Page 276 - Tzurba M'Rabanan Volume1

274 · Hilchot Purim Tzurba M’Rabanan

down a story that Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi sent does not fulfill his obligation in such a case and
Rabbi Oshaya a thigh of veal and a bottle of wine he derives his conclusion from Megillat Esther.
on Purim, and Rabbi Oshaya told Rabbi Yehuda The pasuk in the Megilla that refers to mishloach
HaNasi that he fulfilled the mitzva of mishloach manot says “and of sending portions one to an-
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manot. However, Rabbeinu Chananel has a dif- other [umishloach manot ish lere’eihu].” The
ferent version of the text of the Gemara. In his pasuk already mentioned the sender at the begin-
version it says that the mitzva that Rabbi Yehu- ning of the Pasuk in reference to the other mitz-
da fulfilled was matanot la’evyonim, and only after vot of the day and should have ended by saying
later sending three bottles of wine did he also ful- “sending portions to another.” Why did it repeat
fill mishloach manot. We see that we measure the “one to another”? The Chochmat Shlomo claims
importance of the value according to the send- that the addition is to teach us that the “portions”
er because Rabbi Oshaya had to be poor since have to have value for the sender and that’s why
he received matanot la’evyonim. If we’d measure he is mentioned again alongside the mentioning
by the receiver, one bottle of wine should have of the “portions.” It seems that the value is meas-
been enough in order to be considered impor- ured according to the sender, and if so in our sce-
tant; hence this proves that we measure accord- nario even though the sweets have no value to the
ing to the sender. For this reason, Rabbi Yehuda, recipient the sender would fulfill his obligation.
who was very wealthy, had to send three bottles However, in truth nothing can be proven conclu-
of wine. Based on Rabbeinu Chananel, one who sively from the Chochmat Shlomo, as he only re-
sends sweets to another who has diabetes can ferred to a case where the food is valuable to the
still fulfill his obligation since the sender views recipient but not the sender, but it could be that
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this food as valuable. However, the Ritva had according to the Chochmat Shlomo its needs to be
the same version of the Gemara text as Rabbeinu of value both to the sender and the recipient.
Chananel and it is unclear from his commentary Consequently, the question of according to
whether the importance should be measured by who we measure the value and importance re-
the sender or by the recipient. So we cannot prove mains unresolved, and Rabbi Moshe Shtern-
unequivocally from the Rabbeinu Chananel that buch writes that because of the doubt, each
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we measure according to the sender. mishloach manot has to contain food of impor-
Another source that seems to measure accord- tant value for both the sender and the receiver. In
ing to the sender is the Chochmat Shlomo. The our case, then, the sender would not fulfill his ob-
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Chochmat Shlomo debates what happens if some- ligation by sending sweets to someone who has
one sends his friend mishloach manot that con- diabetes.
tains food that is forbidden to the sender and per-
mitted to the receiver, such as food that is assur Happiness – החמש
de’Rabanan to someone who is slightly sick or However there is one more aspect that must be
assur de’oraita to someone who is in lethal dan- taken into account: Simcha – happiness. Rabbi
ger. The Chochmat Shlomo rules that the sender Avraham Sofer and Rabbi Yehoshua Neuwirth

19. Ibid.
20. Shulchan Aruch 695:4
21. Megillat Esther 9:19
22. Teshuvot Vehanhagot 2:354

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