Parshas Vayikrah - Just Salt Here

My children tend to use an excessive amount of salt in their food. No matter what is served, their first instinct seems to be to grab the salt-shaker and pour. In a world where the supermarket offers a diverse selection of salts, they are generally out of touch with the incredible properties of this mineral.

In Parshas Vayikra, salt is mentioned in one pasuk - which, in a parsha that seems quite repetitious in its wording, should draw our attention. “And all of your meal offerings you shall salt; you shall not omit the salt of the covenant with your God, with all of your offerings you shall offer salt” (Vayikra 2:13).

Vayikra 2, where this verse is found, is a discussion of the Mincha offering, which accompanied the sacrifices. The mincha offering was a meal offering that was generally composed of flour, oil, and frankincense.. and, it seems, salt.

Commentators such as Rabbi Shimshon Rephael Hirsh make it a point to note that there is no bris related to salt but rather that here the Torah is comparing the covenant between Bnei Yisrael and Hashem to salt. The metaphor here is to the preservative nature of salt, which can conserve food for exceptionally long period of time. The bris of Hashem, the Torah and His promises to the Jewish people, is that which sustain us.

Rav Hirsh notes that salt is both a preservative and a corrosive, and, therefore, states: “If we…remember that decay is nothing but the working of the beginning of a new structure, we can take salt generally to represent unchangeableness. It closes an object into itself, and renders it not susceptible to exterior changing influences. To that extent it completely expresses the idea of bris, the basic underlying meaning of which [is]…to be separated and apart, quite independent and unaffected by outside influences.”

There are many fascinating characteristics one can discuss about salt. Most famously, it is an essential element in food preparation, not only because it enhances both taste and texture, but also because it acts as a binder.

 Additionally, when studying the Torah, one finds that salt has a linguistically fascinating feature. The Hebrew word Malach (salt) is a homonym for Malach, which means rule. The covenant between Hashem and Bnei Yisrael, His specific constitution (lhavdeel) for our people, is our preservation. The Torah is ever enduring. One could say further that our minhagim and our traditions are that which enhance the taste and texture of our lives. Finally, the decree to salt is reserved for the mincha offering, for the offering that accompanied almost every other type of sacrifice, because the karbanos bound us to Hashem and raised up our love for Him.

 We do not have a Beis Hakidash today, and we may have a hard time envisioning the actual offering of the avodah. Nevertheless, we place the salt upon our tables and we dip our challah in salt so that we, too, can be constantly reminded of the incredible power of the Torah and the ever-enduring relationship of Hashem and His people.

 

Shabbat Shalom.