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Why did Hillel eat matzah and maror together when the rabbinic maror seems to nullify the taste of deoraisa matzah? The shiur develops that Hillel held mitzvos ein mevatalot zu et zu - mitzvos don't nullify each other but create a combined taste experience the Torah (תורה) specifically desired. This reframes korech as achieving both individual mitzvah (מצוה) fulfillment plus an additional Torah-mandated combined experience.
This shiur begins with a hazara (review) of the din hasava according to the Rama, establishing that hasava is a din in seuda (requirement in the meal context) rather than an integral part of each specific mitzvah (מצוה). The Rama holds that one needs a proper seuda consisting of arba kosos of wine and a kezayis of matzah - not necessarily the first kezayis from the mitzvah itself. This differs from the Chayei Adam's interpretation that hasava must accompany the actual mitzvah performance. The discussion explores why certain Rishonim (Rash, Mordechai, Tosafos (תוספות) Rabbeinu Peretz, possibly Ramban (רמב"ן)) require going back to repeat the mitzvah if hasava wasn't performed, raising fundamental questions about how Chachamim can define deoraisa obligations and why some people are exempt from hasava entirely. The main focus then shifts to Pesachim 115a and Hillel's statement that one should not eat matzah and maror together because the mitzvah derabanan of maror is mevatal (nullifies) the taste of matzah deoraisa, preventing proper fulfillment of the matzah obligation. This raises several difficulties: why taste should matter when one can fulfill matzah by swallowing, why people without taste buds can still be obligated, and most critically, why the rabbinic status of maror creates this problem when both being mitzvos should make it acceptable.
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Pesachim 115a
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