Shema - Sources and Defintion of the Mitzva

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(1) The Shema is recited twice every day, once in the evening and once in the morning, as it is said: Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up (Deut. 6: 7). The time when people customarily lie down is evening and the time when people customarily get up is morning.

(2) What does one recite? The three paragraphs beginning with the words Hear (Deut. 6:4-9); If, then, you obey (Deut. II: 13-21); and The Lord said (Num. 15:37-41). The paragraph Hear is recited first because it contains commandments concerning God's unity, the love of God, and the study of God, which is the basic principle on which all depends? After it, If, then, you obey, is recited since the passage commands obedience to all the other commandments. After that, the paragraph concerning the fringes is recited, since it also contains a command to recall all the commandments....

(3) Even though the commandment of wearing fringes does not apply at night, one reads the passage [concerning it] because it has a reminder of the Exodus from Egypt. It is a commandment to recite the Exodus from Egypt as it is stated, "So that you will remember the Exodus from Egypt all the days of your life" (Deuteronomy 16:3). These three sections ordered as such form the recitation of the Shema.

(4) While reading the Shema, when one finishes the first verse, one says quietly, 'Blessed is the name of the glory of His kingdom forever". Then one reads as normal, "And you will love the Lord, your God..." (Deuteronomy 6:5-9). Why does one read as such? Our tradition says that Jacob the Patriarch, nearing death, gathered his sons in Egypt and commanded them urgently concerning God's unity, and the path of God that Abraham and Isaac, Jacob's father, has walked. He asked them, "My sons, could it be that among you is a lowlife, who does not stand with me concerning God's Unity?" This is similar to when Moses our Teacher said to us, "Lest there is among you a man or woman..."(Deuteronomy 29:17). The brothers all answered, "Hear, O Israel, God is our Lord, God is one". That is to say: Listen to us our Father, Israel, God is our Lord, God is one. The elder said, "Blessed is the name of the glory of His kingdom forever". Therefore, all Jews out of custom say the praise that Israel the Elder said after this verse.

(9) What is the time of the recitation of the Shema at night? The commandment is from the emergence of the stars until [halakhic] midnight. If one transgresses by delaying, one [may] say until dawn to fulfill the duty. The [Sages] stated until midnight so that one is kept from delinquent tardiness.

(11) When is the time during the day for the commandment [of the Shema]? One should start to recite before sunrise so that one can conclude reciting and bless the last blessing with the sunrise. This measure is as a tenth of an hour before the sun rises. If one delays and recites the Shema after the sun rises, one fulfills the duty. The period is until three hours into the day for one to transgresses by delaying.

(12) One who begins to recite the morning Shema after dawn although finishes before the sun rises has fulfilled the duty. In time of pressure such as an early riser for travel, one can recite from the onset of dawn.

(13) One who says [the Shema] after three [halakhic] hours into the days has not fulfilled their duty of the recitation of the Shema at its appointed time, even when compromised. Indeed, it is as if one who reads Torah. One who delays and says [the Shema] after three hours should still say the blessings before and after.

(1) The time of reading Shema is from when one can see a slightly familiar friend at a distance of four amos and can recognize him. It continues until the end of three [halachic] hours, which is a fourth of the day[light]. The most ideal fulfilment of the mitzvah is to read it around sunrise, that is they should prepare to read it a little before sunrise in order that one should finish Shema and its blessing with the sunrise and that the Shmonei Esrei will be immediately adjacent to sunrise. Whoever is able to prepare to do this, his reward will be very great. RAMA: The measurement of sunrise is about one hour before the entire sun has ascended above the land.

(2) If one didn't read it before sunrise, one should read it as soon as he is able to.

(3) And whoever is prevented beyond his control, such as one who got up early to travel and in that place there are bands of wild animals and bandits where he is not able to concentrate, even for the first section until "Your heart," or members of the caravan are going quickly and they won't wait for him at all, then he can read it with its blessings from daybreak, because it's still fitting to call daybreak "when you rise up" and it's also fitting to call it "creation of light." But, if he's not in a place that has bands of wild animals or bandits and the members of the caravan are not so rushed, even if one left to travel after daybreak, he shouldn't read until the proper time arrives.

(4) If one read from daybreak [but before the proper time to read Shema], even though he wasn't in a circumstance beyond his control [that prevented him from reading Shema at the appropriate time], he fulfilled his obligated after the fact. If one read it without its blessings, he should return to read it in its appropriate time with blessings (see below Siman 60).

(5) If one was in a circumstance beyond his control [that prevented him from reading Shema at the appropriate time], and didn't read the evening Shema until daybreak, since it's still not yet sunrise, he may read Shema and fulfill his obligation of the evening Shema. If he was in a circumstance beyond his control at the same time (to go on the way to a place with bands of wild animals and bandits) one should not read the Shema a second time to fulfill his obligation of the daytime Shema because once he made that time "night," it's impossible to retract and make it "day."

(6) Even though its time continues until the end of the third hour, if the third hour passed and he did not read it, he may read it with its berakhot all the fourth hour, since it's a third of the day. And he doesn't have a reward like one who reads in its time, and if the fourth hour passed and he didn't read it, he may read it without its berakhot all day.