Editing Torah scroll (section)

==Production==
{{Further|Ktav Stam|Mishnah Berurah}}

[[File:Yemenite_Sefer_Torah_on_Givil_200_years_old.jpg|thumb|right|A 200-year-old Yemenite Torah scroll, on ''gevil'', from the Rambam Synagogue in [[Nachlaot|Nahalat Ahim]], Jerusalem. The ''sofer'' ([[scribe]]) was from the Sharabi family.]]

According to [[halakha]] (Jewish law), a Torah scroll is a copy of the [[Masoretic Text|Hebrew text]] of the Torah handwritten on special types of [[parchment]]  by using a [[quill]] or another permitted writing utensil, dipped in ink. Producing a Torah scroll fulfills one of the [[613 commandments]].<ref name="Essential">"The k'laf/parchment on which the Torah scroll is written, the hair or sinew with which the panels of parchment are sewn together, and the quill pen with which the text is written all must come from ritually clean —that is, kosher— animals."''Essential Torah: A Complete Guide to the Five Books of Moses'' by George Robinson. (Schocken, 2006) {{ISBN|0-8052-4186-8}}. pp.10–11</ref>

Written entirely in [[Biblical Hebrew]], a Torah scroll contains 304,805 letters, all of which must be duplicated precisely by a trained scribe, or ''[[sofer]]'', an effort which may take as long as approximately one and a half years. An error during transcription may render the Torah scroll ''pasul'' ("invalid").<ref>{{Cite book |last=Battegay, Lubrich |first=Caspar, Naomi |title=Jewish Switzerland: 50 Objects Tell Their Stories |publisher=Christoph Merian |year=2018 |isbn=978-3856168476 |location=Basel |pages=50–53}}</ref>

===Parchment and ink===
According to the [[Talmud]], all scrolls must be written on ''[[gevil]]'' parchment that is treated with salt, flour and ''m'afatsim'' (a residue of wasp enzyme and tree bark)<ref>[https://www.bidsquare.com/online-auctions/artemis-gallery/handwritten-18th-c-hebrew-torah-scroll---from-morocco-1184287 Handwritten 18th C. Hebrew Torah Scroll - from Morocco], Bidsquare, 11 Oct 2018, accessed 28 July 2019</ref> in order to be valid. Scrolls not processed in this way are considered invalid.<ref>(Hilkoth Tefillin 1:8 & 1:14, [[Maimonides]])</ref>

There are only two types of kosher [[parchment]] allowed for a Torah scroll: ''[[gevil]]'' and ''[[klaf]]''.<ref name="Essential"/>

[[File:Scroll ink materials.JPG|thumb|Ingredients used in making ink for Hebrew scrolls today.]]
The ink used is subject to specific rules.<ref name=sfrt>[http://www.hasoferet.com/halakha-for-scribes/mishnat-soferim Mishnat Soferim The forms of the letters] translated by Jen Taylor Friedman (geniza.net)</ref> The ink needs to adhere to a surface that flexes and bends as the scroll is rolled and unrolled, so special inks were developed. Even so, ink slowly flakes off with time and use; if ink from too many letters wears away, a Torah scroll is rendered ''pasul'' ("invalid") and can no longer be used.

===Scribal work===
After the preparation of the parchment sheet, the scribe must mark out the parchment using the ''sargel'' ("ruler") ensuring the guidelines are straight. Only the top guide is done and the letters suspended from it. Most modern Torah scrolls are written with forty-two (42) lines of text per column ([[Yemenite Jews]] use fifty-one (51)). Very strict rules about the position and appearance of the [[Hebrew alphabet]] are observed.<ref name=sfrt/> Any of several [[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew scripts]] may be used, most of which are fairly ornate and exacting. The fidelity of the Hebrew text of the [[Tanakh]], and the Torah in particular, is considered paramount, down to the last letter: translations or transcriptions are frowned upon for formal service use, and transcribing is done with painstaking care.{{cn|date= March 2024}}

Some errors are inevitable in the course of production. If the error involves a word other than the [[Names of God in Judaism|names of God]] the mistaken letter may be obliterated from the scroll by scraping the letter off the scroll with a sharp object. If the name of God is written in error, the entire page must be cut from the scroll and a new page added, and the page written anew from the beginning. The new page is sewn into the scroll to maintain continuity of the document. The old page is treated with appropriate respect, and is buried with respect rather than being otherwise destroyed or discarded.{{cn|date= March 2024}}

The completion of the Torah scroll is a cause for great celebration, and honoured guests of the individual who commissioned the Torah are invited to a celebration wherein each of the honored guests is given the opportunity to write one of the final letters. It is a great honour to be chosen for this.{{cn|date= March 2024}}