Laws of selichot and their significance in light of the teachings of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook
From the beginning of the month of Elul, Sephardi and Yemenite Jews are accustomed to reciting selichot at dawn, while Ashkenazi Jews customarily begin selichot close to Rosh Hashanah. The recurring question that arises each year from people who find early rising for selichot difficult—since it affects their ability to function during the day (at work, in teaching, in driving, etc.)—is: what takes priority?
Order of preference: When is the best time to say selichot?
A. The most preferable time for reciting selichot is at dawn, as ruled in the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 581:1): “It is customary to rise at dawn.” Baruch Hashem, such minyanim exist throughout the month of Elul. Therefore, one should ideally go to sleep earlier in order to rise at dawn (Hilchot Selichot by Rabbi Mordechai Eliahu zt"l).
B. If one is unable to go to sleep early, and waking at dawn impairs his ability to function during the day—whether at work, in studies, or otherwise—he may recite selichot at midnight, which is also considered a time of favor and mercy (the exact time must be checked daily, generally between 12:30 and 12:40 AM) . The introductory piyyutim may be started earlier so that the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy are reached precisely at midnight.
C. For those who know that reciting selichot at midnight would also impair their functioning, it is proper to recite them during the morning hours, preferably before shacharit (Yechaveh Da’at I:46).
D. If it is not possible to say selichot in the morning, it is still preferable to recite them in the afternoon rather than not at all—ideally before minchah. This is because it is customary to connect selichot to prayer, so that the prayer is said with greater intent (Mikraei Kodesh by Rabbi Moshe Harari, ch. 1, end of n. 6). As a last resort, one may recite selichot after minchah, until sunset.
E. When saying selichot in the late morning or afternoon, one must skip lines that are inappropriate during daylight, such as the poems: “I rose at dawn” or “When they cried out in the night,” so as not to recite something false (“He who speaks lies shall not stand before My eyes”).
F. Selichot should not be recited between sunset and midnight, because the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy are not said during this time, a period associated with the dominance of divine judgment. Someone who asks for mercy then appears to provoke and belittle the Attribute of Judgment (Sha'arei Teshuvah 581:1; Mishnah Berurah 565:12; Kaf HaChaim 581:1–2; Hilchot Selichot by Rabbi Mordechai Eliahu zt"l; Yechaveh Da’at I:46). This is the same reason why Tachanun is not recited between sunset and midnight (see Shulchan Aruch 131:3, Mishnah Berurah, ibid.).
(Note by Rabbi Moshe Bloom: The rulings cited by Rabbi Ehud Ahituv are the general Sephardi ruling, following the dictates of kabbalah, that one should avoid the recitation of selichot at night before chatzot. However, many Ashkenazi posekim are lenient in extenuating circumstances, and maintain that it is permitted to recite selichot at the beginning of the second third of the night, around 10:45 PM. This was the ruling of Rabbi Moshe Feinstien zt"l, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach zt"l, and Rabbi Yaakov Ariel shlita"h. See Ohalei Halachah – Yamim Nora'im p.33.)
G. If it is difficult to recite selichot every day, at least try to say them on Mondays and Thursdays (Yechaveh Da’at III:44 by Rabbi Ovadia Yossef zt"l).
H. “Better a little with kavanah than much without kavanah.” Therefore, when necessary, it is possible to skip some piyyutim, and instead recite calmly and with kavanah the essential parts of the selichot: the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy with “kel erech apayim” or “kel melech”, “aneynu”, “mi she-anah,” and also viduy and nefilat apayim (Mikraei Kodesh Harari, ch. 1:17).
Saying selichot – A request to change nature for the better
(According to Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook zt"l, on the 90th anniversary of his passing, 3 Elul 5695 / 1935)
It is well known that Rabbi Kook zt"l set aside time in Elul to study his book Orot HaTeshuvah. In our generation, we can see that many study the topic of repentance based on his teachings.
Below we present his view on the essence of requesting forgiveness, and its meaning in the inner work of Elul.
Bereishit Rabbah 67:4 says: “Rabbi Chanina said: Whoever says that the Holy One, blessed be He, makes concessions, his innards should make concessions. Rather, He is patient, but collects what is due.” Why did the Sages use such a harsh expression, instead of saying simply: “Whoever says that God is lenient is mistaken”?
Rabbi Kook explains: The Sages wanted to teach us that the purpose of punishment and suffering is to refine a Jew’s soul, not merely to seek a “reduction in penalty.” When a person asks forgiveness of God thinking that he can continue “business as usual”—requesting to be spared punishment but retaining the blemishes that sins have left upon the soul—it is like a person who wants the waste to remain in his intestines.
Therefore, when we plead in selichot, we ask Hashem for help to change our negative traits and faulty character, by encountering goodness and kindness that inspire us to improve, refine our character, and cleanse our souls—without the need for “cleansing afflictions.”
Rabbi Kook also explained (Ein Ayah on Berachot II:48) the request we say before the bedtime Shema: “May it be Your will… that I not sin again, and what I have sinned before You, may You cleanse in Your abundant mercy—but not through afflictions or severe illnesses.” He writes:
“Sin, aside from the punishment that it incurs, damages one’s character traits. Nature itself must be changed back to good. To restore the traits as if the sin had never been, that is the cleansing. Sometimes this change occurs only through suffering. But cleansing through G-d’s great mercy means being granted good influences: seeing the beauty of justice and loving-kindness, meeting righteous friends, and witnessing noble acts of goodness. When such influences persist, a person’s traits change for the good.”
The month of Elul – A time of dreams and aspirations for greatness
Continuing this theme, Elul can be seen as a time for great aspirations. Throughout the year, the current of daily life pushes us to focus on the present—the “here and now.” To prevent ourselves from sinking too deeply into these immediate concerns, we stop daily to pray, expressing higher longings for meaningful goals—both national and personal. This is true all year, but in Elul it becomes more expansive: through the daily recitation of Psalm 27 (“The Lord is my light and salvation”), through selichot, and for some, by reciting ten chapters of Psalms each day. There is no better preparation for the coming year than great dreams, for progress is born of lofty aspirations—whether as a people, a community, or individuals. Each person dreams according to his level and situation.
This connects to the words of Rabbi Kook zt"l (Orot HaKodesh I:53):
“Great dreams are the foundation of the world. There are many levels. The prophets dream—‘In a dream I will speak with him.’ Poets dream while awake. Thinkers dream of the great repair of the world. We all dream of the return of Zion. The crudeness of social life, when sunk only in its material side, removes the light of dreaming from the world… But the world writhes in pain under the stings of grim reality, bereft of the glow of the dream. How mistaken are those who boast of a flawed reality, when only the free dream, rebelling against reality and its limits, is the truest reality of all.”
Rabbi Kook zt"l, who passed away ninety years ago on 3 Elul, was the “greatest of dreamers,” expressing his holy visions in his “redeeming Torah” in all its branches—law and lore, public leadership and personal repentance—in a generation of redemption. Today we see his faith-filled vision being realized before our eyes: in the conquest and settlement of the Land, in the ingathering of exiles, in the spread of the Torah of the Land of Israel, in the spirit of the soldiers and their wives and children who support them, and in the growing atmosphere of emunah in the State of Israel.
May we merit to continue to dream and aspire together with all of Israel, and to see Hashem restore His people in the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the coming of the Redeemer speedily.