Book of Formation - Sefer Yetzirah

Chapter VI

Mishnah 13, part 1

<< Mishnah 12 
By the grace of G-d 
Copyright © 2013 Nathaniel Segal 

(which I call "Issues of Witnesses")

Mishnah * VI.13.1.  Three are uncontrollable – one's eyes, one's ears, and one's nose.


Companion

Mishnah VI.13.1.  []  Three are uncontrollable - They take in whatever is in the environment.  This mishnah describes an ordinary situation where one is not asserting control by closing the eyes, and so.  Also, the mishnah is not addressing any special cases of people who are blind, deaf, hard-of-hearing, etc.

one's eyes - One sees whatever is in front of the face.  'Seeing' is not 'looking' in the sense of deliberately viewing, examining, interpreting, and evaluating what one sees. Compare this idea with the first part of Mishnah 8 in Chapter 6:  "Abraham looked, and he saw . . ."

one's ears - One hears sounds that reach the ears, including echos.

one's nose - One smells whatever is in the air that enters the nose.  Some smells also reaches the nose through the back of the mouth.


* Definitions and Pronunciation

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