At shul this Shabbos, a fellow asked me a question that I have heard a few times in the past: “Is it true that if you make a mistake when writing a Sefer Torah, that you have to start all over again?”

The answer is: “Well, not quite…”

There is a very big difference between writing a Sefer Torah and writing tefillin or mezuzos.   When relaying the mitzvos of mezuzos and tefillin, the Torah (Devarim 6:6) opens with the words:

והיו הדברים האלה אשר אנכי מצוך היום על לבבך

These words shall be…

Our sages understand this statement to mean that the words of tefillin and mezuzos “shall be” as they are in the Torah – meaning written in the order in which they are given in the Torah.  The result is the halacho of ki-sidran, the law of the letters being written “in order.”

In tefillin and mezuzos, if one makes a mistake in a letter and only catches it after finishing his writing, he cannot go back and correct it because the corrected letter would have been written out of order.  In such a case, the section of the tefillin or the mezuzah is now posul – unfit for use.

In this situation, the sofer would have to start over.  From experience, I can testify that there is nothing more deflating than, while writing the last line of a mezuzah, catching a tiny error in the opening lines.  Four hours of work immediately evaporate in a flash of forehead-slapping frustration!  It is a mistake that most soferim don’t make twice!

Since the law of kisidran only applies to tefillin and mezuzos, correcting mistakes in a Sefer Torah is much easier.

A common mistake many soferim make after writing for several hours is transposing “tovs” and “hehs.”  The quill strokes required to forms these letters are almost the same, and it is sometimes easy, with a momentary lapse in concentration, to write a “heh” where you should put a “tov” or a “tov” where you need a “heh.”   It is a careless mistake, but every sofer does it a few times when writing a Sefer Torah or a megilla.   Usually, you realize it before you even finish the letter (another moment of forehead-slapping frustration!)

However, I recently checked and repaired a 130 year-old Hungarian Sefer Torah and found two words that should have ended in “hehs,” but instead ended with “tovs!”

On a mechanical level, how do you correct such mistakes?

There are a few techniques employed by professional soferim.   This is the method that I use:

The first step is to let the ink fully dry.  If you try to make corrections while the ink is wet, the result will be a much bigger mess.

The Error - the "heh" should be a "tov."

Second, is to cut out the mistake with a razor blade.  The blade is held in a bent position, and gently “scooped” over the surface of the klaf (parchment), shaving off the thin surface layer containing the error.  Great skill is required to avoid making a hole.

Gently Shaving Away the Surface of the Klaf

Third, is sanding the site.   When one cuts out a mistake, the underlying klaf is very smooth and hard to write upon.  Also, some faint flecks of dyo (ink) remain.  Sanding the place of the cut removes any remaining ink and also restores the natural nap of the parchment, making the place suitable again for writing.   It takes some experimenting to get sandpaper of the right grit for the klaf at hand.  For this Torah, I am using 320 grit all-purpose sand-paper for repairs.

Sanding Out the Cut

Fourth, is to run a polymer drafting eraser over the place to erase any dark spots that may result from sanding over lingering ink.

Erasing

Fifth, is to blow off any excess debris with compressed air.  Blowing by mouth can get bits of moisture on the writing (a very bad thing).   Also, brushing the surface is not good – one should avoid touching the writing lest it be damaged.

Using a Compressed Air Gun to Remove Debris

Sixth – Rewrite…. And…  Voila:

The Corrected Letter

- Rabbi Avraham Chaim Bloomenstiel, Sofer

1 Comment »

1. 

   Your clear and concise explanation will be useful to all of us. Thank you!

   Comment by Noa — June 28, 2009 @ 4:56 pm

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