about rain and whether it is considered nolad. Water already exists in clouds as a body of water, and there’s a discussion of how rain forms, but rain isn’t muktzeh on Shabbos. Air-conditioner water, though, is something newly formed: water suddenly develops from that vapor. So it is complete nolad and is prohibited on both Shabbos and Yom Tov.

04:15 Speaker 2 But there is a type of nolad that isn’t complete nolad. It’s permitted on Shabbos but prohibited on Yom Tov. What does “not complete nolad” mean? I’m talking about something that has changed, not something entirely new that has come into being. Its purpose, intended function, or use has changed. Something about its character has changed, even though it hasn’t changed completely. That is called nolad. Let’s take a classic example: a utensil that breaks on Shabbos. If, according to halachah, the pieces are fit for some use, they aren’t muktzeh. Say it was a plate, and before Shabbos, before it broke, I used it for eating. Now that it has broken, I can use its pieces. The example given in halachah is using them to cover a flask of oil or a jug of wine. So even though their purpose has changed—previously I used the plate for eating, and now its pieces have acquired a new use as covers—on Shabbos they aren’t muktzeh. As long as they’re fit for some use, they may be moved. On Yom Tov, that would be considered nolad and would be prohibited. So if a utensil breaks on Yom Tov and I can’t use its pieces for the same purpose it served before, the pieces are muktzeh and may not be moved. A more common example is bones separated from the meat: chicken bones, meat bones, fish bones, and so on. The same principle applies. Before they were separated, those bones were part of food for people.

06:12 Speaker 2 They were secondary to the chicken, meat, or fish; the entire piece was considered food for people. After the bones are separated from the meat, chicken, or fish, they’re fit as animal food. Their purpose and use have changed—that is called nolad. They may not be moved on Yom Tov. So pay attention: we eat, and we’re left with bones. Even if they’re fit as animal food, and even if I have a dog at home and usually give it these bones—“Here, take them and eat”—on Yom Tov I may not move them. They’re nolad. The same applies to food that has spoiled. Previously it was fit for people to eat; now that it has spoiled, it’s fit as animal food. I could give it to the chickens and so on—but no. It is still considered nolad, it is muktzeh, and it may not be moved. Another, slightly different example is a sukkah that comes apart. We spoke about a utensil that breaks, but it doesn’t have to be a utensil. It could also be a sukkah that comes apart or falls down. When we discussed the melachah of building, we touched on the case of a sukkah that comes apart on Yom Tov. Aside from the issue of building—even if I don’t want to put it back up—the question is whether I can move the pieces of a sukkah that has fallen. That, too, is nolad. Previously it was a sukkah; now it’s wood. In principle, I might be able to designate it as firewood or for something similar, but that doesn’t help, because it’s nolad. It is muktzeh because of the prohibition of nolad. What’s more, the Alter Rebbe says that this is true even if I made a stipulation about it before Yom Tov. For example, someone might see that the weather looks bad and already imagine

08:12 Speaker 2 He imagines what will happen—that this sukkah will probably fall apart. So before Yom Tov, he makes a stipulation that he will be able to use this sukkah. The Alter Rebbe says that this helps with muktzeh. After all, the sukkah is muktzeh, apart from—apart from the issue of nolad. The sukkah itself and everything attached to it is muktzeh because of the mitzvah. The Alter Rebbe says that a stipulation helps for muktzeh because of a mitzvah, but it does not help for nolad. That is something newly created; it is not something you can make a stipulation about. So I cannot move a sukkah that has fallen apart. Another point: there is an interesting question that the halachic authorities grapple with, about Yom Tov that falls on Shabbos. Since we say that Yom Tov has a special stringency regarding the muktzeh category of nolad, what happens when Yom Tov falls on Shabbos? Do I treat it like Yom Tov or like Shabbos? What exactly am I supposed to do? The halachic authorities disagree on this. It appears that the Sephardic authorities are lenient; the Ben Ish Chai is also lenient in his responsa Rav Pe’alim. But the Ashkenazi authorities tend more toward prohibiting it. Shmiras Shabbos Kehilchasah prohibits it too. He says it is treated like Yom Tov, because it does not—it does not make sense that something permitted on a Shabbos that is also Yom Tov would be prohibited on Yom Tov alone. That does not seem to fit. So he rules that it is prohibited. It does seem that we should be stringent and prohibit it. Even on Yom Tov that falls on Shabbos, we treat it like an ordinary Yom Tov and prohibit moving muktzeh of the nolad category. Another halachah that is very relevant to Yom Tov and muktzeh concerns moving muktzeh.

10:02 Speaker 2 So, moving muktzeh: we know that on Shabbos, moving muktzeh is prohibited. If we agree that a particular item is muktzeh, then we certainly say we cannot move it. You cannot move it on Shabbos, and on Yom Tov—but on Yom Tov there is a special allowance: you may move muktzeh for the sake of preparing food. The Alter Rebbe explains that if I am allowed to perform melachos for the sake of preparing food, then all the more so I may move muktzeh for that purpose, since moving muktzeh is, first of all, a rabbinic prohibition. That is what the Alter Rebbe writes in section 509, paragraph 16. But this divides into several parts. So let us try to lay it out in an orderly way, to get a clearer picture. Under what circumstances may I move muktzeh for the sake of preparing food? How can I do it? When I speak about outright muktzeh—yes, right now I mean all kinds of muktzeh: wood, stones, an item whose primary use is prohibited, and so on and so forth—I may move it if I am removing it from the way. Say I have stones on top of fruit, or dirt on top of fruit, or various muktzeh items sitting on food, and I cannot eat unless I move them out of the way. Moving the muktzeh so that I can eat is called moving it for the sake of preparing food. That is permitted on Yom Tov. Even though it is outright muktzeh, I may move it to get to the food. Later we will take a more practical example, but for now we are discussing the principle. So that is permitted on Yom Tov. More than that, even if I could have

11:49 Speaker 2 done it before Yom Tov, I may still do it on Yom Tov. We said that preparations needed for food that could have been done before Yom Tov may not be done on Yom Tov. But with this kind of moving muktzeh, I say that even if I could have done it before Yom Tov, I can do it on Yom Tov. Even before Yom Tov, I knew that there were stones, dirt, and pebbles on the fruit and that I would need to clear them away. Nevertheless, if I put it off until Yom Tov, I may move them then so that I can get to the food. I am talking here about moving something in a way that actually enables me to eat. But there is another kind of moving muktzeh that is, so to speak, a preparatory step. It does not directly help me eat; it is only a kind of preparation. For example, the case brought in halachah—the Alter Rebbe brings it in section 507, paragraph 10—is clearing out an oven. Ash has accumulated in my oven. Now I want to bake in the oven, so I need to remove the ash before I can bake. Notice that this is not like removing stones so I can eat the fruit. Here, I am not eating anything yet. Even after I move the ash, all that has done is make it possible for me to bake in the oven and then eat. It is a kind of preparation for the food. Since it is a preparatory step, we say that I may do it on Yom Tov, but only if I could not have done it before Yom

13:26 Speaker 2 Tov. The Alter Rebbe says this explicitly: only if I could not have cleared out the ash before Yom Tov may I move this muktzeh, this ash, on Yom Tov. Since moving it is only a preparatory step that enables me to prepare food, rather than removing muktzeh that directly enables me to eat, it is permitted only if it could not have been done before Yom Tov. Now for the second part of moving muktzeh: using the muktzeh item itself. Until now we have discussed moving muktzeh for the sake of eating. We said that in some cases it can be done on Yom Tov, even if it could have been done before Yom Tov, and in others only if it could not have been done beforehand. That is when we are moving muktzeh for the sake of eating. But there is another situation: we want to use the muktzeh itself, not merely move it out of the way, but use it for the sake of eating and so on. Here it depends on the type of muktzeh. If we are talking about muktzeh that has the status of a utensil—which is generally the case with muktzeh because of its value—then it has the status of a utensil. It is just that a person is particular about not using it, and that makes it outright muktzeh. Items held for sale and the like can also fall into this category. But there is also outright muktzeh that does not have the status of a utensil, such as wood, stones, dirt, pebbles, and so on. Money also falls into this category. So the halachah is that the muktzeh

15:13 Speaker 2 that has the status of a utensil may be moved and even used—not merely moved, but used on Yom Tov for preparing food. For example, the halachah discusses something called an ali, used for chopping meat—some kind of board, apparently, on which meat is chopped. Even though it is muktzeh because of its value, I may nevertheless take it on Yom Tov, move it, and use it to prepare food. So I am using the muktzeh itself to prepare the food, and that is permitted. But here, too, there is a limitation: it is permitted only if I could not have done it before Yom Tov. If I could have done it before Yom Tov, it is prohibited. Who rules this way? The Shulchan Aruch discusses it, as does the Alter Rebbe in section 499, paragraph 13. But the Tzlach and Shmiras Shabbos Kehilchasah state this limitation. It also fits the principle we explained earlier. Say I take a very expensive cutting board that is muktzeh because of its value, and I want to use it to prepare food by chopping meat on it and so forth. Again, this is a kind of preparatory step. Using it does not itself enable me to eat right now. That is why I understand that I may use it on Yom Tov only if it could not have been done before Yom Tov. But if it could have been done before Yom Tov, that does not permit me to use the muktzeh on Yom Tov itself. That is what the Tzlach and Shmiras Shabbos Kehilchasah write, and it fits with this distinction.

16:57 Speaker 2 that we spoke about. One last point about using muktzeh when it has no status as a utensil—things like wood, stones, and earth, as we mentioned. We said I can move them for the sake of preparing food. But actually using them to prepare food is more serious. In general, there is a difference between moving muktzeh and using muktzeh; using it is much more serious. Say I want to use a stone to support a pot. I’m looking for a stone to set the pot on. I’m moving the stone for the sake of preparing food, but ultimately I’m using the muktzeh itself. It’s not just moving it; it’s using it, and that is forbidden. The Alter Rebbe teaches us that just as it is forbidden to eat fruit that is muktzeh, it is also forbidden to use muktzeh. Using something is also a form of consumption, even when it is something you cannot eat. So I may not use muktzeh even for the sake of preparing food. That kind of use is forbidden, even if I could not have done it before Yom Tov. Using muktzeh that has no status as a utensil is forbidden on Yom Tov, even for the sake of preparing food. Take a stone to crack nuts, for example. If I find myself with no way to crack the nuts—no hammer or anything else—and I want to use a stone, then

18:47 Speaker 2 what do I say? I say it is forbidden, even if I could not have done it before Yom Tov, because I am using the muktzeh itself. It has no status as a utensil, so doing that on Yom Tov is forbidden. The Nitei Gavriel also gives us an important principle about moving muktzeh: the prohibition has not been fully lifted. It is not like melachah for food preparation, which is permitted on Yom Tov. That is why we say that since it was permitted for a need, it was also permitted where there is no such need. We spoke about that at length. But with muktzeh, the prohibition has not been lifted. It is true that I may move muktzeh for the sake of preparing food, but this is a case where the prohibition is set aside, not lifted. The prohibition of muktzeh gives way to the need to prepare food; it does not become permitted outright. The practical difference is that in any of the situations we have discussed, if I can manage without moving the muktzeh in the usual way—if I can move it indirectly, with my foot, or in some other unusual way—I should prefer to do that. After all, moving muktzeh has only been allowed because of the need, so one should try to avoid moving it. Another important point concerns cracking nuts. We have discussed all this; now let’s see how it applies to cracking nuts on Yom Tov. We know that on Shabbos the Alter Rebbe is very stringent about cracking nuts and forbids it, and so on. On Yom Tov, it turns out, you can crack nuts. The reason the Alter Rebbe forbids it on Shabbos is

20:33 Speaker 2 twofold, and both reasons are needed. One is that the shells are muktzeh. The second is borer: we have a problem with shells mixed in with the nuts. When I remove them, I encounter a Torah-level prohibition of borer. So there is a Torah-level prohibition of borer and a rabbinic prohibition of muktzeh. But on Yom Tov, one of those prohibitions is not present. For one thing, the rules of borer are more lenient on Yom Tov. We know that on Yom Tov one may even separate waste from food, provided it could not have been done before Yom Tov. So in this case I don’t have the borer prohibition. Even if I remove the shells, I am not violating a Torah-level prohibition; I am not violating the prohibition of borer on Yom Tov. That leaves only muktzeh. So [unclear]. The Alter Rebbe’s ruling was based on both prohibitions being present, borer and muktzeh. Once only muktzeh remains, there is room to be lenient: I can crack the nuts on Yom Tov. But what about the prohibition of muktzeh? In fact, as we learned earlier, there is a leniency here too. We learned that one may move muktzeh for the sake of preparing food, and this is exactly such a case. I have nuts with shells mixed in. I cannot eat the nuts with the shells mixed in, so when I remove the shells, I am moving muktzeh for the sake of preparing food. We said that this is permitted, even if I could have done it before Yom Tov. It would still

22:05 Speaker 2 be permitted as far as muktzeh is concerned. But I do need to be careful: once I have removed the shells, or if there are shells that are not mixed in with the food, I should not just move them for no reason. That is a problem. There is another principle concerning muktzeh on Yom Tov, involving something particular to Yom Tov: moving wood intended for fuel. We already mentioned that certain things are not muktzeh on Yom Tov, such as candles, wicks, and the like, because one may light a fire on Yom Tov. So wood should not be muktzeh either: one may burn wood on Yom Tov. However, some of the Rishonim—the Rambam and others—hold that wood was permitted only for use as fuel. They say that although you may move wood and it is not muktzeh, you may do so only for fuel. Wood has no status as a utensil and no independent significance, so permission to move it extends only to using it as fuel, not to moving it for other purposes. That is the view of some Rishonim. Other Rishonim say that since you may move wood to cook or to make a fire, it is not muktzeh and may be moved freely. In practice, the Alter Rebbe rules—I think in section 516—that one should be stringent like the Rambam and those who agree with him, except in a case of substantial loss, when one may be lenient about moving wood. Now let’s apply all this to matches. May I move matches on Yom Tov? On Shabbos, we can say that matches are a utensil

24:01 Speaker 2 whose usual use is for a prohibited activity, and so on. On Yom Tov, there is room to discuss matches. On the one hand, they are like wood, which may be used only as fuel. The whole purpose of matches is to start a fire. So, at first glance, according to the stringent view, I could move them only for the purpose of lighting a fire, not just for any purpose. If I wanted to use one as a toothpick, for example, I couldn’t. On the other hand, it seems that matches are different, because a match is a utensil. It isn’t just a piece of wood; it’s like a wick or a candle—it’s a utensil. When we said that wood may be used only as fuel, we were talking about wood that has no particular status as a utensil. But a match is a kind of utensil, like a wick. So it would seem that you could move matches for any purpose. Even so, some argue that matches are intended to be lit in a way that is prohibited on Yom Tov. After all, their original purpose is to strike them and create a new fire, and creating a new fire is prohibited on Yom Tov. So some say that, since they are intended for a use prohibited on Yom Tov, they remain utensils whose usual use is for a prohibited activity. As for whether matches have that status or may be moved without restriction, it is proper to be stringent. If you can be stringent, it is worth doing so. But this law about wood can certainly guide us when it comes to kerosene or charcoal. Using charcoal is quite common: often we want to barbecue on Yom Tov, and we have charcoal. The question here is whether that charcoal is like—

25:44 Speaker 2 a match. It isn’t a utensil. It’s like wood, a type of fuel intended only for burning. So with charcoal, it certainly seems reasonable to say that we cannot move it for no reason. That is very important. You want to barbecue on Yom Tov? That’s fine. But don’t start moving the charcoal from here to there and back again for no reason—only move it when you need it for the fire. You can move it in order to light it. Some do suggest that charcoal is also a utensil, but that doesn’t seem reasonable. Charcoal is charcoal; it isn’t a utensil. With kerosene, though, there is reason to say that it isn’t used only for lighting fires. You can also use kerosene to clean stains and so on. So there is room to be lenient and allow it to be moved, at least like a utensil whose usual use is for a prohibited activity. One last point about muktzeh concerns candles. Earlier, we spoke about preparing candles, because quite often we need to light candles on Yom Tov. We have two days of Yom Tov, Rosh Hashanah, and so on. We want to light a candle on Yom Tov, and we need to clean out the residue that has built up inside the candle cups. There is tallow and wax, metal wick tabs, and all sorts of bits we want to remove. Earlier, we said that this is fine as far as the prohibition against fixing a utensil is concerned. The question is: what about the muktzeh status of the tallow and wax in there? This is very interesting, and it’s worth knowing the details. First of all, according to the straightforward ruling in the Shulchan Aruch, the tallow and wax are not muktzeh. Why? Because they can be lit again; they can be reused for lighting. So why would I call them muktzeh? I’m not throwing them in the trash—I can put a wick in them and light them—

27:27 Speaker 2 again. But that was true in their day, when people used everything up. They would light the leftovers too, putting in a wick and lighting them. Fine. But nowadays, it’s hard to imagine someone doing that. You throw it in the trash, so it’s difficult to rely on that leniency and say they aren’t muktzeh. On the other hand, Rabbi Akiva Eiger gives us a very important principle. In siman 580, Rabbi Akiva Eiger discusses it like this: You want to light candles—but why do we light candles? Where, generally speaking, do we light them? At the dining table. Having them where we eat adds enjoyment. After all, the central point of lighting candles, whether for Shabbos or Yom Tov, is the enjoyment of Shabbos or Yom Tov. Eating a meal by candlelight brings a certain pleasure. So Rabbi Akiva Eiger argues that lighting Shabbos or Yom Tov candles serves a need connected with eating. It’s part of the meal, part of the whole experience of eating. And, as we discussed, you may move muktzeh for the sake of food preparation on Yom Tov. Now, if we think back, this isn’t exactly food preparation itself; it is preparation for a need connected with the meal—so that I can sit at the table and eat by candlelight. But that, too, is permitted. If I could not have done it before Yom Tov, I can do it on Yom Tov. So according to Rabbi Akiva Eiger, removing the tallow and wax from the candles is permitted, like any moving of muktzeh for the sake of food preparation. Honestly, I haven’t seen anyone who unequivocally disagrees with this. I haven’t found one at this point, and it—

29:09 Speaker 2 makes sense. It seems logical, although some want to argue that nowadays we have electric lighting. It isn’t as though I’ll be sitting in the dark without candles. We have electric lights. But still—we know that even on Shabbos I can light Shabbos candles and say a blessing, even though I have electric light, because additional light brings additional joy and enjoyment. So the candles do contribute to the meal. I may therefore move the residue. Nevertheless, since it is muktzeh, I may move it for the sake of the meal, but, as we said, I may not move it for no reason. So the best approach is to take a knife or something similar, bring the candles—the candle cups—close to the trash can, and remove the wax and tallow so that they fall straight into the trash and don’t need to be moved again. All this can be done, but not with hot water. You cannot pour hot water over the tallow and wax to get them out. That raises the problem of creating a new substance, which is prohibited on Yom Tov. So it must be done in the way we described.