Eating Fish on Shabbat Noach is a Segulah for a Good Life

 

Text: Rabbi David Hanania Pinto

Eating gourmet fish on this Shabbat of Parshat Noach is a timely act, and is certainly auspicious for a good life. For it became clear that everything that was on dry land died, but the fish of the sea did not die, as the Midrash tells us [Bereishit Rabba 32:11], "'of everything that was on dry land, died', this implies that the fish did not die". 

This wonderful segulah of meriting 'good life' by eating fish on Shabbat Parshat Noach, is mentioned in the name of Rabbi Avraham Eiger of Lublin zt"l ([Shevet m'Yehuda']. It correlates with the wonderful statement that emanated from the pure mouth of the holy 'Ateret Tzvi' of Ziditshov zt"l: "Rabbi Shlomoleh of Karlin would say that one who does not eat fish in honor of the holy Shabbat, should be more concerned than the matter about which Chazal say [Yoma 88a] that one should be concerned the entire year. I add to this that one who eats fish in honor of the holy Shabbat, does not need to worry at all in the coming week." 

The holy Rabbi Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov zt"l also promises a three-fold blessing to those who eat fish on Shabbat. As he writes in his sefer 'Bnei Yissachar' [Ma'amarei Shabbatot 1:11]: "A reason for this choice mitzvah of eating fish on Shabbat, is that we find in the work of creation that a blessing was given to three things, on three consecutive days. A blessing for the fish on the fifth day, a blessing for man on the sixth day and a blessing for Shabbat on the seventh day. As we know, a three-ply thread will not quickly unravel, so man who eats fish in honor of Shabbat will be blessed with a three-fold blessing and will not quickly be severed." 

The 'Dorshei Reshumot' also explains that this matter is hinted to in the words sung by the sweet singer of Israel [Tehillim 23:2] "In lush meadows He lays me down". The Hebrew word 'דשא ', meadows, is an acronym for 'דגים, שבת, אדם ', fish, Shabbat, man, meaning that these three items enable receiving the three-fold blessing on the day of rest. This is implied by the continuation of the verse "in tranquil waters He leads me", meaning the tranquility of Shabbat. 

Why specifically was fish chosen as a Shabbat delicacy? Rabbeinu Yosef Chaim of Bavel zya"a, in his sefer 'Ben Yehoyoda', quotes the Midrash, "'Of everything that was on dry land, died', this implies that the fish of the sea did not die", and explains that fish was chosen as a Shabbat delicacy to teach us that the fire of Gehinom does not have power on Shabbat, just as the fire of the hot waters of the Flood had no power over the fish, in the generation that was judged with boiling water."