The second shiur on inyanei Elul, a week before Selichos begin Motzei Shabbos Parshas Nitzavim. It starts with the four minhagim of when Selichos start — Rosh Chodesh Elul, the Sunday before Rosh Hashanah, Tes Vav Elul, or only in Aseres Yemei Teshuvah — and then works through the practical questions that come up every year: what hour of the night, what happens when a man has only one of the two options, and what a person who walks in late is actually obligated to say.

In this episode:

- Rav Moshe was asked about a place where it was dangerous to be out after chatzos — may they say Selichos early in the night, and why does he call it a hora'as sha'ah that has to be written down and not turned into a heter?

- Chatzos halayla or ashmores haboker — is one the l'chatchila zman, and if the yeshiva davens at 7:30 and you get up at 7:00, is that enough?

- Ashrei and the Kaddish before the Yud Gimmel Midos — do they also have to wait until chatzos, and if you came late, do you say Ashrei or catch up to the tzibur?

- The shatz wraps in a tallis at night like Hakadosh Baruch Hu was misatef b'taliso — does he make a brachah, and why is it better that someone else hand it to him?

- A minyan in an avel's house or the beis knesses — where is tefillah more mekubal, and when is going to the avel the right thing anyway?

- Why the ba'al tefillah for Selichos also davens Shacharis, Mincha and Maariv — hamaschil b'mitzvah omrim lo g'mor on a tefillah that is a mitzvah bifnei atzmo?

- Vidui on Motzei Shabbos before chatzos — the one thing everyone starting early has to be careful about.

Sources: Tur OC 581, Shulchan Aruch and Rama OC 581, Rambam (Hilchos Teshuvah, and Hilchos De'os), Abudarham brought by the Mateh Efraim, Magen Avraham OC 565 s"k 5, Igros Moshe OC 2:105, Mateh Efraim, Aruch Hashulchan OC 581, Halichos Shlomo (Yomim Nora'im, Tishrei; and Tefillah), Sefer Mishmeres Shalom, Taz, Shaarei Efraim, Levush OC 581, Darkei Moshe, Chasam Sofer, Kovetz Halachos, Likkutei Maharich, Minhagei Maharil, with mesoros quoted b'shem Rav Elyashiv, Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach and Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky. Machshavah section: Rosh Hashanah 17b (and Rashi, daf 17), Maharsha, Maharal (Be'er Hagolah, Be'er Daled), Ramban (Parshas Mishpatim), Rabbeinu Bechaye (Parshas Ki Sisa), Tomer Devorah (Ramak), Gemara Shabbos on "ani v'hu," and a mesorah b'shem Rav Moshe Shapiro.

We're a week and a bit into Elul, and the shiur goes through siman 581 from the top — the minhagim everyone keeps without necessarily knowing where they come from. When exactly the tkias starts, whether it's once a day or twice, what happens when the shul has no shofar or no ba'al tokea, and where L'Dovid Hashem Ori sits in davening once Barchi Nafshi and Anim Zemiros are also on the table. The second half turns to the machshavah: why the remazim of Elul all point at tzedaka and ichud, and what that has to do with kabalas malchuyos on Rosh Hashanah.

In this episode:

- Tkias shofar by Arvis — does the Chayei Adam's "likras erev" mean Mincha, or is it Maariv mamash like the Mateh Efraim, even on Motzei Shabbos?

- Your shul has no ba'al tokea by Shachris — do you blow b'yachid, do you catch it at Mincha, and may a katan be the one to blow?

- Tashrat every day, or Tashrat-Tashat-Tarat, or 30 kolos on Rosh Chodesh — and why the first day of Rosh Chodesh is the nekudah?

- L'Dovid Hashem Ori: until Yom Kippur, Hoshana Rabbah or Shmini Atzeres, before or after Barchi Nafshi and Anim Zemiros — and why minhag Frankfurt and the Gra don't say it at all?

- Why "u'mishloach manos ish l're'ehu u'matanos la'evyonim" is a remez to Elul — and how becoming a "lo" is the hachana for malchuyos.

Sources: Tur OC 581, Shulchan Aruch and Rama OC 581, Mishnah Berurah (incl. s"k 2), Magen Avraham, Chayei Adam (Hilchos Rosh Hashanah), Mateh Efraim, Bach (end of the siman) and Sefer HaAruch, Levush, Igros Moshe OC 4:21 os 9, Ma'aseh Rav (Gra), Nimukei Orach Chaim, Pirkei d'Rabbi Eliezer, with mesoros quoted from Rav Moshe Sternbuch and Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky. Machshavah section: Be'er Heitev 581:10 quoting Minhagei Maharil (Hilchos Yamim Noraim), Shem MiShmuel (Parshas Shoftim), Ba'al HaCharedim on Megillas Esther, Chasam Sofer, Rambam (Sefer HaMitzvos mitzvah 173, Hilchos Melachim), Megaleh Amukos.