Writing, is one of the 39 melachot which we abstain on Shabbat.
The melachots are the creative work that was done during the week to build the Mishkan (Tabernacle). When H”S asks us to stop working on Shabbat, He is referring to 39 creative tasks done for this purpose.
Writing occurred during the Mishkan’s construction when the craftsmen would write a number on each plank, to ensure that when the Tabernacle was taken apart and reassembled the planks would be put in their original places.
This melachah of writing pertains to writing letters or numbers in any language, drawing pictures or sketches, or creating any new symbol.
Under this category we are also forbidden to erase. So if you have a Birthday cake with letters written on it, it is a problem to cut through the letters.
If a person needs to go into surgery or be admitted to a hospital and needs to sign a document to be treated, for purposes of saving a life one is permitted to sign but in an unusual way with your opposite hand.
The point here is to disconnect from the mundane and connect to H”S and your soul. Shabbat is a day of soul and communion with G-d, for it to be effective we need to tap into a different way of being.
Try this Shabbat, if you don’t keep Shabbat yet, to abstain from writing.
Excerpts from “The Shabbos Home” by Rabbi Simcha Bunim Cohen
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