NOAH’S ARK התיבה

The story of the מבול and the Ark is not only written in Torah, but numerous nations, worldwide, have traditions that there was a flood. Not only nations in the Middle East, but even India, China and as far away as Alaska or the ancient inhabitants of Mexico have recorded that the first world was destroyed after 1656 years by rains and lightening until all the land including the highest mountains were submerged 15 amos (approximately 26 foot = 8 metres) in water.

As we know, because it is written in Torah, the measurements of the Ark were 300 amos long, 50 amos wide and 30 amos high. This equals to approximately 500 ft long by 80 ft wide and 50 ft high. (In metres, say 160 by 25 by 16). We also know that the Torah tells us that there were 3 levels in which there were compartments or cages.

We also find that Noach was commanded to take into the Ark a pair of each species of animal, bird and insect and in respect of טהור animals, seven of each.

How the animals were fitted in and, of course, all the stores with which to feed them, is a matter of debate and the midrash gives a number of different opinions. Rashi states, quoting the midrash, that the top floor was for Noach and his family (and I assume to keep the stores). The middle floor was for all the animals etc. and the bottom floor was for the זבל rubbish etc. which accumulated during the course of the year. This is just one opinion in the midrash.

Anybody who has visited a major zoo will understand the comments of the Ramban (ו-יט) where he states that if you bear in mind that there were elephants, hippopotami and other such large animals as well as thousands of insects and hundreds and hundreds of birds, all of which had to be packed into this comparatively small Ark, this must have been through a miracle. He adds, that if it was a miracle, why did Hashem command Noach to make such a large Ark and he comments that one has to try and do as much as possible in a natural manner. He also discounts the theory that the amos quoted in Torah should be in the size of Noach which could have been larger than nowadays, stating that all amos in Torah are the size that we know of, namely around 1 ½ to 2 feet. Say ½ metre approximately.

There is a famous midrash known as Pirkei de R’ Eliezer. This was compiled by one of the leading tanoim Rebbi Eliezer Ben Hyrcanos, Chapter 23 speaks in detail about the Ark and its measurements etc. it also states that there were hundreds of small houses, animal cages, etc. on each floor amounting to 365 in total for each floor. Furthermore, he states that the three floors were used as follows, the animals were on the lowest floor, the birds on the middle floor and the insects and creeping objects as well as the human beings were on the top floor. He does not mention what they did with any debris, זבל, natural wastage etc.

There is a commentary on this midrash by R Dovid Luria (the RaDaL). He quotes the Ramban on Torah regarding the amount of large animals and the amount of food necessary to keep them all alive for a full year, and therefore, the Ramban states, as mentioned above, that there was, therefore, an obvious miracle in respect of the Ark and its inhabitants for the year. The RaDaL comes out with a very interesting idea, namely that there really were not so many animals taken into the Ark, because as he states, numerous animals, birds etc. are really all part of one species but then have sub-divisions of species as well. For example, domestic cats, tigers and lions are all part of the “cat” family. Likewise dogs, wolves and the like are all part of the “lupine” family.

He suggests that one pair only of each species (with the exception of the טהור species) were taken in to the Ark and from these, later on, subspecies developed again after the mabul once they had left the Ark. He brings a proof to this, saying that in the same way as human being have different features, colours, sizes, heights etc. but we all come from one original person, after the mabul, we came from Noach and his children, a similar thing happened as far as the animals etc.

Therefore, he postulates, there were really not so many taken into the Ark all together.

However, he does not dispute the fact that there must have been a miracle in principle. (For the detailed and lengthy discussion please see his commentary at פרק כ''ג , אות י).

He also mentions that as far as food is concerned, it is possible that they had pressed, concentrated, food (דבילה)

Based on his comments, I wonder whether one could dare to suggest the following., We know from the midrash that Hashem told Noach to take these various animals and Noach protested that he would be unable to catch them and bring them into the Ark. This was actually seven days before the doors of the Ark were closed. Because Noach protested, Hashem caused the animals who were to be saved to come themselves to the Ark and Noach only had to lead them in. Would it be too fanciful to suggest that, for example, as far as the large animals, the elephants etc. baby elephants who had recently been born were taken in, one male, one female. They would have, obviously, not taken up such an amount of space and would also have not needed so much food and the same could apply to other large animals etc.

Furthermore, if all the inhabitants of the Ark were fed with only concentrated food, just sufficient to keep them alive, it would not have been a necessity to have very large quantities of supplies. If Noach commenced giving these animals etc. the rations from the first day that they arrived, namely seven days before the doors were closed, the animals could have gradually got acclimatised to their new regime and could possibly have gone out of the Ark during those seven days, carried out their calls of nature outside, so that after seven days, they would have no natural זבל wastages and debris to dispose of once they were inside again for the ensuing year.

True, they may not have put on weight and I would postulate that they might have, very well, lost weight and become very lean. This would tie in perfectly with the posek in Torah וישאר אך נח ואשר אתו בתבהthere remained only Noach and those who were with him in the Ark. The word אך is, as we know from other places a מיועט, namely, something less or reduced. The midrash quoted by Rashi says that the lion attacked Noach and injured him and therefore, the אך refers to Noach. But according to the theory I have just suggested, one could say that the word אך applies to Noach and every other thing that was inside the Ark as they all lost weight and, therefore, אך, מיועט, fits perfectly.

According to this theory, it would be possible, I suppose for all the major species, animals, birds, reptiles, insects etc. to have all been accommodated, with their food, in the Ark. Furthermore, you would, therefore, not need to a compartment for the זבל as I mentioned above.

As far as water is concerned, Noach had a חלון , a window, because he sent out the raven and then the dove from that window. Would it be too much to suggest that he did have some water with him which was taken into the Ark before the door closed. Subsequently, from time to time, whilst the water was pouring down, he collected water into the Ark by opening the window. Although this water may have been very hot as we are told, that Hashem utilised מים רותחין boiling hot water for the מבול, this could, of course, have come in, been collected in a vessel and cooled down over a short period of time. Furthermore, animals on very small rations of food and not moving around would, I suggest, not need large quantities of water especially if the compressed food had moisture in it.

Just to end on a lighter note. We find that after almost a year had elapsed, Noach sent out the dove which returned to him, with an olive leaf it had plucked, in its bill, Rashi comments that this dove was male and brings a number of proofs. Mrs P Lipschitz, during a lecture to Bais Yaakov sem girls suggested that Rashi’s proofs were not really necessary. There is a midrash that this dove flew from Mount Ararat on the Turkish/Russian border to the Har Haziezim in Yerushalayim where there were still some olive trees and picked up the olive leaf. Whoever heard of a female keeping their mouth shut for such a long journey from Yerushalayim to Ararat.

It could only have, therefore, been a male bird.

We really do not know all the details of what happened at the time of the mabul. What we do know is that this is a story with a lesson that has to be visited again and again to ensure that we rise above the depravity and spiritual decline which happened then and which we see unfortunately, daily in our current permissive society.

ל' תשרי