Shabbat Meal - Table with Four Legs
This question and answer were automatically translated using our trained AI and have not yet been reviewed by a qualified rabbi. Please treat this translation with caution.
go to original →
Question
Where is the source that the Ari, of blessed memory, said one should eat the Shabbat meal on a table with four legs? And should one follow this practice? Which poskim discuss this topic?
Answer
Shalom Rav,
The source is in Shaar HaKavanot by Rabbi Chaim Vital, who recorded the customs of his teacher, the Ari, of blessed memory.
This is not stated as a halacha but as his personal stringency.
It is not brought in the poskim as a halacha, and therefore it is certainly not obligatory. However, it may be meaningful for someone who wishes to follow Kabbalah to be stringent in this matter.
Source
Shaar HaKavanot (4b:1): I saw that my teacher, the Ari, was very careful and meticulous to eat [on the holy Shabbat] at a table with four legs, similar to the table in the Temple.