High Holidays

[The days] from Rosh Chodesh Elul until after Yom Kippur, are days of Divine favor [and acceptance.] Even though throughout the entire year the Holy One, blessed is He, accepts the repentance of those who return to Him wholeheartedly, nevertheless, these days are unexcelled and most suitable for repentance, because they are days of mercy and favor.

On the New Moon of Elul the Holy One, blessed be He, said to (Moses): "Come up to me on the mount" (Ex. xxiv. 12), and let them sound the Shofar throughout the camp, for, behold, Moses has ascended the mount, so that they do not go astray again after the worship of idols. The Holy One, blessed be He, was exalted with that Shofar, as it is said, "God is exalted with a blast, the Lord with the sound of the shofar" (Ps. xlvii. 5). Therefore the sages instituted that the Shofar should be sounded on the New Moon of Elul (and the entire month) every year.

Wasn’t it taught in a baraita: Seven phenomena were created before the world was created, and they are: Torah, and repentance, and the Garden of Eden, and Gehenna, and the Throne of Glory, and the Temple, and the name of Messiah.

Alexander the Macedonian gave his people permission to destroy the temple. People came and informed the High Priest, Shimon HaTzaddik, of what had transpired. What did he do? He donned the priestly vestments and wrapped himself in the priestly vestments. And the nobles of the Jewish People were with him, with torches of fire in their hands.

As it is written: “It is a day of sounding [terua] the shofar to you” (Numbers 29:1), and we translate this verse in Aramaic as: It is a day of wailing to you. One Sage, the tanna of the baraita, holds that this means moanings, broken sighs, as in the blasts called shevarim. And one Sage, the tanna of the mishna, holds that it means whimpers, as in the short blasts called teruot.

On Rosh Hashanah it is inscribed, and on Yom Kippur it is sealed - how many shall pass away and how many shall be born, who shall live and who shall die, who in good time, and who by an untimely death, who by water and who by fire, who by sword and who by wild beast, who by famine and who by thirst, who by earthquake and who by plague, who by strangulation and who by lapidation, who shall have rest and who wander, who shall be at peace and who pursued, who shall be serene and who tormented, who shall become impoverished and who wealthy, who shall be debased, and who exalted. But repentance, prayer and righteousness avert the severity of the decree.

After the Minchah service you should go to a river [or stream]for on this day we proclaim the kingship of the Holy One, blessed is He, over us, and it was the custom to anoint kings near a river bank as a sign that their kingdom may endure without end. It is preferable that [this river] should be outside the city limits and it should contain fish as a reminder that we are compared to living fish who are caught in a net. We too, are caught in the net of death and judgment, and as a result [we will be inclined] to think more of repenting and you should recite the verses, Mi keil kamocha [Who, Almighty, is like you] etc. You should then shake the ends of your clothes, symbolizing your resolve to cast away your sins, and to examine and scrutinize your ways, from now on; so that your "clothes" will be white and innocent of all sin.

(1) On Yom Kippur, it is forbidden to eat, to drink, to wash, to anoint, and to wear leather shoes and to have sexual relations. The King and the bride may wash their faces, and the newly delivered mother may wear leather shoes: the words of Rabbi Eliezer; and the Sages prohibit this.

One must detail the sin he committed and not suffice with a general admission of sin, as it is stated: “And Moses returned to the Lord and said: Please, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made themselves a god of gold” (Exodus 32:31). Rabbi Akiva notes: “Fortunate is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is hidden” (Psalms 32:1)

Our Father, our King! we have sinned before You.

Our Father our King! we have no King except You.

Our Father, our King! deal with us [kindly] for the sake of Your Name.

Our Father, our King! renew for us a good year

(5) 'Yizkor' for a relative:

(6) Remember, God, the soul of (my grandfathers and grandmothers [literally, male and female elders], my uncles and aunts, my brothers and sisters, my husband, my wife) (the name of the departed, son [or daughter] of the name of his [or her] father), who went to his world, because I will - without making a vow - give charity for him. In recompense for this, let his [or her] soul be bound with the Binding of life (God), with the soul of Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya'akov, Sarah, Rivkah, Rachel and Leah, and with the other righteous men and women in the Garden of Eden. And let us say, Amen.

On this day, the world came into being; On this day, He makes stand in judgment— all the creatures of the worlds— whether as children, or as servants; if as children, have compassion on us as a father has compassion on his children! If as servants, our eyes are fixed on You until You favor us, and bring forth our judgment as the light, Revered and Holy One!

(9) With regard to one who says: I will sin and then I will repent, I will sin and I will repent, Heaven does not provide him the opportunity to repent, and he will remain a sinner all his days. With regard to one who says: I will sin and Yom Kippur will atone for my sins, Yom Kippur does not atone for his sins. Furthermore, for transgressions between a person and God, Yom Kippur atones; however, for transgressions between a person and another, Yom Kippur does not atone until he appeases the other person.