Locard's Exchange Principle- "Every contact leaves a trace" The idea is that every encounter creates mutual physical consequences. When any object encounters another object, they will affect and leave a mark on each other. If you enter a space, you will leave a trace there, and the space will leave a trace on you. Maybe we should think of it as Reb Chaim Kanievsky's Exchange Principle.
Rav Chaim Kanievsky as quoted in Derech Sicha Parshas Vayeira
Chizkuni here (14:34)
Rav Chaim Kanievsky as quoted in Derech Sicha Parshas Vayeira
השוכר דירה מחילוני
שאלה שכר דירה של חילוני והדירה גמורה ומסויידת אם יעשה בה איזה שינוי כי שמא תהי' ח"ו איזו השפעה שלילית
תשובה כדאי לעשות בה איזה שינוי שיסייד שוב את חדר השינה
Chizkuni here (14:34)
כי תבואו אל ארץ כנען לא נאמר כי תבואו גבי נגעי אדם וכלים לפי שאף במדבר היו נוהגים אבל בנגעי בתים שלא היה להם במדבר נאמר כי תבואו אל ארץ כנען ד"א בשביל מעלת ארץ ישראל שהמקדש עתיד להיות בתוכה הוזקקה להיות נקייה וטהורה
ונתתי נגע צרעת י"מ לפי הפשט לפי שהזהיר להלן אבד תאבדון את כל המקומות אשר עבדו שם הגוים ואין אנו יודעים באי זה מקום עבדה לפיכך בא הנגע בבתים להודיע המקום שעבדו שם הכנענים כדי לאבדו
Kli Yakar here (14:34)
וי"א שטעם נגעי הבתים לפי שהאמוריים בנו בתיהם לשם ע"ז ע"כ הקב"ה מביא נגעים על הבתים כדי לנתוץ אותם ובזה נ"ל ליישב מדרש האומר כנגע נראה לי בבית זו ע"ז ילק"ש מצורע תקסג ודרש כל פר' זו על בהמ"ק שנחרב בעבור הע"ז שהעמידו שם כו' וכי יעלה על הדעת לומר שבעל מדרש זה דעתו להוציא כל הפר' מפשוטו ולפרשה על חורבן בהמ"ק אלא ודאי שגם דעתו ליתן טעם לנגעי בית בעבור שהאמוריים בנו אותם לשם ע"ז וע"כ הוא בא לידי נתיצה ומכאן למד לומר שגם בהמ"ק אשר בו העמיד מנשה הצלם בא לידי נתיצה בעון זה וכל הפרטים שנאמרו כאן נמצאו גם בחורבן הבית כמ"ש כאן ובא אשר לו הבית כך בחורבן בהמ"ק בא אשר לו הבית זה הקב"ה ובמ"ש כאן והגיד לכהן כך יגיד הקב"ה לירמיה מן הכהנים אשר בענתות וכמ"ש כאן כנגע נראה לי כך יאמר גם הקב"ה ובדרך זה מבואר כל המדרש והפסוקים כולם בפשוטם
ואין להקשות על טעם זה א"כ למה לא יבואו הנגעים על הבתים מיד בבואם לארץ בשלמא לטעמא דמטמוניות שמא אין בל בעל הבית זוכה לאותו מטמון תשובה לדבר שגם בביעור ע"ז מגלגלין זכות על ידי זכאי ודווקא אם ידור בבית איזו איש הגון מצד מעשיו אין נכון שידור הוא בבית שיש בו נדנוד ע"ז ונוכל לומר שפסוק זה בשורה טובה לישראל כמ"ש איכה ד"א כלה ה' את חמתו ויצת אש בציון וטובה זו היא שמכלה חמתו בעצים ואבנים ואינו נוגע בגופות כך בשורה וו בנגעי הבתים זה"ש כנגע נראה לי בבית בכף הדמיון כעין הנגע הראוי לבא עלי נראה לי בבית גם לטעם צרות העין אמר כעין נגע הראוי לבא על צרי העין והוא פיזור ממונם כך נראה לי בבית כי סופו לבא לידי שיפזר הכהן ממונו ומה שצוה ליקח לחטא הבית צפרים כבר אמרנו להורות שהעושה עשה יעשה לו כנפים כצפרים עפות אבל לרש"י שלא זכר כ"א מעשה פטיט קשה מה ענין זה לנגעי הבתים ע"כ אמרנו למעלה שהצפרים יש בהם רמז גם על המדת הממון הגורם רום לב ועל כן יקח גם עץ ארז
These are based, I assume, on the Zohar in the beginning of Tazria, who says that certain houses just need to be gotten rid of so that Klal Yisrael can have kedusha and hashra'as haShechina.
Remarks
1. It's worth noting that Nigei Battim cover a range of problems with a range of consequences. If there is just hesger, it probably comes from Lashon Hara and Tzarus Ayin. You do teshuva, it's done. If you have to tear out some stones, it is probably so you can find something hidden in the wall. It's only where the house is torn down that the idea of the Zohar/Chizkuni/Kli Yakar applies.
2. Nobody I know, and I know many people, ever ever dreamed of plastering their rooms to kasher them from the negative influence of the previous tenant or owner.
3. I would understand this more by sechirus than by kinyan, and Reb Chaim's case did involve sechirus. (The opposite is true by Keilim and food- there's no chiyuv tevilla by sechirus, but there is by kinyan. But this could be because tevilla would be a good thing by sechirus, but it simply won't accomplish anything, it's a waste of time. That's why if you own keilim shutfus with a goy there is no mitzva of tevilla.)
4. The Chizkuni/Kli Yakar only are true because of the din of אשריהם תשרפון באש and that is only because bittul doesn't help on the Avoda Zara in Eretz Yisrael, since the goyim were considered our shluchim- see AZ 53b. The dinim of אבד תאבדון and ונתצתם את מזבחתם ושברתם את מצבתם ואשריהם תשרפון באש ופסילי אלהיהם תגדעון are only because there was no din of bittul Many great yeshivos are in buildings that were built as churches, and they had someone be mevateil before the purchase closed. This is discussed in the Biyur HaGra in OC 649:3 based on Reish Lakish in AZ 47a, whether it is ma'us. The Rama paskens that lechatchila you should not use it.
5. Where did Reb Chaim get the idea that plastering makes a difference? From the Rambam in Tzara'as 15:1, who says that if after one week the nega is weaker, and the house is tahor, you still need to scrape off the are of the mark and re-plaster it. The Rash and the Rosh in Nega'im 13:1 require at least re-plastering the whole room and maybe more.
6. I've mentioned in the past the Reb Chaim Volozhiner was very makpid on a setting that was made with kedusha; Reb Elyah Lopian in his Lev Eliyahu II 232 brings from him that if you learn from a sefer written by a person who is not good, you might not be successful in your learning, and others bring in his name that learning in a room that was built and used for things that are inconsistent with Torah will not bring hatzlacha.
7. If you want to plaster your bedroom, zolst du zayn gezunt und shtark. People have different sensitivities. I have a friend (a rov and rosh yeshiva) that bought a house where a man murdered his wife, and he was so happy, he got it for a really low price because nobody wanted to buy it. As he said, the price was "slashed." On the other hand, my parents passed away in their house. My father in the study, and my mother seven years later in her bedroom. I use my father's study, even though I occasionally remember that morning of Rosh HaShanna when I came. But I don't anticipate being able to sleep in my mother's bedroom, where she was nifteres, for a while. But one of my daughters and my son in law did sleep there. So it's a matter of emotion and sensitivity, and perhaps that is what Reb Chaim was thinking about. Even Loccard was talking about microscopic fibers and flakes.
3. I would understand this more by sechirus than by kinyan, and Reb Chaim's case did involve sechirus. (The opposite is true by Keilim and food- there's no chiyuv tevilla by sechirus, but there is by kinyan. But this could be because tevilla would be a good thing by sechirus, but it simply won't accomplish anything, it's a waste of time. That's why if you own keilim shutfus with a goy there is no mitzva of tevilla.)
4. The Chizkuni/Kli Yakar only are true because of the din of אשריהם תשרפון באש and that is only because bittul doesn't help on the Avoda Zara in Eretz Yisrael, since the goyim were considered our shluchim- see AZ 53b. The dinim of אבד תאבדון and ונתצתם את מזבחתם ושברתם את מצבתם ואשריהם תשרפון באש ופסילי אלהיהם תגדעון are only because there was no din of bittul Many great yeshivos are in buildings that were built as churches, and they had someone be mevateil before the purchase closed. This is discussed in the Biyur HaGra in OC 649:3 based on Reish Lakish in AZ 47a, whether it is ma'us. The Rama paskens that lechatchila you should not use it.
5. Where did Reb Chaim get the idea that plastering makes a difference? From the Rambam in Tzara'as 15:1, who says that if after one week the nega is weaker, and the house is tahor, you still need to scrape off the are of the mark and re-plaster it. The Rash and the Rosh in Nega'im 13:1 require at least re-plastering the whole room and maybe more.
6. I've mentioned in the past the Reb Chaim Volozhiner was very makpid on a setting that was made with kedusha; Reb Elyah Lopian in his Lev Eliyahu II 232 brings from him that if you learn from a sefer written by a person who is not good, you might not be successful in your learning, and others bring in his name that learning in a room that was built and used for things that are inconsistent with Torah will not bring hatzlacha.
7. If you want to plaster your bedroom, zolst du zayn gezunt und shtark. People have different sensitivities. I have a friend (a rov and rosh yeshiva) that bought a house where a man murdered his wife, and he was so happy, he got it for a really low price because nobody wanted to buy it. As he said, the price was "slashed." On the other hand, my parents passed away in their house. My father in the study, and my mother seven years later in her bedroom. I use my father's study, even though I occasionally remember that morning of Rosh HaShanna when I came. But I don't anticipate being able to sleep in my mother's bedroom, where she was nifteres, for a while. But one of my daughters and my son in law did sleep there. So it's a matter of emotion and sensitivity, and perhaps that is what Reb Chaim was thinking about. Even Loccard was talking about microscopic fibers and flakes.
Some time after I bought our house I became aware that a previous owner was a meshumedes and (jewish) missionary. I asked a great Tzaddik whether I would have to be worried about bad השפעות (Reb Shalom Schvadron ז"ל brings from Reb Elya Lopian ז"ל that a house were a מחלל שבת lived can have adverse influence and future inhabitants)? He told me I can counteract it by learning תורה in every room.
ReplyDeleteHow interesting. Given the choice between plastering and learning, the latter is much more attractive.
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