When is a mourner prohibited from putting on tefillin
This question and answer were automatically translated using our trained AI and have not yet been reviewed by a qualified rabbi. Please treat this translation with caution.
go to original →
Question
When is a mourner prohibited from putting on tefillin?
Answer
A mourner does not put on tefillin during aninut (between death and burial) because he is exempt from commandments, and even on the first day of mourning (the day of burial), he does not put on tefillin at all. On the second day of mourning, he puts them on after sunrise.
Source
It is stated in the Gemara Moed Katan 15a: "A mourner is prohibited from putting on tefillin, as the Merciful One said to Ezekiel: 'Your adornment shall be upon you,' implying that for everyone else it is forbidden."
And in Moed Katan 21a it is stated: "The Rabbis taught: A mourner, during the first three days, is prohibited from putting on tefillin. From the third day onward, including the third day, it is permitted to put on tefillin. If new faces arrive, he does not remove them, according to Rabbi Eliezer. Rabbi Yehoshua says: A mourner, during the first two days, is prohibited from putting on tefillin; from the second day onward, including the second day, it is permitted to put on tefillin, and it is said that the halacha follows Rabbi Yehoshua in this matter. (And the second day is partially considered as a whole day)."
This is also ruled in the Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De'ah, Siman 388, סעיף 1: "A mourner is prohibited from putting on tefillin on the first day; after sunrise on the second day, it is permitted to put them on."
And similarly in Orach Chaim, Siman 38, סעיף 5.
Rashi wrote that the reason why specifically tefillin are prohibited on the first day, and not other commandments, is because tefillin are referred to as an adornment, and the mourner covers his head with ashes. (According to Tosafot in Ketubot 6b).
And it is stated in the Gemara Moed Katan 21a that specifically the first day, because it is written regarding death, and its end is like a bitter day, implying that the main bitterness is the first day.