tikun

Tikkun (Hebrew: תיקון) is a Hebrew noun meaning repair, rectification, or correction. In modern usage it can refer to practical repair as well as moral or spiritual redress. The root ת-ק-ן (t-k-n) conveys setting to order or putting right.

In Judaism, the term appears in several contexts. The phrase tikkun olam, literally "repair of the world," has ancient roots and today is widely used to describe social justice and communal responsibility. Its exact scope and obligations vary among denominations and scholars, and some trace it to rabbinic literature while others emphasize modern ethical activism.

In Jewish mysticism, tikkun has a technical sense. In Lurianic Kabbalah, it denotes the rectification of the shattered divine vessels (shevirat ha-kelim) and the gathering and elevating of divine sparks to restore cosmic balance. The Tikkunei Zohar is an important early collection associated with this idea, presenting rectifications (tikkunim) for spiritual repair.

The word also appears in ritual and liturgical contexts. A well-known practice, Tikkun Leil Shavuot, involves staying up all night to study Torah as a form of spiritual repair and preparation for receiving the Torah on Shavuot.

Overall, tikkun functions as a flexible term in Jewish thought, signifying repair or correction, whether of the world, the cosmos, or the self, and it figures prominently in both mystic and ethical-discursive traditions.