Tefillin

What are Tefillin? Tefillin, also called phylacteries, are two small black leather boxes with black straps attached to them. Jewish men are required to place one box on their head and tie the other one on their arm daily except the Sabbath and festivals. Each box contains these chapters from the Torah: Exodus 13:1-10, 11-16; Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:13-21, written with black ink on parchment from the skin of a kosher animal.

Putting on Tefillin is the first mitzvah assumed by a Jewish male upon his Bar Mitzvah. Usually, boys are trained to start wearing them one to two months before their thirteenth Hebrew birthday. During the training period, boys don Tefillin, but do not recite a blessing. Subsequent to the Bar Mitzvah, a specific blessing, "Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to put on Tefillin," is recited whenever they are worn.

How are Tefillin made? The finest Tefillin are made from a single piece of leather. Only one pair of Tefillin is produced for each head of cattle. After undergoing a softening process the leather is cut to the size needed and left to dry slowly in the open air for at least three months. Then it is pressed over a wooden form.

Tefillin for head (shel rosh)	Tefillin for arm (shel yad)

The cells are shaped into squares.	The formed bayt (case) for a head (shel rosh)

The case is ready...	...and painted.

The Parshiyot (Scriptures) are incerted into the cells: one for the arm case and 4 for the head one.

How to put tefillin on?

You should be standing when putting on or taking off tefillin. The wearing is always started with the hand.

Position for Tefillin Shel Yad		Way to hold straps before the Bracha		Order and Direction on the Arm		Order and Direction on Hand and Fingers
Position on the underside of the arm		The loop to the side of the body		The wrapping to the side of the body

Position for Tefillin Shel Rosh		Verifying the Correct Place
Position of placement on height of head		Checking the Tefillin with the width of the head

When you take off the tefillin, first unwrap the strap from your fingers, wrapping it around your palm. Then take off the shel rosh. Wrap it up and put it away. then take off your shel yad, wrap it up and put it away.

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