Food of Pesach – matza
On Pesach, we are forbidden from eating chometz. In addition, on the first night of Pesach we have a positive commandment to eat matza. We do this during the seder. The rest of Pesach, we do not have to eat matza but must eat chometz. However, one does get a mitzva for eating matza the rest of Pesach. We see from here that the main food of Pesach is matza.
Two types of matza
We pointed out that the actual obligation to eat matza is only on the first night of Pesach. This matza is called Lechem Oini, a poor man’s bread since it only consists of flour and water. However, the rest of Pesach, a different type of matza can be used. This is called Matza Ashira, a rich man’s bread. This contains addition ingredients to add taste – like wine and honey. The prohibition that remains in place is to eat chometz. This is where the ingredients are allowed to rise more than eighteen minutes. The two types of matza must therefore be baked before eighteen minutes have elapsed.
What is the message of the matzas?
The matza of seder night, Lechem Oini, teaches us about living with the minimum. When dealing with the physical world and all it’s temptations, the matza teaches us to only take what is essential for survival. A person is made up of Guf and Neshama, physical and spiritual. They are usually inversely proportional meaning that when one goes up the other goes down. Pesach is when the exodus from Mitzrayim happened. The Jews were in a bad spiritual shape having sunk to the lowest, 49th, gateway of tuma. They needed something to refocus them spiritually – this came with the message of the matza.
Matza and the Mon
The Jews lived for forty years in the desert between leaving MItzrayim and entering Eretz Yisroel. During this time they lived with open miracles. One of them was their food supply – the Mon. This was food from Heaven where a little amount gave full sustenance without any impurities. They did not need to go to the toilet. This was spiritual food. The Gemora (Kiddushin 38a) tells us that the matza taken out by the Jews from Egypt tasted like the Mon. This tells us that the matza, like the mon, came to provide the Jews with spirituality.
Matza as medicine
The Zohar refers to matza as medicine and food of emuna. What does this mean? Going alone with our previous theme it is understood. The Jews left Mitzrayim on a spiritual low. They needed immediate action to remedy this. This was provided with the matza. Until then, the Jews had eaten matza since they were slaves to the Egyptians. Now they had to eat matza to demonstrate that they were slaves to Hashem. This made a drastic change to them spiritually. A new master means new jobs and a different focus. In this way the matza comes as a medicine and emuna.