Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut), Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation) and Elazar ben Killir
Shared on כ״ג בניסן ה׳תשפ״א (2021-04-04) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories:  Tishah b'Av
Tags:  acrostic, פיוטים piyyutim, קינות Ḳinnot, Alphabetic Acrostic, Public Amidah, Acrostic signature, 7th century C.E., 45th century A.M., קרובות ḳerovot, עמידה amidah 
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. . . .
The piyyut, Omets G’vurotekha by Elazar ha-Qalir, in its Latin translation by Johann Stephan Rittangel. . . .
The piyyut, Omets G’vurotekha by Elazar ha-Qalir, in its Latin translation by Johann Stephan Rittangel. . . .
The piyyut, Yah Ribon, in Aramaic with an English translation. . . .
The piyyut, Yah Ribon, in Aramaic with an English translation. . . .
An alphabetic acrostic pizmon for seliḥot and Yom Kippur with an alphabetic acrostic English translation. . . .
An alphabetical acrostic piyyut celebrating the victory of Esther and Mordekhai over the forces of Haman. . . .
Ashrei, complete with introductory verses and a lost verse to complete the acrostic from the Chronicle of Gad the Seer. . . .
A Hoshana prayer supplement for Hoshana Rabbah during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic in 2020. . . .
A seliḥah for the Fast of Gedalyah, attributed to Rav Saadia Gaon. . . .
A 21st century recasting of the iconic 13th century Spanish mystical Rosh haShanah piyyut. . . .
This acrostic poetic form of Birkat haMazon was written for the se’udah mafseqet (pre-fast meal) before Yom Kippur, in the manner of the poetic Birkat haMazon variants recorded in the Cairo Geniza. . . .
This is a poetic text for Birkat haMazon, signed with an alphabetical acrostic and the name of the author, to be recited on the first of Elul. It celebrates the variety of God’s creation as exemplified by the natural diversity of species, as well as alluding to the livestock tithes traditionally assigned on the first of Elul. . . .
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. . . .
A Birkat haMazon with additions for the pre-Fast meal of Tisha b’Av . . .
An interpretive translation of a piyyut composed as an introduction to the prayer Nishmat Kol Ḥai. . . .
Contributor(s): Joseph B. Meszler (translation) and Binyamin Holtzman
Shared on ט׳ בתשרי ה׳תשע״ה (2014-10-03) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Yom Kippur
Tags: וידוי vidui, acrostic, זמן תשובה Zman teshuvah, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Alphabetic Acrostic, confession, positive self-recognition, supplemental vidui, complementary vidui, Maale Gilboa, acknowledgment, Aseret Yemei Tshuvah, ישראל Yisrael 
A complementary (positive vidui) to supplement the harsh communal and personal vidu’im (confessions) being offered during the Zman Teshuvah. . . .
Contributor(s): Avi Weiss
Shared on כ״ז באלול ה׳תשע״ו (2016-09-29) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur
Tags: וידוי vidui, acrostic, North America, זמן תשובה Zman teshuvah, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., New York, Alphabetic Acrostic, confession, Open Orthodoxy, positive self-recognition, supplemental vidui, complementary vidui 
Melissa Scholten-Gutierrez writes, “Rav Avi spoke to us a few times as he was working through [composing] this [vidui] and I am truly moved by it. Let us not only remember and confess our wrong doings, but also what we did right this year.” . . .
An Aramaic piyyut composed as an introduction to the reading of the Targum for the Torah reading on Shavuot. . . .
Contributor(s): Aharon N. Varady (translation), Moses Gaster (translation) and David ben Elazar ibn Paquda
Shared on ג׳ בסיון ה׳תש״פ (2020-05-26) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Shavuot
Tags: Nusaḥ Sefaradi, acrostic, פיוטים piyyutim, 12th century C.E., 49th century A.M., Acrostic signature, theophany, Har Sinai, Decalogue, התורה the Torah, Azharot 
A poetic introduction to the Azharot of Solomon ibn Gabirol read in the afternoon of Shavuot by Sefaradim. . . .
A Birkat haMazon for Shavuot presenting an alphabetic acrostic from a manuscript preserved in the Cairo Geniza. . . .
Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation), Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut) and Shimon ben Yeshua ben Eliezer ben Sira
Shared on י״א בסיון ה׳תש״פ (2020-06-03) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Second Temple Period
Tags: acrostic, Alphabetic Acrostic, 2nd century B.C.E., 36th century A.M., Classical Antiquity, deuterocanonical works, Ecclesiasticus, Jews of Alexandria, Cairo Geniza, reconstructed text, Dead Sea Scrolls 
The end of the scroll of Ben Sira (Ecclesiasticus) reconstructed from Cairo Geniza fragments not contained within the Septuagint. . . .
An adaptation of the kinnah, “Eli Tsiyon v’Ar’eha,” Composed for Tisha B’Av 5780 in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. . . .
A piyyut by Shlomo ibn Gabirol included in the arrangement of Baqashot before the morning service in the liturgical custom of Sefaradim. . . .
A popular piyyut for all occasions by Avraham ibn Ezra. . . .
A variation of the piyyut “Yedid Nefesh” in Hebrew with English translation. . . .
A variation of the piyyut “Yedid Nefesh” in Hebrew with English translation. . . .
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A translation of the piyyut, Anim Zemirot. . . .
One of the most well-known of the kinot (liturgical poems for mourning), Eli Tsiyon v’Areha is an alphabetical acrostic describing the destruction of Jerusalem. It is recited towards the conclusion of ḳinot, due to the hopeful note in the comparison of Zion to a woman about to give birth, thought by many to be a messianic reference. The author of the work is unknown. . . .
Contributor(s): Zalman Schachter-Shalomi and Unknown Author(s)
Shared on כ״ה בתשרי ה׳תשע״ח (2017-10-15) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Dying, Birkhot haShaḥar, Slavery & Captivity
Tags: interpretive translation, acrostic, Jewish Renewal, פיוטים piyyutim, Philadelphia, אנא בכח Ana b'Khoaḥ, singing translation, 42 letter divine name, Divine name acrostic, devotional interpretation 
The most well-known 42 letter divine name acrostic piyyut. . . .
The text of the short prayer Shokhen Ad in Hebrew with a Latin translation. . . .
The text of the short prayer uv’Maqhalōt in Hebrew with a Latin translation. . . .
Contributor(s): Rabbi Sam Seicol, the Masoretic Text and David haMelekh ben Yishai (traditional attribution)
Shared on י״ז באב ה׳תשע״ז (2017-08-09) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Daily Hallel, Psukei D'zimrah/Zemirot, Ashrei, Tehilim Book 5 (Psalms 107–150)
Tags: תהלים Psalms, acrostic, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Psalms 145, אשרי Ashrei, Alphabetic Acrostic, Acrostic translation 
A modern translation of the Ashrei in alphabetic parallel to the Hebrew. . . .
Psalms 111, an alphabetic acrostic translated into English by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer. . . .
Psalms 112 in Hebrew with English translation, arranged by Aharon Varady. . . .
A pizmon recited on the Fast of Tevet in the tradition of nusaḥ Ashkenaz. . . .
“Ezkera Matsok” (I remember the distress) is a seliḥah in alphabetic acrostic recited on the Fast of Tevet in the Ashkenazi nusaḥ minhag Polin. . . .
Contributor(s): Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman
Shared on ז׳ באדר ה׳תשפ״א (2021-02-18) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Daily Hallel, Psukei D'zimrah/Zemirot, Ashrei
Tags: תהלים Psalms, acrostic, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Psalms 145, אשרי Ashrei, Alphabetic Acrostic, English vernacular prayer, affirmation, shame resilience, Acrostic translation 
A paraliturgical reflection of Ashrei for a shame resilience practice. . . .
Contributor(s): Aharon N. Varady (transcription), Masorti Movement in Israel and Unknown Author(s)
Shared on כ״ה באלול ה׳תש״פ (2020-09-14) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Yom Kippur, Seliḥot
Tags: Nusaḥ Sefaradi, סליחות seliḥot, acrostic, זמן תשובה Zman teshuvah, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Alphabetic Acrostic, pizmonim, אדון הסליחות Adon haSeliḥot 
A pizmon in the nusaḥ hasepharadim recited at Seliḥot during the monh of Elul and Yom Kippur. . . .
The Al Cheyt (literally meaning “For the sin…”) is a confessional litany recited on Yom Kippur. It is an alphabetical acrostic; each one of its verses starting with a successive letter of the aleph-beit, to represent not only the moral failings that are specifically enumerated there, but the fullness of every way in which we missed the mark in the previous year. . . .
Psalm 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. . . .
Contributor(s): Peri Sinclair and Alex Sinclair
Shared on ז׳ בשבט ה׳תשע״ב (2012-01-30) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Mishlei (Proverbs), Se'udat Leil Shabbat
Tags: Feminism, love, eros, acrostic, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Alphabetic Acrostic, Masorti, Eyshet Ḥayil, Modi'in, ישראל Yisrael 
Peri and Alex Sinclair’s adaptation of the traditional Eishet Ḥayil, replacing a number of verses with ones selected from Shir haShirim (the Song of Songs/Canticles), Genesis, and elsewhere in Mishlei (Proverbs). . . .
A zemirah for havdallah by an otherwise unknown rabbinic payyetan known only by his signature acrostic. . . .
A supplemental hoshana (prayer for salvation) for healing and consolation for the sake of true love, needed blessings, rainfall in a timely fashion, paths and their repair, mountains and their crossing, goals and objectives, lasting memories, good dreams, cosmic goodness, etc. . . .
Emunim ʿIrkhu Shevaḥ is a brief piyyut recited in North African communities in Rabban Gamliel’s list, between Pesaḥ and Maror. It spells out “Aaron the Priest” as an alphabetical acrostic, but it is uncertain whether this is an authorial signature or a mystical reference to the Biblical figure. . . .
A (kosher-for-Passover) prayer for redemption from exile. . . .
Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut), Aharon N. Varady (transcription), Abe Katz (translation) and Isaac Goldstein
Shared on י״ח בשבט ה׳תשע״ב (2012-02-11) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Lincoln's Birthday (February 12th)
Tags: 19th century C.E., United States, acrostic, Presidents Day, emancipation, קינות Ḳinnot, civil rights, 57th century A.M., Memorial prayers, Abraham Lincoln, American Jewry of the United States, Prayers for leaders, elegies 
Exalted are you Lincoln. Who is like you! You were highly respected among Kings and Princes. All that you accomplished you did with a humble spirit. You are singular and cannot be compared to anyone else. Who among the great are like Lincoln? Who can be praised like you? . . .
Contributor(s): Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Elazar ben Moshe Azikri and Unknown Author(s)
Shared on כ׳ במרחשון ה׳תשע״ה (2014-11-13) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Kabbalat Shabbat, Birkhot haShaḥar
Tags: 20th century C.E., interpretive translation, acrostic, Jewish Renewal, פיוטים piyyutim, בקשות Baqashot, פתיחות Petiḥot, ידיד נפש Yedid Nefesh, 15th century C.E., ecoḥasid, Divine name acrostic, 52nd century A.M. 
Yedid Nefesh is a piyyut of uncertain authorship. Rabbi Elazar Moshe Azikri (1533-1600) included the piyyut in his Sefer Haḥaredim (1588). (The images below are of pages with Yedid Nefesh handwritten by Azikri.) A version of the piyyut “with noteworthy text, spelling and pointing” may be found on folio 146 (verso) of Samuel b. David b. Solomon’s Commentary On the Book of Numbers (ca. 1437 CE, see Stefan C. Reif, The Hebrew Manuscripts at Cambridge University Libraries: A Description and Introduction Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997, page 93). Presumably, this text was added to the 15th century manuscript sometime in the 17th century after the popularization of Yedid Nefesh. The piyyut has since appeared with a number of variations in various siddurim. . . .
The piyyut, El Adon, in Hebrew with an interpretive “praying translation” by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalom, z”l. . . .
A “praying translation” of the piyyut, Anim Zemirot. . . .
An interpretive translation in English of the shabbes hymn Yom Zeh l’Yisrael. . . .
An interpretive translation of Yehudah haLevi’s shabbat song, “Yom Shabbaton.” . . .
Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut), Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation) and Yehudah ben Hillel haLevi
Shared on י״ח בטבת ה׳תשפ״א (2021-01-02) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Rosh haShanah la-Ilanot (Tu biShvat)
Tags: Nusaḥ Erets Yisrael, acrostic, פיוטים piyyutim, Alphabetic Acrostic, Public Amidah, 11th century C.E., 49th century A.M., Cairo Geniza, קרובות ḳerovot, ethnobotany, עמידה amidah 
Ḳerovot for Tu biShvat, a celebration of Divine verdancy, which namedrops a stunning array of flora from throughout the land of Israel. . . .
Contributor(s): Aharon N. Varady and Unknown Author(s)
Shared on כ״ב באייר ה׳תשע״ב (2012-05-14) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Pesaḥ, Ḥanukkah, Shavuot, Tehilim Book 2 (Psalms 42–72), Shabbat, Sukkot, Sefirat ha'Omer, Slavery & Captivity
Tags: acrostic, labyrinth, cyclical, barley, wheat, first fruits, anxiety, Psalms 67, Raḥav, shalmah, a red ribbon, walled cities, captives, אנא בכח Ana b'Khoaḥ, 42 letter divine name, Divine name acrostic
Psalm 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 Psalm 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. . . .
A piyyut providing the 42 letter divine name as an acrostic, recorded in the work of Rabbi Isaiah Horowitz. . . .
A litany of angelic names recorded in Sefer haPeliah whose initial letters spells out the 42 letter divine name as also found (in variation) in Sefer HaQanah. . . .
A litany of angelic names recorded in Sefer HaQanah, whose initial letters spells out the 42 letter divine name as also found in Sefer haPeliah. . . .
Contributor(s): Aharon N. Varady (translation), Nir Krakauer (translation) and Unknown Author(s)
Shared on ט׳ בטבת ה׳תשע״ט (2018-12-16) — under the following terms: Public Domain (17 U.S. Code §105 - Subject matter of copyright: United States Government works)
Categories: Dying, Imminent Communal Danger & Distress
Tags: acrostic, פיוטים piyyutim, protection, 42 letter divine name, Divine name acrostic, Byzantium, 14th century C.E., Prayers of redress, apotropaic prayers of protection, 52nd century A.M., ספר הפליאה Sefer haPeliah 
The earliest recorded prayer or piyyut providing an acrostic for the 42 letter divine name. . . .
Contributor(s): Aharon N. Varady (transcription), Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut), Johann Stephan Rittangel (Latin translation) and Unknown Author(s)
Shared on ח׳ בניסן ה׳תשפ״א (2021-03-20) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Nirtsah
Tags: זמירות zemirot, acrostic, פיוטים piyyutim, 13th century C.E., 51st century A.M., Alphabetic Acrostic, נרצה Nirtsah, Latin translation, אדיר במלוכה Adir Bimlukhah 
The text of the popular piyyut “Adir Bimlukhah” (a/k/a “Ki lo na’eh”) in Hebrew, with a Latin translation. . . .
The alphabetic acrostic piyyut, Adir Hu, in its Latin translation by Johann Stephan Rittangel as found in his translation of the Pesaḥ seder haggadah, Liber Rituum Paschalium (1644). . . .
Psalms 145 in Hebrew with English translation. . . .
The mystical piyyut of Avraham Maimin, a student of Moshe Cordovero, translated by Len Fellman. . . .
Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer
Shared on ו׳ בניסן ה׳תשפ״א (2021-03-18) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Symbolic Foods, Shulḥan Orekh
Tags: 20th century C.E., acrostic, symbolic foods, 58th century A.M., סגולות segulot, סימנים simanim, haggadah supplements, diaspora, Maxwell House coffee, mnemonic 
Why is this coffee different from all other coffees? Because Maxwell House coffee is a deeply spiritual representation of the Diaspora experience. . . .
A song for celebrating the Shabbat. . . .
A popular piyyut for Simḥat Torah (4th hakkafah) originally composed as a piyyut for Shavuot and often referred to by its incipit, “Mipi El.” . . .
Contributor(s): Aharon N. Varady (transcription), Abe Katz (translation) and Ḳ.Ḳ. Beit Shalome
Shared on כ״ז בשבט ה׳תשע״ב (2012-02-19) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Government & Country, Inauguration Day (January 20th), Washington's Birthday (3rd Monday of February)
Tags: United States, acrostic, Presidents Day, 56th century A.M., 18th Century C.E., Western Sepharadim, George Washington, American Jewry of the United States, Prayers for leaders 
The following prayer for the government was composed by Congregation Beth Shalome in Richmond, Virginia in 1789. Please note the acrostic portion of the prayer in which the initial letters of the succeeding lines form the name: Washington. . . .
Contributor(s): Aharon N. Varady (transcription), Paltiel Birnbaum (translation), Eden Pearlstein and Shir Yaakov Feinstein-Feit
Shared on כ״ז בכסלו ה׳תשע״ו (2015-12-08) — under the following terms: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license
Categories: Art & Craft, Yotser Ohr
Tags: hip hop, acrostic, Aleph-Bet, animation, otiyot, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., Alphabetic Acrostic, Prayers as poems, English piyyutim, Sefer Yetsirah, אל ברוך El Barukh, rap, יוצר אור yotser ohr 
A song by Darshan including the alphabetic acrostic piyyut, El Barukh, part of the morning Yotser Ohr blessing made prior to the Shema at the official beginning of the Shaḥarit service. . . .
A piyyut for an under-recognized holiday, Pesaḥ Sheni, the festival of second chances (as described in Numbers 9:6-13 and Mishnah Pesaḥim 9:1-3. I attempted to write this in the manner of a traditional piyyut. The meter is equivalent to the Shabbat zamir “Ot Hi l’Olmei Ad.” The Hebrew spells out Yod – Tzadi – Ḥet – Kuf, because that’s my name. The translation is original, along with the notes. . . .
An early printing of the 42 divine name letter acrostic piyyut, Ana b’Khoaḥ. . . .
Supplemental prayers for the Birkat Hamazon on Tisha b’Av, Tu b’Av, and Shabbat Naḥamu by Gabriel Wasserman . . .
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. . . .
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