Preparing For Rosh Chodesh

“The crown of his Lord is upon his head.” (Numbers 6:7) One who can, should fast on Erev Rosh Chodesh (not during Chanukah), which is a great thing. The idea of the fast, and the preparations on those days when one may not fast, is to examine his life, especially the past month and do Teshuva. A fast without such thought is meaningless. (Morah B’Etzbah 6)

The weekday prayers begin only with Chochmah and Binah. However, on Rosh Chodesh – the Head of the Month – we can access the head, the top, the crown, or Keter in our prayers. (Eitz Chaim, end of chapter 9)

“What is man, that You exalt him, that you turn Your attention to him, that you inspect him every morning and observe him every moment?” (Job 7:17-18) In the same way that Elul, the closing month of the year, is our opportunity to do Teshuva and repair the entire year, so too, the final day of the month is the opportunity to examine and repair the entire month. The final moments of the month are when God “Observes him every moment.”