ב"ה
In Detail
The shivah and other mourning observances
Note: The laws and observances below are from The Jewish Way in Death and Mourning by Rabbi Maurice Lamm. You may also wish to refer to The Jewish Mourner's Companion by Rabbi Zalman Goldstein by clicking here
|
The Five Stages of Mourning... The Origins of Shiva...
|
|
Who Is a Mourner? ... Which Relatives Are Mourned? ... Bride and Groom... Divorced Mate... Converts to Judaism... Sinners and Criminals... Cremated Dead... Suicides... Offspring of Intermarriage... Children Born Out of Wedlock... Instructions Not to Be Mourned...
|
|
When the Shiva Begins... Out-of-Town Burial... The Duration of Shiva... Computing the 30-Day Sheloshim Period... The Sabbath and Holidays During Shiva and Sheloshim...
|
|
Where a man has lived, there does his spirit continue to dwell. Ideally, then, shiva should be observed by all relatives in the house of the deceased...
|
|
Upon Return from the Cemetery... The Washing of Hands... The Condolence Meal... What is Eaten at the Meal of Condolence...
|
|
Candles in the House of Mourning... Covering the Mirrors... Additional Preparations....
|
|
The Significance of Communal Prayer in the House of Mourning... Gathering a Minyan... Changes In The Order Of The Service... Psalm 49...
|
|
|
|
One of the most fundamental laws of Jewish mourning is the prohibition of working and doing business during shiva...
|
|
The comfort of wearing leather shoes is denied the mourner during shiva, as on Yom Kippur...
|
|
With the shocking disruption of normal life caused by a death in the family, the standard forms of social interaction, its niceties and graces and minutiae of etiquette, are without significance....
|
|
Bathing for Pleasure... Cleanliness vs. Confort... The Use of Cosmetics... Haircutting & Nail Trimming...
|
|
The principle of avoiding pleasure during mourning also applies to the prohibition of laundering, or wearing freshly laundered clothes during shiva and sheloshim, while continuing to exercise normal standards of hygienic care and personal dignity...
|
|
|
|
The Prohibition to Study Torah During Shiva
|
|
Nichum Aveilim
The Mitzvah to Visit the Mourner... The Purpose of the Shiva Condolence Call... When to Pay the Shiva Call... Etiquette at the House of Mourning... The Traditional Words of Condolence... Behavior During the Condolence Call...
|
|
Calculating the End of Shiva... "A portion of the day is as a full day"... Walking Together...
|
|
Laws and Observances of the 30-Day Sheloshim Mourning Period... How the Sheloshim is Calculated... Haircutting... New Clothes... Attending Parties... Getting Married... Shiva and Sheloshim during Purim and Chanukah...
|
|
Counting the Twelve Months... A Summary of the Basic Observances...
|
|
Participating In Parties and Festivities during the 12-Month Mourning Period.... Playing and Enjoying Music... Religious Celebrations: Brit, Bar-Mitzvah, Weddings... When the Bride or Groom are in Mourning...
|
Did you know that mourning for seven days is an ancient custom that predates the giving of the Torah? Learn all about it here.
|
|
Marking the grave of the deceased with a gravestone is an
ancient Jewish custom that dates back to biblical times.
|
With a printable sign to hang in a house of mourning
Before you leave a shiva house of mourning, face the mourners (who should be sitting on low stools) and say this short line…
|
The custom of giving round foods is learned from Jacob, who cooked a pot of lentils.
|
Texts
