The fast of Tisha B'Av, the "saddest" day in the Jewish calendar, begins Wednesday evening at sundown, and ends Thursday evening.
Its name literally means "the ninth day of [the Jewish month of] Av," the date of some of the gravest tragedies to have befallen the Jewish People. Most notably, both Holy Temples in Jerusalem were destroyed on Tisha B'Av.
Despite the sadness of the day, the saddest part of the regular daily prayers - tachanun - is not recited, in the anticipation of the final joyous Redemption that will render Tisha B'Av a day of joy.
Many tens of thousands of people spend Tisha B’Av, or parts of it, at the Western Wall – which, together with the Temple Mount, is the sole remnant of the Second Temple. Visitors spend hours mourning the destruction, the Exile of the Divine Presence and the unredeemed state of the Nation of Israel by reciting and studying the traditional Tisha B’Av lamentations and the Scroll of Eichah (Lamentations).
Its name literally means "the ninth day of [the Jewish month of] Av," the date of some of the gravest tragedies to have befallen the Jewish People. Most notably, both Holy Temples in Jerusalem were destroyed on Tisha B'Av.
Despite the sadness of the day, the saddest part of the regular daily prayers - tachanun - is not recited, in the anticipation of the final joyous Redemption that will render Tisha B'Av a day of joy.
Many tens of thousands of people spend Tisha B’Av, or parts of it, at the Western Wall – which, together with the Temple Mount, is the sole remnant of the Second Temple. Visitors spend hours mourning the destruction, the Exile of the Divine Presence and the unredeemed state of the Nation of Israel by reciting and studying the traditional Tisha B’Av lamentations and the Scroll of Eichah (Lamentations).
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