One of the special garments worn by the Kohen Gadol was the Me’il (the robe). In the Torah’s discussion of the Me’il in Parashat Tesaveh (Shemot 28:32), it says that there must be a lining around the top opening, through which the Kohen Gadol’s head extends, and “Lo Yikare’a” – “it shall not be ripped.” This verse establishes a prohibition against tearing the Me’il. The Sefer Ha’hinuch explains that tearing a garment, quite obviously, expresses disdain and disregard for the garment, showing that one does not consider it important. This is particularly so when this is done to the top rim, which has the effect of essentially ruining the garment. The Kohen Gadol was to wear his special garments with a sense of awe and reverence, realizing the importance of the special role which these garments represent, and so the Torah forbade treating the garments in a degrading manner, such as by ripping them. The Sefer Ha’hinuch comments that this prohibition applies only during the times of the Bet Ha’mikdash. At first glance, this might seem obvious, but the Minhat Hinuch observes that this remark is actually imprecise. Even after the destruction of the Bet Ha’mikdash, if a person would happen to discover the Me’il that had been worn by the Kohen Gadol in the Bet Ha’mikdash, and it was intact, it would be forbidden to tear it. Thus, at least in principle, this prohibition is applicable even after the Bet Ha’mikdash’s destruction. The Sefer Ha’hinuch writes that this command is directed to both males and females; if either a man or a woman tears the Me’il, he or she has transgressed this prohibition and is liable to Malkut. Furthermore, the Sefer Ha’hinuch writes, one violates this prohibition regardless of whether he tore the Me’il with his hands, or with scissors. The Minhat Hinuch explains this comment of the Sefer Ha’hinuch as implying that the prohibition of “Lo Yikare’a” forbids ripping the Me’il not only in a destructive manner, but even for other purposes, such as if one wishes to expand the neck opening of the Me’il. Even though his intent is not to ruin the garment, this is nevertheless forbidden. In discussing this Misva, the Sefer Ha’hinuch speaks only of the Me’il, indicating that this prohibition is limited to the Me’il, and does not apply to the other Bigdeh Kehuna (priestly vestments). As the Minhat Hinuch notes, this appears to contradict the Gemara’s explicit comment in Masechet Yoma (72) that the prohibition of “Lo Yikare’a” forbids tearing any of the special garments worn by the Kohanim. The Minhat Hinuch answers that the Gemara elsewhere, in Masechet Zebahim (95a), seems to take a different view. There Resh Lakish addresses the case of a Me’il which was stained with sacrificial blood, and must therefore be laundered in the courtyard of the Bet Ha’mikdash, but in the meantime, it had been taken outside the Bet Ha’mikdash and became Tameh (impure). If this would happen to a different garment, then since it is forbidden to bring an impure garment to the Bet Ha’mikdash, the garment would first be torn into pieces smaller than the minimum size that can contract impurity. Since these pieces are no longer considered impure, they may be brought into the Temple courtyard to be laundered. The Me’il, however, may not be torn, and so Resh Lakish rules that a different solution must be implemented, bringing the garment slowly into the courtyard, a little bit at a time. The fact that Resh Lakish says that this must be done only in the case of a Me’il strongly implies that it is only the Me’il which the Torah forbids tearing, whereas other garments of the Kohen Gadol may be torn. Hence, the Minhat Hinuch writes, the Sefer Ha’hinuch followed Resh Lakish’s view, that this prohibition applies only to the Me’il, and he did not accept the Gemara’s ruling in Masechet Yoma, that this command refers to all the Bigdeh Kehuna. Even according to the position of the Sefer Ha’hinuch, however, tearing one of the other Bigdeh Kehuna is forbidden by