[Avodah] Contents of Avodah on Atifas Talis (Yishmealim) and the Gra

[Arie Folger]

RJSchnur wrote:
> Hence [according to the Gra -- arie] one doesn't even have to
> cover his face down to his mouth or hold it there for the time
> length of daled amos.

Among the Rishonim, just about nobody holds that. The current
prevalent practice of covering one's face for "'atifah" is based on a
sole source, the Derishah/Perishah, and is arguably a misreading. As
some raised the question: Does anyone think Arabs or Berbers walk
around with their eyes covered? How do they know where to walk?

The idea is, instead, more convincingly about covering the chin and lips.

A while back a comprehensive paper on this topic was published in
Hakirah, and was publicly accessible. Unfortunately, their site is
right now malfunctioning, so I can't post any links.

> And since the requirement is front and back he also holds that
> one only grasps the front 2 tsitis for krias shema, leaving the back
> two where they are. As long as I am bringing that up, there is also
> no kissing or rubbing the yes with the tzitis, only looking at them.
> He considers any of those activities as a hefsik both during krias
> shema and after baruch sheamar where he doesn't even require
> holding of any tzitis.

The two moments of holding the tzitzit are very different, and reflect
differently on the Gra's underlying motivations. Holding the tzitzit
during Shma' is for 'hibat mitsvah. Considering the reason for holding
them, two front tzitzit could do just as well, while teh Gra is
against putting all tzitziyot in front, which for him is an overriding
concern. The kissing is also related to that 'hibat mitsvah, however,
the Gra considers those actions a hefseq. The rubbing, OTOH, is a
segulah issue, which I have not ever explored in depth.

Finally, holding the tzitzit during Barukh SheAmar is connected to the
confluence of two Lurianic teachings:

* Prayer, as explained in Zohar Vayetse, is compared to the ladder of
Ya'aqov, which had four rungs (actually, the Ari teaches it had five
rungs, but the fifth is almost always totally hidden from absolutely
everyone, very seldom being perceivable on any level - and I am
simplifying here). These rungs are connected with the four world of
ABIA, Atsilut, Beriah, Yetsirah, 'Assiyah. When we pray, we traverse
the worlds back and forth, with different parts of prayer being
connected with the respective worlds. 'Assiyah is traversed through
Qorbanot, 'atsilut through 'amidah. Pessuqei dezimra, which BEGINS IN
ALL, ABSOLUTELY ALL communities with Barukh SheAmar (Hodu is,
according to Sefarad, part of Qorbanot), is for the world of Yetsirah.

* In parallel, there are four acts that also symbolize traversing
these four worlds. Tzitzit symbolize Yetsirah, hence we hold them when
entering Yetsirah.

Hence, the Gra's motivation for not holding the tzitziyot during
Barukh sheAmar requires analysis of his own - sometime idiosyncratoc -
way he understood the Lurianic teachings.

For more on the above, watch out for the forthcoming Revised RCA
Siddur, which includes an essay in the back on these issues. We are
now moving to the last phases of readying it for publication.

-- 
Arie Folger,
Recent blog posts on http://ariefolger.wordpress.com/
* Basler Gymnasium experimentiert mit Chawrutá-Lernen
* Where Will We Find Refuge ... from technology overload
* Video-Vortrag: Psalm 34
* We May Have Free Will, After All
* Equal Justice for All
* Brutal Women of Nazi Germany
* Gibt es in der Unterhaltungsliteratur eine Rolle für G"tt?