There is a story about a young shepherd who joined his ...
Transcript of There is a story about a young shepherd who joined his ...
There is a story about a young shepherd who joined his father for the
Rosh Hashanah prayers. The young boy did not know how to read and
write and could not read the prayers from the siddur. When everyone
prayed silently he turned to God and said I do not know how to read the
prayers so I will pray in the only way I know. He took out his flute and
started playing, pouring his heart into the music. The people around him
got very upset and his father was very embarrassed and they were all
ready to throw the boy out of the synagogue. The rabbi stood up and
silenced them. He said that the tune that came from the boy’s heart went
straight to the heavenly throne. It is thanks to the pure prayer of this boy
that we will have a good year.
In the tractate of Keritot page 6a in the Babylonian Talmud it
is said Said Abaye: Since you hold that
symbols are meaningful, every man should make it a habit to
eat on New Year pumpkin, fenugreek, leek, beet and dates.
The seder of Rosh Hashana, is a beautiful tradition. We bless
the new year using different simanim symbols. Each symbol
represents a wish for the new year. The simanim are made of
different kinds of food that symbolize one of our wishes or
sound like something we wish for. The fruits of shivat ha
minim the seven species are the stars of the seder.
Over the generations many traditions emerged depending on
the local food. Feel free to come up with your own wishes
based on sounds or symbols. It is a great opportunity to
involve children and guests with original ideas for blessings
for the new year.
Shana Tova
According to the
tradition there are 613
Seeds in the Rimon just
Like the mitzvot.
What do you think?
Try to count them…
Fish is one of symbols of the
zodiac. We wish to multiply like
fish. Some people eat a head of a
fish and wish to be the head and not the tail
a land of wheat and barley, and vines and
fig-trees and pomegranates; a land of olive-trees and honey .
The date is one of the seven species that
are mentioned in the Torah in regards to
Israel. The rabbis said that the word Honey in the verse is a date.
What else can we use a palm tree
for?Hint: Sukkot