Yoreh Deah "Meat between the teeth"

Said Rav Hisda: "If he ate meat, it is forbidden to eat cheese. If he ate cheese, it is permitted to eat meat."
Said Rav Acha bar Yosef to Rav Hisda: "Meat between the teeth, what is the law?"
He (Rav Hisda) quoted a verse, "the meat was still between the teeth ."
Said Mar Ukbah: "I do not eat them both at the same meal (sudah) but at another meal, I do eat them both."

2. The Early Authorities (The Rishonim)

The Tor brings two reasons for waiting between meat and cheese for six hours, which is the time fixed by the Rabbis as being the normal period between a meal and another meal.

1. The first, Rashi, is because the taste of the meat is motze v' moshich (brings out and draws). In the simple understanding, this means that after the meat is swallowed the taste of the meat continues for six hours and this is the reason for the takanah (Rabbinical decree) of having to wait for six hours between meat and cheese.

The Yad Yehudah explains that there are two reasons in Rashi's view and that the presence of both factors are required.

a. Meat brings out fat which remains in the mouth.
b. Meat causes taste to continue on account of the digestive process.

2. The second, the Rambam, is because for six hours we are concerned about the possibility of meat between the teeth, which means that we assume that after eating meat, there remains particles of meat between the teeth for six hours.

3. Shita (System) of the Rambam

According to the shita of the Rambam we have three questions :

1. If meat is found in the teeth after six hours, is it necessary to rinse one's mouth with liquid and clean it with food before eating cheese or not?

There are two ways of understanding the rule (din) of the Rambam:

a. According to the Tor, the Rambam holds that it is not necessary - for the verse (pasuk) comes to teach us that only for six hours is meat between the teeth regarded as halachically "meat" and after this time it is considered as if digested and no longer forbidden with cheese.

b. However, there is another view in the Rambam, the Prei Chadash, based on the Ba'al Ha-Ator, that even after six hours, if there is meat between the teeth it is necessary to remove it. The importance of the factor of six hours in the Rambam, according to this view, is that up to six hours, we assume that there is meat between the teeth, even if we do not know for certain that this is so, but after six hours we assume that there is not - and only if we know, do we require rinsing and cleaning.

2. If we eat hard cheese, are we concerned that it will remain between the teeth and therefore we must wait six hours?

According to the Rambam, seemingly not; the Taz explains that the verse comes to teach us that meat alone remains between the teeth and that the Rabbis made their regulation not to eat cheese after meat and not the reverse, even in the case of hard cheese.

3. The third question in the Rambam is whether it is necessary to wait after eating a cooked dish (tavshil) of meat before eating cheese.

According to most opinions the Rambam would not forbid a tavshil of cheese immediately after a tavshil of meat provided that there was no particles of meat in the tavshil.

4.There is a subsidiary question in the Rambam. If the teeth are thoroughly cleaned of meat during the period of six hours, would the Rambam still require waiting time?

a. According to the Bach, yes; maybe he did not clean it properly.
b. According to the Oruch HaShulchan, no; if indeed the teeth were thoroughly scraped, the Rambam would permit.

4. Halachic Differences:

I. According to the Tor there are the following differences between the shita of Rashi and the Rambam

1. If the meat was just chewed - for example, by a mother for her child - and then spat out.

a. According to Rashi there would be no taste of meat and we would be satisfied by rinsing and cleaning.
b. According to the Rambam, we would still have to wait because we would be concerned about meat between the teeth. This is a strictness in the shita of Rambam.

2. If there is meat between the teeth after six hours.

a. According to Rashi, it is necessary to do rinsing and cleaning.
b. According to the view of the Tor in the Rambam, it is not necessary.

3. So far as hard cheese is concerned.

a. According to most views Rashi would say that there would be a taste of hard cheese for six hours, and therefore it would be forbidden to eat meat after hard cheese.
b. According to the Tor, Rambam would not forbid meat after hard cheese and he is not concerned about the possibility of cheese still in the mouth.

4. Concerning tavshilim

a. According to Rashi, if he eats tavshil, if it has fat he is required to wait six hours, but if it is a thin mixture it does not have enough taste to last and rinsing and cleaning would be enough.
b. According to the Rambam, tavshil of meat and tavshil of cheese are permitted one after the other.

II . The Ba'al Ator holds that Rambam agrees with Rashi - and only comes to add a strictness - that is that he holds taste and in addition he holds anything between the mouth is also forbidden.

5. It is necessary to understand how we learn the Gemora according to these views:

a. According to Rashi, the Gemora already knows we have to wait for six hours because of the taste, and asks what about meat between the teeth after this time.
b. According to the Ba'al Ator, the question of the Gemora is - is meat in the teeth still meat after six hours, and the answer is yes - we have a verse.
c. According to the view of the Tor, the question of the Gemora as explained by the Maeiri, is: after six hours, what about meat between the teeth and the answer is, the verse says meat between the teeth is meat - but after six hours it is not called meat.

6. Finally we should mention Rabbenu Tam who holds that it is not necessary to wait six hours between meat and milk, and it is sufficient to Bench, wash the hands and rinse and clean the mouth. He learns that when Rav Hisda says it is forbidden to eat cheese after meat that is without these requirements, and when the Gemora says it is necessary to wait between sudah to sudah it is talking about clearing off the table and benching.

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