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16 votes

What was the general skin color of ancient Israelis?

An important source (post-bibical) is the Mishna in Negaim (2:1) which deals with the signs of leprosy and how they may appear different based on a person's skin color: The bright spot in a German ...
Daniel Kagan's user avatar
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10 votes

Black? I ordered it dyed red!

I understand that this Halacha reflects the economic realities of the Mishna, where pretty much everyone was producing small handicraft and traded them. It could reasonably be assumed that you could ...
simyou's user avatar
  • 1,837
9 votes

Why is the colour כחול ('blue') not mentioned in Tanach?

In fact it is mentioned according to the Ramban Bereishis 49: 12 the word חכלילי means כחל. Also the word כחלת is mentioned in Yecezkel 23:40 which means painting of the eyes. Rashi:כחלת. מין צבע ...
sam's user avatar
  • 41.6k
7 votes
Accepted

Real green hair?

Yarok here means yellow, as DoubleAA wrote in the comments. As for your question, what is the difference between Yarok and Tzahov, see Rashi on the passuk who says Tzahov is similar to gold. So now we ...
user6591's user avatar
  • 33.6k
7 votes

Minhag to leave an area of the wall unpainted: does it need to be unpainted, or can it be painted another color?

R. Mordechai Yaffe mentions the custom of darkening one section of the wall as the zecher l'churban, but he says that this is not proper. Levush O.C. 560:1 ונ"ל מה שנוהגים עכשיו הבונים בתים ...
Alex's user avatar
  • 49.2k
7 votes

Why is the colour כחול ('blue') not mentioned in Tanach?

I think the answer to this question is that there are very few abstract words for colors in the Tanach altogether. Rather words are used to describe objects or processes that produce certain colors. ...
conceptualinertia's user avatar
6 votes

Why do Jewish women wear so much black?

Well, for starters black matches with everything so its the easiest color to wear.
dassiwithani's user avatar
5 votes

Dyeing Hair for Men

The Nishmat Avraham treats the topic of a man's dyeing once's hair at length (vol. 2 pp. 94-97). To summarize his key points the key issue is not whether one uses a dying product for men or women, ...
mbloch's user avatar
  • 51.6k
5 votes

Changing the High Holiday shul "look"

Rabbi David Golenkin writes here that he wasn't able to trace the custom eariler than the Sha'arei Efraim (c. 1820, by R' Ephraim Zalman Margolioth). A contemporary source here mentions that the ...
Josh Friedlander's user avatar
5 votes

What was red in the stew that Jacob made for Esau?

The Ramban on that passuk writes that the food was red either from the lentils, or it was red from some other ingredient, but Esav did not know what it was, so he just called it red. So he does ...
user6591's user avatar
  • 33.6k
5 votes

History of Chabad Moshiach flag

The History: According to Chabapedia (in Hebrew), the flag was first printed in the Hebrew year 5755 (1994-1995) by Yaakov Ben Ari of Tzfat, Israel. The general design of the flag seems to have ...
Harel13's user avatar
  • 25.6k
4 votes
Accepted

Does adding a bit of red wine to white wine change the resulting drinks' status vis-a-vis kiddush?

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef in Yalkut Yosef (272, 6) says that only if one doesn't have enough red wine (which is preferred for kiddush over white wine), one should add the little amount of red wine he has to ...
Cauthon's user avatar
  • 3,845
4 votes
Accepted

Is it permitted to use a thermochromic cup on Shabbos?

In sefer Shu"t Yad Dodi page 149:30 Reb Dovid Feinstein was asked about using the magic cup on shabbos ,and he his response was it is permitted to use such a cup. Text of responsa:
sam's user avatar
  • 41.6k
4 votes

Why is the colour כחול ('blue') not mentioned in Tanach?

A very interesting question! First, it's hard to answer a question "Why there's no X in the Torah" in general, but according to the WIKI (in Hebrew), our ancestors didn't name the colors but ...
Al Berko's user avatar
  • 25.9k
3 votes

Changing the High Holiday shul "look"

I wouldn't call this a Minhag in the halachic sense of the word (TBD). This is more like a shul operational procedure. E.g.: The typical shul will use whatever Paroches they have, all year round. ...
Danny Schoemann's user avatar
3 votes
Accepted

Why do a sefer Torah's letters have to be black?

The midrash tanchuma below brings this posuk shir hashirim 5.11 his locks are curled, [they are as] black as a raven Rashi black as a raven: All these are beauty for a young man It seems that black ...
hazoriz's user avatar
  • 7,506
3 votes

Dyeing Hair for Men

The Talmud in Nazir 58B and 59A treat the subject. Let's try to answer the question. There are 3 consequences to the Law "Lo Ylbash gever Simlath Isha" (For this moment I will avoid to ...
kouty's user avatar
  • 22.7k
3 votes

Where can I get dark blue Techelet for my tzizit and talit?

If you want darker shades, according to my experience, you should try the niputz lishma strings Ptil Techelet or the Chabura. In general, the Chabura ones are darker than Ptil techelet even if not ...
Gershom Menachem's user avatar
3 votes
Accepted

Wearing photo gray glasses on Shabbos

Rav Shmuel Wosner zt"l addresses this in Shevet HaLevi, cheilek dalet, siman 23, os 5. He says that going out in the sun in such glasses is not considered an act of tzoveya. בענין המשקפים שבאור ...
Dov's user avatar
  • 32.3k
3 votes

What was the general skin color of ancient Israelis?

Just an addition to what Daniel Kagan writes (very interesting though), Rashi, in his commentary on Bamidbar 12:1 writes: האשה הכשית THE CUSHITE WOMAN — This tells us that all agreed as to her beauty ...
Shmuel's user avatar
  • 9,718
2 votes

Why are there colored splotches on the pages on many Jewish texts?

I have always heard that these blotches make it to where one cannot see the "stains" that are left on the sides of pages from the oil on one's fingers.
ezra's user avatar
  • 18.6k
2 votes

Cesem found on someone with dark skin

The poskim at Dinonline answered this very question saying, Chut Shani (Rav Nissim Karelitz, Niddah, Shaar Ha-Zion 168) writes that this is a matter of doubt. However, it stands to reason ...
NJM's user avatar
  • 14.2k
2 votes

Blue Stripes on Tallis

Joods by Schilderij Voerman, 1884
SarDau Mort's user avatar
2 votes

Why say the rams are reddened?

There are a few possible answers and facts here that build on each other: 1) A previous comment of Rashi just before on 75a, already spelled out the case by saying we do not learn out "from the red ...
David Kenner's user avatar
  • 10.8k
2 votes

What does the blue color mean in Judaism?

In the Zohar in several places, blue (תכלת) is taken to be the attribute of divine severity or judgment, e.g.: זהר ויקרא רכו ב -- האי תכלת איהי דין This blue is severity. זהר שמות קמז א -- ...
paquda's user avatar
  • 4,901
2 votes

Why do Jewish women wear so much black?

From @RebbecaBurns answer to this question: Black is always elegant. Always. Simple is best. It is important to remember that the purpose of tznius is not to be ugly or unattractive, but to not ...
N.T.'s user avatar
  • 8,615
2 votes

Why is the colour כחול ('blue') not mentioned in Tanach?

Because in Truth there's only four colors. In the Holy T. Zohar and Zohar it's brought White and red are Rachamei and Din It even gives concrete examples white stones are kindness, red din. Green/...
Nissim Nanach's user avatar
2 votes
Accepted

Books about Ma'ros of Dam Nidda

When I learned Hilchos Nidda in YU, my Rebbi quoted extensively from a 2 volume set called "תא חזי", available at many seforim stores. Vol 1, Vol 2 I don't think that they have pictures, but ...
moses's user avatar
  • 3,587
2 votes

Why is milk blue?

I'm not sure what you mean by variations, but the Ramma in Yoreh Deah 89:4 does mention the minhag to have two separate knives, one for dairy and one for meat, and to make a mark on the dairy knife. ...
user6591's user avatar
  • 33.6k
2 votes

Why is milk blue?

Although like other users have suggested this Minhag is not officially established, that is the case early on with most Minhagim. I think most can confirm that when these are separated by colored ...
TheKugelMan's user avatar

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