ROSH HASHANAH

CONTENTS: 

1. Erev Rosh Hashanah
2. Eruv Tavshillin
3. Rosh Hashanah Themes
4. Beit Hamikdash
5. On The Second Night of Rosh Hashanah
6. Food
7. Video – Is Rosh Hashanah on the Wrong Day? – Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis
8. Online Resources
9. Tashlich
10. Teffilot
11. Torah Portions and Haftorot
12. Shofar
13. Halachot of Shofar
14. Shabbat Shuvah
15. Tzom Gedaliah 
16. Rosh Hashanah in Art
17. Ideas to Bring Tishrei to Life
    – Science – biology of the simanim, bees, pollination, fish
    – Life Skills in Tishrei
    
18. Food ideas
19. Arts and Crafts
20. For Fun
21. Tishrei Music Playlist
22. Rosh Hashanah Video Playlist
23. Seforim and Storybooks – See Tishrei Main Page
24. Top Picks from Online Teaching Resources

EREV ROSH HASHANAH 

• We say a longer version of selichot
• We do not say tachnun, but there is tachnun in selichot
• We don’t blow shofar to confuse the Satan and to not confuse between blowing shofar in Elul and on Rosh Hashanah.
• התרת נדרים – annulling of vows in front of a Beit Din
• Many men have the minhag to immerse in a mikvah
• Minhag to visit a cemetery and daven by the grave of a Tzaddik
• Some people fast erev Rosh Hashanah to help them do Teshuvah
• We spend our free time saying Tehillim
• To give Tzedakah before chag
• We prepare ourselves physically for Rosh Hashanah by cleaning our home, cooking delicious healthy food, bathing ourselves, and cutting our nails
• We wear new clothes to say the bracha Shecheyanu
• We light candles with the brachot
  – Lehadlik ner shel yom hazikaron
  – Shehecheyanu

Eruv Tavshillin

• If the second day of Rosh Hashanah is on a Friday we must make an Eruv Tavshillin on Wednesday, before lighting candles for Rosh Hashanah, so that we are allowed to prepare food for Shabbat on Rosh Hashanah day.

ROSH HASHANAH THEMES

• Is 2 days over the entire world
• The first day can only fall on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, or Shabbat
• The Day of Concealment
• Judgement Day – Who will live and who will die?
• The day that Adam and Chava were created
• Adam HaRishon was judged, did teshuvah, and was forgiven
• Other Names for Rosh Hashanah – יום הדין, יום הזכרון, יום תרועה
• We are standing before Hashem in His Palace
• Start of 10 Days of Teshuvah
• The balancing of aveirot and mitzvot – we can tip the scale in either direction
• We do not say Hallel on Rosh Hashanah
• How we greet women and men differently on the night of Rosh Hashanah. לשנה טובה תכתב ותחתם
• Crowning Hashem as King of the World
• יומה אריכתא – Yoma Archita
• The three books are opened – Tzaddikim, Benoniom, Reshaim
• It is a custom to not sleep during the day or to be ‘bored’. We must occupy ourselves with Torah and Mitzvot.
• Tashlich is said on the first day of Rosh Hashanah near a body of water that has fish.

BEIT HAMIKDASH

• Karbanot given at the Beit Hamikdash
• Shofar blowing Service for the Unclean
• Witnesses for the New Moon
• Beit Ya’azek Courtyard

ON THE SECOND NIGHT OF ROSH HASHANA

• We can only prepare for the second night of Rosh Hashanah after nightfall
• We say Shecheyanu when lighting candles
• We have a Shecheyanu (new) fruit after hearing Kiddush.
• Some people wear a new piece of clothing instead of having a new fruit.

FOOD

• We have round shaped Challot – people put raisins inside
• We dip our challah into honey!!
• Minhag to not eat אגוזים/nuts as the gematria equals 17 which is the gematria of chet – sin
• Minhag to not eat sour, bitter, or not good tasting foods. We want sweet foods for a sweet year
• Simanim
  – Apples dipped in honey
  – Head of a fish or ram
  – Pomegranate
  – Dates
  – Carrots
  – Fish
  – Leeks
  – Squash
  – Beets
  – Black Eyed Peas

Pomegranates: 8 Jewish Facts for Rosh Hashanah – aish.com

Apples and Honey, by Rabbi Berel Wein – aish.com

Why Is Challah Round on Rosh Hashanah? – aish.com

Simana Milta: Sephardi version – Walder Education

Simana Milsa: Ashkenazi version – Walder Education

Jamie Geller’s Rosh Hashanah Menus and Recipes

Esther O Design – Recipes

Download Your Free Rosh Hashanah Cookbook – Chabad.org