Out of respect for the sanctity of the holiday, please print out this holiday guide before the onset of the holiday (sundown Wednesday, October 2), and keep handy throughout the holiday for reference purposes.
Rosh Hashanah in a Minute
What: Rosh Hashanah is the birthday of the universe, the day G‑d created Adam and Eve, and it’s celebrated as the head of the Jewish year.
When: Rosh Hashanah is observed on the first two days of the Jewish new year, Tishrei 1 and 2, beginning at sundown on the eve of Tishrei 1. Rosh Hashanah 2024 begins at sundown on Wednesday, October 2, and continues through nightfall on Friday, October 4, leading right into Shabbat (see more details here).
How: Rosh Hashanah is celebrated with candle lighting in the evenings, festive meals with sweet delicacies during the night and day, prayer services that include the sounding of the ram’s horn (shofar) on both mornings, and desisting from creative work. See our calendar for details.
The Rosh Hashanah 2024 Calendar
Rosh Hashanah’s primary service is the submission to the sovereignty of heaven. Therefore, on these days, even great and prestigious individuals serve G‑d in a manner which appears to be “simple”: constant recitation of Psalms, minimal sleep on both nights (to the extent possible), and particular care not to speak idle chatter . . .
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| Wednesday | October 2—29 Elul
Women and girls light Holiday candles tonight to usher in the holiday. See Light Festival Candles for the blessings, and Candle-Lighting Times for Holidays for local candle-lighting times. After the evening services we wish one another, “Leshanah tovah tikateiv v’teichateim—May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year!” After reciting the holiday kiddush benediction over wine (or grape juice), we eat the challah bread dipped in honey. It is then customary to eat a sweet apple dipped in honey; the head of a fish, ram, or other kosher animal; and a pomegranate. In different communities there are other traditional foods eaten at this meal. See Rosh Hashanah Eve Meal for more about this holiday meal. |
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| Thursday | October 3—1 Tishrei First Day of Rosh Hashanah Torah reading: Genesis 21:1–34; Numbers 29:1–6. The priests bless the congregation with the priestly blessing during the Musaf prayer. All men, women and children should go to the synagogue to hear the sounding of the shofar. Festive lunch meal; the challah is dipped in honey. Afternoon prayers. In the afternoon, the Tashlich prayer service, in which we ask G‑d to “cast away our sins into the depths of the sea,” is recited at a body of water (sea, river, lake, pond, etc.) containing fish. See What is Tashlich? for more on the Tashlich ceremony. No preparation for the evening meal may take place until night has fallen. Women and girls light holiday candles using an existing flame tonight after dark to usher in the holiday. Click here for the blessings, and here for local candle-lighting times. A "new fruit" should be present on the table when the candles are lit. When reciting the shehecheyanu blessing, the kindler should have in mind the new fruit which will be eaten after kiddush. The same applies when the shehecheyanu is recited during kiddush. After the holiday kiddush, before washing for bread, the new fruit is eaten. See Rosh Hashanah Eve Meal for more about this holiday meal. The challah is again dipped in honey. |
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| Friday | October 4—2 Tishrei Second day of Rosh Hashanah Torah reading: Genesis 22:1–24; Numbers 29:1–6. All men, women and children should go to the synagogue to hear the sounding of the shofar. See the High Holiday Services and Events Directory to find a synagogue near you. Not able to leave home? Contact your local Chabad-Lubavitch Center. They will do their best to arrange for a shofar-blower to pay you a personal visit. The priests bless the congregation with the priestly blessing during the Musaf prayer. Festive lunch meal; the challah is dipped in honey. Afternoon prayers. 18 minutes before sunset, women and girls light candles for Shabbat, using an existing flame. Click here for the text of the blessing, and here for local candle lighting times. Evening prayers, followed by Kiddush and the Shabbat meal. |
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| Shabbat | October 5—3 Tishrei Shabbat Teshuvah (Shuvah) Torah reading: Parshat Haazinu, Deuteronomy 32:1-32:52. Shabbat kiddush and meal. Challah is dipped in honey. Afternoon and evening prayers are followed by havdalah. |
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| Sunday Fast of Gedaliah | October 6—4 Tishrei
All men and women over the age of bar or bat mitzvah fast from dawn until nightfall, in commemoration of the assassination of Gedaliah, governor of Judea. See Today in Jewish History for more about Gedaliah. Click here for fast beginning and end times in your location.
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Eruv Tavshilin
It is forbidden on a holiday to do any act in preparation for the following day,1 even if the following day is Shabbat. However, the sages created a halachic device, called an eruv tavshilin, which allows one to cook food on a holiday day for use on a Shabbat that immediately follows it.
If a holiday day — whether the first or second day of a holiday — falls on a Friday, an eruv tavshilin is set aside on the day preceding the holiday (Wednesday or Thursday afternoon), so that we will be permitted to prepare for Shabbat (cooking as well as any other necessary preparations) on the holiday. Only one eruv is required per household.
When Rosh Hashanah falls on Thursday and Friday, an eruv tavshilin is made on Wednesday afternoon before the holiday candles are kindled.
This eruv consists of a challah or two matzahs, and a cooked food, such as meat, fish, or an unpeeled hard-boiled egg.
Take the food items (it is a good idea to wrap them in aluminum foil, or another distinctive packaging, to easily keep them apart from the rest of the foods in your home), and give them to another person (if possible an individual who is a non-dependant), and say:
I hereby grant a share in this eruv to anyone who wishes to participate in it and to depend on it.
The one holding the food raises it a handbreadth, and then returns it to the person making the eruv, who then recites the following:
Blessed are you, L-rd our G‑d, king of the universe, who has sanctified us with his commandments, and commanded us concerning the mitzvah of eruv.
Through this [eruv] it shall be permissible for us to bake, cook, put away a dish [to preserve its heat], kindle a light, prepare, and do on the holiday all that is necessary for Shabbat — for us and for all the Israelites who dwell in this city.
The eruv is put away until Shabbat, when it is eaten. In many communities, it is customary to use the challah or matzah as one of the two loaves of bread used at the Shabbat meal.2
Important notes:
- The eruv tavshilin only allows food preparations if the food will be ready with ample time remaining before Shabbat; enough time to theoretically allow the food to be consumed before sunset (if a troop of guests happens to trudge in to your home). This is an importnat detail to bear in mind when preparing the cholent, which cooks on the stove until the following day.
- The eruv tavshilin only allows one to cook on Friday for Shabbat, it does not permit cooking from one day of the holiday to the next (i.e. Thursday for Friday).
- On holidays it is only permissible to cook from a pre-existent flame, one that is burning since the onset of the holiday.
Click here for more on eruv tavshilin.
Rosh Hashanah Dinner and Prayers
On the two nights of Rosh Hashanah, Jews enjoy a festive meal in the light of candles, which are lit before a brief blessing is said. The meal begins with Kiddush, a blessing over wine, and then continues with blessings over round challah bread dipped in honey and other foods that express our prayers and wishes for a plentiful, spiritually uplifting, and sweet new year.
Candles
Girls and all women who are in the house (or if there isn't a woman in the house, the head of the household), light candles so that the festive table is bathed in their glow. See Procedure for Holiday Candle Lighting for detailed holiday candle-lighting information.
The following is said after the candles are lit:
- בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה אֲדֹנָי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ לְהַדְלִיק נֵר שֶׁל (שַׁבָּת וְשֶׁל) יוֹם הַזִּכָּרוֹן
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה אֲדֹנָי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לִזְּמַן הַזֶּה - Bah-rookh ah-tah ah-doh-noi eh-loh-hay-noo meh-lekh hah-oh-lahm, ah-shehr ki-deh-shah-noo beh-mitz-voh-tahv veh-tzee-vah-noo leh-hahd-lik nayr (shehl shah-baht veh-shehl) yohm hah-zee-kah-rohn.
Bah-rookh ah-tah ah-doh-noi eh-loh-hay-noo meh-lekh hah-oh-lahm sheh-heh-kheh-yah-noo veh-kee-mah-noo ve-hig-ee-yah-noo liz-mahn hah-zeh. - Blessed are you, L-rd our G‑d, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and has commanded us to kindle the light of (the Sabbath and) the Day of Remembrance.
Blessed are You, Lord our G‑d, King of the universe, who has granted us life, sustained us, and enabled us to reach this occasion.
Kiddush
Before starting the Rosh Hashanah meal, we sanctify the holiday by reciting the kiddush over a cup of wine or grape juice. Click here for the Hebrew/English text of the kiddush.3
New Fruit
On the second night of Rosh Hashanah, a "new fruit," i.e., a seasonal fruit which we have not yet tasted since its season began, should be present on the table when the holiday candles are kindled and during the kiddush. While reciting the Shehecheyanu blessing after candle-lighting and after the kiddush, one should have the new fruit in mind.4
This fruit is eaten following the kiddush, before washing for bread. Before partaking of the fruit we say the following blessing:
Bah-rookh ah-tah ah-doh-noi eh-loh-hay-noo meh-lekh hah-oh-lahm boh-ray peh-ree hah-aytz.
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָעֵץ
Blessed are You, L-rd our G‑d, King of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree.
Challah in Honey
Immediately following the kiddush (and on the second night, the eating of the new fruit), we perform the ritual washing for bread, after which we say the following blessing:
Bah-rookh ah-tah ah-doh-noi eh-loh-hay-noo meh-lekh hah-oh-lahm, ah-shehr ki-deh-shah-noo beh-mitz-voh-tahv veh-tzee-vah-noo ahl neh-tee-laht yah-dah-yim.
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְווֹתָיו, וְצִוָּנוּ עַל נְטִילַת יָדָיִם
Blessed are you, L‑rd our G‑d, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us concerning the washing of the hands.
When everyone has returned to the table, we raise the two challah loaves and recite the Hamotzie blessing:
Bah-rookh ah-tah ah-doh-noi eh-loh-hay-noo meh-lekh hah-oh-lahm, hah-moh-tzee leh-khehm min hah-ah-rehtz.
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם הַמּוֹצִיא לֶחֶם מִן הָאָרֶץ
Blessed are You, L-rd, our G‑d, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.
Cut the challah, dip it in honey (some also dip it in salt), and have a bite. Pass around pieces and make sure everyone does the same.
Browse a selection of honey dishes here.
Symbolic Foods
On the first night of Rosh Hashanah, after eating the challah with honey, it is customary to eat several foods which symbolize the type of year we wish to have:
We dip a piece of sweet apple into honey. Before eating it we say:
Bah-rookh ah-tah ah-doh-noi eh-loh-hay-noo meh-lekh hah-oh-lahm boh-ray peh-ree hah-aytz.
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָעֵץ
Blessed are You, L-rd our G‑d, King of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree.
Yeh-hee rah-tzohn sheh-teh-khah-daysh ah-lay-noo shah-nah toh-vah oo-meh-too-kah.
יְהִי רָצוֹן שֶׁתְּחַדֵּשׁ עָלֵנוּ שָׁנָה טוֹבָה וּמְתוּקָה
May it be Your will to renew for us a good and sweet year.
A head of a fish, ram, or other kosher animal, is served. This symbolizes our desire to be at the "head of the class" this year.
A pomegranate is eaten, symbolizing our wish to have a year full of mitzvot and good deeds as a pomegranate is filled with luscious seeds.
Throughout the meal, it is customary to also eat foods whose names in the vernacular allude to blessing and prosperity. For example, many have the custom of eating a carrot dish called tzimmes, because in Yiddish the word for carrots, meren, means to multiply.
Rosh Hashanah Cuisine
On Rosh Hashanah it is customary not to eat foods which are sour or tart (the gefilte fish will have to do without the horseradish...). Instead, the focus is on sweet foods, symbolizing our desire to have a sweet year, blessings and abundance. It is also customary not to eat nuts on Rosh Hashanah, as the numerical value of the Hebrew word for nuts ("egoz") is the same as the Hebrew word for sin ("chet").
Click here for traditional Rosh Hashanah recipes.
Click here for Rosh Hashanah foods according to Sephardic custom.
Rosh Hashanah Services at a Glance
Evening Service
The evening services of both nights of Rosh Hashanah are relatively brief; in most synagogues they don't last longer than half an hour. The service starts with the Barchu, and continues with the Shema and the blessings which precede and follow it. All throughout, the chazzan (cantor), together with the congregation sing a haunting tune reserved for the High Holiday evening services. The special Rosh Hashanah Amidah is then recited, followed by the recitation of Psalm 24 and the Aleinu.
[If the first night of Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat, the service is slightly lengthier, incorporating various components of the standard Friday night service.]
Morning Service
The morning service (Shacharit and Musaf together) should take approximately 4-5 hours.
Shacharit:
The first part of the service, until the Amidah, resembles the service of every Shabbat and holiday — Baruch She'amar, Psalms of Praise, Yishtabach, Shema and its blessings, etc. The Rosh Hashanah Amidah is then recited, followed by a lengthy Repetition of the Amidah by the chazzan, which is inter-sprinkled with different hymns which are traditionally sung together by the entire congregation. Members of the congregation are honored with opening the Ark before the recitation of many of these hymns. When the chazzan concludes his repetition, the congregation rises for the Avinu Malkeinu prayer. This is followed by the recitation of the Song of the Day.
Torah Readings:
At this point two Torahs are taken from the Ark. While the Ark is open, before the Torahs are removed, special prayers designed to evoke Divine mercy are silently recited.
First Day:
The birth of Isaac is the theme of the reading of the first day of Rosh Hashanah. We learn the lesson of Divine Providence and Omnipotence. Sarah, at the age of ninety, gives birth to Isaac, her first and only child. Isaac is entered into the Covenant of our Father Abraham at the age of eight days. In the haftorah we read about the birth of the prophet Samuel.
Second Day:
The "Binding of Isaac" is the theme of today's reading. The Binding of Isaac has come to represent the ultimate in the Jew's devotion to G‑d. On Rosh Hashanah, when the world trembles in judgment before G‑d, we evoke the Binding of Isaac. We tell G‑d, "If we have no other merit, remember how the first Jew bound all succeeding generations of Jews in a covenant of self-sacrifice to You." The haftorah, a reading from the Book of Jeremiah, talks about G‑d's everlasting love for His people and the future ingathering of the exile. In the last verse of the haftorah, G‑d says, "Is Ephraim [i.e., the Children
of Israel] not My beloved son? Is he not a precious child that whenever I speak of him I recall him even more?" This follows one of the primary themes of the Rosh Hashanah prayers, our attempt to induce G‑d to remember us in a positive light on this Day of Judgment.
Shofar Blowing:
The shofar blowing service is the central point of the day's services. Preparatory Psalms are recited, and then the shofar blower recites the blessings and sounds the shofar.
Musaf:
In most communities, The Musaf service is prefaced by a passage recited by the chazzan, wherein he requests Divine favor and permission to lead the congregation despite his deficiencies. The Special Rosh Hashanah Musaf Amidah is then recited. The Musaf Amidah has three themes — each contained within its own blessing: G‑d's kingship, G‑d's remembering His people, and the sounds of the shofar. In many communities, the shofar is sounded after the congregation silently concludes each of these blessings. The chazzan then repeats the Amidah, which is again inter-sprinkled with various hymns. A deeply moving section of the Musaf Amidah Repetition is "U'nit-a-neh Tokef" (click here for the history behind this prayer). The shofar is again sounded when the chazzan concludes each of the three aforementioned themed blessings. Towards the end of the service, the priests, or kohanim, direct descendants of Aaron the High Priest, bless the congregation with the Priestly Blessing. The prayer concludes with the Ein Ke'eloheinu and Aleinu.
Afternoon Prayer:
The brief afternoon service consists of the opening prayers, (the Torah reading if Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat,) the Amidah prayer, the chazzan's repetition of the Amidah, the recital of Avinu Malkenu, and the concluding Aleinu prayer.
Tashlich Prayer
On the first day of Rosh Hashanah (or on the second day if the first day falls on Shabbat), it is customary to visit a body of water that has fish, and there to recite a brief prayer. Click here for more on this ceremony.
Click here to find a service near you
Useful Rosh Hashanah Links
10 Rosh Hashanah Customs From Around the World
9 Rosh Hashanah Myths and Misconceptions
Watch: The Secret of Rosh Hashanah
18 Empowering Contemplations For Rosh Hashanah
High Holidays with the Rebbe
Take the Rosh Hashanah Quiz
Download Your Free Rosh Hashanah Cookbook
The Moment I Stopped Dreading the High Holidays
Listen to High Holiday Music
14 Powerful Moments from High Holidays in the Rebbe's Court
Join the Discussion