Matzah shmura
Type of unleavened bread / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Matzah Shmura (מצה שמורה) or shemurah matzah or shmura matzo is a matzah that during its preparation was specially guarded to prevent it from becoming leavened, and not just that it did not become leavened "by chance"[1]
This article may be too technical for most readers to understand. (April 2024) |
There are different opinions in the Gemara and among the decisors regarding from which stage in the matzah's preparation it needs to be guarded in order to be considered "Matzah Shmura". Today, it is accepted to define as Matzah Shmura only matzah that was baked from wheat that was guarded from contact with water from the time of harvesting; however, since there are different opinions among the early decisors regarding whether the guarding needs to be from the time of harvesting, from the time of grinding, or from the time of kneading, someone who only has matzah that was guarded from one of these times for the mitzvah of eating matzah should eat it for the sake of the mitzvah commandment (possibly without a blessing) in order to satisfy these opinions.[1]
In addition, the matzah for the mitzvah also needs another element of guarding, meaning it needs to be "for its sake", that is, the harvesting and guarding of the matzahs should be done for the sake of the mitzvah of eating matzah, and not for any other purpose.[2][3][4][5]