גריי מאטר א, הלכות חגים, מנהג הקטניות א׳Gray Matter I, Laws of Holidays, The Minhag of Kitniyot 1
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1Part I: General Overview
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2Over the past millennium, the custom developed in Ashkenazic communities to refrain from eating kitniyot, certain legumes, on Pesach. We will base our discussion in part on an essay by Rav Yehudah Pris of Yeshivat Birkat Moshe (Maaleh Adumim) in Techumin (13:163-180).
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3Gemara and Rishonim
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4The Torah forbids us to eat chametz (leaven) on Pesach. Something becomes chametz when flour and water mix together long enough for the dough to rise. The Mishnah (Pesachim 35a) rules that chametz can be produced only from certain grains: wheat, barley, rye, spelt, and oats.1Some question exists regarding the identification of the Gemara's "shibolet shu'al" as oats. Rav Yosef Efrati (Mesorah 13:66-71) notes Professor Yehudah Felix's claim that shibolet shu'al could not possibly be oats, and Rav Efrati vigorously disputes this claim. He cites Rav Yosef Shalom Eliashiv as supporting the view that shibolet shu'al is undoubtedly oats (the view accepted by almost all Rishonim). Ezra Frazer reports that Rav Aharon Lichtenstein does not flatly reject Professor Felix's claims, but he believes that one should continue to treat oats as shibolet shu'al, absent absolute proof that shibolet shu'al is something else. Rav Hershel Schachter has told this author that in case of great need one may use oat matzah at the Pesach seder. In general, Rav Schachter wrote this author that one should try to eat other mezonot foods together with oat products to avoid any doubt regarding the berachot before and after oats.
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5Millet and rice are not included in this list, explains the Mishnah, because they spoil and do not ferment. However, Rabi Yochanan Ben Nuri includes rice in the list of grains that can potentially become chametz. The Gemara (Pesachim 114b) states that Rabi Yochanan Ben Nuri is a lone authority concerning this topic. The Rishonim therefore rule in accordance with the majority view, which contends that rice cannot become chametz. The Rambam, for example, writes (Hilchot Chametz U'matzah 5:1):
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6There is no prohibition regarding chametz except with respect to the five categories of grain. There are two types of wheat... and three types of barley... but kitniyot such as rice... and the like are not included in the prohibition of chametz. Even if one were to knead rice flour... with hot water and cover it with a cloth until it rises like fermented dough, it may still be eaten on Pesach, for it is not chametz; instead it is sirachon (decay).2See Techumin (1:97), where Dr. B.P. Munk discusses the chemical difference between chimutz and sirachon.
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7The Rif omits the opinion of Rabi Yochanan Ben Nuri, indicating his acceptance of the majority view as the actual Halachah. Similarly, the Rosh (Pesachim 2:12), Baal Hamaor (Pesachim 26b in Rif's pages), and Ritva (Pesachim 35a s.v. Hanei) all rule in accordance with the majority view.
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8The Beginning of the Ashkenazic Custom
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9Although most Rishonim reject Rabi Yochanan Ben Nuri's ruling, some Rishonim are nonetheless stringent regarding the consumption of rice and similar foods. The primary authority who espouses this stringency is the Smak, who writes (mitzvah 222 note 12):
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10Regarding kitniyot, such as rice and beans, our rabbis have the practice not to eat them on Pesach. I believe that I have heard that one should not cook them on Pesach, besides in boiling water from the moment they are placed in the pot [this is what the Gemara calls chalitah -H.J.]. Many great rabbis are lenient concerning this issue, but it appears very difficult to permit something when the common practice to be strict dates back to the early ages. It is reasonable to say that this stringency did not emerge as a concern for [kitniyot being actual] chametz, because they would not err on matters familiar even to the youngest of students, and the Gemara explicitly states that only the five species of grain have the potential to become chametz... Rather, the reason is an edict to prevent violation of Torah law, since kitniyot are cooked in a manner similar to the way that grains are cooked. Had we permitted kitniyot, one could have easily become confused [with chametz], because they are cooked similarly... In addition, in many locales, kitniyot are made into bread, and people who are not well versed in Torah laws might become confused. This is not at all similar to vegetables, which are clearly distinguishable from the five grains. It is a proper minhag (custom) to refrain from eating all kitniyot, including mustard seed, because of their similarity to grain. Although the Talmud (Pesachim 114b) specifically permits rice, this rule applied only in Talmudic times, when all were well versed in Halachah. However, today we should certainly follow the decree that we mentioned... and even to put kitniyot in boiling hot water should be forbidden, because one might become confused and permit placing them in cold water.
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11The Beit Yosef (Orach Chaim 453) cites a different concern (which appears later in the Smak) - that kitniyot are mixed with grains that have the ability to become chametz. The Ritva (Pesachim 35a s.v. Tana) alludes to this concern:
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12One must carefully inspect [kitniyot, such as rice,] because spelt is constantly mixed with rice... Many pious individuals avoid eating these species on Pesach if they were cooked, due to concerns regarding these mixtures.
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13Tur, Shulchan Aruch, Acharonim
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14The Tur (Orach Chaim 453) cites the Smak's stringency, but he comments that it is excessive. The Beit Yosef adds that only Ashkenazic Jews abide by this stringency. Accordingly, he rules in his Shulchan Aruch (O.C. 453:1) that one may cook and consume kitniyot, as they cannot become chametz. The Rama, (Darchei Moshe 453:2) however, writes that Ashkenazic Jews have adopted the strict practice of not eating kitniyot on Pesach. Similarly, in his gloss to the Shulchan Aruch, he rules that Ashkenazic Jewry must not deviate from this custom. The Vilna Gaon notes that a source for this stringency appears the Gemara (Pesachim 40b), which records that Rava forbade servants who were not halachically scrupulous to make bread from legumes on Pesach (see Tosafot s.v. Rava and the Rosh 2:28).
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15Interestingly, some Ashkenazic authorities expressed serious reservations about the minhag of kitniyot, and a few even strongly criticized it.3See Rav Yaakov Emden (Mor Uktzi'ah 453), in the name of his famed father, the Chacham Tzvi, and Encyclopedia Talmudit (16:104 note 691). Nevertheless, the Aruch Hashulchan (O.C. 453:4-5), writing at the dawn of the twentieth century, presents what has become the normative practice of Ashkenazic Jewry:4The Chatam Sofer (Teshuvot, Orach Chaim 122) also uses sharp words against Ashkenazic Jews who are lax in observing the minhag of kitniyot.
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16Our forebears practiced for many years the avoidance of eating rice, etc. This prohibition has been accepted as a protection of our observance of Torah law; it is thus forbidden for us to abandon this practice. Those who question this practice and are lenient concerning it are demonstrating that they have neither fear of God nor fear of sin. They also display a flawed comprehension of the proper ways of Torah observance…
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17Although there are some countries which have not followed this stringency, all of Germany, France, Russia, and Poland have accepted upon themselves and their descendants this wonderful stringency, which has a good reason, and one who deviates from it should be bitten by a snake.
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18Kitniyot in Case of Illness and Famine
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19The practice to avoid eating kitniyot on Pesach is merely a custom, and not a rabbinical enactment, so there is some flexibility regarding it. For example, the Mishnah Berurah (453:7) writes that a seriously ill individual may eat kitniyot, even if his life is not in danger. He notes that the Chatam Sofer (Teshuvot, Orach Chaim 122) states that one should place the kitniyot in boiling water, since boiling prevents fermentation. The reasoning behind this leniency is that we assume our ancestors did not accept the stringency of kitniyot to apply in a case of illness. Rav Yehuda Amital told this author that it was permissible for this author's family to boil and serve kasha5Kasha is made from buckwheat, which has the status of kitniyot. In situations where kasha must be fed to a sick person on Pesach, it is essential to verify that none of the five grains that produce true chametz have been mixed into the kasha. to his father z"l on Pesach when he was suffering from an advanced stage of lung cancer, and kasha was one of the few food items that he was able to eat.
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20Similarly, the Aruch Hashulchan (O.C. 453:5) writes:
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21It was explicitly stipulated that in the event of famine or severe economic conditions, the local sages, led by the chief rabbi, are permitted to temporarily suspend the minhag of avoiding kitniyot on Pesach. However, today, when potatoes are so readily available, there is no such need to be lenient.
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22A number of individuals on very strict diets have asked if they may eat kitniyot on Pesach. It may be possible to permit such individuals to consume boiled food items that are only questionably kitniyot, such as quinoa, soy, peanuts, and string beans, even if their custom is to refrain from these foods. Those for whom this is a relevant concern must seek competent rabbinical guidance.