Thirty days before פסח, we are obligated to review the laws of פסח . Let us begin a discussion on the הגדה , one of my favorite books. I think that when the בעל הגדה put together the הגדה, he had two Jews in mind. The first Jew we are all know; חייב כל אדם לראות עצמו כאילו הוא יצא ממצרים. The second Jew is the Jew who lived in the year 71 CE; the Jew who lived one year after the destruction of the בית שני, the Jew, who when his son asked him: מה נשתנה הלילה הזה מכל הלילות was asking: Tati, last year we were able to bring a קרבן פסח, why can’t we bring a קרבן פסח this year. And the בעל הגדה struggles to provide this Jew with an answer. So it is not surprising that the הגדה begins with הא לחמא עניא and the father says to his son:
השתא הכא לשנה הבאה בארעא דישראל. השתא עבדי. לשנה הבאה בני חורין.
And it is not surprising that the בעל הגדה split הלל. Most commentators believe that הלל was split because the first two paragraphs of הלל deal with יציאת מצרים. I believe that the בעל הגדה split הלל in order to remind us of the fact that while the בית המקדש stood, כלל ישראל would recite whole הלל while bringing the קרבן פסח . Now that the בית המקדש has been destroyed we split הלל to remind us of the tragedy of the destruction of the בית המקדש, in the same manner that we break a glass at a חתנה or leave a small space unbuilt in a new house.

And it is not surprising that we begin the second half of the הגדה by crying out: שפך חמתך על הגוים and then the son hears the father recite: למה יאמרו הגוים איה אלוקיהם. And we should not wonder why we end the הגדה with חסל סידור פסח and recite: כשם שזיכינו לסדר אותו כן נזכה לעשותו, לשנה הבא בירושלים.

Let us hope and pray that in the זכות of the generation that witnessed the destruction of the בית המקדש but continued to sit down to the סדר and in the זכות of every generation that lived through great tragedies such as our parents who lived through the Holocaust, but continued to be שומר מצות and learned תורה as soon as they could, the רבונו של עולם should bring the גאולה שלמה במהרה בימינו.

Dear Abe,

Did I miss something here. The hallal was to be said complete. They split it up because people didn't know it so they said the first part in the synagogue. After the meal, they went over to the Chacham, and in later times the Chacham came to them and the finished the hallal. Or maybe I am thinking of something else.

Aryeh

Aryeh-You might be alluding to the following:
מסכתות קטנות מסכת סופרים פרק כ הלכה ז-וגומרין את ההלל כל שמונת ימי חנוכה. בשלשה פרקים הראשונים, אין משיבין, ואין צריך לומר לשאול, בשנים האחרונים, שואלין מפני היראה ומפני הכבוד, ואילו הן שלשה ראשונים, הללו עבדי י"י, בצאת ישראל, אהבתי, שנים האחרונים, הללו את י"י, הודו לי"י. וצריך לברך בתחילתו ולקרותו בנעימה, דתניא ר' שמעון בן יהוצדק אומר, ימים שמונה עשר ולילה אחד, יחיד גומר בהן את ההלל, ואילו הן, שמונת ימי חנוכה, ושמונת ימי החג, ויום טוב של עצרת, ויום טוב הראשון של פסח ולילו, ובגולה אחד ועשרים יום ושני לילות. ומצוה הן המובחר לקרות את ההלל בשני לילות של גליות, ולברך עליהן, ולאומרן בנעימה, לקיים מה שנאמר ונרוממה שמו יחדיו, וכשהוא קורא אותו בביתו אינו צריך לברך, שכבר בירך ברבים.
It was מנהג ארץ ישראל to recite whole הלל in shul on the סדר night.

Professors Shmuel and Zev Safrai in their book: הגדת חז"ל say that the whole הלל was recited by the לויים while the קרבנות פסח were being brought in the בית המקדש. However, they believe that when families sat down to eat the קרבן פסח, they would split the הלל. They believe that the מחלוקת of בית הלל and בית שמאי found in מסכת פסחים concerned the time when the בית המקדש stood:
משנה מסכת פסחים פרק י משנה ו-עד היכן הוא אומר בית שמאי אומרים עד אם הבנים שמחה ובית הלל אומרים עד חלמיש למעינו מים וחותם בגאולה.
My point was to highlight that we still celebrate our freedom even at a time when we are not “free”.

P.S. Professors Safrai make an interesting point: they can find no evidence that there was a practice of telling the Pesach story while eating the קרבן פסח. Could it be that the act of eating the קרבן פסח fulfilled that obligation? That is one way to explain how the מצוה of סיפור יציאת מצרים can be a דאורייתא even if noone verbalized יציאת מצרים while eating the קרבן פסח. Or maybe, they relied totally on the children asking questions and they would fulfill their obligation by answering those questions. Let us not forget that families joined together to eat the קרבן פסח so there were alot of people around who could ask questions.

quote:

Originally posted by Abe:

Professors Safrai make an interesting point: they can find no evidence that there was a practice of telling the Pesach story while eating the קרבן פסח. Could it be that the act of eating the קרבן פסח fulfilled that obligation?

Abe,

What evidence were they looking for? Is it not sufficient that it says in the Torah (Shemos 13:8) והגדת לבנך ביום ההוא לאמר בעבור זה עשה יי' לי בצאתי ממצרים

(Translation)

"And you shall tell your son on that day, 'For this [reason], etc."

Also, we find a statement in Tosefta Pesahim 10:9, viz., "Rabbi Eliezer says they snatch away the unleavened bread [from the hand] of a small child, so that he will not fall asleep, etc."

Why was it so necessary that he not fall asleep early on that night?

There, we also find a story about Rabban Gamliel and the elders who were reclining in the house of Baitus, the son of Zunin, in Lod (Lydda), and they were "busied about in the laws of Passover" all throughout that night until the cock had crowed in the early morning hours.

I don't think eating takes the place of "telling."

David

David-I do not disagree with you that the מצוה of סיפור יציאת מצרים is מדאורייתא. My question is: what was said? It cannot be ארמי אובד אבי because that paragraph was said on שבועות when the ביכורים were brought to the בית המקדש. That is why I asked: could it be that the קרבן itself served as the means by which סיפור יציאת מצרים was fulfilled.

B"H

Abe,

When we studied Meseches Pesahim at the Kollel (Yeshiva) in Jerusalem, our mentors told us that initially there was no written "Haggadah," but every man in Israel told the story of the departure from Egypt to his household as best he could. But at some latter time, they wrote down the "Haggadah" in story-book form as we have it today, more or less.
So what was said exactly differed with each individual, as there was no set standard, or text, to go by.

David

The hallel, specifically בצאת ישראל was considered telling of the story of going out of Egypt.
Going back to that point, they could split the hallel because the hallel was two mitzvot, one to accompany the Korban Pesach. There was no need to finish the Hallel since even in the Bet Hamikdash for the third session they did not finish the hallel. The second function was to say hallel for the Chag at night. For this they went out to rooftops. Since they could not leave the room until the Korban Pesach was finished, they saved the latter part of the hallel for after the meal.

Aryeh Shore

It is funny that you mention that they did not get to finish the Hallel the third time. Professors Safrai in their book: Haggadat Chazal use that statement to support their argument that in the Second Temple, a small percentage of the Jewish people actually came to Yerushalayim each year to bring a Korban Pesach. They believe that the fact that so many people did not go to Yerushalayim may have been the impetus for starting the Haggadah.

It is important to keep in mind that a small percentage of Jews left Babylonia to come to Israel when the Second Temple was built. It also must have been a treacherous trip to go from Bavel to Eretz Yisroel at that time (especially considering that El-Al had no direct flights from Sura or Pambedisa.)

The reason they did not get a chance to finish the haggadah the third time was because they accomodated so many people with the first two shifts.

Let us continue our discussion about the Haggadah. I want to share with you an important lesson I have learned about learning Torah. Never rely on secondary sources. Always check the primary sources. Invariably when you check the original sources, you learn something interesting. That includes the study of the הגדה. The הגדה is a secondary source. Much of what is found in the הגדה can be traced to other sources.

Here are a few examples of what you can find when you check the original sources.

Concerning the Four Questions: Here is how the questions are presented in the Gemara:

תלמוד בבלי מסכת פסחים דף קטז' עמוד א'-משנה. מזגו לו כוס שני, וכאן הבן שואל אביו. ואם אין דעת בבן אביו מלמדו: מה נשתנה הלילה הזה מכל הלילות, שבכל הלילות אנו אוכלין חמץ ומצה הלילה הזה כולו מצה? שבכל הלילות אנו אוכלין שאר ירקות, הלילה הזה מרור? שבכל הלילות אנו אוכלין בשר צלי שלוק ומבושל, הלילה הזה כולו צלי? שבכל הלילות אנו מטבילין פעם אחת, הלילה הזה שתי פעמים? ולפי דעתו של בן, אביו מלמדו. מתחיל בגנות ומסיים בשבח, ודורש (דברים כו) מארמי אובד אבי עד שיגמור כל הפרשה כולה.
TRANSLATION: MISHNAH. THEY FILLED A SECOND CUP FOR HIM. AT THIS STAGE THE SON QUESTIONS HIS FATHER; IF THE SON IS UNINTELLIGENT, HIS FATHER INSTRUCTS HIM TO ASK: ‘WHY IS THIS NIGHT DIFFERENT FROM ALL OTHER NIGHTS. FOR ON ALL OTHER NIGHTS WE EAT LEAVENED AND UNLEAVENED BREAD, WHEREAS ON THIS NIGHT WE EAT ONLY LEAVENED BREAD; ON ALL OTHER NIGHTS WE EAT ALL KINDS OF HERBS, ON THIS NIGHT BITTER HERBS; ON ALL OTHER NIGHTS WE EAT MEAT ROAST, STEWED OR BOILED, ON THIS NIGHT, ROAST ONLY. ON ALL OTHER NIGHTS WE DIP ONCE, BUT ON THIS NIGHT WE DIP TWICE.’ AND ACCORDING TO THE SON'S INTELLIGENCE HIS FATHER INSTRUCTS HIM. HE COMMENCES WITH SHAME AND CONCLUDES WITH PRAISE; AND EXPOUNDS FROM ‘A WANDERING ARAMEAN WAS MY FATHER’ UNTIL HE COMPLETES THE WHOLE SECTION.

Two interesting facts: Our fourth question about reclining is missing and there is a question about eating roasted meat. Now we have the custom not to eat roasted meat at the Seder. Many scholars point to this Mishna as one source to show that after the destruction of the Temple, there was a segment of the Jewish community that roasted a kid goat as a reminder of the קרבן פסח. Second fact: the question concerning reclining was a later addition to the הגדה.

What does the word אפיקומן represent?
תלמוד בבלי מסכת פסחים דף פה' עמוד ב'-החלונות ועובי החומה וכו'. אמר רב: גגין ועליות לא נתקדשו. איני? והאמר רב משום רבי חייא: כזיתא פסחא והלילא פקע איגרא. מאי לאו דאכלי באיגרא ואמרי באיגרא? - לא, דאכלי בארעא ואמרי באיגרא. - איני? והתנן: אין מפטירין אחר הפסח אפיקומן, ואמר רב: שלא יעקרו מחבורה לחבורה! - לא קשיא: כאן - בשעת אכילה, כאן - שלא בשעת אכילה.

Translation: THE WINDOWS AND THE THICKNESS OF THE WALL etc. Rab said: The roofs and the upper chambers were not sanctified. But that is not so, for Rab said on the authority of R. Hiyya: There was only as much as an olive of the Passover-offering to eat yet the Hallel split the roofs! ( It was sung with such gusto.) Does that not mean that they ate on the roof and recited the Hallel on the roof? No: they ate on the ground and recited it on the roof. Yet that is not so, for surely we learned: You must not conclude after the Paschal meal by saying ‘To the aftermeal entertainment!’ ( It was customary among ancient nations to conclude a banquet with bouts of drinking, revelry and music. The sanctity of the Paschal meal precluded this, as it would turn an occasion of solemnity and reverential gratitude to G-d into one of light-hearted frivolity.) and Rab said: That means that they must not remove from one company to another? — There is no difficulty: there it is at the time of eating; here it is not at the time of eating.

In this Gemara, the word אפיקומן means after dinner entertainment.

Is the Mitzvah at the Seder to tell the story of the Exodus or to to discuss the הלכות of פסח?
The following is found as early as the סדר רב עמרם גאון:
סדר רב עמרם גאון סדר פסח ד"ה ומתחיל בגנות-מעשה ברבי אליעזר ורבי יהושע ורבי אלעזר בן עזריה ור' עקיבא ור' טרפון שהיו מסובין בבני ברק והיו מספרין ביציאת מצרים כל אותו הלילה עד שבאו תלמידיהם ואמרו להם רבותינו הגיע זמן קריאת שמע של שחרית.
The wording for this section of the הגדה is not found in the Gemara. In fact, the following is found in the תוספתא:
תוספתא מסכת פסחים (ליברמן) פרק י הלכה יב-מעשה ברבן גמליאל וזקנים שהיו מסובין בבית ביתוס בן זונין בלוד והיו עסוקין בהלכות הפסח כל הלילה עד קרות הגבר הגביהו מלפניהן ונועדו והלכו להן לבית המדרש.
TRANSLATION: A story about Rabban Gamliel and the elders who were congregated in the house of Beisus son of Zonin in Lud. They were involved in discussing the laws of Pesach all night until the rooster called out. They then got up and went to the Beis Medrash.

תוספתא מסכת פסחים (ליברמן) פרק י הלכה יא-אין מפטירין אחר הפסח אפיקומן כגון אגוזין תמרים וקליות חייב אדם לעסוק בהלכות הפסח כל הלילה אפלו בינו לבין בנו אפלו בינו לבין עצמו אפלו בינו לבין תלמידו.
TRANSLATION: We do not eat after eating the Afikoman like nuts, dates or roasted grain. A person is required to study the Halachot of Pesach the whole night even if only with his son and if only with himself and even if only with his student.

The concept of studying about the קרבן פסח as a substitute for bringing the קרבן פסח follows the rule of ונשלמה פרים שפתינו. Scholars believe that because only a few Jews were capable of fulfilling this requirement, the concept of סיפור יציאת מצרים was made the primary function of the הגדה.

Some of this material was borrowed from Haggadath Chazal by Professors Zev and Shmuel Safrai.

Well we can go another layer deeper as related in the Tosephata Shabat, the four cups represent the grecian meal. First people came to the anteroom and had a glass of wine till all the guests came. Once they were admitted into the dining room, no futher guests were admitted. They then drank the second cup for kiddush. During the meal there was no limit on the amount of wine drunk. They then did the cup of blessing at the end of the birkat hamazon and then had the afikomen with more wine. The fourth cup indicates the end of the whole session.
As for the rooftops, they really went up to the rooftops to finish the hallel in a great assembly. This is why we have hallel after the meal so they could go up to the rooftop (where as you wrote, was not Kadosh for eating the Korban).
Back to the Hagadah, how does the child know that they are going to dip twice. He only saw them dip once.

Aryeh Shore

B"H

Dear Abe,

You wrote: "Never rely on secondary sources. Always check the primary sources."

This is excellent advice. I try doing the same. The problem is, there are differences between Talmudic versions. The Munich Ms. of the Babylonian Talmud is different in many places from the Romm edition published in Wilna, Poland.

Also, our copies of the Tosefta at the back-end of our Gemara have passed through the hand of proof-readers (e.g., Hagra). My copy of the Tosefta is based after a handwritten manuscript, and does not contain all the brackets and "corrections" added later by Hagra.

David

Dear David,

You can download for free an excellent tosephta (talmuds, mishneh torah) from machon memre. The tosephta in the back of the Vilna shas is pretty useless. R. Saul Liberman's tosephta is still the best for scholarly studies. If you are really interested in tosephta you should read Tosepta k'pshuto by R. Liberman. The toseptas that Steinholtz has in the back of the gemaras is in nice clear print and accurate but the commentary is very scanty and they do not explain why they depart radically at times from the other editions of tosephtot. (Sometimes you have to search pages to find where they put the piskah you are looking for.)
There remains a problem with the mesechtot ketanot like mesechet simachot. I don't know of anyone who has printed a critical edition. Those in the back of the Vilna shas are pretty useless other than to get acquainted somewhat with the text but never rely on them for accurate information. The numerous tiny corrections are tedious.

Aryeh Shore

The teachers of R. Akiva in the gemarah of Rosh HaShanna debate when the world was created. This is a famous piece of aggadita. During my first year at D'var when my dear friend Danial Rummy got engaged, we studied this piece. It has always held a facination to me.
Learning the gemarah as written makes no sense. Debating upon past ancient history has no relavence! The siddur, in the first blessing of קריאת שמע twice writes upon the continual act of creation. Both Pashoch and Yom HaKippor share a din of coret! It seems to me, that both qualify as a yom ha-din upon the brit. I've never felt at ease come Rosh HaShannah with people saying "Yom ha-din"; a complete idea requires a subject and a predicate. Judgment day on what? The matter that distinguishes bnai brit Israel from the non bnai brit goyim - our oath/brit relationship with the Ancient of Days. I'm not alluding to half our population getting a portion of its flesh cut off upon their 8th day. Circumcision exists only as a "sign" of the brit, but its not the brit. If i get on the high way to Yerushalem and see a sign Yerushalim 15 km, I'm not in Yerushalim! It never ceases to amaze me that Torah Jews err and confuse circumcision with the brit. A brit constitutes as a long term alliance. The parties to an alliance make an oath, at least that the way the Torah understands an alliance. No oath no brit period. Just as every generation circumcises their male children every generation, every individual of every generation, should stand before a Safer Torah and make the oaths of the Avot! Cutting a brit entails life and death. The greatest example of this the night of the Passover whereby the Ancient of Days cut a brit with the nation of Israel and killed the firstborn of Egypt. Eating leavened products during the festival might generate a judgment that cuts the posterity of that person from the bnai brit people; so too eating food on the sealing of the Judgment can cause coret!
How does the Ancient of Days rule over His brit peoples? At Sinai we saw no image of the Elohim, how then can man be in the image of the Elohim? Upon the crux of this dilemna the two teachers of R. Akiva debated the Creation of the World. The measure that the Elohim created the world for man to live theirin in equal measure the bnai brit peoples must call upon the Elohim to create within their Neshama a world of דרך ארץ by defining by means of interpreting the intent of the Torah of Moshe with the Talmudic logical schools, the 13 major emotional attributes that dominate the lives of every living person. Creating דרך ארץ from the midsts of one's soul constitutes as the continual act of creation. The measure that the Elohim created a world for man to live therein in like and equal measure man creates a the world of דרך ארץ for the Elohim to live therein. To my limited understanding, ritual meals aside, on Pasoch the Creator of the Universe judges my דרך ארץ. Torah is my humility as a person, because i've got so many short comings in my emotional development as a man. Next to the Torah when i see my wife again my humility rises to my cheeks, her emotional development is by far more advanced than mine. The statement דרך ארץ preceeds Torah i understand in this vein.

with respect,
moshe

I learned, (possibly in the name of Rav Soloveitchik himself), that the Hallel is split in two because the first part refers to freedom from Mitzrayim and the second part refers to all future geulot.

Professor Daniel Goldschmidt in his הגדה של פסח provides an outline for the הגדה. The outline is useful in terms of remaining focused on the fact that the סדר is centered on the מדרש on the פסוקים of ארמי אובד אבי :

ההקדמה הארמית
The Aramaic Introduction
הא לחמא עניא

השאלות
The Questions
מה נשתנה

ההקדמה הראשונה למדרש
The First Introduction to the Midrash
עבדים היינו

שני סיפורים מתקופת התנאים
Two stories from the days of the Tanaiim
מעשה ברבי אליעזר
אמר רבי אליעזר

ברייתא של ארבע בנים
Baraita of the Four Sons
ברוך המקום

דרשה אחרת של חז"ל
Another Lesson from Chazal
יכול מראש חדש

הקדמה שנייה למדרש
A Second Introduction to the Midrash
מתחלה עובדי עבודה זרה

פתיחה למדרש
An Inroduction to the Midrash
ברוך שומר הבטחתו לישראל

המדרש
The Midrash-The Essence of the Haggadah
ארמי אובד אבי

תוספת למדרש
An Addition to the Midrash
רבי יוסי הגלילי אומר
דיינו

משנת רבן גמליאל
The Mishna of Rabban Gamliel
רבן גמליאל היה אומר
בכל דור ודור

קריאת ההלל
The Recitation of Hallel
הללוי-ה הללו

ברכת הגאולה
The Blessing of Freedom
ברוך אתה ה' . . . אשר גאלנו

סעודה
The Meal

ברכת המזון
Grace After the Meal

המשך ההלל
The Continuation of Hallel
לא לנו . . .

הלל הגדול
The Great Hallel
הודו לה' כי טוב כי לעולם חסדו . . .

ברכת מעין שלוש
Grace After Drinking Wine

פיוטים
Songs

B"H

I do not know how many of you will be interested in knowing the Seder (order) followed by the Yemenites of the Baladi-rite on the night of Pesach, but I have decided to bring down their Seder as it appears in traditional Yemenite Haggados.

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


The Yemenite Seder on the night of Pesach (Passover)

1) Once everyone reclines at the dinner table, everyone fills his glass with wine. The one officiating over the Seder begins by making the first blessings over the wine ("Borei Peri Ha-Gofen"), as well as the blessing over the day, as found in the Haggadah. After the blessings, they drink the wine while reclining to their left-side.

2) Afterwards, everyone washes his hands in preparation for eating the salad herb. The Yemenite custom is to bless over this hand washing, since it is a hand washing required whenever dipping an edible thing in a liquid, just as we do when eating bread. The custom of Jews in Yemen was to eat at this time carrot leaves (Ar. "baqdunas"). If these are unavailable, take celery. Before eating the carrot leaves, everyone dips the leaves into a sweet relish called "charoseth." Jews in Yemen did not dip the salad herbs into a bowl of salt water, but rather, in the sweet relish alone. (Unlike the Sephardic custom, the Yemenites require one's eating at least an olive's bulk, or what is equivalent to about 1/2 the size of an egg.) Everyone makes the blessing, "Borei Peri Ha-Adama," as found in the Yemenite Haggadah, before eating the carrot leaves or celery. (Sephardic Jews do not make a blessing over these salad herbs.)

3) Afterwards, they fill up the second glass with wine, and they begin reading the Haggadah. (At this time, the owner of the house covers up the table and food with a table cloth.) When they reach the designated place, they make the blessing over the wine once again ("Borei Peri Ha-Gofen"), and each man and woman drinks from his glass while reclining to his left-side.

4) Afterwards, the tablecloth is removed, and everyone washes his hands once again, and says once again the blessing over his hand washing (just as we before eating bread). The one officiating over the Seder takes up two round loaves of unleavened bread (Matzah), and divides one of them into two separate halves. He then puts one of the broken halves inside the complete Matzah. (The Matzah made in Yemen was always soft and pliable, and so it was possible to fold it. In Israel, the Matzah is hard like unto crackers, and therefore folding it breaks it.) He blesses "Ha-Motzi" over the Matzah, and divides it among the party. Each person is given at least an olive's bulk, and makes the blessing over it, "Al Achilath Matzah," and then dips it in the sweet relish known as "charoseth," and eats it while reclining to his left-side. (In Yemen, it was customary for everyone to make use of only "Matzah Shemurah" for the entire seven/eight days of Passover.)

5) Everyone now takes up a bitter herb ("Meror"), which in Yemen was usually lettuce, and he says over it the blessing, "Al Achilath Meror," and eats it without reclining to his left, and without dipping it into the sweet relish. Everyone must eat no less than an olive's bulk of this bitter herb.

6) Afterwards, everyone takes up the same bitter herb ("Meror") which, as we said, in Yemen was usually lettuce, and he wraps it together with a piece of Matzah (unleavened bread), the lettuce wrapped on the outside of the Matzah, and he dips it into the sweet relish known as "charoseth," and says over it, "Zecher Lamiqdash Ke-Hillel," and proceeds then to eat it while reclining to his left-side. Both, the lettuce and Matzah must have each an olive's bulk in size.

7) At this stage, everyone is at liberty to eat of his meal, with all the gaiety associated with festive meals. Before each man concludes his meal, he takes up a piece of the "Afikoman," and eats it while reclining to his left-side.

8) Afterwards, each person washes his hands once again at the conclusion of the meal, and fills up his glass with wine for a third time. They say grace over the meal, and only after he has finished saying grace, he blesses over the wine ("Borei Peri Ha-Gofen") and drinks it while reclining to his left-side.

9) Immediately following this, he fills up his glass with wine for a fourth time, and concludes over it the reading of the Haggadah, with the Hallel and its designated liturgical poems and blessings. He then makes the final blessing over the wine ("Borei Peri Ha-Gofen"), and drinks it while reclining to his left-side.


CONCLUSION: Foodstuffs eaten or drunk by Yemenites on Passover: 1) Matzah Shemurah, 2) Wine, 3) Carrot leaves or celery, 4) Lettuce, 5) A sweet relish known as "charoseth" (made of ground dates, walnuts, sesame seeds, almonds, a dash of wine and sweet spices and black pepper.) The consistency of the "charoseth" is usually made thick so as to resemble mortar. 6) At the dinner table, there were always hard boiled eggs and, both, roasted and boiled meat.

Dear Moshe Kerr,
I just wanted to let you know that I loved your points about the true meaning of brit and about continual creation (especially as to how we also create a world for G-d, so to speak.) You are so right on both points!

Out of curiosity, do you think G-d judges the world according to how well the Jewish people have maintained the brit, or according to how the whole world acts, or do you think He only concerns Himself with one person at a time? After all, if we each recreate the world every day with our actions, the world is a quite different place from person to person.

At one time, G-d promised to spare a city if only one good man could be found. At another time, he drowned most of the world because only one good man could be found. How many good people does G-d need to see to be happy? I realize that is a very simplistic question, but what I'm getting at (and don't ask how I got so far off-topic) is, what is He waiting for before He sends the Messiah?

Thanks for the description of the temani seder.
What happen to putting the matzeh in a sack over the shoulder and reenacting the crossing of the red sea they did at the last temani seder I went to??

Aryeh Shore

B"H
Aryeh,

You're welcome! As for the custom of wrapping the Matzah in a sack, etc., it is still observed in many homes. I basically went through the main steps of what are essential, without elaborating.

By the way, instead of "carrot leaves," most made use of parsley and/or radish leaves.

David