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sefirat ha'omer >> a guide to jewish holidays >> tzafon usy online

sefirat ha'omer

"And you shall count for yourselves from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that you brought the omer of the wave offering; seven complete sabbaths shall there be: to the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall you number fifty days and you shall offer a new meal offering to the Lord" (Leviticus 23: 15-17).

From these verses we learn about Sefirat Ha'Omer, the counting of the Omer period. For seven weeks, beginning on the second night of Pesach and continuing until the night before Shavuot, we count each night in order to commemorate the Omer grain offering which was brought to the Bet Hamikdash at this time of year. Though we obviously can no longer bring the offering, we still add a special bracha to the Ma'ariv service each night followed by the verse: "Today is the (number) day of the Omer."

It should be noted that the Counting of the Omer is done in Cardinal numbers (1, 2, 3, 4) and not Ordinal numbers (1st, 2nd, 3rd). For example we say the day 14 of the Omer - not the 14th day. One reason for this distinction is that we want to build up to the festival of Shavuot. Using cardinal numbers shows us how we are increasing towards a climax, Shavuot. Just think: you'd rather have $49 than finish 49th in a race.

If one forgets to count the Omer at night and remembers in the morning, he/she may count without the blessing and then resume counting with the blessing that night. If one skips an entire day, however, he/she may no longer count with the blessing.

The Sefirat Ha'Omer period is a time of sadness. According to the Talmud, this is because twelve thousand of Rabbi Akiva's disciples died one year between Pesach and Shavuot during the Hadrianic persecution. Because of this somberness, we refrain from joyous events during this period. It is customary not to hold weddings and not to have one's hair cut. No events including music and dancing should be scheduled (the exception to all this is Lag Ba'Omer -- the 33rd day of the Omer -- more info on this follow).

In addition to being day 2, day 3, day 4, and day 5 of the Omer, those days are also Chol Hamoed -- the intermediate days of Pesach. Most of the customs for these days are similar to those observed during Chol Hamoed Sukkot.

I hope everybody had good sedarim and a good beginning to Pesach. A continued Chag Sameach v'Kasher!


This page was originally created by John Davis and Michael Kay, and can be found at http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/jdd16/guide/.



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