Pesachim 76 a, b

So here is where the cooking rules come from!  Today's daf introduces some of the discussions that led to halachot regarding mixing of kosher and non-kosher foods and beverages. Of course we already know that we are told not to mix dairy and meat -- or, to be specific, a lamb and its mother's milk. But how did that Torah law evolve into the vast array of halachot regarding kashrut?  

We are told that rabbis initially disagree about what to do when a permitted food falls into a prohibited food, and when a forbidden food falls into a permitted food.  Of course, there is not a simple answer.  The rabbis believe that the temperature, aroma, placement, etc. of the foods will determine whether or not the permitted food has absorbed something prohibited.  They debate about the impact of many factors including hot vs. cold foods, amounts of food, which food is physically above the other, the entire food item vs. the outer layer, the significance of aroma, and the porousness of different foods.

All of this to understand what should be done if gravy from a Paschal lamb falls and heats to the point that it might heat the lamb itself, leading to cooking instead of roasting the offering.  

I love the lasting effect that these halachot have had on our ritual practice.  For example, we are not supposed to cook dairy and meat together in the same oven because the aroma of one can be absorbed by the other.  However, there are circumstances where this is permitted.  Today, what do we do?  Although there may be permission from the rabbis to cook both together, most Jews who attempt to keep the laws of Kashrut will not put both dairy and meat in the same over.  Why not?  We don't know.  We just don't do it.

Being able to read the arguments between our Sages allows me to understand the origins and the intentions of these halachot.  I so wish that I had been introduced to this level of depth when I was taught about the laws.  The boring, binding, "because it says so" presentations would have been replaced by, "even our rabbis disagreed about this.  This is what each of them said, and this is why the halacha was based on Shmuel's argument."

The end of today's daf is a mishna and the beginning of the Gemara.  The mishna tells us that five items can be brought to the Temple in a state of ritual impurity BUT cannot be eaten in that state: the omer, the two loaves of Shavuot, the shrewbread each week, the communal peace-offerings of Shavuot, and the goats sacrificed on Rosh Chodesh.  However, the Paschal lamb is eaten in a state of ritual impurity when it has been brought in a state of ritual impurity.

Certainly we will continue to look at the possible meanings behind this mishna. 

A short note about aroma and OCD: I have long believed that Judaism is the perfect religion for someone struggling with OCD who wants a healthy outlet for those behaviours.  The question of the significance of aroma is a great example.  Does the substance of one thing enter another thing if the aroma enters that same thing?  Or is aroma somehow detached from the essence of its source?  How far apart, then, should we keep two items that might be influenced by the other's scent?  It is enough to make a person want to run in circles!  But without worrying about the practical implications, this is a fascinating question.