מזוזה- סמל, שמירה ומצווה

For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side-posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.

And it shall be on the day when ye shall pass over the Jordan unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, that thou shalt set thee up great stones, and plaster them with plaster. And thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou art passed over; that thou mayest go in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, as the LORD, the God of thy fathers, hath promised thee. And it shall be when ye are passed over the Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster. And there shalt thou build an altar unto the LORD thy God, an altar of stones; thou shalt lift up no iron tool upon them. Thou shalt build the altar of the LORD thy God of unhewn stones; and thou shalt offer burnt-offerings thereon unto the LORD thy God. And thou shalt sacrifice peace-offerings, and shalt eat there; and thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God. And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly.’

The Sages taught in a baraita: The verse states: “And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house, and upon your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:9). One might have thought that one writes a mezuza on the stones of the entrance. To counter this, an expression of writing is stated here, with regard to a mezuza, and an expression of writing is stated there. Just as there the mitzva of writing means on a book, i.e., parchment, so too, a mezuza must be written on a book. The baraita suggests: Or perhaps, go [kalekh] this way, i.e., one can suggest a different interpretation: An expression of writing is stated here, with regard to a mezuza, and writing is stated there, with regard to the mitzva of writing the words of the Torah on stones upon the entry to Eretz Yisrael (Deuteronomy 27:3). Just as there, the words are written on the stones themselves, so too here, the mezuza should be written on the stones. The baraita continues: Let us see to which it is similar, i.e., which comparison appears more apt. We derive writing that is performed in all generations, i.e., that of a mezuza, from another writing that is performed in all generations, but we do not derive writing that is performed in all generations from writing that is not performed in all generations. And furthermore, a mezuza must be written with ink, as it is stated below: “And Baruch said to them: He dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them with ink in the scroll” (Jeremiah 36:18).

§ Rava says: It is a mitzva to place the mezuza in the handbreadth adjacent to the public domain. The Gemara asks: What is the reason for this? The Rabbis say that it is in order that one encounter the mezuza immediately upon one’s entrance to the house. Rav Ḥanina from Sura says: It is in order that the mezuza protect the entire house, by placing it as far outside as one can. The Gemara adds: Rabbi Ḥanina says: Come and see that the attribute of flesh and blood is not like the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He. The attribute of flesh and blood is that a king sits inside his palace, and the people protect him from the outside, whereas with regard to the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He, it is not so. Rather, His servants, the Jewish people, sit inside their homes, and He protects them from the outside. As it is stated: “The Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your shade upon your right hand” (Psalms 121:5).

It is important to realise that through fulfillment and study of this commandment many fundamental aspects of the Torah and the outlook of Judaism become clearer to us. The belief in the creation of the world by the Creator, G’d’s being a personal G’d who supervises the fates of His creatures, the existence of the institution of prophecy, are all part of what we find in the segments of the Torah written in the mezuzah. The first paragraph contains references to the Unity and Uniqueness of G’d as well as to His Torah. The second paragraph deals with the principle of reward and punishment, the remembrance of the Exodus from Egypt which was a period during which G’d performed many miracles compelling the witnesses to believe in His primacy in the universe as well as convincing them that G’d takes a very personal interest in each one of His creatures.
Our sages in the Talmud have agreed that the correct spot to affix the mezuzah is within (upper part) the top third of the door frame. (Menachot 33). This is also clear from the Jerusalem Talmud Megillah near the end of the fourth chapter. The reason for this is to symbolize the third and uppermost part of the emanationכבוד which is known both by the name שדי and אדנ-י. [the concept of עשר מעלות, ten levels of sanctity, is not new and appears symbolically in our liturgy such as the blowing of the shofar in units of three times three, the recital of the Biblical verses in the Rosh Hashanah Mussaph prayer, three from each section of the Bible. In all these instances these divisions of three symbolize the attribute of כבוד as it manifests itself in a lower form, an intermediate form, and an upper form. In all of these divisions the tenth and highest unit represents the highest emanation כתר. [Placing the mezuzah near the top of the upright doorpost then symbolizes our striving for affinity to the highest level of sanctity. Ed.]. This is also why we write these names on the outside of the parchment of the mezuzah (Maimonides Hilchot Mezuzah 5,4). The word שדי is to be written in such a way that it is visible through a little hole in the upper half of the casing of the mezuzah. The parchment is affixed in an almost upright manner at a slight angle pointing in the direction of the entrance. This is why it is commonly known as מזוזה, the numerical value of which is the same as the name of G’d אדנ-י i.e. 65. That name also symbolizes that G’d is the שומר ישראל, “the guardian of the people of Israel.” The reason the word שדי is to be visible from the outside is that the Gentiles believe that the success of their domestic lives depends on the horoscopes of the people dwelling therein. Seeing that the name שדי represents the concept that this attribute of G’d defeats any horoscopic constellations, we write this on the outside to demonstrate the Power of G’d which we believe in. All good fortune originates with Him and not the horoscopes under which we are born.
We read that Eliphaz (quoting heretics) says in Job 22,17: ומה יפעל שדי למו, “what can Shaddai do about it?” In the following verse Eliphaz continues: “whereas it was He who filled their house with good things.”
There is a story told in Jerusalem Talmud Peyah 1,1 (Steinsaltz edition page כב) that the last Parthian king Artavan once sent a gift of a very precious pearl to Rabbi Yehudah Hanassi, asking to be sent something of equal value in return. Rabbi Yehudah Hanassi sent a mezuzah in return. When the king received the mezuzah he was dumbfounded that Rabbi Yehudah could consider this little piece of parchment as an equivalent to the precious pearl. He expressed his sentiments in no uncertain terms. Thereupon Rabbi Yehudah explained to the king that they had different sets of values, hence the king’s amazement. He went on to say that whereas the king’s gift was something that he, Rabbi Yehudah, would constantly have to guard against theft, etc., his own gift to the king was something hat would guard over the king and protect him. He quoted Proverbs 6,22 in support. Solomon writes: “When you walk it (‎Torah) will lead you; when you lie down it will watch over you. When you are awake it will talk to you.” Thus far the quote from the Talmud.
When someone affixes a mezuzah to his door he has to recite a benediction “who has sanctified us by means of His commandments and commanded us to affix a mezuzah.” Seeing it is not a commandment which one fulfills regularly, one also says the benediction שהחיינו, acknowledging the kindness of G’d in allowing us to live to this point in time.

A person should pay heed to the precept of the Mezuzah; for it is an obligation perpetually binding upon all. Whenever one enters or leaves a home with the Mezuzah on the doorpost, he will be confronted with the Declaration of God's Unity, blessed be His holy name; and will remember the love due to God, and will be aroused from his slumbers and his foolish absorption in temporal vanities. He will realize that nothing endures to all eternity save knowledge of the Ruler of the Universe. This thought will immediately restore him to his right senses and he will walk in the paths of righteousness. Our ancient teachers said: He who has phylacteries on his head and arm, fringes on his garment and a Mezuzah on his door may be presumed not to sin, for he has many monitors—angels that save him from sinning, as it is said, (Psalms 34:8) "The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him and delivereth them".

It is a universal custom to write the word Shaddai (Almighty) on the other side of the Mezuzah, opposite the blank space between the two sections. As this word is written on the outside, the practice is unobjectionable. They, however, who write names of angels, holy names, a Biblical text or inscriptions usual on seals, within the Mezuzah, are among those who have no portion in the world to come. For these fools not only fail to fulfill the commandment but they treat an important precept that expresses the Unity of God, the love of Him, and His worship, as if it were an amulet to promote their own personal interests; for, according to their foolish minds, the Mezuzah is something that will secure for them advantage in the vanities of the world.^*A reproof to those who sell Mezuzoth to be worn as amulets !