We shall learn when we study massekhet Moed Katan that there are two value concepts determining Jewish practice when comes to burying the dead and mourning. The first is kevod hamet (כבוד המת). There are some things we do to bring honor or give respect to the deceased. The second is kevod hahayyim (כבוד החיים). There are some things we do out of respect for the survivors. Burying the deceased as soon as possible is an example of kevod hamet. Paying a shiva visit is an example of kevod hahayyim. If
Today’s daf TB Rosh Hashana 20 explains the reason why some sages would
manipulate the calendar so that the month of Elul would be 30 days long instead
of its normal 29 days.
“It is related that when Ulla
came from Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia, he said: This year they
added an extra day to the month of Elul. Ulla continued and said:
Do our Babylonian colleagues understand what benefit we did for them? We
pushed off Rosh HaShana for a day, so that the Festival would not occur
adjacent to Shabbat.
“Gemara asks: What is the benefit
in having a weekday between Shabbat and a Festival? Ulla said: Due to the
vegetables that would not be picked for two days and those picked
beforehand that would no longer be fresh. Rabbi Aḥa bar Ḥanina said: Due to
the dead who would not be buried for two days and consequently would begin
to decompose.
“The Gemara asks: What is the
practical difference between these two concerns? The Gemara answers: The
practical difference between them is in the case where Yom Kippur
occurs directly after Shabbat. According to the one who said
that the reason is due to the dead that would go unburied for two days,
the court adds an extra day to Elul so that Yom Kippur will not occur on
Sunday. But according to the one who said that the reason is due
to the vegetables that would not be fresh, there is no need to add an extra
day to Elul. When would he require the vegetables? Only in the
evening following Yom Kippur; and if Yom Kippur falls on Sunday, he can go
out in the evening after the fast and bring fresh vegetables.” (Sefaria.org
translation)
If a body stayed unburied for too
long of a period it would begin to decompose and stink because of the hot
climate in Israel and Babylonia. Consequently to preserve the dignity of the
deceased, Jewish law demands that we bury the dead as soon as possible. Even
though we’ve learned before that Gentiles may bury the Jewish dead on the first
day of Yom Tov[1],
neither Jews nor Gentiles may bury the deceased on Shabbat and on Yom Kippur.
Burying the dead on Shabbat and Yom Kippur when the penalty is karet is considered disgraceful for the
deceased. Since burying the dead as quickly as possible is considered kevod hamet, we do not bury the deceased on a day that people would think
it is a disgrace. To afford the opportunity to bury the dead as soon as
possible is the reason why the court manipulated the calendar so that Yom
Kippur would never fall on a Sunday.
[1] Rava said: If one died on the first day of a
Festival, gentiles should attend to his burial. If he died on the second
day of a Festival, Jews should attend to his burial. And even with
regard to the two Festival days of Rosh HaShana, the halakha is that
the legal status of the two days is like that of the two days of the Festivals;
(beitza 6a, Sefaria.org translation)
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