DailyHalacha.com for Mobile Devices Now Available

Click Here to Sponsor Daily Halacha
"Delivered to Over 6000 Registered Recipients Each Day"

      
(File size: 432 KB)
Within How Much Time Must One Eat the Masa at the Seder?

One of the Misvot at the Seder on Pesah is to eat Masa; Halacha requires one to eat two Kezetim of Masa at the Seder.

What is the time frame within which the two Kezetim of Masa must be eaten?

Hacham Ben Sion Abba Shaul (Israel, 1923-1998) addresses this question in his work of responsa Or Le’sion (vol. 3, 15:13; listen to audio recording for precise citation). He writes that ideally, one should place the two Kezetim of Masa in his mouth all at once, chew it very well, and then swallow it. Ideally, one should swallow all the Masa at once. If this is too difficult, one should swallow one Kezayit, and then swallow the rest afterward.

If one finds himself unable to put all the Masa in his mouth at the same time, then he should at least eat the entire amount within a period of four minutes, starting from the time he begins swallowing the Masa. (The time spent chewing does not count toward the time limit.) An ill or elderly person, who cannot eat so quickly, should endeavor to eat all the Masa within 6-7 minutes. If even this is too difficult, then he should try to eat the Masa within nine minutes.

Summary: Ideally, when one fulfills the Misva of Masa at the Seder, he should place all the Masa in his mouth at the same time, chew it, and then swallow it all at once. If this is too difficult, he should eat the Masa within four minutes, and those who cannot eat quickly should eat the Misva within no more than nine minutes, and preferably within 6-7 minutes.

 


Recent Daily Halachot...
Dairy Bread
Do Pickled Vegetables Need To Be Prepared By A Jew In Order To Be Kosher
Is It Permissible to Buy Cut Fruit From A Non-Kosher Grocer?
Is It Permissible To Put Meat and Milk Dishes Together In The Dishwasher
Meat & Milk Kashrut Laws of An Oven, Microwave Oven, and Toaster
Using The Same Oven For Both Meat and Milk
Should We Eat Dairy Within The 6 Hours After Meat If We Mistakenly Already Made A Beracha
The Issue of Bishul Akum and Coffee
Reviewing The Laws of Meat After Milk
Smelling Besamim at a Berit Mila
Berit Mila – Reciting the Berachot
Is It Necessary To Make Another Kiddush At Seudat Shabbat If It Was Already Said During A Brit Milah On Shabbat?
Choosing a Mohel
How Early in the Day Should a Berit Mila be Performed?
Performing a Berit Mila on Shabbat
Page of 239
3585 Halachot found