Sleeping on Rosh Hashanah
406 Sleeping on Rosh Hashanah
Poskim tell us, based on Talmud Yerushalmi, that if one sleeps on Rosh Hashanah by day their mazal will be asleep as well. It says in the Zohar, based on a pasuk in Yonah, who was told, “Ma lecha nirdam?” (Why are you sleeping?) that when a person is being judged it’s not the time for sleeping. However, one may sleep on Rosh Hashanah after midday. There are some mekubalim who say that this applies only to the second day of Rosh Hashanah; even though the Arizal slept on Rosh Hashanah after midday, it was on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, not the first. Other opinions in Kabbalah maintain that one may sleep even on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, after midday. If a person is yosheiv batel (wasting their time) it’s considered the same as if they were sleeping; one doesn’t achieve anything by staying awake if they are wasting their time. A person should always be occupied with worthwhile pursuits, especially on Rosh Hashanah. The minhag (custom) is to use every free moment to say Tehillim (Psalms).
There are many who insist that one should wake up on Rosh Hashanah before alos hashachar (dawn). There are several reasons cited for this:
1. The day begins at alos hashachar. Since we don't sleep during the day of Rosh Hashanah, we should be awake before alos.
2. Rosh Hashanah is one of the days of hashkamah (when we are supposed to wake up early).
3. Rosh Hashanah is a time when we are instructed to utilize every moment in the best possible way, and therefore we keep our sleep to a minimum.
4. It is important to be "me'orer hashachar" (to wake up before alos hashachar) all year round, how much more so Rosh Hashanah.
5. The first three hours of the day are a time of judgment, and not a time to indulge in sleeping late.
However, if a person has difficulty waking up at so early, for example, if they are suffering from a headache or have some other problem, it’s acceptable to be lenient and sleep in a bit longer on the morning of Rosh Hashanah.
We wish all our readers a Kesivah Vachasimah Tovah.
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