Tisha B'Av — Mourning the Destruction
Tisha B'Av (the 9th of Av) is the most solemn fast day in Judaism — the anniversary of multiple catastrophes including both Temple destructions — the paradigm of communal mourning and hope.
Tisha B'Av (the 9th of Av) is the second most solemn fast in Jewish life (after Yom Kippur), mourning the destruction of the First Temple (586 BCE), the Second Temple (70 CE), and other catastrophes that the tradition associates with this date (the decree that the generation of the Exodus would not enter the Land, the expulsion from Spain in 1492, and others). The day is observed with a 25-hour fast, reading of the Book of Lamentations (Eichah), and the removal of the comfortable cushions from the synagogue so that worshippers sit on the floor — embodying mourning physically. The Talmud teaches that the Second Temple was destroyed because of sinat chinam (causeless hatred between Jews) — making Tisha B'Av a day of reflection on communal division and the repair of fractured relationships. The mourning of Tisha B'Av is always shadowed by the prophetic promise of ultimate redemption — the tradition teaches that the Messiah will be born on Tisha B'Av.
Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look and see if there is any suffering like my suffering.
The Mishnah (Ta'anit 4:6) lists five calamities that fell on the ninth of Av — beginning with the decree, after the spies' report, that the wilderness generation would not enter the land, and including the destruction of both Temples. The Book of Lamentations (Eichah) is chanted, and mourning customs such as sitting low and refraining from leather are kept.
Tanakh
Written about in
- What Judaism says about grief
For twenty-five hours Jews fast, read Lamentations, and sit on the floor with the synagogue cushions removed — mourning given a body and a fixed date. The Talmud blames the Second Temple's fall on causeless hatred among Jews, so the day of grief doubles as an accusation.