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Tevilas Keilim -
Immersion of Vessels
compiled by Alex Weiser
and Tamar Snyder
Tevillas Keilim
is defined in English as the ‘Immersion of Vessels’. The Gemara (Avodah
Zara, 75B) says, " Tevilah is a process that purifies and uplifts the
utensil." In this report, we will discuss what needs to be toiveled
and what doesn’t, as well as the actual process of Tevilas Keilim and
many different Halachot that pertain to it.
Source
of Tevillas Keilim
There is a Machlokes between many Poskim
and the Rambam over whether the source for Tevilas Keilim is Deoraysa or
Derabanan. Alfred S. Cohen from the RJJ Journal and Chaim Meiersdorf both
say that most Poskim attribute the source for Teveilas kelim as MeDoraysa.
They quote the pasuk in Bamidbar (31:23), “Everything that may come into
fire, you shall pass through the fire and they shall be clean, except it
must be cleansed with the water of separation.”
These vessels captured from Midyan need
an additional purification, after Libun or Hagalah. They need Tevilah, to
be immersed in a Kosher mikvah. Rashi explains on the words, “Ach Bimaih
Nidah Yotchatah,” that the Torah made immersion a necessity especially
for metal vessels. Elazar tells Bnei Yisrael, “The vessels need purging
to purify them of that which is forbidden, and sprinkling (Tevilah) to
purify them of impurity (from contact with non-Jews)”. The Rabbi’s
interpret “mai Nidah” as waters which are fit for a woman who is a
Nidah, which is 40 Se’ah. Rashi gets the fact that the depth of the
water needs to be 40 Se’ah and that it has to be Mei Nidah, water that a
Nidah can go into as well, from the Gemara (Avodah Zara 75B). The modern
equivalent of the se’ah measurement range between 2.25 and 4 gallons.
Rambam (Hilchot Maachlot Asurot,) says, that
the mitzvah of Tevilah is "mdivrei Sofrim". Sofrim is explained
as Rabbanim, and it seems as if the Rambam holds that Tevilas Keilim is a
Mitzvah Derabanan. The Rashba says that when Rambam says “MiDivrei
Sofrim,” he means to say that Tevilas Keilim is not explicitly stated in
the Torah, but the Rabbi’s derived it from the Torah. Therefore, it is a
Mitzvah MeDoraysa that we know through the teachings of the Rabbi’s.
Practically, a Jew considers Tevilas Keilim to be a Mitzvah MeDoraysa and
is Machmir is questionable situations (Cohen).
What
needs to be toiveled
Vessels and utensils that have been
previously owned or manufactured by non-Jews and will be used for eating
require Tevilah. Both metal and glassware are not destroyed by fire, and
therefore are included in the mitzvah Deoraysa to be toiveled. R’ Ashi (Gemara
Avodah Zara 75 B) says that glassware has the same Takanos as metal and
therefore requires toiveling. The Shulchan Orach agrees with this
psak(Yorah Dayah, 120, 1). The Bracha is recited when performing Tevilah
on metal and glassware (Meiersdorf).
When a part of a Kli needs Tevilah (ex.
Handle), and the rest of the Kli doesn’t, one should immerse the entire
Kli (Cohen). If a vessel is made out of wood and has a metal handle, it
only needs to be toiveled of the metal part comes in contact with food (Shulchan
Orech, Yorah Dayah, 120:6). If one sells a Kli to a non-Jew and he takes
it back, then he is required to Toivel it.
What
doesn’t need Tevilah
Not
every vessel requires Tevilah. Vessels made of earthenware and plastic do
not require Tevilah. Tevilah is also not necessary for porcelain and
glazed china. A toaster does not need to be toiveled, according to the
psak of R’ Moshe Feinstein (Meiersdorf). Disposable utensils do not
require tevillah unless you plan to use them several times (Cohen).
Actual
Process of Tevilah
When
one is performing the mitzvah of Tevilas Keilim, he should have in mind
that the process is removing the impurity of the non-Jew that handled that
Kli. However, even if one does not have this Kavanah, the Tevilah is still
valid (Cohen).
The
minimum amount of water that must cover the Kli one is immersing has to be
enough to moisten other utensils. It is enough to be Toivel a Kli only
once if done correctly (Cohen).
Immediately
before performing the Tevilah, one recites the Bracha of “Al Tevilas
Keilim." If one has vessels that don’t require a Bracha, it is
preferable to immerse them at the same time as he is immersing those that
do require a Bracha.
Halachot involving the process of Tevilas Keilim
All
parts of the utensil have to be covered in water. If you want to grip the
Kli tightly, then you should Toivel it with your hand on one spot of the
Kli and then change your hand position and dip it into the water again.
This is called Chatzizah (Shulcan Orach, Yorah Dayah, 120: 2).
Another
way to do this without dropping your Kli into the Mikvah, is to moisten
your hands with the water first and then grip it tightly and put it in.
A good idea is to shake the Kli while it is under the water, so
that the water can reach all parts of the Kli. If one wants to tie the
Keilim that require Tevilah together, one must use a loose knot.
The Keilim could be placed into a netted
sack, basket, or another utensil and then dipped into the Mikvah. The
utensils can be in the same sack or basket, but they cannot be placed one
on top of another, therefore preventing the water from getting on each Kli.
If you want to Toivel both a spoon in a pot, the pot must be at least 2
inches in diameter. One can perform Tevilah using a netted sack or basket
even when the opening is not 2 inches.
When a Kli has detachable parts, it
is best to immerse it when it is fully assembled (ex. Meat grinder,
thermos). If one decides to immerse the parts separately, each part should
be taken totally apart. This includes minute details such as screws.
However, only the disassembled parts that require Tevilah should be
immersed. Utensils which come with substitute parts should be put on the
Kli one by one and then immersed.
A pocketknife should be open when it is
immersed. If the knife has many blades, they should be opened one by one
and immersed so that the water reaches each and every blade.
Glasses may be immersed sideways or face
up, and not face down. This is because an air pocket may form and prevent
the water from reaching inside the glass, therefore making the Tevilah
invalid. Utensils with wide openings, like plates or shallow pots, may be
immersed face up or face down. Utensils that have narrow openings such as
bottles should either be filled with tap water before the immersion or
left in the mikvah long enough so that the water may reach inside (Cohen).
Vessels
Which Have Not Undergone Tevilah
It is Asur to use utensils or vessels
that have not undergone Tevilah. However, if accidentally food has been
prepared with a vessel that has not yet been toiveled, the food is mutar
to eat. Still, the vessel is required to be Toiveled, as it is never too
late to immerse a vessel (Alfred Cohen).
In conclusion, Tevilas Keilim is a very
practical mitzvah in which a person is required to immerse his vessels and
utensils that are made out of metal and glass into a kosher mikvah. The
person says the beracha, “Al Tevilas Keilim”. The many halachot
involved in this process have all been explained, in this paper, and need
to be understood before one toivels their Keilim.
Sources:
Rambam, Hilchot Maachlot
Asurot 17, Halachah 5
Gemara Avodah Zara, 75B.
Shulchan Orach, Yorah
Dayah; 120, 1.
Tevillat Keilim, A
Comprehensive Guide. Rav Zvi Cohen. Pages 107-113.
Tevilah of Utensils.
Rabbi Alfred S. Cohen (from the RJJ Journal).
Tevilat Keilim. Chaim
Meiersdorf. Pages 70-7.
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