Hakhel (Hebrew: הקהל haqhēl) is a biblical commandment of assembling all Israelite men, women and children, as well as converts, to assemble and hear the reading of the Torah by the king of Israel once every seven years, to strengthen their fear of God.
Originally this ceremony took place at the site of the Temple in Jerusalem during Sukkot in the year following a Seventh Year. According to the Mishna, the "commandment to assemble" (Hebrew: מצות הקהל mitzvat hakhel) was performed throughout the years of the Second Temple era and, by inference, during the First Temple era as well. The biblical mitzvah of Hakhel is only in effect when all the Jewish people reside in Israel. However, more recently attempts have been made to revive a symbolic form of hakhel.[1]