About the Jewish Day of Tish'a B'Av

DESCRIPTION:

Tish'a B'Av is a fast observed annually by the Jewish faith to commemorate the destruction of Jerusalem's first and second Hebrew temples. The temple was the center of the Hebrew faith, with the Holy of Holies, the room in which God lived at its center. Its destruction in 70 AD nearly destroyed the religion and forced the Sanhedrin and other religious leaders into hiding.

Over the next 125 - 250 years, the priests wrote down the oral traditions of the faith and created the Talmud. The Talmud began in two versions, Jerusalem and the Babylonian. Encyclopedic in a multi-volume collection, the Talmud records the laws and traditions in two parts, the Mishnah and Gemara, and is central to the modern faith. The Talmud's creation formed the third iteration of the religion, based upon rabbinic leadership and philosophy. It is this version we call Judaism today.

Tish'a B'Av is considered the saddest day in the Jewish calendar; people fast for 25 hours and read from The Book of Lamentations, which depicts how Jerusalem was destroyed.

Four other prohibitions observed during the fasting:
No bathing or washing
No applying of cream or oils
No wearing of shoes
No marital relations

Tisha'a B'Av is rooted in the story of the Sin of the Spies (Numbers 13:1-15:41).

The destruction of the first and second temples occurred on the Av 9 of the Hebrew calendar in the Gregorian years of 586 BC and 70 AD.

PLEASE NOTE:
All Hebrew calendar months begin and end at sundown. LEEP Calendar marks Jewish months starting on their first full day. Observant people of the faith will observe the beginning of the month at sunset the day prior.