בִּרְכָּת הַזָּן אֶת הַכֹּל | Grace After Meals (for Children), a rhyming translation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)
Contributed on: 13 Jun 2023 by
❧This rhyming translation for the Birkat haMazon (blessing after eating a meal with bread) was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 86. . . .
Great Arbiter of human fate! – a hymn for Ḥanukkah by Penina Moïse (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 04 Nov 2021 by
❧“Great Arbiter of human fate!” by Penina Moïse, published in 1842, appears under the subject “Feast of Dedication (Hanuccah)” as Hymn 66 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), pp. 69-70. . . .
“Guard me from yielding to this temptation to err” a prayer by Rabbi Clifton Harby Levy (1927)
Contributed on: 19 Apr 2023 by
❧This untitled prayer by Rabbi Clifton Harby Levy accompanied his short essay, “Facing Temptation” found in The Helpful Manual (Centre of Jewish Science, 1927), pp. 21-22. . . .
Gyermekek üdvéért | Gebet für das Heil des Kindes | Prayer for the well-being of children, by Rabbi Arnold Kiss (1897)
Contributed on: 25 Aug 2021 by
❧This prayer for the well-being of children by Rabbi Arnold Kiss, “Gyermekek üdvéért” (Magyar, 1897) and “Gebet für das Heil des Kindes” (German, 1907), was first published in his anthology of prayers for Jewish women, Mirjam on p.291-293 of the original Magyar edition and p. 546-549 of the subsequent German edition. I’ve set separate English translations side-by-side with the Magyar and German in order to highlight the subtle differences between the two. As I am not a native speaker of German or Magyar, please correct and improve upon my effort. –Aharon Varady . . .
Habdalah, a paraliturgical prayer by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)
Contributed on: 14 Jun 2023 by
❧This paraliturgical prayer for the end of Shabbat havdalah was made by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 64. . . .
חַד גַּדְיָא | Un Cabri: La Légende de l’Agneau, a French translation of Ḥad Gadya by Dom Pedro Ⅱ, emperor of Brazil (1891)
Contributed on: 02 Oct 2022 by
❧This is “Had Gadiâ | Un Cabri: La Légende de l’Agneau (Poésie chaldaico-provençale, chantée a la table de famille les soirs de Paques),” a translation of Ḥad Gadya into French by Dom Pedro Ⅱ (1825-1891), emperor of Brazil, as published in Poésies hébraïco-provençales du rituel israélite comtadin traduites et transcriptes par S. M. D. Pedro Ⅱ, de Alcântara, empereur du Brésil (1891), pp. 45-59. A note on the last page indicates the translation was made in Vichy, France on 30 July 1891. . . .
חַד גַּדְיָא | Unum hœdulum — a Latin translation of Ḥad Gadya by Johann Stephan Rittangel (1644)
Contributed on: 20 Mar 2021 by
❧A Latin translation of the popular Passover song, Ḥad Gadya. . . .
חַד גַּדְיָא | Ḥad Gadya in Aramaic and Yiddish (Prague Haggadah, ca. 1526)
Contributed on: 17 Mar 2016 by
❧Making sense of Ḥad Gadya beyond its explicit meaning has long inspired commentary. For me, Ḥad Gadya expresses in its own beautiful and macabre way a particularly important idea in Judaism that has become obscure if not esoteric. While an animal’s life may today be purchased, ultimately, the forces of exploitation, predation, and destruction that dominate our world will be overturned. Singing Ḥad Gadya is thus particularly apropos for the night of Passover since, in the Jewish calendar, this one night, different from all other nights, is considered the most dangerous night of the year — it is the time in which the forces of darkness in the world are strongest. Why? It is on this night that the divine aspect of Mashḥit, the executioner, is explicitly invoked (albeit, only in the context of the divine acting as midwife and guardian/protector of her people), as explained in the midrash for Exodus 12:12 . . .
הָאֵל בְּתַעֲצֻמוֹת עֻזֶּךָ | 上帝,拥有绝对的力量 | Ha-El b’taatsumot Uzekha (Shàngdì, yǒngyǒu juéduì de lìliàng) — Chinese translation by Richard Collis (2022)
Contributed on: 24 Jun 2023 by
❧This Chinese translation of the short piyyut “Ha-El b’taatsumot” following Nishmat Kol Ḥai is found on page 2 of the liner notes for the Chinese edition of Richard Collis’s album We Sing We Stay Together: Shabbat Morning Service Prayers (Wǒmen gēchàng, wǒmen xiāngjù — Ānxírì chén dǎo qídǎo). . . .
הָאֵל בְּתַעֲצֻמוֹת עֻזֶּךָ | ha-El b’Taatsumōt Uzekha, in its Latin translation by Johann Stephan Rittangel (1644)
Contributed on: 21 Mar 2021 by
❧The text of the short prayer ha-El b’Taatsumōt Uzekha in Hebrew with a Latin translation. . . .
הַכֹּל יוֹדוּךָ | 众人感谢 | Ha-Kol Yodukha (Zhòngrén gǎnxiè) — Chinese translation by Richard Collis (2022)
Contributed on: 25 Jun 2023 by
❧This Chinese translation of an Ashkenazi nusaḥ of the prayer “ha-Kol Yodukha,” is found on pages 7-11 of the liner notes for the Chinese edition of Richard Collis’s album We Sing We Stay Together: Shabbat Morning Service Prayers (Wǒmen gēchàng, wǒmen xiāngjù — Ānxírì chén dǎo qídǎo). . . .
Hálaima a bajból való menekülésért | Thanksgiving for deliverance from trouble, by Rabbi Arnold Kiss (1897)
Contributed on: 25 Sep 2021 by
❧This prayer of thanksgiving by Rabbi Arnold Kiss for deliverance from danger, “Hálaima a bajból való menekülésért,” was first published in his anthology of prayers for Jewish women, Mirjam (1897) on p.286-288. . . .
📖 המדריך | Ha-Madrikh: The Rabbi’s Guide by R’ Hyman E. Goldin (1939, rev. 1956)
Contributed on: 05 Feb 2017 by
❧This manual has been devised for the express purpose of giving the Rabbi, or anyone officiating at a Jewish ceremonial or ritual, a concise and practical aid that will facilitate the task of officiating , and will obviate the necessity of resorting to the voluminous literature pertaining thereto. . . .
הַמַּבְדִּיל בֵּין קֹדֶשׁ לְחֹל | Hamavdil Ben Ḳodesh l’Ḥol, a piyyut attributed to Yitsḥaq ben Yehudah ibn Ghayyat (German translation by Franz Rosenzweig 1921)
Contributed on: 12 Aug 2021 by
❧The text of the piyyut, “HaMavdil,” with a German translation by Franz Rosenzweig. . . .
הַמַּבְדִּיל בֵּין קֹדֶשׁ לְחֹל | Hamavdil Ben Ḳodesh l’Ḥol, a piyyut attributed to Yitsḥaq ben Yehudah ibn Ghayyat (rhymed translation by Alice Lucas, 1898)
Contributed on: 14 Mar 2021 by
❧A rhymed translation of the piyyut sung following the Havdallah ritual. . . .
הַנָּאוָה בַּבָּנוֹת | Hana’avah Babanōt, a song by Amitai Ne’eman (1955)
Contributed on: 30 Jun 2021 by
❧The popular Israeli song from the 1950s. . . .
חׇנֵּנוּ יָהּ חׇנֵּנוּ | Ḥonenu Yah Ḥonenu (Forgive Us Yah in the Merit of Moshe Rabbenu), by the Ben Ish Ḥai (ca. 19th c.)
Contributed on: 17 Mar 2016 by
❧The 7th of Adar is the traditional date for the yahrzeit of Moshe Rabbeinu and it is also remembered as the day of his birth 120 years earlier. This variation of of the piyyut, Hanenu Yah Hanenu (Forgive Us Yah, Forgive Us), sung on 7 Adar, is attributed to Rabbi Yosef Ḥayyim of Baghdad (the Ben Ish Ḥai, 1832-1909). The earliest published version we could find appears in בקשות: ונוסף עוד פתיחות ופיוטים הנוהגים לומר בזמה הזה (1912) containing piyyutim by Israel ben Moses Najara (1555-1625), a Jewish liturgical poet, preacher, Biblical commentator, kabbalist, and rabbi of Gaza. The contemporary audio recording of the Iraqi nusaḥ presented here was made by משה חבושה (Moshe Ḥavusha). . . .
Ḥanukkah, a hymn by Isaac Mayer Wise (1868)
Contributed on: 29 Nov 2021 by
❧“Hannukah” appears as hymn XXXVIII in מנהג אמעריקא: תפלות בני ישורון Minhag America: Hymns, Psalms & Prayers in English and German by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, et al (1868), p. 104 and 106. . . .
Ḥanukkah, a hymn by Minna Kleeberg (1868)
Contributed on: 29 Nov 2021 by
❧“Hannukah” by Minna Kleeberg appears as hymn number 38 in מנהג אמעריקא: תפלות בני ישורון Minhag America: Hymns, Psalms & Prayers in English and German by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, et al (1868), p. 105 and 107. . . .
דיא חנוכה ליכט | Ḥanukkah⸗Lichter | Ḥanukkah Lights, a poem by Morris Rosenfeld (1897)
Contributed on: 30 Nov 2021 by
❧“דיא חנוכה ליכט” by Morris Rosenfeld (1862-1923) p.132-134. It was translated from the Yiddish into English by Rose Pastor Stokes & Helena Frank and published under the title, “The Feast of Lights” in Songs of Labor and Other Poems (1914), p. 65-66. Another translation, by Helena Frank alone was published in Apples & Honey (ed. Nina Salaman 1921), p. 242-244. The German translation by Berthold Feiwel was published in Lieder des Ghetto (1902), p. 81-83, and illustrated by Efraim Moses Lilian. . . .
אָי חֲנֻכָּה | Oy Ḥanukkah, a zemer for Ḥanukkah by Mordkhe Rivesman (1912)
Contributed on: 28 Nov 2021 by
❧A popular song for Ḥanukkah in Yiddish with English translation. . . .
[Ḥanukkah] the Feast of Light and Dedication — a prayer by Rabbi Abraham Cronbach (1924)
Contributed on: 16 Mar 2024 by
❧This prayer for “The Feast of Light and Dedication” by Rabbi Abraham Cronbach is found in his, Prayers of the Jewish Advance (1924), on pages 37-39. . . .
חֲרוּזִים עַל שְּׂחוֹק שָׁ״הּ־מָ״תּ | Rhymed Poem on Chess (long), by Avraham ibn Ezra (ca. 12th c.)
Contributed on: 26 Dec 2020 by
❧A poem on how to play chess, one of the oldest historical descriptions of the game of Chess, by Avraham ibn Ezra (12th century) . . .
Haschkiwenu, a paraliturgical adaptation of Hashkivenu by Lise Tarlau (1907)
Contributed on: 26 Dec 2022 by
❧This paraliturgical translation of “Haschkiwenu” by Lise Tarlau can be found in Rabbi Max Grunwald’s anthology of Jewish women’s prayer, Beruria: Gebet- und Andachtsbuch für jüdische Frauen und Mädchen (1907), page 78. . . .
יְיָ בּוֹקֶר אֶעֱרוֹךְ לְךָ | Hashem Boqer E’erokh Lakh (Hear my voice at dawn), a reshut by an unknown paytan (trans. Rabbi David Aaron de Sola, 1857)
Contributed on: 24 Jan 2022 by
❧This translation of “Adonai boker e’erokh lekha” by Rabbi David Aaron de Sola of a piyyut by an unknown paytan was first published in his Ancient Melodies of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews (1857). . . .
Hashem is Everywhere! — a song by Rabbi Yosef Goldstein (1972)
Contributed on: 29 Dec 2022 by
❧The pedagogical song “Hashem is Everywhere!” by Rabbi Yosef Goldstein (1928-2013) can be found in the context of his story, “Where is Hashem?,” the second track on his album מדות טובות Jewish Ethics Through Story and Song (Menorah Records 1972). In the instructions to reciting the lyrics, the singer points first to the six cardinal directions and lastly, by pointing inward towards one’s self. In so doing, one explicitly affirms the idea of the divine within ourselves and implicitly, in each other. . . .
הַשְׁכִּיבֵנוּ | Hashkivenu, interpretive translation by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
Contributed on: 21 Jan 2020 by
❧The Hashkivenu prayer of Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi. . . .
הַשְׁכִּיבֵנוּ | Hashkivenu, rhymed translation by Alice Lucas (1898)
Contributed on: 14 Mar 2021 by
❧A rhyming translation of the evening prayer Hashkivenu. . . .
הַתִּקְוָה | Hatiḳvah (the Hope), by Naphtali Herz Imber (1878)
Contributed on: 23 Apr 2020 by
❧The poem, Hatiḳvah, in its original composition by Naphtali Herz Imber, later chosen and adapted to become the national anthem of the State of Israel, with a full English translation, and the earliest, albeit abbreviated, Yiddish translation . . .
חצי קדיש | Ḥatsi Ḳaddish — Chinese translation by Richard Collis (2022)
Contributed on: 24 Jun 2023 by
❧This Chinese translation of an Ashkenazi nusaḥ for the “Ḥatsi Qaddish,” the half-ḳaddish is found on page 4 of the liner notes for the Chinese edition of Richard Collis’s album We Sing We Stay Together: Shabbat Morning Service Prayers (Wǒmen gēchàng, wǒmen xiāngjù — Ānxírì chén dǎo qídǎo). . . .
הַיּוֹם תְּאַמְּצֵנוּ | haYom T’amtseinu, a piyyut for the end of musaf on Rosh haShanah and Yom Kippur
Contributed on: 23 Sep 2020 by
❧The full text of the alphabetic mesostic piyyut, Hayom, according to the Italian nusaḥ. . . .
He of Prayer, a poem concerning the angel Sandalphon by an Unknown Author (ca. 1870s)
Contributed on: 04 Dec 2021 by
❧The poem, “He of Prayer” as published in Henry Abarbanel’s English School and Family Reader (1883), p.14, where it is attributed to the newspaper The Jewish Times, a New York newspaper that circulated from 1869-1877. . . .
He spoke and Thro’ the Gloom Profound, a hymn for Shabbat by Cordelia Moïse Cohen (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 11 Oct 2021 by
❧“He spoke and thro’ the gloom profound,” by Cordelia Moïse Cohen (1809-1869), first published in 1842, appears under the subject “Sabbath” as Hymn 56 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), p. 58. . . .
“Heal me” a prayer for healing by Rabbi Clifton Harby Levy (1927)
Contributed on: 18 Apr 2023 by
❧This untitled prayer by Rabbi Clifton Harby Levy accompanied his short reflection, “I Seek Health and Healing” found in The Helpful Manual (Centre of Jewish Science, 1927), pp. 9-10. . . .
Heaven, a poem by Rosa Emma Salaman (1853)
Contributed on: 02 Mar 2022 by
❧“Heaven” by Rosa Emma Collins née Salaman was published in her bound collections of poetry, Poems (1853), pp. 72-76. . . .
📖 הֶגְיוֹן לֵב | Hegyon Lev (Meditations of the Heart): Israelitisches Gebetbuch für die häusliche Andacht, arranged by Rabbi Benjamin Szold (1867)
Contributed on: 02 May 2023 by
❧This is Rabbi Benjamin Szold’s הגיון לב (Hegyon Lev, “Meditation of the Heart”) Israelitisches Gebetbuch für die häusliche Andacht (1867). . . .
Heil’ge Sabbath-Ruhe | Holy Sabbath Rest — from the Hamburg Temple Hymnal (1833)
Contributed on: 27 May 2023 by
❧“Heil’ge Sabbath-Ruhe” is a hymn selected by Rabbi Gotthold Salomon, Immanuel Wohlwill, and Maimon Fraenkel for inclusion in the Hamburg Temple Hymnal (1833), hymn №342, p. 415. The first, fourth, and sixth stanzas were translated by Rabbi James Koppel Gutheim and published as “Der Sabbath (The Sabbath)” in his Hymns, for Divine Service in the Temple Emanu-El (1871) as hymn №1, pp. 2-3. The hymn also appears as the preface to Gotthold Salomon’s sermon “Der Segen des Sabbathtages” in Der berg des Herrn: Kanzel-vorträge über den Decalog (1846), p. 32 lending me to think that the hymn was at the very least appreciated by him, and possibly also written by him. –Aharon Varady . . .
“Help our loved one who lingers in pain” a prayer for healing by Rabbi Clifton Harby Levy (1927)
Contributed on: 18 Apr 2023 by
❧This untitled prayer by Rabbi Clifton Harby Levy accompanied his short reflection, “Bringing Health to the Home” found in The Helpful Manual (Centre of Jewish Science, 1927), pp. 12-13. . . .
Here At This Temple’s Holy Shrine, a hymn on Devotion by Cordelia Moïse Cohen (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 15 Oct 2021 by
❧“Here at this temple’s holy shrine,” by Cordelia Moïse Cohen (1809-1869), published in 1842, appears under the subject “Devotion” as Hymn 21 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), p. 25. . . .
היסטוריולה של סממית וסידרוס | Historiola of Smamit and Sideros, a reconstruction based on Amulet 15 & Amulet Bowl 12a
Contributed on: 30 Nov 2020 by
❧A very old tale told for the protection of pregnant women and their infant children as found in amulets from late Antiquity. . . .
📖 Hours of Devotion: A Book of Prayers & Meditations for the Use of the Daughters of Israel, an anthology of teḥinot compiled by Rabbi Moritz Mayer (1866)
Contributed on: 24 Aug 2011 by
❧A collection of Jewish women’s prayers compiled by Rabbi Moritz Mayer, including twenty-four original English translations of prayers by Fanny Neuda from her collection, Stunden der Andacht 1855. . . .
הֵיאַךְ יַרְגִּיל הָאָדָם עַצְמוֹ בְּמִדַּת הַחָכְמָה | How a person should conduct themself with Wisdom — chapter three from Tomer Devorah by Rabbi Moshe Cordovero (ca. 16th c.)
Contributed on: 14 Aug 2023 by
❧Chapter three of Rabbi Mosheh Cordovero’s Tomer Devorah, concerning the relationship between Wisdom and Empathy and its expression in the humane treatment of all living creatures. . . .
How Beautiful It Is To See, a hymn on “Brotherly Love” by Penina Moïse (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 28 Oct 2021 by
❧“How beautiful it is to see,” by Penina Moïse, published in 1842, appears under the subject “Brotherly Love” as Hymn 41 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), pp. 44-45. . . .
How Cold That Man! To Faith How Dead! – a hymn on Divine Providence by Penina Moïse (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 20 Oct 2021 by
❧“How cold that man! to faith how dead!” by Penina Moïse, was published in 1842, and appears under the subject “Divine Providence” as Hymn 8 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), pp. 13-14. . . .
How Desolate Thy Fields and Vales, a hymn for Sukkot by Penina Moïse (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 03 Nov 2021 by
❧“How desolate thy fields and vales,” by Penina Moïse, published in 1842, appears under the subject “Tabernacles (Sucote)” as Hymn 64 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), pp. 66-67. . . .
How Long Will Man In Pleasure Merged, a hymn on “Piety” by Penina Moïse (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 24 Oct 2021 by
❧“How long will man in pleasure merged,” by Penina Moïse, published in 1842, appears under the subject “Piety” as Hymn 25 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), pp. 28-29. . . .
Hymn for Shaḇuoth (Father, See Thy Children) — from a Confirmation hymn by Felix Adler (1868) adapted by Angie Irma Cohon (1921)
Contributed on: 24 Jun 2022 by
❧“Hymn for Shaḇuoth (Father, See Thy Children)” is based on “Confirmation (Father, see thy suppliant children)” an original hymn by Felix Adler published in Hymns, for Divine Service in the Temple Emanu-El (1871), hymn 34, p. 68. The last four lines of the hymn have been amended and replaced with “Till our lives shall bud and blossom…” by Angie Irma Cohon, for use on Shavuot. This version was published in her תפלת ישראל (Tefilat Yisrael) A Brief Jewish Ritual (Women of Miẓpah 1921), p. 19. . . .
Hymn of Praise, by Grace Aguilar (ca. 1830s)
Contributed on: 15 May 2023 by
❧“Hymn of praise” by Grace Aguilar was published posthumously by her mother Sarah Aguilar in Essays and Miscellanies (1853), in the section “Sacred Communings,” pp. 184-185. In the UK edition of Sacred Communings (1853) the prayer appears with small variations of spelling and punctuation on pages 102-103. This prayer at the conclusion of an as yet unidentified writing project seems to me to be possibly related to her “Prayer (Father of mercies),” a prayer of gratitude at the commencement of a writing project. . . .
📖 Hymns and Anthems Adapted for Jewish Worship, by Rabbi Dr. Gustav Gottheil (1886)
Contributed on: 24 Sep 2019 by
❧A hymn-book containing not only traditional Jewish hymns, but also others of Christian origin (“adapted for Jewish worship”). Upon it was based the Union Hymnal, which was subsequently adopted by Reform congregations in the United States. . . .
I Lift Mine Eyes Unto the Hills (Psalms 121), a hymn to Hope in God by Cordelia Moïse Cohen (Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim 1842)
Contributed on: 11 Oct 2021 by
❧“I lift mine eyes unto the hills (Psalms 121),” by Cordelia Moïse Cohen (1809-1869), first published in 1842, appears under the subject “Hope in God” as Hymn 30 in Hymns Written for the Service of the Hebrew Congregation Beth Elohim, South Carolina (Penina Moïse et al., Ḳ.Ḳ. Beth Elohim, 1842), p. 33. . . .