How many positive Torah commandments apply on Yom Kippur?
The Rambam identifies two distinct positive mitzvot: (1) shevitah — refraining from all work, and (2) inui — afflicting your soul. They are independent obligations.
Question 2
Can you cook food on Yom Kippur the way you can on Yom Tov?
Yom Tov permits food preparation (ochel nefesh). Yom Kippur does not — it has the identical work restrictions as Shabbat. The Rambam states this explicitly in Halacha 2.
Question 3
The four additional afflictions beyond fasting (washing, anointing, shoes, relations) — are these rabbinic or from Sinai?
The Rambam frames these as Oral Tradition (מפי השמועה למדו) — part of the original transmission, not later rabbinic enactments. This is a stronger legal foundation.
Question 4
What is "tosefet Yom HaKippurim"?
Tosefet: we add from the profane to the sacred. The fast begins slightly before sunset and ends slightly after nightfall — extending Yom Kippur's sanctity into the surrounding weekday.
Question 5
Women who eat until nightfall, not knowing about tosefet — the Rambam says:
A remarkable halachic principle: when people violate unknowingly and teaching them would likely lead to knowing violation, leave them in their innocence. Compassion built into the law.