Parsha Halacha

Parsha Halacha – Parshat Shoftim 

Washing Their Hands of the Affair: Washing after the Eglah Arufah and after a Funeral

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The Torah portion of Shoftim includes the mitzvah of Eglah Arufah – the calf that is decapitated to atone for the unsolved murder of a person traveling between cities. The verse says that after the calf is decapitated “All the elders of the city who were nearest to the corpse must wash their hands over the calf…”[1] By washing their hands the elders were pronouncing that just as their hands are clean, so too they are “clean” of responsibility for this murder (since they knew nothing about it and are now atoning for any possible fault in this regard).[2] In addition, they would proclaim their innocence explicitly by saying, “Our hands did not shed this blood, and our eyes did not see [him leave our city].” According to the Talmud,[3] they were pronouncing that they didn’t know that the victim was leaving the city, and, had they known, they would have provided him with food and an escort to ensure his safety.

A prayer was then offered[4] that G-d should “Atone for His nation that He redeemed.” Although the elders weren’t aware of this situation, those people who knew about him and could have assisted him, are in need of atonement.[5] The elders too needed atonement as they should have prayed that no such tragedy should occur in the vicinity of their town.[6]

Details of this Handwashing

Here are the halachot of this handwashing based on the work Nachal Eitan (chapter 14) by Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, obm.

• The Beit Din (Jewish Court) as well as all of the elders of the city from age 60 and above,[7] would participate in this handwashing ceremony.[8]
• The handwashing should be done on the spot where the calf was killed[9] or within 4 amot (cubits) of that spot.[10]
• According to the Rambam, this ceremony took place on the bank of a swift running river[11] and the water for the handwashing was taken from that river.[12]
• Before washing their hands[13] the elders would recite a bracha (blessing). See below for the text of the blessing.[14]
• The entire hand until the wrist was washed for this ritual.[15]
• No intervening substance (chatitzah) should be on the hands of the elders when they wash, just as when one washes for bread.[16]
• No utensil was needed for this washing.[17]

Two Handwashes in the Torah

This case is one of the two times that washing hands is mentioned in the Five Books of Moshe. The other case is that the Kohanim should wash their hands before serving in the Beit HaMikdash.[18]

Washing after a Funeral

It’s customary to wash one’s hands after attending a funeral or visiting a cemetery.[19] Some say that this relates to the washing after the Eglah Arufah and that it is a proclamation that we (the living) aren’t at fault in the death of the person just buried or whom we visited.[20]

Water, Grass and Earth

The custom in the place of the Ramban was to wipe one’s hands on the soil and to uproot some grass after the Kaddish that follows a funeral in addition to washing one’s hands (as mentioned above). 

This custom is mentioned in the Code of Jewish Law[21] except that instead of wiping one’s hands on the soil, it is recommended to uproot some soil as well as grass. It is noteworthy that the Lubavitcher Rebbe would do this after visiting the cemetery even if it wasn’t for a funeral.[22]

The Ramban offers two reasons for this custom.[23]

• Represents the Human Life Cycle 

The water represents the fact that we were created from water (i.e., seed), the earth represents the fact that we will all return to the dust and the grass represents the resurrection when we will shoot forth from the ground like the grass of the field.[24]

• Alludes to the Manner of Purification

The earth, grass and water allude to the method of purification from impurity of the dead (with which one was contaminated by attending the funeral). The earth represents the ashes of the Red Heifer, the grass represents the hyssop and cedar that was burnt together with the heifer while the water represents the spring water to which the ashes were added and were then sprinkled on those who needed to be purified.[25]

Sitting Seven Times

Some have a custom of sitting down seven times when on the way back from a funeral. (The Rama writes that the Ashekenazi custom is to sit three times and to say Viyhi No’am and Yoshev BaSeter on each of these stops.[26]) These correspond to the seven vanities of this world that are mentioned in Ecclesiastes (1:2). When one leaves the cemetery (after a funeral) the evil spirits cling to him. At each stop that one makes, some of those spirits depart. (By thinking about the fact that [most of] this world is part of the seven vanities and thus focusing on living a more spiritual life, we’re freed from evil spirits and judgments.) Some say that this is the meaning of the Talmudic custom of “Seven Ma’amadot.”[27]

The Sefardim do not follow this custom.[28]

A Divine Intervention

According to Rabbeinu Bachaye, if the Jewish people merited, the calf would walk (before it was killed) of its own accord, all the way to the murderer, thus identifying him and enabling the court to put him to death. If this did not occur and the calf was decapitated, a worm would form in its belly which would then crawl to the killer (wherever he was) and kill him. The Targum Yonatan echoes this and says “Immediately a swarm of worms would come out of the belly-button of the calf. They would crawl to the place of the murderer and crawl up on him. The court would then judge him appropriately.” 

May G-d Protect us from Harm and Bless us with a Good Sweet Year!

[1] Deut. 21:6. 

[2] Chizkuni. See below.

If any of the elders were aware that the victim was leaving the city and did not provide them with food or escort, it would seem that they should not be part of this ceremony (Ha’arot of Rav Elyashiv on Sotah 45b).

This is likely the original source of the English expression “washing one’s hands of the affair” which means that one isn’t taking any responsibility (or involvement) in the matter.

[3] Sotah 38b.

[4] According to the Rambam, (Laws of Rotze’ach and Shmirat HaNefesh 9:3) this prayer was recited by the Kohanim.

[5] Maharsha.

[6] Rabbi Alter Shapiro of Chernowtiz in Beit Yisrael on Parshat Shoftim. This idea is based on Makkot 11a which states that Elijah the prophet considered Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi responsible for the fact that a lion killed someone within three parsah of his city (each parsah is approx. 1 kilometer or a half a mile) as Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi should have prayed that such tragedies not occur.

[7] See Avot 5:21 that 60 is the age of sagacity. 

[8] Rambam, ibid. 

[9] Sotah 45b and 46b.

[10] Based on Jerusalem Talmud Sotah 9:5 that the area of the Eglah Arufah (for the purpose of not plowing or planting there) was four amot.

[11] See Rambam, Ibid, Halacha 2 that when the Torah says to bring the calf to a נַחַל אֵיתָן it means a fast flowing river. The Torah must be referring to the riverbank rather than in the middle of the river since it instructs not to plow or plant in that spot which is impossible to do in a river in any case. 

[12] Tosfot Yom Tov Sotah, 9:5. See also Chizkuny on Deut. 21:4.

[13] The reason we say the blessing after washing our hands (for bread) is twofold. Firstly, one may be washing after going to the bathroom in which case they cannot say the bracha beforehand. Secondly, since part of the mitzvah is to dry one’s hands, when saying the bracha after washing but before drying, one is still saying the bracha before the mitzvah is complete (Pesachim 7b Tosfot D.H. Al HaTevilah). Neither of these reasons apply in this case.

[14] Some say the bracha was Lirchotz et HaYadayim, others say it was Al Rechitzat Yadayimwhile according to a third opinion it was Al Netilat Yadayim. It’s also possible that one could choose to say any of these texts. See Nachal Eitan, ibid for the sources.

[15] See Chullin 106b regarding the handwashing of the kohanim. 

[16] See ibid.

[17] See the sources quoted in Nachal Eitan 14:2:5.

[18] Exodus 30:19 and 21.

[19] See Shulchan Aruch HaRav 4:18 (Mahadurah Kammah).

[20] Kovetz Shitot Kammai on Sotah 45b. See there that, according to Rav Hai Ga’on, the custom of washing the hands only applies to those who carried the coffin.

[21] Yoreh De’ah 376:4.

[22] See here at the 7.50 mark for footage of this from the 10^th of Shevat 5752

[23] Torat Ha’Adam, page 155 in the Rav Kook Edition.

[24] Psalms 72:16.

[25] See Numbers Chapter 19.

[26] Yoreh De’ah, ibid. It is noteworthy that in the Chabad Ma’aneh Lashon (a collection of prayers to be said when visiting the grave of a holy tzadik) one of the last prayers is Vi’yhi No’am and Yoshev BaSeter seven times. 

[27] See Bava Batra 100b and Rashbam D.H. Mishiva Mama’amdot.

[28] Nitei Gavriel, Aveilut, vol. 1, page 422.

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom Umevorach!