Halachah 1 — The Mitzvah to Write a Torah Scroll
It is a positive commandment for every Jewish man to write a Torah scroll for himself.
Even if one inherited a Torah scroll, he is still obligated to write his own.
One who writes a Torah scroll by hand is considered as if he received it at Mount Sinai.
If he cannot write, he must commission others to write it for him.
Even one who corrects a single letter is credited as if he wrote the entire Torah.
Halachah 2 — The King’s Additional Torah Scroll
A king must write an additional Torah scroll for himself beyond the one he owned previously.
This scroll is checked against the official Temple scroll by the Sanhedrin.
The earlier scroll is stored away; the king’s personal scroll must be with him at all times—in war, judgment, and daily life.
Halachah 3 — A King Without a Prior Scroll
If the king did not own a Torah scroll before assuming kingship, he must write two scrolls:
- one for storage,
- one to accompany him constantly.
The scroll only leaves him at night, in the bathhouse, the lavatory, or while sleeping.
Halachah 4 — Basic Writing Requirements
A Torah scroll written:
- on unruled parchment, or
- partially on g’vil and partially on k’laf
is invalid.
It must be written entirely on one type of parchment, with careful and attractive calligraphy.
Halachah 5 — Spacing and Line Width
Proper spacing is required:
- space of a small letter between words,
- hairbreadth space between letters,
- space between lines.
Each line should be thirty letters wide, neither shorter nor wider, to preserve readability and beauty.
Letters may not be reduced in size to preserve layout.
Halachah 6 — Writing at the End of Lines
Rules are given for handling words that do not fit at the end of a line:
- At least three letters must remain inside the column.
- If that is impossible, one leaves the remainder blank and continues on the next line.
- Short words may not be written between columns.
Halachah 7 — Spacing Between Books and Completing the Torah
One leaves four blank lines between books of the Torah.
The Torah should conclude with the words “לעיני כל ישראל” in the middle of the final line at the bottom of the column.
If needed, earlier lines are shortened to achieve this.
Halachah 8 — Special Letters and Crowns
Special care must be taken with:
- enlarged letters,
- small letters,
- dotted letters,
- unusual letter forms,
- and the traditional placement of crowns (tagin).
These are transmitted through scribal tradition.
Halachah 9 — Deviations That Do Not Invalidate
Most aesthetic deviations do not invalidate a Torah scroll, provided:
- no letters touch,
- none are missing or added,
- letter shapes are preserved,
- and paragraph forms (p’tuchah / s’tumah) remain correct.
Halachah 10 — Scribal Traditions
Certain layout traditions exist, including:
- number of lines per column (48–60),
- spacing between sections,
- and special formatting of the Songs at the Sea and Ha’azinu.
These enhance beauty but are not required for validity.
Halachah 11 — Errors That Invalidate
A scroll is invalid if:
- words are written in the wrong full/deficient form,
- the ketiv is replaced by the kri,
- paragraph forms are altered,
- or ordinary passages are written like songs (or vice versa).
Such a scroll loses the sanctity of a Torah scroll and is treated like a chumash.
Halachah 12 — Correcting Errors
A Torah scroll with:
- three errors per column may be corrected,
- four errors per column must be entombed.
If most of the scroll is valid, limited defective sections may still be corrected.
Halachah 13 — When Correction Is Easier
These rules apply when letters must be added.
If letters must be removed, even many errors may be corrected.
It is permitted to write:
- individual books of the Torah separately.
These do not have the sanctity of a full Torah scroll.
One may not write isolated passages for study unless one intends to complete a full book.
Halachah 15 — Combined Scripture Scrolls
It is permitted to write:
- Torah,
- Prophets,
- and Sacred Writings
together in a single scroll, with prescribed spacing.
The order of the Prophets and Writings is specified.
Such a scroll does not have the full sanctity of a Torah scroll.
Halachah 16 — Ruling Surfaces and Relative Sanctity
All sacred writings must be written on ruled surfaces, even on paper.
Up to three words may be written without ruling.
A combined scroll lacks the full holiness of a Torah scroll, since adding books is equivalent (in sanctity) to omitting part of the Torah.
