Shehecheyanu
TheShehecheyanuberakhah(blessing) (Hebrew:ברכת שהחיינו,"Who has given us life" ) is a commonJewish prayerto celebrate special occasions. It expresses gratitude to God for new and unusual experiences or possessions.[1]The blessing was recorded in theTalmud[2]over 1500 years ago.
Recitation
[edit]The blessing ofShehecheyanuis recited in thanks or commemoration of:
- Generally, when doing or experiencing something that occurs infrequently from which one derives pleasure or benefit.
- The beginning of aholiday,includingPassover,Shavuot,Rosh Hashanah,Yom Kippur,Sukkot,Simhat TorahandHanukkah,but not holidays commemorating sad events, such asTisha B'av.
- The first performance of certainmitzvotin a year, including sitting in asukkah,eatingmatzahat thePassover Seder,reading themegillah,or lighting the candles onHanukkah.
- Eating a new fruit for the first time sinceRosh Hashanah.
- Seeing a friend who has not been seen in thirty days.
- Acquiring a new home or other significant possessions.
- The birth of a child.
- Apidyon habenceremony.
- During a ritual immersion in amikvehas part of aconversion.
- On arrival in Israel.
Some have the custom of saying it at the ceremony of theBirkat Hachama,which is recited once every 28 years in the month of Nisan/Adar II.
When several reasons apply (such as the beginning of Passover, together with the mitzvot of matzah, marror, etc.), the blessing is only said once.
It is not recited at abrit milahbyAshkenazim,since the circumcision involves pain, nor at the Counting of the Omer, since that is a task that does not give pleasure and causes sadness at the thought that the actual Omer ceremony cannot be performed because of the destruction of the Temple.[4][5]However, it is recited bySephardimat the berith milah ceremony.[6]
Text
[edit]| Hebrew[7] | English[8] | Transliteration[8] |
|---|---|---|
| בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יהוה | Praised[9]are You, Lord | Barukh attah adonai |
| אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הַעוֹלָם | our God, King of the universe, | eloheinu melekh ha-olam, |
| שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ | For granting us life, for sustaining us, | she-heḥeyanu v'kiy'manu |
| וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶּה׃ | and for helping us to reach this day. | v'higi'anu la-z'man hazeh. |
Although the most prevalent custom[10]is to recitelazmanin accordance with the usual rules ofdikduk(Hebrew languagegrammar),[10]some, includingChabad,[3]have the custom to saylizman( "to [this] season" ); this custom follows the ruling of theMishnah Berurah[11]andAruch Hashulchan,[12]followingMagen Avraham,[13]Mateh Moshe[14]andMaharshal.[10]
Modern history
[edit]Avshalom Havivfinished his speech in court on June 10, 1947, with the Shehecheyanu blessing.[15]
TheIsraeli Declaration of Independencewas publicly read inTel Avivon May 14, 1948, before the expiration of theBritish Mandateatmidnight.After the firstPrime Minister of Israel,David Ben-Gurion,read the Declaration of Independence, RabbiYehuda Leib Maimonrecited the Shehecheyanu blessing, and the Declaration of Independence was signed. The ceremony concluded with the singing of "Hatikvah."[16]
There is a common[according to whom?]musical rendition of the blessing composed byMeyer Machtenberg,anEastern Europeanchoirmasterwho composed it in the United States in the 19th century.[17]
Media
[edit]- MP3 file- Shehecheyanu blessing from VirtualCantor (tune for the first night of Chanukah)
- Sheet music forShehecheyanu
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Isaac Klein,A Guide to Jewish Religious Practice,The Jewish Theological Seminary of America,New York, 1979, p. 48: "Whenever we experience something new, such as eating fruit for the first time in its season, the advent of a holiday, or a joyous occasion in the family, we recite שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִיעָנוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶּה"
- ^Berachot 54a, Pesakhim 7b, Sukkah 46a, etc.
- ^abc"Shehecheyanu".Chabad.org.Retrieved24 May2020.
- ^Nulman, Macy (1993).Encyclopedia of Jewish Prayer.NJ. p. 91.
{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^Scherman, Nosson (2010).The Expanded ArtScroll Siddur (Ashkenaz).Brooklyn: Mesorah Publ'ns. p. 231.
- ^Holtzberg, Avraham Yeshaya; Neubort, Shimon."Customs of Bris Milah: Chapter 3".Chabad.org.RetrievedAugust 16,2023.
- ^RabbiNosson Scherman,The CompleteArtScroll Siddur,Mesorah Publications,Brooklyn, 1984, p. 230
- ^abSiddur Sim Shalom,edited & translated by RabbiJules Harlow,TheRabbinical Assembly/TheUnited Synagogue of America,New York, 1989, p. 712
- ^The first word, בָּרוּךְ (barukh), is more commonly translated as "blessed" (in, for example:Nosson Scherman'sThe CompleteArtScroll Siddur,1984, p. 231;Philip Birnbaum'sHa-Siddur ha-Shalem,1949, p. 776;Reuben Alcalay'sComplete English-Hebrew Dictionary,p. 287;Langenscheidt's Pocket Hebrew Dictionaryby Karl Feyerabend, p. 47)
- ^abcרבינוביץ, שמחה בן-ציון (2021).פסקי תשובות חלק שישי סימן תרע״ו אות א'.ירושלים.
{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^"משנה ברורה סי׳ תרע״ו ס״ק א׳".hebrewbooks.org.Retrieved2 April2023.
- ^"ערוך השלחן או״ח סי׳ תרע״ו, ג׳".hebrewbooks.org.Retrieved2 April2023.
- ^"מגן אברהם - הקדמה לסימן תרע״ו".hebrewbooks.org.Retrieved2 April2023.
- ^"מטה משה, חלק חמישי, סי׳ תתק״פ".hebrewbooks.org.Retrieved2 April2023.
- ^Phillips, Moshe (25 June 2009)."Remember Your 21st Birthday?".Arutz Sheva.Retrieved24 May2020.
- ^Wohlgelernter, Elli (30 April 1998)."One Day that Shook the World".The Jerusalem Post.Archived fromthe originalon 12 January 2012.Retrieved24 May2020.
- ^"Shehecheyanu (arr. M. Sobol for voice, choir and orchestra)".Spotify.Retrieved24 May2020.
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