Dalet

Dalet, the fourth letter, means "door" (delet), and its shape in ancient pictographic script literally resembled a door or an entryway. In Jewish thought, a door represents both an opening and a boundary -- the threshold between one state of being and another. Dalet is the doorway through which blessing enters, but also the boundary that defines sacred space. The mezuzah is placed on the doorpost (the delet), sanctifying every passage from one realm to another. The Talmud connects Dalet with "dal," meaning poor or impoverished. Placed in sequence after Gimel (generosity), Dalet reminds us that poverty exists so that others may fulfill the mitzvah of giving. The Maharal of Prague taught that Dalet represents humility and self-nullification -- the recognition that we are all "poor" before God, dependent on divine grace. This is why Dalet has no bottom on its left side; it is open and receptive, ready to receive. The gematria of four connects Dalet to the four matriarchs (Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, Leah), the four cups of wine at the Passover Seder, the four questions, and the four directions of the compass. Dalet represents the full extension of the physical world in all its dimensions, the complete framework within which spiritual life unfolds.

Dalet is pronounced as a "D" sound, as in "door" or "day." It is a straightforward consonant with no variant pronunciation in modern Hebrew. When writing Dalet, it looks like an inverted "L" shape -- a horizontal stroke across the top with a vertical stroke descending from the right side. It is very similar in appearance to Resh (ר), the key difference being that Dalet has a small protrusion or sharp corner at the upper right, while Resh has a rounded corner. This distinction is halakhically important, as confusing the two in a Torah scroll can change the meaning of words.