TORAH SCROLL
TORAH SCROLL
The Torah Scroll, a handwritten parchment scroll with the text of the Pentateuch of Moses ( Torah ), used for weekly public reading in the synagogue , is the main sacred subject in Judaism .
The writing of the Torah Scroll is allowed only to a specially trained scribe ( soferstam ) in accordance with the strict canons of Jewish religious law .
The parchment for the scroll is made from kosher animal skin. Moreover, only two of the three layers of skin are considered suitable - the outer and inner ones, and the middle one cannot be used. The parchment must be of the best quality. The dressmaker must declare that his work is for the sake of the holiness of the Torah scroll.
To avoid mistakes, scribes copy the text from another scroll. Before starting work, many scribes perform a ritual immersion in a mikveh (a water reservoir for ablution (twill) in order to purify from ritual impurity). Getting down to writing, the scribe says the formula: "I write the Torah in the name of its holiness, and the names of God in the name of their holiness." The scribe then reads the sentence from the original text aloud and copies it. Before writing the name of God, the scribe says the formula: "I write the name of God in the name of holiness."
In the time of the Talmud, a reed pen (kalam) was used as a writing instrument. Nowadays, the Torah scroll is usually written with the feather of a bird. The ink should be black, permanent and indelible. To make the letters even, the distance between the lines is the same and the lines are of equal length, 42 horizontal lines are drawn on the parchment using a blunt awl and a ruler, as well as two vertical lines delimiting the margins. The line is written strictly below the line. Until the beginning of the 19th century, there were no prescriptions for the number of pages or columns, and then the standard was set: 248 columns, 42 lines each. It is forbidden to break words with hyphenation.
The Torah scroll is written in the so-called square ("Assyrian") script, which exists in two versions - Ashkenazic , corresponding to the one described in the Talmud, and Sephardic , corresponding to the printed script used in the publication of sacred books. The thickness of the line in the outline of the letter is different, so the scribe must change the angle at which the pen touches the parchment. Although the Hebrew text is read from right to left, each letter in the Torah scroll is written from left to right. Particular attention is paid to the writing of letters that are similar to each other (for example, ד and ר) so that they are easily distinguishable when reading. Six letters in a number of places in the text are written small, 11 - large. There must be a spacing between letters; more spacing should be between words. A distance of nine letters separates paragraphs (scab), equal to four lines - books.
After the copy is made, the parchment pages are stitched together with special threads made from the tendons of the legs of kosher animals. Every four pages are bound together to form a `section`. The sections are then sewn together into a scroll, the ends of which are attached to round wooden rollers called hazei haim ("Tree of Life"), with handles on either side. Wooden discs are put between the handles and the roller itself to support the scroll when it is in an upright position. With the help of Acei Chaim, the sacred scroll is rewound without touching it with your hands.
Mistakes in a Torah scroll can be corrected as the ink is scraped off with a knife and pumice stone, but too many corrections in a scroll are not allowed. The names of God cannot be erased - if they are written incorrectly, the entire parchment is considered damaged. If the scroll is unusable, it is placed in an earthen vessel and buried in the cemetery.
Commandments related to the Torah scroll
According to the Talmud, the Bible prescribes that every Jew should own a Torah scroll. Even if a Jew inherited a Torah scroll from his father, he is nevertheless required to have his own scroll. A Jew can order a Torah scroll from a scribe or buy a ready-made scroll, but "the one who writes the Torah himself, as if he received it on Mount Sinai." According to the Talmud, the one who corrected at least one letter in the Torah scroll, as it were, wrote the entire scroll, from which the custom developed, which gives every Jew the right to symbolically fulfill the commandment to write his own Torah scroll. The scribe writes the first and last paragraphs in the scroll only in outline, and the work ends with the ceremony of sium Torah ("Completion of the Torah"), at which each of those present is honored to circle one of the letters along the outline or formally instruct the scribe to do it on his behalf.
The Torah scroll should be treated with special respect and reverence. When the Torah scroll is taken out of the synagogue, one should get up. It has become a custom to bow down reverently or kiss the Torah case when the scroll is carried nearby. It is forbidden to touch the parchment with your hands, therefore, when reading the scroll, they use a special pointer (poison).
The Torah scroll can only be sold if it is impossible to otherwise acquire funds for marriage, study, or the ransom of prisoners. If a scroll accidentally falls to the floor, the congregation is obliged to fast throughout that day. For the sake of saving the Torah scroll and even the synagogue ark (the storehouse of the scroll), it is permitted and even prescribed to break the Sabbath. Before reading the Torah among the Sephardim and after reading among the Ashkenazim, the scroll is solemnly raised up (agbaa), the open scroll is shown to the community, which at the same time says: "This is the law that Moses offered the children of Israel at the command of the Lord through Moses."
Using Torah Scrolls
Carrying out the Torah scroll and reading it is the most solemn part of the divine service in the synagogue. The call to the reading of the Torah ( aliyah ) occurs in a certain order - first they call the cohen (the Jewish class of clergy in Judaism from the descendants of Aaron), then the Levite (a Jew, a representative of the tribe of Levi), after which five more Jews are called in order. It is a great honor to be summoned to the Torah.
Sefer Torah is used not only for synagogue reading, but also in various ceremonies. According to the Mishnah (the first complete code of Jewish law), Jewish kings took a Torah scroll to war, and during public fasts during periods of drought, the ark containing the Torah scroll was taken out to the square, where they prayed in front of it. In the Middle Ages, a vow was made by looking at a Torah scroll. The seven-fold tour (hakafot) of the synagogue with all the Torah scrolls stored in it constitutes the main ceremony of the Simchat Torah holiday.
Since the Middle Ages, there has been a custom to meet royal people who visit the community, coming out to meet them with a Torah scroll. ...
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
In the meantime, there is no need to know about it. ”
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