The Kiddush is recited while standing. The cup is lifted with the right hand, transferred to the left hand, and then lowered into the palm of the right hand. The right hand should be slightly cupped to simulate a vessel, with the four fingers raised, and the thumb held to the side. Preferably, the cup should be held at least three handbreadths (approximately 10 inches) above the table. (Sefer HaMinhagim)
A Psalm by David. Adonai is my shepherd; I shall lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters. He revives my soul; He directs me in the paths of righteousness for the sake of His Name. Even if I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff — they will comfort me. You will prepare a table for me before my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; my cup is full. Only goodness and kindness shall pursue me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the House of Adonai for many long years.
This is the meal of the holy Chakal Tapuchin.*
Prepare the meal of perfect faith, which is the delight of the holy King; prepare the meal of the King. This is the meal of the holy Chakal Tapuchin, and Z'eir Anpin and the holy Ancient One come to join her in the meal.
* (ed.: Kabbalistic term for a manifestation of God's presence).
The sixth day. And the heavens and the earth and all their hosts were completed. And on the seventh day God completed the work which He had made, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, for on it God rested from all His work, which God created to make.
On wine:
Attention, gentlemen: Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, King of the universe, Who created the fruit of the vine.
On bread:
Attention, gentlemen: Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, King of the universe, Who brought forth bread from the earth.
Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments, has desired us, and has given us, in love and goodwill, His holy Shabbat as a heritage, in remembrance of the work of creation; the first of the holy Festivals, commemorating the Exodus from Egypt. For You have chosen us and sanctified us from among all the nations, and with love and goodwill given us Your holy Shabbat as a heritage. Blessed are you Adonai, Who sanctified the Shabbat.
The following berachah is added on Shabbat Chol HaMo'eid Succot immediately after making Kiddush in the Succah.
Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to dwell in the Succah.
"The sixth day. And the heavens were completed."
QUESTION: Why does Kiddush start with the words "Yom hashishi" — "the sixth day" — which are the two final words of the pasuk (Bereishit, 1:31) that precedes "Vayechulu hashamayim" — "And the heavens were completed"?
ANSWER: With the words
"Yom hashishi" added before
"Vayechulu hashamayim," the first letters of these four words spell the holy four lettered name of Hashem, the Tetragrammaton. Also, together with these two words there are a total of seventy-two words in the
Kiddush.
The connection of the number seventy-two with the Tetragammaton is that according to a certain way of writing out the four letters of His Name, the numerical value is seventy-two (yud, hei, vav, hei). In Kabbalah this is known as the "shem ayin beit," and with this composition of the Tetragrammaton, Hashem created the world.
Out of respect to His Name, even those whose custom is to recite Kiddush sitting down, stand while reciting the first four words.
Incidentally, the word "vayechulu" — "were completed" — has the numerical value of seventy-two, alluding that heavens, earth, and everything in it were completed through the combination of the Name which totals seventy-two.
"The sixth day...to make. Blessed...Who has sanctified us...Who sanctified the Shabbat."
QUESTION: According to the Zohar (Shemot 207b) there are thirty-five words in the first part of Kiddush (from "vayechulu" till "la'asot") and another thirty-five words in the berachah of Kiddush. How can our version of the berachah, which has forty-two words, be reconciled with the statement in the Zohar?
ANSWER: Some suggest omitting the seven words of,
"Ki vanu vacharta ve'otanu kidashta mikal ha'amim" — "For You have chosen us and sanctified us from among all the nations" (
Orach Chaim 271:10,
Magen Avraham). Obviously, since Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi inserted them in the
Kiddush, he does not favor this approach.
The opening seven words of the berachah, "Baruch atah Hashem Elokeinu melech ha'olam asher" are a general introduction to many berachot. In the berachah of Kiddush we are accentuating the sanctity of the Jews and the glory of Shabbat. Thus, the thematically unique part of the berachah begins with the words, "kideshanu bemitzvotov" — "sanctified us with His commandments." Counting from the word "kideshanu" till the conclusion of the beracha "mekadeish haShabbat" there are a total of thirty-five words.
"And G-d blessed the seventh day."
QUESTION: What special blessing did Shabbat receive?
ANSWER: Shabbat is a day when it is forbidden to work, yet one spends more money for
Shabbat than for any other day of the week. A person may think that celebrating
Shabbat properly will run him into poverty. Hashem, however, has given a special blessing to the
Shabbat day: the more one spends for the sake of
Shabbat, the more he will earn during the week.
The Gemara (Beitza 16a) says that the money a person will have for his expenses throughout the entire year is allotted on Rosh Hashanah. Exempted from this are his expenses for Shabbat and Yom Tov. If a person spends freely for Shabbat and Yom Tov, Hashem will provide him with additional sources of income to cover his expenditures.
Another blessing that Shabbat possesses is "tasty dishes." The Gemara (Shabbat 119a) relates that Caesar once asked Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananya, "Why is it that the food cooked for Shabbat has such a penetrating aroma?" Rabbi Yehoshua told him, "We have one spice which is called Shabbat; we throw it into the food and it creates a penetrating aroma." When Caesar asked for some of it, Rabbi Yehoshua said to him, "Whoever observes the Shabbat — for him the spice is effective, but it is not effective for one who does not observe the Shabbat."
"And G-d blessed the seventh day and made it holy."
QUESTION: According to the Midrash Rabbah (Bereishit 11:2) He blessed the seventh day with the manna. Of what relevance is this blessing in contemporary times, when there is no manna?
ANSWER: According to the
Gemara (
Yoma 75b) the manna was a very refined food and it contained absolutely no waste material. It was absorbed totally in the person, and there was no need to defecate. Thus, the Jews were physically elevated and refined through the manna.
It is stated in the Jerusalem Talmud (Demai 4:1) that the holiness of Shabbat permeates the person to the extent that out of fear of Shabbat even a wicked person will not say a lie. Hence, the Shabbat has manna quality in it and it too elevates and refines physical man in this mundane world. Even in contemporary times the seventh day — Shabbat — is blessed with a "manna" quality.
"And has given us, in love and goodwill, His holy Shabbat as a heritage...And with love and goodwill You have given us Your holy Shabbat as a heritage."
QUESTION: Why the redundancy?
ANSWER: The
Yom Tov Kiddush starts
"Asher bachar banu mikol am" — "He chose us from among all peoples" — but the
Shabbat one does not. The
Beit Yosef (271) explains that
Shabbat was first given to the Jews in Marah prior to the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai (
Sanhedrin 56b). Until the receiving of the Torah, we did not yet entirely have the status of being the chosen people.
Yom Tov, on the other hand, was given only at Sinai, and, therefore, the
Kiddush begins
"Asher bachar banu.
"
Hence, in our Kiddush the first mention of receiving the Shabbat (without mentioning that we are a chosen people) refers to the Shabbat He commanded us at Marah. The second reference to receiving Shabbat, which follows the statement that we were chosen from among all peoples, refers to the commandment of Shabbat at Mount Sinai, when we received it for a second time and became His chosen people.
A Kabbalistic poem written by the Arizal, Rabbi Isaac Luria. It contains an acrostic of his name, Ani Yitzchak Luria ben Shlomo
I will cut away [the forces of evil] with songs of praise, in order to enter the holy gates of Chakal Tapuchin.
We herewith invite her [the Shechinah] to the festive table, with the beautiful candelabrum shining on our heads.
Between right and left the Bride approaches, adorned in ornaments, jewels and robes.
Her husband embraces her; through this gathering which brings her joy, the [forces of evil] will be utterly crushed.
They cry and despair, yet they are made null and void; but the faces [of Israel] are renewed, souls and spirits too.
[The Shabbat soul] brings her great joy, double in measure, bestowing upon her light and abundant blessing.
Bridesmen, go forth and make preparations of delicacies of many kinds, fish as well as fowl.
It is to form new souls and spirits, [to fathom] the thirty-two paths [of wisdom] and the three branches [of Scripture].
She has seventy crowns; the supernal King becomes crowned with most sacred [songs of praise].
[The Shabbat] is engraved and inscribed within all worlds [which were brought forth by] the "Ancient of Days" through combining [the four pristine elements].
May it be His will that His presence rest upon His people who will delight for the sake of His Name in sweet things and honey.
I place to the south the mystical candelabrum; I set in the north the table with the loaves;
With wine in the goblet and boughs of myrtle for the Bride and Groom, to invigorate the weak.
We fashion for them crowns from precious words; seventy crowns which transcend the fifty [Gates].
May the Shechinah be surrounded by the six loaves on each side [of the table]; and may they correspond to the two sets of six loaves and the other articles [of the Beit Hamikdash].
The impure powers who are far from holiness, the angels of destruction who oppress [man] and all those confined [in Purgatory] rest and have respite [on Shabbat].
To slice the challah, the size of an olive or of an egg, [interpreting] the two yuds either according to its simple or phonetic reading.
Olives [have within them] pure oil which when pressed in a millstone flow in a stream; so the bread contains within it divine secrets.
Let us discuss secrets of Torah, which are not revealed, hidden and concealed.
May the Bride be crowned with supernal mysteries at this joyous feast of the holy angels.
May it be the will of the most holy Ancient One, the most hidden of all hidden ones and the most recondite of all, that there may issue from Him supernal dew to fill the head of Z'eir Anpin and to bestow it upon the holy Chakal Tapuchin with joyous countenance, goodwill and great delight.
"And a table with bread shall I place in the north."
QUESTION: Why is the table placed in tzafon — the north?
ANSWER: The "bread" on the table is a medium by which one exhibits his wealth and success. The word
"tzafona" is not only the northward direction, but can also mean "hidden." On the night of
Pesach, for instance, the
afikoman we eat at the end of the meal is called
"tzafun" because it is hidden throughout the entire
seder.
Putting the table in tzafon — north — is a reminder to keep one's wealth and success concealed. A person should pursue a modest lifestyle and avoid flaunting his wealth and success in the eyes of others. Otherwise, animosity and jealousy may be aroused and also an "evil eye," which may have an adverse effect.
"We fashion crowns for them from precious words; seventy crowns which transcend the fifty."
QUESTION: What are the "seventy," and what are the "fifty," and what is the connection between them and "milin yakirin" — "precious words"?
ANSWER: According to the
Gemara (
Arachin 15b)
lashon hara — evil talk — causes
nega tzara'at — plague of leprosy. The word
"nega" — "plague" — has in it the letter
"nun," which has the numerical value of fifty, and the letter
"ayin," which has the numerical value of seventy.
On Shabbat there is a mitzvah of oneg — delight. The words "nega" — "plague" — and "oneg" — "delight" — are spelled with the same three letters. The only difference is that in one the "nun" is at the beginning and the "ayin" is later, and in the other the "ayin" is at the beginning and the "nun" comes later. (When the words are written vertically in oneg the "ayin" is on top and the "nun" is beneath while in nega the "nun" is above and the "ayin" is beneath.)
On Shabbat, a day of rest from mundane activities, a person has much free time and should keep busy with milin yakirin — precious words — i.e. Torah study and davening. Unfortunately, some do not use their time properly and engage in idle talk, and the conversation may ultimately turn to lashon hara.
Thus, the Arizal is saying that on Shabbat one should make crowns from "milin yakirin" — "precious words" — and avoid speaking words of lashon hara. Hence, instead of "nega," in which the "nun" (50) is above the "ayin" (70), one will experience "oneg," in which the "ayin" (70) transcends the "nun" (50).
"May the Shechinah be surrounded with the six loaves on each side. And may they correspond to the two sets of six loaves."
QUESTION: What are the "vavin"?
ANSWER: On the table in the
Beit Hamikdash were the "
lechem hapanim" which consisted of twelve
challot, six on each side of the table. The
challot would stay on the table the entire week, and every
Shabbat the old
challot would be removed and replaced with fresh ones.
To commemorate this, some people place twelve challot on the Shabbat table. (See Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 274, Sha'arei Teshuva.) Others place two oblong shaped challot lengthwise before them, so that they look like two "vavim," each with the numerical value of six, for a total of twelve.
In light of the above, it may be explained that the Arizal is referring to the custom of the Kabbalists who place twelve chalot on their Shabbat table and who thereby merit that the shechinah unites itself with them.
Even ordinary Jews who are not versed in the secrets symbolized by the twelve challot achieve unification with the Shechinah because they put two oblong shaped challot that each resemble a "vav," which is one of the letters of the Tetragrammaton, and two "vavin" together have the numerical value of twelve.
Hymns for Friday Evening