Kol Nidre - Origin

Origin

The date of the composition of the declaration and its author are alike unknown; but it was in existence at the Geonic period (589–1038 CE).

The tendency to make vows to God was strong in ancient Israel; the Torah found it necessary to caution against the promiscuous making of vows: "When you make a vow to the L your God, do not put off fulfilling it, for the L your God will require it of you, and you will have incurred guilt; whereas you incur no guilt if you refrain from vowing. You must fulfill what has crossed your lips and perform what you have voluntarily vowed to the L your God, having made the promise with your own mouth." (Deuteronomy 23:22–24, Jewish Publ'n Soc. 1999 translation).

As one commentary puts it, "it is considered a fearsome sin for one to violate his vows and oaths and the Sages regard it as an extremely serious matter for one to approach the Days of Judgment with such violation in hand." Rash vows to God that for whatever reason were not fulfilled created painful religious and ethical difficulties for those who had made them; this led to an earnest desire for dispensation from them. Therefore, halakha allowed for the absolution from a vow ('hattarat nedarim'), which might be performed only by a scholar, or an expert on the one hand, or by a board of three Jewish laymen on the other.

This rite declared that the petitioners, who were seeking reconciliation with God, solemnly retracted their vows and oaths they had made to God during the period intervening between the previous Day of Atonement and the present one; this rite made them null and void from the beginning, entreating in their stead pardon and forgiveness from God. This is in accordance with the older text of the formula as it is preserved in the Siddur of Amram Gaon.