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The holy Zohar, Parashat Lech Lecha (93b and onward), relates at length the story of Rabbi Abba and Rabbi Yaakov, his son, who came to a certain place where a circumcision was taking place. It states there: “On that night [the night before the circumcision], that man gathered all his loved ones, and throughout that night they occupied themselves with Torah, and no one slept. That man said to them: ‘Please, let each and every one say a novel teaching of Torah.’ One began and said, etc.; another began and said, etc.” There they expounded wondrous matters concerning the secrets of circumcision. These are the very passages recited in the Brit Yitzchak study order.
This study also affords great protection, as written in Mateh Moshe (vol. 7, Laws of Circumcision, ch. 4, sec. 2): “It is customary to remain awake and guard the child on the night before the eighth day. I found written that the reason for this custom is that Satan intends to harm the child and prevent him from fulfilling the mitzvah of circumcision, for it is difficult for him that Israel fulfills a mitzvah through whose merit they are saved from the judgment of Gehinnom. A support for this is the verse, ‘And as for you, you shall keep My covenant’—at the time of the covenant, protection is required.” End quote. The Yaavetz wrote in his Siddur Beit Yaakov (Laws of Circumcision) that this study is conducive to drawing abundant holiness upon the child being circumcised and upon all those involved in this mitzvah.
Now, in the book Zecher David by Rabbi David Zacuto of Modena (maamar 1, ch. 30), he writes that they did not customarily go to study at the infant’s home when this fell on Shabbat. He investigated the basis of this custom and sought to provide a reason for it; however, at the conclusion of his discussion, he demonstrated that the infant requires protection even on Shabbat. See there. In my humble opinion, even aside from his conclusion that protection from harmful forces is necessary—which appears to be the primary reason—nevertheless, since this study has additional segulot and reasons, it is fitting to conduct it on Friday night as well, and one should not withhold this good.
This response was translated automatically from Hebrew and has not yet been reviewed by a person. Therefore, it may contain inaccuracies and should not be considered a definitive reference.
