Shulchan Aruch: Chapter 527 - The Laws [Pertaining to] an Eruv Tavshilin

SECTION 527 The Laws [Pertaining to] an Eruv Tavshilin (1-30)

1 Although it is forbidden to perform [any melachah,] even melachos associated with the preparation of food for the night after the festival [on the festival],1 nevertheless, [more lenient laws apply] if a festival falls on Friday.

According to [Scriptural] Law, it would be permitted to perform melachos on the festival for the sake of the Shabbos that follows it. [The reason for this license is] that one who cooks (or performs other melachos) on a festival for the sake of a weekday is not liable for lashes according to Scriptural Law since the food [he cooks] is fit [to be eaten] that day (unless he cooks directly before nightfall, in which instance, there is no time during the day [of the festival] to partake of it,) as stated in sec. 503[:2. Performing such melachos was forbidden by our Sages only] because they prohibited troubling oneself on a festival for the sake of a weekday2 since it is possible to perform the same tasks on the weekday itself. However, when a Shabbos follows a festival, since it is not possible to perform these tasks on Shabbos itself, it would have been appropriate to permit performing them on the festival to honor the Shabbos since it is a pressing situation, there being no other alternative.

[Moreover,] there is no prohibition at all according to Scriptural Law when one cooks [on a festival] while there is still much daylight, i.e., there is enough time during the day that if guests who had not yet eaten would by chance arrive, they could eat from this cooked food that was cooked for the sake of Shabbos, as stated in sec. 503[:2].

Despite [the above explanations], the Sages ordained3 that one should not cook or perform any other melachos involving the preparation of food on a festival for the sake of a Shabbos that follows it even when there is still much daylight unless one established an eruv tavshilin, i.e., he would cook an extra dish on the day before the festival and set aside this dish so that it will not be lost or eaten until he prepared all his needs for Shabbos.

2 Our Sages ordained this practice for two reasons:4

a) to increase the honor accorded to the festival – so that people at large should say, “If it is forbidden to begin cooking in honor of the Shabbos on the festival unless one began and cooked a dish on the day before the festival so that what he cooks on the festival is only completing what he began before the festival, how much more so, is it forbidden to cook on a festival for the sake of the weekday even if one began cooking on the day before the festival.”5

b) to increase the honor accorded to Shabbos – by requiring [a person] to cook another dish on the day before the festival the sake of preparing the needs of the Shabbos meals that follows it, he will remember all his Shabbos needs on the day before the festival, and will select an attractive portion for Shabbos and an attractive portion for the festival⁵ instead of consuming all [the attractive portions] on the festival.6

According to the first rationale, it is not necessary to establish the eruv tavshilin on the day that actually precedes the festival. Instead, it is permitted [for a person] to establish the eruv tavshilin even several weeks before the festival and stipulate that by virtue of this eruv, he will be permitted to cook and bake on the coming festival for the Shabbos that [immediately] follows it. It is only necessary that [the food with which] the eruv [was established] exist and be fit to eat7 – i.e., that it will not have spoiled from the time he established [the eruv] until the festival, e.g., he did not establish the eruv with cooked food, but rather with smoked meat that will keep for an extended period.

Similarly, it is permitted to establish one eruv for many festivals that fall on Friday8 provided [the person] specifically stipulates that by virtue of this eruv, it will be permitted for him to cook and bake on all the festivals of this year that fall on Friday for the sake of the Shabbosos that [immediately] follow [the festivals]. It is necessary only that the eruv exist and be fit to eat on every one of [the coming] festivals.

By contrast, according to the second rationale that was explained, it is necessary to establish the eruv tavshilin on the actual day that precedes the festival. [The rationale is that] were one to establish it several days before the festival, when the day that precedes the festival arrives, he would not [necessarily] have in mind his Shabbos needs, and he would not select an attractive portion to honor it. Similarly, if he established an eruv [tavshilin] on the day before one festival for another festival – even one that is close to it, for example, [if] the festival of Sukkos fell on Thursday and Friday and [thus,] Shemini Atzeres and Simchas Torah will fall on [the following] Thursday and Friday, and [the person] established an eruv [tavshilin] on the day before the first [day of the] festival [of Sukkos] for the second festival [i.e., the festival of Shemini Atzeres-Simchas Torah] as well – [the eruv] is not valid at all, for even then, when the day before the second festival arrives, he will not have in mind the Shabbos that follows it.

Therefore,9 with regard to actual practice, initially, one should only establish an eruv [tavshilin] on the day that actually precedes the coming festival, as explained according to the second rationale. However, after the fact, if one already established an eruv [tavshilin] several days before the festival, and on the day that actually precedes the festival, he forgot to – or purposefully did not – establish an eruv, he is permitted to rely on the eruv he [made previously]. He may, as an initial preference, cook on the festival for Shabbos. However, if he remembers on the day [directly] preceding the festival, he should establish another eruv or he should take his first eruv and say,10 “By virtue of this, it will be permissible for us….” However, he should not recite a blessing when doing so.

Similarly, if – when [a person] established his eruv – he specified that because of this eruv, he would be permitted to cook and bake on all festivals that fall on Friday for the sake of the Shabbos that follows them, he must nevertheless establish an eruv when a festival that directly precedes Shabbos arrives. However, he should not recite a blessing when doing so. [Instead,] he should say merely, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible for us…,” as explained.¹⁰ If, [however,] he did not establish an eruv on the day [directly] before the festival, he may rely on his first eruv, as long as it still exists and is fit to be eaten, as explained.

3 How does [one fulfill] the mitzvah of establishing an eruv tavshilin?11 He should hold an egg-sized piece of bread⁵ and an olive-sized [piece of] cooked meat or an olive-sized [portion of] other cooked food12 so that because of this bread, he will be permitted to bake on the festival for Shabbos, and because of this cooked food, he will be permitted to cook on a festival for Shabbos.13

If [the person] only established an eruv with cooked food, and did not remember until after the festival commenced, [that is sufficient.] Even if the first day of the festival [celebrated in] the Diaspora falls on a Thursday – and thus, [the person] is permitted to establish an eruv conditionally, as will be explained14 – he need not make a second eruv. [The rationale is that] he already established an eruv with cooked food – and that is the fundamental dimension of the eruv.15

If, however, [the person] established an eruv only with bread, he must establish a second eruv. If he does not establish a [second] eruv, he is forbidden even to bake on the festival for Shabbos because his [initial eruv] is not valid at all, as will be explained.16

4 After taking the eruv in his hand, [the person] is obligated to recite the blessing17 [praising G‑d], “…Who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us concerning the mitzvah of eruv,” as one does with regard to all mitzvos ordained by the Sages.¹⁷

5 Afterwards, [the person] should say, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible for us to bake, to cook, to insulate (להטמין) [a dish to preserve its heat], to kindle a light, and do on the festival all that is necessary for Shabbos.”18

If a person does not understand the [passage in] Aramaic, he should recite it in a language that he does understand.19

6 If a festival falls on Friday and on Shabbos,20 [when making the declaration establishing an eruv tavshilin so that one can cook and bake on the first day of the festival for Shabbos,] it is desirable [for the person] to specify the permission to perform melachah on the first day of the festival for the second day [of the festival, as well as for Shabbos]. He should say, “…to prepare and do on the festival all that is necessary for Shabbos and on [the first day of] the festival for [the second day].”21

[It is preferable to make this addition] because a person cooks additional foods in honor of the festival that falls on Shabbos beyond those that he would cook for Shabbos alone. If he would just say “… on the festival for Shabbos,” cooking the extra dishes that he prepares for the second day of the festival would not be included.

7 [There is an added requirement] if [a person] intends to slaughter an animal or other living creature on the festival for Shabbos. [Moreover, this requirement applies] even if [the person] does not slaughter the animal himself [but has someone else do so], for if he did not establish an eruv tavshilin, the slaughterer would be forbidden to slaughter an animal for his sake.22 Therefore, he should specify permission to slaughter when establishing the eruv tavshilin, saying, “…to slaughter and to cook.”²¹ It is preferable for [a person who serves as] an established ritual slaughterer for people at large to make such statements before every festival that falls directly before Shabbos, for perhaps [people] will bring him [animals or fowl] to slaughter on a festival for Shabbos.

Nevertheless, if the ritual slaughterer or the person for whom he is slaughtering did not make such a statement, it does not present any hindrance, and [the ritual slaughterer] is permitted to slaughter for [that person. The rationale is that] the permission to slaughter, skin [the animal], and salt the meat is included in the statement, “to cook.” For all the melachos that precede cooking are included in the permission to cook. Similarly, all the melachos that precede baking are included in the permission to bake. And [similarly,] the permission to transfer objects from a private domain to a public domain and from a public domain to a private domain, and similarly, all the other melachos ochel nefesh are included by the words “to prepare and do… all that is necessary.” It was only necessary to specify baking and cooking because they are the primary melachos involved in preparing food.

“Insulating [a dish to preserve its heat]” and “kindl[ing] a light” [are mentioned explicitly] because were the person not to establish an eruv tavshilin, it would be more appropriate to forbid insulate [a dish to preserve its heat] and kindling a light on a festival for the sake of Shabbos than [to forbid] other melachos because at the time these acts are performed, it is obvious that they are not being performed for the sake of the festival. [The rationale is that] it is not ordinary practice to insulate hot food to serve [later] that day, but rather for the following day.23 Similarly, it is not common practice for people to kindle a light while it is still day except on Friday afternoon for the sake of Friday night.24 Therefore, when one establishes an eruv tavshilin, it is necessary to specify these melachos more than other melachos that are included in the phrase, “to prepare and do… all that is necessary.”

If [a person] transgressed or forgot and did not specify one of these four melachos [when establishing an eruv tavshilin] – baking, cooking, insulating [a dish to preserve its heat] and kindling a light – there are authorities who maintain that he is forbidden to perform the melachah that he did not mention explicitly on the festival [in preparation] for Shabbos; nor may another person perform them on his behalf. With regard to the [omitted] melachah, his status is comparable to that of a person who did not establish an eruv tavshilin at all. If he did not mention any of these four melachos, even if he said, “to prepare and do… all that is necessary,” he is forbidden [to perform] all these (four) melachos. His status (regarding them) is comparable to that of a person who did not establish an eruv tavshilin at all.

There are, however, other authorities who differ in this regard and maintain that is only necessary to say, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible…,” except to perform the mitzvah in the optimum manner. However, after the fact, even though [the person] did not say anything, but merely made a cooked dish for the sake of an eruv tavshilin or took a cooked dish that he prepared previously and set it aside to establish an eruv tavshilin with it and to recite a blessing over it, but afterwards forgot or purposely did not recite a blessing over it or say anything over it, it is [nevertheless] deemed an eruv tavshilin and it is permitted to rely on it and, [therefore,] perform all melachos on a festival for the sake of Shabbos.25

With regard to actual practice, with regard to all the above, one should follow the stringencies of the first opinion. [Thus,] he should transfer ownership of his flour and his food to others [so that it will be as if the food is being prepared for them], as will be explained.26 Alternatively, if [the person] remembers on the first day of the festival that fell on a Thursday, he should establish an eruv tavshilin as required by law conditionally, as will be explained.27

However, in a pressing situation, e.g., one did not remember [that his eruv was not established properly] until Friday and there are no others in his locale to whom he could transfer ownership of his flour and cooked food, he may rely on the second opinion.

If he remembered on the day before the festival, before the night of the festival commenced, he should take his eruv [tavshilin] in hand [and recite whatever is necessary for it to be effective]: If he had not recited a blessing over it as of yet, he should recite a blessing over it and say, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible…,” as required by law. If he already recited the blessing upon it, but did not say, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible…,” or made that statement, but skipped one of the melachos, he should say, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible…,” [this time reciting it as required by law]. However, he should not recite a blessing [at this time] because, according to the second opinion, he already established a valid eruv and there is no mitzvah [being performed] over which to recite a blessing.28 [Since there is an unresolved halachic question whether a blessing is required, we follow the principle:] When there is a doubt whether a blessing is required, the lenient view is followed.29

8 An eruv tavshilin is valid and makes it permissible to perform all activities necessary for Shabbos on a festival only when there is ample time remaining in the day, i.e., there is time during the [first] day [of the festival to prepare the food so that] if guests who had not eaten that day would chance to come, they could partake of that food and derive benefit from the melachah he performed on the festival before dusk30 that day. However, if there is not [sufficient] time remaining on the [first] day [of the festival] to benefit from the melachah he [performed], performing this melachah involves [the violation of] a Scriptural commandment, as stated in sec. 503[:2], and the Sages’ ordinance of a eruv tavshilin is not effective in [causing] a Scriptural prohibition to be permitted.

Since not everyone is knowledgeable regarding this law, when a festival falls on Friday, it became customary to recite the Shabbos Evening Service early, while it is still day. [This will resolve the above issue] because everyone is vigilant to hurry and to complete everything [necessary for] their Shabbos needs before the Shabbos Evening Service [is recited].31

9 Although an eruv tavshilin may not be established on the festival itself,32 but must be established on the day before the festival,33 it is nevertheless permitted to establish an eruv [tavshilin] during dusk³⁰ on the night of the festival, even though there is a doubt as to whether [that time] is already deemed night.34 [The rationale is that we follow the principle, when] there is an unresolved question regarding Rabbinic Law, we ruling leniently.35 [Therefore,] we say that it is still considered day.36

When does the above [leniency] apply? When [the person making the eruv] has not yet recited the Evening Service of the festival, and the majority of the [local] community has not yet accepted the sanctity of the festival, i.e., they had not yet recited Borchu for the Evening Service of the festival. [The rationale is that] reciting Borchu constitutes the acceptance [of the sanctity] of Shabbos and festivals, as stated in sec. 261[:3]. However, if the majority of the [local] community already recited Borchu, [the status of this person] is determined by that of the majority of the community, and the sanctity of the festival [with its concurrent prohibitions] also applies to him.37 He is [therefore] forbidden to establish an eruv tavshilin just as he would be [forbidden to do so] on the festival itself. Needless to say, if he already accepted [the sanctity of] the festival, e.g., he recited the Evening Service of the festival even though the [local] community were yet to recite Borchu, he is forbidden to establish an eruv.38

10 [The following law applies when] a person who was in the synagogue on the day before the festival, shortly before nightfall and who has yet to recite the Afternoon Service, remembers that he did not yet establish an eruv tavshilin, and if he goes home to establish an eruv tavshilin, the time for the Afternoon Service will pass: He should recite the Afternoon Service [in the synagogue] and not establish an eruv tavshilin. [That option is preferable,] because he can transfer ownership of his flour [and additional food] to others, as will be explained.39

11 An eruv tavshilin may be established only with foods that are fit to eat as accompaniment to bread,40 for example, meat, fish, eggs, and similar [foods] that people commonly eat as an accompaniment to bread. However, an eruv tavshilin may not be established with porridge or other similar foods that are not commonly eaten as accompaniment to bread.⁴⁰ Even in places where [such foods] are eaten as accompaniment to bread, an eruv [tavshilin] may not be established with them because the way these people regard [such foods] is considered insignificant in light [of the thinking] of people at large.⁴⁰

Even [types of food] that many people serve as an accompaniment [to bread] may not be used for an eruv [tavshilin] in places where the local populace does not serve them as an accompaniment [to bread]. For example, cooked apples and other cooked fruit, which in certain places are not served as accompaniment [to bread] may not be used for an eruv in those places. Even after the fact, if a person used [such foods] for an eruv, it is as if he did not establish an eruv at all.

12 The food used for an eruv tavshilin need not actually be cooked.41 Instead, [it is sufficient] even if [the food] is roasted, even shaluk (i.e., stewed), even smoked, even if it is raw, but pickled for a 24-hour period in water or other liquids,⁴¹ or pickled in strong vinegar or brine. Even if it did not soak in [strong vinegar or brine] for longer than the time it would take for the vinegar or the brine and the food in it to boil were [the pot] placed over a fire, [the food] is considered as if it was cooked, as stated in Yoreh Deah, sec. 105.42 [As long as] the food is fit to be eaten, it may be used for an eruv as an initial and preferred option.

If, however, [the food] was not pickled as defined by law, even though it was salted and is fit to be eaten when raw because of its salting, e.g., [as may be the case with] small salted fish, [this food] may not be used for an eruv unless it was cooked or pickled as defined by law,⁴¹ in the manner described [above].

However, [different laws apply regarding] the type of small fish that is called kulyas haaspanin⁴¹ (also referred to as tunina)43 whose flesh is very soft. [This type of fish] can be made fit to be eaten raw by rinsing it with hot water, even without cooking it.44 If [such fish] were rinsed on the day before the festival or before that [with hot water], it is permitted to use them for an eruv, because they are made fit to eat by rinsing them in this manner and it is as if they were actually cooked.

13 [The following rule applies] if, on the day before a festival, should a person have no other food except lentils that remained at the bottom of a pot from which he ate before the festival. In a place where it is common to use lentils as accompaniment for bread, it is permitted to use [these lentils] for an eruv provided their volume is the size of an olive.⁴⁰ Similarly, if one has no other food except the fat that stuck to a knife that was used for cutting roasted [meat], he may scrape it off the knife and use it for an eruv if it is the size of an olive in volume.⁴⁰

However, if [the person] has other cooked food, as an initial preference, he should not use lentils that remain at the bottom of the pot or fat scraped from a knife for an eruv because this is degrading to the mitzvah. [Even so,] if he used [such foods] for an eruv [despite having other foods], he need not make an eruv again.

14 Although every person is obligated to establish an eruv in his own home,45 nevertheless, [in] every city, the leading Torah authority should establish an eruv [that includes] all the inhabitants of his city46 so that all [the following] – one who forgot to establish an eruv, one who was preoccupied and did not have the opportunity to establish an eruv on the day before the festival, one who was unlearned and did not know how to establish an eruv, or one who established an eruv but his eruv became lost on the festival before he prepared his Shabbos needs – could rely on the eruv [the Torah authority] made on behalf of all the inhabitants of the city.

However, a person who had the opportunity to establish an eruv and because of his indolence – [i.e.,] his lack of concern [to fulfill] the word of G‑d – forgot and did not establish one is called a transgressor47 because he did not forget because of forces beyond his control but rather his indolence caused him to forget. He is not included in the eruv [established by the community’s] Torah authority. [This applies] even though [that authority] had the specific intent to include [this person] in his eruv. Needless to say, if [a person] did not forget at all, but rather relied on the eruv of the community’s Torah authority or another person who had the intent of including him in his eruv, he is not included in that eruv at all. [The rationale is that] every person is obligated to establish an eruv himself or to instruct others to establish an eruv in his home, [using] his [food.48 This is permitted] because “[the actions of] a person’s agent are considered as his own.”49

If [a person] does not know this law and thinks that it is not necessary to establish an eruv himself, but rather it is permitted to rely on the eruv established by the community’s Torah authority who establishes an eruv for all the inhabitants of the city, he is permitted to rely on this eruv because his error is preventing him [from establishing his own eruv]. However, if [the person] is a Torah scholar and forgot this law or never studied it, he is considered a transgressor and is not included in the eruv of the Torah authority. [The rationale is that] forgetting one’s [Torah] studies is considered as a willful transgression.50

15 When one establishes an eruv for all [the inhabitants of] a city, he need not mention each individual specifically by name. Instead, it is sufficient for him to say, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible for us and for all Israelites who dwell in this city….”51 Even a person who [lives] outside the city is considered as one of the inhabitants of the city and is included in this eruv in the manner explained [above]52 as long as he is within the city’s festive limits53 because he is able to come to the city on the festival. [However, he must be within those limits], since it can be assumed that the person establishing the eruv did not have in mind to include anyone who was outside the city’s festival limits.

Even though [a person outside the city’s festival limits] established an eruv techumin54that would allow him to enter the city on the festival, nevertheless, since he lives outside the city’s festive limits, [he is not included in the eruv. The rationale is that] the person making the eruv would not think about including anyone other than those in the city’s festival limits. And anyone whom the person making the eruv did not think of including in his eruv cannot fulfill this obligation with it,⁵³ even after the fact, because the eruv belongs to the person establishing it.

Nevertheless, if the person establishing the eruv explicitly stipulated that this person who lives outside the city’s festival limits can be included in the eruv, then he is included in it (in the manner explained above)⁵² provided he established an eruv techumin.

16 Even someone other than the city’s leading Torah authority [may] include others in his eruv if he [so] desires.⁵³ He need not inform them that he is doing so on the day before the festival. [They, nevertheless, are included in the eruv] because [being included] in this eruv is to their benefit, and a benefit can be granted to a person without him being aware of it.55

Nevertheless, the others must be notified on the festival, before they prepare their Shabbos needs. These others are not permitted to begin [preparing] their Shabbos needs until they definitely know that a [valid] eruv tavshilin was established on their behalf.56 They may not rely [on the assumption] that the city’s leading Torah authority certainly established [an eruv] on behalf of all the inhabitants of the city unless it is known to this person that the Torah authority’s practice is to establish [an eruv] for all the inhabitants of his city.

17 When one includes others in his eruv [tavshilin], it is not necessary to add to the quantity of the food for their sake. Instead, an olive-size portion is sufficient whether [one is establishing an eruv tavshilin] for one person or for a thousand.⁵³ Nevertheless, all of those included [in the eruv] must have a portion and a right to this eruv, because an eruv can only be established on a person’s behalf using property belonging to him. Therefore, [the person establishing the eruv] must grant [the others who are included in the eruv] a share in [the food with which] the eruv [is being established],57 i.e., a person other [than the owner of the food with which] the eruv [is being established] must lift [that food] up a handbreadth58 from the place on which it is resting.59 ([This is necessary] because lifting [an article] up less than a handbreadth is not a valid act of acquisition at all.)60

[The owner of the food with which the eruv is being established] should tell [the recipient], “Acquire [the food of] this eruv on behalf of all the inhabitants of the city.”61 He is thus saying that [the recipient] will be their agent and it will be as if they [all] lifted up [the food with which] the eruv [is being established] and acquired it by [doing so].⁵⁸ Accordingly, they have a share in [this food] and a right to it.

For this reason, the person making the eruv cannot acquire [a right] to [the food with which] the eruv [is being established] on behalf [of others] by lifting it up himself. Since [the food comprising] the eruv belongs to him, when he lifted it up by hand to acquire it [on their behalf, the food with which] the eruv [is being established] still belongs to him as it did [before]. Therefore, others cannot acquire [a right] to [the food] by him lifting it up.

Just as [a person] cannot acquire a right [to the food for them] by his own actions, so too, he cannot have his non-Jewish servants and maidservants acquire [rights to it] on behalf [of others by lifting up the food]. This applies even if he does not provide [his servants] with their livelihood, but rather they sustain themselves independently.62 [The same applies with regard to] his sons and daughters who are minors, whom he provides with their livelihood⁵⁸ even if they do not actually eat at his table.63 If [the person making the eruv attempts to] grant others a share [in this food] via one of these people, his actions are not at all effective, even after the fact, because [they do not have an independent financial capacity, but rather] are identified with him entirely.64

[There is a difference of opinion among the Rabbis whether the person making the eruv is able to grant others a share in it] through the actions of his sons and daughters who are past majority but whom he provides with their livelihood, his sons and daughters who are below majority, whom he does not provide with their livelihood, or by his wife whom he provides with her livelihood. There are authorities maintain that he may grant [others a share in the eruv] through [the actions of] these [individuals] based on the reason explained in sec. 366[:13].65 However, other authorities maintain that [the actions of these individuals] are not effective in enabling [others] to acquire [a share in the eruv], for [the second] rationale explained in that source.66 Accordingly, as an initial preference, one should not grant others a share [in the eruv] through [the actions of] these individuals.67 However, after the fact, if one already granted [others a share in the eruv] through [the actions of] one of these individuals, and the festival has already commenced and thus it is no longer possible to grant [others a share in it through someone else], one may rely on the rulings of the more lenient authorities.68 Similarly, if there is no one else who can acquire a share [in the eruv for others], a person may grant [them a share in his eruv tavshilin] through [the actions of] one of these individuals as an initial preference.

All the above applies with regard to one’s sons, daughters, or wife. However, [the homeowner] may grant others a share [in the eruv] through [the actions of] another person, even one whom he provides with his livelihood, even if [this person] actually eats at his table. [This applies] although [the person] receives his meals without cost or as part of his wage, for example, his Jewish servants and maidservants, even though they are minors,69 as stated in sec. 366[:13, 14.70 Moreover,] he may even grant [others a share in the eruv] through [the actions of] his own son provided he is past majority and married, even if [the son] actually eats at his [father’s] table, as explained in the above source.71

18 It is only necessary to grant a share in one’s eruv to others, i.e., all the people living in the city that do not eat from the bread and food of [the person making the eruv]. However, it is not necessary to grant the share [in the eruv] to the members of one’s household who eat from his bread and food. They are permitted to perform all the melachos associated with the preparation of food on the festival for Shabbos as result of the eruv established by the head of the household. [The rationale is that the members of the household] are considered secondary to the head of the household, and their status depends on his since they partake of the food he provides for them. (Even when they do not partake of one [of the] cooked foods, nevertheless, since the food they [do] eat belongs to him, they are considered secondary to him and are included in his eruv.)

[Different rules apply] if, however, a members of the household does not eat from the head of the household’s food, but rather the head of the household gives him flour, meat, [and the like], and he bakes and cooks for himself, or [he] instructs someone else to cook for him. (Since at the time [the person] is eating, the cooked food [that he is eating] already belongs to him because the head of the household previously gave him the flour and the meat as an outright gift,) he is not considered as secondary to the head of the household, and [thus, this person] requires his own eruv.

For that reason, the head of the household can grant [others a share in] his eruv via [the agency of] this person, even if he is a son, provided he is not a minor. True, as an initial preference, one should not grant others a share [in his eruv tavshilin] via a son [who is] past [the age of] majority who is granted his livelihood by his father.72 Nevertheless, since this son eats independently and, therefore, requires an eruv tavshilin of his own, he must acquire [a share in] this eruv for himself if he did not yet establish an eruv tavshilin. Since he acquires [a share in the eruv tavshilin] for himself, he can also acquire [a share] for the sake of others.

Similarly, if [the head of the household] gives his wife flour, meat, [and the like], and she bakes and cooks for herself, and does not eat from his cooked food, he may grant others [a share in his] eruv via her agency. [The rationale is that] since she requires an eruv [tavshilin] for herself, because she must acquire [a share in her husband’s eruv] for herself, she may also acquire [a share] for others.73

19 The custom is that the person who establishes an eruv for others grants them [a share in] the eruv first, then recites the blessing, [“Blessed are You…] concerning the mitzvah of [establishing an] eruv.” [He then makes the declaration,] saying, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible….”74 If he desires to recite the blessing and [then] say, “By virtue of this, it will be…” first, and then grant [others a share in] the eruv, he has that option.

20 When [a person] grants [a share in] his eruv to all the inhabitants of the city, he must say, “By virtue of this, it will be permissible for us [to bake]… on the festival for Shabbos…, for us and for all Israelites who dwell in this city.”75 If, however, he does not grant them [a share in] his eruv, even if he makes this statement, this statement is of no avail to them at all.

It was already explained that the leading Torah authority of the city should grant [a portion of] his eruv to all the inhabitants of his city. [This obligation is] particularly [compelling] when there are widows in the city who do not know how to establish an eruv or there are other unlearned people who do not know how to establish an eruv. In such a situation, their fellow townsmen are obligated to save them from sinning76 because the entire Jewish people are responsible for each other.77

21 When the two days of the festival fall on Thursday and Friday, an eruv tavshilin should be established on Wednesday, the day before the festival [begins].78 If a person transgressed or forgot and did not establish an eruv on the day before the festival and remembered on the first day of the festival, he should establish an eruv tavshilin conditionally on the festival.79

What is implied? [The person] should take an olive-size portion of cooked food80 – whether it was cooked on the day [of the festival] or on the previous day – and an egg-size⁸⁰ portion of bread– whether it was baked on the day [of the festival] or on the previous day – and recite over it the blessing “…Who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us concerning the mitzvah of eruv.” [The person] should [then] say, “If today is a festival, tomorrow is an ordinary weekday and it is not necessary for me to establish an eruv at all.81 And if today is the weekday and tomorrow is the festival, ‘By virtue of this eruv, it will be permissible for us to bake and to cook….’ ”

(After the fact, or if a person does not have any bread, it is sufficient [to establish an eruv tavshilin] merely with cooked food, as explained above.)⁸⁰

22 When does the above apply? To the two festive days celebrated in the Diaspora [for the three pilgrimage festivals].⁷⁹ However, [a more stringent ruling applies regarding] the two festive days of Rosh Hashanah. [In that instance,] even though [a person] remembers [that he did not establish an eruv tavshilin] on the first day of the festival, he may not establish an eruv conditionally [on that day.82 The rationale is that in this instance,] there is no question [of one] of the [two] festive days being a regular weekday. [Rather,] the two days [of Rosh Hashanah] are definitely sanctified. They are like one long day, as will be explained in sec. 600[:3].83

23 Even in the Diaspora, where two festive days are celebrated, it is forbidden to bake or to perform other melachos for the sake of the preparation of food for Shabbos on the first festive day. [This restriction applies] whether one established the eruv tavshilin that day or whether he established it on the day before the festival. [This restriction applies] even when, at the time [the person] established the eruv, he knew that on the second festive day, he would be prevented by forces beyond his control from baking in honor of Shabbos.84

For example, [the second day of the festival] was an idolaters’ festival. Therefore, when he established the eruv, [the person] intended to bake on the first day of the festival for the sake of Shabbos. Even so, his actions are not effective because an eruv tavshilin only permits a person to bake and cook on a festival for the sake of a Shabbos that follows directly afterwards, i.e., a weekday does not separate between [the festival and Shabbos]. However, [in this instance,] if the person bakes from the first day of the festival, [there is a potential difficulty]. If that day is [fundamentally] sanctified,85 then the second day of the festival, which is [fundamentally] a weekday, interrupts between them. Thus, the person is like one who bakes on a festival that falls on Sunday for the sake of the Shabbos that follows it. Certainly, an eruv tavshilin is not effective in permitting this.

24 [When] a portion of the cooked food [with which] the eruv tavshilin [was established] was eaten or lost before [the person] prepared his Shabbos needs, he is forbidden to perform any melachah on the festival for the sake of Shabbos86 unless a full olive-size portion of the cooked food that is fit to be eaten remained.87

However, if the bread [with which] the eruv tavshilin [was established] was eaten or lost, it is not of consequence. Even if the festival fell on Thursday and Friday and [the person] remembered on the first day of the festival, he is not required to establish a conditional eruv. [The rationale is that] the primary element of the eruv is the cooked food.88

25 Nevertheless, as an initial preference, it is necessary that [the person set aside both] the bread and the cooked food in a secure place until after he prepares his Shabbos needs. At that time, according to the letter of the law, he is permitted to partake of them.89 Nevertheless, the optimum manner of performing the mitzvah is to wait to eat the bread [used] for the eruv tavshilin until one of the three Shabbos meals, [when the person can] break bread over it90 if it is a whole loaf.91 [The rationale is that] whenever an article was used to [fulfill] one mitzvah, it is appropriate to use it to [fulfill] another mitzvah.⁹⁰

There are those who follow the custom of not breaking bread over [this loaf] until the third Shabbos meal, in order to fulfill many mitzvos with it, i.e., this loaf is used as the second loaf for the first and second Shabbos meals andthis is the bread broken for the third meal.92

26 When [a person] began kneading a dough for Shabbos on a festival, but his eruv was eaten or lost before he finished kneading it, he is permitted to complete kneading⁸⁹ and baking the dough that he began when permitted, i.e., while his eruv still existed. However, it is forbidden for him to knead another dough for Shabbos on the festival after his eruv was lost. Needless to say, it is forbidden for him to cook or to begin other melachos associated with the preparation of food on the festival for Shabbos after his eruv was lost.

Similarly, if [the person] began to be involved in preparing a cooked dish while the eruv existed, e.g., he cut turnips or [did] other similar acts to prepare a dish of cooked food, even if he did not manage to place the pot on the fire before his eruv was lost, he is permitted to cook this [pot] of food that he began [preparing] while [he was] permitted [to do so]. However, [he] is forbidden to cook other foods that he did not begin to prepare while his eruv existed. Needless to say, is forbidden to knead dough or begin other melachos associated with the preparation of food on the festival for Shabbos unless he knows that there is someone in the city who grants a share in his eruv to all the inhabitants of the city, as explained above.93

27 When a person did not establish an eruv at all or his eruv was lost before he prepared his needs for the morning meal of the festival that fell on Friday, he is permitted to cook many pots [of food] for the sake of the festival94 even though he knows that he will certainly not eat all of [the food] and there will be some left over for Shabbos.95 [This license is granted provided the person] does not [cook] one type of food in two pots.96 Instead, [he should cook] a different type of food in every pot and, on the festival, and he should taste [some food] from each of the different types of food on the festival itself. All of this is explained in sec. 503[:10]; (consult that source regarding all laws relevant to this matter).97

Even if [a person] cooked only one pot [of food] for the sake of the festival, and then changed his mind and decided to leave it for Shabbos and cook another for the festival, he must taste [some of the food from the first pot] on the festival itself. [The rationale is that] if he does not taste [from the first pot of food] on the festival, [then] retroactively, he will have cooked on the festival for the sake of Shabbos without [having established] an eruv tavshilin.

(Nevertheless, if [the person] transgresses or forgets and does not taste from this food on the festival, even if he cooked many [different types of food] in various pots before the morning meal [of the festival] and he intended to taste from each of them on the festival itself, but afterwards he transgressed or forgot and did not taste [them] at all, he is permitted to partake of them on Shabbos. [The rationale is that] he was permitted to cook them, as explained in sec. 503[:11];98 consult that source regarding all laws relevant to this matter.)

However, if [a person’s] eruv was not lost until after he cooked or baked for the sake of the festival, he is permitted to leave this bread or food for Shabbos. It is not necessary for him to taste from it at all on the festival, since it was made at a time when it was permitted for him to bake and to cook for Shabbos on the festival. He should then bake other bread and cook other food for the sake of the festival.

28 When a person did not establish an eruv tavshilin or his eruv was lost, just as he is forbidden to bake, cook, or perform any of the melachos associated with the preparation of food for Shabbos on the festival for his own sake, so too, is he forbidden to perform [such activities] for others.99 [This restriction applies] even [when the person performs these activities] in [the other people’s] homes. [The rationale is that] since he did not establish an eruv tavshilin, [in this context,] the Shabbos is comparable to a weekday for him. Any action or preparatory activity that he is forbidden to perform on the festival for a weekday – [see] sec. 503[:3]100 – he is forbidden to perform on the festival for Shabbos, both for himself and for others.

[Furthermore,] just as [a person who did not establish an eruv is forbidden to prepare] for the Shabbos, so too, are others – even though they established an eruv [tavshilin] – forbidden to perform [melachah] or other preparatory activities on the festival for Shabbos on his behalf. There is no way [the person] can remedy his situation except by giving the flour with which he needs to bake, the foods that he needs to cook, the lamps he needs to kindle, and anything else he needs to prepare on the festival for Shabbos as an absolute present101 to another person who established an eruv.⁹⁹ That other person will [then] bake, cook, kindle lamps, and prepare all the Shabbos needs of [the person] who did not establish an eruv.

[This is permitted] provided [the person who established the eruv and will perform these activities for his friend] acquires [the entities been given as] a present through a formal act of acquisition, e.g., drawing [these objects] into his home (meshichah) or lifting up [these objects] a handbreadth high.102 [That act brings about a transfer of property] even [when performed] in the home of the one giving the present.103

29 [An additional leniency was granted] if there is no person in that place who established an eruv to whom [the person who did not establish an eruv] can transfer ownership of his flour, food, and lights, or even if there is such a person [in that place], but [the person who did not establish an eruv] does not want to transfer ownership [of his property] to him. [In such an instance,] the Sages permitted him to prepare all his Shabbos needs to a limited degree104 – [i.e., only] what is necessary for his basic needs – because of the honor of Shabbos. Thus, he may bake one loaf of bread,105 cook one pot of food, and kindle one lamp¹⁰⁴ next to which he will eat.106

However, he is forbidden to kindle another lamp for the sake of Shabbos in a room where he will not eat. Nevertheless, he is permitted to go into a room while it is still day on the festival, shortly before nightfall, to search for an object and bring a burning lamp with him, and place it there, [allowing] it to burn there on Shabbos.107

[The person is granted this leniency] in addition to the one lamp burning in his home that the Sages allowed him to kindle for the sake of Shabbos so that there be peace within his home, [i.e.,] that he not eat in darkness. [This leniency was granted because] even when one is not eating, there is no peace in a home without light.108

30 It was already explained109 that [the establishment of] an eruv tavshilin only allows one to perform melachos connected to food preparation on a festival for Shabbos because there is no Scriptural prohibition against performing these melachos because [the food] is fitting for [the person to serve] on the day of the festival if guests who had not yet eaten that day chance to visit him.

Accordingly, [such license is not granted] when a person is fasting on a festival that falls on Friday because of a vow.110 [The rationale is that] since it is forbidden for him to perform any melachah [to prepare for] others to eat and drink,111 even if they will eat and drink that day, as stated in sec. 495,112 the eruv tavshilin is not effective in allowing him to perform [any] melachah on the festival for the sake of eating and drinking on Shabbos. The eruv tavshilin is effective only in that the members of his household or other people who themselves established in eruv [tavshilin] are permitted to perform melachah [to prepare] food and drink for him for Shabbos.