404. The Brachos on Tefillin

Tefillin, Mezuzah v’Sefer Torah 4:4

If one doesn’t have head tefillin, he can still wear arm tefillin, and if he doesn’t have arm tefillin, he can still wear head tefillin. This is because they are two independent mitzvos. On tefillin of the head, one recites the bracha that G-d “sanctified us through His commandments and commanded us regarding the mitzvah of tefillin.” On tefillin of the arm, one recites the bracha that God “has sanctified us through His commandments and commanded us to put on tefillin.”

Tefillin, Mezuzah v’Sefer Torah 4:5

The above halacha only applies when a person puts on either tefillin of the head or tefillin of the arm. If he puts on both, he only recites the bracha, “to put on tefillin.” (Editor’s note: this does not reflect our practice.) One ties the tefillin on his arm, then puts the tefillin on his head. When removing them, the head tefillin is removed first, followed by the arm tefillin.