Tefillin
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tefillin (Hebrew: תפלין), also called phylacteries, are two boxes containing Biblical verses and the leather straps attached to them which are used in traditional Jewish prayer. They are an essential part of morning prayer services, and are worn on a daily basis (except the Sabbath and festivals) by religious Jewish men above the age of 13 years,[1] and by Jewish law, is not worn by Jewish women.[2] In this article the term “to lay tefillin” (from Yiddish tefillen leygen) will be used throughout but it is still correct to use "wear".
Tefillin stems from the traditional interpretation of passages found in the Torah (five books of Moses), in Deuteronomy 6:8, 11:18; Exodus 13:9, 16. Tefillin are described extensively in the Rabbinical literature including the Mishnah and the Talmud (see Menahoth 34b; Zevahim 37b; Sanhedrin 4b).
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[edit] Tefillin contents
Each box contains those Biblical passages in which the commandment of tefillin is mentioned: Exodus 13:1-10, 11-16; Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:13-21. The passages are hand-written by a scribe with certified kosher black ink. The script is the same Hebrew script used for writing the Sefer Torah. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21 are two passages also used in Mezuzah.
[edit] Details of manufacture
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Tefillin consist of two black leather boxes, one worn on the arm and known as "shel yad" (= "belonging to the hand"), and the other worn on the head and known as "shel rosh" (= "belonging to the head"). They are made of the skins of kosher animals. The boxes must be square; their height should be about the same length of the width; and they should be dyed black with a certified kosher dye. The boxes are fastened on the under side with square pieces of thick leather by twelve stitches, and are provided with loops at the ends, through which are passed leather straps. The straps are blackened on the outside. The threads are prepared from the sinews (tendons) of kosher animals.
The strap that is passed through the head-tefillin ends at the back of the head in a knot representing the letter ד (Dalet); the one that is passed through the hand-tefillin is formed into a noose near the box and fastened in a knot in the shape of the letter י (yodh). The box containing the head-tefillin has on the outside the letter ש (shin, both to the right (with three strokes: ש) and to the left, whereas the left side ש has an additional internal stroke.
The measurements of the boxes are not given; but it is recommended that they should not be smaller than the width of two fingers (about 3 - 4 cm). They should not be so big that they would not lie evenly on the head (either the beginning or the end will be off the head). The width of the straps should be equal to the length of a grain of oats (about 1 cm). The strap that is passed through the head-tefillin should be long enough to encircle the head and to allow for the knot. The two ends, falling in front over either shoulder, should reach the navel. The strap that is passed through the hand-tefillin should be long enough to allow for the knot, then to wrap around the forearm 7 times, and around the hand according to family or local tradition.
The parchments are specially prepared for the purpose, from the skin of a kosher animal. As in the case of the Torah, the only permissible parchment material is qlaf, the mezuzah is made of a different kind of unsplit-hide parchment called gevil (Shab. viii. 3 et al.); a discarded tefillah can be made into a mezuzah, but not vice versa (Men. 32a). The head-tefillah consisted of four strips in four compartments, while the hand-tefillah consisted of one strip.
The parchment on which the Biblical passages are written need not be ruled, although the custom is to rule it. A pointed instrument ("sargil") that leaves no blot should be used in ruling. The scribe should be very careful in writing the selections. Before beginning to write he or she says (in Hebrew): "I am writing this for the sake of the holiness of tefillin"; and before he begins to write any of the names of God occurring in the texts, he says: "I am writing this for the sake of the holiness of the Name". The scribe should be fully concentrated on his holy work all the time. Unlike a Sefer Torah but similar to a mezuzah, tefillin passages must be written in order of how it appears in the Torah and should the words be written out of sequence, the parchment is invalid and not kosher.
The pieces of parchment on which the Biblical selections are written are tied round with narrow strips of parchment and fastened with the thoroughly washed hair of a kosher animal, preferably of a calf.
[edit] Arrangement of passages in the boxes
The hand-tefillin has only one compartment, which contains the four Biblical selections written upon a single strip of parchment in four parallel columns and in the order given in the Bible. The head-tefillin has four compartments, formed from one piece of leather, in each of which one selection written on a separate piece of parchment is deposited perpendicularly. There is considerable discussion among the commentators of the Talmud as to the order in which the Biblical selections should be inserted into the head-tefillin. The Rabbis most famous for this dispute were Rashi and his grandson Rabbeinu Tam, different possible arrangements have also been suggested by other writers ("Shimmusha Rabba" and Raavad).
The prevailing custom is to follow the opinion of Rashi. Some who want to be so certain of laying tefillin correctly, simultaneously lay two head-tefillin; one according to Rashi, and the other according to Rabbeinu Tam or first lay the Rashi style head-tefillin and then Rabbeinu Tam.
[edit] Laying tefillin and the blessings
It is customary among Ashkenazi Jews to lay and to remove the tefillin while standing.[3] If one wears a talit for the morning prayers it should be put on before laying the tefillin - and taken off after the tefillin have been removed.
The hand-tefillin is laid first. Its place is on the inner side of the left arm, above the elbow, on the lower biceps, level to the heart. When the arm hangs, the tefillin must rest near the heart. But left-handers (defined as those who write with their left hand) lay the Tefillin on the right arm. People with one arm may lay tefillin on that arm. After the tefillin is thus fastened on the bare arm, the strap is wound seven times round the forearm. Then the head-tefillin is worn. The head tefillin is placed so as to overhang the middle of the forehead, not lower than the hairline, with the knot of the strap at the back of the head and overhanging the middle of the neck, while the two ends of the strap, with the blackened side outward, hang over the shoulders in front.
On laying the hand-tefillin, before the knot is fastened, the following blessing is said (in Hebrew): "Blessed are you, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us to put on tefillin."
- Hebrew: ברוך אתה ה׳ אלקינו מלך העולם אשר קדשנו במצותו וצונו להניח תפלין
- Transliteration: Barukh atta Adonai, eloheinu, melekh haolam, asher qiddeshanu bemitsvotav vetsivvanu lehanniach tefillin.
Then the arm tefillin is tightened, and wrapped around the arm seven times without interruption but not around the fingers. Next is the laying of the head tefillin which should be immediately placed on the head. Some authorities are of the opinion that the blessing on laying the head-tefillin is not strictly necessary and the one blessing on laying the hand-tefillin is sufficient. This is the current Sephardic and Hasidic customs. The prevailing custom amongst Ashkenazi Jews is to say the second (following) blessing.
- Hebrew: ברוך אתה ה׳ אלקינו מלך העולם אשר קדשנו במצותו וצונו על מצות תפלין
- Transliteration: Barukh attah Adonai, Eloheinu, melekh haolam, asher qiddeshanu bemitsvotav vetsivvanu al mitsvat tefillin.
And then the head tefillin is tightened, as the following phrase is said: "Blessed is the Name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever."
- Hebrew: ברוך שם כבוד מלכותו לעולם ועד
- Transliteration: Barukh shem kevod malkhuto leolam vaed.
Amongst Ashkenazim, the strap of the hand-tefillin is then wound three times around the middle finger so as to form a ש and the verses from Hosea Chapter 2: 21 and 22 are recited. On removing the tefillin the three twistings on the middle finger are loosened first; then the head-tefillin is removed; and finally the hand-tefillin. Sephardim proceed similarly and the shape ד is shaped on the palm of the hand and the shape of a ש is formed around the middle finger, so as to represent the name Shaddai from the middle finger (ש) through the palm (ד) to the short extra strap of leather (י) hanging from the box of the hand-tefillin.
There is a tradition to lay hand tefillin under the sleeve or garment, in accordance with the verse "And they will be a sign to you...", to you and not to others, and therefore they are covered.
[edit] When tefillin are laid
Originally tefillin were worn all day, but not during the night. One of the earliest tannaim, Eliezer ben Hyrcanus (b. 70 C.E.), who put great stress upon the tefillin, actively advocating their general use, derives the duty of laying them from Josh. i. 8, "You shall meditate therein day and night" (treatise Tefillim, near end). Nowadays the prevailing custom is to lay them during the daily morning service only.[4]
The practice of wearing tefillin all day long is still followed (for the most part) by followers of the Gaon of Vilna, students of the Rambam, and some Yemenite Jews. These Jews argue that the practice of wearing tefillin all day is still required, and not an issue of custom. The problem with wearing the tefillin all day is the necessity to remove them when encountering an unclean place (bathroom) or unholy place (our streets).[5]
Tefillin are not worn on Sabbaths and the major festivals (Pesah, Shavuoth, Rosh-Hashana, Yom Kippur and Sukkoth; for these, being in themselves "signs," render the tefillin, which are to serve as signs themselves (Exodus Chapter 13: 9, 16), unnecessary. On the intermediate days of Pesah and Sukkoth which are considered less holy than the beginning and end, some Jewish groups do lay tefillin, while others do not. Those that do lay tefilling on those days remove them before the Mussaf prayer as do all Jews on Rosh Hodesh. This practice is only of medieval origin and among the Western Ashkenazic ("German") Jews, there are still many who keep the tefillin on through the end of the Musaf prayer.
[edit] Women and tefillin
The duty of laying tefillin is obligatory for Jewish men and women are exempt. Nevertheless early Jewish traditions allowed women to lay tefillin. (There is a legend that Rashi's daughters wore tefillin, and so did Michal, the daughter of King Saul and the wife of King David) see Eruvin 96a, but this custom was generally discouraged. Over time the discouragement changed into active exclusion, especially amongst Ashkenazim. Later codes of Jewish law such as the Shulhan Arukh eventually strongly discouraged women from laying tefillin at all. Traditional Sephardi authorities who permitted - and encouraged - women's use of tefillin after the Shulhan Arukh were the 18th Century chief rabbis of Jerusalem R. Yisrael Ya'aqob Alghazi and his son R. Yomtob Alghazi.
Amongst the non-Orthodox (eg Reform and Conservative) women are encouraged to lay tefillin just as men are. In some progressive Modern Orthodox circles, there is a small but growing group of women who assume the obligation of tefillin.[citation needed]
[edit] The importance of tefillin
Tefillin, their use and manufacture are steeped in mystical significance. The letter on the head-tefillin together with the letters formed by the knots of the two straps on the head and hand-tefillin, make up the letters of the Hebrew word Shaddai, one of the names of God in Judaism. The biblical passages inside the boxes are declarations of the believe in God and God's work on this world (eg His connection with the Jewish people).
Tefillin are a rite-of-passage for the Jewish boy. Youngsters (under the age of 13) are not considered mature enough to know how to use tefillin or understand their importance. Before his bar-mitsva, usually about a month before,[6] the Jewish boy will be schooled in the art of tefillin and will be presented by his parents with his own tefillin.
In his Mishneh Torah, Maimonides concludes the laws of tefillin with the following exhortation :
- "The sanctity of tefillin is very great. As long as the tefillin are on the head and on the arm of a man, he is modest and God-fearing and will not be attracted by hilarity or idle talk, and will have no evil thoughts, but will devote all his thoughts to truth and righteousness; Therefore, every man ought to try to have the tefillin upon him the whole day; for only in this way can he fulfil the commandment. It is related that Rav (Abba Arika), the pupil of our holy teacher (Rav Judah ha-Nasi), was never seen to walk four cubits without a Torah, without fringes on his garments (tzitzit), and without tefillin. Although the tradition enjoins the laying of tefillin the whole day, it is especially commendable to lay them during prayer. The sages say that one who reads the Shema without tefillin is as if he testified falsely against himself. He who does not lay tefillin transgresses eight commandments; for in each of the four Biblical passages there is a commandment to lay tefillin on the head and on the arm. But he who is accustomed to lay tefillin will live long, as it is written, 'When the Lord is upon them they will live'".
A report of widespread negligence and non observance of wearing tefillin is found in Rabbi Moses of Coucy’s Sefer Mitzvot Gedolot, a book that outlines and comments on the 613 commandments of the Torah. In his discussion on the commandment to love God, he refers to tefillin as one of the necessary tools to love God. He concludes his section on loving God by relating his experience in Spain in the year 1236 CE. In Spain, he chastised the local Jews for their irreverent behavior and in particular their negligence in wearing Tefillin. He writes that he succeeded in convincing thousands of Jews to repent and wear Tefillin.
Dr Steven S Schram in the Journal of Chinese Medicine, 2002 Oct;70:4-6, illustrates the arm and head wrappings of tefillin straps and their correlation to acupuncture points. Schram claims that activating these points will enhance one's mental and spiritual health.
[edit] Etymology and earliest forms
In the Torah tefillin are called "ṭoṭafah". Tefillin comes from the Hebrew word tefillah or prayer. The terms "tefillah," "tefillin" are found in Talmudic literature, although the Biblical word "ṭoṭafah" was still current, being used with the meaning of "frontlet" (Shab. vi. 1).
The earliest reference to the English translation of tefillin, "phylacteries", is in the New Testament (Matthew xxiii. 5), whence it has passed into European languages. In rabbinic literature it is not found even as a foreign word. The Septuagint renders "ṭoṭafot" (A. V. and R. V. "frontlets"; Ex. xiii. 16 and Deut. vi. 8) by ἀσαλευτόν (= "something immovable"); nor do Aquila and Symmachus use the word "phylacteries." The Targumim and the Peshita use "tefillin" or "ṭoṭafot". The Greek phulakt rion means guard's post, safeguard, , from phulakt r, guard, from phulax, phulak-.]
Tefillin resembled amulets in their earliest form, strips of parchment in a leather case, which is called either "bag" or "little house." Tefillin and "ḳeme'ot" are, in fact, often mentioned side by side (Shab. vi. 2; Miḳ. vi. 4; Kelim xxiii. 9; et al.), and were liable to be mistaken one for the other ('Er. x. 1 et al.) King Saul appearing in battle, with a crown on his head and wearing bracelets, is connected with this idea. The Proverbs reflect popular conceptions, for they originated in great part with the people, or were addressed to them. Prov. i. 9, iii. 3, vi. 21, and vii. 3 (comp. Jer. xvii. 1, xxxi. 32-33) clearly indicate the custom of wearing some object, with or without inscription, around the neck or near the heart; the actual custom appears in the figure of speech. In view of these facts it may be assumed that Ex. xiii. 9, 16, and Deut. vi. 8, xi. 18 must be interpreted not figuratively but literally; therefore it must be assumed that the custom of wearing strips inscribed with Biblical passages is commanded in the Torah. "Bind them as signs on thy hand, and they shall be as ṭoṭafot between thy eyes" assumes that ṭoṭafot were at the time known and in use, but that thenceforth the words of the Torah were to serve as ṭoṭafot (on signs see also I Kings xx. 41; Ezek. ix. 4, 6; Psalms of Solomon, xv. 9; see Breast-plate of the High Priest; Cain).
Although the institution of the tefillin is related in form to the custom of laying amulets, there is not a single passage in rabbinic literature to show that they were identified with magic. Their only power of protecting is similar to that of the Torah and the Commandments, of which it is said, "They protect Israel".
Excavation of the Dead Sea area in the Judean Desert known as Qumran in 1955 revealed the earliest tefillin known, they were used by a non-Pharisee sect indicating widespread use during the Second Temple period.
[edit] Tefillin and popular culture
In a scene from her music video, Die Another Day, the pop singer Madonna is seen donning tefillin.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- leading manufacturer of tefillin including shop and resources
- Earliest Tefillin Known; Dead Sea - Qumran
- Complete Tefilin Guide: Including How-To With Diagrams
- A brief discussion on the significance of this important Mitzvah, including some basic laws, prayers and diagrams
- How to put on Tefillin
- Tefillin in the Jewish Virtual Library
- Tefillin: An Ancient Acupuncture Point Prescription for Mental Clarity
- lots of material on with pictures and explanation of the Rashi version
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