Page 32 - HaMizrachi Purim Australia 5781

THE PEOPLE AND THE LAND WHAT’S IN A WORD
the lax family edition

TZURBA M’RABANAN
David Curwin

Clothed in Meaning

THE FIRST SEVEN VOLUMES
COMPRISING ALL OF YOREH DE’AH

ARE NOW COMPLETE!
s part of the festivities on Purim, that the root is from ׂש ֵּ פ ַ ח – search: All of these words show the connec-
we wear masks and costumes. he made others search for him (the tion between clothing and deception,
ALet’s look at some of the words reflexive.) because at their core, clothing covers
associated with those disguises. up who we really are. Not surprisingly,
Beyond the words for mask and cos-
One word we’ve all become very famil- tume, quite a few words for clothing in clothing plays a major role in decep- Clear and concise
iar with this year is ה ָ כ ֵּ ס ַ מ – “mask.” Orig- Hebrew are related to deception and tion stories throughout the Bible. For introductions
inally it meant “covering” and took on falsehood. example, Adam and Chava covered up A systematic and and a modern
the meaning “mask” in Modern Hebrew, their sin with fig leaves, Ya’akov tricked English translation
influenced by the English word “mask” For example, ד ֶ ג ֶּ ב – “garment” shares the Yitzchak by dressing up as Esav, Tamar concise learning alongside the original
and the French word masque. Those same root as ה ָ די ִ ג ְּ ב – “betrayal.” In the deceived Yehuda with her clothing, and method, from the Hebrew text
words, while not deriving from the same way a garment is used to cover Yosef hid his identity from his brothers Talmudic source
the body, a traitor will cover up their
same root as ה ָ כ ֵּ ס ַ מ, actually do have a disloyal behavior. by dressing as an Egyptian. through modern-day r Because it causes the hair to harden – :וס הדנ | י״שר .
Rashi, Nidda 66b
– אייזמ ורשמד
Semitic origin, coming from the Arabic And while the custom of wearing masks halachic application r Rambam, Hilchot Mikva’ot 2:18 .
maskhara, meaning “clown” or “buf- Similarly, we have the pairs לי ִ ע ְ מ – “coat” and costumes on Purim first appears Color-coded
foon.” That word comes from the verb and ה ָ לי ִ ע ְ מ – “treachery, embezzlement” only in the Middle Ages, clothing plays sections,
sahkira meaning “to ridicule,” and may and ד ַּ ב – “linen” and ה ָ ד ָּ ב – “to lie, a major role in Megillat Esther as well. Cover 300 major a Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De’ah 199:2 . icons and
be related to the Hebrew ר ֶ ק ֶ ׁש – “a lie.” concoct.” Mordechai dresses in sackcloth after elucidation
hearing of Haman’s decree, and as topics in Shulchan h Masechet Nidda 66a–66b :וס–.וס הדנ תכסמ . to guide
ְ
ה ָ כ ֵּ ס ַ מ comes from the root ך ֶ סֶנ – “to One other root with both meanings is a response Esther tries sending him Aruch, learning
weave.” As such, it is cognate with the ף ַ ל ָ ח – “to change.” From that root, ה ָ פי ִ ל ֲ ח clothing to wear. Later, Haman asks to once a week during the learner, in
word ת ֶ כ ֶּ ס ַ מ – “tractate (of the Talmud).” means a “change of clothes.” This is how wear the king’s clothing but in the end it a four-year cycle addition to in-depth
In the Bible, ת ֶ כ ֶּ ס ַ מ meant “web of the it is used when Yosef gives clothing to is Mordechai who dons the royal robes. essays and responsa
loom” (Shoftim 16:14), and just as the his brothers – תלֹ ָ מׂ ְ ש ת ֹופ ִ ל ֲ ח (Bereishit to complement
loom collects the strings, a collection 45:22). Today, based on that meaning, In a story where everyone’s true inten- the learning
of teachings was called a ת ֶ כ ֶּ ס ַ מ. English a ה ָ פי ִ ל ֲ ח is a suit. tions are masked, and even G-d’s
has a pair of related words with a similar Another meaning of ה ָ פי ִ ל ֲ ח is “replace- involvement is concealed, costumes are
connection – textile and text. ment, successor” as found in Iyov 14:14 a perfectly natural celebration!
There is actually another ה ָ כ ֵּ ס ַ מ in the – “All the time of my military service I
Bible, but with a different meaning and wait / Until my replacement [י ִ ת ָ פי ִ ל ֲ ח]
origin. It means “molten image,” (as in comes”. That is the meaning in the
the ה ָ כ ֵּ ס ַ מ ל ֶ ג ֵ ע –“molten calf” in Shemot Arabic cognate caliph, the one who
ְ
32:4). Its root is also ך ֶ סֶנ, but meaning succeeded the leader.
“to pour out” – not “to weave.” In addition to a change of clothes (and

The Hebrew word for costume is people), it is also associated with decep-
ת ֶ ׂשֹו ּ פ ְ ח ַּ ת. It is actually related to the root tion. This is how Ya’akov uses it when
ׂש ֵּ פ ַ ח – “to search.” How so? While in the he tells his wives that Lavan mistreated
piel form the verb means “to search,” him:
in the reflexive hitpael form, ׂש ֵּ פ ַ ח ְ ת ִ ה, it “As you know, I have served your father
means “to disguise oneself.” For exam- with all my might; but your father has
ple, in Shmuel I 28:8, we read that King cheated me, changing [ף ִ ל ֱ ח ֶ ה] my wages
Shaul “disguised himself (ׂש ֵּ פ ַ ח ְ ת ִ ה) and time and again. G-d, however, would David Curwin is a writer living in Efrat,
wore different clothes.” Yehuda Kiel, in not let him do me harm” (Bereishit and the author of the Balashon blog.
his commentary Da’at Mikra, explains 31:6–7). balashon.com • balashon1@gmail.com.

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