Motzei Shabbat

The term Motzei Shabbat (literally, the going out of the Sabbath) in Judaism refers to the time in the evening immediately following Shabbat, that is Saturday night. It is a time when, following one's declaration of the intention to end Shabbat, it is permissible to resume weekday activities that are prohibited on Shabbat. This may occur no earlier than when three stars appear in the sky, or at a fixed time that is predetermined, which varies, depending on one's geographic location and the time of year.

There are three ways one can declare the end of Shabbat in order to be allowed to resume these forbidden activities:

1. Reciting Ata Chonantanu: This special paragraph is added to the Amidah during Maariv on Saturday evening, and is generally recited by men to end Shabbat
2. Reciting Baruch Hamavdil: The verse "Baruch Hamavdil Bain Kodesh L'Chol" is generally recited by women, who traditionally do not recite the Maariv prayer
3. Havdallah: Havdallah is a required ritual on Motzei Shabbat. Listening to Havdallah defines the end of Shabbat. But one who lights the Havdallah candle or else wishes to perform any activity otherwise prohibited during Shabbat must declare an end to Shabbat by one of the above two methods.

It is questionable if men are permitted to end Shabbat with method #2. Nevertheless, it should only be used by a male if absolutely necessary in order to ignite a havdallah candle.

The exact time in which Shabbat ends varies, depending on one's location on earth and the time of year. There are varying opinions as to how much time must elapse following sunset. Regardless of location, the time that Shabbat ends, which is approximately one hour after candle lighting the day before, fluctuates approximately four hours throughout the calendar year by up to 11 minutes from one week to the next (or by more than an hour if the time has changed during the previous week).

External links

• Find the time when Shabbat ends in your location