A shofar is a Jewish ritual wind instrument, one of the oldest on earth. It is made of a horn and is used to be sounded on New Year’s Day, and also on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. The sounding of the shofar is meant to evoke sincere repentance for the sins committed, so that one can begin to live a righteous life. It is a holiday that occurs on the new moon of the month of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Jewish calendar, which is September-October in the Gregorian calendar.

According to the Torah, the month of Tishrei marks the beginning of the “civil year” because its first day corresponds to the day God created man. New Year’s Eve begins at sunset and lasts for two days. The sounding of the shofar horn distinguishes New Year’s Eve from all the festivals of the Jewish calendar. The Torah refers to New Year’s Day as the day of the trumpet voice, Yom Teruah. Spiritually, New Year’s Day symbolizes the awakening of the Jewish people from their sleep and their aspiration for new spiritual achievements.

The Bible says that the shofar was also used to give war signals. In the Book of Joshua, the order for the decisive attack on the city of Jericho says,

The shofar was also sounded to draw people’s attention to an important announcement. King David, when ordering his son Solomon to be crowned, commanded:

In the Middle Ages there was a custom of blowing the shofar at the end of the morning service throughout the month of Elul, which precedes the Feast of the New Year, except on the Sabbath. During Elul, the sound of the shofar was a reminder of the approaching days of judgment, when, according to the Talmud, God evaluates the actions of people during the past year and decides who should live and who should die. He enters the worthy ones into the “Book of Life” of the coming year.

Different Jewish communities around the world have their own traditions of shofar making. Some craftsmen process the horn so that it retains its natural appearance, while others flatten it and give it its intended shape. What remains unchanged is its distinctive sound and sacred significance.