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Every fast day on the Jewish calendar has its set of selichot that are said. The one exception to this is Tisha B'Av. This seems counter-intuitive to me because Tisha B'Av is the day when we mourn the destruction of the first and second Temples, which were destroyed because of our sins. It seems like Tisha B'Av should have selichot even more so than other fast days. So why do we not say them?

Daniel
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    Very similar: http://judaism.stackexchange.com/q/9387 – msh210 Jul 18 '13 at 15:23
  • Hi Daniel. If you can, look through www.beureihatefilah.com. I think I saw an article there that says that originally Selichot WERE said on Tish'a B'Av. There may actually be some isolated communities that still say it. I don't have access to the site now (They block it as a "religious site", here.) I'll see if I canlocate it during the weekend. – DanF Jul 28 '17 at 21:31

2 Answers2

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If s'lichos and tachanunim are the same thing, as I believe they are, this question is synonymous with "why don't we say tachanun on Tish'a B'Av?" The answer to that, linked here from here is

No “Tachanun” and no “Avinu Malkeinu,” both typically said on Fast Days, but not on Tisha B’Av, because, although it is the saddest day, and the most severe of the fast days, it contains within it the potential for tremendous joy. It is also called a “Moed,” a special time, as are the joyous holidays Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot. This can be, and historically indeed was, a “special time” of punishment but ultimately, it will be a “special time” of Redemption and Rebuilding and Restoration – for the destroyed City of Jerusalem and Holy Temple and the diminished People of Israel, whose spiritual center they’d comprised.

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WAF
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  • My minyan said ta7anun n ovinu malkeinu. – MoriDowidhYa3aqov Jul 18 '13 at 15:07
  • @MoriDoweedhYa3gob That's atypical. Is that in the Rambam? – Daniel Jul 18 '13 at 15:33
  • @daniel not saying ta7anun is shulchon oruch n ramo says also not salichoth. That's on them. They must prove that we should not say so. No where before that is it saying that tisha3 ba'ov is something special therefore we don't say this n that. – MoriDowidhYa3aqov Jul 18 '13 at 16:27
  • @MoriDoweedhYa3gob Does WAF's answer not address that question? – Daniel Jul 18 '13 at 16:39
  • @Daniel no because that is not a sufficient answer to change a holocho. – MoriDowidhYa3aqov Jul 18 '13 at 17:33
  • @MoriDoweedhYa3gob Does Rambam say that it is halacha to say tachanun on tisha b'av? – Daniel Jul 18 '13 at 17:35
  • @Daniel its holocho to say ta7anun unless stated otherwise. – MoriDowidhYa3aqov Jul 18 '13 at 18:43
  • @WAF I do nit beleive they are synonymous because a minyan on a regular fast which has a chatan in attendance will usually say selichit but not tachanan – Double AA Jul 19 '13 at 18:47
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    @mori that is not true. See the RAMBAM who says that the days we skip tachanun are based on MINHAG. – Double AA Jul 19 '13 at 18:48
  • @double right. Unless stated otherwise in the mt(minhag) we say it. – MoriDowidhYa3aqov Jul 19 '13 at 20:23
  • @mori so stop telling me this is some shulchan aruch trying to mess up halacha when actually its the shukchan aruch recording what the minhag happens to be vs you being unable to think that time has passed since the Rambam lived. – Double AA Jul 19 '13 at 21:21
  • @DoubleAA not sure where but i thnk rambam brings down when we skip ta7anun. those are referred to as minhag. not what you say is minhag. – MoriDowidhYa3aqov Jul 19 '13 at 21:28
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    I rest my case. – Double AA Jul 21 '13 at 15:20
  • @DoubleAA I am basing my reasoning on the qualitative similarity of tachanun and s'lichos (as alluded to by the name "tachanunim" applying to both). The connection is not so strong, which is why I disclaimed it at the top, and your functional distinction between the two is an interesting one that tzarichs some iyun on my part. – WAF Jul 21 '13 at 19:21
  • @MoriDoweedhYaa3qob presumably the the Rambam held that "moed" means a time as is the psahut p'shat in Eicha, rather than a halachic holiday, as interpreted by others. Just stating the obvious. – mevaqesh Jul 26 '15 at 05:16
  • Good answer but Yom Kippur is also considered a yom tov – Moshe Goldberg Jul 26 '15 at 19:19
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http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/13540#.VbUGMflVhBc

I found this answer. It basically says that since this day of mourning is so great, it is as if the "gates of prayer have been closed".

Yehudit Bat Avraham
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