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A: Great question, because it permits me to dive into the whole topic
of tefillin, which I happen to think is a mitzvah whose time has
come! Backing up a bit from the question itself, let's define
a few terms: tefillin is a plural word referring to the little
black leather boxes and straps- sometimes called "phylacteries"
in English- that many traditional Jews wear on the arm and head
during morning prayers during the week (i.e., not on Shabbat or
holidays.) Tefillin contain parchments, upon which are written
sections from the Torah which contain the commandment of tefillin
itself- the most familiar to most people will be the first paragraph
of the Shma, (Deuteronomy 6:4-9; also included are Deut. 11:13-21,
and Exodus 13:1-10 and 13:11-16), which includes the verse "and
you shall bind them as a sign upon your hands and as a reminder
above your eyes." Taking this verse literally, the ancient rabbis
derived from it the practice of binding our arms and heads with
words of Torah; in the time of the Talmud, it may have been the
general practice, or maybe just for a few pious people, to wear
tefillin all day, but eventually it evolved to the point where
tefillin were worn just for morning prayers.
The two different tefillin, the arm tefillah - called "shel yad"
or "of the arm" in Hebrew- and the head tefillah- called "shel
rosh" or "of the head" in Hebrew- are considered in the European
rabbinic tradition to be separate mitzvot, and so a blessing is
said for each one. Furthermore, leading up to Jay's question,
the "shel yad" is wrapped around the forearm- the arm between
elbow and wrist- seven times, and then around the hand: three
times around the middle finger and then around the other fingers
and palm. (This looks different depending on various custom one
might follow; there are also varying customs about how one the
leather straps around the arms- some towards the body, and some
away from the body.) A right-handed person wraps around the left
arm, and vice versa.
Now, to Jay's question about the wrapping around the arm: I could
not find any mention of such a custom, but it might exist. The
books I consulted merely said that the strap of the "shel yad"
is wrapped seven times between elbow and wrist- yet there certainly
could be a custom, local to a community or a family, of sub-dividing
the wraps and assigning meaning to this practice. That's part
of the beauty and challenge of Judaism: there are big things that
almost everybody agrees on, like Shabbat, but there are also within
the major practices many minor variations and customs and beautifications
and teachings which are passed along and created anew, and give
Judaism its richness and vitality.
Finally, what's the status of tefillin today? While many liberal
Jews are rediscovering this mitzvah, others object. Some Jews
feel that it is inappropriate to worship God wearing leather in
an age when many animals are treated inhumanely. Others feel that
the experience of "binding" themselves to God is theologically
problematic, in that it suggests that we are servants or subjects
of a commanding Ruler whose Will supersedes our own, which some
consider an outdated and/ or sexist image of the relationship
between God and humananity. Finally, some communities have simply
let the practice fall into disuse, feeling that they'd rather
emphasize the internal qualities of a prayer experience than the
external rituals, garments, and customs.
All these objections are reasonable and understandable- and yet
tefillin can be a powerful aid to proper concentration, reverence,
and intentionality (kavannah) during prayer or meditation. Yes,
it's an external ritual, but the symbolism is profound: we literally
wrap ourselves up in the Torah, and bind ourselves to the Divine.
What we wrap our bodies in can help us focus on our spiritual
goals. I'm not suggesting that tefillin is the right next step
for everybody, but it's been an important part of Jewish spiritual
practice for a very long time, and something that all striving
Jewish should know about and understand.
And with that, we wrap up this week's Reb on the Web. . . . .
(sorry, couldn't resist.)
NJL |
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