The Sound of Teru'ah
"Happy are the people that know the trumpet (shofar) call (te'ruah); O' G-d, in the light of Your countenance they shall walk" (Psalms 89:16).
This verse, recited directly after the shofar blowing on Rosh HaShanah, is explained by the Ba'al Shem Tov z"l as follows: The epitome of spiritual work is a broken heart; the perfected manner of spiritual service is that of walking humbly (with G-d). Happy are the people who know the te'ruah--who know how to shout for joy (l'ha-riah, a permutation of the word te'ruah), as they break their inflated sense of separate existence ("ego"). Inwardly their heart is broken, but outwardly they are joyous, as they have merited to be true servants of G-d. "O' G-d--the Supernal One," they request, "in the light of Your countenance they shall walk." Wherever they may be, let them bask in the light of Your countenance.
The Baal Shem Tov renders te'ruah as referring to the breaking (as in l'roea, "to break") of one's inflated "ego" and haughtiness. Similarly, the Chassidic interpretation of the verse (Psalms 98:4): "Make a joyful noise (Ha'ri-u) to G-d, all the earth" is that for the sake of G-d one must break all of one's "earthly" sense of independent, material existence. Thus, the teruah sounded on Rosh HaShanah, a sound resulting from the breaking of the long simple note (the te'kiah) into numerous short notes. (The she'varim note reflects the breaking of the simple te'kiah into three shorter sounds; the te'ruah--the breaking of the she'varim--breaks each she'varim note into three even shorter sounds, such that each te'kiah is equivalent to nine te'ruah sounds).
"Knowing" the te'ruah ("Happy are the people who know the te'ruah") is the inner knowledge (unique to the Jewish people) of how to call out in joy. It is the perfected service of the broken heart; the inward "breaking" is enclothed in a visible joy, reflecting unaffected "walking humbly."
"A broken and contrite heart, O' G-d, You will not despise" (Psalms 51:19). The perfect vessel for receiving revelations of G-d's inner light is a broken heart; "There is not a more perfect vessel than a broken heart." The Supernal G-d, Havayah, responds to those who humbly turn to Him with a broken heart. In the merit of the broken heart in one's innermost recesses, one's earnest spiritual request, "G-d in the light of your countenance," is met with "they shall walk"--the quality of "walking humbly."
Shofar
There are things that are important for us, so we speak about them. There are things very important to us -- and so words flow out from us, bursting with emotion, meaning and depth.
And then there are things that shake us to the core. The core of our being does not wait for the mind's permission or for the right words -- there are no words that can contain it. It breaks out in a cry, in a scream and in silence.
This is the sound of the shofar: A crying voice, not even of a human being, but of an animal's horn. We need the animal -- not for its coarseness, but on the contrary, because we need to express something so sublime, it cannot find words; so essential and unbounded, the mind can neither fathom it nor hold it back.
The very core of our souls needs to cry, "Father! Father!"
A Daily Dose of Wisdom from the Rebbe
-words and condensation by Tzvi Freeman
Elul 29, 5767 * September 12, 2007
ROSH HASHANAH BASICS:
Rosh Hashanah occurs on the first and second days of Tishri. In Hebrew, Rosh Hashanah means, literally, "head of the year" or "first of the year." Rosh Hashanah is commonly known as the Jewish New Year. This name is somewhat deceptive, because there is little similarity between Rosh Hashanah, one of the holiest days of the year, and the American midnight drinking bash and daytime football game.
There is, however, one important similarity between the Jewish New Year and the American one: Many Americans use the New Year as a time to plan a better life, making "resolutions." Likewise, the Jewish New Year is a time to begin introspection, looking back at the mistakes of the past year and planning the changes to make in the new year. More on this concept at Days of Awe.
The name "Rosh Hashanah" is not used in the Bible to discuss this holiday. The Bible refers to the holiday as Yom Ha-Zikkaron (the day of remembrance) or Yom Teruah (the day of the sounding of the shofar). The holiday is instituted in Leviticus 23:24-25.
Shofar: Click to hear it blow!The shofar is a ram's horn which is blown somewhat like a trumpet. One of the most important observances of this holiday is hearing the sounding of the shofar in the synagogue. A total of 100 notes are sounded each day. There are four different types of shofar notes: tekiah, a 3 second sustained note; shevarim, three 1-second notes rising in tone, teruah, a series of short, staccato notes extending over a period of about 3 seconds; and tekiah gedolah (literally, "big tekiah"), the final blast in a set, which lasts (I think) 10 seconds minimum. Click the shofar above to hear an approximation of the sound of Tekiah Shevarim-Teruah Tekiah. The Bible gives no specific reason for this practice. One that has been suggested is that the shofar's sound is a call to repentance. The shofar is not blown if the holiday falls on Shabbat.
No work is permitted on Rosh Hashanah. Much of the day is spent in synagogue, where the regular daily liturgy is somewhat expanded. In fact, there is a special prayerbook called the machzor used for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur because of the extensive liturgical changes for these holidays.
Another popular observance during this holiday is eating apples dipped in honey, a symbol of our wish for a sweet new year. This was the second Jewish religious practice I was ever exposed to (the first one: lighting Chanukkah candles), and I highly recommend it. It's yummy. We also dip bread in honey (instead of the usual practice of sprinkling salt on it) at this time of year for the same reason.
Another popular practice of the holiday is Tashlikh ("casting off"). We walk to flowing water, such as a creek or river, on the afternoon of the first day and empty our pockets into the river, symbolically casting off our sins. Small pieces of bread are commonly put in the pocket to cast off. This practice is not discussed in the Bible, but is a long-standing custom. Tashlikh is normally observed on the afternoon of the first day, before afternoon services. When the first day occurs on Shabbat, many synagogues observe Tashlikh on Sunday afternoon, to avoid carrying (the bread) on Shabbat.
Religious services for the holiday focus on the concept of G-d's sovereignty.
The common greeting at this time is L'shanah tovah ("for a good year"). This is a shortening of "L'shanah tovah tikatev v'taihatem" (or to women, "L'shanah tovah tikatevi v'taihatemi"), which means "May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year." More on that concept at Days of Awe.
You may notice that the Bible speaks of Rosh Hashanah as occurring on the first day of the seventh month. The first month of the Jewish calendar is Nissan, occurring in March and April. Why, then, does the Jewish "new year" occur in Tishri, the seventh month?
Judaism has several different "new years," a concept which may seem strange at first, but think of it this way: the American "new year" starts in January, but the new "school year" starts in September, and many businesses have "fiscal years" that start at various times of the year. In Judaism, Nissan 1 is the new year for the purpose of counting the reign of kings and months on the calendar, Elul 1 (in August) is the new year for the tithing of animals, Shevat 15 (in February) is the new year for trees (determining when first fruits can be eaten, etc.), and Tishri 1 (Rosh Hashanah) is the new year for years (when we increase the year number. Sabbatical and Jubilee years begin at this time).
See Extra Day of Jewish Holidays for an explanation of why this holiday is celebrated for two days instead of the one specified in the Bible.
List of Dates
Rosh Hashanah will occur on the following days of the Gregorian calendar:
* Jewish Year 5768: sunset September 12, 2007 - nightfall September 14, 2007
And now....
Words of New Year Wisdom from Rav Buzzsawmonkey:
#225 buzzsawmonkey 9/12/07 12:18:54 pm
Notes on Rosh HaShanah
Rosh HaShanah, literally, "the head of the year," is often--usually--referred to as the Jewish "New Year."
This is not, strictly speaking, correct. G-d instructs the Jews on the eve of the Exodus that the month in which the Exodus occurs shall be considered the "first month." The month of Tishri, which begins at sundown today, is in fact the seventh month.
This is quite significant. There are a number of cycles of seven in the Jewish calendar--the most obvious being Shabbat, the seventh day, the day of rest. This seventh day of rest is mirrored in the yearly cycle, in which the seventh year is a year of shmita, also known as a sabbatical year, in which we are instructed to refrain from sowing and reaping and during which we are assured that HaShem will provide for us.
After a cycle of seven shmita years--49 years--has passed, the fiftieth year is the Yovel--the Jubilee year--in which debts are cancelled, lands "sold" under long lease return to its owner, etc. It is the year in which we are instructed to "Proclaim Liberty throughout the Land, unto all the inhabitants thereof," the words which, if I recall correctly, are also inscribed upon the Liberty Bell.
The cycle of shmita years and the Yovel is replicated in miniature each year, with the counting of the Omer from the second night of Passover. Seven weeks are counted, ending on the fiftieth day with Shavuot, the "Feast of Weeks," which is the anniversary of the Revelation at Sinai. Thus, a parallel is drawn between the Yovel, the Jubilee year, and the giving and receiving of the Torah--and, since the Yovel year is a large-form remembrance of the receiving of the Torah, it is also a foretaste of the Messianic era.
What has this to do with Rosh HaShanah? The month of Tishri is full of holidays; Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur, and followed by the holiday of Sukkot. It is as close to a solid month of festivity as one can get without letting business totally go by the board. It is, in other words, a month of Shabbat--the seventh month is the Sabbath played out on a monthly, rather than a weekly, scale.
It was during Yom Kippur that the shofar was blown to herald the Jubilee Year. This year, Yom Kippur will fall on a Sabbath, so the shofar will not be blown--but this is, nonetheless, a Jubilee year.
So at sundown today we enter into the Sabbath of months, which will usher in the Jubilee year which serves as a foretaste of the Messianic era.
May this year be one full of blessings for all of us.
AMEN, Buzz.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
A CORRECTION FROM RAV BUZZSAW:
My mistake: it is NOT a Jubilee Year; it is merely a sabbatical--shmita--year. Just prior to Rosh HaShanah, at minyan, we all entered into a Prozbul, which assigns debts to a bet din (rabbinical court) so that they could be collected on our behalf in the coming year.
My apologies for the error.
SEE ALSO: The Sabbatical Year and the Jubilee
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