There have been a lot of posts from me on social media about Tzitzit, and people are asking me left and right: what are Tzitzit. So here is another installment of "Things you did not know about Jewish Life".
Tzitzit are fringes or tassels that are worn by Jewish men and boys from age three as a symbol of their faith and a reminder of the commandments in Judaism. These fringes are attached to the corners of a four-cornered garment, such as a prayer shawl (tallit, you may have seen several I have made with my friend Hana Menkes) or a special undergarment known as a tallit katan (small tallit), which is typically worn under clothing. To add to the confusion: the tallit katan is often called Tzitzit. When we say Tzitzit we either mean the fringes themselves but most often the undergarment.
The 'big' Tallit is worn during morning services. The small tallit as an undergarment is worn during the day.
The practice of wearing tzitzit is based on a biblical commandment found in the Torah, specifically in the book of Numbers (Numbers 15:37-41). This passage instructs Jewish people to attach fringes to the corners of their garments, and the purpose is to remind them to observe God's commandments and not go astray after their hearts and eyes.
As with most traditional practices, wearing a tallit katan is thought to protect the wearer from evil and bad luck, and connects us to the traditions of our forefathers in a spiritual way.
Tzitzit tassels are wool (they *can* be made of linen for people who are allergic to wool), attached to a four cornered cotton shirt, or sometimes wool, or Dry-fit polyester. These shirts have slits on the sides and four strengthened corners with a hole in each. They are usually a practical white. You are allowed to dye the shirts in other colors if you want but for the army they need to be green.
The wool strings are 8 ply strings, and you need a set of 4 for each corner: 3 short ones and one long one called the Ptil. So there are 16 strings in total. Today most men wear all white wool strings but some do incorporate one string of Murex dyed wool. (see this blog)
The Tzitzit consist of a series of knots and winding of strings on each corner of the garment. The knots and winding are done in a specific manner to represent numerical values with their own significant meaning in various aspects of Jewish mysticism and tradition. The exact design of tzitzit and the number of windings can vary between different Jewish traditions and communities.
The Tzitzit are tied while saying a blessing; "le'shem mitsvat Tzitzit" which loosely translates to 'for the sake of tying the Tzitzit'.
Most commonly we use the following sequence, we use the extra long string to make the coils.
double knot (blessing)
7 coils
double knot
8 coils
double knot
11 coils
double knot
13 coils
double knot
It then looks something like this:
Wearing tzitzit serves as a constant visual and tactile reminder of commitment to the commandments and our faith. If you were wondering: this is not some fringe (see what I did there?) extremist practice. In our village, around 40% of the men wear a tallit katan. Sometimes you see the fringes sticking out under their regular shirt, others wear them tucked into their pants. Abroad, Jews will wear the tallit katan, but not visible to others.