When you hear the word mitzvah, what do you think of? Maybe keeping Shabbat, eating kosher, or giving charity? Those are definitely mitzvahs, but there are many more—a total of 613, in fact!
While many mitzvahs are well known, some are more obscure. Yet each one is an expression of G‑d’s will, and every single one brings more light and holiness into the world. As we celebrate Shavuot, when G‑d gave us the Torah and all its mitzvahs, let’s explore 13 mitzvahs you may never have heard of!
1. Fencing a Roof (Maakeh)
Playing it safe is not just prudent—it’s a mitzvah! If you have a flat roof, the Torah says to put up a guardrail to prevent accidents.1 This mitzvah also includes removing other potential hazards around your home, such as an open pit.2
Read: Guard Your Life
2. Mixture of Wool and Linen (Shatnez)
Just as food must be kosher, clothing must be “kosher” too. The Torah forbids wearing clothes containing both wool and linen, a mixture called shatnez.3
Read: Shatnez-Free Clothing
3. Not Cutting Down Fruit Trees
Thinking of removing that old cherry tree in your yard? Hold on! As a general rule, it is a mitzvah not to cut down a fruit tree.4 Consult a competent rabbi to see whether the prohibition applies in your situation.
Read: Cutting Down Fruit Trees
4. Not Tearing Hair From Grief
In times of intense grief, one might consider expressing one’s pain physically. But as children of G‑d, the Torah teaches us to maintain our dignity. That’s why it’s forbidden to pull out your hair or mutilate yourself as an expression of mourning.5
5. Sending Away the Mother Bird (Shiluach Hakan)
If you come across a nest with a kosher bird sitting on her eggs or chicks, there’s a special mitzvah: you must first send away the mother bird before taking the young. It might seem small, but it comes with a big reward: “It will be good for you, and your days will be lengthened.”6
6. Helping Your Enemy’s Donkey
Imagine this: your worst enemy is walking down the road with a donkey overloaded with goods, and the animal buckles under the weight. You now have the opportunity to do a truly character-transforming mitzvah—to disregard your feelings and help him unload and reload his donkey.7 (A modern-day equivalent would be a vehicle with a flat tire.)
7. Not Plowing With Two Species
It’s actually a mitzvah not to plow a field—or pull a carriage or perform any kind of work—using two different types of animals, like a donkey and a bull, together.8
8. Not Muzzling a Threshing Animal
Back before tractors, farmers used animals to thresh grain by walking over it. The Torah says that if an animal is threshing grain, you must allow it to eat from the harvest—it’s forbidden to muzzle it.9 Similarly, human workers may snack on what they’re harvesting.10
9. The Case of the Unknown Murderer (Eglah Arufah)
In ancient times, if a murdered person was found in a field and the killer was unknown, the Torah prescribed a special atonement ritual called eglah arufah—the decapitated calf. The elders of the nearest town would bring a calf to a fast-flowing stream and perform a ceremony to express communal responsibility for the victim.11
10. The King’s Horses
Back when Jewish kings ruled, they had a surprising restriction: they weren’t allowed to own too many horses—only what they needed to pull the royal carriage. Why? Because Egypt was the main source of horses, and G‑d doesn’t want us to return to the land that enslaved us so bitterly.12
11. Redeeming a Firstborn Donkey (Peter Chamor)
When G‑d struck down the Egyptian firstborns and freed the Israelites from slavery, He sanctified the firstborns of the Jewish people. That’s why we redeem our firstborn sons by giving five silver coins to a Kohen (a priestly descendant of Aaron). Firstborn sheep and cattle are also considered holy and, in Temple times, were offered as sacrifices.
Surprisingly, there’s one more sacred firstborn: the donkey! Although donkeys aren’t kosher, their firstborn still has a special status. Instead of being sacrificed, the firstborn donkey is redeemed by giving a lamb to a Kohen.13
12. Not Removing the Poles From the Ark
During the journeys of the Israelites in the desert, the Ark of the Covenant was carried via two long golden poles. But even in the Temple, where the Ark remained stationary, the poles remained in place. In fact, it’s a mitzvah for the poles to never be removed.14
Read: The Portable Torah
13. The Red Heifer (Parah Adumah)
Touching a human corpse causes a serious form of ritual impurity, and in Temple times, people needed purification before eating sacrifices or entering sacred areas. To achieve this purity, you had to be sprinkled with spring water mixed with ashes of a red heifer.15
Since the destruction of the Temple, this form of purification isn’t available—so we’re all in a state of ritual impurity until Moshiach comes.
Read: How Rare Is a Red Heifer?
Now take our Obscure Mitzvah Quiz
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