Metzoraim are from Saturn

Throughout the discussion of the Metzorah, the Rishonim make note of the similarity between it and the Parah Adumah and it and the goat sent to Azazel on Yom Kippur. Like the Parah Adumah, cedar wood, crimson wool and hyssop is used in the service. Additionally, the impurity periods last for seven day increments with regard to both the Metzorah and the one who is purifying via the Parah Adumah. Rabbeinu Bachye also compares the following aspect: the Parah Adumah makes the impure pure and the pure impure, tzaraas has the same effect. If one were impure due to tzaraas and then it spread to his entire body he becomes pure due to the tzaraas. The Metzorah's sacrifices are like those of the goat sent on Yom Kippur as both this goat and the bird that is sent away are not offered in the Temple rather they are sent to a distance. They both also have a companion that is offered in the Temple.

The Parah Adumah and the goat sent to Azazel are considered to have similar meaning the Ramban mentions that both symbolize our purification from the evil forces associated with Eisav and Mars. The goat is sent to the vast wilderness and appears as if it is coming to appease the evil force of Mars which is considered to have affect over this region. The Parah Adumah is red and this color is symbolic of the red planet and the goat is symbolic of the se'irim (demons) that are considered to be controlled by the planet Mars. All these ideas of the underworld and death (for which the Parah purifies) are considered to be the domain of Eisav.

Rabbeinu Bachye points out that the Metzorah's sacrifices are coming for this same idea but not as extreme. The bird is sent away, but not all the way to the wilderness. Perhaps, this concept is expressed by the fact that the impurity for which the Metzorah is receiving forgiveness is not as extreme as death itself. It is for tzaraas which makes the individual separate from humanity and renders him like he is dead, but he is not physically dead.

Interestingly, there are two planets that are considered to have evil influence. The first is Mars and that is the one mentioned with Parah Adumah and the goat of Yom Kippur. The other is Saturn. Saturn is associated with all sorts of physical ailments and the Ibn Ezra specifies tzaraas specifically with regard to this planet. (See Reishis Chachma) Perhaps, these purification processes display the prescribed service to free oneself of the influences of these malevolent planets.

BlackBerry® App

I am happy to announce that the AstroTorah BlackBerry® App is now available, compatible with all devices, including the new BB10 devices.

Apps for other WeeklyShtikle blogs are available as well.

Pesach is in the Winter This Year (Rambam)

Many are familiar that Pesach is supposed to begin the spring. The way the Rambam clearly defines spring has this year's Pesach occurring one day too early and in direct conflict with the biblical directive. In earlier times Pesach has even occurred prior to the scientific definition of spring. I recently wrote a paper that discusses this topic. It is a very non-technical (in terms of scientifc definitions and mathematical equations) paper, it mainly focuses on the talmudic and rishonic discussions and also the historical development of the standardized calendar. It is available for free download here.

Adar, Moshe Rabbeinu and Purim

Although the names of the months are Babylonian in nature, Chazal still analyze them and display hidden meanings that are encoded into these names. Adar is from the word Adir which means mighty and this month's name displays this quality since it was in this month that Moshe Rabbeinu was born.(See Torah Sheleimah Miluim Parshas Bo P.177)

I find it interesting that the meaning that the Midrash gives is based on what many would consider a secondary aspect of this month. When asked, most people respond that the defining feature of this month is Purim (obviously this year there are two Adars, see previous post regarding which one is the true Adar)! Although at first glance the choice of the Midrash seems confusing, perhaps, it really is nothing of the sort. We know that the reason Haman was happy when his lottery fell on Adar was because he thought that the month brought with it bad luck to Bnai Yisrael. Moshe Rabbeinu died on 7 Adar and this, thought Haman, showed that Bnai Yisrael have misfortune in this time. Of course, Haman's mistake was that he did not focus on the fact that Moshe was born in this month (7 Adar), as well.

Although this month did bring with it the sadness of the passing of Moshe, because he lived we received the Torah and are able to keep Hashem's mitzvos. The goodness that was bestowed upon us due to this month is more of the focus than the tragedy that later befell. As we are taught, it was the lack of adherence to specific mitzvos in the Torah that caused the initial decree of destruction of the Jews by Achashveirosh. Later, it was their repentance and determination to come back to the Torah that brought about salvation.

When one looks at Adar he can either see tragedy or reason for celebration. The difference in perspective is dependent on whether one views the Torah and its mitzvos as something important. To Haman who did not, he only saw the tragedy that came to Klal Yisrael because Moshe died in this month. In Haman's mind, had Moshe not died he would still be ruling the Jews and no other nation would be able to conquer them. It was only because Moshe died that Bnai Yisrael found themselves under Achashveirosh's rule and now susceptible to annihilation. Moshe's birth had become insignificant in his eyes because his impact, thought Haman, was no longer felt.

Of course to those with proper perspective they realize that Moshe's impact was not lost because it was not just his leadership that was important. The Torah and mitzvos are eternal and therefore the focus of Adar is really Moshe's birth and reflecting on the Torah that was given through him and that impact still exists. Thus, so long as the Jews were seeing things in Haman's way they were subjected to the evils of Adar and the month displayed the death of Moshe. Once they came around to see things properly the month's nature itself changed. The focus was now on the birth and the month displayed good tidings.

Therefore, the Midrash's choice of Moshe's birth over Purim seems very logical. It was because of this birth that Purim was able to happen.

Yaakov's Lesson on Zemanei HaYom

Chazal teach that Yaakov actually traveled all the way to Haran and then decided to turn around. Upon reaching Haran he was remorseful that he had passed through Yerushalayim, the place where his forefathers had prayed, and that he had neglected to pray there. Therefore, he decided to turn around and head back. Hashem provided a miracle and Yaakov instantaneously arrived in Yerushalayim. After praying Yaakov was ready to begin traveling back to Haran, but Hashem wanted him to spend the night, so sunset occurred prior to its natural time and Yaakov had to stay the night. (Chullin 91b)

Elsewhere, the Gemara derives from this incident that Yaakov instituted Maariv. (Berachos 26b) Tosefos mention that it is clear from the storyline presented in Chullin that Yaakov davened Maariv prior to sunset. This, say Tosefos, supports the custom to daven prior to sunset and assume the halacha is like Rebbi Yehuda who maintains that one may daven Mincha until Plag HaMincha and Maariv from that point on; and not like the Rabbanan who maintain that one may daven Mincha until nightfall and Maariv from that point on. (Tosefos Berachos 26b) Tosefos do not show how the Rabbanan resolve this issue and that is something of note since in contemporary times we do not paskin with certainty like Rebbi Yehuda. (See Shulchan Aruch O.C. 233 and 235)

I would like to present the following theory to answer how the Rabbanan may read this passage, although I certainly would love to hear if anyone has a better answer. It is fairly clear from the Gemara that if one is traveling from point A to point B, but that he intends to return to point A on the same day, that he follows the Zemanim of point A. The case the Gemara discusses is if a tamei Kohen is on the top of Mt. Carmel and the sun is at eye level, he may descend the mountain to the sea, go to the mikvah and ascend the mountain. He will have been able to have gone to the mikveh prior to sunset and when he reaches the top it will be after twilight. Thus, this Kohain will now be pure and can eat Terumah. (Shabbos 35a; also see Rashba Shabbos 35a) Since the sun was at eye level when he began his descent, that means for people at the base of the mountain it was setting on the horizon. His immersion will be after sunset for those at the base, but prior to sunset for those above the mountain. The only way that this man can be considered to have immersed prior to sunset is if we give him the status of those on the top of the mountain even though he is currently at the base. It seems that this is due to the fact that he is on a quick round trip.

Similarly, Yaakov had reached his destination of Haran. However, he now wanted to make a round trip to Yerushalayim and back. Thus, he would have the status of one from Haran. Haran is assumed to be fairly close to the modern town of Harran and is almost exactly 4 degrees east of Yerushalayim. Although it is also approximately 5 degrees north, since Yaakov's event happened around the vernal equinox, this will not play much of a role in the following calculations. (See Rashi Bereishis 27:9)

The sun travels every degree of our planet in 4 minutes. That means that the sun will set 16 minutes in Haran prior to its setting in Yerushalayim. So, perhaps, Yaakov arrived miraculously in Yerushalayim and decided to pray at the first moment that he could have said Maariv, but based on the Zemanim of Haran and not those of Yerushalayim. It is reasonable that Yaakov would want to daven at the first possible moment since we know the Avos possessed this characteristic of Zerizus, and because it is appropriate to do so. (See Shulchan Aruch O.C. 235) After davening, Yaakov turned to go back to Haran, but Hashem made the sun finish its descent quickly. It was 16 minutes prior to sunset when Yaakov started davening, so there were only a few minutes that it need to shave off the day anyway.

A Scratch on the Wall

According to the Midrashim quoted by Rashi, Yitzchak was born precisely a year after the angels visited Avraham and Sarah, on the first day of Pesach. (According to the gemara Rosh HaShanah 11a the angels visited on Sukkos.) Rashi (21:2) writes that HaShem gave Avraham a sign. On the day the angels visited, HaShem made an etching in a wall and told Avraham, "When the sun reaches this point again next year, you will have a son." This sign requires some clarification. How exactly did this work?

An object that is standing upright in the path of the sun will form a shadow on the ground. The exact direction of the shadow depends on the position of the sun in the sky. As the sun moves through the eastern sky in the first half of the day, the shadow will be pointing westward and vice versa for the second half of the day. However, the exact direction of the shadow, i.e., its northerly or southerly bearing, will constantly change. As well, the size of the shadow is dependent on the north/south position of the sun as well. These are the principals behind the sundial. All of the factors change throughout the day and the daily patterns change throughout the year as a result of the change in direction of the earth's tilt. However, one thing is certain. At midday, the sun is not in the eastern sky or the western sky. Rather, it is either due north or due south, depending on where you are in the world. What is relevant to us is that since Eretz Yisroel, at approximately 31^o North, is above the Tropic of Cancer (23.5^o North), the sun will always be in the southern sky at midday. The size of the shadow depends on the angle of the sun in the sky which depends directly on the time of year.

Any sign involving a shadow would surely have been simplest to arrange at midday. It is therefore most noteworthy that the gemara (.ברכות כ"ז) infers from the words (18:2) "kechom hayom," in the heat of the day, that the angels visited in the sixth hour. After the food was prepared and served and the angels conversed with Avraham, it seems altogether plausible that it was exactly midday. It seems that the sign that was given was that at that moment, the southern wall (or other standing object) was casting a shadow on the northern wall. The scratch that was made on the wall indicated the end of the shadow. When the shadow reached the exact same point at midday sometime in the next year, it would indicate that a complete year had passed.

With all this considered the Midrash is quite troubling. All these details are specific to the solar year. However, Yitzchak was born precisely one year later by the lunar calendar, not the solar calendar. What significance could any sun-related sign have to the passing of a lunar year?

Witnesses to Sedom's Destruction

Rashi on 19:24 notes that the destruction of Sedom happened at day break, when the sun and moon were in the sky at the same time. This was because they used to worship the sun and moon. HaShem therefore brought the destruction when both were out as a proof to all the sun and moon worshipers that the sun and moon are powerless. Had the destruction taken place when they were not in the sky, one could have argued that they were not "there" to save them. This is a rather simple statement by Rashi but the astronomical basis for it is quite interesting.

It is not always that the sun and moon are out together at day break. It is also not always that it is the only time that they are out together. The moon rises and sets approximately 49 minutes later each day. This is a result of the moon orbiting the earth. Just as the moon's position is reset at the end of every month, so are its rising and setting times. (The math is as follows: Every full moon cycle (month), moonrise and moonset make a full circle of 24 hours such that the times are as they were precisely one month previous. The figure of 49 minutes is achieved by dividing 24 hours by the duration of the lunar cycle, 29.5 days, 44 minutes, 3 and a third seconds. More precisely, the figure is 48 minutes, 45.5 seconds.)

At the beginning of the month, the moon follows a very similar schedule to the sun. The moon rises at the beginning of the day and sets at sundown. As the month progresses, the moon rises and sets later and later. At the middle of the month, the moon has virtually the opposite schedule to the sun. It rises when the sun sets and sets when the sun rises. As we enter the second half of the month, the moon begins to rise later in the night and thus, becomes visible at the beginning of the day.

The Midrash (Bereishis Rabba 50) teaches that Sedom was destroyed on the 16th of Nissan. As explained above, at that time of the month, the moon would have risen shortly after sunset and set very shortly after sunrise. Therefore, the only time in the entire day that both the sun and moon were out at the same time was very early in the morning and that is why the destruction took place specifically at the very beginning of the day. [Nevertheless, it is puzzling that Rashi uses the term "Alos HaShachar" which refers to a time before sunrise.]