Mishneh Torah Laws of Shofar

It is a positive commandment from the Torah to hear the sound of the shofar (animal horn) on Rosh Hashanah; as it is stated (Numbers 29:1), "it shall be a day of blowing for you." The shofar which is blown — both on Rosh Hashanah and for the Jubilee year — is a bent ram's horn. And all shofars are disqualified except for the horn of a ram. Even though blowing with a shofar is not mentioned explicitly [in the passage] about Rosh Hashanah; it surely does state about the Jubilee year (Leviticus 25:9), "you shall blast the shofar." And we have learned through the oral tradition that just as the blowing of the Jubilee year is with a shofar, so too is the blowing of Rosh Hashanah with a shofar.

In the Temple on Rosh Hashanah, they would blow with one shofar and two trumpets [on its two] sides. The shofar would blow long and the trumpets would blow short, since the commandment of the day was with the shofar. And why would they blow it together with trumpets? Because it is stated (Psalms 98:6), "With trumpets and the blast of the shofar blow before the Lord, the King." But in other places on Rosh Hashanah, we only blow with a shofar exclusively.

We do not blow with a shofar of idolaters at the outset. But if one did blow [with one], he has fulfilled [the commandment]. And if one blew [with a shofar] of a condemned city (eer hanidachat), he has not fulfilled [his obligation. Regarding] a stolen shofar with which he has blown, he has fulfilled [the obligation]. For the commandment is only listening to the sound — even though he did not touch it and did not raise it up, the listener has fulfilled [it] — and there is no law of theft with sound. And likewise should one not blow with the shofar of a burnt offering; but if he did blow [with it], he has fulfilled [the obligation]. For there is no law of misappropriating [the sacred] with sound. And if you say, "Did he not derive pleasure from listening to the sound"; [the answer is] that the commandments are not given for pleasure. Hence, one who has vowed not to derive pleasure from the shofar is permitted to blow the blow of the commandment with it.

We do not profane the holiday — even regarding something that is on account of a Shabbat (holiday) decree — for the shofar of Rosh Hashanah. How is this? If a shofar was on top of a tree or over a river and one does not have [another] shofar besides it, he may not climb the tree and he may not swim over the surface of the water in order to bring it. And it is not necessary to say that we may not cut down [the tree] or do [other] forbidden work upon it. For blowing the shofar is a positive commandment, whereas [the sanctity of] the holiday is a positive commandment and a negative commandment — and a positive commandment does not override a negative commandment and a positive commandment. It is permissible to put water, wine or vinegar into [the shofar] on a holiday in order to make [its sound] clear. But one may not ever put urine into it, due to the respect [that must be shown to the shofar] — so that the commandments not become contemptible to him.

The [requisite] size of a shofar is [that it be long enough] that one hold it in one hand and it be seen from this [side] and that [side of his hand]. If it is cracked: Along its length, it is disqualified; along its width — if enough of it remained [intact to be] like the [requisite] size, it is fit, and it is as if it is cut off from the place of the crack. If it became perforated: If he filled [the holes] with [something] that is not its type, it is disqualified. If he filled it with its type — if most of it remained intact and the holes that were filled do not prevent the sound, it is surely fit. [If] he drilled its [bone that fills the horn, and flattened it instead of removing it], it is fit — for its own type (which is now doubled up inside it) does not separate. [If] one glued shofar shards until he fashioned them into one [whole shofar], it is disqualified.

If he added a minimal amount to it — whether of its type or whether not of its type — it is disqualified. If he plated it with gold inside or on the place that he puts his mouth (made a mouthpiece), it is disqualified. If he plated it on the outside: If the sound was changed from how it had been, it is disqualified; but if it did not change, it is fit. If one placed a shofar into a shofar: If he heard the sound of the inner one, he fulfilled [his obligation]; but if he heard the sound of the outer one, he did not fulfill [it]. If he widened the narrow [end of the shofar] and narrowed [its] wide [end], it is disqualified.

If it was long and one shortened it, it is [still] fit. If he scraped it out — whether from the inside or whether from the outside — even if he left it so that [only] its soft layer remains, it is fit. [If] its sound was low or high or rough, it is fit. For all sounds are fit with a shofar.

[If a case of] one who blows a shofar inside a pit or inside a cave: Those standing inside the pit or the cave have fulfilled [their obligation. Regarding] those standing outside — if they heard the sound of the shofar, they have fulfilled [their obligation]; but if they heard the sound of an echo, they have not fulfilled [their obligation]. And likewise one blowing into a large barrel — if he heard the sound of the shofar, he has fulfilled [his obligation]; but if he heard the sound of an echo, he has not fulfilled [his obligation].

[In a case of] one who blew and had intent to serve as an agent for every one hearing his blowing, and a hearer heard [it] and had intent to fulfill his obligation: Even though the blower did not have intent for this [particular person] that heard his blowing, and does not [even] know him, he has fulfilled [his obligation]. For he surely had intent for all who would hear him. Hence one who was walking on the way or sitting in his house and heard the blows from the prayer leader has fulfilled [his obligation] — if he had intent to fulfill [it]. For the prayer leader surely intended to serve as an agent for the community to fulfill their obligation.

[When] the holiday of Rosh Hashanah falls out on Shabbat, we may not blow the shofar in any place. [This is the case] even though blowing [the shofar] was forbidden only on account of a Shabbat decree; so it would have been appropriate that we would blow — a positive commandment of the Torah would come and override a Shabbat decree from the words [of the Sages]. So why do we not blow? [Because of] a decree lest one take it in his hand and carry it to someone to blow for him, and [in the process,] carry it four ells in the public domain, or transfer it from one domain to another — and come to a prohibition [punishable by] stoning. [This is necessary because] all are obligated in blowing [the shofar], but not all are expert at blowing [it].

At this time that we make two days [of Rosh Hashanah] in the Exile — in the same way that we blow on the first, so too do we blow on the second. And if the first day fell out on Shabbat and there was no court fitting to blow in that place, we blow only on the second.

How many blasts is one obligated to hear on Rosh Hashanah? Nine blasts. Since it is stated, "teruah," with regards to the jubilee year and to Rosh Hashanah three times. And every teruah requires a simple blast (tekiah) before it and a simple blast after it. And from the oral tradition, they learned that all of the teruahs of the seventh month are the same: Whether on Rosh Hashanah, or whether on Yom Kippur of the Jubilee year, we blow nine blasts on both of them — tekiah, teruah, tekiah; tekiah, teruah, tekiah; tekiah, teruah, tekiah.

Due to the length of the years and the great [burdens] of exile, we have a doubt about this teruah that is mentioned in the Torah, and we do not know how it is. It may be the wail that women wail amongst themselves at the time that they weep. Or it may be the sigh that one sighs, time after time, whilst his heart is worried about a big thing. Or both of them together — the sigh and the wail, as it is the way [of a wail] to come after it — may be called teruah. For this is the way of a worrier, to first sigh, and then wail. Hence we do all [three possibilities].

The wail is what we [today] call teruah (even though it is only one possibility of what the Torah meant by the word). And the sighing — this after that — is what we call three shevarim. It comes out that the order of shofar blasts is like this: One recites the blessing and blows — a tekiah, three shevarim after it, a teruah after that and a tekiah after [the teruah]. And he goes over this order three times. Then he blows — a tekiah, three shevarim after it and a tekiah after that. And he goes over this order three times. Then he blows — a tekiah, a teruah after it and a tekiah after that. And he goes over this order three times. It comes out that the number of blasts is thirty — in order to avoid a doubt.

[If] one heard nine blows from nine men at once (together), he has not fulfilled even one. [But if it was] a tekiah from this one, a teruah from that one and a tekiah from the third one, one after the other, he has fulfilled [his obligation] — and even if was interrupted and even if it was [over] the entire day. However, he does not fulfill his obligation until he hears all nine blows, since they are all one commandment. Hence they impede one another.

The community is obligated to hear the tekiahs according to the order of the blessings (of the silent amidah prayer). How is that? The prayer leader says [the three standard introductory blessings known as], avot (forefathers), gevurot, (strengths) and kedushat Hashem (sanctity of the name); malkhiot (kingships); and blows three blows. He then says, zikhronot (remembrances) and blows three. Then he says shofarot (shofar blows) and blows three. And he [concludes with the concluding sections known as] avodah (service), hodiyah; (thanksgiving) and the blessing of the priests.

These three middle blessings of Rosh Hashanah (every year) and Yom Kippur on the Jubilee year — which are malkhiot, zikhronot and shofarot impede one another. And in each of these blessings, one must say ten verses [that are] like the essence of the blessing — three verses from the Torah, three from the Book of Psalms, three from the Prophets, and one [more] from the Torah. But if he concludes with [a verse] from a Prophet, he has fulfilled [his obligation]. And if he [only] said one verse from the Torah, one from the Writings and one from the Prophets, he has fulfilled [it]. And even if [all he] said was, "And in Your Torah, Lord, our God, it is written, stating" — and he says a verse from the Torah, and stopped — he no longer needs anything [else to fulfill the obligation].

The widespread custom about the order of the public [shofar] blows on Rosh Hashanah is like this: After we read from the Torah and return the Torah scroll to its place, all of the people sit; and one [of them] stands and recites the blessing, "Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to listen to the sound of the shofar," and all the people answer, "Amen." And he then recites the blessing, "who has kept us alive;" and all the people answer, "Amen," after him. And he blows the thirty blows that we mentioned [were] on account of the doubt, according to [their] order. And we say, Kaddish, and stand and pray the additional (Musaf) prayer. And after the prayer leader finishes the fourth blessing — which is malkhiot — he blows a tekiah, three shevarim, a teruah and a tekiah one time. And he recites the fifth blessing — which is zikhronot. And after he finishes it, he blows a tekiah, three shevarim and a tekiah. And he [then] recites the sixth blessing — which is shofarot. And after he finishes it, he blows a tekiah, a teruah and a tekiah one time, and he finishes the prayer.