Siman 8

There are those who wrote in the name of the Zohar that one who recites Shema without tzitzit bears false witness against himself (the Hagahot Rabbi Shmuel Zanvil, and Magen Avraham at the end of siman 24). However, in the Gemara in Berakhot (14b) they said this regarding tefillin and not regarding tzitzit. For it is understandable regarding tefillin, as he says "And you shall bind them..." and the binding is not upon him. But regarding tzitzit, granted that he says the passage of tzitzit and the tzitzit are not upon him, nevertheless, the obligation is only when he has upon him a four-cornered garment, as is written in siman 19. And in truth, it appears that the Zohar also intended this: when he wears a four-cornered garment without tzitzit, for aside from the fact that he violates a positive commandment, it is false witness that he wears a four-cornered garment and did not place tzitzit upon it. And so it is implied from the wording of the Zohar, Parshat Shelach (page 175), and this is his wording: For behold, they recite Shema without tzitzit, and they bear false witness. And these are the traitors..., "and with the garment of traitors they have betrayed," for their garment without tzitzit is called a garment of traitors. Thus far his words. Behold, it is explicit as I have written: when their garment is without tzitzit.

And even though according to the essential law this is so, nevertheless every man of Israel should be careful to wear a tallit katan with tzitzit upon himself all day. For the mitzvah of tzitzit is equivalent to all the mitzvot, as it is written: "And you shall see it, and remember all the mitzvot" (Menachot 43b). And in a time of Divine wrath, they punish for this from Heaven (ibid. 41a). And anyone who is diligent in this mitzvah merits and receives the Divine Presence (ibid.). And in the time to come, two thousand and eight hundred servants will serve him (Shabbat 32b). And all the children of Israel wear a tallit katan upon themselves all day, and a tallit gadol during the time of prayer.

Immediately in the morning after he has washed his hands – he should wrap himself in tzitzit while standing (Tur). And he should bless while standing, like several blessings of the mitzvot for which the rabbis relied on learning from the counting of the Omer that one blesses while standing, as will be explained in its place. Therefore, the wrapping is also while standing, for the blessing must be adjacent to the wrapping, which is to say a moment before the donning. And such is the primary ruling. And know that "wrapping" is only applicable to a tallit gadol, and therefore one blesses over it "to wrap oneself in tzitzit." And the letter bet of "be-tzitzit" is with a patah. But for a tallit katan, wrapping is not applicable, and one blesses over it "on the mitzvah of tzitzit." And the tallit katan should be donned immediately upon rising after washing the hands, even if it is before the light of day. And when the day brightens – he should feel it and bless. And it is a simple matter that this which we said to bless while standing – this is not at all a requirement that invalidates. For this was not mentioned in the Gemara, but rather the early authorities relied on it thus. Therefore, in a case of need – one may bless while sitting. (And the Magen Avraham, subsection 2, raised a difficulty from challah, see there. And according to what I have written, it works out well. And his words require study, for is it then a requirement that invalidates? And they brought from the Yerushalmi that all blessings are while standing, see Beit Yosef and Bach, and this too is only ab initio. And I do not know the location of this Yerushalmi, and in Berakhot chapter nine, halacha 3, which is the primary source for blessings – this is not found.)

The Nimukei Yosef wrote in the name of the Ritva (in his commentary on the Rif, Hilkhot Tzitzit), and this is his wording: And now it remains for us to clarify if the wrapping is indispensable to it or not… for there are some among the early authorities who said that the mitzvah of the tallit is not fulfilled except with the wrapping of the head, to cover his head and his body or the majority of it with it, as it is written: "with which you cover yourself." And according to their words, there is no mitzvah of tzitzit in these small tallitot that they are accustomed to wearing in most kingdoms. And it does not appear so, and that which they would bless "to wrap oneself" – this is for the mitzvah in its most choice form. And it is possible that the Talmud speaks according to their custom, for they were not accustomed to wearing anything but a large tallit. But from the line of the law, any garment of four corners is obligated in tzitzit, and one fulfills the mitzvah of tzitzit through it even though it has neither covering nor wrapping. For the Merciful One said "their garments" and "your covering," and any clothing and covering is implied, provided that it has four corners. And if because of "with which you cover yourself…" – it is to include the garment of a blind person or one with five… and so the custom has spread among all Israel… and so ruled the author of the Halakhot Gedolot… and on these small tallitot one does not bless "to wrap oneself" but rather "on the mitzvah of tzitzit…". Thus far his words, and most of the great authorities agreed to this, and so too the Maharik and the Maharil (as the Beit Yosef wrote). And see what I wrote in siman 10, section 20, and it requires further study.

And that which the Tur wrote: that the order of its wrapping was explained by the Geonim as the wrapping of the Ishmaelites, which is a complete wrapping. And the author of the Ittur wrote that we do not require all this, but rather like the way of people who cover themselves with their garment and are engaged in their work, sometimes with the head covered and sometimes with the head uncovered. Thus far his words. The intention is not that according to the Geonim there is no obligation of tzitzit in another manner, but rather this is the explanation: that for a tallit gadol upon which we recite the blessing "to wrap oneself" – we require specifically like the wrapping of the Ishmaelites, which is a wrapping of most of the body and the entire head and to cover his mouth with the tallit. And the Ittur holds that the wrapping of the head is not indispensable. But regarding the obligation of a tallit katan he is not dealing, as is clear from the words of the Tur in this entire siman, see there.

This is what our teacher, the Beit Yosef, wrote in section 2: The order of its wrapping is like the manner of people who cover themselves with their garments and engage in their work, sometimes with the head covered and sometimes with the head uncovered. And it is proper that he cover his head with the tallit. Thus far his words. That is to say: the primary ruling is like the Ittur, that we only require the covering of the body, and we are not concerned with covering the head with the tallit. And that which he wrote "with the head uncovered" – his intention is not literally with the head uncovered, for it has already been explained in siman 2 that this is forbidden. Rather, his intention is that the tallit should not cover his head. And regarding this he wrote "and it is proper that he cover his head with the tallit" – in order to fulfill the opinion of the Geonim. And such is the custom. And the Ari, of blessed memory, would cover the tallit over the tefillin of the head but not completely (Magen Avraham, subsection 3), because we require that some of the tefillin of the head be visible to all. And it will be explained in siman 27.

And afterwards our teacher, the Beit Yosef, wrote in section 3: Our small tallitot, which we are accustomed to wear even though they do not have wrapping—one fulfills the obligation of tzitzit with them. Thus far his words. That is to say: and this is as we explained, that the Geonim and the Ittur are dealing with large tallitot, but nevertheless they admit that also with a tallit katan one fulfills the obligation of tzitzit. However, one does not recite the blessing over it "to wrap oneself in tzitzit," for there is no wrapping here. And regarding this our teacher, the Beit Yosef, wrote further, and this is his wording: And it is good to place it upon his head, its width to his height, and wrap himself in it, and he should stand thus wrapped for at least the time it takes to walk four amot. And afterwards he should pull it down from his head and wear it. Thus far his words.

The explanation of the matters: Because the Geonim said that we require the wrapping of the head like the wrapping of the Ishmaelites, which means covering the mouth, for this reason our custom is that when we don the tallit—we cast the ends of one side of the tallit to the other side, and in this manner cover the mouth and the lips, and we stand thus for the time it takes to walk four amot. One must only be careful not to wrap the entire tallit only upon the shoulder, for the primary requirement is the covering of the body, but rather as I have written. After walking four amot, the length of the body is covered by the tallit, and also a bit of his head is covered (see Magen Avraham, subsection 2). For this reason, our teacher, the Beit Yosef, said that even with a tallit katan we can fulfill the opinion of the Geonim, which is that at the time of donning—he should place the width of the tallit upon his head according to the height of the person, and wrap the face and the mouth with it, and stand thus for the time it takes to walk four amot. Afterward, he should pull it down from his head and wear it, because the primary concern is only at the time of donning. (And there are those who wrote that in such a case one recites the blessing "lehit'atef" [the HaGarz and the Sha'arei Teshuva, subsection 3]. But from the Magen Avraham at the end of subsection 4—it does not imply so, according to the opinion of the Rema that over a katan we recite the blessing "al mitzvat tzitzit." And so it appears primary, and such is the simple custom.)

That which has been explained to perform wrapping even with a tallit katan—this refers to a tallit katan that is not sewn from side to side in part. Rather, it is a long piece with an opening for the neck in the middle, in the manner of the woolen tallitot katanot common among us. But a tallit katan that is sewn from side to side in part, it is impossible to perform wrapping, for if so, all four tzitzit would be on one side, and we require two in front of him and two behind him (Magen Avraham, subsection 4). And there is no concern in this, for this is not a requirement, and most do not practice this wrapping. And we recite the blessing "al mitzvat tzitzit" (ibid.).

There are those who are meticulous that the tzitzit that are before him should never be behind him. This is because the essence of the mitzvah of tzitzit is that there should be two tzitzit before him and two behind him, so that he will be surrounded by mitzvot (Tur). And it appears that this is indispensable, for it is written "on the four corners of your garment," and the corners are two in front of them and two behind them. For this reason, there are those who are meticulous that those before him should never be behind him, because before him is of greater importance. And this is like the matter of "one elevates in holiness and does not lower." Therefore, they place a piece of silk or another item on the tallit toward the upper side. And among us, they do this by sewing a piece under the head of the tallit so that it will not be ruined by sweat, and automatically there is a recognition of the upper side and the lower side. And it appears that in ancient times they did not do so, for they wrote concerning the Ari, of blessed memory (Magen Avraham subsection 6), that he was not meticulous to always place the tallit on one side. That is to say: sometimes this side was the inner side, and sometimes the other side. And if there were a piece sewn under the head of the tallit, it would not have been possible for him to do so, for the sewn piece would be on the outer side. And there are those who wrote that even regarding the upper and lower side he was not meticulous, and automatically sometimes that which was before him was behind him (ibid. in the name of Kavanot). And there are those who are accustomed to place the right side of the tallit on the left shoulder (ibid.) so that he will be wrapped nicely, but the custom is not so. And also there are those who make a silver atarah at the head of the tallit that is placed on the head. And it is not worthwhile, for by this it appears that the main thing is what is on the head, and in truth the main thing is what is on the body. Therefore, there are those who are accustomed for this reason to also place a silver atarah in the middle of the tallit (see Artzot HaChayim). But even this is not worthwhile, and many and great ones refrain from this. And so it is proper to do, that there should be nothing but wool in the tallit, and what have silver and gold to do with a tallit? (And the Ari, of blessed memory, certainly did not do so, for if so, it would not have been possible to flip it.)

One recites the blessing "to wrap oneself in tzitzit." From the essential law, another person may also recite the blessing on his behalf, according to the law of the blessing over the mitzvot. However, in any case, there are those who are concerned about this unless he is unable to recite the blessing himself. Nevertheless, if two or three people each wrap themselves in their tallit at one moment—even ab initio one may recite the blessing, and the two hear the blessing and answer "Amen" and wrap themselves, for this is the case even regarding the blessing over pleasures. They also have the ability to each recite the blessing for themselves. And even though it is better that one should recite the blessing and everyone answers "Amen," and he intends to fulfill their obligation and they intend to be fulfilled, because of "in the multitude of people is the King's glory" and as I wrote below in siman 298, in any case, this is not the custom because it is difficult to ensure that everyone wraps themselves at one moment. And it is better that each one recites the blessing for himself. And when they wear new tallitot and need to recite the blessing "Shehecheyanu"—certainly each one should recite the blessing for himself (Pri Megadim).

Our teacher, the Beit Yosef, in section 6 ruled that even on a tallit katan one may recite the blessing "to wrap oneself," even though he does not wrap himself in it but rather wears it, because the phrasing of the blessing is such as is explained in the Gemara and the Tosefta. And just as we recite the blessing "on the lifting of hands" even when he immerses his hands in a river, as is written at the end of siman 159. Therefore, our teacher, the Rema, who ruled there that one recites the blessing "on the immersion of hands" – ruled here as well that one recites the blessing "on the mitzvah of tzitzit." And such is the custom and it is not to be changed. And one should not wonder at the phrasing "on" (al), which implies the past. However, in truth, according to the conclusion in Pesachim (7a) it implies the future as well, see there. And it seems to me that "on" is better, for in most instances he wears it before the blessing, such as in the winter when he wears it before daylight or when his body is not clean, where he recites the blessing afterward when he touches it. Therefore, "on," which implies the past as well, is better. (See Taz subsection 7 who wrote: And with this it is answered… – and it is not understood, see there. And examine closely and you will find it easy.) (And the custom mentioned by the Magen Avraham subsection 9 is not practiced among us.)

The Rabbis taught: Tzitzit are nothing other than a fringe. And so it says: "And he took me by a lock [tzitzit] of my head." And Abaye said: And one must separate them... (Menachot 42a). This is what the Tur and the Shulchan Aruch wrote in section 7, that one must separate the strings of the tzitzit from one another; thus far their words. For they are called "tzitzit" after the strings that are separated from it (Tur), like branches that are distinct from one another. Therefore, before the blessing, one should separate them from one another if they are entangled together. But if because of this he will not pray with the tzibbur—this is not a hindrance, for in truth they are always separated from one another and the entanglement is nothing. Rather, if he has time—he should separate them. And the Gemara's intention was at the time of making them, that they should not be attached to one another. Therefore, if they are good, smooth tzitzit that never become entangled—he never needs to separate them with his hands before the blessing, for they already stand separated. And he should intend during his wrapping that the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded us to wrap ourselves in it so that we may remember all His commandments to perform them, as it is written: "And you shall see it and remember all the commandments of Hashem and perform them."

The Tur and the Shulchan Aruch wrote in section 9: Before he recites the blessing—he should examine the threads of the tzitzit to see if they are kosher, so that he does not recite a blessing in vain. Thus far their words. And they were not concerned with the reason that he might wear a four-cornered garment without tzitzit, because in this matter we establish it upon its chazakah that they are complete just as they were before. They were only concerned regarding the blessing, that it should not be a blessing in vain, and he would violate the prohibition of "You shall not take the name..." (Taz subsection 8). That is to say: that the prohibition of "You shall not take" is very severe. And some say that by the letter of the law it requires examination, for whenever it is possible to clarify, we do not establish it upon a chazakah, as in Yoreh Deah in siman 1 regarding "the majority of those found near slaughtering are experts," where we do not rely on the majority when it is possible to clarify, as I have written there. And here too it is so regarding a chazakah (Magen Avraham subsection 11). But it is not so, for we only say this when there is a chazakah of prohibition, as in Yoreh Deah there. But here there is no chazakah of prohibition. And there is one who wishes to say that this is regarding a majority, but regarding a chazakah, even without a chazakah of prohibition—one must clarify (Machatzit HaShekel). But it is not so, for it is explicitly proven in siman 437 that even regarding a chazakah it is so (Magen Avraham there subsection 4). And there is one who wishes to say that a chazakah of obligation is like a chazakah of prohibition (Arach HaShulchan), and these are nothing but words of prophecy. And they further stated a reason regarding the chazakah, that it is prone to snap at any time (Magen Avraham there). And this too is astonishing, for we see that it is not so. And if it is because over the course of time it will certainly snap, if so, every chazakah of life in the Shas is nullified, for is not the end of man to die? Rather, it is certainly so that as long as there is no necessity to remove it from its chazakah—we establish it upon its chazakah.

And it is clear that according to the essential law there is no concern in this. For its source is from the Rosh, and he wrote in this language at the end of the laws of tzitzit: And one who trembles at the word of Hashem should check beforehand, so that he does not recite a blessing in vain. Thus far his words. And in a responsum, Klal 2, he wrote that the world is not accustomed to checking it, for we establish it upon its chazaka, see there. And this is only a measure of piety, and therefore he wrote of the concern of a blessing in vain. And it is not because it is exceedingly severe as I wrote previously, but rather that regarding a tallit without tzitzit, even if it is found to be invalid—he would remove it immediately, and previously he did not commit a prohibition since according to the law it was permitted to wear it by reason of chazaka. Rather, regarding a blessing in vain, granted that there is no punishment upon him, because it was permitted for him to bless by reason of chazaka, nevertheless, in the end he uttered a blessing in vain from his mouth, and therefore as a measure of piety he should check. Therefore, if the congregation is praying—he should not check at all, and this checking is only when he has leisure time. And all the more so if the tallit was placed in a hidden place, and he put it away with valid tzitzit, that there is no need to check in any case. (And with this the Magen Avraham also agreed at the end of subsection 11, see there.)

If one puts on a tallit katan while his hands are not clean, or if he puts it on before daylight in a manner that it is currently impossible to recite the blessing over it, and likewise if he needs to use the bathroom – he should put it on without a blessing. And when he washes his hands, or at daylight, or when he relieves himself and washes his hands – he should feel the tzitzit and recite the blessing over it. And even though this is not "prior to their performance," nevertheless since it is impossible in any other way. And furthermore, even this is considered "prior to their performance," for behold, he wears it afterward (see Beit Yosef and Taz, subsection 9). Or, when he puts on the tallit gadol and recites the blessing over it – he should intend to exempt this one as well, and he does not need to feel the tzitzit of the katan. And thus several great ones conduct themselves, because for the most part it is difficult to recite the blessing over the katan at the time he puts it on. (And with this, we have automatically fulfilled the opinions of the Rishonim that we brought in section 4, even though the halacha is not like them, see there. And be precise and you will find it easy.)

Some say that the essence of the mitzvah of a tallit katan is to wear it over one's garments, so that he will always see it and remember the mitzvot. But the custom is not so. And also in the name of the Ari, of blessed memory, they wrote that on the contrary, it must be beneath his garments (Magen Avraham, subsection 13 in the name of the Writings, and so it is in Pri Etz Chaim). And there is one who says that one should not tuck them into the corners, based on what we say in Menachot (41b): Tzitzit must only be protruding. But this is no proof at all, for there the explanation refers to the essence of its making; see there. Nevertheless, even though according to the law this is not a requirement: why should we be ashamed of the mitzvot of Hashem? And so too, those who tuck the tallit katan into the trousers – the sages are not pleased with them. Unless he is walking among ministers and knows they will mock him, for then he may do so. (See Magen Avraham, subsection 13. And his proof is puzzling according to what Rashi wrote there. Examine closely and you will find it easy.)

If one has several garments of four corners and wears them—all of them are obligated in tzitzit. And if he wore them all without a large interruption, and his intention from the beginning was for all of them—he should only recite one blessing over the first one, and it exempts all of them. But if he made a large interruption, even if his intention was for all of them, or if he spoke much regarding matters unrelated to the wearing of the garments—he must return and recite the blessing. And so too, if his intention was not explicitly for all of them but rather he wore them without specific intent—he must return and recite the blessing. And from this it is to be learned that one who wears a tallit and recites a blessing over it, and immediately wears the tallit gadol and recites a blessing over it, the spirit of the sages is not pleased by this, for behold, he could have exempted them with one blessing, and one should not increase blessings in vain. And this is only when he prays in his home, and immediately after his dressing in the tallit katan. But when he goes to the beit knesset, or if there is a large interruption—this does not apply. And so too, if it was not in his intention to wear the tallit gadol immediately, and afterward he reconsidered to wear it—it requires a blessing for itself. (See Taz, subsection 11, who took issue with the Beit Yosef regarding what he wrote that walking to the beit knesset constitutes an interruption, based on Tosafot Sotah 39a, see there. And the words of the Beit Yosef are correct, for there it was in the Temple. And so too regarding washing hands, it is a single matter and must be done so, and therefore it is not an interruption. This is not the case here, for they are two matters and it certainly constitutes an interruption. Examine and you will find it simple.)

Our teacher, the Rema, wrote in section 12 that if he removed the first before he put on the second – he must return and bless. Thus far his words. Many have challenged this, for it certainly deals with a case where he intended for the second at the time of the blessing, for if not so, it would require a blessing regardless. And since he intended for it, if so, why do I care that he removed the first? For to what is this comparable? To a slaughterer who intends to slaughter two birds; does he require a blessing on the second even though he already slaughtered the first (Levush and Magen Avraham subsection 16 and the Gra and Eliyah Rabbah)? And the opinion of our teacher, the Rema, appears to me to be that we see regarding the obligation of a blessing, whenever one reconsiders to act not as he imagined at the time of the blessing – he requires another blessing. And here as well it is so, for at the time he blessed it was in his mind to wear the two, and afterward he reconsidered to remove the first. And anyone who reconsiders – requires another blessing. And it is not comparable to slaughtering, for there it is not a reconsideration. Nevertheless, for the law, the halacha is like the many, and he should not bless in such a case on the second.

Our teacher, the Beit Yosef, wrote in section 14: If one removed his tallit, even if his intention was to return and wrap himself in it immediately – he must recite a blessing when he returns and wraps himself in it. Thus far his words. And they wondered about him: for it is certainly simple that if his intention is to wrap himself, he does not need a blessing, as he himself ruled later in siman 639 regarding one who leaves the sukkah with the intention to return, that he does not need to recite a blessing (Magen Avraham, subsection 18). And that which he compared this in his great book to that which is found in Sukkah (46a), that regarding tefillin when one removes them to enter the bathroom and returns and dons them that he recites a blessing – this is not a comparison, for with tefillin it is necessary to remove them, as it is forbidden to enter the bathroom (Taz, subsection 12, and Bach and Derisha). And it appears in my humble opinion that his words are correct, for this person who removed his tallit did so because he does not want to do the thing that must be done while he is dressed in the tallit even though it is permitted by the law, such as attending to his needs and the like. And if so, he pushed away the tallit with his hands and it is not a comparison to a sukkah, for against his will he must leave the sukkah. And if so, when his intention is to enter immediately – he should not recite a blessing. But here, where it was in his power to keep the tallit upon him, and by his will he pushed it away – it is properly a rejection and an interruption, and he must recite a blessing. And on the contrary, it is worse than tefillin, where against his will he is obligated to remove them. And in several matters we find that a rejection by hand is worse than a rejection that happens on its own. (And the Gra agreed with the Beit Yosef, see there. And perhaps for the reason we explained.)

But our teacher, the Rema, wrote that there are those who say that one does not recite a blessing if it was his intention to return and wrap himself in it. And there are those who say specifically when the tallit katan remained on him, and such is our practice. Thus far his words. And many have already labored over this: for what reasoning is there to distinguish between when the tallit katan remained on him or did not remain? And what is the connection of the tallit katan to the removal of the large one? And they explained his intention that this is what he meant: that if it was explicitly in his intention to wear it immediately in any case—he does not need to return and bless. And if it was in his intention not to wear it immediately, and afterward he reconsidered to wear it in any case—he must return and bless. However, if he removed it ordinarily without any intention at all, then if the tallit katan remained on him—it is as if his intention was to wear it immediately, and he does not need to bless. And if the tallit katan did not remain on him—it is as if his intention was not to wear it immediately, and he must return and bless (this is the intention of the Bach and the Magen Avraham, subsection 19). And regarding the halacha: a doubt regarding blessings is ruled leniently. And in any case, one does not need to bless when he wears it immediately, even if the tallit katan did not remain on him (Taz, end of subsection 13), and even in an ordinary case. And such is the simple custom, and one should not change it. And a change of location does not constitute an interruption, since he wore that same tallit.

If his talit fell from his body unintentionally, whether it fell to the ground or he caught it in his hand, and he returns and wraps himself—he must recite a blessing according to all opinions. For since it fell without his intent, the mitzvah has departed, just as with tefillin when they slipped from their place, as I wrote in siman 25. And this is specifically when it fell entirely. But if part of it fell, even if the majority fell and a minority remained still upon his body, he does not need to recite a blessing. And if it fell from him entirely in the middle of the prayer, and others returned it upon him—there is one who says that after the prayer he should feel it and recite a blessing (Sheyarei Knesset HaGedolah). And in my humble opinion, it appears that if he himself returned it, and he was standing in the middle of a section where it is forbidden to interrupt—he certainly should recite a blessing afterward. But when he was praying the Shemoneh Esrei and others returned it upon him, he does not need to recite a blessing. (And as proof for this from the Mishnah at the beginning of the fourth chapter of Eruvin, see there. Examine it and you will find it simple.) And know that there are those who say that even if the majority of it fell, one must recite a blessing (Taz, subsection 14). And the rule is that in a case of doubt regarding blessings, one is lenient.

The Tur wrote: One who sleeps in his tallit—he does not need to recite a blessing over it in the morning. Thus far his words, and his reasoning is simple: since according to the opinion of the Rosh, which will be explained in siman 18, a garment designated for the day is obligated even at night, consequently the night does not constitute an interruption. However, according to the opinion of the Rambam there, that at night every garment is exempt from tzitzit—certainly he is obligated to recite a blessing. And our teacher, the Beit Yosef, in section 16 wrote: One who sleeps in his tallit at night—he must recite a blessing over it in the morning even if he did not remove it. And it is good to touch it at the time of the blessing. Thus far his words, and he follows his own reasoning in his great book: that the Rosh himself in a responsum, Klal 2, ruled accordingly. And there is one who wrote that the Rosh ruled accordingly according to the opinion of the questioner who holds like the Rambam (Derisha), or that at the time he wrote the responsum this law was not yet decided for him that a day garment is obligated even at night (Taz, subsection 15). And all these are forced matters, obviously. And in my humble opinion, it appears that the Rosh holds that one who sleeps is different. For although a day garment is obligated even at night, nevertheless, it constitutes a great distraction of the mind. And so it appears to me from the words of the Levush, see there. And according to this, the ruling of our teacher, the Beit Yosef, is well-settled, and nevertheless, when there is a doubt regarding blessings, we are lenient. And know that regarding what he wrote, "And it is good to touch...", which implies that it is not indispensable—certainly it is so. For specifically regarding tefillin, touching is the essence of the mitzvah to touch, and there is also an obligation (Shabbat 12a). But regarding tzitzit, touching neither adds nor detracts, for tefillin are forbidden during a distraction of the mind. Therefore, one is obligated to touch them and not tzitzit (Bach). And our teacher, the Rema, wrote that so shall one do who puts on his tallit before the day brightens. Thus far his words, and it is simple. (And see Taz, subsection 17. And be precise and you will find it easy.) And anyone who wears a garment or covers himself with a garment that is obligated in tzitzit, and did not attach tzitzit to it—he has nullified the mitzvah of tzitzit, and transgresses every moment a positive commandment even though he is wearing another garment with tzitzit. (And regarding one who sleeps in his tallit—it is good to exempt it with a tallit gadol.)