The Month of Elul
Selichot Guide: When and How to Recite the Prayers
Answers to common questions about the customs and laws of Selichot
- Hidabroot
- | Updated
What time at night may a woman say Selichot, and until what time in the morning?
From midnight until sunset the following day.
Is it preferable to say them at night?
Yes.
Can I say them at home, by myself?
Yes, except for passages in Aramaic and the Thirteen Attributes.
If I listen to and say Selichot online, should I regard it as an individual prayer?
An individual prayer.
Is a Sephardic man obligated to say Selichot?
One should not change the custom, and it is very appropriate not to separate from the community but to say Selichot with them.
Why, in the Selichot that include “Rachmana,” is David mentioned before Pinchas, the son of Aaron?
Because King David is one of the seven shepherds.
What is the importance of saying Selichot? And is it required every day?
This month is a month of mercy, a month in which Hashem forgives and pardons the people of Israel. Therefore, it is customary to say Selichot and ask Hashem to forgive us for all our sins, so that we may arrive at Rosh Hashanah cleansed of every sin. It is a mitzvah to say Selichot every day.
May one say Selichot, in full or in part, while watching a livestream on a computer?
One may say Selichot, but should skip the passages that are not said when praying alone.
May an Ashkenazic woman attend Selichot these days, even though the custom is Sephardic?
Yes. She is not obligated to go, but there is a mitzvah involved, and there is no problem with it at all.
At our synagogue, we say Selichot in the morning before Shacharit, then put on tefillin and pray Shacharit. Can we put on tefillin during Selichot itself as well? And on Monday and Thursday, do we say the full order of Tachanun, even though we said parts of it during Selichot?
It is permitted to put on tefillin during Selichot as well, if they are being said after the time for putting on tefillin.
On Monday and Thursday, the full order of Tachanun is said.
When is the best time to say Selichot?
The preferred time for saying Selichot is midnight. Selichot may be said throughout the day, except from the beginning of the night until midnight.
1. What does “the watch of the night” mean? Does it refer to sunrise?
2. I read that, according to Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, an individual may say the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy in nusach mikra'i. What does that mean?
1. It refers to the end of the night, before sunrise.
2. To say them using the melody of the biblical cantillation marks, as the Torah reader reads in synagogue on Shabbat.
May one say Selichot more than twice in a row?
There is no problem with saying Selichot again. Since they contain no blessings, they may be said as many times as one wishes.
