The Tisha B'Av fast 2023 will begin this year on 26.07, when it will begin, starting in the evening at sunset, until the next day on 27.07, when it will end, when the stars come out.
Tisha B'Av is a fast prescribed from Darbanan, commemorating first and foremost the destruction of the two Temples, the first in 586 BCE by Nebuchadnezzar and the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE by the Romans led by Titus. Lent is considered the culmination of the period of mourning – the days between the Egyptians – which began with the <>th fast of Tammuz.
Due to its historical events, many perceive Tisha B'Av as one of the saddest days in the Jewish calendar.
Why? Five major events
The five main and symbolic events that took place on Tisha B'Av includethe crying for the generations that began with the sin of the spies, when the desert generation was decreed not to enter the Land of Israel - on Tisha B'Av. It is told of the great weeping of the Israelites following the slander that 10 of the 12 spies took out of the Land of Israel. "And the people wept that night" is the night of the <>th of Av. And the Midrash Tanchuma explains, "And that night that they were fed up with in the land was the night of Tisha B'Av, and at that time the Temple was doomed to be destroyed" (Midrash Tanchuma for Parashat Shelah).
Tisha B'Av at the Western Wall Plaza (Archive), Photo: Lior Mizrahi
The two Temples that existed in the history of the nation were both destroyed on Tisha B'Av. The First Temple was destroyed in 586 BCE and the second was destroyed in 70 CE. The First Temple was built by King Solomon and stood for 400 years until it was destroyed by the Babylonians. The Second Temple was built by the exiles who returned from Babylon - until it was destroyed by the Romans.
In addition, the city of Beitar was captured and conquered by the Romans in 135 CE, on Tisha B'Av, by the Romans, while brutally suppressing the Bar Kokhba revolt. A year later, in 136 CE, Jerusalem became a pagan Roman city under the name Aelia Capitolina.
The Five Prohibitions of Lent
Tisha B'Av has five main prohibitions: eating and drinking, locking the sandal (shoes made of leather are forbidden), lubrication (applying oils to the body), washing, and conjugal relations (using the bed).
As mentioned, unlike other fasts established by the Sages (from Darbanan), the Tisha B'Av fast is about 25 hours long, similar to Yom Kippur, and is therefore considered a more difficult fast than others.
During this fast, a number of unique mourning customs are practiced, such as sitting on the floor in the synagogue, some synagogues even darken the prayer halls and read on the floor by candlelight. It is also forbidden to study Torah, since engaging in Torah is considered joy and pleasure. At the beginning of the fast, it is customary to read the Book of Lamentations, lamenting the destruction of Jerusalem and the exile forced on its Jewish inhabitants. The scroll began with a line that became familiar to the general public: "Lamentations sat alone, the great city with--was, like a widow; I fought among the Gentiles, I served in the states--there was, to tax."
Entry and exit times of the Tisha B'Av fast
Jerusalem
Fasting begins: 19:39 Fasting
exits: 20:09
Tel Aviv
Fasting begins: 19:41 Fasting
exits: 20:11
Haifa
Fasting begins: 19:41 Fasting
exits: 20:11
Safed
Fasting begins: 19:40 Fasting
exits: 20:10
Sheva
Fasting begins: 19:40 Fasting
exits: 20:10
Bnei Brak
Fasting begins: 19:39 Fasting
exits: 20:09
What is permitted and what is forbidden - laws and customs
Lent Tisha B'Av is characterized by mourning customs that belong to this day.
- Do not eat or drink. Patients and the like should consult with a rabbi to determine how they should act during fasting. Even those who do not fast – by order of a rabbi – should refrain from eating delicacies or unnecessary eating.
- Sitting on low chairs, floor (on carpets) until midnight.
- Don't wear leather shoes. Some stick in shoes with leather ornaments.
- Prohibition of bathing - even in cold water. For washing hands take only the fingertips (it is allowed to bathe with water an area that has become dirty);
- No lubrication - do not anoint the skin with body lotions or any oils.
- Prohibition on using the bed - do not engage in conjugal relations and do not perform actions that may lead to intimacy.
- Prohibition of greeting - do not greet each other and do not send gifts.
- Prohibition on elegance and luxury - do not wear holiday clothes.
- There are those who do not eat meat and do not drink wine during the week of Tisha B'Av.
- Before the beginning of the fast, one should eat a "break meal", but this one is different from that of Yom Kippur and is practiced very modestly. The feast includes an egg and bread dipped in ashes (custom).
On the night of Tisha B'Av, the curtain is removed from the Holy Ark in the synagogue, many of the lights are extinguished, and after the evening prayer the Book of Lamentations is recited, describing the horrors of destruction. The cantor reads the scroll aloud as the worshippers join him in a quiet voice. Then we read some lamentations, piyyutim written for Tisha B'Av.
When washing hands on themorning of Tisha B'Av, water is poured only on tiptoe, and in the blessings of dawn one skips the blessing "He who made all my needs for me."
There is a custom not to put on tefillin at morning prayers, nor to wrap oneself in a tallit. This is how tefillin (and tallit) are placed in the afternoon prayer of Lent.
The afternoon of fastingsignifies some relief from mourning customs. In the afternoon it is allowed to sit on regular chairs and preparations for a meal after the fast can begin.
In the synagogue, the curtain is put back in place, and during the Mincha prayer tefillin is placed and decorated with a tallit. To the Amidah prayer a special passage called 'Necham' is added, which includes requests to rebuild the Temple.
On the eve of the fast,hands should be washed but without a blessing.
Since the Temple burned down until noon on the 10th of Av, it is customary to continue the mourning customs (abstaining from eating meat, drinking wine, bathing and getting a haircut) untilnoon on the 10th of Av. When Tisha B'Av falls on Thursday, it is permissible to bathe and cut one's hair the next morning in honor of Shabbat.
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