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Nowadays, the only Jewish community with a custom to recite the Aramiac targum translation of the Torah portion is the Yemenites. But this was not always the case. For a very long time, Ashkenazim, Italkim, and some other related communities preserved a custom to read the targum on two specific days — the seventh day of Pesaḥ and the first day of Shavuot (Maḥzor Vitry, Hilkhot Pesaḥ 106:7). On those two days, mass communal miracles happened to the Jewish people — the spliting of the sea on the former, the revelation at Sinai on the latter — and the targum, the translation designed for the purpose of making the story accessible, was preserved for the sake of pirsumei nissa.
Since the use of targum became a special rare occasion, Jews did what we do for special rare occasions — we write piyyutim. An extensive series of Aramaic piyyutim were written, to be inserted into the recitation of the targum (or the ‘seder meturgeman’) itself. On Shavuot, a massive series of piyyutim, one for every one of the ten commandments and then some, were written. On Pesaḥ, a similar number of piyyutim were composed for important moments.
Since the mass acceptance of the Shulḥan Arukh, the custom of the recitation of the targum on these special days has been lost from Ashkenazi practice, and as a consequence the vast majority of the seder meturgeman piyyutim themselves have been abandoned. A small number of Shavuot seder meturgeman piyyutim are still in use (specifically, Aḳdamut Milin and Yetsiv Pitgam), but taken out of their original context. (As an example, why do we read Yetsiv Pitgam after the first verse of the haftarah? Because it’s meant to introduce the targum!)
I personally love Aramaic, piyyutim, and liturgy, so I’ve taken it upon myself to translate a selection of seder meturgeman piyyutim. This piyyut, Abunan D’biShmaya (Our Parent in Heaven), the second in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited after the fifth verse of the first aliyah (or second verse of the second aliyah on Shabbat).
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| Source (Aramaic) | Source (English) |
|---|---|
אֲבוּנָן דְּבִשְׁמַיָּא וּבָרְיַן בְּרִי בּוּכְרִי קַרְיַן גַּדְפֵי נִשְׁרִין טַרְיַן דַּלִּיק קַמַּן מְנָרְיָן הוֹדַעֲא חִבְּתִין לִבְרְיָן וּלְאוּמֵּי דִּבְעָלְמָא שָׁרְיַן זְהִירִין לֶיהֱווֹן וּמַתְרְיָן חַבּוֹבֵי לַן וְאוֹקֹריָן |
Our Parent in heaven and creator, we firstborn Israel called to You. On the wings of eagles we were lifted, lamps illuminated before us, making known our belovedness to creation and the nations of the world who see the glow that would be radiating around us to cherish us and honor us. |
טְפֵי לָא מִסְתְּ־יָן יֹקַרְיָן דְּלָא בָּעְיָן כְּנִישִׁין עֲלַן וְאַתְיָן לְשַׁעְבֵּד בֵּן וְלִמְחוֹיַן מַחַן וְקַטְלָן מְשַׁנּיָן |
This was not enough for them, for they did not desire to honor us, gathering against us and coming to enslave us and smite us with various smitings and deaths. |
נְטִיר לְהַהוּא עִניָן סַדַּר יוֹאֵל בְּחֶזְיָן עַמְמִין לְכַנּוֹשֵׁי בִּזְיָן פִּילּוּג דִּינָא מֵישַׁרְיָן צְבִירִין מַשְׁרְיָן מַשְׁרְיָן קְשִׁיט פּוֹרְפִּירוֹן דְּגֵיוְיָן רָבֵי קְטִילִין וְשַׁבְיָן |
Remember the matter that Joel laid out in his visions, the people gathering in force in the Valley of Divine Judgement multitudes, multitudes gather. Those bedecked in royal purple have vanished, murdered or captured. |
שְׁקֵיל וּטְרֵי בְּעִנְיָן תַּקִּיפָא דְיִשְׂרָאֵל וְדַיָּן מִצְרַיִם וֶאֱדוֹם זִיוָיָן אָחָד מְחַטְרָא הָוְיָן |
Carefully ponder this matter, Strength and Judge of Israel: Proud Egypt and Edom will be struck with a single blow. |
יִתְעַדֵּי כִּתְרִין תִּניָן רֵישָׁא פַרְעֹה לְסַניָן בְּטִיבוּ דַּהֲווֹ אַכְסְנָיָּן רְחוֹקֵי דְּלָא מַנְיָן |
The double-crown will be removed from the head bigot Pharaoh, In merit of the foreigners far-flung and unconsidered. |
בְּרָא לָא בָעְיָן יָהוֹרֵי וְסָתוֹרֵי בִּניָן יְרוּשְׁלֵם בְּאַתְרָא דְפַסְיָן צְלִיבִין וְיִתְעַבְדוּן כַּסיָן חַיָּבְתָא דְּאִיתְרְגְוֹשְׁתָהָא סַגִּיָּן קְטִילֵא תַּמָּן מִתְרַמְיָן |
The undesired child Esau grew proud and destroyed the House. In the soon-expanding Jerusalem they will be hung and buried. The wicked that has done much wicked death will find there. |
חַסִּינָא זַכַּי תִּנְיָן קָנֵי לְעַמֵּיהּ בְּקִנְיָן וּבְזִיו שְׁכִינְתֵּיהּ מִתְחַנְּיָן אַנְהָרוּת עָלַם מִתְמַלְּיָן מִתְפַּנְּקִין וּמִתְעַדְּנִין וּמִתְעַלּיָן צִיהֲרֵי יְמָמֵי וְלֵילְיָן |
Be strong, righteous one! Again will God acquire the people as possession, and in the Presence’s glow be full of grace, from the long-hidden eternal light, pampered, indulged, and raised in the light of days and nights. |
“אֲבוּנָן דְּבִשְׁמַיָּא וּבָרְיַן | Abunan D’biShmaya (Our Parent in Heaven) — a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of Pesaḥ by Meir ben Isaac Nehorai of Orléans (ca. 11th c.)” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International copyleft license.
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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו "May the pleasantness of אדֹני our elo’ah be upon us; may our handiwork be established for us — our handiwork, may it be established." –Psalms 90:17
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