When You Don’t Know What to Say, Blow the Shofar!

There’s something moving, mystical and even magical about the blowing of the Shofar on Rosh Hashanah.  The Shofar is as integral to this holiday as Matzah to Pesach or the Sukkah to Sukkot. Afterall, the Biblical name for the festival is Yom Teruah, the Day of Shofar Blast. So, let’s take a new look at this critical observance.

The two verses in the Torah which discuss the celebration we call Rosh Hashanah are: Speak to the Israelite people thus: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe complete rest, a sacred occasion commemorated (ZICHRON) with loud blasts (Vayikra 23:24) & In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a sacred occasion: you shall not work at your occupations. You shall observe it as a day when the horn is sounded. (Bamidbar 29:1).

So, in reality, the name of our holiday should be either Yom Hazikaron or Yom Haterua. 

Based on these verses, Rav Amital said, ‘The Torah does not explicitly command us to blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah.’ Instead, the nature of the day is captured in the Shofar blasts. He continues:

The simple meaning of ‘a day of shofar blowing’ is a day entirely characterized by the Shofar blowing. The sounds leave their signature on the entire day…In other words, the remembrance of the Jews before God on Rosh Ha-Shana is brought about by the Shofar. 

What is the role of these Shofar blasts? Rav Amital continues:

A person who turns to God faces a dilemma. Generally, turning to God in prayer consists of using words. However, human language was created for dialogue between people. It is tragic that a person must use language when turning to God. Human language limits, constricts, and distorts. It cannot express what is in the chambers of our hearts. Divine speech is an entirely different mode of expression than human speech; a different essence. The blast of the shofar solves the dilemma

We can conclude that the Shofar blast either replaces or, at least, supplements our prayer efforts of Rosh Hashanah. But what is the content of this prayer? Although there could be as many answers to this question as there are people who pray on this momentous occasion. It is obviously a cri de coeur, but is there an embedded specific request?

I would strongly suggest that there is one crucial plea embedded in our Shofar blasts. That entreaty is found in the Psalm most of us recite seven times before the first Shofar notes of the day: God (ELOKIM) ascends in the blasts (TERUA); the Eternal (Tetragrammaton) in the long notes (TEKIYA) of the SHOFAR (Psalms 47:6).

We beg and plead that the aspect of God the Judge should morph and ascend to become God the Compassionate. To a certain extent, I believe strongly, we supplicate for God to deal with us and our sins as a Divine Mother. The word for ‘compassion’ in Hebrew comes from the word for ‘womb’ (RECHEM), and the scriptural readings on these days emphasize the great mother images in our tradition; Sarah, Hannah and Rachel. 

As Rav Soloveitchik explained:

The haunting cry of the shofar urges us to wake up and feel how distant our true selves have strayed from He who gave us life. We are shaken to the core because the SHECHINA (Divine Presence and feminine name for God) cries over her sons who have strayed so far and reminds us that such actions run against the universal order. 

A powerful message indeed! It is made all the more powerful by its wordless nature. We cry, whine, moan and howl, because we don’t have the words to express the depths of our anxiety and need.

However, that’s not my favorite verse to express this central concept of Rosh Hashanah, at least not this year. And the verse which I do find most meaningful is: ASHREI is the people who know the TERUAH, they alone walk in the enlightenment of Your Divine Presence (Psalms 89:16). 

I didn’t translate that famous first word of the verse. This term is often rendered as ‘happy’, but that doesn’t do justice to the full impact of the word. In various translations it is rendered praiseworthy, blessed, and, of course, happy. I would prefer ‘contented’ or ‘in a good place’. The term implies a lofty and sublime state of mind.

Why are we in this noble and glorious status? Because we have broken through the ‘sound barrier’. We circumvented our linguistic shortcomings to find a way to communicate with the celestial realms, and express our innermost thoughts, emotions and feelings. How? Why by means of the Shofar blasts!

As the Netivot Shalom expressed it:

The haunting cry of the Shofar embodies this. It urges us to wake up and feel how distant our true selves have strayed from He who gave us life. We are shaken to the core because the Shechina cries over her sons who have strayed so far and reminds us that such actions run against the universal order. 

We’re not in the sublime ASHREI state because we are without blemish, but because we have successfully communicated our deepest thoughts to God. We wordlessly expressed our embarrassment over our shortcomings. We utilized the SHOFAR cry to maneuver God into that place where all petitions are heard and heeded. That’s a good place to be.  

My hope for this Rosh Hashanah is that we can find the spiritual strength to achieve that objective of entering God’s most supernal Presence, and successfully plead for ourselves and AM YISRAEL to have a year of success and SHALOM!

SHANA TOVA to all Jews everyone!!