תְּפִלַּת הַדֶּרֶךְ לְצֶוֶת הַצּוֹלְלוֹת | Traveler's Prayer for a Submarine Crew, by Rabbi Shlomo Goren (IDF, 1963)

Source Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=43456

Date: 2022-03-26

Last Updated: 2025-02-18

Categories: Travel, Military Personnel & Veterans

Tags: 20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., ocean, prayers on ships, מדינת ישראל Medinat Yisrael, צה״ל IDF, תפילת הדרך tefilat haderekh

Excerpt: "Tefilat haDerekh l'Tsevet haTsolelot," a prayer by Rabbi Shlomo Goren for missions of submariners in the service of the IDF was first published in his Siddur Tefilot l’Ḥayyal (p. 76 in the 1963 printing). . . .

Content:

Source (Hebrew)	Translation (English)
יְהִי רָצוֹן מִלְּפָנֶיךָ יְיָ אֱלֹהֵינוּ וְאלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתֵינוּ הַנּוֹתֵן בַּיָם דֶּרֶךְ וּבְמַיִם עַזִּים נְתִיבָה (ישעיה מג:טז חלק) שֶׁתַּצְלִילֵנוּ לְשָׁלוֹם וְתוֹלִיכֵנוּ לְשָׁלוֹם וְתַעֲלֵנוּ לְשָׁלוֹם וְתַגִּיעֵנוּ לִמְחוֹז חֶפְצֵנוּ לְחַיִּים וּלְשָׁלוֹם.	May it be your will, Hashem our elo’ah and elo’ah of our ancestors who provides a pathway through the seas and a passage through rough waters (Isaiah 43:16 part) that you guide us to peace, direct us to peace, return us in peace and allow us to safely reach our destination joyously and in peace.
בָּאנוּ בְמַעֲמַקֵּי מַיִם, אֲפָפוּנוּ מַיִם עַד נֶפֶשׁ, תְּהוֹם יְסוֹבְבֵנוּ, כׇּל מִשְׁבָּרֶיךָ וְגַלֶּיךָ עָלֵינוּ עָבָרוּ, (ראה תהלים מב:ח) אַל תִּשְׁטְפֵנוּ שִׁבֹּלֶת מַיִם וְאַל תִּבְלָעֵנוּ מְצוּלָה וְאַל תֶּאְטַר עָלֵינוּ בְּאֵר פִּיהָ. (תהלים סט:טז)	We have entered the depths of the sea. We are completely surrounded by water. The depths of the sea surround us. All your waves and your swells pass over us. (cf. Psalms 42:8) May a torrent of water not wash us away. May the deep water not swallow us; may the mouth of the abyss not close over us. (Psalms 69:16)
הוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ אֱלֹהִים וְתַצִּילֵנוּ מִכַּף כׇּל אוֹיֵב וְאוֹרֵב בִּמְצוּלוֹת יָם וּבָּאֲוִיר וּמִכׇּל מִינֵי תַּקָּלוֹת וּמִמִּינֵי פֻרְעָנוּיוֹת הַמִּתְרַגְּשׁוֹת לָבֹא. חַזְּקֵנוּ וְאַמְּצֵנוּ לְהָגֵן עַל נְתִיבֵי הַיָּם וּמַעֲבְרוֹתָיו,	Save us, Elohim, and rescue us from the grasp of all our enemies those who ambush from the depths or from the air and from all kinds of possible mishaps and from any accidents that might befall us. Strengthen and encourage us to defend our way through the sea and its channels.
וְתַעַטְּרֵנוּ בְּמָגֵן יְשׁוּעָה וּבַעֲטֶרֶת נִצָּחוֹן וְתִשְׁלַח בְּרָכָה וְהַצְלָחָה בְּמַעֲשֵׂה־יָדֵינוּ כִּי אַתָּה שׁוֹמֵעַ תְּפִלַּת עַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּרַחֲמִים, בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ שׁוֹמֵעַ תְּפִלָּה.	Adorn us with shield and salvation and with the laurel wreath of victory and send a blessing and success in our endeavors because you listen to the prayers of your people, Yisrael, with compassion. Blessed are you Hashem who listens to prayer.

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“Tefilat haDerekh l’Tsevet haTsolelot,” a prayer by Rabbi Shlomo Goren for missions of submariners in the service of the IDF was first published in his Siddur Tefilot l’Ḥayyal (p. 76 in the 1963 printing). The earliest edition of the siddur that we have seen is from 1963 but there may be an earlier publication of this prayer. (If you know, please leave a comment or contact us.)

Abe Katz prepared a working draft of this prayer (shared over the Passages of Rite Facebook group), which I edited. –Aharon Varady

Source(s)

 

Contributor: Abe Katz (translation)

Co-authors:

• 
  Name: Abe Katz (translation)
  Bio: Abe Katz is the director of the Burei HaTefila Institute. The Beurei Hatefila Institute was established in order to encourage the study of the words of the Siddur as a Jewish text in Jewish schools. To assist educators developing courses on Tefila, the Institute publishes a weekly e-mail newsletter in which it traces the sources for the words and structure of the prayers within the Siddur. These and other resources can be downloaded on PDF from the Burei HaTefila Institute website.

  Mr. Katz is also available to teach courses on Tefila at your synagogue or Jewish Community Center and as a scholar-in-residence. He is available to meet with school administrators to assist them in establishing a course in Beurei Hatefila at their schools and to train teachers on using Hebrew-English word processing and Judaic libraries on CD-ROM.
  Website: http://www.beureihatefila.com/
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/abe-katz

• 
  Name: Shlomo Goren
  Bio: Shlomo Goren (Hebrew: שלמה גורן) (February 3, 1917 – October 29, 1994), was an Orthodox Religious Zionist rabbi in Israel, a Talmudic scholar and foremost authority on Jewish law. Following the establishment of the State of Israel, Goren was appointed Chief Rabbi of the Military Rabbinate of the IDF with the rank of Major-General, a position he held until 1968 when he was chosen as Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv. Later he served as the third Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel from 1973 to 1983, after which he established a yeshiva in Jerusalem, which he headed until his death. He served in the Israel Defense Forces during three wars, wrote several award-winning books on Jewish law. (via wikipedia)
  Website:
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/shlomo-goren
• 
  Name: Tsva ha-Haganah l'Yisrael
  Bio: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; Hebrew: צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל Tsva ha-Haganah l'Yisrael, lit. 'The Army of Defense for Israel'), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym Tsahal (צה״ל), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and the Israeli Navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security apparatus, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel. The IDF is headed by the Chief of the General Staff, who is subordinate to the Israeli Defense Minister.
  Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_Defense_Forces
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/tsva-hahaganah-lyisrael
• 
  Name: Aharon N. Varady (transcription)
  Bio: 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.)
  Website: https://aharon.varady.net
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/aharon-varady-transcription

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