Torah Portion: Vayikra
You may not discontinue the salt of your God’s covenant from upon your meal-offering (Vayikra 2:13).
It is a negative commandment to not omit salt from any offering or minchah (meal-offering) — that is, the kohanim may not process any offering or minchah unless they add salt — as it is written, You may not discontinue the salt of your God’s covenant from upon your meal-offering (Vayikra 2:13).
Among the roots of the mitzvah is the idea that since the aim of offerings is to perfect and polish the soul of the person bringing the offering, therefore, in order to arouse his soul, he was commanded to offer those items that are good and desirable to him. Using salt as part of offerings also falls under this root-idea: In order for this action [of presenting an offering] to be complete, nothing that human would find incomplete should be left out, and in this way his heart will be aroused more — without salt no one enjoys the flavor or the aroma of any food. In addition, there is another aspect to salt, in that salt preserves items, protecting food from spoiling or rotting. So, too, the act of bringing an offering protects the person from loss, and his soul will be protected forever.
The laws of the mitzvah include: Our Sages taught that it is a mitzvah to thoroughly salt the meat on both sides, similar to the way meat is salted before roasting. After the fact, if the offering was salted even slightly, it is valid. The salt used for salting the offerings was paid for by the public, like the wood [used for the fire on the Altar, which was also purchased from community funds]. An individual, however, may not give the salt or wood for offerings. The salt was applied at three locations: in the Chamber of Salt, on the ramp [leading up to the Altar], and on the top of the Altar. In the Chamber of Salt they would salt the hides of the Kodshim (sanctified offerings); on the ramp they would salt the limbs of the sacrifices; and on the top the Altar they would salt the three-fingers-full of the meal offering, the frankincense, the burnt meal-offerings and the olah-offering of the fowl.
This mitzvah applies when the Holy Temple stands, to kohanim. A kohen who transgresses this and brought an offering or meal-offering without any salt, violates a positive commandment and also transgresses this negative commandment and he receives lashes.
