by Rabbi Yair Hoffman Virtually everyone has heard someone use the expression, “Hey, that’s Bal Tashchis!” That expression is rather famous. But the expression has a lesser-known and less-famous cousin found in the beginning of meseches Yevamos (11b). And thus, very few people have ever heard anyone use the expression, “Hey, that’s Lo Yishpoch!” The expression comes from a statement of Rav Yoseph: “A person should not pour the water from his well when others need it – Lo yishpoch odom mei boro v’acheirim tzrichim lahem.” Although the context of the quote in the Gemorah refers to the best candidate in which one performs a Chalitzah ceremony, there seems to be a number of Poskim that applied the expression in general to pretty much everything. We Have All Had the Question That being the case, what should be done when cleaning out the closet? In the age of Marie Kondo, you have shirts or blouses that you just don’t wear any more. Can you throw them out or must you drop them off at the thrift shop – especially if that thrift shop takes a while to drop off? This author would like to suggest that one must still drop them off even though it may be time-consuming or bittul Torah. What about left-over food from a simcha? It seems that the same parameters would apply as well. [Shout-out to Reb Benny who has made this his Mitzvah!] Rav Aharon Kotler and the Cab There is a famous story of Rav Aharon Kotler zt”l wherein he hired a cab driver to take him somewhere. However, he hired the cab driver with one condition: The cab driver had to pick up anyone on the road that was also travelling there. When asked why he had made that condition, Rav Aharon zt”l answered, “I am concerned for the Gemorah in Yevamos of lo yishpoch – and do not wish to waste the other seats in the taxi.” There is no question that Rav Aharon Kotler was concerned about Bittul Torah. But each stop off to inquire of the person whether he needed a ride, and getting in and out most certainly added an extra 3 minutes to the ride. Multiply that by four (the extra seats in the cab) and you get at least 12 minutes. The Mishna Brurah and the Tzitzis The Chofetz Chaim himself in the Mishna Brurah (Hilchos Tzitzis 15:2) writes about a person who wishes to replace the tzitzis strings on his begged with cleaner, nicer looking tzitzis. The Chofetz Chaim writes that when replacing them, he should not cut them off and thereby destroy them – rather he should untie them. This is so that someone else may use the them and one would not be conducting himself in a manner that contradicts “lo yishpoch.” Untying tzitzis from a talis or talis kotton takes at least 3 minutes for each one. If we multiply that by four, you also get at least 12 minutes. We see, therefore, that even if it takes up time, we should still be concerned for “Lo Yishpoch.” The Little Girl and the Ohr Sameach There was once a little girl who was sent to Rav Meir Simcha zt”l of Dvinsk, the author of the Ohr Sameach, to ask a question about a plate […]