Counting the Omer - Rabbi Shaul Silam shlita

09:43 The date line in the middle of the days of the Omer count. Yes, as is known, east of Australia and west of the western coast of the United States and Canada, as mentioned there, is the International Date Line. When you cross that line, you jump a day; it is the line where each day begins. Now, someone who crosses the Date Line in the middle of the count—or anyone crossing it from east to west—say we are here on Tuesday night, 28 Nissan, and he suddenly finds himself on Monday night, 27 Nissan, so he counts afterward and there is no problem. That is, let’s say, on Monday night. Sorry, he goes from Monday night, the 27th, to Tuesday night, the 28th. Sorry, if he travels from east to west, he simply jumps a day; he moves ahead faster. But from his perspective, everyone else has advanced further, while he is a day behind. So in every other respect, it really will be Tuesday for him now, and he will not read from the Torah; and the coming Shabbos will also be Shabbos for him. There is no problem with his missing a day; he follows the place he is in. But as far as counting the Omer and Shavuos—which is also determined after seven weeks—are concerned, the Rebbe says that he has his own count. So he really will be a day behind, and for him Shavuos will fall on 7 Sivan. Conversely, someone traveling from west to east goes backward, and from his perspective he will observe Shavuos when it is 5 Sivan there; for him, that will be the fifth day. So there are halachic complications here. The Rebbe says that unless it is absolutely necessary, one should not cross the Date Line in the middle of the Omer count. As for the time to count, it is at the beginning of the night, after nightfall. One can count with a blessing throughout the night. There is a teaching of the Tzemach Tzedek from which it appears that it is preferable to count before midnight in any case. Regarding the count on the second day of Pesach outside

12:10 Israel—that is, the first count, on the second Seder night—this is very interesting. The Alter Rebbe writes that this count should be made; he brings an opinion that, according to the inner dimension of Torah, it should be made after the Seder. But someone who counts beforehand—it is good to do it earlier. He brings two opinions on this. The Shaar Hakollel comments on this. The Shaar Hakollel was written by Rabbi Avraham David Lavut, the Rebbe’s great-great-grandfather. He compiled the Torah Or siddur with the additions of Shaar Hakollel, those distinctive additions. He also published Derech Chaim by the Rabbi of Lissa, with his own notes on the Rabbi of Lissa’s words, called Nesiv Hachaim. There he asks: the Alter Rebbe does not normally bring two opinions in the siddur. He then relates that it was the Maharil, the Alter Rebbe’s brother, who inserted this point based on the inner dimension of Torah. The Alter Rebbe did not know about it, and the siddur was printed. When he saw this addition, he was very, very angry with the Maharil and even punished him, as related in Beis Rebbi. The story is brought there: his punishment was that when the Alter Rebbe delivered a maamar of Chassidus on the second night of Pesach, the Maharil was not allowed to be there. Nevertheless, the Alter Rebbe did not remove this point from later editions. Counting during bein hashmashos, twilight, is also possible. Essentially, bein hashmashos—the period between sunset and nightfall—is uncertain: it might be day or it might be night. But since most halachic authorities hold that counting the Omer is now a rabbinic obligation, we are lenient in a case of doubt concerning a rabbinic obligation, and so, strictly speaking, one may count then. Even so, it is better to wait until nightfall, and that is the custom. So much so that the Alter Rebbe says that if you are with a minyan

14:24 that counts during bein hashmashos, the way to handle it is to count without a blessing and stipulate that if you remember to count after nightfall, you will then count with a blessing and the first count will not count for anything. If you do not remember, you will rely on that earlier count after the fact. He should indeed make that stipulation, and there is no problem with it. More than that, suppose he actually counted with a blessing. Yes, he made a mistake and counted with a blessing. What does “made a mistake” mean? It is permitted, but it is not the ideal practice. Still, out of concern for the view of the Rambam and the early authorities who hold that counting the Omer today is a Torah obligation, he should count again after nightfall without a blessing. The whole reason we say that bein hashmashos might be day or night and that we can therefore be lenient in a case of doubt is that counting the Omer is a rabbinic obligation. But if it is a Torah obligation, it must definitely be night. So, taking that view into account, he should count again when it is definitely night, without a blessing. Going back even earlier, there is an opinion that one may count from plag haminchah, an hour and a quarter of seasonal hours before sunset. So if we do not count during bein hashmashos, all the more so we do not count from plag haminchah. Nevertheless, as a stringency, we are careful from plag haminchah onward. Say, for example, it is plag haminchah before the night of Lag BaOmer. A person should not start saying, “Oh, today is Lag BaOmer,” because from plag haminchah onward, that could already be considered a count, and he would no longer be able to count with a blessing afterward. A few important points about how to count. Just as I do not say the blessing borei pri ha’eitz before I know which fruit I am making the blessing on, here,

16:23 ideally, I cannot make the blessing for counting the Omer without knowing which day it is. That is important. More than that, the Rebbe writes that one must also have in mind that the particular day we are counting is part of the seven weeks. That is another important point. Another matter: the practice—and this is halachah—is to make the blessing and count while standing. It is derived from a verse. Interestingly, we perform mitzvos while standing, and the basis for this is derived specifically from counting the Omer. The verse says, “Count seven weeks for yourself, from when the sickle is first put to the standing grain.” The Hebrew word for “standing grain” is kamah, and our Sages expounded: Do not read it as kamah, but as komah, “an upright posture.” Therefore, we perform this mitzvah and make its blessing while standing upright. Ideally—there is a disagreement over whether it is enough to count days or whether both days and weeks must be counted—so we count, as stated, both days and weeks. If someone counted only the days, he should count again without a blessing. If he did not do so, he has nevertheless fulfilled his obligation and may continue counting with a blessing on the following days; there is no problem. Another very important point: with many mitzvos that involve speech, a person can usually fulfill them either in a language he understands or in the Holy Tongue, even if he does not understand it. That is generally the case, and some halachic authorities say the same about counting the Omer. But that is not the Alter Rebbe’s view. According to the Alter Rebbe, someone who does not understand the Holy Tongue cannot count in Hebrew with a blessing; indeed, it is not considered a count at all. Counting is not merely saying words. When I count, there is something involved in the act of counting; it is not just pronouncing a number. Counting requires a certain awareness

18:31 to be present. The Maharil Diskin says that if a person does not know Hebrew but does know what day it is now—he knows that today is the twenty-second day of the Omer, right? He also knows the number of days and weeks. He just does not know Hebrew, but he knows that this is the number he is about to say, and he knows that one part expresses days and another expresses weeks—that is perfectly fine. Even if he does not understand the words, it is considered that he does understand. After counting, we say, “May the Merciful One restore the service of the Beis Hamikdash to its place, speedily in our days.” According to everyone who holds that counting is a rabbinic obligation, the entire count is a remembrance of the Beis Hamikdash, where the Omer offering was brought. That is why we ask for the Beis Hamikdash. It is certainly always appropriate to ask for it—appropriate, and indeed a demand. The Rebbe wants us to demand the Geulah. Where in the prayers do we count the Omer? After Maariv. Since Maariv is more frequent, when a frequent obligation and a less frequent one coincide, the frequent one takes precedence. So we count after Maariv: Maariv is said 365 times a year, while the Omer is counted forty-nine times. Therefore we count after Maariv, because Maariv is more frequent. Based on that, one might go on to say that the count should certainly come after Aleinu, since Aleinu is said three times as often as Maariv—we even say it three times a day. So it is certainly more frequent than counting the Omer. But here we have the words of Rabbi Chaim Naeh. First of all, the Alter Rebbe does in fact place the Omer count before Aleinu. The Mishnah Berurah offers an answer to this. Each has his own reason for why it is done this way, but Rabbi Chaim Naeh explains it very nicely. He says that here we

20:21 We won’t apply the rule of doing the more frequent thing first, because Aleinu Leshabe’ach is different. Aleinu Leshabe’ach is praise of Hakadosh Boruch Hu for not making us like the nations of the world. He says that this is the main praise; that’s the point. And we can see how important this praise is. It is so great, so precious, that we want to end everything, every prayer, with Aleinu Leshabe’ach. More than that, even things outside the prayer service are incorporated into it so that we end with Aleinu Leshabe’ach. Beyond that, Rabbi Chaim Naeh says that Shacharis, Minchah, and Maariv all end with Aleinu Leshabe’ach. It’s the finishing touch. We want to finish with the praise that He did not make us like the nations of the world. With the Megillah reading, for example, we don’t read the Megillah and then say Aleinu Leshabe’ach. Rather, we incorporate the reading into the prayer service, and Aleinu Leshabe’ach comes at the end. The kinos, by contrast, on Tisha B’Av are also incorporated into the prayer service, with Aleinu Leshabe’ach afterward. On Rosh Hashanah, the psalm “LeDavid Mizmor, LaHashem Haaretz Umelo’ah” is also before Aleinu Leshabe’ach, as is “LeDavid Hashem Ori Veyishi,” which we say in Elul. All these things come before Aleinu Leshabe’ach, because Aleinu Leshabe’ach is the conclusion. So certainly, with Sefiras HaOmer, too, we say Aleinu Leshabe’ach at the end. Now, things forbidden before counting: there are several. Eating more than a kebeitzah of bread is forbidden. Less than a kebeitzah of bread, less than a kebeitzah of mezonos, fruit—those are things one may eat. The Alter Rebbe says this also applies to work. After all, the phrase “seven Shabbosos” uses a word related to “resting.” There is a custom to refrain from work until we count the Omer, for both men and women. The work we refrain from is the kind forbidden on Chol Hamoed; that’s the point. But cooking and baking are permitted, while sewing and things like that we don’t do. Now, there’s something very, very important that people aren’t so careful about because it isn’t widely known. It’s worth

22:20 listening to. What I’m about to say is a precaution needed when someone counts beside me. There is a situation in which a person can fulfill my obligation for me without my knowing it, and then, if I count afterward, my blessing will be a blessing in vain. This applies not only here, but also to blessings over fruit and several other things. It’s worth listening to. As we said, is Sefiras HaOmer a Torah obligation? The halachic authorities rule that it is rabbinic. It is rabbinic, and there is the well-known question of whether mitzvos require intention. There are discussions about whether intending to fulfill the mitzvah is indispensable for Torah-level mitzvos. But for rabbinic mitzvos, it isn’t indispensable. In practice, of course, I should initially intend to fulfill a mitzvah, but if I didn’t, I have fulfilled it. Rabbinic mitzvos don’t require the intention that I am now fulfilling the mitzvah. There is another rule in halachah: hearing is like answering. We tend to think that with a blessing, for example, I fulfill my obligation only if I say amen and intend to fulfill it, but that isn’t precise. A person recited a blessing—he performed a mitzvah involving speech beside me. For example, just so you know, this even applies to prohibitions. In the morning, I can’t study Torah aloud—I mean, speak words of Torah—before reciting Birchos HaTorah. But I can listen. So if someone studying beside me says a halachah or a Torah teaching, I can’t do that either, because hearing is like answering: it is considered as though I said it. The same is true of blessings. Someone recited a blessing beside me, and I might say, “No, I didn’t intend to.” True, you didn’t intend to, but mitzvos don’t require intention, and this doesn’t require intention either. Therefore—and this is explicit, though it really isn’t widely known—the Alter Rebbe says in section 213 of the Shulchan Aruch: when you eat a fruit, be careful,

24:15 because if your friend is also eating a fruit and you’ve already recited the blessing, that’s it—you’ve fulfilled his obligation for him. So if I count beside my friend and he plans to count afterward, even if he didn’t intend to fulfill his obligation through me, that isn’t enough. What can prevent me from fulfilling his obligation is an intention to the contrary. In other words, if I have no intention at all, it makes no difference: he has fulfilled his obligation. If I have... “I don’t intend to fulfill my obligation”—that’s a lack of intention, a lack of intention. Even if I think, “I don’t intend to fulfill my obligation,” that isn’t enough. I need to think, “I intend not to fulfill my obligation.” Now, if either of the two of us does this—if I, the one reciting the blessing, say or think, “I intend not to fulfill anyone else’s obligation”—then, indeed, no one else fulfills their obligation. Or the person hearing me recite the blessing says to himself, “I intend not to fulfill my obligation.” Then he truly doesn’t fulfill it, and that’s fine. But if there was no intention at all, or a different intention—more along the lines of “I don’t intend to fulfill my obligation” instead of “I intend not to fulfill it”—then the person does fulfill his obligation, and that’s a problem. So what actually happens with Sefiras HaOmer? I’m simply saying that I really need to be careful when I’m with my friend. In shul it’s a little different. Here, [unclear] makes a distinction. He says it is based on a halachah in section 6. It says there that there was a custom with Birchos Hashachar for each person in shul to recite all the blessings while everyone answered amen. Seemingly, after the first person, everyone had already fulfilled their obligation. But here, when a person knows he is going to count, it is as though he intended not to fulfill his

25:52 obligation. So in shul, when I hear the chazzan recite the blessing and know that I am going to recite it afterward, it is as though I intended not to fulfill my obligation through him. In that respect, it’s fine. But with a friend, no. So the best tip, really, is for the chazzan also to intend not to fulfill the obligation of anyone who would consequently recite a blessing in vain, for example. That is a very good intention. Say someone was in shul, but he was learning and did not intend to daven just then, because, for example, it was not yet nightfall. So he did not count either, but he was there and heard. If I’m the chazzan and I intended not to fulfill the obligation of anyone who might recite a blessing in vain as a result, then it’s fine. When people recite the blessing afterward, there’s no problem; it isn’t a blessing in vain. But suppose that person who was off to the side and did not recite the blessing later davened alone or with a minyan, but forgot to count the Omer. Only the following evening does he remember: “Wow, I didn’t count the Omer yesterday.” That’s not a problem, because the chazzan fulfilled his obligation for him. Right? So it’s good to know. At the beginning of the counting period, you can already say, “I don’t intend to fulfill my obligation”—or no, not “I don’t intend.” “I intend not to fulfill my obligation through the chazzan,” except, in particular, if his counting would actually save me from having failed to count. But otherwise, if it would cause me to recite a blessing in vain, then no. One such intention for the entire Sefiras HaOmer is enough. If someone says to his friend, “Today is such-and-such”—his friend asked him, “What day is it?” and he answered, “Today is such-and-such”—then the one who answered can no longer count with a blessing,

27:54 because he has already said, “Today is such-and-such.” But the one who asked doesn’t necessarily have a problem, because he asked in order to recite the blessing. It’s the same point we made: he can still recite the blessing. He didn’t say “today”; that word makes the difference. In other words, if I didn’t say “today,” it’s as though I didn’t count. Leaving out “today” doesn’t prevent me from counting. So if I tell my friend, “Eighteen,” that’s fine. It’s better to say, “Yesterday was seventeen,” but if I said it that way without saying “today,” it’s fine. I can still count with a blessing later that same day. As we said, a person who counted—no, who forgot to count—all night, and then counted, or forgot until the following day: there is a dispute about whether one should recite a blessing when counting during the day, so we don’t recite a blessing then. But it is considered that he did count, and from the following night onward he continues counting with a blessing. If he forgot during the following day as well, until nightfall, then he missed it, as we said earlier. There is a question in the responsa, both in Igros Moshe and in Chazon Ovadia. A person forgot to count on Thursday night, and then on Friday morning and throughout the day he forgot as well. He accepted Shabbos. The question in the responsa concerns a person who, after plag haminchah, when it is technically possible to daven Maariv, davened while it was still day. Both Igros Moshe and Chazon Ovadia discuss this, though they say one should not daven while it is still day. But say someone who is a little weak accepted Shabbos, and then remembered: “Oh no, I didn’t count last night or during the day. But perhaps now that I’ve accepted Shabbos, it counts as the next day?” The answer is no. He can certainly count without a blessing, because that is

29:54 During the day, but he can and should count. So once night arrives, it is already the next day, and he will continue counting with a bracha. But for someone who davens Maariv while it is still day, even after his davening, according to Igros Moshe and the “Orach Chaim”—that is, Chazon Ovadia—and even for a Chabad chossid, although this is not our custom, it is nevertheless not forbidden to daven while it is still day. The Tzemach Tzedek says it is better to daven alone at the proper time than to do that. But even a Chabad chossid who davened after plag haminchah, as long as it is not bein hashmashos, can count after accepting Shabbos and davening Maariv—with a bracha—uh, without a bracha, sorry. Then, from that night, Friday night, he will continue counting with a bracha. It is not considered as though he missed a day.