What is Shulchan Aruch?שולחן ערוך
The Shulchan Aruch is the authoritative code of Jewish law compiled by Rabbi Yosef Karo in the sixteenth century, organised into four sections covering prayer and the festivals, kashrus and other ritual law, marriage and divorce, and civil law.
Also written: Shulchan Oruch, Shulhan Arukh, Shulchon Oruch
Rabbi Yosef Karo completed it in Safed in 1563 and it was first printed in Venice in 1565–1566. Its four parts are Orach Chaim, Yoreh De'ah, Even HaEzer, and Choshen Mishpat. Rabbi Moshe Isserles added glosses recording Ashkenazi practice where it differs — known as the Mappah, the 'tablecloth' to Karo's 'set table' — which first appeared in the Krakow edition of 1569–1571. Standard editions print the two together, which is why a single volume can serve communities with different customs.
Editions of the Shulchan Aruch itself range from the bare text to full printings with the standard commentaries. It should not be confused with the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch, a separate work by Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried first printed in Ungvar in 1864 — not an abridgement of Karo's text but an independent digest of practical halacha for the layman, and one of the most widely owned seforim in print. The two are very different purchases and are often confused in listings, so stating which one is on offer matters.
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Sources
- Shulchan Aruch — completed Safed 1563, first printed Venice 1565–1566; Isserles' Mappah, Krakow 1569–1571
- Kitzur Shulchan Aruch — Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried's independent digest, first printed Ungvar 1864
Related terms
- Halacha — Halacha is Jewish law — the body of rulings and practice governing daily conduct, derived from the Torah and developed through the Talmud and later codes.
- Meforshim — Meforshim are the classical commentaries on Jewish texts and the commentators behind them — individual authors such as Rashi, Ramban, and Ibn Ezra, and collective works such as Tosafos.
- Seforim — Seforim are Jewish religious books — the plural of sefer — covering Torah, Talmud, halacha, mussar, chassidus, and the full range of sacred Jewish literature.