Torah Portion: Shemini
“אל תשקצו את נפשותיכם בכל השרץ השורץ ולא תטמאו בהם ונטמתם בם” (ויקרא יא מג)
It is a negative commandment to not eat any of the teeming creatures of the water, as it is written: Do not make yourselves abominable by means of any teeming thing; do not contaminate yourselves through them lest you become contaminated through them (Vayikra 11:43). “Teeming creatures of the water” are those small creatures that move about in water. This prohibition is a separate prohibition that applies only to such creatures, as they are not included in the prohibition against eating non-kosher fish, for they are not fish but a completely different type of creature.
This mitzvah applies in all places and at all times, to both men and women.
“ולא תטמאו את נפשותיכם בכל השרץ הרומש על הארץ“ (ויקרא יא מד)
It is a negative commandment to not eat any of the teeming creatures that develop in decaying matter, even if they are from an unknown species and are not produced through a male and female, as it is written: You shall not contaminate yourselves through any teeming thing that creeps on the earth (Vayikra 11:44).
This commandment applies in all places and at all times, to both men and women.
