בל תוסיף

1. Why is the second day of Yom Tov not Ba'al Tosef? The Torah says to keep Rosh Hashana for one day, or to keep Sukkot for seven days and we add another? And similarily, how can we blow Shofar on the second day? Surely this is Ba'al Tosef? How can we do all this?

2. In other words: the averiah of Ba'al Tosef is not to repeat a mitzvah but rather to add a part to a mitzvah, that was not there before.

3. The understanding of this answer is that Hashem has a specific way each Mitzvah is supposed to be done and the Mitzvah of Ba'al Tosef is to change that tzurah. However by simply repeaing the Mitzvah again, the Tzvurah hasn't changed.

4. However, this seemingly won't help us to answer our question how Chazal can add a whole new day of Yom Tov. This certainly isn't just a repetition, it is a whole new Yom Tov. Repetition means doing exactly the same action, with exactly the same conditions again. Here the second Yom Tov is on a different day. The Torah said keep Rosh Hashana for one day and not the second day, so when we keep the second day we have added not just repeated.

5. The Rashba rejects Tosafos' answer and gives a whole new explantion for our Gemarah. He seems to be saying that that which Chazal say cannot be considered an addition to the Torah, but rather it is part and parcel of the Torah itself. The Torah itself tells us to listen to what Chazal institute and thus when they make a decree, e.g blowing Shofar twice for whatever reason they found necessary to do this (to confuse the Satan) then it is part of the Torah not an addition. Only that which the individual makes us himself would be considered an addition to the Torah.

6. The Rashba seems to understand that the purpose of the averiah of Ba'al Tosef is to prevent each person making up his own ways of doing each Mitzvah. (not so much that the tzurah of the Mitzvah can't change, it could if Chazal said so, but each indivdual can't make it up.) However, when Chazal make a decree or make a Mitzvah, that is a chelek, a part or Judaism itself and thus Ba'al Tosef is not relevant.

7. This will certainly help us to answer our question. When Chazal instituted Yom Tov Sheni, this became part and parcel of the Torah and thus it is not relevant to discuss Ba'al Tosef.

8. And the reason why the Torah found it necessary to give such power into the hands of Chazal is as the Ramban writes:

9. However, from the fact that Tosafos don't give the Rashba's answer, we can assume that they don't agree with it. And thus how will they answer our question: how can Chazal make up a Yom Tov, why is it not Ba'al Tosef.

10. To answer this we have the Pnei Yehoshua on Tosafos. Who asks:

11. He explains that really Tosafos does agree to the general idea of the Rashba that what Chazal says becomes part of the Torah and therefore it is not relevant to discuss Ba'al Tosef. However, they disagree on one point. That according to the Rashba anything that Chazal say is part of the Torah and thus is not Ba'al Tosef. However, Tosafos holds that not everything they say is considered mamash part of the Torah. The Torah only gave them the right to speak about things that only became relevant after Matan Torah and thus was not spoken about by the Torah. In other words, Chazal were there to allow the Torah to adapt to its future generations. If the generations had changed and a new decree was necessary then Chazal can make this decree and that becomes now as authorative as the Torah; this is the mitzvah of Loy Sasur. And equally they can make a new festival if they feel that is necessary at bthat time- like Chanukah and Purim. However anything which was relevant at Matan Torah and the Torah did not find it necessary to prohibit or require, they cannot speak about that, that is the Torah's durastiction. Thus Tosafos could not have answered like the Rashba because since the idea of confusing the Satan was relevant at Matan Torah and yet the Torah did not require it, it must be that the Torah doesn't want you to blow twice and thus it would be Ba'al Tosef (if not for Tosafos' own answer.)

12. This will help us with our question, becasue we can say that Tosafos understood that Yom Tov sheni was not relevant at the time of Matan Torah and thus was now under the durastiction of Chazal to establish when they felt necessary. And thus it is for sure not Ba'al Tosef.

13. There is perhaps a third answer to our question. That of Rashi Hakodesh.

14. The Gemerah makes this case dependant on a machlokus if Mitzvot Tzricha Kavanah, if to fulifll the Mitzvah one needs the intention that he is fulfilling a Mitzvah or as long as he has done the action it works and he is Yotzeh.

15. However, the Gemerah does not make it very clear whether if a mitzvah outside of its specific time, but one intended to do a Mitzvah whether it is a problem.

16. To this we have Rashi in Eruvin (96a) where Rashi says:

17. In other words, if one has Kavanah for a Mitzvah, even if it is the wrong time, it is a problem. However, for second day Yom Tov, since we don't have intention to fulfill the Mitzvah if it is the wrong day. This means that if we make some form of condition (Chazon Ish) on the Mitzvah, then we have not transgressed 'Ba'al Tosef'. Thus this will explain why there is no problem on Yom Tov Sheni to fulfill the Mitzvot Hayom like Shofar or Sukkah. (This however may only apply to the mitvot that we do, but in terms of the actual establishment of a whole new day, for this we may need the other answers.)

Summary

• We asked why is Yom Tov Sheni not Ba'al Tosef?
• Answer 1: Rashba: Anything that Chazal institute is not Ba'al Tosef, only that which an indivdual makes up themselves. This is because the Rashba's understanding of Ba'al Tosef is to prevent each person doing their own way Mitzvot. However, the Torah gave Chazal the power to make decress, establish new fesitivals, and what they say becomes part of the Torah and thus Ba'al Tosef is certainely not relevant.
• Answer 2: Tosafos: We concluded that Tosafot agrees that Chazal can make up what they want but only in matters relevant after Matan Torah because then the Torah gave over the power to Chazal in order to be the evolving mouthpiece of G-d throughout the generations. And so they can establish Yom Tov Sheni.
• Answer 3: Rashi: (At least for the Mitvot that we do) we can say that we need Kavanah to transgress 'Ba'al Tosef' if the time for the Mitzvah has passed already. And thus all the Mitzvot we do on Yom Tov Sheni are not really done with Kavanah becasue they are done on condition.