תקפה סדר התקיעות מיושב ובו י"א סעיפים

The Order of the Seated Shofar Blasts

1. One must blow the shofar while standing.

As it is written: "It shall be a day of blowing for you," and elsewhere it says: "And you shall count for yourselves." Just as "for yourselves" there is said regarding standing, as explained in Siman 589, so too here, it must be done standing.

Therefore, one should not lean on anything in such a way that if the object were removed, he would fall, for this is not considered standing but leaning.

Nevertheless, if one transgressed and blew the shofar, even while seated, he has fulfilled his obligation and does not need to blow again while standing.

This is because standing is only a requirement of the Sages, as explained in Siman 8 and in Siman 589, see there.

2. Those who hear the shofar blasts—even though they have not yet fulfilled their obligation—do not need to stand.

3. The custom is to blow the shofar on the bimah, the place where the Torah is read. It is proper to give the blowing to a righteous and upright person, provided this does not cause any dispute.

4. Before blowing, one should recite the blessing while standing: "Who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to hear the sound of the shofar."

One should not say "to the sound of the shofar," for that implies obeying the sound of the shofar.

Why do we not bless "to blow the shofar"? Because the blowing itself is not the main mitzvah, but hearing the sound of the shofar is the main mitzvah.

For if one blew but did not hear the sound of the shofar, he has not fulfilled his obligation, as will be explained in Siman 587, see there.

Nevertheless, if one transgressed or erred and recited the blessing "to blow the shofar" or "on the blowing of the shofar," he has fulfilled his obligation.

5. After this blessing, one recites "Shehechiyanu," since it is a mitzvah that comes from time to time.

Whether one is blowing for himself, or one who has already fulfilled his obligation and is blowing to enable others to fulfill theirs, both recite these two blessings.

When does this apply? When the listener does not know how to recite the blessings. But if he knows how, he should recite them himself and not hear them from one who has already fulfilled his obligation, as explained in Siman 273, see there.

6. After reciting these two blessings, one blows: Tashrat three times, Tashat three times, and Tarat three times, as will be explained in Siman 590, see there.

If one is uncertain whether he heard the sound of the shofar: on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, which is a Torah obligation, he must blow again, but without a blessing, for in cases of doubt regarding blessings, we are lenient.

If it is the second day, which is only a rabbinic obligation, he does not need to blow again, for in cases of doubt regarding rabbinic matters, we are lenient.

It is good to blow from the right side of the mouth, if possible, because it is written, "and the Satan stands at his right," and the blowing confuses the Satan.

7. It is also good to position the mouth of the shofar upward and not tilt it to the sides, as it is written, "G‑d has ascended with a blast," etc.

8. If one began to blow but could not complete all thirty blasts, another should blow in his place. If the second also cannot complete them, another should complete them, and so on indefinitely.

None of them need to recite the blessings, since they have all already fulfilled their obligation with the blessing of the first.

Even if the first was unable to blow even a single blast, his blessing was not in vain, since his intention was to fulfill the obligation for all the listeners. Therefore, the subsequent blowers and all the congregation who heard his blessing do not need to recite another blessing.

However, if someone comes to blow in his place who did not hear the blessing, he must recite the blessing before blowing, since he did not fulfill his obligation with the first blessing.

9. When does this apply? When this blower has not yet fulfilled his obligation, having not yet heard all the blasts. But if he has already fulfilled his obligation, having heard all the blasts in another synagogue, he does not need to recite the blessing before blowing, since the congregation already heard the blessing from the first blower.

10. The custom is that the one who leads the Shacharis prayer recites the order of the shofar blasts word by word before the blower, so that he does not err in the blasts. This is a good custom. See Siman 590, paragraphs 15–19.

11. It is forbidden to take payment for blowing the shofar on Rosh Hashanah, even if he was hired before Yom Tov, since he is receiving payment for Yom Tov, which is forbidden for the reason explained in Siman 306, paragraph 11, see there.

If he took payment, he will never see a sign of blessing from that money.