Beitzah 14 - Giving presents on a Holiday

Since one can cook on a Holiday (Yom Tov), one can also grind spices. However, when crushing rock salt, she should do it in a manner different from weekdays. Why is salt different from spices? Every dish needs salt, so she should have thought of it and crushed it beforehand, but spices - she may decide to cook a special dish that requires them on the spur of the moment. Another reason: spices begin to lose flavor right after they are ground, so it is impossible to prepare them before the Yom Tov.

Is there any practical difference between the two reasons? - Yes! - if she knows which dish she will cook. According to the first reason, she should have prepared the spices and cannot grind them now; according to the second reason, they would lose their pungency, so she could not prepare beforehand and is therefore allowed to grind them now.

One should not send presents to a friend on a Yom Tov, since people might see them and think that he is sending goods to the market to sell. The only things that are allowed are ready-made portions of food. This is the opinion of Beit Shammai. However, Beit Hillel is not concerned about it. They allow sending animals and fowl, alive or slaughtered, wines, oils, and fine flours - provided that it is not carried by a caravan of three people, because then it looks like trading.

Art: Preparing spices for market By Paul Saint-Jean

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