What a target rich siman to study with the twins, Picking and Choosing. Where to even start? Homes without an amah x amah unfinished spot opposite the entry? Music? Leaving an empty place at the table? Filling one's mouth with laughter?

What if you didnt build the house?
What is classified as music?
How big a space are we talking?
As opposed to just laughing?

9

What does the siman say?
All I can say is that in my parents home there is a clear amah by amah area (it might be a bit bigger) of unfished wall as soon as you walk in the door, if you look straight ahead and a teensy bit up.

That we need to do certain things zeicher la-churban as rabbinic injunctions. For example, the amah x amah thing. Or ashes on the head of a chatan but crowns on their heads is forbidden. That music is fordidden [and by the way, that's why the SHulchan Aruch never says music is forbidden during sefirah or the nine days - because it's ALWAYS forbidden]. That you can't fill your mouth with "schok" [laughter? levity?].


That's commendable and they are doing the right things. But I suspect it's not common. I say that because of one of R. Frand's tapes on the topics where he said it's not common, and then proceeded to list a wack of limudei zechut why.


We have been through each and every one of these issues previously on h.com. But at the end of the day, this siman in shulchan aruch is basically an empty shell, with all sorts of apologetic reasons that this stuff doesn't apply, in spite of the [certain demographic] paying the proper lip service of fealty to shulchan aruch.

Somebody told me today that R. Neventzahl used to take actual ashes from a burnt structure that is under Yeshivat Hakotel, namely ashes from the actual churban of yerushalyim, to place on the heads of chatanim. Till the archeologic site was sealed.

Is the unfinished area allowed to be covered, say with a picture, or can it be behind a door, like in a closet?

I thought it was only if you (or another Jew?) built the house.