In Streetwise Hebrew for the Times of Israel Community , each month we'll learn several colloquial Hebrew phrases around a common theme. These are bite-size audio Hebrew classes that we think you'll really enjoy. So now we have a request. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
Newsletter email address Get it By signing up, you agree to the terms. Moshe Silver, a rabbi, partner in a Wall Street investment research firm and shofar blower, who will take his shofar to the Jerusalem streets during the coronavirus Courtesy Moshe Silver.
In order for a shofar to be kosher for the mitzvah , the inner tissue layer must be removed. This is accomplished by drying the horn for about a year. At this point, the inner layer is shriveled up and is easily removed. If one were to remove the core from the sheath and drill a hole through it, it would not be a kosher shofar. The shofar is then left to dry.
When it is dry, the tip of the keratin is carefully sawed off and a hole is drilled into the center of the shofar to form a mouthpiece. While flaring the mouthpiece allows for easier blowing, one should inspect the shofar to insure that the mouthpiece has not been distorted; as such a shofar is not preferred. Any pitch produced by a shofar , whether loud, soft, or dry, is acceptable. If a shofar splits along the entire length, it is no longer kosher. If split entirely across the width then if four thumb breadths about 3.
If one blows with the shofar facing downwards it is unacceptable, 22 since the shofar must be blown in the position that it faces in nature, upwards.
One must blow from the narrow end, the side facing the Heavens in nature 23 If one widens the narrow end and narrows the wide end it will not be a kosher shofar.
As mentioned, a shofar has a soft tissue core and a keratin sheath. Cattle horns are one solid piece of bone, which is one reason why they are not used for shofros. A shofar need not be from an animal that was slaughtered properly by shechita , but may not originate from a non-kosher species. One is permitted to blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah , but one may not desecrate Yom Tov in any way, even on the second day of Yom Tov , except to instruct a non-Jew to obtain one from outside the permitted carrying zone.
While a bent shofar actually conveys contrition and should be sought out, 34 in order to drill the hole for the mouthpiece a very bent shofar must first be carefully heated to degrees to allow for a partial straightening. Otherwise, it would be impossible to drill as one would have to drill on a curve. The straightening and drilling process is the period when a shofar is most fragile and may crack or split, wasting many hours of labor and expense. As many workers are paid by the piece, there is a strong temptation to patch such cracks with shofar shavings blended with invisible glue.
A professional repair job can almost never be spotted except through x-ray. Another concern regarding shofar s is that polishing the shofar may create a weak spot which over time will cause the shofar to break. Unscrupulous manufacturers often coat the inside of the shofar with lacquer of urethane that can strengthen the shofar or hide defects.
However, this may distort the sound of the shofar rendering it invalid. Pitch is not so much an issue in playing the shofar. It is a battle cry, or a mournful cry, but its symbolism comes from its sound and the fact that it is the shofar making the sound on the day of Rosh Hashanah. The tuba has no inherent symbolism, and its sounds are ultimately judged and understood within the context of a melody or a larger work.
Also, he reminded me that shofars are notoriously stinky. Other brass instruments do not tend to carry quite the same level of aroma. It is nature-made. It is simple. Many people think that a teruah sounds like a voice crying out. All that said, did you know there are some pieces of classical music that call for the use of the shofar? Rosh Hashanah.
It is mentioned numerous times in the Bible, in reference to its ceremonial use in the Temple and to its function as a signal-horn of war.
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