TISHA B'AV: Combatting Baseless Hatred

Sources texts on Tisha B'Av and Baseless Hatred

(יב) אֵיכָ֥ה אֶשָּׂ֖א לְבַדִּ֑י טׇרְחֲכֶ֥ם וּמַֽשַּׂאֲכֶ֖ם וְרִֽיבְכֶֽם׃

(12) How can I bear unaided the trouble of you, and the burden, and the bickering!

(כא) אֵיכָה֙ הָיְתָ֣ה לְזוֹנָ֔ה קִרְיָ֖ה נֶאֱמָנָ֑ה מְלֵֽאֲתִ֣י מִשְׁפָּ֗ט צֶ֛דֶק יָלִ֥ין בָּ֖הּ וְעַתָּ֥ה מְרַצְּחִֽים׃ (כב) כַּסְפֵּ֖ךְ הָיָ֣ה לְסִיגִ֑ים סׇבְאֵ֖ךְ מָה֥וּל בַּמָּֽיִם׃ (כג) שָׂרַ֣יִךְ סוֹרְרִ֗ים וְחַבְרֵי֙ גַּנָּבִ֔ים כֻּלּוֹ֙ אֹהֵ֣ב שֹׁ֔חַד וְרֹדֵ֖ף שַׁלְמֹנִ֑ים יָתוֹם֙ לֹ֣א יִשְׁפֹּ֔טוּ וְרִ֥יב אַלְמָנָ֖ה לֹא־יָב֥וֹא אֲלֵיהֶֽם׃ {ס}

Isaiah 1:21-23

(21) Alas, she has become a harlot, The faithful city That was filled with justice, Where righteousness dwelt— But now murderers. (22) Your silver has turned to dross; Your wine is cut with water. (23) Your rulers are rogues And cronies of thieves, Every one avid for presents And greedy for gifts; They do not judge the case of the orphan, And the widow’s cause never reaches them.

תענית כ״ו ב:ב׳-ג׳

בְּתִשְׁעָה בְּאָב נִגְזַר עַל אֲבוֹתֵינוּ שֶׁלֹּא יִכָּנְסוּ לָאָרֶץ וְחָרַב הַבַּיִת בָּרִאשׁוֹנָה וּבַשְּׁנִיָּה וְנִלְכְּדָה בֵּיתֵּר וְנֶחְרְשָׁה הָעִיר מִשֶּׁנִּכְנָס אָב מְמַעֲטִין בְּשִׂמְחָה שַׁבָּת שֶׁחָל תִּשְׁעָה בְּאָב לִהְיוֹת בְּתוֹכָהּ אָסוּר מִלְּסַפֵּר וּמִלְּכַבֵּס וּבַחֲמִישִׁי מוּתָּרִין מִפְּנֵי כְּבוֹד הַשַּׁבָּת עֶרֶב תִּשְׁעָה בְּאָב לֹא יֹאכַל אָדָם שְׁנֵי תַבְשִׁילִין לֹא יֹאכַל בָּשָׂר וְלֹא יִשְׁתֶּה יַיִן רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר יְשַׁנֶּה רַבִּי יְהוּדָה מְחַיֵּיב בִּכְפִיַּית הַמִּטָּה וְלֹא הוֹדוּ לוֹ חֲכָמִים

Taanit 26b:2-3

On the Ninth of Av it was decreed upon our ancestors that they would all die in the wilderness and not enter Eretz Yisrael; and the Temple was destroyed the first time, in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, and the second time, by the Romans; and Beitar was captured; and the city of Jerusalem was plowed, as a sign that it would never be rebuilt. Not only does one fast on the Ninth of Av, but from when the month of Av begins, one decreases acts of rejoicing. During the week in which the Ninth of Av occurs, it is prohibited to cut one’s hair and to launder clothes, but if the Ninth of Av occurs on a Friday, on Thursday these actions are permitted in deference to Shabbat. On the eve of the Ninth of Av a person may not eat two cooked dishes in one meal. Furthermore, one may neither eat meat nor drink wine. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: One must adjust and decrease the amount he eats. Rabbi Yehuda obligates one to overturn the bed and sleep on the floor like one in a state of mourning, but the Rabbis did not agree with him.

תענית כ״ט א:ט׳-י׳

וְתַנְיָא אִי אֶפְשָׁר לוֹמַר בְּשִׁבְעָה שֶׁהֲרֵי כְּבָר נֶאֱמַר בֶּעָשׂוֹר וְאִי אֶפְשָׁר לוֹמַר בֶּעָשׂוֹר שֶׁהֲרֵי כְּבָר נֶאֱמַר בְּשִׁבְעָה הָא כֵּיצַד בְּשִׁבְעָה נִכְנְסוּ נׇכְרִים לַהֵיכָל וְאָכְלוּ וְקִלְקְלוּ בּוֹ שְׁבִיעִי שְׁמִינִי וּתְשִׁיעִי סָמוּךְ לַחֲשֵׁיכָה הֵצִיתוּ בּוֹ אֶת הָאוּר וְהָיָה דּוֹלֵק וְהוֹלֵךְ כׇּל הַיּוֹם כּוּלּוֹ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר אוֹי לָנוּ כִּי פָנָה הַיּוֹם כִּי יִנָּטוּ צִלְלֵי עָרֶב וְהַיְינוּ דְּאָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אִלְמָלֵי הָיִיתִי בְּאוֹתוֹ הַדּוֹר לֹא קְבַעְתִּיו אֶלָּא בָּעֲשִׂירִי מִפְּנֵי שֶׁרוּבּוֹ שֶׁל הֵיכָל בּוֹ נִשְׂרַף וְרַבָּנַן אַתְחַלְתָּא דְפוּרְעֲנוּתָא עֲדִיפָא

Taanit 29a:9-10

And it is taught in a baraita: It is impossible to say that the Temple was burned on the seventh of Av, as it has already been stated, in Jeremiah, that it was destroyed on the tenth. And it is also impossible to say that the Temple was burned on the tenth of Av, as it has already been stated that it was destroyed on the seventh, in II Kings 25:8–9. How so; what actually occurred? On the seventh of Av, gentiles entered the Sanctuary, and on the seventh and the eighth they ate there and desecrated it, by engaging in acts of fornication. And on the ninth, adjacent to nightfall, they set fire to it, and it continuously burned the entire day, as it is stated: “Woe unto us, for the day has declined, for the shadows of the evening are stretched out” (Jeremiah 4:6). This verse is interpreted as a prophecy about the evening when the Temple was burned. And this is what Rabbi Yoḥanan meant when he said: Had I been alive in that generation, I would have established the fast only on the tenth of Av because most of the Sanctuary was burned on that day. And the Sages, who established the fast on the ninth, how do they respond to that comment? They maintain that it is preferable to mark the beginning of the tragedy.

מסכת סופרים י״ח:ז׳

והקורא אומר ברוך דיין האמת ויש שמניחין את התורה על הקרקע (באבילות) [בעטיפה] שחורה ואומר נפלה עטרת ראשנו וקורין ומספידין כאדם שמתו מוטל לפניו ויש שמשנין את מקומן ויש שיורדין מספסליהם למטה וכולן מתפלשין באפר ואין אומרים שלום זה לזה כל הלילה וכל היום עד שישלימו העם קינותיהם בשעת הקינות אסור לספר דבר ולצאת לחוץ כדי שלא יפסיק לבו מן האבלות (וכן כל) [וכל] שכן לשוח עם הנכרי:

Tractate Soferim 18:7

The reader on the Ninth of Ab says, ‘Blessed … the true Judge’. Some place the Torah scroll on the ground in a black wrapping and say, The crown is fallen from our head. The reading and the lamentations are carried out as with a man whose dead lies before him. Some change their [customary] places [in the Synagogue]; others descend from their benches, and all of them roll in ashes and do not greet one another throughout the night and also throughout the day until the people have finished their lamentations. During the recital of the lamentations it is forbidden to speak [any irrelevant] word, or to go outside [the Synagogue], lest one’s mind be diverted from the mourning; and it is obvious that no conversation with a Gentile is permitted.

תענית ל׳ א:י׳

תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן כׇּל מִצְוֹת הַנּוֹהֲגוֹת בְּאָבֵל נוֹהֲגוֹת בְּתִשְׁעָה בְּאָב אָסוּר בַּאֲכִילָה וּבִשְׁתִיָּה וּבְסִיכָה וּבִנְעִילַת הַסַּנְדָּל וּבְתַשְׁמִישׁ הַמִּטָּה וְאָסוּר לִקְרוֹת בַּתּוֹרָה בַּנְּבִיאִים וּבַכְּתוּבִים וְלִשְׁנוֹת בַּמִּשְׁנָה בַּתַּלְמוּד וּבַמִּדְרָשׁ וּבָהֲלָכוֹת וּבָאַגָּדוֹת

Taanit 30a:10

The Sages taught: All mitzvot practiced by a mourner are likewise practiced on the Ninth of Av: It is prohibited to engage in eating, and in drinking, and in smearing oil on one’s body, and in wearing shoes, and in conjugal relations. It is prohibited to read from the Torah, from the Prophets, and from the Writings, or to study from the Mishna, from the Gemara, and from midrash, and from collections of halakhot, and from collections of aggadot.

איכה ה׳:כ״א-כ״ב

(כא) הֲשִׁיבֵ֨נוּ יְהֹוָ֤ה ׀ אֵלֶ֙יךָ֙ (ונשוב) [וְֽנָשׁ֔וּבָה] חַדֵּ֥שׁ יָמֵ֖ינוּ כְּקֶֽדֶם׃ (כב) כִּ֚י אִם־מָאֹ֣ס מְאַסְתָּ֔נוּ קָצַ֥פְתָּ עָלֵ֖ינוּ עַד־מְאֹֽד׃
השיבנו יהוה אליך ונשובה חדש ימינו כקדם

Lamentations 5:21-22

(21) Take us back, O LORD, to Yourself, And let us come back; Renew our days as of old! (22) For truly, You have rejected us, Bitterly raged against us. Take us back, O LORD, to Yourself, And let us come back; Renew our days as of old!

גיטין נ״ה ב:ט״ז

אמר רבי יוחנן מאי דכתיב (משלי כח, יד) אשרי אדם מפחד תמיד ומקשה לבו יפול ברעה אקמצא ובר קמצא חרוב ירושלים אתרנגולא ותרנגולתא חרוב טור מלכא אשקא דריספק חרוב ביתר

Gittin 55b:16

§ Apropos the war that led to the destruction of the Second Temple, the Gemara examines several aspects of the destruction of that Temple in greater detail: Rabbi Yoḥanan said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “Happy is the man who fears always, but he who hardens his heart shall fall into mischief” (Proverbs 28:14)? Jerusalem was destroyed on account of Kamtza and bar Kamtza. The place known as the King’s Mountain was destroyed on account of a rooster and a hen. The city of Beitar was destroyed on account of a shaft from a chariot [rispak].

גיטין נ״ו א:א׳-ד׳

אמר ליה לא אמר ליה יהיבנא לך דמי פלגא דסעודתיך אמר ליה לא אמר ליה יהיבנא לך דמי כולה סעודתיך א"ל לא נקטיה בידיה ואוקמיה ואפקיה אמר הואיל והוו יתבי רבנן ולא מחו ביה ש"מ קא ניחא להו איזיל איכול בהו קורצא בי מלכא אזל אמר ליה לקיסר מרדו בך יהודאי א"ל מי יימר א"ל שדר להו קורבנא חזית אי מקרבין ליה אזל שדר בידיה עגלא תלתא בהדי דקאתי שדא ביה מומא בניב שפתים ואמרי לה בדוקין שבעין דוכתא דלדידן הוה מומא ולדידהו לאו מומא הוא סבור רבנן לקרוביה משום שלום מלכות אמר להו רבי זכריה בן אבקולס יאמרו בעלי מומין קריבין לגבי מזבח סבור למיקטליה דלא ליזיל ולימא אמר להו רבי זכריה יאמרו מטיל מום בקדשים יהרג

Gittin 56a:1-4

The host said to him: No, you must leave. Bar Kamtza said to him: I will give you money for half of the feast; just do not send me away. The host said to him: No, you must leave. Bar Kamtza then said to him: I will give you money for the entire feast; just let me stay. The host said to him: No, you must leave. Finally, the host took bar Kamtza by his hand, stood him up, and took him out. After having been cast out from the feast, bar Kamtza said to himself: Since the Sages were sitting there and did not protest the actions of the host, although they saw how he humiliated me, learn from it that they were content with what he did. I will therefore go and inform [eikhul kurtza] against them to the king. He went and said to the emperor: The Jews have rebelled against you. The emperor said to him: Who says that this is the case? Bar Kamtza said to him: Go and test them; send them an offering to be brought in honor of the government, and see whether they will sacrifice it. The emperor went and sent with him a choice three-year-old calf. While bar Kamtza was coming with the calf to the Temple, he made a blemish on the calf’s upper lip. And some say he made the blemish on its eyelids, a place where according to us, i.e., halakha, it is a blemish, but according to them, gentile rules for their offerings, it is not a blemish. Therefore, when bar Kamtza brought the animal to the Temple, the priests would not sacrifice it on the altar since it was blemished, but they also could not explain this satisfactorily to the gentile authorities, who did not consider it to be blemished. The blemish notwithstanding, the Sages thought to sacrifice the animal as an offering due to the imperative to maintain peace with the government. Rabbi Zekharya ben Avkolas said to them: If the priests do that, people will say that blemished animals may be sacrificed as offerings on the altar. The Sages said: If we do not sacrifice it, then we must prevent bar Kamtza from reporting this to the emperor. The Sages thought to kill him so that he would not go and speak against them. Rabbi Zekharya said to them: If you kill him, people will say that one who makes a blemish on sacrificial animals is to be killed. As a result, they did nothing, bar Kamtza’s slander was accepted by the authorities, and consequently the war between the Jews and the Romans began.

יומא ט׳ ב:ח׳

אֲבָל מִקְדָּשׁ שֵׁנִי שֶׁהָיוּ עוֹסְקִין בְּתוֹרָה וּבְמִצְוֹת וּגְמִילוּת חֲסָדִים, מִפְּנֵי מָה חָרַב? מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהָיְתָה בּוֹ שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם. לְלַמֶּדְךָ שֶׁשְּׁקוּלָה שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם כְּנֶגֶד שָׁלֹשׁ עֲבֵירוֹת: עֲבוֹדָה זָרָה, גִּלּוּי עֲרָיוֹת, וּשְׁפִיכוּת דָּמִים.

Yoma 9b:8

However, considering that the people during the Second Temple period were engaged in Torah study, observance of mitzvot, and acts of kindness, and that they did not perform the sinful acts that were performed in the First Temple, why was the Second Temple destroyed? It was destroyed due to the fact that there was wanton hatred during that period. This comes to teach you that the sin of wanton hatred is equivalent to the three severe transgressions: Idol worship, forbidden sexual relations and bloodshed.

קב הישר ט״ו:ב׳

(ב) וְהַכֹּל הוּא בַּעֲווֹן שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם, אֲשֶׁר עַל עֲווֹן שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם אָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה בְּמַסֶּכֶת יוֹמָא (ט, ב), דַּעֲווֹן שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם הוּא גָּדוֹל מֵעֲווֹן עֲבוֹדַת כּוֹכָבִים וְגִלּוּי עֲרָיוֹת וּשְׁפִיכוּת דָּמִים. וְהָעֲווֹן שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם הוּא בָּא בִּשְׁבִיל קוֹל וְדִבּוּר הַיּוֹצֵא מִפִּיו, וְהוּא פֶּה הַמֻּרְגָּל לְקַלֵּל בְּנֵי אָדָם, וּבִמְעַט וִכּוּחַ שֶׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ עִם חֲבֵרוֹ, אֲזַי תֵּכֶף מִתְמַלֵּא בְּאַף וְחֵמָה, בּוֹעֵר בִּקְלָלוֹת כְּגַחֲלֵי אֵשׁ, וְאֵינוֹ יוֹדֵעַ שֶׁהוּא בְּעַצְמוֹ מְסַכֵּן נַפְשׁוֹ וְנַפְשׁוֹת אַנְשֵׁי בֵּיתוֹ, וְגוֹרֵם רָעָה לְעַצְמוֹ. כִּי הוּא עִנְיָן מְבֹאָר בַּזֹּהַר, פָּרָשַׁת קְדוֹשִׁים, כִּי קוֹל דִּבּוּר שֶׁל קְלָלָה, שֶׁיּוֹצֵא מִפִּיו, אָזִיל וְשָׁאט בַּאֲוִירָא דְּעָלְמָא עַד דְּמִתְחַבֵּר עִמֵּיהּ רוּחַ רָעָה, רַחֲמָנָא לִצְלַן, וְאָזִיל בַּהֲדֵיהּ לְנוּקְבֵיהּ שֶׁבִּתְהוֹמָא רַבָּא, אֲשֶׁר שָׁם הוּא מְדוֹרוֹת הַמַּזִּיקִין, שֶׁהֵן מוּכָנִין לְפֻרְעָנִיּוֹת, בַּר מִנַּן, וְעוֹמְדִים וּמְצַפִּים שֶׁיָּבוֹא הָעֵת וּזְמַן, אֲשֶׁר יָבוֹא מַזָּלֵיהּ הַגָּרוּעַ שֶׁל זֶה הָאִישׁ, הַמֻּרְגָּל בִּקְלָלוֹת וּבְדָבָר קַל, אֲפִלּוּ כְּחוּט הַשְּׂעָרָה, וּמִיָּד מְעוֹרְרִים עָלָיו גְּזֵרוֹת, בַּר מִנַּן, לְהִנָּזֵק בְּמָמוֹנוֹ אוֹ בְּגוּפוֹת נַפְשׁוֹת בֵּיתוֹ, חַס וְשָׁלוֹם. וּכְבָר כָּתַבְנוּ לְעֵיל, בְּפֶרֶק ז, שֶׁכָּל אָדָם שֶׁהוּא מֻרְגָּל לְהוֹצִיא מִפִּיו קְלָלוֹת, אֵין לוֹ נְשָׁמָה מִשֹּׁרֶשׁ הַקְּדֻשָּׁה, כִּי אִם מִשֹּׁרֶשׁ נָחָשׁ, שֶׁהוּא שֹׁרֶשׁ שֶׁל סִטְרָא אָחֳרָא, וְיֵשׁ לוֹ לִדְאֹג עַל הַרְבֵּה פֻּרְעָנֻיּוֹת, שֶׁיָּבוֹא עָלָיו, חַס וְשָׁלוֹם, עַיֵּן שָׁם. וְיֵשׁ לְךָ אָדָם שֶׁפִּיו דִּילֵיהּ הוּא שָׁמוּר וְגָדוּר מֵהוֹצָאוֹת קְלָלוֹת, וּמַרְגִּיל אֶת עַצְמוֹ תָּמִיד בִּבְרָכוֹת, אֲזַי בְּוַדַּאי נִשְׁמָתוֹ הִיא מִשֹּׁרֶשׁ קְדֻשָּׁה מְאֹד, וְיִהְיֶה בָּטוּחַ שֶׁהוּא בֶּן עוֹלָם הַבָּא.

Kav HaYashar 15:2

(2) The cause of all this is baseless hatred, which the Sages have said outweighs the sins of idolatry, sexual immorality and bloodshed (Yoma 9b). Baseless hatred is aroused by the voice and by the words that come from a person’s mouth, in particular from a mouth that is accustomed to curse people. Then even a minor disagreement with a colleague will immediately fill him with wrath and indignation and cause his curses to burn like coals. What he does not realize is that he is in fact endangering his own soul and the souls of his family members and bringing great evil upon himself. For it is stated explicitly in the Zohar (Parashas Kedoshim 85a) that every curse that leaves a person’s mouth goes and floats about the world until it links up with an evil spirit, Heaven spare us. Then it descends into the great chasm where the destructive spirits dwell, always prepared to bring suffering upon someone. They stand there watching for an opportune moment when the astrological fortune of the habitual imprecator takes a turn for the worse. Then they immediately call down upon him evil decrees, Heaven spare us, causing injury to his property or his person or to the members of his household. We have already mentioned in the third chapter that if a person is accustomed to uttering curses it is a sign that his soul does not derive from a holy source but from the primordial snake, which is the source of the Sitrah Acharah. Such a person has cause, therefore, to be concerned lest he be beset by many afflictions. On the other hand, if a person guards his mouth, not allowing it to utter curses but accustoming himself to uttering blessings instead, he can be certain that his soul emanates from a very holy source and that he is worthy of the World to Come.

Gary Bretton-Granatoor

Topics