293. Tachanun

Tefillah u’Birkas Kohanim 5:13

Prostrating (in 5:1) is as follows: after one picks up his head from the fifth bow (i.e., the one at the end of Shemoneh Esrei), he sits on the ground, falls forward with his face towards the ground, and recites supplications (tachanunim, hence “Tachanun”). Kneeling means falling to one’s knees, bowing means bending so one faces downward, and prostrating means stretching out one’s hands and feet until he is lying flat, face down on the ground.

Tefillah u’Birkas Kohanim 5:14

Some bow when saying the Tachanun prayer after Shemoneh Esrei, while others prostrate. We are not permitted to prostrate on stones except in the Temple as was explained in Hilchos Avodas Kochavim 6:6-6:8. An important person is not allowed to fall on his face unless he knows for sure that he is as righteous as the Biblical Joshua. Otherwise, he should turn his face a little, rather than pressing it to the ground. One may daven in one place and recite Tachanun elsewhere.