Tallit

A white tallit according to some Sephardic traditions

A tallit with black stripes according to the Orthodox Ashkenazic tradition

A tallit [taˈlit] (Hebrew: טָלֵית‎) (talit in Modern Hebrew) (tālēt in Sephardic Hebrew and Ladino) (tallis, in Ashkenazic Hebrew and Yiddish) pl. tallitot [taliˈtot] (talleisim, tallism, in Ashkenazic Hebrew and Yiddish) (ṭālēth - ṭelāyōth in Tiberian Hebrew) is a fringed garment traditionally worn by Jews. The tallit has special twined and knotted fringes known as tzitzit attached to its four corners. The cloth part is known as the "beged" (lit. garment) and is usually made from wool or linen, although silk is sometimes used for a tallit gadol.

The term is, to an extent, ambiguous. It can refer either to the "tallit katan", an item that can be worn over or under clothing and commonly referred to as "tzitzit", or the "tallit gadol", a Jewish prayer shawl worn over the outer clothes during the morning prayers (Shacharit) and worn during all prayers on Yom Kippur. The term "tallit" alone, usually refers to the tallit gadol.

There are different traditions regarding the age from which a tallit gadol is used, even within Orthodox Judaism. In some communities, it is first worn from bar mitzvah, (though the tallit katan is worn from pre-school age). In many Ashkenazi circles, a tallit gadol is worn only from marriage, and in some communities it may be customarily presented to a groom before marriage as a wedding present or even as part of a dowry.

Biblical commandment

The Bible does not command wearing of a unique prayer shawl or tallit. Instead, it presumes that people wore a garment of some type to cover themselves and instructs the Children of Israel to attach fringes (ציצית‎ tzitzit) to the corners of these (Numbers 15:38), repeating the commandment in terms that they should "make thee twisted cords upon the four corners of thy covering, wherewith thou coverest thyself" (Deuteronomy 22:12). These passages do not specify tying particular types or numbers of knots in the fringes. Nor do they specify a gender division between men and women, or between native Israelite/Hebrew people and those assimilated by them. The exact customs regarding the tying of the tzitzit and the format of the tallit are of post-biblical, rabbinic origin and, though the Talmud discusses these matters, slightly different traditions have developed in different communities. However the Bible is specific as to the purpose of these tzitzit, stating that "it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye go not about after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go astray; that ye may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy unto your God" (Numbers 15:39–40).

Encyclopaedia Judaica describes the prayer shawl as "a rectangular mantle that looked like a blanket and was worn by men in ancient times". Also, it "is usually white and made either of wool, cotton, or silk".

Traditionally the tallit is made of wool or linen, based on an understanding that reference to a "garment" in the bible in connection with a mitzvah refers specifically to wool and linen garments. Though other materials are sometimes used, the debate has not reached a conclusion, and many, especially among the orthodox, prefer wool which is accepted by all authorities. There is also debate about mixed wool and linen tallit, since the bible forbids klayim (shatnez) - "intertying" wool and linen together, with the two exceptions being garments of kohanim and tzitit. Concerning tzitzit, chazal (the sages) permit using wool and linen strings in tandem only when genuine tekhelet (see below) is available, whereas kabbalist sources take it a step further by encouraging its practice.

According to the biblical commandment (Numbers 15:38), a blue thread (פתיל תכלת‎, pəthiyl (thread) tək·ā'·leth (blue)) is included in the tzitzit. However, for many centuries since the exile of the Jewish people from the Land of Israel, tzitzit have been worn without a techelet fringe, though in the last hundred years there has been something of a comeback.

Pronunciation

In Modern Hebrew the word is pronounced [taˈlit], with the stress on the final syllable. In Yiddish it is [ˈtaləs], with the stress on the first syllable. The plural of tallit in Hebrew is tallitot, pronounced [taliˈtot]. The Yiddish plural is taleisim, pronounced [taˈlejsɪm].

Etymology

Tallit is an Aramaic word from the root T-L-L טלל meaning cover. Tallit literally means cloak or sheet but in Talmudic times already referred to the Jewish prayer shawl.

Idiom

In modern Hebrew idiom, the sarcastic expression, "a completely blue tallit" (טלית שכולה תכלת) is widely used to refer to something that is ostensibly, but not really, absolutely pure, immaculate and virtuous. (An English parallel might be calling someone "Mr. Perfect.") The expression stems from rabbinic lore about the biblical figure Korah who led a revolt against the leadership of Moses and Aaron. Koraḥ was said to have asked Moses a number of vexatious, mocking questions, one of which was, "Does a tallit made entirely of blue yarn require tzitzit?" To Moses' affirmative answer, Koraḥ objected that an ordinary (undyed) tallit is rendered 'kosher' (meaning, in this context, ritually fit to be worn) by attaching to its corners the tzitzit tassels, whose key feature was the single thread of blue (פתיל תכלת) contained in each tassel. If so, what addition of holiness could the tzitzit contribute to a tallit which was made entirely of the same sky-blue yarn?

The notion implicit in questions like this attributed by the rabbis to Koraḥ is the same as that expressed in Koraḥ's challenge to Moses and Aaron (Numbers 16:3), "The entire congregation is holy, and God is in their midst, so why do you exalt yourselves above God's congregation?" Koraḥ ostensibly subscribed to the laws that were the subject of his questions to Moses, but was really using them to mock and discredit Moses. Therefore, Koraḥ's question about a tallit made entirely of blue yarn, which is ostensibly "more kosher than tzitzit" but is really not, since it still requires tzitzit, became, in Hebrew idiom, an epithet used sarcastically against hypocritical displays of false piety.

The phrase "more kosher than tzitzit" is a Yiddish metaphoric expression (כשר'ער ווי ציצית) with similar connotations but is not necessarily used in a sarcastic sense. It can refer, in the superlative, to something that is really so perfect and flawless as to be beyond all reproach or criticism.

Customs

In some Jewish communities a tallit gadol is given as a gift by a father to a son, a father-in-law to a son-in-law, or a teacher to a student. It might be purchased to mark a special occasion, such as a wedding or a bar mitzvah. Many parents purchase a tallit gadol for their sons at the age of 13, together with tefillin, though among the orthodox a male child will have been wearing a tallit katan from pre-school age. In the non-Orthodox Reform and Conservative movements in addition to the men, some women nowadays also wear a tallit gadol. While many worshipers bring their own tallit gadol to synagogue, there is usually a rack of them for the use of visitors and guests.

At Jewish wedding ceremonies, a tallit gadol is often used as a chuppah or wedding canopy. Similarly, a tallit gadol is traditionally spread out as a canopy over the children during the Torah-reading ceremony during the holiday of Simchat Torah, or in any procession with Torah scrolls, such as when parading a newly completed scroll through the streets.

The tallit gadol is traditionally draped over the shoulders, but during prayer, some cover their head with it, notably during specific parts of the service such as the Amidah and when called to the Torah for an aliyah.

In the Talmudic and post-Talmudic periods the tefillin were worn by rabbis and scholars all day, and a special tallit was worn at prayer; hence they put on the tefillin before the tallit, as appears in the order given in "Seder Rabbi Amram Gaon" (p. 2a) and in the Zohar. In modern practice, the opposite order is considered more "correct". Based on the Talmudic principle of tadir v'she'ayno tadir, tadir kodem (תדיר ושאינו תדיר, תדיר קודם: lit., frequent and infrequent, frequent first), when one performs more than one mitzva at a time, those that are performed more frequently should be performed first. While the tallit is worn daily, tefillin are not worn on Shabbat and holidays.

On the fast day of Tisha B'Av, different customs prevail. Some Ashkenazim do not wear a tallit gadol during the morning (Shacharit) service and those who do omit the blessing regarding donning a fringed garment (Tzitzit); at the afternoon service (Mincha), those who wear a tallit gadol make the blessing on fringes then. Some Sephardim (according to Kabbalah and the local custom (Minhag) for Jerusalem) wear the tallit at Shacharit as usual.

The Kabbalists considered the tallit as a special garment for the service of God, intended, in connection with the tefillin, to inspire awe and reverence for God at prayer. The tallit gadol is worn by worshipers at the morning prayer on weekdays, Shabbat, and holy days; by the hazzan (cantor) at every prayer while before the ark; and by the reader of Torah, as well as by all other functionaries during the Torah reading.

History

The literal commandment in the bible was not to wear a tallit but to attach tzitzit to the corners of one's four-cornered garments, implying that such clothes were worn in any event by people of the region. Such garments were large, white and rectangular and used a garment, bed sheet, and burial shroud. These four-cornered garments may have developed from similar garments suitable for the climate of West Asia where typically the days are hot and the garment can be draped around the body and head to provide cover from the sun or just bunched up on the shoulders for later evening use; the evenings can be dramatically cool and the garment could be draped around the neck and shoulders like a scarf to provide warmth. Such garments continue to be worn today in the region, for instance the Bedouin square-form abbaya.

Though in biblical times the tzitzit were attached to such everyday garments, both the present tallit gadol and tallit katan developed subsequently to address the fact that Jews no longer wore four-cornered garments, and were in danger therefore of losing this mitzvah. The tallit katan is worn all day, usually as an undergarment; the tallit gadol is almost exclusively worn only for morning prayers, rarely outside.

In the book The Ancient Jewish Shroud At Turin by John N. Lupia (Regina Caeli Press, 2010; ISBN 978-0-9826739-0-4) Lupia shows the historical development of the tallit when its design began to change during the second half of the first century CE and began to take on the forms known today beginning around 1000 CE. The long tradition of a single orthodox form of the tallit became modified in a more culturally diverse atmosphere and continued to change throughout time until it became permuted and shortened in length as the kitel, tallit katan, tallit gadol, and the more common tallit prayer shawl form know today.

Weddings

In many Sephardic communities, the groom traditionally wears a tallit gadol under the chuppah (wedding canopy). This is also the custom in German Jewish communities. In non-German Ashkenazi communities, a more widespread custom is that the groom wears a kittel. In Hasidic and some non-Hasidic communities, an overcoat is worn over the kittel.

Burials

In the Diaspora, Jews are buried in a plain, wooden casket. The corpse is collected from the place of death (home, hospital, etc.) by the chevra kadisha (burial committee). After a ritual washing of the body, the body of men is dressed in a kittel and then a tallit gadol. One of the tzitzit is then cut off. In the Land of Israel, burial is without a casket, and the kittel and tallit are the only coverings for the corpse. Women are buried in white shrouds only.

Additional occasions

In addition to the morning prayers of weekdays, Shabbat and holidays, a tallit gadol is also worn for Selichos in Ashkenazic communities by the prayer leader, even though it is still night. A tallit is also worn at night on Yom Kippur, from Kol Nidre, which begins during the daylight hours until after the evening (Ma'ariv) service.

Types of tallitot

Tallit katan

An Orthodox Jewish man wearing a wool tallit katan under his vest.

The tallit katan (Yiddish/Ashkenazic Hebrew tallis koton; "small tallit") is a fringed garment traditionally worn either under or over one’s clothing by Jewish males. It is a poncho-like garment with a hole for the head and special twined and knotted fringes known as tzitzit attached to its four corners. The requirements regarding the fabric and fringes of a tallit katan are the same as that of a tallit gadol. Generally a tallit katan is made of wool or cotton.

Although Sephardi halakha generally maintains a distinct preference for a woolen garment as per the ruling of the Shulchan Aruch, among Ashkenazim customs are split, with the Rema ruling that all garment types are acceptable. Whilst the Mishnah Berurah and Rabbi Moshe Feinstein recommend wearing a woolen garment in accordance with the Shulchan Aruch's ruling, the Chazon Ish was known to wear cotton, in accordance with the ruling of the Vilna Gaon. This was also the practice of Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, and that of German Jewry historically.

While all four cornered garments are required to have tzitzit, the custom of specially wearing a tallit katan is based on a verse in Numbers 15:38–39 which tells Moses to exhort the Children of Israel to "make them throughout their generations fringes in the corners of their garments." Wearing a tallit kattan is not mandated in Biblical law, but in Rabbinic law the practice is strongly encouraged for men, and often considered obligatory or a binding custom.

The tallit katan is also known as arba kanfot (Yiddish/Ashkenazic Hebrew: arba kanfos), literally "four corners", and may be referred to synecdochally as tzitzit.

Tallit gadol

A typical tallit bag. The Hebrew embroidery says tallit. Frequently the owner will add additional embroidery with his name.

The tallit gadol (Yiddish/Ashkenazic Hebrew tallis godoil; traditionally known as tallét gedolah among Sephardim), or "large" tallit, is worn over one's clothing resting on the shoulders. This is the prayer shawl that is worn during the morning services in synagogue by all male participants, and in many communities by the leader of the afternoon and evening prayers as well. The tallit gadol is usually woven of wool — especially among Ashkenazim. Some Spanish and Portuguese Jews use silk tallitot. The Portuguese Jewish community in The Netherlands has the tradition of decorating the corners of the Tallit. Today some tallitot are made of polyester and cotton. Tallitot may be of any colour but are usually white with black, blue or white stripes along the edge. Sizes of tallitot vary, and are a matter of custom and preference. Some are large enough to cover the whole body while others hang around the shoulders, the former being more common among Orthodox Jews, the latter among Conservative, Reform and other denominations. The neckband of the tallit, sometimes woven of silver or gold thread, is called the atarah which literally means crown but is often referred to as the collar. The tallit gadol is often kept in a dedicated pouch or cloth bag (often of velvet) which can be quite simple or ornately decorated.

The tallit gadol is typically either all white, white with black stripes, white with blue stripes, or white with twelve-colored stripes. The all-white and black-and-white varieties have traditionally been the most common, with the blue-and-white variety, in the past said to be in remembrance of the blue thread or tekhelet, becoming increasingly prevalent in recent years among non-Orthodox Jews on account of the association of blue and white with the State of Israel. The all-white variety is customary among Sepharadic communities, whereas among Ashkenazic communities the tendency is toward white tallitot with black stripes. One explanation for the significance of the black stripes is that their black color symbolizes the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and the exile of the Jews from the land of Israel.

In many Jewish communities, the tallit is worn in the synagogue by all men and boys over bar mitzvah age (and in some communities even younger). Aside from German Jews and Oberlander Jews, men in most Ashkenazi communities (which comprise the majority of Jews today) start wearing the tallit after their wedding.

Women

According to the Talmud, and modern (Orthodox) denominations, women are not obligated to wear a tallit, since they are not bound to perform positive mitzvot which are deemed "time-specific", and the obligation to wear a tallit only applies by day. Many early Rabbinic authorities did permit women to wear a tallit, such as Isaac ibn Ghiyyat (b. 1038), Rashi (1040–1105), Rabbeinu Tam (c. 1100–1171), Zerachya ben Yitzhak Halevi of Lunel (c. 1125–1186), Rambam (1135–1204), Rabbi Eliezer ben Yoel Halevi (c. 1140 – c. 1225), Rashba (1235–1310), Aharon Halevi of Barcelona (b. c. 1235?), Rabbi Yisrael Yaaqob Alghazi (1680–1761), Rabbi Yomtob ben Yisrael Alghazi (1726–1802). There was, however, a gradual movement towards prohibition, mainly initiated by the Medieval Ashkenazi Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg (the Maharam). The Rema states that while women are technically allowed to don a tallit it would appear to be an act of arrogance (yuhara) for women to perform this commandment. The Maharil and the Targum Yonatan Ben Uziel both view a talit as a "male garment" and thus find that a woman wearing a talit to be in violation of the precept prohibiting a woman from wearing a man's garment.

In contemporary Orthodox Judaism, there is a debate on the appropriateness of women wearing tzitzit which has hinged on whether women are allowed to perform commandments from which they are exempt. According to Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik the issue depends on the intention with which such an act is undertaken, e.g. whether it is intended to fulfill the actual commandment, to bring a person closer to the Almighty, or for political or protest purposes. Other commentators hold that women are prohibited generally, without making an individual inquiry. The view that women donning a tallit would be guilty of arrogance is cited as applying to attempts of making a political statement as to the ritual status of the genders, particularly in the Modern Orthodox community, are generally more inclined to regard contemporary women's intentions as religiously appropriate.

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein wrote that permission is granted to every woman who wishes to fulfill even those mitzvot which the Torah did not obligate; and they indeed fulfill a mitzvah and receive the reward for the fulfilment of it including saying the appropriate associated blessing (as with shofar, lulav etc.). And although tzitzit are applicable for a woman who desires to wear a four cornered garment—it should be different from a man's garment—and by attaching tzitzit, she fulfils this mitzvah.

Rabbi Yisrael Yaaqob Alghazi and Rabbi Yomtob ben Yisrael Alghazi held that the observance of this mitzvah by women was not only permitted but actually commendable, since such diligence among the non-obligated would inspire these women's male relatives to be even more diligent in their own observance.

Women in non-Orthodox (Reform, Conservative, Karaite, Reconstructionist and others) are not prohibited from wearing a tallit, and usually encouraged to do so, especially when called to the Torah or leading services from the bimah.

External links

• Tallit Blessing, tying, and customs