Epic Fury, Roar of the Lion, and the Mission You Took Part in

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman

The United States launched Epic Fury. Israel launched Roar of the Lion. And now you too can partake in the mission to protect everyone from tyranny. Not just by saying Tehillim, but by the most powerful tool known to man – Torah. The operation presented below has the same name as the latter mission.  The Roar of the Lion or the Shaages Aryeh.  Learning Torah has a protective effect. So let’s learn the 12^th Siman in the Sefer Shaages Aryeh.

Rav Aryeh Leib ben Asher Gunzberg (c. 1695–1785) was a Torah giant whose brilliance and fierce independence earned him a place among the greatest minds of his era. Known universally by the title of his masterwork, the Shaagas Aryeh — “The Roar of a Lion” — he lived up to his name in every sense.

Born in Lithuania, the Shaagas Aryeh founded a yeshiva in Minsk, served as Rav in Volozhin — where the legendary Reb Chaim of Volozhin learned under him — and ultimately became Rav of Metz, France, where he served until his passing at approximately ninety years of age.

He was a man of towering principle who never bent to political pressure. The Chassidim considered him the definitive talmid chacham of the generation, and the Besht himself is said to have sought him out and served him with reverence.

His sefer Shaagas Aryeh, first published in 1755, remains a cornerstone of halachic discourse to this day, quoted constantly in batei midrash worldwide — particularly in areas of Orach Chaim. His Turei Even and Gevuras Ari on multiple masechtos continue to sharpen the minds of lomdim everywhere.

Siman 12 – Are Women Obligated to Remember the Exodus?

1) The Mishna’s Teaching on Remembering the Exodus at Night

The Mishna at the end of the first Perek of Brachos (12b) teaches that we remember the Exodus at night. R’ Elazar b. Azarya states that he was like seventy years old and did not know the source for remembering the Exodus at night until Ben Zoma expounded the verse (Devarim 16:3): “the days of your life” refers to the daytime, and “all the days of your life” comes to include the nights.

The Dispute Between Ben Zoma and the Chachamim

The Chachamim, however, disagree. They interpret “the days of your life” as referring to this world, and “all the days of your life” as coming to include the days of Moshiach (see Brachos 12b; Rambam, Hilchos Krias Shma 1:3).

Ruling Like Ben Zoma

At first glance, one might think the Halacha follows the Chachamim, since they are the majority. And although the unnamed Mishna appears to follow Ben Zoma, we have a principle that we do not rule like a Stam Mishna (unnamed Mishna) when a machlokes follows it (see Yevamos 42b; Kesef Mishneh, Hilchos Krias Shma 1:3).

Nevertheless, it is clear that the Halacha is like Ben Zoma. The Stam Gemara in the second Perek of Brachos (21a) assumes his position, asking: according to the opinion that one does not recite Parshas Tzitzis at night and does not say Emes v’Yatziv either — how does one fulfill the obligation to remember the Exodus at night? The Gemara answers that there is an alternative version of the bracha after Shma — “we thank You, Hashem, Who took us out of Egypt, etc.” This demonstrates that the Stam Gemara takes it as a given that we are obligated to remember the Exodus at night, in accordance with Ben Zoma (see also Tosafos, Brachos 12b, s.v. “She’ne’emar”).

The Rambam’s Ruling

The Rambam (Hilchos Krias Shma 1:3) rules accordingly, stating that because of this obligation to remember the Exodus at night, we recite Parshas Tzitzis at night even though the mitzvah of Tzitzis itself does not apply at night (see also Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 67:1; Mishnah Berurah 67:1).

The Initial Argument That Women Should Be Obligated

If it is established that remembering the Exodus applies at night as well, then women should be obligated in this mitzvah, since it would not be classified as a mitzvas asei she’hazman grama (a positive time-bound commandment) — there is no time when one is exempt, as the obligation spans both day and night (see Kiddushin 34a for the general principle of women’s exemption from time-bound mitzvos).

Although Krias Shma itself applies both day and night, women are still exempt from it because it has specific time constraints — the Mishna teaches this, and the reason is that it is not applicable all day. The night Shma lasts the whole night, from Tzeis HaKochavim to dawn, according to the opinion of R’ Gamliel in the first Mishna (Brachos 2a), who we Paskin like (see Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 235:3). But the day Shma is only applicable part of the day — it is only until sunrise according to R’ Eliezer, and until the third hour according to R’ Yehoshua (Brachos 9b; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 58:1; Mishnah Berurah 58:1).

However, the obligation to remember the Exodus during the night is the whole night, and to remember the Exodus during the day is the whole day, as explained in earlier Simanim. If so, it is a positive Mitzvah that is not time-based, and therefore women should be obligated to remember the Exodus.

2) Why Don’t Our Women Remember the Exodus in Practice?

However, we must ask: why don’t our women remember the Exodus in practice? After all, they don’t read Shma and its Brachos since they’re exempt from them (see Brachos 20b; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 70:1), and they don’t read anything else to fulfill remembering the Exodus. It would be applicable to apply the principle stated regarding a different Halacha in Pesachim (116a): “although they’re not prophets, they’re children of prophets, so leave them in their practice” (see also Tosafos, Pesachim 66a, s.v. “Elah”).

So, even though it seems that they should be obligated, upon further inspection we must say they’re not obligated. After all, the Mishna says that women are exempt from Shma, and this implies that they are also exempt from the brachos before and after Shma (see Brachos 20b; Rambam, Hilchos Krias Shma 1:2).

Chazal’s Enactment for Remembering the Exodus

We also see that Chazal enacted a specific framework for the man to be Yotzei remembering the Exodus — either to say Parshas Tzitzis, as Rashi (Brachos 12b) and the Rambam (Hilchos Krias Shma 1:3) say, or as explained in an earlier Siman, it is the third Bracha of Shma. As we brought a proof from the above Gemara, at night one doesn’t need to say Parshas Tzitzis, and in order to be Yotzei remembering the Exodus, they enacted a different text for the third Bracha: “we thank You, Hashem, Who took us out of Egypt, etc.”

So, Chazal enacted the third Bracha to be Yotzei remembering the Exodus. They enacted it as a specific text that every man should say, and didn’t leave each one to say it as he sees fit. So why didn’t they enact some text for women to say as well? It must be because they’re exempt, since it is a positive time-based Mitzvah (see Magen Avraham 70:1).

3) Why Remembering the Exodus Is Still Considered Time-Based

Although we Paskin like Ben Zoma that we must remember the Exodus both day and night, it is still a time-based Mitzvah. After all, the obligation to remember it by day is only applicable until nightfall — afterwards, the obligation ceases. Although one needs to remember it during the night, that is a new, separate obligation, not based on the original daytime obligation.

The same applies in reverse: if you don’t say the night remembrance until daybreak, the time for that obligation has ceased, and you don’t need to say it by day. Although you need to remember during the day, that is a new Mitzvah. Therefore, the day and night remembrances are different Mitzvos, as they require two separate remembrances (see Turei Even, Megillah 20b; Sha’agas Aryeh, Siman 12–13). Since the day remembrance can’t be done at night, and the night remembrance can’t be done by day, they are both time-based positive Mitzvos from which women are exempt.

4) The Magen Avraham’s Question Based on the Kesef Mishna

The Magen Avraham (Orach Chaim 67:1) quotes the Kesef Mishna (Hilchos Krias Shma 1:3) who asks: why do we Darshen from Shma that “when you sleep” refers to anytime you’re sleeping, and “when you get up” is only when you rise, and not the whole time when you’re up? We must say that the specific times for Shma are only rabbinic, and the verse is merely an Asmachta. From the Torah, you may say Shma the whole day.

A proof to this approach: if you didn’t read Shma before three hours in the day, you don’t lose saying the Brachos of Shma (see Brachos 10b; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 58:6; Mishnah Berurah 58:25). If it’s true that the time of Shma is only until the third hour, then those Brachos would be L’vatala — for no reason.

The Magen Avraham asks on this: if so, one is obligated from the Torah to say Shma all day and all night, and women should be obligated to say Shma according to this, but the Gemara (Brachos 20b) says that they’re exempt since it’s a time-based positive Mitzvah!

5) Resolving the Kesef Mishna’s Position

However, although the Kesef Mishna is incorrect, and this is not the place to be lengthy in explaining why, this is not a proper question on him. After all, even if you say that the Mitzvah of Shma by night is the whole night, and the Mitzvah of Shma by day is all day, it is still a time-based positive Mitzvah. That’s because the night Shma is not applicable during the day, and the day Shma is not applicable at night (see Sha’agas Aryeh, Siman 12; Turei Even, Megillah 20b). Each is a separate, time-bound obligation, and therefore women remain exempt.

The Magen Avraham’s Attempted Proof from Tefila

Although the Magen Avraham brings a proof from Tefila that this type of mitzvah is considered not time-based, it is not really a proof, as we will explain. The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 106:1) says that despite the fact that women and slaves are exempt from Shma, they are obligated in Tefila since it’s not a time-based Mitzvah (see also Rambam, Hilchos Tefila 1:1–2; Mishnah Berurah 106:4). The Magen Avraham understands this to mean: since Shachris and Mincha together make up the whole day, and Maariv is during the whole night, they’re applicable always when combined. So, we see you can combine different times that you’re obligated to do the same Mitzvah to say that it always applies. So, we can say the same by Shma — since you’re obligated from the Torah (according to the Kesef Mishna) to say it all day, and you’re obligated to say Shma during the whole night, we combine them together to say they apply always.

Refuting the Proof from Tefila

However, this can’t be. For if so, we should combine the obligation to remember the Exodus during the whole night to the obligation to remember the Exodus during the whole day, which would make women obligated. But we already proved that they’re exempt, so we must say that they don’t combine to make it not time-based.

Also, we can’t say that the reason the Shulchan Aruch considers Tefila not time-based is because we combine all the Tefilos together. After all, we hold that Maariv is not an obligation, but voluntary (reshus) (see Brachos 27b; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 235:1; Rambam, Hilchos Tefila 1:6). Therefore, we have no obligation to pray during the whole night. Although Tosafos (Brachos 27b, s.v. “D’Rav”) explains that it’s not completely voluntary and you shouldn’t miss it for no reason (but unless there is another pressing Mitzvah, since it’s a Mitzvah to say it), it’s still not a proof.

After all, we Paskin like R’ Yehuda who holds that Shachris is only until four hours into the day (see Brachos 26a; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 89:1; Mishnah Berurah 89:5). Therefore, from the fourth hour until the sixth hour, which is the real time for Mincha (although the Rabbis obligate you not to start until a half hour later — see Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 233:1), is not a time for Tefila. Therefore, Tefila is a time-based Mitzvah.

The Correct Understanding of the Shulchan Aruch

Rather, we must say that the Shulchan Aruch is not explained like the Magen Avraham’s understanding. Rather, it’s based on the Rambam (Hilchos Tefila 1:1–2) who says that, from the Torah, you’re obligated to Daven once a day, anytime during the day or night. If so, the Torah obligation to Daven is not time-based. Therefore, although the rabbinical times to Daven are time-based, still, they enacted it for all who are obligated in the Torah’s obligation (see Ramban, Hasagos L’Sefer HaMitzvos, Asei 5; Megillas Esther ad loc.).

This is also implied by the Gemara (Brachos 20b), which says that women are obligated in Tefila since it’s Davening for mercy (see also Rashi, Brachos 20b, s.v. “D’Rachamei”). This seems to say: although it’s a time-based Mitzvah to read the individual Tefilos, still, they enacted it so that they should Daven for mercy.

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