Page 4 - Chayei Adam LAYOUT sivan 5782

Chayei Adam - K’lal 138 - The Laws of Selichos and Erev Rosh Hashana

mountain they sounded the shofar in the camp so that the Jews wouldn’t
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miscalculate, we have the custom to blow the shofar every day, beginning on
Rosh Chodesh Elul, but not on erev Rosh Hashana so as to separate these
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customary blasts from the obligatory ones [of Rosh Hashana]. In some places,
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they also blow the shofar after mincha, and some begin blowing on the first day
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of Rosh Chodesh and some begin on the second. However, the main purpose 10
of these blasts are to awaken people’s hearts, cause them to tremble and be
stirred to repentance, as this is the nature of the sound of the shofar as the
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posuk says “Can one blow the shofar in the city and the nation won’t
tremble?”. Everyone must prepare himself for at least 30 days before standing
before Hashem in judgment on Rosh Hashana, and focus his heart on service of
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Hashem, which is alluded to by [the words] יל ידודו ידודל ינא the acronym of
which spells לולא (Elul). Therefore, a person should repent more, pray more, and
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give more tzedaka the entire month. This is alluded to by the posuk והערל שיא
םינויבא ל תונתמ ו the acronym of which is also לולא, teaching that one should give
more gifts to the poor during the month of Elul. For this reason, some begin
fasting from Rosh Chodesh Elul, but one should not do so unless he is healthy and
sure that fasting won’t be detrimental to his health or cause him to reduce his

םדו רשב
6. Since the sound of the shofar stirs one practice blowing shofar in a closed room on
to teshuva, it is continued throughout the erev Rosh Hashana.
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month.
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8. This is not the custom. However, see
7. Since the blasts of the hofar during Igros Moshe who instructs a tzibur that forgot
Elul are only a custom, a break of a day is or was otherwise unable to blow in the
required before Rosh Hashana so as to morning, to do so after mincha. Others,
differentiate between these and the Torah however, disagree.
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obligation of blowing shofar on Rosh
Hashana. See also Magen Avraham who 9. We know that Moshe Rabeinu came
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writes that some explain that the reason for down on Yom Kippur, and so 40 days earlier,
the break is in order to mislead the Satan into when the shofar was sounded as he ascended
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thinking that Rosh Hashana has already the mountain, it was the 30th day of Av which
passed. Nevertheless, a baal toke’ah may is the first day of Rosh Chodesh. Those who
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