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This is an invitation to begin a new day with a short Jewish meditation for German speakers. I was inspired by Shefa Gold’s Chants, which takes a phrase from each of the daily Psalms and sets it to a melody. My German translation offers a wording that can also be sung alternately with the Hebrew phrase. (For the melodies, find Shefa Gold’s site here.) It works of course also as a way to pause briefly during the day for a Jewish meditative moment.
Mit einem Psalm durch den Tag (Auswahl und Melodie: Shefa Gold; interpretaive Übertragung: Rivka Jaussi)
| Source (Hebrew) | Transliteration (romanized Hebrew) | Translation (English) | Translation (German) |
|---|---|---|---|
Psalm for Sunday |
Psalm für Sonntag | ||
שְׂאוּ שְׁעָרִים רָאשֵׁיכֶם וּשְׂאוּ פִּתְחֵי עוֹלָם (תהלים כד:ט חלק) |
S’u Scha’arim Roscheichem, u-s’u Pitchei Olam |
Lift up your head, oh you gates; lift them up you everlasting doors! (Psalms 24:9 part) |
Öffnet euch, ihr Tore der Welt, haltet euch weit geöffnet. |
Psalm for Monday |
Psalm für Montag | ||
דִּמִּינוּ אֱלֹהִים חַסְדֶּךָ (תהלים מח:י חלק) |
Diminu Elohim Chasdeicha |
Our Stillness/Silence is Your Love God. (Psalms 48:10 part) |
In Stille stillen wir am Bronn uns. |
Psalm for Tuesday |
Psalm für Dienstag | ||
קוּמָה אֱלֹהִים שׇׁפְטָה הָאָרֶץ (תהלים פב:ח חלק) |
Kumah Elohim schaftah ha-Aretz |
Arise God, and judge the land. (Psalms 82:8 part) |
Erhebe dich Yah (3×), entscheide du. |
Psalms for Wednesday |
Psalm für Mittwoch | ||
בְּרֹב שַׂרְעַפַּי בְּקִרְבִּי תַּנְחוּמֶיךָ יְשַׁעַשְׁעוּ נַפְשִׁי׃ (תהלים צד:יט) |
B’rov Sarapai b-Kirbi, tanchumecha y’ischa’aschu Nafschi |
When worries multply within me, Your comfort soothes my soul. (Psalms 94:19) |
Wenn Sorgen mir viel (2×), wenn Sorgen mir viele sind, find Trost (2×) ich bei dir. |
Psalm for Thursday |
Psalm für Donnerstag | ||
תִּקְעוּ בַחֹדֶשׁ שׁוֹפָר בַּכֵּסֶה לְיוֹם חַגֵּנוּ׃ כִּי חֹק לְיִשְׂרָאֵל הוּא מִשְׁפָּט לֵאלֹהֵי יַעֲקֹב׃ (תהלים פא:ד-ה) |
Tiku ba-Chodesch Schofar ba-Keseh le-Jom Chageinu Ki Chog le_Israel hu Mischpat le_-elohei Ja’akov. |
Sound a shofar at the New Moon … at the moment of concealment/potential for our Celebration Day. It is a statute for Israel; it is a rule for Jacob. (Psalms 81:4-5) |
Spielt nun auf zu Ehren des neuen Mondes (2×). Ein Fest ist’s Israel, ein Brauch Jakobs (2×) |
Psalms for Friday |
Psalm für Freitag | ||
נָכוֹן כִּסְאֲךָ מֵאָז מֵעוֹלָם אָתָּה׃ (תהלים צג:ב) |
Nachon Kissacha me’as me-Olam atah |
Your throne was long ago secured; beyond eternity are You. (Psalms 93:2) |
Von jeher die Welt sich dreht (4×) – hin zu dir sie kehrt (4×). |
Psalm for Shabbat |
Psalm für Schabat | ||
מַה־גָּדְלוּ מַעֲשֶׂיךָ יְהֹוָה מְאֹד עָמְקוּ מַחְשְׁבֹתֶיךָ׃ (תהלים צג:ו) |
Mah gadlu Ma’aseicha Yah, me’od amku Machaschevoteicha |
How great is you work, oh God, how very deep are your thoughts! (Psalms 92:6) |
Was eine Welt, was ein Leben! So klar und so unerklärlich. (Hallelujah!: Preis und Lob, ja!) |
“Täglicher Psalm – meditativ, by Rivka Jaussi” 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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