After Maggid, we wash "Rohsa," washing our hands with a Beracha, and then we proceed to eat the Masa. The Orech (person leading the Seder) lifts the three Masot in front of him, the middle of which is a broken piece, as the middle Masa had been broken earlier in the Seder. We hold a broken piece because Masa is "Lehem Oni" ("poor man’s bread"), and poor people generally have only small, broken pieces of bread. The Orech holds all three Masot in his hands when reciting the first Beracha, the Beracha of "Hamosi Lehem Min Ha’aretz." He then puts down the bottom Masa, and recites the second Beracha – "Al Achilat Masa" – holding the one whole Masa and the one broken piece. The two whole Masot are required only for the Beracha of "Hamosi," and thus after the recitation of that Beracha the Orech drops the bottom Masa.
When reciting the Berachot over the Masa, the Orech must have in mind that he recites the Berachot on behalf of everyone at the Seder. The people at the table do not respond "Baruch U’baruch Shemo" and must have in mind to fulfill their obligation by listening to the Orech’s recitation of the Berachot. If one has reason to suspect that the Orech will not have in mind to fulfill everyone’s obligation, or will not recite the Berachot properly, he should take two whole Masot and recite the Berachot on his own, to ensure that he fulfills the obligation of the Berachot.
After completing the two Berachot, the Orech should take a piece from both Masot and eat them. He should then distribute pieces from both Masot to each person at the table. Of course, these two Masot will not suffice to provide the Shiur (minimum required amount) for everyone at the Seder, and thus everyone should take additional Masot from the box on the table to complete the minimum required quantity of Masa. When preparing for the Seder, one should ensure that there is enough Masa for everyone to eat the required amount. Each person must eat at least one Ke’zayit of Masa, and preferably two Ke’zetim, for Mosi Masa, another Ke’zayit for Korech, and preferably two Ke’zetim for Afikoman (though if one ate only one Ke’zayit for Afikoman, he fulfilled his obligation). Therefore, if one wants to prepare a "deluxe" Seder, he should provide everyone at the table with five Ke’zetim of Masa.
How much Masa is a Ke’zayit? Hacham Bension Abba Shaul (Israel, 1923-1998) calculated that if we are measuring by weight, 30 grams of Masa is equivalent to one Ke’zayit. Sephardic practice, however, is to measure a Ke’zayit by volume, not weight, and Hacham Bension determined that 20 grams of Masa is equivalent to the volume of one Ke’zayit of Masa. It is thus advisable before the Seder to weigh Masa and determine the amount each person will need at the Seder, and that amount of Masa should be then placed in a bag at each person’s seat. If one did not weigh the Masa before Yom Tob, he may do so on Yom Tob, assuming he uses a manual scale, rather than an electric scale, because "Medida Shel Misva" (measuring for the sake of a Misva) is permissible on Yom Tob. However, because this can be very time-consuming, it is certainly preferable to make all these calculations in advance, rather than take the time to do so at the Seder.
Hacham Bension Abba Shaul ruled that machine Masa should not be used for the Misva of Masa at the Seder, and if it is used, one does not recite the Beracha of "Al Achilat Masa." Hacham Ovadia Yosef disagreed with this ruling, but given the availability of hand-made Masa Shemura, it is certainly preferable to use the hand-made Masa for the Misva at the Seder.
It must be emphasized that the Masa is the most important component at the Seder. As it is said in the Ma Nishtana, "Ha’layla Ha’ze Kulo Masa" – "This night is all about Masa." We eat Masa to fulfill the Torah obligation, but in addition, the Zohar calls Masa "Nahama De’asvata" – "bread of healing." The Masa has special healing powers, and it is thus in our best interest to eat the proper Shiur of Masa and fulfill this Misva satisfactorily. One should not cut corners when it comes to this Misva, and should instead seek to fulfill the Torah obligation and reap the great benefits that this Misva offers.
One must lean on his left side when eating the Masa, and one who does not lean does not fulfill the Misva and must eat another Ke’zayit while leaning. "Leaning" here does not refer to turning one’s head or even one’s body to the side, but rather leaning on an object. Thus, if one has room to rest his left arm and the left side of his body on the table in front of him, then he can fulfill the requirement of leaning in this fashion. If not, then assuming his chair has a back, he can lean back in his chair to the left side. Hacham Bension ruled that one must lean at a 45 degree angle in order to fulfill this requirement. It is incumbent upon the Orech to remind everyone at the Seder to eat the proper Shiur and to lean when eating the Masa.
The required Ke’zayit of Marror can also be weighed on a scale, as described above regarding the Masa.
Regarding the Shiur of the four cups of wine, one can determine the minimum required amount by pouring wine into the cup of scale until it reaches 86 grams. This is the smallest that one’s cup may be at the Seder. If the cup cannot hold this much wine, then it may not be used for the Misva of the four cups, even if one drinks the entire cup. One Rabbi said that an 8 oz. plastic cup is more valuable at the Seder than a 3 oz. cup made from solid gold. The extravagance of a cup is far less significant at the Seder than its meeting Halachic requirements, and thus although one should certainly not use a plastic cup, a plastic cup that contains the proper Shiur is preferable over a fancy cup that does not. One may use a glass or silver cup, and it does not matter whether it has a stem of it is flat.
People who will be spending the Seder at somebody else’s home must ensure ahead of time that their hosts have the proper "equipment" for fulfilling the Misvot of the Seder. If a person arrives for the Seder and discovers that the cup he is given is too small, or that the Masa is not Shemura, and was simply listed as "Kosher for Passover," or that the Marror leaves were not inspected for insects, he runs into a serious problem and might not be able to properly fulfill the Misvot of the night. One must therefore clarify before Pesah that his hosts will be providing him with what he needs to properly fulfill the Misvot of the Seder. Additionally, people usually bring gifts for their hosts, and the best gift is a box of handmade Shemura Masa. This is a very meaningful and valuable gift, every Ke’ayit of which fulfills a Misva, and one who brings this gift can rest assured that he will have the Masa he needs to fulfill the Misva.
Watch a video online of Rabbi Mansour conducting a model Seder. Go to www.learntorah.com.
