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Does lifnei iver apply even when someone could obtain the forbidden item elsewhere? Tosafot holds yes (issur d'rabbanan), while the Mordechai disagrees entirely. The shiur explores whether lifnei iver fundamentally prohibits causing harm or participating in transgression - a distinction that reshapes the halacha (הלכה)'s practical scope.
This shiur presents an in-depth analysis of Tosafot on Shabbos (שבת) 3a regarding the prohibition of lifnei iver lo titen michshol (placing a stumbling block before the blind). The core discussion centers on a fundamental machloket between Tosafot and other Rishonim, particularly the Mordechai, about the nature of lifnei iver. Tosafot maintains that lifnei iver applies even when the person could obtain the forbidden item elsewhere (yesh lo behemah acheret), arguing this constitutes an issur d'rabbanan. In contrast, the Mordechai and other Rishonim hold that if someone can acquire the item independently, there is no prohibition of lifnei iver at all.
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Shabbos 3a
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