There’s no shame in not knowing TB Pesakhim 43

We know that any product containing just flour of the five kinds of grain and water that has fermented more than 18 minutes becomes hametz. The Mishnah that begins the third chapter of our massekhet on daf TB Pesakhim 42 discussing two forms of inferior hametz. The first kind of inferior hametz is a mixture (תַּעֲרוֹבוֹת) that has one of the five grains in it. One example the Mishnah gives is “Babylonian kutaḥ, a dip with a sharp flavor that contains flour;” (Sefaria.org translation) The other form of inferior hametz is inedible hametz (חָמֵץ נוּקְשֶׁה). One example of the Mishnah gives is kolan of soferim which the Gemara defines as either a shoemaker’s paste or depilatory paste used by rich women to remove hair. Either way the paste contains one of the five grains.

Beginning on yesterday’s daf and continuing on today’s daf TB Pesakhim “It is stated in the mishna: Rabbi Eliezer says that women’s adornments are also prohibited as leavened food (inedible hametz (חָמֵץ נוּקְשֶׁה). The Gemara asks: Could it enter your mind to say that adornments made from silver, gold, or woven materials contain leaven? Rather, say instead that this means: Even women’s cosmetics or other items used by women to enhance their skin[1] are prohibited if they contain leavened ingredients. As Rav Yehuda said that Rav said: With regard to the Jewish women who reached physical maturity, but had not yet reached the age of majority, and women who sought to remove hair for cosmetic purposes: They would smear daughters of the poor with lime; they would smear daughters of the wealthy with fine flour; they would smear daughters of kings with shemen hamor (oil of myrrh-gg), as it was stated: “For so were the days of their anointing filled, six months with shemen hamor” (Esther 2:12).

“The Gemara asks: What is shemen hamor? Rav Huna bar Ḥiyya said:  Setaket (סְטָכַת).” (Sefaria.org translation) 

Just like today, back in Babylonia many people did not know Hebrew. So Rav Huna bar Ḥiyya gives an Aramaic translation for shemen hamor. Unfortunatel for us who don’t speak Aramaic, his definition doesn’t help us at all. We should not feel bad because Rashi says he doesn’t know what it means either. Now if one of the greatest Biblical and Talmudic commentators willingly admits he doesn’t know something, how much more so we should not be embarrassed to admit that we don’t know the answer to something either.

Too many people bluff their way rather than admit they don’t know something. Instead we should follow Mark Twain’s example when he said, “I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said I didn’t know.”

 

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[1]  Rabbi Y.Y. Blumenkrantz and Rabbi Y.M. Blumenkrantz updates every year their father Rabbi Avrohom Blumenkrantz’s book the Laws of Passover. It contains a chapter on cosmetics listing kosher for Passover and hamatzdic cosmetics. BTW, it also has a chapter on medicine as well.