Ask The Rabbi   
12 October 1996  
Issue #121 (Parshas Bereishis) 
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This Issue Contains:   
1.  Varying Vowels
2.  Lacto-Carno Pisces
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Case E. Krell <102147.2634@CompuServe.COM> wrote:

>Dear Rabbi,
>
>Can you answer a question for me?  Some friends and I were sitting around 
>yesterday discussing...well, something, and I mentioned -- I don't 
>remember why -- there were no vowels written down in the Torah.  Yet, I 
>was at a loss to explain why.  This is something I probably knew at one 
>time, but have forgotten.
>
>So, how come there's no vowels written down in Torah?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Dear Case. E. Krell,

Your question has two answers:  A simple one and a Kabbalistic one.

The simple reason the Torah has no vowels is that the Hebrew alphabet 
doesn't have any.  The vowel sounds are sometimes written as dots under the 
letters.  But they aren't necessary.  Just as you can read tricky English 
words like `psychic' and `queue' without looking in a dictionary, Hebrew 
speakers can read Hebrew without the dots.

Hence, the entire Torah, Prophets, and Writings, the Mishna and Talmud, and 
all the classic commentaries were written without any vowels.  Even today, 
Israelis read menus, soup cans, and street signs with no vowels.  That's 
just how Hebrew is.

But there is another answer to your question:

The Hebrew language is Holy, and the Hebrew alphabet is Holy.  Even the 
shapes of the letters contain many lessons and mysteries.  So too, the 
absence of the vowels has much to teach us.  For example:

The letters of a word are like its `body.'  The vowels are like its `soul.'  
Just as the soul is the life of the body, yet it is invisible, so the 
vowels remain unwritten and invisible, yet they breathe `life' and meaning 
into every word.

The Torah is not just a book, but an interactive medium.  The absence of 
vowels beckons us to become partners with the Torah, to breathe life into 
its letters.  In return, the Torah breathes life into us, as it says, "It 
is a Tree of Life to those who uphold it."

Just as one hammer blow shatters a rock into many fragments, so every word 
in the Torah has many meanings and secrets.  Some of the hidden meanings of 
the Torah are derived by reading the words using various vowel 
combinations.  For example, the words `In the beginning' can be read to 
mean that G-d created a single `stone' -- the focal point from which the 
universe expanded.

According to Kabbalah, the primeval Torah which preceded the creation of 
the world was written `black fire upon white fire.'  It had no spaces 
between the words.  Rather, it was a long string of letters.  This Torah 
was composed entirely of various `names' of Hashem.  (One of these names 
has 72 letters.)  This was the Torah given to Moses on Mount Sinai, along 
with the explanation of how to break the letters into the words we have 
today.

Sources:
o  Tractate Succah 49a, see Jerusalem, Eye of the Universe, 
   Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, chapter 8
o  Ramban's Introduction to Chumash

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<Noodnick9@aol.com> wrote:

>I've had gefilte fish at orthodox homes, where the fish plate and 
>silverware was removed before the meat was served.  Why must the meat and 
>fish be separated?

Joseph Matetiayu Karp wrote:

>Could you please explain the prohibition of eating fish and cheese 
>together.  I would like to know where this law/custom is derived from as I 
>have been told that it is a Chassidic custom.  Also, if it is a Chassidic 
>custom and, seeing as though I'm not Chassidic, even if I have been 
>observing this custom for many years under the impression that it was 
>mandatory, do I still have to continue with it?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Dear <Noodnick9@aol.com> and Joseph Matetiayu Karp,

The Talmud prohibits eating fish and meat together, as it can be unhealthy.

As far as eating fish and cheese, the majority of halachic authorities rule 
that it's permitted.  Therefore, you needn't continue observing this 
custom.

However, it's preferable that you `annul' your acceptance of this custom.  
This is done by appearing before a `beit din' of three observant Jews and 
saying, "I practiced this custom because I mistakenly thought it was the 
halacha.  I wish to be exempt from this practice."  They respond, three 
times."mutar lecha..." -- "It is permitted for you..."

Teacher:  Bobby, use the word `officiate' in a sentence.

Bobby:  A man got sick from officiate.

Sources:
o  Tractate Pesachim 76b
o  Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah chapter 116
o  Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 214:1
o  Shemirat Haguf v'hanefesh I:1,2
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