Why Do People Wear a Tallit?

Jewish garments have a rich history filled with symbolism and meaning that dates back thousands of years. These garments hold the same significance for the Jewish community as they did during the first century. Many people may have seen an Orthodox Jewish person walking in the streets of Israel or even New York and stopped to wonder the significance behind their shawl or fringes hanging from their waistline. One of these garments is the tallit, which is a white garment that is draped on their heads and their shoulders.

Definition of Tallit

According to the The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, a tallit is a Jewish prayer shawl. It is a four-cornered fringed shawl worn by males during the morning prayers. It is donned before putting on the phylacteries (fringes), except on Yom Kippur when it is worn all through the day (phylacteries are not worn on this day).

The tallit is usually made of white wool, cotton, or silk, and often has blue or black stripes on the ends and an ornamental strip worn near the neck. Woven into the white garment is a blue fringe (tzitzit).

It is important to distinguish between the Tallit Gadol (large tallit) and the Tallit Katan (small tallit), which is worn under the outer garments throughout the day. Wearing the Tallit Katan is normally practiced by Orthodox Jews, including the Sephardi and Ashkenazi sects.

Biblical History

According to the Midrash, the tallits possibly resemble the "abayah" or blanket worn by Bedouins for protections from the sun and rain. During the first and second century, they were more refined and adapted to the Roman culture, and were only worn by distinguished men, rabbis and scholars.

The biblical commandment is found in Numbers 15:37-41.

Blessings for the Talit Katan

Before donning the Tallit Katan, the tzitzit are inspected, and the following blessing is recited:

"Barukh atah, adonai, eloheinu, melech haolam, asher kiedshanu b'mitzvotav, v'tzievahnu al mitzvot tzitzit
Y'hie rahtzon miel'fanehchah, adonai ehlohay vaylohay ahvotay, sheht'hay khashuvah mitzvot tzitzit lfahnehkhah, k'ielu kieyahm'tieah b'khal prahtehyah v'diek'dukehyah v'khahu'notehyeh, v'tahr'yag mitzvot hat'luyim ba. Amen Selah."

Which is translated to: "Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us regarding the commandment of fringes. May it be the will before you, Lord, my God and the God of my forefathers, that it should be considered the commandment of fringes before You as if I had fulfilled it in all its aspects, its details and its intentions, as well as the 613 commandments that are dependent on it. So be it, consider what we have said."

After the blessing, the Tallit Katan is put on and many kiss the tzitzit.

Laws of Tallit

For men, they are obligated to wear the tallit. It is traditionally worn by Sephardi men from childhood, and in contrast, by Ashkenazi men only after marriage. In some Ashkenazi communities, men over the age of 13 wear the tallit.

Since the 1970s, in non-Orthodox denominations of Judaism it may be worn by women.

Ceremonial Customs of Tallit

In weddings, many Sephardic communities wear a tallit under the wedding canopy, which is called chuppah.

In burials, after the ritual washing of the body, the body is then dressed in a kittel and then a tallit. One of the tzitzit is then cut off.

References

• Mosaic Law
• Lupia, John. "The Ancient Jewish Shroud At Turin." (Regina Caeli Press, 2010).
• "Oxford Dictionary of World Religions." (Oxford University Press, 1997)