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tag: acrostic Sorted Chronologically (old to new). Sort most recent first? 💬 מְגִלַּת אֵיכָה | Megillat Eikhah (Lamentations) in acrostic English translation by Isaac Gantwerk MayerAn original gender-neutral translation of the book of Lamentations, preserving the alphabetical acrostic through closest parallels to the Hebrew letter. . . . Tags: 33rd century A.M., 6th century B.C.E., acrostic, Alphabetic Acrostic, English Translation, Exilic Period, Five Megillot, lamentation Contributor(s): Yirmiyah ben Ḥilkiyah haKohen, Barukh ben Neriyah, the Masoretic Text and Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation) אֵשֶׁת חַיִל | Éshet Ḥayil (Proverbs 31:10-31) For an Accomplished Woman, translated by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-ShalomiRabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi’s interpretive translation of Proverbs 31:10-31, popularly read before the first festive meal for shabbat on Friday night. . . . תהלים קנ״ה | Psalms 155, according to the Nusaḥ of the Judean Desert Scrolls, Edited, Vocalized, Cantillated, and Translated into English by Isaac Gantwerk MayerPsalm 155 is an incomplete acrostic (the Dead Sea Scrolls text records it going from ב to נ, and the Syriac can be reconstructed to include up to פ) with similarities to petitionary psalms like Psalm 3, 22, and 143. It is unclear why it was not included in the Masoretic canon, but one can hazard a guess that it was just not familiar to the compilers. . . . Categories: Second Temple Period אַשְׁרֵי יוֹשְׁבֵי בֵיתֶךָ | Ashrei Yoshvei Veitekha (Psalms 145), an Alphabetical English translation by Rabbi Sam SeicolA modern translation of the Ashrei in alphabetic parallel to the Hebrew. . . . Ashrei, complete with introductory verses and a lost verse to complete the acrostic from the Chronicle of Gad the Seer. . . . Contributor(s): the Masoretic Text, David ben Yishai (traditional attribution) and Aharon N. Varady (transcription) Psalms 145 in Hebrew with English translation. . . . Psalms 112 in Hebrew with English translation, arranged by Aharon Varady. . . . Psalms 111, an alphabetic acrostic translated into English by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer. . . . Categories: Tehilim Book 5 (Psalms 107–150) Psalms 67 is a priestly blessing for all the peoples of the earth to be sustained by the earth’s harvest (yevulah), and it is a petition that all humanity recognize the divine nature (Elohim) illuminating the world. Composed of seven verses, the psalm is often visually depicted as a seven branched menorah. There are 49 words in the entire psalm, and in the Nusaḥ ha-ARI z”l there is one word for each day of the Sefirat haOmer. Similarly, the fifth verse has 49 letters and each letter can be used as a focal point for meditating on the meaning of the day in its week in the journey to Shavuot, the festival of weeks (the culmination of the barley harvest), and the festival of oaths (shevuot) in celebration of receiving the Torah. Many of the themes of Psalms 67 are repeated in the prayer Ana b’Koaḥ, which also has 49 words, and which are also used to focus on the meaning of each day on the cyclical and labyrinthine journey towards Shavuot. . . . Categories: Pesaḥ, Tehilim Book 2 (Psalms 42–72), Sefirat ha-Omer, Shavuot, Shabbat, Sukkot, Ḥanukkah, Slavery & Captivity אֲשֶׁר הֵנִיא | Asher Heni, a piyyut recited after the reading of Megillat Esther and its concluding blessingAn alphabetical acrostic piyyut celebrating the victory of Esther and Mordekhai over the forces of Haman. . . . Categories: Purim 💬 ילקוט מזמורים לבן סירא פרק נ״א | An Appendix of Psalms of Ben Sira chapter 51, vocalized, cantillated, and translated by Isaac Gantwerk MayerThe end of the scroll of Ben Sira (Ecclesiasticus) reconstructed from Cairo Geniza fragments not contained within the Septuagint. . . . Categories: Second Temple Period The Apostrophe to Zion is an alphabetical acrostic poem, directed at Zion in the second person. It has been found in multiple locations in Qumran, including the Great Psalms Scroll 11QPsa as well as another fragmentary scroll in 4Q88. It was considered a regular part of their psalmodic canon. . . . Categories: Second Temple Period Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut) and Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation) אַצִיתוּ לִי אִילָנַיָּא | Atsitu Li Ilinaya | The Argument of the Trees — a debate-poem for Purim in Aramaic from the Targum SheniThis Aramaic poem, written in the early Byzantine era by an unknown author, can be found in its entirety within the Targum Sheni for Esther 7:9. It features an argument between an assortment of trees over which one is required to bear the great dishonor of having to be the one to hold Haman. It’s also chock-full of anti-Christian polemic and references to Toledot Yeshu. . . . Categories: Purim אָמַר אוֹיֵב | Amar Oyev (The Enemy Said) — a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of PesaḥThis piyyut, Amar Oyev (The Enemy Said), the sixth in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited as an introduction to the targum of Exodus 15, verse 9. . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ מַן־כְּוָתָךְ | Man K’vatakh (Who is Like You) — a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of PesaḥThis piyyut, Man K’vatakh (Who is Like You), the seventh in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited as an introduction to the Targum of the verse that includes “Mi Khamokha.” The English translation preserves the Hebrew acrostic of the Aramaic. . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ אֵל אָדוֹן (מנהג הספרדים) | El Adōn, a piyyut attributed to the Yordei Merkavah (translation by Sara-Kinneret Lapidot)The piyyut, El Adon, in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . אֵל אָדוֹן (אשכנז) | El Adōn, a piyyut attributed to the Yordei Merkavah (interpretive translation by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi)The piyyut, El Adon, in Hebrew with an interpretive “praying translation” by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalom, z”l. . . . Tags: acrostic, Alphabetic Acrostic, אל אדון el adon, Geonic prayers, ההיכלות ויורדי המרכבה haHeikhalot v'Yordei haMerkavah, heikhalot literature, interpretive translation, פיוטים piyyutim, יוצר אור yotser ohr Contributor(s): Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (translation), Unknown Author(s) and Aharon N. Varady (transcription) אֵל אָדוֹן (אשכנז) | El Adōn, a piyyut attributed to the Yordei Merkavah (alphabetic acrostic translation by Rabbi Sam Seicol)The piyyut El Adon in its nusaḥ Ashkenaz variation set side-to-side with an acrostic alphabetic translation in English. . . . תָּנוּן שְׁבָחֵיהּ | Tanun Shvaḥeih (Tell the Praise) — a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of PesaḥThis piyyut, Tanun Shvaḥeih (Tell the Praise), the eighth in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited as an introduction to the Targum of Exodus 15:18, the famous verse “Adonai yimlokh l-‘olam va-‘ed.” The English translation preserves the Hebrew acrostic of the Aramaic. . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ Many communities recite a series of poems interwoven with the Amidah on Purim. These poems, known as the “krovets,” were written by Elazar b. Rabbi Kalir, the greatest of the early paytanim. But lesser known than the krovets for Purim are the krovets for Tisha b’Av, written as well by Elazar b. Rabbi Kalir. A fine example of Elazar’s intricate poetry, the krovets for Tisha b’Av is rife with Biblical citations, finally culminating with the prayer for Jerusalem. Each stanza begins with five tightly rhymed lines beginning with a constant א followed by a quintuple half-acrostic on the second letter, then a poetic volta on the word אֵיכָה, followed by a Biblical citation, a verse starting with the last word in the citation, a letter from Elazar’s name, and a final Biblical citation. The krovets for Tisha b’Av is meant to be part of the morning service, tied into the cantorial repetition for Tisha b’Av. . . . Categories: Tishah b'Av אֲמַר קִירִיס לְמֹשֶׁה | Amar Kiris l-Mosheh, a lamentation on the death of Mosheh (SYAP 40, ca. 7th c.)Amar Kiris l-Moshe, is a midrashic narrative of Moshe going to Adam to ask why he cursed humanity with death. It’s been translated preserving the acrostic and monorhyme scheme. Taken from Sokoloff and Yahalom’s “Jewish Palestinian Aramaic Poetry from Late Antiquity,” it is presented here vocalized with an original translation. . . . Azalat Bekhita, is probably incomplete, extending only to ḥeth in known manuscripts. It features multiple people, places, and things important in Moshe’s life taking turns to eulogize him. It’s been translated preserving the acrostic and monorhyme scheme. Taken from Sokoloff and Yahalom’s Jewish Palestinian Aramaic Poetry from Late Antiquity (2018), it is presented here vocalized with an original translation. . . . אתה גאלת | Atah Ga’alta (You Redeemed Our Ancestors), a Poetic Rendition of the Blessing of Redemption in the Pesaḥ Seder (ca. 9th c.)Rav Saadia Gaon lists three additions to the Seder Pesaḥ which he considers not necessary, but acceptable. This is the third, a poetic insert of the blessing of redemption known as Ata Ga’alta. In the form of an alphabetical acrostic, this poem is still recited in many eastern communities including the Babylonians, Persians, and Yemenites, and was a feature of the the old Kaifeng rite. Here it is recorded and translated into English according to the nusaḥ of Saadia Gaon, with notes in several locations for additional phrases used in some customs. . . . Categories: Magid Tags: 47th century A.M., 9th century C.E., acrostic, Alphabetic Acrostic, Geonic prayers, Mizraḥi Jewry, Needing Source Images, Yemenite Jewry Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut) and Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation) ברכת המזון לשבועות | Birkat haMazon for Shavuot, according to the Cairo Geniza fragment T-S H6.37 vocalized and translated by Isaac Gantwerk MayerA Birkat haMazon for Shavuot presenting an alphabetic acrostic from a manuscript preserved in the Cairo Geniza. . . . Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut) and Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation) This is a poetic Birkat haMazon for Pesaḥ, from the Cairo Geniza (CUL T-S H11.88 1v). Much thanks to the work of Dr. Avi Shmidman, whose 2009 doctoral thesis is the foundational work for poetic Birkat haMazon studies. He marks it as Piyyut 64, and his Hebrew-language commentary begins on page 394 of his work. I’ve included two translations of the poetic portions — one literal and one preserving the acrostic and rhyme scheme. . . . Categories: Barekh ברכת המזון לפורים | Poetic Birkat haMazon for Purim, according to the Cairo Geniza fragment T-S H6.37 vocalized and translated by Isaac Gantwerk MayerThis is a reconstruction of a liturgy for a Birkat haMazon for Purim witnessed in the Cairo Geniza fragment T-S H6.37 (page 1, recto and verso). . . . ברכת המזון לחנוכה | Poetic Birkat haMazon for Ḥanukkah, reconstructed from multiple Cairo Geniza manuscripts by Isaac Gantwerk MayerThis is a reconstruction of a liturgy for a Birkat haMazon for Ḥanukkah witnessed in multiple Cairo Geniza manuscripts, including Cambridge, CUL: T-S H4.13; T-S H6.37; T-S 8H10.14; T-S NS 328.56; T-S NS 328.61; T-S AS 101.293; New York, JTS: ENA 2885.7; Oxford: MS heb. e.71/27 – MS heb. e.71/32; St. Peterburg: Yevr. III B 135. . . . ברכת המזון ליום הכפורים | Poetic Birkat haMazon for the break-fast meal after Yom Kippur, as found in British Library MS Or. 9772 DA poetic Birkat haMazon text for the breakfast after Yom Kippur found in British Library MS Or. 9772 D. All the opening words of the alphabetical acrostic are from Psalms 111. . . . “Elimelekh G’la” is a Byzantine-era Western Aramaic poetic retelling of the Book of Ruth. It was probably originally used as part of the liturgy for Shavuot, perhaps as a poetic addition to the recitation of a Targumic interpretation of the Book of Ruth. (The verses from Ruth and Psalms appended to the coda of the piyyuṭ would suggest such a Sitz im Leben.) But in any case, it has a great acrostic structure and rhyme scheme, and ought to be preserved! Here is included a vocalized text, largely based on the unvocalized text compiled in Jewish Palestinian Aramaic Poetry from Late Antiquity (ed. Yahalom and Sakaloff, 1999) where it’s the tenth poem recorded. ‘ve added a rhyming poetic translation that preserves the Hebrew acrostic. Credit to Laura Suzanne Lieber’s literal translations of these poems (in Jewish Aramaic Poetry from Late Antiquity: Translations and Commentaries, 2018), which have served as a very helpful resource for the project. . . . Categories: Shavuot קִילוּס לְפּוּרִים לִלְמְגִלָּה | Qillus l’Purim lil’Megillah — an enconium for Purim, for Megillat EstherA Byzantine-era Aramaic piyyut for Purim, perhaps written as an introduction to the Megillah reading. It tells the narrative of the Jewish people from Abraham to the final redemption, focusing on the foes who sought to destroy us and their inevitable failure to do so. Uniquely among early-medieval poems, this one actively mentions the Romans (read: Christians) and Saracens (read: Muslims) and prays for their downfall in non-coded language. This translation loosely preserves the couplet rhyme scheme, as well as the alphabetical acrostic — perhaps with a phonetic punning reference to the name “Shlomo” at the end. . . . Categories: Purim The popular table song for Shabbat. . . . אבלה נפשי | Avlah Nafshi (My soul mourns), a seliḥah for Tsom Gedalyah attributed to Rav Saadia Gaon (10th c.)A seliḥah for the Fast of Gedalyah, attributed to Rav Saadia Gaon. . . . Categories: Tsom Gedalyah Tags: 10th century C.E., 47th century A.M., acrostic, Alphabetic Acrostic, assassination, elegies, Prayers for leaders, קינות Ḳinōt, סליחות səliḥot Contributor(s): David Asher (translation), Saadiah ben Yosef Gaon and Aharon N. Varady (transcription) קרובות לתענית אסתר | Ḳerovot for Taanit Esther by Yosef ibn Abitur (ca. 10th c.) with other seliḥot arranged by Isaac Gantwerk MayerThe poetic genre known as qerovot, brief poems woven throughout the repetition of the weekday Amidah, is nowadays most closely associated with Elazar haḲalir’s Purim “Ḳrovetz“, a majestically interwoven piece of piyyut if ever there was one. But there are many other ḳerovot that have historically been recited, many of which were discovered in the Cairo Geniza. This set of ḳerovot, composed by the prolific Spanish paytan Yosef ibn Abitur, is meant to be included within the Shaḥarit amidah for Ta’anit Esther, the fast day before Purim. Consequently, it only goes up to the sixth blessing (the blessing for forgiveness) and concludes by leading directly into Seliḥot, which (before R. Yosef Karo’s standardization of the liturgy, and even now among some Western Ashkenazim) were inserted into the aforementioned blessing. In order to demonstrate this structure on a large scale, the editor here has compiled a full Shaḥarit repetition, nusaḥ Ashkenaz, incorporating the qerovot of Yosef ibn Abitur as well as the three seliḥot piyyutim of the Ashkenazi rite. . . . Categories: Ta'anit Esther כׇּל־שִׁׄנְאַנֵּי שַֽׁחַק | Kol Shin’anei Shaḥaq — a rahit piyyut for the second day of Rosh haShanah by Shimon bar Isaac (ca. 10th c.)A rahit (a chain piyyut before the silluq) for the second day of Rosh haShanah, by R’ Shimon bar Isaac “the Great” of Mainz. Here translated preserving the acrostic, slightly edited from its form as part of a day 2 service maḥzor designed by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer. . . . Categories: Rosh haShanah (l’Maaseh Bereshit) אָתִֽיתִי לְחַנְּנָךְ | Atiti l-Ḥan’nakh, the magen piyyut for the second day of Rosh haShanah by Shimon bar Isaac (ca. 10th c.)A magen piyyut (recited as part of the first blessing of Shaḥarit) for the second day of Rosh haShanah by Rabbi Shimon bar Isaac “the Great” of Mainz. Here translated preserving the acrostic, slightly edited from its form as part of a day 2 service maḥzor designed by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer. . . . Categories: Rosh haShanah (l’Maaseh Bereshit) אַתָּה הָאֵל עוֹשֵׂה פְלָאוֹת | Atah ha-El Oseh Fela’ot, a seliḥah for Taanit Esther by Shimon bar Isaac (ca. 10th c.)An alphabetic acrostic seliḥah piyyut for Taanit Esther in Hebrew with English translation . . . Categories: Ta'anit Esther יוֹם שַׁבָּתוֹן | Yom Shabbaton, a Shabbat song by Yehudah haLevi (interpretive translation by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi)An interpretive translation of Yehudah haLevi’s shabbat song, “Yom Shabbaton.” . . . Categories: Se'udat Yom Shabbat אַקְדָמוּת מִילִין | Aḳdamut Milin, a preface to the Targum for the Shavuot Torah Reading, attributed to Meir ben Isaac Nehorai of Orléans (ca. 11th c.)An Aramaic piyyut composed as an introduction to the reading of the Targum for the Torah reading on Shavuot. . . . Categories: Shavuot Tags: 11th century C.E., 49th century A.M., acrostic, Acrostic signature, Alphabetic Acrostic, אקדמות Aqdamut, Aramaic, בהמות behemot, פיוטים piyyutim, תרגום targum Contributor(s): Cantor Hinda Labovitz, Meir ben Isaac Nehorai of Orléans and Aharon N. Varady (transcription) אִילּוּ פּוּמֵּי נִימֵי | Ilu Pume Nima (If Our Mouths Were Thread) — an introductory a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of Pesaḥ by Meir ben Isaac Nehorai of Orléans (ca. 11th c.)This piyyut, Ilu Pume Nima (If Our Mouths Were Thread), the first in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited after the first verse of the first aliyah, as an introduction or ‘reshut’ to the seder meturgeman as a whole. . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ 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.)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). . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ אֱלָהָא עָלַם | Elaha Alam (Ageless God) — a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of Pesaḥ by Meir ben Isaac Nehorai of Orléans (ca. 11th c.)This piyyut, Elaha Alam (Ageless God), the fourth in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited after the first verse of the Song of the Sea proper as an introduction to the targum of the text. . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ אֱלָהָא תַּקִּיפָא רַבָּא וְגִבָּרָא | Elaha Taqifa (Mighty God) — a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of Pesaḥ by Yequtiel ben YosefThis piyyut, Elaha Taqifa (Mighty God), the third in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited after the concluding verse of the second aliyah (third on Shabbat). The translation preserves the alphabetical acrostic, as well as the authorial tag — Jequtiel son of Joseph. . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ אִזֵל מֹשֶׁה | Izel Mosheh (Arise, Moses) — a piyyut for the Seder Meturgeman of the 7th Day of PesaḥThis piyyut, Izel Moshe (Arise, Moses), the fifth in a series of Aramaic piyyutim from the seventh day of Pesaḥ, is meant to be recited after the second verse of the song proper, as an elaboration on God’s strength. The English translation preserves the Hebrew acrostic of the original. . . . Categories: 7th Day of Pesaḥ Ḳerovot for Tu biShvat, a celebration of Divine verdancy, which namedrops a stunning array of flora from throughout the land of Israel. . . . Categories: Rosh haShanah la-Ilanot (Tu biShvat) A piyyut presenting a dialogue between a couple and Hashem. . . . הַמַּבְדִּיל בֵּין קֹדֶשׁ לְחֹל | Hamavdil Bein Ḳodesh l’Ḥol (abridged), a piyyut attributed to Yitsḥak ben Yehudah Ibn Ghayyāth HaLevi (ca. 11th c.)The short form of the piyyut for motsei shabbat, with English translation. . . . Categories: Motsei Shabbat A piyyut by Shlomo ibn Gabirol included in the arrangement of Baqashot before the morning service in the liturgical custom of Sefaradim. . . . Categories: Morning Baqashot יוֹם הַבִּכּוּרִים | Yom ha-Bikkurim, the bikkur piyyut for the first day of Shavˁuot in the Old French and Romaniote RitesA “bikkur” piyyut traditionally added at the end of Hashkivenu for Shavˁuot in the Old French (and Maḥzor Vitry) and Romaniote rites. From the acrostic we know the author was named Yosef ben Yaˁakov. Other than that we know very little about this poem’s origin and age, although its structure fits with the early Ashkenazi piyyut oeuvre. . . . Categories: Shavuot אודך כי אנפת בי | Odekha Ki Anafta Bi, a Yotser (Hymn) for Ḥanukkah by Yosef bar Shlomo of Carcassone (ca. 11th cent.)“Odecha ki anafta bi (I give thanks to you although you were angry with me) was composed by Joseph ben Solomon of Carcassonne, who is dated to the first half of the eleventh century. This elegant and abstruse poem tells an epic tale of the Jews’ resistance to the decrees of Antiochus IV and includes accounts of both the Hasmonean bride and Judith. It bears a considerable resemblance to texts 4 and 12 of the Hanukkah midrashim[ref]See Grintz, Sefer Yehudit, pp. 205, 207–08[/ref] and this is evidence for the circulation of the joint Hasmonean daughter-Judith tales in the eleventh century, even if the surviving manuscripts of these stories are from a later date.” (Deborah Levine Gera, “The Jewish Textual Traditions” in The Sword of Judith: Judith Studies Across the Disciplines (2010).) . . . אֶזְכְּרָה מָצוֹק | Ezkerah Matsōk (“I remember the distress”), a seliḥah for the Fast of Tevet attributed to Joseph ben Samuel Bonfils (11th c.)“Ezkera Matsok” (I remember the distress) is a seliḥah in alphabetic acrostic recited on the Fast of Tevet in the Ashkenazi nusaḥ minhag Polin. . . . Categories: Asarah b'Tevet | ||
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