Is this Mem Stuma Kosher?

By -
I am currently checking a bunch of Mezuzahs written by the same sofer. He consistently makes the Mem Stuma with a line sticking down on the bottom right.

Here is a picture of one of the more egregious instances.

 

Is this a shinuy tzurah lifsol? If it is not passul, should I leave it alone or add ink to the bottom to make it square? I would appreciate any insight since I am not finding anything on this in the sefarim I have.


Comments

  1. moshe weinerOctober 18, 2012 at 8:41 AM

    I think you may ask a tinok on several of them - once you understand the tinoks reading of this type, you may move on.
    If he pasels them or some [some he calls a mem and some a samech, or anything else incorrect] you must ask on all these mems.
    If you see the tinok recognizes them as a mem, then you know they are kosher, and you should fix them by filling in the zavis.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Aaron ShaffierOctober 18, 2012 at 10:39 AM

    Thanks Rav Moshe!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Aaron ShaffierOctober 18, 2012 at 10:48 AM

    I just went through this with my six year old daughter. I showed her five or six of the most distorted instances (interspersed with many other letters so as not to establish a pattern). She read them all correctly as mem sofit.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yerachmiel AskotzkyOctober 18, 2012 at 5:38 PM

    There is no shaila of a Samech. The question would be a shinui tzura. I'd say if the line was any longer that in the example above I'd ask a shailas chacham.

    If this mezuzah was of decent quality the round corner of the Bais should be fixed as well.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Rabbi Eli GutnickOctober 18, 2012 at 10:33 PM

    I think there is a teshuvah from the shevet halevi regarding this exact case, where he is machshir. Hopefully if I have time over shabbos I will try and find it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Beis HastamOctober 21, 2012 at 2:32 PM

    yes the rabanim are machshir based on shevet haleivi, although as an i always had a problem understanding it. What makes it closer to a mem sofit with a tail than to a fei sofit that got connected.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Beis HastamOctober 21, 2012 at 2:32 PM

    yes the rabanim are machshir based on shevet haleivi, although as an i always had a problem understanding it. What makes it closer to a mem sofit with a tail than to a fei sofit that got connected.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ink, Kosher vs. non-Kosher

By -
We all know that there is no ancient source that requires ink to be מן המותר בפיך . Possibly, as said here before, because in the olden days ink was always  מן המותר בפיך and the question was never raised. It was probably self-evident. Nowadays, no decent Rav will approve an ink which is not מן המותר בפיך  . Who was the first one to raise this question? Was it raised because of animal ingredients or because of non-kosher wine?
Read more

Question to Yosef Chaim B

By -
Thank you for commenting on my ink article. In your comment you stated: "Many poskim disagree... Many rishonim have clearly stated the use of our ingredients." Would you please be kind enough to teach us (so I can include it in the article) which Poskim and what exactly and where did they say that the עפצים וקנקנתום  type of ink is preferable over good quality דיו עשן  that does not fail? We are not interested in biased פילפולים , or in those who said that  דיו עשן is not being used because it fails easily or because it was not known how to make good quality דיו עשן.  Nor are we interested in those who said to use  עפצים וקנקנתום וגומא ואין לשנות when they discussed specifically the עפצים וקנקנתום type of ink. We are interested to find out where and who (if any) said explicitly, based on sources, that the  עפצים וקנקנתום  type of ink is preferable over good quality דיו עשן , even when there is  דיו עשן  of good quality that does not ...
Read more