[Avodah] Pesach minhag

[Zev Sero via Avodah]

On 04/11/2016 09:59 PM, Zev Sero wrote:
> On 04/11/2016 07:21 PM, saul newman via Avodah wrote:
>> I learned recently that some in chabad have a minhag not to eat
>> ka'arah foods at the seder after ritual use.  Eg.  No romaine salad,
>> no chrain on fish

http://chabadlibrary.org/books/chasidim/otzar/4/14/39.htm
Note that although this does include all the ingredients of charoses,
it does not include eggs, or the greens that might be used for karpas,
contrary to the sources I will cite later.


> Not *after* the seder, but *before*, i.e. on Erev Pesach and the first
> day.  Of course it's impossible to avoid matzah and wine on the first
> day, but there is at least some idea of minimising their consumption,
> so they can be "lete'avon" at the second seder.
>
> Of course one may ask why maror should be "lete'avon", since that seems
> to contradict its purpose, and why charoses or its ingredients should be
> "lete'avon", since one is davka supposed *not* to taste them on the maror.

The minhag not to eat maror before the seder goes back at least to the
Rashba and Rashi.  Although the Bet Yosef dismisses it, the Rama cites
it, and it appears to be common in many communities, both Ashkenazi and
Sefardi.

The BY's question is answered by many, saying that even in the case of
matzah "teavon" in this context means novelty, and the pleasure that
comes from that, not an actual desire for the taste of the food, so it
doesn't matter whether the food tastes good or bad, or isn't even tasted
at all.

See <http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/faxes/machzorVenice1568.pdf#page=2>
under "shulchan orech", that the Ashkenazi custom is not to eat even
whole eggs at the first seder, but rather to eat only beaten eggs, which
is probably the origin of the common minhag to eat the egg mashed up in
salt-water as a "soup".

See also <http://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=1402&pgnum=37>
who says it's the common minhag of sefardim not to eat lettuce or
greens, beyond the requirements, for a day before each seder,
including at the first seder.

-- 
Zev Sero               All around myself I will wave the green willow
zev at sero.name          The myrtle and the palm and the citron for a week
                And if anyone should ask me the reason why I'm doing that
                I'll say "It's a Jewish thing; if you have a few minutes
                I'll explain it to you".