Understanding the Text of the Ketoret

June 4 second from 14:33 till the end As we've seen in previous installments, the recitation of the Ketoret is especially valuable, and offers a person great blessings and benefits. However, this is true only if the person recites the text slowly and with Kavana (concentration), understanding the words he utters. As such, it behooves us to try to understand this difficult text to whatever extent we can. The portion from the Talmud which we recite begins by listing the eleven ingredients of the Ketoret, and their relative amounts in the mixture. We read that the Ketoret consisted of a total of 368 portions ("Maneh"), and that 365 of these were offered over the course of the 365 days of the solar calendar – half a portion each morning, and half a portion each afternoon. The remaining three portions were used for the Kohen Gadol's special Ketoret offering inside the Kodesh Ha'kodashim (inner sanctum of the Bet Ha'mikdash) on Yom Kippur. The Gemara teaches us that these three portions were returned on Ereb Yom Kippur to the "Machteshet" – the mortar – to be ground extra-fine. Whereas the Torah requires that the ordinary, daily Ketoret be prepared "Daka" – finely-ground – the Ketoret brought in the Kodesh Ha'kodashim on Yom Kippur needed to be "Daka Min Ha'daka" – especially fine, and so these three portions were ground a second time on Ereb Yom Kippur, in preparation for the Yom Kippur service. The first four of the eleven spices listed by the Gemara are Sori, Siporen, Helbena and Lebona, which (as mentioned in our previous installment) are the four spices named by the Torah (Shemot 30:34). As the Gemara teaches, Sori is "Seraf Ha'notef Me'aseh Ha'ketaf" – "sap that drips from the balsam tree." This is the "Nataf" mentioned by the Torah, referring to its "dripping" ("Notef") from the tree. The Siporen – onycha – is called "Shehelet" in the Torah. The third and fourth spices are Helbena – galbanum – and Lebona – frankincense – which are listed by these names also in the Torah. The next five spices are Mor – myrrh; Kesia – cassia; Shibolet Nerd – spikenard; Karkom – saffron; and Kost – costus. There's a great deal of discission as to the correct text for this ninth spice. In many editions, this word appears as "Ha'kosht." The definitive article "Ha" ("the") seems difficult to justify, because this article is used only in reference to the first four spices ("Ha'sori Ve'ha'siporen Ve'halbena Ve'ha'lebona"). As we explained in a previous installment, the prefix "Ha" appears in reference to these four because these four are explicitly named by the Torah itself. All the others, however – including Kosht – are not named by the Torah, and so the prefix "Ha" seems inappropriate in this context. This point was made by Rav Meir Mazuz (1945-2025), who added that the word "Kosht" itself is incorrect. The correct pronunciation, he wrote, is "Kost" – meaning, with the letter Sin as opposed to the letter Shin. Rav Mazuz explained that "Kosht" resembles the Aramaic word "Keshot," which means "true" (as we say in the Berich Shemeh prayer: "De'Hu Elaka Keshot Ve'Orayteh Keshot…") and is not the name of a spice. Therefore, although in many Siddurim the word is written "Ha'kosht," it should be pronounced "Kost."