Today is Tuesday, Av 7, 5786 · July 21, 2026
Nine Days
Today's Laws & Customs
• "Nine Days'
During the “Nine Days" from Av 1st to the Ninth of Av, we mourn the destruction of the Holy Temple. We abstain from meat and wine, music, haircutting, bathing for pleasure, and other joyous (and dangerous) activities. (The particular mourning customs vary from community to community, so consult a competent halachic authority for details.)
Consumption of meat and wine is permitted on Shabbat, or at a seudat mitzvah (obligatory festive meal celebrating the fulfillment of certain mitzvot) such as a brit (circumcision), or a siyum celebrating the completion of a course of Torah study (i.e., a complete Talmudic tractate). The Lubavitcher Rebbe, of righteous memory initiated the custom of conducting or participating in a siyum on each of the Nine Days (even if one does not avail oneself of the dispensation to eat meat).
Citing the verse "Zion shall be redeemed with mishpat [Torah] and its returnees with tzedakah," (Isaiah 1:27) the Rebbe urged that we increase in Torah study (particularly the study of the laws of the Holy Temple) and charity during this period.
Links:
Nine Days laws and customs
Daily live siyum broadcasts
Learn about the Holy Temple in Jerusalem
Today in Jewish History
• First Temple Invaded (423 BCE)
After nearly a month of fierce fighting inside Jerusalem (see "Today in Jewish History" for Tammuz 9), the armies of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia broke through into the Temple compound, where they feasted and vandalized until the afternoon of Av 9, when they set the Holy Temple aflame.
Links: The Destruction of the Holy Temple
Daily Quote
Ten miracles were performed for our forefathers in the Holy Temple: No woman ever miscarried because of the smell of the holy meat. The holy meat never spoiled. Never was a fly seen in the slaughterhouse. Never did the High Priest have an accidental seminal discharge on Yom Kippur. The rains did not extinguish the wood-fire burning upon the altar. The wind did not prevail over the column of smoke [rising from the altar]. No disqualifying problem was ever discovered in the Omer offering, the Two Loaves or the Showbread. They stood crowded but had ample space in which to prostrate themselves. Never did a snake or scorpion cause injury in Jerusalem. And no man ever said to his fellow "My lodging in Jerusalem is too cramped for me''
— Ethics of the Fathers, 5:5
Daily Torah Study
Chumash: Va'etchanan, 3rd Portion Devarim (Deuteronomy) 4:41-4:49 with Rashi
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English / Hebrew Linear Translation
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Video Class
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Daily Wisdom (short insight)
Tehillim: Chapters 39 - 43
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Hebrew text
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English text
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 3
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English Text (Lessons in Tanya)
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Hebrew Text
• Audio Class:
Listen |
Download
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Video Class
Rambam:
• Sefer Hamitzvot:
• 1 Chapter A Day: Shofar, Sukkah, vLulav Shofar, Sukkah, vLulav - Chapter 3
• 3 Chapters A Day: Pesulei Hamukdashim Pesulei Hamukdashim - Chapter 2, Pesulei Hamukdashim Pesulei Hamukdashim - Chapter 3, Pesulei Hamukdashim Pesulei Hamukdashim - Chapter 4
Hayom Yom:
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English Text |
Video Class
Audio: 
