Parshat Tazria - Sixth Aliyah
Read the biblical text and try to understand it on your own, before reading the commentary.
In this aliyah the Torah continues to detail the laws of the tzara’at affliction, this time regarding the bald head, and a rare and loaded phenomenon: tzara’at on a garment.
Summary of the Verses
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Verses 40-43: A person bald on his head or forehead is pure, unless there is a white-reddish affliction there, which is a sign of tzara’at. The priest examines, and if the affliction appears as tzara’at, the person becomes impure.
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Verses 44-46: The afflicted must conduct himself with humility and mourning: his garments torn, his hair disheveled, covering his mustache and calling out “impure, impure” to alert others to his condition. He must dwell alone outside the camp, cut off from society until he is purified.
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Verses 47-54: If a tzara’at affliction appears on a wool or linen garment, or on leather, the priest examines its color (greenish or reddish) and quarantines it for seven days. If the affliction spreads, the garment is burned, for this is a malignant tzara’at. If not, it is washed and quarantined again for seven days.
A Thought from the Parsha
Can a garment also have tzara’at? The Torah teaches a deep principle here, that the exterior is also influenced by inner spirituality. When there is inner impurity, it can seep into objects and garments, to the point that they themselves become impure. And so too in reverse, through inner purity, everything can be sanctified.