Perfume for the Yerushalmi Women

The Mishna had stated: The groom should give ten dinars to her “kupah.”

The Gemora (Kesuvos 66b) asks: What is her “kupah?” Rav Ashi says: It refers to her box of perfumes. Rav Ashi qualified this ruling: This law was only stated regarding Yerushalayim.

Tosfos explains: Although, the Gemora in Yoma (39b) states that a bride had no necessity to use fragrances because of the aroma of the ketores; they still required cosmetics in order to beautify her skin.

The Ritva (ibid) answers: It was beneath the dignity of the wealthy women in Yerushalayim to rely on the aroma of the ketores; their husbands were required to provide fragrances for them.

The Netziv answers that the aroma of the ketores was only sufficient during the time of the burning of the incense, but a husband needed to provide his wife with perfumes and cosmetics for the remainder of the time.

Reb Elozar Moshe Horowitz answers: On the contrary! The women of Yerushalayim required even more perfume than others. When they took leave of Yerushalayim, they needed to compensate for the lack of the aroma emanating from the ketores.

A similar answer is brought from the Likutei Chaver ben Chaim: A woman in Yerushalayim required even more perfume than an ordinary woman, for if she would want that her husband should recognize her distinct smell, she would need to use a lot of perfume in order that her aroma should not be negated by the aroma of the ketores.

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Yoma 53 Ingredients of the Ketores (review from 38)

The Gemora relates that there was a family named Avtinas that knew how to make the ketores but they didnt want to teach anyone else. Experts were brought in without success. Avtinas knew how to make it that it would be מעלה עשן - the smoke would rise in a column and the experts from Mitzrayim could not duplicate this. Rashi says they didn't know which עשב (herb, grass) was the correct one. The Beis Yosef (133) learns from here that even if this particular ingredient is missing, the ketores is still good. The Mishna L'melech and others are bewildered that the Beis Yosef is against a later Gemorah that states explicitly that if this ingredient is missing, there is a chiyuv misah? מהריץ חיות answers that there will not be a chiyuv if the ingredient is not available. Tosfos Yeshonim explains our Gemora by saying that they had an ingredient which was called מעלה עשן and therefore it was כשר, however it was not the one that could produce the smoke in the correct way. Rav Elozar Landau notes that they had the correct one, but they couldn't ascertain which was the best quality for the correct result.

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Daf Yomi - Yoma 53 - Ketores Missing Ingredient

The Gemora states that if the kohen Gadol enters the Kodesh Kodoshim with the ketores and he is missing one of the ingredients, he will be חייב מיתה. The Gemora proceeds to ask, that he will be חייב anyway because of the prohibition of entering the Kodesh Kodoshim unnecessarily (for he did not fulfill the mitzva of ketores)?

In the Sefer Yam Hatalmud, he asks based on a Gemora in Shevuos, which learns according to the opinion of Rebbe that Yom Kippur will automatically be mechaper for any aveiros that are not specific for Yom Kippur. If so, what is our Gemora asking? If the issur is burning the ketores when it is missing an ingredient, this is an issur exclusive to Yom Kippur and he can be punished for it, but if the issur is entering the Kodesh Kodoshim for no reason, that is relevant the entire year and Yom Kippur will give him an atonement immediately? (See שמועת חיים for a possible answer.)

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Daf Yomi - Yoma 48 - Holy Hands

The Gemora asks a שאלה as to what the halacha would be if the ketores which was in the hands of the kohen gadol spilled onto the floor, will he be allowed to gather it up. The basis for this question is how do we view his hands. Are his hands like the animal's neck and therefore it will be פסול (similar to blood that spilled from the neck of the animal) or do we consider his hands like a כלי שרת and hence it will be כשר. The Ritva explains why his hands should be considered a כלי by quoting the previous Gemora, that in truth the Torah does not mention the use of a utensil by the ketores. It is used because there was no method to bring the handful of ketores by hand together with the pan containing the coals, consequently, one can say that the kohen's hands served as the כלי.

Tosfos poses a solution to the dilemma of that Gemora, based on our Gemora that his hands will be regarded as a כלי שרת. He can hold the ketores in his hands and place the מחתה on top of it. When he enters the Kodesh Kodoshim, let him loosen his hands enabling the ketores to fall to the ground, place the coals down and then scoop up the ketores (which will now be allowed) and put it on the coals.

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