Echt Turkish Tallit and Kmo Turkish Tallit


The Turkish tallit was originally made in Tunisia, but since Tunisia was part of the Ottoman Empire until 1881, tallits made there were referred to as "Turkish." The Turkish tallit became popular because one of the Turkish sultans had banned flax plants, effectively making Tunisia a linen-free zone. Since wool products from Tunisia were known...

The Atara


If you've ever shopped for a tallit, the issue of the atara may have come up. The tallit atara (or neckband) is really just a trim, which can range from a subtle white-on-white design to a bold and colorful embellishment. Atara origins The custom originated to ensure that the prayer shawl was worn the same way...

Tzitzit and the Would-Be Sinner


The following story from the Talmud (Menachos 44a) is about a Torah scholar whose tzitzit save him from sin. Once there was a man who was always careful to keep the mitzvah of tzitzit properly. When he happened to hear about a prostitute in a faraway place overseas who charged 400 zehuvim, he sent that...

Pele Yoetz on Tzitzit


The mitzvah of tzitzit is considered equivalent to all of the other commandments. Because we are unable to fulfill all of the 613 mitzvahs, when we wear tzitzits, which are meant to remind us of the obligation to keep all of the commandments, it is considered as if we did in fact observe them....

A Tallit Poem – Yehuda Amichai


This fabulous poem on the personal meaning of the tallit and its resonance was written by the late Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai. It brilliantly captures the role of the tallit in our memories: feeling sheltered by a father's tallit as we played with the tzitzit, the first time we donned a tallit and felt...

Broken Tzitzits


A few years ago I ran into a friend who has a house full of teenagers. I sometimes see the strain showing on his face, so after directing the conversation to his kids I said with a grin, "It sounds like keeping your boys with 16 unbroken tzitzits is not the ultimate parenting challenge." "It...

The Chassan’s Tallis


In pre-War Europe, going back for centuries, there were a number of Jewish wedding traditions that guided proper protocol between an engaged couple, some of which remain in one form or another to the present day, primarily among the Orthodox. To this day, in charedi circles, there is a widespread custom at the vort (engagement...

Eric Cantor Lays Tefillin at Kotel


by Dan Slobodkin During a recent visit to Jerusalem, Eric Cantor, a Republican congressman from Virginia who became Majority Leader in early January, laid tefillin before praying at the Western Wall. In November his office released a statement saying: “Eric stressed that the new Republican majority will serve as a check on...