The Daily Mitzvah schedule runs parallel to the daily study of 3 chapters of Maimonides' 14-volume code. There are instances when the Mitzvah is repeated a few days consecutively while the exploration of the same Mitzvah continues in the in-depth track.
ב"ה
Daily Mitzvah (Rambam)
Day 335: Negative Commandment 166
From the Sichos in English Collection
Important Message Regarding This Lesson
Negative Commandment 166 (Digest)
A Priest's Ritual Purity
"He shall not become impure for the dead among his people"—Leviticus 21:1.
A kohen (priest) may not contract ritual impurity through contact with a human corpse. The exception to this rule are his next of kin [—his father, mother, brother, unmarried sister, son and daughter. The Sages added his wife to the list].
This prohibition only applies to male priests.
From Sefer Hamitzvot, published and copyright by Sichos in English. To purchase the Sefer Hamitzvot two-volume set, please click here.
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Rambam Study Tracks
Daily Quote
"He that kills a person accidentally... shall remain [exiled in the "city of refuge"] until the death of the High Priest" (Numbers 35:11, 25). Why is the High Priest to blame? ... Said a venerable old scholar: I heard an explanation at one of the seasonal lectures of Raba, that he failed to pray for his generation. As was the case of that fellow who was devoured by a lion some three parasangs from Rabbi Joshua ben Levi's town, and Elijah the Prophet refused to visit Rabbi Joshua on that account for three days...
–Talmud, Makot 11a
The Parshah