Wednesday, August 28, 2019

halacha - May one write with a pencil or marker in the margins of a sefer Torah?


As a Ba'al Kri'ah (Torah reader), I sometimes find it difficult to locate the start of an aliyah (reading) on Shabbat, esp. in parshiot Vayetze and Miketz where both of these are one contiguous parsha (paragraph) with no breaks.


Would one be allowed (before Shabbat, of course) to mark in the side margin where the aliyot are located?


I've see sofrim sometimes mark in pencil something in the margin that indicates the place for a correction or some serial number that they need for their records (I guess when scanning). So, I'm uncertain if there is an exception for sofrim in certain occasions and, whether only an erasable marking may be used (like an erasable marker or pencil) or may one use a permanent marker as well?



Answer



The sefer Piskei Teshuvos (OC 32:12-13) writes that l'chatchila one should not write anything on the margins (or anywhere else) of the sefer torah. If one did write something, even a sofer marking a mistake, he should erase it.


However, as he writes there, b'dieved it would not be a problem.


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