Page 72 - Chayei Adam LAYOUT sivan 5782

Chayei Adam - K’lal 140 - The Laws of the Shofar

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take for you” and we hold that one cannot fulfill his obligation with a borrowed
[lulav,] that’s because the implication is that you should take from your own, as is
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the case with tzitzis [where it says] “make for you”. Here, however “for you”
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refers to the terua’h and it isn’t possible to say that they must be yours, for if
that were the case it should have said “and you shall take a shofar for yourselves”.
Therefore a borrowed shofar is valid, and therefore one may blow his friend’s
shofar without his knowledge, because we assume that a person is happy for
others to fulfill mitzvos with his property. [This is true] even though blowing it a
lot will damage it slightly, we are not concerned that he will blow it too much, for
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why should he blow it more than necessary? This implies however that one may
not borrow his friend’s shofar without consent in order to learn how to blow,
unless he is sure that his friend doesn’t mind.

]19[ Even though blowing shofar is a Torah obligation, nevertheless, if it is
impossible to fulfill it without violating a prohibition, even something which is
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only forbidden by rabbinic decree, Chazal upheld their decrees and [said that] it
is better to not fulfill a Torah mitzva passively than to proactively violate a
rabbinic prohibition. Therefore, if the shofar was buried under a pile of rocks or
anything else which may not be moved, or if the shofar was on top of a tree or
outside the Shabbos boundary, or across a river, it is forbidden to climb the tree
or swim across the river in order to go get it. Regarding crossing [the river] on a
raft or small boat, if it is not possible [to get the shofar] otherwise, one may rely
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on those who are lenient. However, instructing a non-Jew such as sending him

םדו רשב
60. Vayikra 23:40. There the posuk 62. See however Levush and Aruch
instructs one that he must own his lulav, the Hashulchan who understand that it refers to
Talmud Yerushalmi explains that the mitzva of the day, that it shall be a day of teruah.
shofar is fulfilled by hearing it, and has 63. Magen Avraham. Although one may
nothing to do with ownership. With the not use another person’s sefer without
exception of the Ohr Zarua, all other permission lest he use it excessively, since
חמ
rishonim rule in accordance with the blowing shofar unnecessarily on yom tov is
Yerushalmi. forbidden. (R’ Akiva Eiger)

61. Devarim 22:12 64. The mishna (Rosh Hashana 32b)

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