אֵל לִבִּי פְּתַח | El Libbi Păthaḥ — a Prayer of Yemenite Jewish Children Before Study, translated by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer

Contributor(s): Unknown Author(s), Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut) and Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation)

Shared on: 24 January 2023 under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license

Categories: Learning, Study, and School

Tags: Aleph-Bet, Alphabetic Acrostic, children's education, education, Judeo-Arabic, nusaḥ baladi, otiyot, Pedagogical songs, Prayers before Torah Study, Yemenite Jewry

In Yemenite Jewish children’s schools, this prayer of unknown authorship is said before the lesson in unison. The teacher conducts and the children sing together to a melody. The prayer is printed in tajjim (Yemenite trilingual Pentateuch codices) before the book of Leviticus, traditionally the starting point for a child’s education.

The first twenty-two lines of the prayer are an alphabetical acrostic wherein each line spells out the entire letter in which it starts. For instance, the first line spells out Alef, Lamed, and Pe, which spells out the full name of the letter Alef. This is followed by three Biblical verses all starting with the word “Good,” a brief poem in Hebrew, and a concluding passage largely in Judeo-Arabic.

Here the editor has included the original text, along with a non-gendered English translation and a transcription of the Judeo-Arabic text into Arabic script.

Note: “The CAUSE” is used to translate the Divine Name YHVH, based on the philosophical idea of God as the Prime Mover and on the interpretation of the Name as a causative form of the copula – “causes to be.”

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Source (Hebrew, Judeo-Arabic)	Translation (English)	Source (Arabic)
[אל״ף] אֵל לִבִּי פְּתַח	God, open my heart! [ALEF]
[בי״ת] בְּתוֹרָתֶֽךָ יְיָ׳ תְּחַכְּמֵֽנִי	In Your Torah, CAUSE, enwisen me. [BETH]
[גימ״ל] גַּדֵּל יָהּ מַּעֲלָתִי לְמַעֲנָךְ	Greaten, Yah, my benefit for Your sake. [GIMEL]
[דל״ת] דִּבְרֵי לְמוּדִים תְּלַמְּדֵֽנִי	You will teach me words of teaching. [DALETH]
[ה״א] הֲשִׁיבֵֽנִי אֵלֶֽיךָ וְאָשֽׁוּבָה	Return me to You so I may return, [HE]
[ו״ו] וְאֶקְרָאֲךָ וְתַעֲנֵֽנִי	so I may call on You and You will answer me. [WAW]
[זי״ן] זַכֵּה יְיָ׳ נִשְׁמָתִי	Find my soul, CAUSE, worthy. [ZAYN]
[חי״ת] חׇכְמָה יְקָרָה תַּחְכְּמֵֽנִי	Enwisen me eminent wisdom. [ḤETH]
[טי״ת] טוֹב יֵשׁ תַּנְחִילֵֽנִי	Bequeath to me good being! [ṬETH]
[יו״ד] יַשְּׁרֵֽנִי וְלַמְּדֵֽנִי דָּתָךְ	Straighten me and teach me Your law. [YOD]
[כ״ף] כְּבֹשׁ פְּשָׁעָי	Restrain my sins, [KAF]
[למ״ד] לִבִּי מַלֵּא דַּֽעַת	Fill my heart with knowledge. [LAMEDH]
[מ״ם] מִכׇּל־מִכְשׁוֹל	From all impurities [MEM]
[נו״ן] נַקֵּֽנִי וְהַצִּילֵֽנִי נָא	cleanse me and free me please. [NUN]
[סמ״ך] סְמֹךְ מַפְּלָתִי כִּי	Support my stumblings, for [SAMEKH]
[עי״ן] עָלֶֽיךָ יְיָ׳ נִשְׁעַנְתִּי	upon You, CAUSE, I rely. [ʿAYIN]
[פ״א] פְּנֵה אֵלַי	Turn to me! [PE]
[צד״י] צַדִּיק דְּרָכֶֽיךָ יַשְּׁרֵֽנִי	Righteous are Your paths; straighten me! [ṢADHE]
[קו״ף] קׇרְבֵֽנִי וּמֵעֹֽשֶׁק^[1] נוסח אחר וּמֵעֹנֶשׁ punishment פְּדֵֽנִי	Bring me close, and redeem me from oppression. [QOF]
[רי״ש] רוֹעֶה יִשְׂרָאֵל שׇׁמְרֵֽנִי	Shepherd of Israel, guard me! [RESH]
[שי״ן] שְׁמוֹר יְיָ׳ נִשְׁמָתִי	Guard, CAUSE, my soul. [SHIN]
[תי״ו] תָּמִיד יוֹמָם וָלַֽיְלָה תִּצְּרֵֽנִי וְתַעֲנֵֽני	All day and night watch over me and answer me. [TAW]
ט֤וֹב יְיָ֙׳ לְקֹוָ֔ו לְנֶ֖פֶשׁ תִּדְרְשֶֽׁנּוּ׃	Good is the CAUSE to the hopeful, to the soul that seeks God out. (Eichah 3:25)
טֽוֹב־לִ֥י תוֹרַת־פִּ֑יךָ מֵ֝אַלְפֵ֗י זָהָ֥ב וָכָֽסֶף׃	Good for me is the Torah of your mouth, more than thousands of silver and gold. (Psalms 119:72)
ט֗וֹב לְהֹד֥וֹת לַייָ֑׳ וּלְזַמֵּ֖ר לְשִׁמְךָ֣ עֶלְיֽוֹן׃	Good to acknowledge the CAUSE, to hymn Your name, Highest One. (Psalms 32:2)
הַחֲיֵֽנִי אֱלֹהֵי הַנְּשָׁמָה וּזְכֵֽנִי יֹֽצֵר־כֹּל בְּחׇכְמָה לַהֲגוֹת בַּתּוֹרָה הַתְּמִימָה בִּזְכוּת יִשְׂרָאֵל הַסְּגֻלָּה וְהַשְּׁלֵמָה׃ וְלָכֵן יִזְכֶּה אֵלַי אָבִי לִשְׁמֹֽעַ קוֹלִי וְנִיבִי לַהֲגוֹת בְּתוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר לִמְּדַֽנִי רַבִּי׃ וְעַל־זֹאת אֶשַׁבְּחָךְ וַאֲפָאֲרָךְ וַאֲרוֹמְמָךְ וְאֶעֱנֶה בְּמַעֲנֶה רַּךְ׃	Enliven me, God of the soul, And credit me, Maker of all, in wisdom, To meditate on the pure Torah, In the merit of Israel the treasured and complete. And thus, may my Parent credit to me To hear my voice and patois, To meditate on the Torah that my rabbi taught me. And for this I laud You, And I glorify You, and I exalt You And I answer with a soft answer.
ﭏַלָּהֻ חַקּ וַמוּסַי׳ חַקּ וַתַּוראָתִּהִ חַקּ ﭏַעַדְּל לִלַּהִ וַלְמוּסַי׳ וַלִתַּוראָתִּהִ תַּבָּארַךַּ ﭏֲלָּהֻ ﭏֲמַנְזִלַ לַנָא ﭏֲתּ֘וְרָהֻ̈ עַלַי׳ גַבַּל סִינַי עַלַי׳ יַדַּי מוּסַי׳ רַסוּלִהִ	Allah is truth and Musa is truth and his Tawrah is truth. Justice to Allah and Musa and his Tawra. Blessed be Allah who revealed the Tawrah to us on Mt. Sinai by the hand of Musa the messenger.	اللَّهُ حَقٌّ وَمُوسَى حَقّ وَتَورَاتِهِ حَقِّ الْعَدْلِ لِلَّهِ وَلِمُوسَى وَلِتَوْرَاتِهِ تَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ الْمَنْزِلَ لَنَا التُّوْرَهُ عَلَى جَبَلِ سِينَي عَلَى يَدَيْ مُوسَى رَسُولِهِ
בָּרוּךְ הַשֵּׁם נוֹתֵן הַתּוֹרָה׃	Blessed be the NAME, who gives the Torah.
בָּר֖וּךְ יְיָ֥ לְעוֹלָ֗ם אָ֘מֵ֥ן ׀ וְאָמֵֽן׃	Blessed be the CAUSE forever, amen and amen. (Psalms 89:53)
יִמְלֹךְ יְיָ לְעוֹלָם אָמֵן וְאָמֵן׃	The CAUSE will reign forever, amen and amen.

The featured image is a luaḥ otiyot, an alphabet chart, from Yemen in the late 19th century. The text of El Libbi Păthaḥ can be found along the right side and bottom.

Recordings

A video of some Yemenite-Jewish children singing this melody:

Source(s)

Alef-Bet Chart, Aden (Single Leaf, undated) from a Kedem Auction House auction

Notes[+]

Notes
1	נוסח אחר וּמֵעֹנֶשׁ punishment

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“אֵל לִבִּי פְּתַח | El Libbi Păthaḥ — a Prayer of Yemenite Jewish Children Before Study, translated by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International copyleft license.

Unknown Author(s)

Sometimes the best we can do in attributing a historical work is to indicate the period and place it was written, the first prayer book it may have been printed in, or the archival collection in which the manuscript was found. We invite the public to help to attribute all works to their original composers. If you know something not mentioned in the commentary offered, please leave a comment or contact us.

Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut)

From a family of musicians, Isaac Gantwerk Mayer believes that creative art is one of the most powerful ways to get in touch with the divine. He composes music and poetry in Hebrew and English. (He also translates and authors his own original works.) Isaac runs a Jewish music transcription service, which will transcribe and set any Jewish music in any language, recorded or written. Contact his service on Facebook or via his music blog.

Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation)

From a family of musicians, Isaac Gantwerk Mayer believes that creative art is one of the most powerful ways to get in touch with the divine. He composes music and poetry in Hebrew and English. (He also authors his own original works and transcribes Hebrew and Aramaic text, adding niqqud and t'amim as needed.) Isaac runs a Jewish music transcription service, which will transcribe and set any Jewish music in any language, recorded or written. Contact his service on Facebook or via his music blog.

Stable Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=48639

Associated Image:

Alef-Bet Chart, Aden (Single Leaf, undated) from a Kedem Auction House auction

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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