Category

Judaism

Time Period

20th century CE

Size

41 × 3.1 × 3.1 cm

Material

Silver

In Hebrew, the word “yad” refers to the ritual rod, popularly known as a Torah pointer, literally means a “hand”. It is a ritual object used in Judaism during the recitation of a religious scroll made of parchment by pointing to the words on it with a yad. This is to ensure that the reader does not touch the parchment during the recitation process, as holy scriptures are considered to be in the language of God and touching them with the hands invokes concerns about ritual cleansing. Furthermore, parchment paper is very fragile, and some parchment paper material does not absorb ink; therefore, touching the parchment will cause damage to the writing. For this reason, Jews often use a yad when reciting the Torah.