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Basic
Tefillin laws:
Consult a reliable
Rabbi
1.
If for some reason you have only one half of the set, whether it
be only the one for the head, or only the one for the arm, put
that one on and recite only the blessing for that one.
 2 . When putting on
tefillin it is very important to have a clean body.
In addition to general cleanliness, one must be especially
careful to be clean after going to the bathroom.
3 . Someone who has no control over what comes out of his body
is forbidden to wear tefillin. Anyone in that situation should
discuss it with his Rabbi to find out when and how he may
wear tefillin.
4. One should go to the bathroom before putting on the tefillin,
or at least be absolutely sure he will not have to go while
wearing the tefillin. If while wearing tefillin you feel the
need to go, you must remove the tefillin and go.
5. If you feel the need to pass gas while wearing tefillin, you
must first remove your tefillin.
6 . Never take tefillin or any holy item into a bathroom. While
wearing tefillin, one should only think about clean things.. As
well as speaking out loud.
7. We may not wear tefillin at night.
8 . We do not put on tefillin on the Sabbath.
9 . While putting on Tefillin, one may not talk from the first
blessing through the Statement. [Until Step C, see below]
10 . One who is a righty
binds the Tefillin on his left arm; one
who is a lefty binds the Tefillin on his right arm. (Same style
just opposite sides.)
11. Tefillin should be put on your weaker hand. If you are
right-handed, use your right hand to put your tefillin on your
left hand. If you are left-handed, use your left hand to put
tefillin on your right hand. If you are ambidextrous, ask your
Rabbi, because each case is different. If you are unable to
contact a Rabbi for some reason, assume in the interim that the
hand with which you write is your stronger hand (for this
purpose, at least). Always treat your tefillin with the greatest
of respect and reverence. Do not remove them from the bag by
shaking them out of the bag, for example. Always take them out
carefully, and put them back carefully. To show our love for one
of the greatest deeds, we use our stronger hand to put the
tefillin onto our weaker hand. We also use our stronger hand to
put the tefillin on our head. When taking off the tefillin, we
use our weaker hand, to show our reluctance to take off the
Mitzvah.
Tefillin are made of leather. That means that you must keep them
safe from things that hurt leather, like moisture and extreme
temperatures. |
