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The
Source:
The
Bible tells us  "And
you shall bind them as a sign on your arm, and they shall be as frontlets
on your head between your eyes" (Deuteronomy 6:8.) This
is the good-deed of phylactery, though of course the details are much
more complex than that. The Torah tells us in four places that we
should bind the phylactery. The four places are: Deut.6:4-9;
Deut. 11:13-21; Exodus 13:1-10; and Exodus 13:11-16. Each of these
places is a separate chapter in the Torah
Therefore, each of these chapters are written on small pieces of parchment
and placed into leather housings, which a man places on the arm and
the head, along with special leather straps. They contain the four
chapters from the Torah in which the Mitzvah of tefillin is stated.
Those chapters discuss how God, Whose Name is blessed, is One, and
only One, in the entire universe. Those chapters also discuss the
miracles and wonders that God did for us when He took us out of Egypt.
They discuss how God alone has the power and the dominion to do whatever
God wants in the physical world and in the spiritual world. God commanded
us to put tefillin on our arms to remember the "strong arm"
(which refers to the powerful and cataclysmic changes in nature that
God performed for us when He took us out of Egypt).
The tefillin on our arms is near the heart to control the lusts and
thoughts of our hearts and redirect them towards performing the Service
we are commanded to perform for God, Whose Name is blessed. The tefillin
on our heads is near the brain, so that the spiritual elements in
our brains, as well as our senses and all our abilities, should all
be controlled and redirected towards performing the Service we are
commanded to perform for God, Whose Name is blessed. May the performance
of the Mitzvah of tefillin influence me and bestow upon me long life.
They must be written with in Jewish law acceptable ink, on in Jewish
law acceptable parchment. Each letter must be formed according to
specific and exacting details. If only one point on one letter is
slightly rounded off when it should be pointed, the entire pair of
tefillin is invalid.
The housings must be perfectly square when viewed from the top. Even
the stitches that keep the housing closed must be square when viewed
from above, and may be done only with correct Jewish law acceptable
kosher animal sinews. The letters must all be written in order. If
a letter has been written incorrectly, it cannot be fixed out of sequence.
Sometimes one bad letter can invalidate an entire pair of tefillin.
Since there are so many Laws about tefillin, one should buy them only
from an honest Jew who knows the Laws, and can be trusted to make
them correctly. A dishonest man might find a problem, and fix it incorrectly,
just to save money. Therefore we must be very careful from whom we
buy our tefillin. When you go to buy tefillin, be aware that there
are various levels of quality in tefillin. This is not a scam. The
more expensive ones are actually better, and they will also last longer.
They are also more preferred, the Talmud says, because they are created
with a greater adherence to various spiritual concepts. But you should
get what you are ready, willing and able to buy. Get your tefillin
checked periodically -- at least once every four years, preferably
once a year if possible. Any other time, if you see something wrong,
such as the housings bending slightly, or paint chipping or cracking,
get your tefillin checked immediately.
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| Basic
Phylactery Laws: |
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| I.
If for some
reason you have only one half of the set, whether it be only the one
for the head, or only the one for the arm, put that one on and recite
only the blessing for that one. II. When putting on tefillin it is
very important to have a clean body. In addition to general cleanliness,
one must be especially careful to be clean after going to the bathroom.
III. Someone who has no control over what
comes out of his body is forbidden to wear tefillin. Anyone in that
situation should discuss it with his Rabbi to find out when and
how he may wear tefillin.
IV. One should go to the bathroom before
putting on the tefillin, or at least be absolutely sure he will
not have to go while wearing the tefillin. If while wearing tefillin
you feel the need to go, you must remove the tefillin and go.
V. If you feel the need to pass gas while
wearing tefillin, you must first remove your tefillin.
VI. Never take tefillin or any holy item
into a bathroom. While wearing tefillin, one should only clean thoughts.
As well as speaking out loud.
VII. We may not wear tefillin at night.
VIII. We do not put on tefillin on the Sabbath.
IX. While putting on Tefillin, one may not
talk from the first blessing through the Statement.[Until Step C,
see below]
X. One who is right-handed binds the tefillin
on his left arm; one who is a lefty binds the tefillin on his right
arm. (Same style just opposite sides.)
XI. Tefillin should be put on your weaker
hand. If you are right-handed, use your right hand to put your tefillin
on your left hand. If you are left-handed, use your left hand to
put tefillin on your right hand. If you are ambidextrous, ask your
Rabbi, because each case is different. If you are unable to contact
a Rabbi for some reason, assume in the interim that the hand with
which you write is your stronger hand (for this purpose, at least).
XII. Always treat your tefillin with the
greatest of respect and reverence. Do not remove them from the bag
by shaking them out of the bag, for example. Always take them out
carefully, and put them back carefully. Tefillin are made of leather.
That means that you must keep them safe from things that hurt leather,
like moisture and extreme temperatures.
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This
is a guide to putting on the tefillin. It will be much easier to have
a live person showing you the first time
words cannot equal the real thing. The presentation and video displayed,
is a right-handed fellow who binds the tefillin on the left arm, one
who is a lefty binds the same process vice versa on the right arm.
There are some different customs of the bindings, the presentation
here is the basic Ashkenazi custom. Any Jew can perform the deed using
this custom.
Hebrew keywords
| Tefillin |
The
general name for phylactery. |
| Shel
Rosh |
The
black box that sits on the head |
| Shel
Yad |
The
Black box that sits on the arm/biceps |
| Bayis |
The
Black box in general |
Step
A
(Sephardic Jews and Married
Ashkenazi Jews shall place a
tallit
first.
1.
We start with the hand.
We never start with
the head, so if you accidentally take out the shel Rosh (the tefillin
for the head) first, put it aside and take out the shel yad (the
tefillin for the hand).
2.
When putting on tefillin or taking
tefillin off, Ashkenazi Jews stand, Sephardic Jews sit. While
putting on Tefillin, you may not talk from after the first blessing
through the Statement. (Until Step C,
see below)
3.
Start, roll up left sleeve (leftys roll up right sleeve, same
process vice versa on right arm), make sure you take off rings
and watches on that hand. Unwrap the straps and take the shel
yad carefully out of the box. Open
the loop very wide, and slide back the shel yad until center of
your biceps.
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Position
for Shel Yad
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The
loop to the side of the body
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Position
for Shel Yad before the 1st blessing
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5.
Tighten the loop.
6.
Begin
wrapping the strap around your hand,
wrap once around your biceps and seven times around your lower
arm. Stop at palm, and wrap the remainder of the strap around
your palm. Do not wrap the strap around your fingers yet.
Step
B
1.
Remove the shel Rosh from bag, unwrap
the straps, and take it out of the box carefully. Place the
shel Rosh on your head just before the hairline
2.
The knot should be behind your head - just above your neck,
and the strap should be lying loosely on your head.
4.
Tighten
the straps around your head, by
pulling them down at the sides
from front to back.
5.
Recite the statement
| English: |
Blessed
is his name, whose glorious kingdom is
forever and ever
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| Phonetic
Hebrew: |
Baruch
Shem Kvod Malchuso Leolam Vaed
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| Hebrew: |
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Step
C
Resume
wrapping the strap of the shel yad.
Unwind
the strap from your palm, as the strap comes from the wrist.
Taking
off the Tefillin
1. Unwrap the straps
from your fingers,
and rap it around your fist.
2. Take off the Shel Rosh, wrap
in box and place it away.
3. Take
off the Shel Yad, wrap in box and place it away.
(4. Take off the tallit)
When
you wrap your tefillin away.. do not pull the straps tightly
around the boxes. Leather can stretch a little, but the paint on
the straps cannot stretch without cracking. The straps must be entirely
black, according to the Jewish Law, any cracks on the straps it
could become invalid.
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