Delivering Expensive Wine and Sushi to Shikkurim

Question

I read an article in a previous year’s Yated that stated that it is better to give a few very mechubadike mishloach manos to one's close friends than a lot of simple mishloach manos to many people. Thus, last year I decided that I would try and fulfill this directive. I prepared two beautiful mishloach manos that contained expensive wine and sushi and planned to give one to my best friend and one to my worst enemy. While I found my best friend easily, my enemy was harder to locate, and I finally found him in shul in a state of intoxication.

I was not sure if I should give him an expensive bottle of wine and sushi platter in such an inebriated state. I decided to try my luck, and when he saw what type of wine it was, he was exuberant. However, I have my doubts if he made it back home with that bottle of wine and sushi and if he even remembers that I gave it to him.

This incident raised two issues. First, did I fulfill the mitzvah of mishloach manos with that delivery, since the recipient was so drunk? Maybe it is like paying back a loan to someone who is drunk, which seems like it would be a problem.

Second, since so many people get drunk today and do crazy things, sometimes even causing injury to themselves and others, maybe drinking wine on Purim has become a pirtza, i.e., an area where we must take action to change the status quo.

Thank you.

Rav Goldberg 

Although we should not consider any fellow Jews to be enemies, it is extremely commendable that you made such a major effort to give a beautiful mishloach manos to someone who you do not get along with.

As far as your questions are concerned, there is a major difference between delivering mishloach manos and paying back a loan. If one pays back a loan to a person who is drunk, he certainly does not fulfill his obligation. However, if a person gives mishloach manos to someone who is drunk, even if he cannot guard the mishloach manos and later forgets about it, he may still fulfill his obligation. 

In your case, whether or not you fulfilled mishloach manos with your gift would depend on the reason for the mitzvah of mishloach manos. According to the opinions that the main point of the mishloach manos is to increase simcha verei'us - i.e., to make people happy and increase comradery - you may have fulfilled your obligation.

However, some explain that the purpose of mishloach manos is for the seudah. According to this understanding, it seems that one may have to be in a state where he can guard the mishloach manos until the time of the seudah.

This whole discussion is only applicable if one did not reach the state of shikrus of Lot, i.e., a drunken stupor in which one is completely cut off from reality. If your recipient reached this state of intoxication, you would certainly not be yotzeh, since he no longer has any daas and it is not considered that he received anything.

As far as the question of whether one should drink wine at all on Purim, it is true that a lot of damage can come about by drinking too much on Purim. If a person will be negligent in his mitzvah performance by drinking, then he should definitely not drink wine on Purim (see Mishnah Berurah 695:5). In general, the best practice is to follow what the Rambam says, as quoted as the halacha by the Rama (Shulchan Aruch 695:2), which is that one should drink a little wine until he becomes drowsy and falls asleep.

It is difficult for me to say that the situation has gotten so out of hand that this is called a pirtza and that we should forbid drinking wine altogether on Purim. Each person has to know himself and the potential dangers that could come about from drinking wine on Purim  and act accordingly.