What is a Tallit?
A tallit is a garment used in the observance of the Biblical precept of wearing tzitzit. The Torah requires every man who wears a four-cornered garment to attach a group of threads to each corner, in a particular fashion. The intent of this commandment is for the wearer to be reminded throughout the day of the 613 commandments in the Torah and of G-d’s constant presence in his life. The tzitzit dangling from the edge of his garment are intended to serve as a visual reminder of these things.
Question: How does the tallit serve as a reminder of the 613 commandments of the Torah?
Answer: Every letter in the Hebrew alphabet is assigned a numerical value, and the numerical value of a word is determined by adding the values of all of its letters. The numerical value of the word tzitzit is 600. (+ 10=י + 90=צ 400=ת + 10=י + 90=צ .(On each of the four corners of the garment, eight threads are attached and tied together in five knots. Thus, we add the numbers eight and five to the numerical value of the word, for a total of 613.
Most contemporary garments are neither square nor rectangular in shape, making it unnecessary to attach the tzitzit fringes to them. For that reason, religious Jewish men customarily wear an additional garment known as a tallit, which is specially made with four corners, in order to be able to observe this important commandment.
There are actually two different types of tallitot. One is the tallit katan (“small tallit”), which is colloquially known simply as “tzitzit.” The tallit katan is a small, rectangular, four-cornered garment with the aforementioned ritual fringes attached to each of its corners. This garment is customarily worn by men throughout the day, and is generally worn beneath one’s shirt.
For an extensive discussion of the tallit katan and the commandment of tzitzit, see Tzizit- Daily Jewish Life.
The other type of tallit, which is most commonly known by that name, is the tallit gadol (“large tallit”). It is a large, square garment, generally made of wool, which also bears the ritual tzitzit fringes on each of its four corners. This garment is worn by men during the morning prayer services and during the observance of special religious practices.
- The Ashkenazic custom, as well as that of Chabad, is for the tallit to be worn only by married men, while boys above the age of thirteen wear only tefillin for Shacharit. The Sephardic custom, on the other hand, is for the tallit to be worn by young boys as well.
- Since the tallit gadol is worn for the morning prayers together with Tefillin, most men store the two together in a single bag. The tallit should always be placed above the tefillin, in such a way that it is the first item one will encounter when next opening the bag. Since Jewish law calls for the tallit to be donned before the tefillin, it is important to avoid a situation in which one will have to bypass the tefillin in order to reach the tallit.
- Because the tallit gadol is reserved for use during prayers, Jewish law accords it a special status that requires it to be treated with a significant measure of respect. Consequently, it should not be brought into a lavatory. The tallit katan, on the other hand, may be worn in a lavatory because it is not used exclusively during prayer.
The procedure for donning the Tallit
- There is a special ritual procedure for placing the tallit on the body. The following are step-by-step instructions.
- Remove the tallit from its bag and unfold it lengthwise.
- Place the tallit on your right shoulder, with the tzitzit hanging down in front of you (see diagram 1).
- Examine the tzitzit threads to ensure that none of them have been ripped 1 or severed. Carefully separate any threads that have become tangled. It is customary to recite a couple of verses from Psalms while examining the fringes: “Bless G-d, my soul. G-d, my Lord, You were extremely great. You clothed Yourself in glory and splendor. You wear light like a dress and place the heavens like a curtain.” These verses are a description of the “greatness” of G-d at the time of Creation, when He cloaked Himself, so to speak, in special “garments”— the light and the heavens that surround our world like a cloak or curtain.
- Unfold the tallit in its entirety. Kiss the upper edge (the “rim” of the tallit) three times, and place the entire tallit behind you, with the inner lining at the top of the garment resting on your head.
- Lower the front of the tallit until the upper portion of it covers your eyes. Recite the blessing, “Blessed are You, G-d, our Lord, King of the universe, Who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to wrap ourselves in tzitzit” (see diagram 2).
The wrapping procedure
After reciting the blessing, one should wrap oneself in the tallit in accordance with the following steps.
- Drape the right side of the tallit, along with the fringes on its corners, across your face and over your left shoulder, allowing the fringes to dangle behind you. Keep the left side of the tallit, with its two tzitzit fringes, in front of you, so that your head will be “surrounded” by tzitzit on both sides (see diagram 3).
- While you are enveloped in the tallit, have in mind that you are fulfilling G-d’s commandment to wear tzitzit. Also contemplate the fact that the purpose of this commandment is to provide us with a constant reminder of all the other precepts in the Torah.
- Wait several seconds, then remove the right side of the tallit from your left shoulder. Recite the following verses from Psalms: “How precious is Your kindness, O G-d, and human beings take shelter in the shadow of Your wings. They will be sated from the fats of Your dwelling, and You will give them to drink from the stream of Your delights. For the source of life is with You; in Your illumination, we will see light. Draw Your kindness upon those who know You, and Your righteousness on the upright of heart”.
These verses contain words of praise to G-d for the many acts of kindness that He performs for us and for the fact that we find shelter and security beneath His “wings”. We also beseech Him to continue to bestow blessings upon us because we believe in Him and serve Him loyally and wholeheartedly.
- After the wrapping procedure is completed, the tallit should be arranged in the fashion in which it is worn. The upper portion of the tallit should cover the head, the two front tzitzit should hang down in front of the body, and the two rear tzitzit should be behind the body. The middle and side portions of the tallit should be rolled up and placed on the shoulders and both sides, so that the tallit will cover the majority of the body (see diagram 4).
Question: I lost my tallit. Am I permitted to wear tefillin even if I do not have it?
Answer: Yes. These two commandments are not interrelated; therefore, you are obligated to wear tefillin even if you are not in possession of a tallit. In any event, it is always possible to borrow a tallit from someone else until you obtain a new one of your own.
