Author Rabbi Yaakov Goldstein

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com How to answer if one is asked “What day of Sefira is it today?”[1] If one is asked by another person “What is the day of Sefira tonight?”, then if he is asked this question at night, prior to him […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com Fulfilling the Mitzvah through hearing the Sefira from another person:[1] One cannot appoint a messenger to count the days on his behalf. This applies whether one asks an individual to count on his behalf, or one asks a congregation, or […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com   Counting on condition:[1] If for whatever reason one does not desire to count Sefira at a certain time, but is afraid that if he does not count at this time he may forget to count later on, then he […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com   Counted without intention to fulfill the Mitzvah:[1] If one unintentionally stated the Sefira of that night [i.e. without intent to fulfill the Mitzvah], he is to recount later on at night without a blessing.[2] [This applies irrelevant of which […]

  If one is unsure of the date, is it valid to count both days out of doubt, and may a blessing be recited? Some Poskim[1] rule that an indefinite count is invalid, and hence it is invalid to count two dates out of doubt. Other Poskim[2] however rule that […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com Saying or having in mind the wrong day: A. Said the wrong date and did not remember until the next night: If one counted the wrong date and only discovered the next night, then it is considered that he did […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com   Knowing the day of the count before saying the blessing:[1] Lechatchilah, one is not to say the blessing over the Sefira until he verifies which day of the count it is.[2] In the event that one said the blessing […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com The blessing:[1] Prior to counting the Omer at night one must say a blessing, just as is done prior to the fulfillment of every Mitzvah, whether Biblical or Rabbinical.  The blessing is “Baruch Ata Hashem Elokeinu Melech Haolam Asher Kidishanu […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com In what language is one to count?[1] One may count in any language that he understands. One may not count in a language that he does not understand, even if it is in Lashon Hakodesh. [Thus, if he does not […]

This Halacha is an excerpt from our Sefer Buy me here or on Amazon.com How to count: Counting in numbers versus letters?[1] One is to count the Sefira in number digits [אחד, שתים] as opposed to letters [i.e. א, ב, ג]. If one counted in letters and not in numbers, such as he said […]