Ticheiles: It's Not all Black and White (Hebrew Only)

Verse. "Nations [to the] mount will call". ...And the treasures hidden in the sand. This is the Chilazon which was in the land of Zebulun with which they would dye the Ticheiles. ... Another interpretation... And the treasures hidden in the sand. This is the Chilazon which was hidden in the sand

And the husband of Chanan son of Achbor died. Rabbi Levi says he was a glorifier of Gods. [He was named] Meheitivael as he would better himself [Meitiv] in honor of false Gods. [He was named] Matred as they would set up a Triyon for idolatrous purposes

(305) Triyon ... Triyon [is] defined in Greek and Roman language as diversity of Ticheiles

(1) “Your garment did not grow worn from upon you”’ (Deuteronomy 8:4). He said to him: ‘But did they not grow?’ He said to him: ‘Go out and learn from the Chilazon, for as long as it grows, its shell grows with it.’

The Sages taught: one who traps a Chilazon and cracks its shell is liable once. Rabbi Yehuda says: He is liable for two, as Rabbi Yehuda would say: The breaking of a Chilazon is included in threshing. They said to him: Cracking the shell is not included in threshing. Rava said: What is the rationale of the Rabbis? They hold: Threshing applies only to produce that grows from the ground. Let him be liable for taking a life as well! Rabbi Yoḥanan said: This is referring to when he broke its shell after it was dead. Rava said: Even if you say that he broke it when it was alive, he is exempt as he did not intend to kill it. [But] didn’t Abaye and Rava both say that Rabbi Shimon, agrees that in a case of Cut off its head and will it not die, one is liable? Here it is different, as the longer the Chilazon lives, the better, so that its dye will become clear.

Zebulun said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe! To my brothers, You gave fields and vineyards, whereas to me You gave mountains and hills; to my brothers You gave lands, whereas to me You gave seas and rivers. G-d said back to him: all will need you due to the Chilazon, As it is stated “They shall call the people to the mountain... and of the hidden treasures of the sand” (Deuteronomy 33:19). Rav Yosef taught: “Treasures”; this is referring to the Chilazon.

The Sages taught: This Chilazon, its body resembles the sea, its form resembles that of a fish, it emerges once in seventy years, and with its blood one dyes wool Ticheiles. Therefore, it is expensive.

(1) ...When [did this rule apply]? When there was [a real] blue, but now we only have white, because the blue has been hidden.

A message was sent to Rava [during the time of Roman persecution]: A pair [of Torah scholars] came from Rakkath, [Tiveria], but the eagle [i.e., Roman soldiers, whose symbol was the eagle] apprehended them, and in their possession were items made in Luz. And what are those? Ticheiles. In the merit of Divine mercy and in their merit, they emerged in peace.

Because at that time the color of the Ticheiles was caught favorably in the air of Luz more than any other place [i.e. that was the center of Ticheiles production] and if they were captured they would have lost a great deal. And it appears reasonable that at that time there was a decree from the Roman Ceaser not to dye the Ticheiles onto Tzitzis and had they been captured they would have entered into danger for they had brazenly violated the royal decree.

(2) The blood of the Chilazon is then taken,—a fish the color of which is azure while its blood is black as ink. This fish is found in the salty sea...

And is there no method for testing Ticheiles wool? But didn’t Rav Yitzḥak, son of Rav Yehuda, test it- (a mnemonic: GeSheM- Gimel, Shin, and Mem) He would bring alum clay [Megavya Gila- Gimel], and water of fenugreek [Shavlilta- Shin], and urine [Meimei Raglayim- Mem] that was forty days old. He soaked it in from night until morning. If its color would fade, it is unfit [as it was not dyed with tekhelet derived from a Chilazon]. If its color would not fade, it is fit.

(1) "I am the L-rd your G-d, who took you out of the land of Egypt.": Why is this mentioned here? Rather so that one not say: I will take plant indigo-dyed threads and they are similar to Ticheiles, and who will know the difference? "I am the L-rd your G-d".

R. Meir says: It is not written "And you shall see them", rather "And you shall see Him." Scripture hereby apprises us that if one fulfills the mitzvah of Ticheiles, it is reckoned unto him as if he beheld the face of the Shechinah, for Ticheiles is reminiscent of [the color of] the sea, the sea, of the firmament, and the firmament, of the Throne of Glory, as it is written (Ezekiel 1:26) "And above the firmament that was over their heads"

And Ticheiles. wool dyed with the blood of the Chilazon, the color of which is green

(2) How are the blue threads used with the fringes to be dyed? Wool is soaked in lime and afterwards washed till it is clean. It is then scalded in a solution of alum and similar substances such as are used by dyers, so that it may take the color... The blood is put into a cauldron together with other ingredients such as potash and similar substances used by dyers, and brought to a boiling point. The wool is immersed in the cauldron till it has assumed the hue of the sky. This is the blue thread used with the fringes.