Is it permissible to recite the Korbanot section – which discusses the various sacrifices – very early in the morning, before sunrise? On Shabuot morning, for example, when it is customary to pray early such that the Amida is recited right at sunrise, the Korbanot section is recited earlier, before sunrise. And sometimes, especially in the winter, it happens that a person needs to leave before sunrise for a meeting, or to catch a flight. May the Korbanot be recited before sunrise, when it is still dark? One potential issue is the Kabbalistic practice to refrain from reading or studying Tanach at night. According to the teachings of Kabbalah, verses from the Tanach should not be read at night, and the night is the time for the study only of Torah She'be'al Peh (the oral tradition), such as Gemara, Halacha, and so on. Secondly, since we read the section of Korbanot in lieu of the offering of these sacrifices in the Bet Ha'mikdash, and sacrifices could be offered only during the daytime hours, perhaps one must wait until sunrise before reciting the Tamid. The Halacha is that one must recite the Korbanot no earlier than Alot Ha'shahar – daybreak, the moment when the sun's rays first appear on the eastern sky – which occurs 72 Halachic minutes before sunrise (the moment when the sun itself appears on the eastern sky). Since it was after Alot Ha'shahar that the service began in the Bet Ha'mikdash, the Korbanot may be recited at this time – even before sunrise – but no earlier. This is the ruling of the Shulhan Aruch, and in Bet Yosef, he brings as the source of this Halacha a comment by the Rosh (Rabbenu Asher Ben Yehiel, Germany-Spain, 1250-1327) that the section of the Tamid should be recited no earlier than Alot Ha'shahar. The Bet Yosef deduced that all the Korbanot, too, must be recited only after Alot Ha'shahar, as the sacrifices could not be offered any earlier than that point. However, the Peri Megadim (Rav Yosef Teomim, 1727-1792) writes that if one is unable to recite the Korbanot section after Alot Ha'shahar, he may do so even earlier. This is based on a ruling of the Tebuot Shor (Rav Alexander Sender Shor, Poland, 1673-1737), who added that in such a case, the person should not recite the customary prayer asking G-d to consider the recitation as the actual offering of the sacrifice. Since sacrifices may not be brought during the night, one cannot ask that his recitation be deemed the equivalent of the actual offering of the Korbanot when he recites this section at night. The Hida (Rav Haim Yosef David Azulai, 1724-1806) writes that although it is preferable to recite the Korbanot section after daybreak, it is acceptable when necessary to recite them earlier, even though the Korbanot cannot be brought during the night. He notes that we are credited with having offered the sacrifices by reciting and studying these portions of the Torah even though we are not in the Bet Ha'mikdash, and it is obviously forbidden to bring sacrifices anywhere besides the Bet Ha'mikdash. By the same token, it is acceptable to recite these sections even at times when sacrifices cannot be brought. The Leb Haim (Rav Haim Palachi, Turkey, 1788-1868) writes that one who cannot recite the Korbanot after Alot Ha'shahar may do earlier, but this would be considered simply as reading from the Torah, and not as the actual offering of the sacrifices. By contrast, the Mishna Berura rules that the Korbanot section may not be recited before Alot Ha'shahar. Those who cannot recite the Korbanot at the proper time may rely on the opinion that Alot Ha'shahar occurs 90 minutes before sunrise, rather than 72 minutes, giving them an additional 18 minutes. Summary: The Korbanot section of the morning prayer service must be recited no earlier than Alot Ha'shahar (daybreak), which occurs 72 Halachic minutes before sunrise. When necessary, one may follow the position that Alot Ha'shahar occurs 90 minutes before sunrise, and recite Korbanot at that time. If one cannot recite Korbanot even at that point, then according to some Poskim, he may recite it earlier.
