The month of Elul, the last month before Rosh Hashanah, has begun. It is called the month of Teshuva, the month of repentance. It has a number of important characteristics that distinguish it from other months of the year.
“According to tradition, Elul, the last month of the Jewish calendar, is a time of introspection and reflection, a time to reflect on past actions and evaluate the spiritual growth achieved throughout the past year. It is a time to prepare for the upcoming Days of Awe – Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.”
As the “month of Divine mercy,” Elul is the most favorable time for Teshuva (repentance, or literally “return”), prayer, and charity, as well as for special expressions of ahavat-yisrael (love of one’s fellow humans). For during this month, such deeds make it much easier to achieve significant results in self-improvement and in drawing closer to the Creator. The Alter Rebbe (Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi) likened the month of Elul to the time “when the king goes out into the field,” leaving his palace, and “anyone can meet him, and he greets everyone with goodwill and goodwill.”
Below is a list of the main traditions and customs of the month of Elul:
- Every day of the month of Elul (except Shabbat and the last day of the month), the shofar (ram’s horn) is blown to signify the call to repentance.
- When writing a letter or meeting someone, it is customary to conclude by blessing each other with the wish “Ktiva Vachatima Tova!”, which means: “May a good verdict be passed and confirmed for you in the new year!”
- Psalm 27 is added to the morning and afternoon prayers.
- The Baal Shem Tov established the custom of three additional psalms each day, beginning on the first of Elul and continuing until Yom Kippur. On the first day, Psalms 1-3 are read, on the second, 4-6, and so on. On Yom Kippur, the remaining 36 psalms are read, thus completing the entire book.
- As a month of self-examination, Elul is a good time to have tefillin and mezuzah checked by an experienced sofer (scribe of sacred scrolls) to ensure their kosher status.
- During the last week of Elul, in the days leading up to Rosh Hashanah, Selichot (“prayers of repentance”) are recited. The first time is at midnight on the evening of Shabbat, and on the remaining days, early in the morning.
Notes
Selichot are recited for at least four days, so if Rosh Hashanah falls before Wednesday, their reading begins a week earlier. The custom among Sephardic Jews is to recite Selichot throughout the month of Elul. Original publication https://ru.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/975803
