covering mirrors
Jewish bereavement custom
Covering mirrors is a mourning custom, particularly in Jewish tradition, where mirrors in a house of bereavement are draped or turned to face the wall.
The practice removes distractions of vanity during grief and focuses attention on the deceased rather than the self.
Some traditions hold that the soul lingers near mirrors or that reflection invites evil spirits during vulnerable times.
The custom typically lasts through the formal mourning period: We covered the mirrors when my grandmother died.
- veiledConcealed or obscured
- shroudedCovered and hidden
- reflectionReturned light or thought
- looking glassArchaic word for mirror
- glassTransparent solid from sand
mourning · shiva · sitting shiva · seven days · superstition · old wives tale · bad luck · spirit world · cloth · draped · concealed · vanity · death · ritual · fabric · hidden · ghostly · obscured
- Jewish ritualsbrit milah, bar mitzvah, bat mitzvah, kiddush, havdalah
- Jewish mourningshiva, shivah, yahrzeit, sitting shiva, mourning