Tashlich is a Jewish ceremony on Rosh Hashanah, symbolizing deliverance from sins and sorrows. Jews empty their pockets into rivers or streams, reciting psalms and throwing crumbs for God’s protection. It was dangerous in the past, but now it’s a happy occasion for families and congregations.
Tashlich is a Jewish ceremony that takes place mostly on the first day of Rosh Hashanah. If Rosh Hashanah falls on a Saturday, Tashlich occurs the following day. It is both a ritual and a prayer, symbolizing deliverance from the old sins and sorrows of the year to prepare for a better and happy new year, as based on the Jewish calendar.
Tashlich means “throw away” or “throw away”. In Tashlich, Jews go to rivers or streams and empty their pockets, throwing the contents into the body of water. If someone has nothing in his pocket, breadcrumbs can be thrown into him. Thus a person is now symbolically emptied of last year’s sins, and with nothing to line their pockets, the person must also depend on God for survival.
However, in Tashlich’s modern observation, most people empty their pockets of essentials such as car keys, wallets, or other important items before heading out to a river. Also, crumbs are usually thrown away so that rivers or streams are not polluted.
As the crumbs are tossed, several psalms are recited reflecting God’s ability to protect the person. It is preferable to throw the crumbs into a water containing fish, as the fish are protected by the water, symbolizing God’s protection over man. They also recite from Micah: “You will have compassion on us again / Trample down our sins / and cast all our iniquities (sins) into the sea” (Micah 7:19).
The Tashlich celebration was a dangerous occupation for Jews during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Being seen praying over a water source could be considered witchcraft, especially in Europe or the New World. Therefore, Jews were usually advised to move away from the city to execute Tashlich to avoid such a charge.
Today Tashlich is a happy occasion and one that is certainly not being secretly observed. Indeed congregations or large families often gather at the same water source and the result is a social occasion. It is both solemn and celebratory as Jews begin their new year with a clean slate in God’s eyes and feeling that God will protect them throughout the year.
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