Tefilat HaDerech Stainless Steel Car Mezuzah
The whole of Tefilat HaDerech (תְּפִלַּת הַדֶּרֶךְ, the Traveler's Prayer) raised in Hebrew letters around a polished stainless steel column, with a shin (שׁ) for Shaddai set into the upper face. It is the prayer said on setting out on a journey, and putting it in the car is the most literal placement it could have. The text runs the full height in raised relief with a blackened fill, so the letters stay legible against the mirror finish rather than disappearing into it. Two inches tall, made in Israel, and fixed with the included double-sided tape. Tefilat HaDerech Stainless Steel Car Mezuzah Specs Use the specs below to confirm material, measurements, mounting and intended use for this Tefilat HaDerech car mezuzah. Origin: Made in Israel Material: Stainless steel Color: Silver, polished finish Design: Full Tefilat HaDerech text in raised Hebrew with a shin for Shaddai Measurements: 2" tall by 0.5" wide / 5.1 cm by 1.3 cm Mounting: Affixes with double-sided mounting tape, included Use: Decorative Jewish travel Judaica for a vehicle interior Packaging: Ships gift-box ready Does a Car Need a Mezuzah? Worth answering plainly, because it is the question behind almost every car mezuzah sold. A vehicle is not a dwelling, so it does not carry the obligation of a mezuzah in the way a home does, and a car mezuzah is therefore not a substitute for the mitzvah (מִצְוָה, commandment) on your doorposts. It is a travel piece: a reminder in the place a person spends a surprising amount of their week. That is also why this is sold as a complete piece rather than a case awaiting parchment. A handwritten kosher klaf (קְלָף, parchment) belongs behind a doorpost mezuzah, where it fulfils an actual obligation, and our kosher mezuzah scroll collection is sized for exactly that. If the distinction is new to you, what is inside a mezuzah explains what a real mezuzah scroll is and why it has to be written by a scribe rather than printed. Put differently: buy this for the car, and buy a proper scroll for the front door. They are not competing purchases, and anyone who tells you a car mezuzah discharges the obligation is mistaken. Tefilat HaDerech Stainless Steel Car Mezuzah Design Tefilat HaDerech asks that we be led toward peace, directed toward peace and returned home in peace, and that we find favour and kindness in the eyes of all who see us. It closes with the blessing to the One who hears prayer. Almost nobody has it memorised, which is a large part of why a version that travels with the car is useful rather than merely decorative. Full Tefilat HaDerech text: The Traveler's Prayer in raised Hebrew, not an abbreviation Raised shin for Shaddai: Set into the polished upper face above the text Solid stainless steel: Will not tarnish, rust or discolour in a hot car Blackened letterfill: Keeps the Hebrew readable against a mirror finish Made in Israel: Produced in Israel rather than generically imported Stainless steel is the correct material for a vehicle for unglamorous reasons: a parked car in summer reaches temperatures that soften adhesives and warp plastics, and steel is indifferent to all of it. It sits with the rest of our metal mezuzahs and our silver mezuzahs, and at two inches it is among the smallest pieces we carry, alongside our small mezuzahs. Where to Mount a Car Mezuzah Most people fix it to the dashboard, the centre console, or the inside of the A-pillar where it is visible from the driver's seat without sitting in the line of sight. The included double-sided tape holds on plastic, vinyl and painted trim; if you want a stronger or wider adhesive for a textured dashboard, our mezuzah mounting tape and the rest of our mezuzah accessories cover it. Because a vehicle is not a doorway, none of the halachic placement rules apply here: no right-hand side, no upper third, no diagonal tilt. Those govern the mezuzot on your house, and our guide to putting up a mezuzah sets them out. Position this one wherever it reads well and does not obstruct an airbag panel. Also Available with the Choshen Stones The companion piece is the Twelve Tribes Stainless Steel Car Mezuzah, which carries a raised shin above a panel of twelve coloured stones for the Choshen, the High Priest's breastplate. The Tefilat HaDerech version is the choice when the words matter; the Choshen version is the choice when the symbol does. Both work well as a small gift for a new driver, a graduation or a move, and they sit alongside the rest of our mezuzah gifts and our decorative mezuzahs. Get Mezuzahs for Your Entire Home! Jewish tradition places a mezuzah on nearly every doorway of the home, not only the front door. Bedrooms, the kitchen, a study and the back door all take one, which is why most families build their collection a few doors at a time. Our guide to which rooms need a mezuzah works through which doorways are obligated, and the full range of mezuzot is organised by size, material and colour so a second case is easy to match to the first.