What is Rosh Chodesh?
Rosh Chodesh, or first of the month marked by the new moon, is a day of celebration with a special significance to women. It is the only holiday that has customs specific to women, as opposed to men. There are varying opinions as to why women were given Rosh Chodesh as their special holiday. One option states that during the sin of the golden calf, the women refused to participate. As a reward, they were given the holiday of Rosh Chodesh to celebrate as a mini-festival.
Another reason cited by Darkey Moshe in the name of the Ohr Zarua is, "Because women immerse themselves in the mikvah each month and endear themselves to their husbands, they are renewed like the moon... [Rosh Chodesh] is therefore treated as a holiday by them." (Halichos Bas Yisrael, 1987)
Do not think that women's celebration of Rosh Chodesh is a new thing, perhaps brought on my feminism. In fact, some of the traditions associated with the minor holiday go back to the time of the giving of the Torah.
Sadly, many women do not keep the traditions, which we will go into further detail below. The Ben Ish Chai states, "Women should be extremely conscientious to observe the sanctity of Rosh Chodesh. Although they are secondary to men in many mitzvos, this is one of the mitzvos in which women play a more significant role than men do." (Halichos Bas Yisrael, 1987)
Note: To avoid any misunderstanding, let me just say that the reason women do not play are large role in many mitzvos is because certain commandments are considered time-bound, and therefore, would be difficult for a woman with children to care for to fully participate in. For this reason, women are not required to fulfill a certain set of time-bound mitzvos, like prayer with a minyan and teffilin.
Traditions of the day
- One custom of Rosh Chodesh is that women refrain from certain chores, such as laundry, sewing, weaving and ironing. (Those who also have a profession do go to work on Rosh Chodesh.)
- Another custom, though not widely practiced, is to wear special clothing on Rosh Chodesh. It has been said that the Vilna Gaon, a great Rabbi, wore his Shabbos hat on Rosh Chodesh.
- In many Sephardic communities, the women have a custom to light candles, without a blessing.
- One should try to eat a meal in honor of Rosh Chodesh with bread, so you can say the proper blessings for Rosh Chodesh in the after bracha. When Rosh Chodesh falls on Shabbos, some prepare an extra dish or make a larger than usual melaveh malkah (special meal served after Shabbos.)
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