A
Additional Prayer (Musaf): Hebrew, Musaf. Musaf was originally an additional sacrifice on the Sabbath and holidays. Later, as its substitute, it became an additional prayer service recited after the general Morning Prayer.
Aher: see Elisha ben Abuya.
Akiba: leading Palestinian teacher of the second century C.E.
All Vows: see Kol Nidre.
Amora, pl. Amoraim: talmudic sage quoted in the Gemara.
B
Badhan: master of ceremonies and merry-maker at a wedding.
Bar Mitzvah ("son of commandment"): upon the completion of the thirteenth year, a boy accepts the responsibility of fulfilling the religious law. This event is festively celebrated.
Benediction of Sanctification (Kiddush): benediction pronounced over the wine at the commencement of the Sabbath and holidays.
Benediction of Separation (Havdalah): "separation" of the holy and the profane. Benediction pronounced over the wine, spices, and the light at the conclusion of the Sabbath and holidays.
Blessing of the New Moon: outdoor benediction service on the appearance of the new moon, which marks the beginning of a month according to the Hebrew calendar.
Book of the Angel Raziel: a kabbalistic work.
Book of Splendor: the book Zohar, the foremost work of Jewish mysticism, composed in Aramaic as a commentary on the Pentateuch in the thirteenth century.
Breaking of the Vessels: see Sparks.
Breastplate of Judgment (Hoshen Mishpat): one of the four parts of the Shulhan Arukh, the authoritative code of Jewish law.
C
Counting of the Fifty Days: see Lev. 23:15.
Curtain: the Talmud (Hagigah 12b) speaks of seven heavens and their names and functions. The curtain is the lowest heaven.
D
Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur): the last of the "Ten Days of Turning" and repentance, which commence with the New Year. It is a day of fasting and uninterrupted prayer for atonement.
Days of Awe: the New Year's days and the Day of Atonement.
Divine Chariot (Merkavah): a mystical interpretation of Ezekiel's vision (Ezek. 1), the basis of kabbalistic theosophy.
Divine Presence: see Shekhinah.
E
Eighteen Benedictions: one of the oldest parts of liturgy, occurring in the regular prayer service. After silent recitation by the worshippers, it is repeated aloud by the reader.
Elijah: after ascent to heaven, the prophet Elijah, according to legend, continued to help and instruct the world of man in the function of a messenger of God. Especially, Elijah appears at every feast of circumcision and at every Seder celebration. To behold Elijah and to receive instruction from Elijah are considered an initiation into the mysteries of the Torah.
Elisha: the disciple and successor of Elijah the prophet.
Elisha ben Abuya: talmudic sage, teacher of Rabbi Meir. Under the influence of foreign, probably Gnostic teachings, Elisha deserted pharisaic Judaism, hence is called Aher, "the other."
Elohim: name of God, in rabbinical literature interpreted as referring to the divine attribute of rigor. See Mercy-Rigor.
Elul: the month preceding the Days of Awe and the days of heavenly judgment. It is devoted to inner preparation and self-examination.
Emden, Jacob: rabbi in Germany, Emden and Altona, eighteenth century.
Escort of the Sabbath Queen: the meal taken after the departure of the Sabbath. This meal is understood as bidding farewell to the Sabbath Queen. It "escorts" the Queen away. It is also called "the feast of King David." According to the legend, David was told by God that David would die on a Sabbath and therefore feasted after every Sabbath in celebration of continued living.
Evil Urge: the inclination to evil, which is opposed to the inclination to good. It is not considered evil per se, but as a power abused by human beings. It is rather the passion from which all human action originates. Man is called upon to serve God "with both inclinations," directing passion toward the good and the holy.
Exilarch (Resh Galuta): title of the head of the autonomous Jewish community in the Babylonian diaspora, an especially active office in the period between the seventh and the eleventh centuries.
Exile Festival: the three festivals of Passover, Feast of Weeks, and Feast of Booths are observed in the countries of the Diaspora one day longer than in Palestine. The additional day of observance is called Exile Festival.
Ezra the Scribe: leader of Palestinian Jewry in the fifth century B.C.E. Ezra's institutions and ordinances greatly influenced the development of traditional Judaism.
F
Feast of Booths (Sukkot): tabernacles, an eight-day holiday beginning on the fifth day after the Day of Atonement. It commemorates the wandering in the desert. During this period, houses are abandoned and the people live in booths covered with leaves.
Feast of Weeks (Shavuot): a two-day holiday, in Palestine one day, seven weeks after Passover. It is the feast of the first fruits and a season dedicated to the memory of the revelation on Mount Sinai. Pious Jews stay awake at night to read and study holy writings.
First Gate (Baba Kamma): a talmudic tractate.
G
Galut: the dispersion of Israel. According to Jewish tradition, the Divine Presence takes part in the sufferings of exile and also waits for redemption.
Gemara ("completion"): part of the Talmud which consists of discussions of the Mishnah.
Glory and Faithfulness: ancient mystical hymn recited by many hasidim among the prayers on Sabbath morning.
Great Assembly (Keneset ha-Gedolah): legislative body in Palestine at the time of the Second Temple.
Great Prayer of Salvation: chanted on Hoshana Rabba ("The Great Salvation"), observed on the seventh day of the Feast of Booths.
Great Sabbath: the Sabbath which precedes Passover.
H
Haggadah ("narrative"): usually Haggadah shel Pesah, the collection of sayings, scriptural interpretations, and hymns pertaining to the exodus from Egypt, as recited in the home service on Passover night. See Seder.
Hallel ("praise"): a group of psalms recited in the prayer service at certain festivals.
Hanukkah ("dedication"): an eight-day holiday beginning on the twenty-fifth day of Kislev, November or December, and commemorating the rededication of the Temple by the Maccabees in 167 B.C.E. and their victory over the Syrian Greeks who had desecrated it. In remembrance of the Maccabean Feast of Lights, candles are lighted in Jewish homes on each of the eight evenings, one candle the first evening, two the second, and so on.
Hidden Zaddik: see Thirty-Six Hidden Zaddikim.
Hillel and Shammai: Palestinian teachers and founders of schools in the first century B.C.E.
Holy Brotherhood (Hevra Kaddisha, "holy society"): its members devote themselves to the burial of the dead.
Hoshanot: prayers for help and salvation during the Feast of Booths.
House of Life: cemetery.
House of Study (Bet ha-Midrash): usually identical with the House of Prayer. It is a place of learning and worship. Travelers without lodgings are put up in the House of Study.
I
Immersion: the ancient bath which, in the Kabbalah and especially among the hasidim, became an important ceremony with mystical meanings of its own. Immersion in a river or stream is higher in value than the ordinary ritual bath.
J–K
Journey (to the zaddik): see Travel.
Kavvanah, pl. Kavvanot: mystical meaning of scriptural phrases, prayers, or religious acts, and also the concentration on this meaning. It is the direction of the heart toward God while performing a religious deed. In Jewish mysticism, kavvanot also denote the permutations of the divine name that aim at overcoming the separation of the forces in the Upper World.
Kol Nidre ("All Vows"): the initial words in the solemn formula of absolution from unfulfilled and unfulfillable vows, pronounced on the eve of the Day of Atonement.
L
Lamentations at Midnight: the pious are accustomed to rise at midnight from their beds, sit down on the floor without shoes, put ashes on the forehead, and read lamentations on the fall of Zion and prayers for redemption.
Luria, Isaac: Safed, Palestine, sixteenth century. The outstanding representative of later Kabbalah.
M
Meir: talmudic sage of Palestine, second century. Post-talmudic legend describes Rabbi Meir as a miracle-worker.
Mercy-Rigor: the chief attributes of God.
Messiah Son of Joseph: a Messiah who will prepare the way, gathering Israel together and re-establishing the kingdom, and who will then fall in a war against the Romans led by Armilus. Another tradition holds that this Messiah reappears from generation to generation.
Metatron: name of an angel mentioned in talmudic and kabbalistic literature. Among other functions, Metatron mediates between God and the material world. Metatron is referred to as the Prince of the Divine Face, or the Prince of the Innermost Chamber.
Midrash, pl. Midrashim ("exposition, interpretation"): books of the talmudic and post-talmudic times devoted to the homiletic exegesis of the Scriptures. They are rich in legends, parables, similes, and sayings.
Miriam's Well: due to the merits of Miriam, sister of Moses and Aaron, a well, according to a talmudic legend, accompanied the children of Israel through the desert. See Taanit 9a.
Mishnah ("repetition, teaching"): the earliest and basic part of the Talmud.
Mitnaged, pl. Mitnagdim ("opponent, antagonist"): the avowed opponents of hasidism.
Moses ben Maimon: Maimonides, born 1135 in Cordova, died 1204 in Cairo. Foremost Jewish thinker of the Middle Ages.
N
New Moon: see Blessing of the New Moon.
New Year's Day (Rosh ha-Shanah): observed on the first and second day of Tishri, September or October, the days of judgment.
New Year of the Trees: observed on the fifteenth day of Shevat, January or February. Arbor Day.
Ninth Day of Av (Tishah be-Av): Av, July or August. A day of fasting and mourning in memory of the destruction of the first Temple by Nebuchadnezzar and the second Temple by Titus. The worshippers sit, like mourners of the dead, without shoes, on the floor of the darkened House of Prayer and recite the Book of Lamentations. According to tradition, the Messiah was born on the Ninth Day of Av and will reappear on that day.
Notes of Request (kvittel, in Yiddish): addressed to the zaddik, written on slips of paper containing the name of the supplicant, the name of the supplicant's mother, and the request.
P
Passover (Pesah, "passing over," that is, the sparing of the houses of the children of Israel): an eight-day holiday, in Palestine seven days, beginning on the fifteenth day of Nisan, March or April, and commemorating the exodus from Egypt.
Path of Life (Orah Hayyim): one of the four parts of the Shulhan Arukh, the authoritative code of Jewish law.
Penitential Prayers (Selihot): prayers recited especially on the days preceding the New Year's days, in the period between these and the Day of Atonement, and on the latter day itself.
Phylacteries (tefillin): leather cubicles containing scriptural texts inscribed on parchment. Following the commandment in Deut. 11:18, tefillin are attached to the left arm and the head during the weekday morning service. They are a sign of the covenant between God and Israel. An error in the written text disqualifies the phylacteries. There is a talmudic conception (Berakhot 6a) of the phylacteries of God, which are said to contain the verse II Sam. 7:23.
Prayer of Benedictions: central prayer in the synagogue service. See also Eighteen Benedictions.
Prayer Shawl (tallit): a rectangular shawl worn at prayers. Its four corners have fringes (tzitzit) attached.
Presence of God: see Shekhinah.
Principles of Faith: a section of the Morning Prayer arranged according to the formulation of the articles of Jewish creed by Moses ben Maimon, Maimonides, in the twelfth century.
Q
Quorum (minyan): the minimum of ten males, all past thirteen years of age, required for community prayer.
R
Ram's Horn (shofar): sounded in the synagogue, principally on the New Year. A blast on the ram's horn will announce the coming of the Messiah.
Rashi: abbreviation for Rabbi Solomon ben Isaac of Troyes, the classical commentator on the Bible and the Babylonian Talmud, died 1105.
Rav ("master, teacher"): the leader of the religious community. The rav teaches the law and, as the head of the law court, supervises its fulfillment, whereas rabbi, in most cases, denotes the leader of the local hasidic group. In some instances the rabbi, also called zaddik, was in addition the rav of the town.
Reader of Prayers (Hazan, Baal Tefillah): the man who, standing in front of the Ark or the reader's desk, leads the congregation in the synagogue worship. Cantor.
Rejoicing in the Law (Simhat Torah): feast on the day following the Feast of Booths. The Torah scrolls are taken out of the Ark and are carried through the House of Prayer in a festive procession.
Rigor: see Mercy-Rigor.
Ritual Bath: see Immersion.
S
Sabbatai Zevi: born in Smyrna, Turkey, in 1626. Proclaimed self Messiah and became the central figure of the greatest messianic movement in the history of the Diaspora. The movement broke down, and Sabbatai Zevi embraced Islam.
Sabbath of Song (Shabbat Shirah): the Sabbath on which the song of the Israelites at the Red Sea is sung. See Exod. 15.
Sabbath of Turning (Shabbat Shuvah): the Sabbath within the Ten Days of Turning between New Year's Day and the Day of Atonement.
Sabbatians: followers of Sabbatai Zevi.
Sammael: post-biblical name for Satan, the prince of demons.
Sanctification of the Name of God: designates every sacrificial act of man. By it man participates in the establishment of the kingdom of God on earth. The death of a martyr is the highest instance of Sanctification of the Name.
Saying Torah: at the communal meal with the hasidim, the zaddik delivers a discourse on a topic of hasidic teachings, usually based on a scriptural passage.
Section of Songs (Perek Shirah): a compilation of scriptural verses which, it is said, are recited by all kinds of living creatures in praise of God, each one speaking a particular verse.
Seder ("order"): the festival meal and home service on the first and second night of Passover, in Palestine only the first. In this celebration, each succeeding generation identifies itself anew with the generation that went out of Egypt. See Haggadah.
Sefirot: the mystical and organically related hierarchy of the ten creative powers emanating from God, constituting, according to the kabbalistic system, the foundation of the existence of the worlds.
Seven Benedictions: recited at weddings, and after Grace on the seven days following, if new guests are present.
Seven Days of the Feast: observed after the wedding day.
Seven Shepherds: the three patriarchs, together with Joseph, Moses, Aaron, and David, who are greeted by the pious as guests in the holiday booths during the Feast of Booths.
Shammai: see Hillel and Shammai.
Shekhinah ("indwelling"): divine hypostasis indwelling in the world and sharing the exile of Israel. Divine Presence among men.
Son of Commandment: see Bar Mitzvah.
Sparks: according to the Kabbalah, in the primeval creation preceding the creation of our world, the divine light-substance burst and the sparks fell into the lower depths, filling the shells of the things and creatures of our world.
T
Tanna, pl. Tannaim ("repeater, teacher"): the masters of the Mishnah.
Tent of Meeting (Ohel Moed; Mishkan): the portable sanctuary, Tabernacle, built by Bezalel for the Israelites when they were in the desert. See Exod. 26–27 and 35–38.
Third Meal: the principal meal of the Sabbath, eaten after the Afternoon Prayer and accompanied by community singing and an address by the zaddik.
Thirty-Six Hidden Zaddikim: the Talmud (Sukkah 45b) speaks of the thirty-six pious men who welcome the presence of God every day. In later legends they are described as humble, unrecognized saints. Disguised as peasants, artisans, or porters, they go around doing good deeds. They constitute the true foundation of the world.
Torah: teaching, law, both the written, biblical, and the oral, traditional, law.
Tosefta ("addition"): a collection of laws closely related to the Mishnah and supplementing it.
Travel (to the zaddik): to become a follower of a zaddik, to receive the teachings, and to visit the zaddik from time to time.
Turning (Teshuvah, usually "repentance"): man's turning from aberrations to the way of God. It is interpreted as the fundamental act by which man contributes to redemption.
U–Z
Unification: the overcoming of the separation of forces and principles in the Divine Realm, the accomplishment of which is attempted by man through religious action and sacred ceremonies.
Unleavened Bread (matzah): eaten during the week of Passover.
World of Confusion (Olam ha-Tohu): the realm in which souls exist after death before they achieve redemption.
World of Emanation: according to kabbalistic doctrine, the World of Emanation and of Divinity is the highest among the four Worlds placed between the Infinite and our earthly cosmos.
World of Illusion (Olam ha-Dimyon): a realm in which the souls of all those who died deluded by vanity stray.
YHVH: the tetragram for the name of God which, according to tradition, was not to be pronounced. Usually Adonai is substituted. In rabbinical literature YHVH is interpreted as referring to the divine attribute of mercy. See Mercy-Rigor.
Zaddik: the leader of the hasidic community. See Rav.