The Rosh Hashanah Machzor says היום הרת עולם and depending on your edition, probably translates it something like “today is the birthday of the world” or some fairly similar translation. But… Says who? This holiday is not called “Rosh Hashanah” (“start of year” or more colloquially, “new year”) in the Torah. It’s called a יום…
Category: Jewish / Lunar Calendar
Lunar Observations in Rosh Hashanah
The Daf Yomi cycle just finished studying Masechet Rosh Hashanah. Mazal tov to all those who have completed this study! In Masechet Rosh Hashanah observations of the Moon play a very significant role. A major topic of study in this tractate is how the ancient Jewish “calendar” worked. In fact, it was not really a…
Eclipses
In the less well known Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer we find a less ominous, more astronomy focused talmudic take on eclipses…
Will the Real Equinox(+60) Please Stand Up?
Why do we annually begin saying ותן טל ומטר on Dec. 4th or 5th when the Talmud and Shulchan Aruch say otherwise?
The Thirteenth Month and the Constellation Ophiuchus
The thirteenth month, Adar, and the thirteenth Zodiac constellation, Ophiuchus. what is the connection?
The First Festival of Light
Chanukah is often referred to as the Festival of Light(s). But it is not the first Festival of Light in the world, as the Talmud tells us.
AstroRav: Torah & Astronomy 