Tikkun Chatzot
Encyclopedia
Tikkun Chatzot is a Jewish ritual of lamentation that is recited after midnight in memory of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem
. It is a highly praiseworthy observance which is not universally observed. Over the past few years, there have been attempts to revive the custom of Tikkun Chatzot in various communities. By Sefardim and Chasidim
it tends to be recited more.
wrote that every Jew should mourn the destruction of the Temple. The origin of the midnight time for prayer and study lies in Psalm 119:62, attributed to David
: "At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee." It is said that David was satisfied with only "sixty breaths of sleep" (Sukk. 29b), and that he rose to pray and study Torah at midnight. The widespread custom
was fixed as a binding Halakha
.
At first, Mizrahi Jews
would add dirges (kinnot) for the destruction only on the three sabbaths
that are between the Seventeenth of Tamuz and Tisha B'Av
, and not on weekdays. After discussions that questioned this practice of mourning specifically on the Sabbath, it was decided to discontinue the recitation of the kinnot on these days. Rabbi Isaac Luria
canceled the customs of mourning on the Sabbath but declared that the Tikkun Chatzot should be said each and every day.
The Shulchan Aruch
1:3 states "It is fitting for every God fearing person to feel grief and concern over the destruction of the Temple. The Mishnah Berurah
comments there "The Kabbalists have discussed at great lengths the importance of rising at midnight [to say the Tikkun Chatzot, learn Torah, and to talk to God] and how great this is."
The Poskim mention a custom to recite Tikkun Chatzot during the day time during these weeks between the Seventeenth of Tamuz and Tisha B'Av. This custom is observed in some communities.
The Tanya
mentions that one should recite Tikkun Chatzos every night if one can. He then suggests that if one cannot do so every night, they should do so on Thursday Nights, as a preparation for the Sabbath.
is not needed for performing it, although some have the custom to recite it with a minyan. At midnight, one sits on the ground or a low stool, takes off his shoes (non-leather shoes are permitted), and reads from the prayer book. Although the ideal time for Tikkun Chatzot is the hour following midnight, Tikkun Rachel may be said until a half (seasonal) hour before `alot hashachar/dawn, and Tikkun Leah until dawn. The Magen Avraham method (also held by Rabbi Nachman of Breslev) is that midnight is six clock hours after nightfall (appearance of 3 medium stars). The method held by Mishnah Berurah is twelve hours after noon (halfway between dawn and dusk).
Tikkun Chatzos is divided into two parts; Tikkun Rachel and Tikkun Leah, named for the two wives of the Patriarch Jacob
. On days when Tachanun
is not recited during daytime prayers, only Tikkun Leah is recited (although Sefardim do not recite Tikkun Chatzos at all on Shabbat and Yom Tov ).
According to Siddur Beis Yaakov, by Rabbi Yaakov Emden, Psalm 102, the "Prayer of the afflicted," is read before reciting Tikkun Rachel. Afterwards, one begins the actual service by reciting the Viddui confession
including Ashamnu, and then one reads Psalm 137
, "By the rivers of Babylon," and Psalm 79, "A song of Asaph." Afterwards, verses from the book of Lamentations are read, followed by the kinnot, with customs varying among the communities, the general custom being to recite five or six kinnos specifically composed for Tikkun Chatzos, some of which were composed by Rabbi Moshe Alshich
. The Tikkun Rachel service is concluded with the reading of Isaiah
52:2, "Shake thyself from the dust..." A shorter version is usually printed in Sefardi siddurim that does not include the "Prayer of the afflicted," and has fewer kinnot.
Tikkun Leah consists of various Psalms, and is recited after Tikkun Rachel, or alone on days when tachanun is omitted. The Psalms of Tikkun Leah are Psalm 24, 42, 43, 20, 24, 67, 111, 51, and 126. Psalms 20 and 51 are omitted when Tikkun Rachel is not said. A short prayer concludes the Tikkun. It is praiseworthy to follow Tikkun Chatzot with learning Torah
, in particular Patah Eliyahu or Mishnah
. Some learn the last chapter of tractate Tamid. Many study Zohar
.
, the Tikkun Chatzot is important for bringing closer the Redemption
. The esoteric teaching holds that just as the Jewish people were exiled from their land, so was the Shechina ("divine presence") exiled as well.
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
. It is a highly praiseworthy observance which is not universally observed. Over the past few years, there have been attempts to revive the custom of Tikkun Chatzot in various communities. By Sefardim and Chasidim
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
it tends to be recited more.
Origin of the custom
The Talmudic sagesChazal
Chazal or Ḥazal is an acronym for the Hebrew "Ḥakhameinu Zikhronam Liv'rakha",...
wrote that every Jew should mourn the destruction of the Temple. The origin of the midnight time for prayer and study lies in Psalm 119:62, attributed to David
David
David was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...
: "At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee." It is said that David was satisfied with only "sixty breaths of sleep" (Sukk. 29b), and that he rose to pray and study Torah at midnight. The widespread custom
Minhag
Minhag is an accepted tradition or group of traditions in Judaism. A related concept, Nusach , refers to the traditional order and form of the prayers...
was fixed as a binding Halakha
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
.
At first, Mizrahi Jews
Mizrahi Jews
Mizrahi Jews or Mizrahiyim, , also referred to as Adot HaMizrach are Jews descended from the Jewish communities of the Middle East, North Africa and the Caucasus...
would add dirges (kinnot) for the destruction only on the three sabbaths
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
that are between the Seventeenth of Tamuz and Tisha B'Av
Tisha B'Av
|Av]],") is an annual fast day in Judaism, named for the ninth day of the month of Av in the Hebrew calendar. The fast commemorates the destruction of both the First Temple and Second Temple in Jerusalem, which occurred about 655 years apart, but on the same Hebrew calendar date...
, and not on weekdays. After discussions that questioned this practice of mourning specifically on the Sabbath, it was decided to discontinue the recitation of the kinnot on these days. Rabbi Isaac Luria
Isaac Luria
Isaac Luria , also called Yitzhak Ben Shlomo Ashkenazi acronym "The Ari" "Ari-Hakadosh", or "Arizal", meaning "The Lion", was a foremost rabbi and Jewish mystic in the community of Safed in the Galilee region of Ottoman Palestine...
canceled the customs of mourning on the Sabbath but declared that the Tikkun Chatzot should be said each and every day.
The Shulchan Aruch
Shulchan Aruch
The Shulchan Aruch also known as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most authoritative legal code of Judaism. It was authored in Safed, Israel, by Yosef Karo in 1563 and published in Venice two years later...
1:3 states "It is fitting for every God fearing person to feel grief and concern over the destruction of the Temple. The Mishnah Berurah
Mishnah Berurah
The Mishnah Berurah is a work of halakha by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan , also colloquially known by the name of another of his books, Chofetz Chaim "Desirer of Life."...
comments there "The Kabbalists have discussed at great lengths the importance of rising at midnight [to say the Tikkun Chatzot, learn Torah, and to talk to God] and how great this is."
The Poskim mention a custom to recite Tikkun Chatzot during the day time during these weeks between the Seventeenth of Tamuz and Tisha B'Av. This custom is observed in some communities.
The Tanya
Tanya
The Tanya is an early work of Hasidic philosophy, by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the founder of Chabad Hasidism, first published in 1797. Its formal title is Likkutei Amarim , but is more commonly known by its opening word, Tanya, which means "it was taught in a beraita"...
mentions that one should recite Tikkun Chatzos every night if one can. He then suggests that if one cannot do so every night, they should do so on Thursday Nights, as a preparation for the Sabbath.
Service
The Tikkun Chatzot is an individual service; a minyanMinyan
A minyan in Judaism refers to the quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain religious obligations. According to many non-Orthodox streams of Judaism adult females count in the minyan....
is not needed for performing it, although some have the custom to recite it with a minyan. At midnight, one sits on the ground or a low stool, takes off his shoes (non-leather shoes are permitted), and reads from the prayer book. Although the ideal time for Tikkun Chatzot is the hour following midnight, Tikkun Rachel may be said until a half (seasonal) hour before `alot hashachar/dawn, and Tikkun Leah until dawn. The Magen Avraham method (also held by Rabbi Nachman of Breslev) is that midnight is six clock hours after nightfall (appearance of 3 medium stars). The method held by Mishnah Berurah is twelve hours after noon (halfway between dawn and dusk).
Tikkun Chatzos is divided into two parts; Tikkun Rachel and Tikkun Leah, named for the two wives of the Patriarch Jacob
Jacob
Jacob "heel" or "leg-puller"), also later known as Israel , as described in the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, the New Testament and the Qur'an was the third patriarch of the Hebrew people with whom God made a covenant, and ancestor of the tribes of Israel, which were named after his descendants.In the...
. On days when Tachanun
Tachanun
Tachanun or , also called nefillat apayim is part of Judaism's morning and afternoon services, after the recitation of the Amidah, the central part of the daily Jewish prayer services...
is not recited during daytime prayers, only Tikkun Leah is recited (although Sefardim do not recite Tikkun Chatzos at all on Shabbat and Yom Tov ).
According to Siddur Beis Yaakov, by Rabbi Yaakov Emden, Psalm 102, the "Prayer of the afflicted," is read before reciting Tikkun Rachel. Afterwards, one begins the actual service by reciting the Viddui confession
Confession in Judaism
In Judaism, confession is a step in the process of atonement during which a Jew admits to committing a sin before God. In sins between a Jew and God, the confession must be done without others present...
including Ashamnu, and then one reads Psalm 137
Psalm 137
Psalm 137 is one of the best known of the Biblical psalms. Its opening lines, "By the rivers of Babylon..." have been set to music on several occasions....
, "By the rivers of Babylon," and Psalm 79, "A song of Asaph." Afterwards, verses from the book of Lamentations are read, followed by the kinnot, with customs varying among the communities, the general custom being to recite five or six kinnos specifically composed for Tikkun Chatzos, some of which were composed by Rabbi Moshe Alshich
Moshe Alshich
Moshe Alshich, also spelled Alshech, , known as the Alshich Hakadosh , was a prominent rabbi, preacher, and biblical commentator in the latter part of the 16th century....
. The Tikkun Rachel service is concluded with the reading of Isaiah
Isaiah
Isaiah ; Greek: ', Ēsaïās ; "Yahu is salvation") was a prophet in the 8th-century BC Kingdom of Judah.Jews and Christians consider the Book of Isaiah a part of their Biblical canon; he is the first listed of the neviim akharonim, the later prophets. Many of the New Testament teachings of Jesus...
52:2, "Shake thyself from the dust..." A shorter version is usually printed in Sefardi siddurim that does not include the "Prayer of the afflicted," and has fewer kinnot.
Tikkun Leah consists of various Psalms, and is recited after Tikkun Rachel, or alone on days when tachanun is omitted. The Psalms of Tikkun Leah are Psalm 24, 42, 43, 20, 24, 67, 111, 51, and 126. Psalms 20 and 51 are omitted when Tikkun Rachel is not said. A short prayer concludes the Tikkun. It is praiseworthy to follow Tikkun Chatzot with learning Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
, in particular Patah Eliyahu or Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
. Some learn the last chapter of tractate Tamid. Many study Zohar
Zohar
The Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
.
In Kabbalah
According to the teachings of the KabbalahKabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
, the Tikkun Chatzot is important for bringing closer the Redemption
Jewish eschatology
Jewish eschatology is concerned with the Jewish Messiah, afterlife, and the revival of the dead. Eschatology, generically, is the area of theology and philosophy concerned with the final events in the history of the world, the ultimate destiny of humanity, and related concepts.-The Messiah:The...
. The esoteric teaching holds that just as the Jewish people were exiled from their land, so was the Shechina ("divine presence") exiled as well.