The Mitzvah of the Foreleg, Cheeks, and Maw [Part 1]

The Mitzvah of the Foreleg, Cheeks, and Maw [Part 1]

Topics of the Article

In this article we will clarify what the priestly gifts are that must be given to a kohen after an animal is slaughtered. How is a limb defined in halachah? What is the foreleg? What are the cheeks? What is the maw? What is included in the foreleg? Which cuts are these today? Is shank meat, for example, definitely part of the priestly gifts? What is the status of head meat? “Israeli head”? shoulder roast? mock tender? banana shank? leg meat? Which species are obligated in the foreleg, cheeks, and maw? Is the American buffalo, recently slaughtered under a particular kosher certification, obligated in these gifts? What is the status of the goat–ibex hybrid raised in the Aravah?

The Nature of the Mitzvah

The Torah commands us that with every animal we slaughter, we must give three parts of the animal to the kohen, as the verse states (Deuteronomy 18:3): “וְזֶה יִהְיֶה מִשְׁפַּט הַכֹּהֲנִים מֵאֵת הָעָם, מֵאֵת זֹבְחֵי הַזֶּבַח, אִם שׁוֹר אִם שֶׂה, וְנָתַן לַכֹּהֵן הַזְּרֹעַ וְהַלְּחָיַיִם וְהַקֵּבָה” — “And this shall be the due of the priests from the people, from those who slaughter an offering, whether an ox or a sheep: he shall give the priest the foreleg, the cheeks, and the maw.” In this article we will define the essential elements of the mitzvah: what the foreleg, cheeks, and maw are, and to which species it applies. In the following articles we will define the full range of halachot pertaining to the mitzvah, whether it applies today, when and how, and whether there are instructions that obligate one who purchases meat in a store to act in a certain way, both according to the basic law and as an act of pious conduct.

What “Limb” Means in the Language of the Sages

In order to define the limbs, a short introduction is necessary. In ordinary speech, when we define meat from an animal, we mainly mean the type of meat: whether the meat is more fibrous or more tender, how fatty it is, its shape, and what kind of cooking it is suited for. Since each part of the animal has different qualities, we define it differently. For example, around the shoulder blade there are three different kinds of meat: shoulder, shoulder roast, and mock tender; each has different properties and a different method of cooking, and we therefore call each by a different name, even though all of them surround the shoulder blade. In addition, if a cut of meat surrounds several bones, we will still give it one name as long as the cut has similar characteristics, especially when the meat is attached as one long unit.

However, in the Torah and in the language of Chazal, a limb means a bone. Therefore each finger consists of three limbs, since it has three bone sections, while the shin or the thigh is each considered only one limb. For example, when the Sages say that a person has 248 limbs, they mean that he has 248 distinct bones in the body, as the Mishnah (Ohalot 1:8) details which bones make up the 248.

It should be noted that the stomach, heart, liver, kidneys, and lungs are not defined as limbs and are not part of a person’s 248 limbs. However, all the meat and tendons surrounding a bone are considered part of that same limb.

Therefore, when the Sages define what the foreleg and cheeks are, we must first define which bone is being discussed, and afterward define which meat belongs to that bone. Similarly, regarding the maw, which has no bone, we must define what is included in the maw. This brief introduction will help us understand what follows.

Which Limbs Are Being Discussed

Foreleg: In the animal’s body there is a series of connected bones. The upper one is called the shoulder blade [or scapula, or the “paddle bone,” after its shape]. Attached to it is another bone at the lower part of the animal’s belly that connects the shoulder to the leg. Beneath the connecting bone is the animal’s thigh bone, which reaches the animal’s knee. Beneath this bone is the shin bone, which reaches the animal’s hooves, and it is connected to the bone in the animal’s hoof.

A. The foreleg refers to part of the right front leg. However, the kohen has no portion in the left leg or in the hind legs. According to most Rishonim, and as ruled in the Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De’ah 61:2), the foreleg includes two joints, meaning two bones. According to most commentators, this means the bone that connects the shoulder to the thigh and the thigh bone itself. [We note that in Ma’aseh Rav (no. 103) it is brought that the Vilna Gaon held that it is only one joint of the thigh, and not the connecting bone; however, in Bi’ur HaGra (ad loc.) he does not disagree with the Shulchan Aruch, and even in Ma’aseh Rav it says that in practice the Vilna Gaon was stringent for himself and gave both joints].

Attached is an image from the book Sichat Chullin, with the kind permission of the author:

Cheeks: In the animal’s body there are two bones on each side of the animal: the lower jaw, connected to the windpipe, on which the animal’s lower teeth are located, and the upper jaw, connected to the skull, which contains the animal’s upper palate.

The Sifrei (section 165) writes that “cheeks” means the lower jaw, whereas Yonatan ben Uziel (Deuteronomy 18:3) writes that the cheeks are the upper and lower jaws.

The Pri Chadash (Yoreh De’ah 61:4) and Chochmat Adam (Sha’arei Tzedek, Mishpetei HaAretz 8:2) ruled halachically in accordance with the Sifrei, that only the lower jaw is to be given to the kohen. However, the Vilna Gaon’s text in the Sifrei (section 165, gloss 3) reads: the upper and lower jaw. This is also the view of the Kanfei Yonah and Da’at Torah (Yoreh De’ah 61:3), that it is proper to be stringent and give both; however, they conclude that the custom is to give only the lower jaw, and the custom of Israel is Torah.

Maw: This refers only to the rennet stomach, and only it is called “keivah” in the language of the Torah and the Sages. It does not refer to the other three digestive organs: the “keres”; the “meses” — today called the omasum; and the “beit hakosot,” even though in spoken Hebrew some refer to all these organs collectively as the stomach.

Now we will discuss what is included in each limb:

What Is Included in the Foreleg?

As stated, one must give the two bones of the animal’s right front leg: the upper bone connected to the animal’s shoulder blade, and the thigh bone beneath it, which reaches the animal’s knee, together with all the meat surrounding these bones, including the skin.

The meat around the lower bone that must be given to the kohen is what is called shank, or fore shank, or kachke, or osso buco [when sold with the bone]. In Israel it is also sold as meat no. 8. Abroad it is mainly called Shin or Shank.

However, it should be added that while the upper part of this bone contains the shank meat, the lower part of the bone is sold as leg for making jelly, leg stock, or meat soup. Although most of the bones sold as leg meat come from the lower shin and the hoof bone, part of this meat is also included.

The meat around the upper bone is less clear as to what it includes. The Taz (61:3) writes that the entire width must be given. HaGaon Rabbi Netanel Giat shlita, one of the rabbis of the kashrut system of Rabbi Shlomo Machpud shlita, told me that in practice, when one tries to understand what the Taz intended, it is very difficult to define the matter, and as far as he knows there is no clear tradition about it. It would seem that it includes part of what in Israel is called shoulder roast and sold as no. 5, and part of what is called mock tender and sold in Israel as meat no. 6, although most of these cuts belong to the shoulder blade [the “paddle bone”] and certainly do not belong to the kohen. Part of it is sold as shank no. 8, and as what is called true banana shank [no. 88].

On the other hand, HaGaon Rabbi Amittai ben David shlita, author of the book Sichat Chullin, told me that according to the clarification he made, the intention is only shank meat no. 8 and banana shank no. 88, and it does not include any of the shoulder cuts [no. 4, shoulder roast no. 5, and mock tender no. 6].

It should be noted that with regard to the cuts, it is not entirely clear how much meat must be given to the kohen, what is considered to surround and belong to this bone, and which meat is considered meat around the bone. In addition, in different countries around the world there are sometimes different definitions and boundaries for the various cuts of meat; the above is based on clarification regarding what is sold in Israel.

Of course, one must be aware that shank meat can come from either the right foreleg or the left foreleg, whereas in practice, from a halachic standpoint, only the shank of the right foreleg is the meat that must be brought to the kohen. Likewise, there are pieces farther from the bone that are also sold as shank meat; apparently these do not need to be given to the kohen. This note is important for the following articles, concerning the law in our times.

What Is Included in the Cheek?

The cheeks include the tongue, which is the finest part of the animal, and both the right cheek and the left cheek must be given together with the tongue between them (Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De’ah 61:3).

As stated, the cheek itself has two parts: the upper jaw, which is what is called head meat or cheek meat. In Israel it has no number; abroad it is called Cheek Meat. This cut is considered a very choice cut. According to the Vilna Gaon, it must be given to the kohen, whereas according to the Pri Chadash and Chochmat Adam, this part does not belong to the kohen.

There is also the lower jaw, which contains a very large amount of fat and is sold less often because of its poor quality. It is called “Israeli head” or “kop fleish” [although these names are meant to describe all the head meat that is not in demand, and they include parts that do not belong to the kohen at all, such as nape meat]. This jaw certainly belongs to the kohen.

What Is Included in the Maw?

The maw itself is not used today for eating, but rather for curdling milk into cheese. Today, in most places, various substitutes are used for curdling cheeses, and it has little economic value today. One must also give the fat that surrounds the maw, both the inner fat [perhaps referring to the curdled milk inside it used to produce hard cheeses] and the outer fat (Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De’ah 61:4).

To Which Species Does This Obligation Apply?

After defining the parts, we will define the animals obligated in these priestly gifts:

This obligation applies only to kosher domesticated animals, and does not apply to kosher wild animals, kosher birds, or any non-kosher species. Therefore the Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De’ah 61:1) ruled that the obligation applies only to an ox and a sheep or goat. However, the Shach (s.k. 1) added that this is not specifically so, and it applies to every kosher domesticated animal. The Pri Megadim questioned his words: after all, there are only three species of kosher domesticated animals — ox, sheep, and goat — and “seh” means both sheep and goat, so what did the Shach come to add? The Pri Megadim answered that the Shach came to add three more species about which one might have discussed whether they are included: 1. the wild ox; 2. the wild goat; 3. the koy, a hybrid creature of a goat and a deer. For regarding all three, there is room to say that they are wild animals; nevertheless, the verse included even them when it wrote “whether an ox or a sheep,” and the word “whether/or” comes to include these species, even though they are not fully an ox or a sheep/goat. So too it is ruled in the Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De’ah 61:17–18) that hybrids are obligated in half the gifts when the mother is a domesticated animal.

One of the questions that is asked is that in the past the American buffalo was a protected animal, but in recent years it has multiplied greatly, and therefore the authorities permit, and sometimes even encourage, slaughtering them. As a result, a market has developed in the United States for American buffalo meat, including meat slaughtered under various kosher certifications. [In the framework of this article we are not entering into the discussion of whether they may indeed be slaughtered. We will note briefly that according to the Chazon Ish (Yoreh De’ah 11), there is a custom accepted in recent centuries among the Jewish people not to slaughter species that were not slaughtered in the past, because of various problems that could result; therefore the buffalo should not be slaughtered. However, in Shevet HaLevi (vol. 10, no. 114) he permitted slaughtering buffalo outside Eretz Yisrael, because he concluded that, in his view, the halachah does not follow the Chazon Ish and no such custom was enacted. Yet he ended the responsum by saying that in Eretz Yisrael, the place of the Chazon Ish, he is not dealing with the matter at present — meaning that he did not want either to permit or to forbid in Eretz Yisrael, since in the place of the Chazon Ish one should show respect for his halachic rulings].

The question arises whether there is an obligation of foreleg, cheeks, and maw in such an animal. [This question also pertains to the European bison, or to the Israeli buffalo, if it becomes possible to slaughter them in the future]. The Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De’ah 28:4) wrote that the buffalo is a domesticated animal, and therefore its blood need not be covered; on the other hand, its chelev is prohibited. However, the Rema added that there is a doubt whether it is defined as a domesticated animal or a wild animal, and therefore its blood should be covered without a blessing, lest it be a wild animal; on the other hand, its chelev is prohibited. The root of the dispute is whether it is a breed of superior ox, which is what Scripture calls “meri” and which was offered on the altar, or whether it is one of the seven kosher wild animals, namely the te’o, also called the wild ox.  [Regarding the te’o itself, there is a discussion whether it is a wild animal or a domesticated animal].

In light of the words of the Pri Megadim, it would seem that this species is certainly obligated in the foreleg, cheeks, and maw even according to the Rema.

Likewise, in the Aravah, regrettably, they crossbred a goat and an ibex, and they raise the hybrid creature called a ya’ez. It must be clarified whether, if the crossbreeding was in the form of an ibex with a she-goat, half the gifts must be given from this species; or perhaps the crossbreeding originated from a goat with a female ibex, in which case the priestly gifts do not apply to it.

Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De’ah 61).