This is the philosophical-creed-as-piyyut, Yigdal, by Daniel ben Judah Dayyan. Yigdal means “Magnify [O Living God]” and is based on the 13 Articles of Faith formulated by Maimonides (1135-1204). Daniel ben Judah spent eight years improving his piyyut, completing Yigdal in 1404. This was not the only metrical presentment of the 13 Articles of Faith; but it has outlived all others, whether in Hebrew or in the vernacular.

The English translation presented here was made by Rabbi Dr. Laura Duhan-Kaplan and first published on her blog on 17 July 2017. There it appears with the following introductory verses:

Thirteen’s a lucky number
in Judaism, they say.
The measure of God’s compassion
is expressed in thirteen ways;
the principles of our belief
in thirteen propositions as we pray.
Add them together, get twenty-six:
Gematriya of Yahweh.

And so the mysterious author
Of Yigdal Elohim Chai
sings Praise to the Living God
in thirteen rhyming couplets.

Each pair one statement of the creed
written by the philosopher Maimonides;
the twenty-six line poem a testimony
to the Holy One’s Infinity.

Infinite in being, comprehension, dedication;
infinite in acts beyond imagination.

Three couplets name God’s nature;
three teach us to know the Divine;
three explain the evolutionary ethical plan;
one takes our minds beyond time’s span.

Some call it a creed expressed in song,
but a closer look shows they are wrong.
It’s philosophy all the way: Listen!
You’ll hear it before long!

Source(s)

“יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (translation by Rabbi Dr. Laura Duhan-Kaplan)” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 1.0 Universal license.

Aharon N. Varady (transcription)

Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)

Laura Duhan-Kaplan

Rabbi Dr. Laura Duhan-Kaplan is Professor of Jewish Studies and Director of Inter-Religious Studies at the Vancouver School of Theology, and Rabbi Emerita of Or Shalom Synagogue, Vancouver. She holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy and Education (Claremont Graduate University, 1991), Rabbinic Ordination (ALEPH Alliance for Jewish Renewal, 2005), and a Graduate Diploma in Spiritual Direction (Vancouver School of Theology, 2010).

Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan

Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan was a Jewish liturgical poet, who lived at Rome in the middle of the fourteenth century CE. He was the grandfather of Daniel ben Samuel ha-Rofe, rabbi at Tivoli. According to Samuel David Luzzatto, Daniel ben Yehudah was the author of the well-known piyyut "Yigdal" containing a doxology based upon the thirteen articles of belief of Maimonides. This piyyut, which forms part of the morning prayer among the Ashkenazim, and is sung by the Sephardim on the eve of Sabbaths and holy days, is included in the Romaniote ritual for Saturday evening. (adapted from wikipedia)

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“Abraham Counting The Stars” (Ephraim Moses Lilien, from Die Bücher der Bibel, 1908)

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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

Works of related interest:

 

יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (rhyming translation by Ben Zion Bokser, 1957)

יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (German translation by Chajm Guski)

יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (rhyming translation by Alice Lucas, 1898)

יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (translation by Tsvi Hirsch Filipowski, 1862)

יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (rhyming translation by Jacob Waley, before 1873)

יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (trans. Israel Zangwill, 1904)

יִגְדַּל (מנהג הספרדים)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (rhyming translation by Rabbi David de Sola Pool, 1937)

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