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The Piercing Cry of the Neshama by Rabbi Daniel Glatstein
The Jewish Home | SEPTEMBER 22, 2022 The Shofar of Rosh Hashana
The Piercing Cry of the Neshama
by Rabbi Daniel Glatstein
In Parshas Va’eschanan, Moshe Rabbeinu declares the praise of Klal Yisrael. “For which is a great nation that has a G-d Who is close to it, as is Hashem, our G-d, whenever we call out to Him?” (Devarim 4:7). Moshe Rabbeinu is saying that Klal Yisrael is a great nation because we have the gift of tefillah — the ability to call out to Hashem and know that He will answer us.
The Brisker Rav wonders why this is considered a unique and special quality of the Bnei Yisrael, since even non-Jews can pray to Hashem. Moshe Rabbeinu mentions the special quality that is unique to the Bnei Yisrael: “For which is a great nation.” Moshe Rabbeinu could have mentioned a mitzvah such as tzitzis, tefillin, talmud Torah, mezuzah, or Shabbos, which is truly unique to Klal Yisrael; the umos ha’olam don’t have these. Why choose tefillah, which belongs not only to the Jewish people but also to the umos ha’olam? On the rare occasion in the Torah that Moshe Rabbeinu declares the uniqueness of Klal Yisrael, he chooses the one mitzvah that is applicable to non-Jews as well!
In Selichos we say, “For My House will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples” (Yeshayah 56:7). When Shlomo HaMelech inaugurated the first Beis HaMikdash, he asked Hashem to accept the prayers of non-Jews who would come there to pray. On Yom Kippur we read Maftir Yonah, and we learn that the people of Nineveh were mispallel to the Ribbono Shel Olam and Hashem accepted their tefillos. Clearly, then, tefillah is not a feature unique to the Bnei Yisrael. Moshe Rabbeinu is discussing the distinctive quality of Klal Yisrael, and he picks one of the few mitzvos enjoyed by all mankind.
Hashem is Our Teruah
Let us endeavor to discover the meaning behind Moshe’s praise of the Bnei Yisrael. One of the pesukim we recite in Mussaf on Rosh Hashana, as part of Shofaros, is a verse in Parshas Balak. When Bilaam speaks about the admirable qualities of Klal Yisrael, he says: “He [Hashem] perceived no iniquity in Yaakov, and saw no perversity in Yisrael. Hashem, his G-d, is with him, and teruas melech bo — the friendship of the King is in him (Bamidbar 23:21). Klal Yisrael’s special status is that teruas melech bo.
What is meant by teruas melech? To which special trait in Klal Yisrael does this term refer? Rashi explains the term to mean “chibah and rei’us, love and friendship.” Bilaam was jealous of the fact that the Jewish people are blessed with the friendship of the Ribbono Shel Olam. Hashem is the Borei, Creator, Manhig, Leader, and Mefarneis, Provider, for the umos ha’olam as well, but the concept that Hashem is teruah, a close and dear friend, is applicable only to the Bnei Yisrael. Bilaam is pointing out that this level of closeness, this endearing friendship exists solely between Hashem and Klal Yisrael.
The Ibn Ezra, however, interprets this phrase differently, stating that Bilaam is highlighting something else entirely. He says that Bilaam is bothered by the fact that the Bnei Yisrael have the mitzvah of tekias shofar. That is what he envied: the mitzvah of shofar.
Of all the mitzvos of the Torah, of all the mitzvos that Klal Yisrael does that demonstrate the greatness of the Jewish people, why, asks the Brisker Rav, is the one mitzvah Bilaam selects the mitzvah of shofar? Why is this the one mitzvah that Bilaam is jealous of? What is unique about the mitzvah of shofar that Bilaam singled it out as the catalyst for his ire?
Let us try to uncover the inner dimension of the mitzvah of shofar.
The Right Horn for the Best Defense
The Gemara discusses the type of horn that can be used for the mitzvah of shofar on Rosh Hashanah.
When the Kohen Gadol enters the Kodesh HaKodashim on Yom Kippur he does not wear his bigdei zahav, golden vestments, to do the avodah. The reason for this is based on the principle of ein kateigor naaseh
saneigor, the prosecutor cannot be the advocate. The gold vestments are a reminder of the sin of the Eigel HaZahav, the Golden Calf. Gold, which would serve as a prosecuting agent before Hashem and which would remind Hashem of the Cheit HaEigel, cannot now be employed by the defense. Wearing gold into the Kodesh HaKodashim on Yom Kippur would be a reminder of Klal Yisrael’s aveirah and could sway the judgment of Yom Kippur against us. To forestall this possibility, the Kohen Gadol does not wear gold.
The Gemara then asks, why then does the Kohen Gadol wear the gold vestments on Yom Kippur when he is not in the Kodesh HaKodashim? Why does the Kohen Gadol wear the golden vestments when performing other parts of the avodah? Why present the opportunity to remind Hashem about the Cheit HaEigel? The Gemara answers that our only concern of ein kateigor naaseh saneigor is in the innermost Sanctum, the Kodesh HaKodashim, lifnei v’lifnim. Outside of the Kodesh HaKodashim, however, we are not concerned that the Kohen Gadol’s defense will unintentionally serve to prosecute.
For this very reason, the horn of a cow or bull cannot be used on Rosh Hashana to fulfill the mitzvah of shofar. Here, too, the Gemara employs the principle of ein kateigor naaseh saneigor. Using the keren, horn, of a cow would remind Hashem of the sin of the Golden Calf at a time when we want Hashem to be considering only our merits. We avoid using a horn that could remind Hashem of the Cheit HaEigel and would serve as a prosecuting agent rather than as a tool for the defense.
However, this seem to be at odds with the principle the Gemara stated with regard to the bigdei zahav that were worn outside of the Kodesh HaKodashim, that we are concerned with ein kateigor naaseh saneigor only in the Kodesh HaKodashim. The shofar is not blown in the Kodesh HaKodashim, it is blown in the shul, so why do we employ the principle of ein kateigor naaseh saneigor when it comes to choosing the appropriate horn to use as a shofar?
The Gemara answers that since the mitzvah of shofar is employed as a favorable remembrance of the Bnei Yisrael before Hashem, it is as if it is being used in the Kodesh HaKodashim. What does this mean? The shofar is not permitted to be blown in the Kodesh HaKodashim — and, in fact, no one, not even the Kohen Gadol, even entered the Kodesh HaKodashim at all on Rosh Hashana. How does the fact that the shofar’s purpose is as a remembrance cause it to be considered as if it were being blown in the Kodesh HaKodashim?
Does Hashem Listen to the Shofar?
There is an important principle employed in tefillah. When the Anshei Knesses HaGedolah arranged the text of our prayers, they did not randomly choose nice words to be incorporated into the tefillos. Each word of the Shemoneh Esrei is based on a pasuk in Tanach. This is especially true of the chasimos, conclusions, of the brachos. However, there seems to be an exception to this rule. The bracha of Shofaros, recited as part of Mussaf on Rosh Hashanah, contains wording that does not seem to appear anywhere in Tanach.
We conclude the bracha of Shofaros by saying, “For You hear the sound of shofar, and listen to the teruah, and there is none like You…. Blessed are You, Hashem, Who hears the sound of the teruah of His people, Yisrael, with compassion.”
However, there is no source in Tanach for the concept that Hashem listens to our shofar-blowing. Furthermore, what is the meaning of this bracha? Hashem is not the One Who listens to the teruah — it is we who are required to listen to the teruah! That is our mitzvah of shofar on Rosh Hashana: to listen and hear the sounds of the shofar. The Rambam writes in at least eight placesthat there is a mitzvah for us to hear the sound of the shofar on Rosh Hashana. What do we mean when we say that Hashem listens mercifully to our teruos?
Bent or Straight
There is a machlokes as to whether the shofar should be bent or straight. The Gemara explains the two viewpoints.
One opinion is that on Rosh Hashana, the more bent and humble one’s mindset, the better it is. Therefore, the shofar should be bent. The other opinion is that on Rosh Hashana a person’s outlook and mindset should be straight, and therefore the shofar should be straight as well.
The shape of the shofar is intended to resemble the kind of da’as a person should have on Rosh Hashana. Should one feel humbled and bent over, or should one
focus on being straight and upright, rather than bent?
Interestingly, this same machlokes is found in the Gemara with regard to how a person should stand while davening Shemoneh Esrei. Should a person daven with a bent-over posture, with his eyes cast downward as a sign of a humble mindset, or should one daven standing upright, with one’s eyes toward the heavens as he davens, because as one stands before Hashem he should be standing straight, not bent?
Furthermore, Rashi in Rosh Hashana, in explaining the two views as to the halachically correct shape of the shofar, cites pesukim in support of each respective position — the very same pesukim quoted in Yevamos. Rashi applies the pesukim that the Gemara used to explain how a person should stand as he prays to the shape the shofar should have on Rosh Hashana. Rashi writes that the position that holds that the shofar should be bent maintains that the more a person bends his face toward the ground while he is davening, the better, which is sourced in the pasuk, “My eyes and My heart shall be there” (I Melachim 9:3); that is, when a person davens, his eyes and his heart should be bent downward. This opinion would likewise hold on Rosh Hashana that the shofar should be bent. The dissenting opinion holds that the shofar should be straight, as the pasuk states, “Let us lift our hearts with our hands” (Eichah 3:41). This is the very pasuk from which the view emanates
The Deeper Meaning of Tekias Shofar
The sefer Hararei Kedem of Rav Michel Shurkin advances that from this sugya in Rosh Hashana, we glean a significant yesod. If the shape of the shofar is akin to our posture during tefillah, clearly there is another, deeper, component to the shofar! It shows us that the shofar is, in fact, a cheftzah shel tefillah and tekias shofar is an aspect of prayer! More than just producing stirring sounds to listen to, it is actually a form of tefillah.
This concept is further reinforced by the fact that we sound the shofar during Shemoneh Esrei. One does not shake his lulav and esrog during Shemoneh Esrei; it would be highly inappropriate. One cannot even give tzedakah while davening Shemoneh Esrei. Yet, minhag Sefard does blow shofar during Shemoneh Esrei. Minhag Ashkenaz does not blow shofar during the silent Shemoneh Esrei, but the shofar is sounded during chazaras hashatz. This, too, is a deviation from the norm. During the chazzan’s repetition of Shemoneh Esrei one is not permitted to perform other mitzvos; even learning Torah is not allowed. During the chazzan’s repetition, one must pay full attention to the words the chazzan is saying, as if he himself were davening Shemoneh Esrei. How then can we blow the shofar during Shemoneh Esrei and during chazaras hashatz?
It is apparent, then, that blowing the shofar is in itself tefillah. Blowing the shofar is not an interruption of tefillah — it is tefillah! The sound of the shofar is tza’akah, it is crying out to Hashem.
Ein Kateigor Naaseh Saneigor
The sefer Hararei Kedeim uses this to explain why ein kateigor naaseh saneigor applies to the shofar even though the shofar is not used in the Kodesh HaKodashim. The Rambam writes that when one stands to daven Shemoneh Esrei, he should envision himself as if he were standing directly in front of the Shechinah. Further, the Rambam adds that when one davens, his heart should be meditating about Hashem, as if standing before Him in Heaven.
During Shemoneh Esrei, one should be thinking that he is standing in Shamayim, and he should consider himself as if he is standing directly in front of Hashem. When the shofar is sounded, it is also tefillah, and, just like Shemoneh Esrei, it is to be viewed as if it were being sounded directly before Hashem, as if it were being blown in Shamayim. This, posits the Hararei Kedem, is equivalent to standing lifnei v’lifnim in the Kodesh HaKodashim! It is as if the shofar is being blown in the actual Kodesh HaKodashim! No wonder we can apply the principle of ein kateigor naaseh saneigor to the shofar! It is considered tefillah, and tefillah is regarded as taking place in the Kodesh HaKodashim.
I would add an even more explicit support to this idea. The Shulchan Aruch tells us that when one davens Shemoneh Esrei he should have intention toward Yerushalayim, toward the Beis HaMikdash, and toward the Kodesh HaKodashim. The Mishnah Berurah explains that this means that one’s frame of mind should
be as if he were physically standing in the Beis HaMikdash, in the Kodesh HaKodashim. He must envision himself as standing in the Kodesh HaKodashim as he davens. By the same token, blowing the shofar, too, should be imagined as if it is taking place in the Kodesh HaKodashim. Using a shofar that recalls the sin of the Eigel would then be inappropriate, because ein kateigor naaseh saneigor would apply.
The Tandem of the Shofar and Tefillah
Rabbi Shlomo Wahrmanpoints out that this explains the tefillah, “May the utterances of our lips be pleasing unto You, Al-mighty, Most High and Uplifted, Who understands, and gives ear, Who perceives and listens to the sound of our shofar blast.” This tefillah starts with a reference to tefillah: “Areshes s’faseinu, May our tefillah be sweet to You.” We then ask Hashem to listen to the sounds of our shofar blasts, l’kol tekiyaseinu. Which are we asking Hashem for?
The answer is that since sounding the shofar is a form of tefillah, it is really only one request: We are asking Hashem to listen to our tefillos in all their forms — in the form of the shofar blasts and in the form of the words that we pray with our mouths.
Tekiah is the Praise
An original thought was presented by Rabbi Isaac Bernstein, a renowned rav and master orator. The Gemara says that teruah can be translated as either a moan or a wailing. Either way, it is a form of crying: a tefillah. The tekiah serves a different purpose. In Tehillim, we say, “Halleluhu be-seika shofar, praise Hashem with the tekiah of the shofar.” Tekiah is shevach, praise of Hashem.
We know that a person is always supposed to first praise Hashem and only then begin to daven. Therefore, we first blow a tekiah, as praise of Hashem. This is then followed with the teruah, which is the actual tefillah of the shofar: either a moan or a wailing. Then, since tefillah also concludes with shevach to Hashem, we conclude with a second tekiah. Each tefillah of the shofar, each teruah, is sandwiched between two tekios, two praises of Hashem. Thus, the blowing of the shofar follows the halachic format of tefillah. naaseh saneigor, which also explains why the Kohen Gadol would not serve in the Kodesh HaKodashim while garbed in his gold vestments. Both the shofar of the cow and the gold garments would remind Hashem of the sin of the Eigel. We do whatever we can to avoid recalling and highlighting aveiros we may have committed in the past, so that they cannot be held against us.
We possess a faculty that is used consistently throughout the year, and not always in the right way. At times, we use our mouths to speak lashon hara, rechilus, motzi shem ra, sheker, etc. The last thing we want to do on Rosh Hashana is remind Hashem of the improper ways in which we have used our mouths over the past year. There is probably a much greater concern of ein kateigor naaseh saneigor with regard to our own mouths than there is for the Eigel with which our ancestors had sinned. When our tefillos come up to Hash-
Why Do We Need the Shofar’s Tefillah?
Rosh Hashana is a day in which we spend many hours davening to Hashem. What does the tefillah of the shofar add to the numerous tefillos we already recite?
The Beis HaLevi offers a very profound approach. On Rosh Hashana, as we stand before Hashem being judged, we daven extensively, hoping for a good year. We do not want to use any items that may remind Hashem of our aveiros, and that is why, as we mentioned above, we don’t use a shofar made from a cow’s horn. We apply the principle of ein kateigor em on Rosh Hashana, beseeching Hashem, “Zachreinu l’chaim,” the malachim will highlight the other words our mouths have said, words we are likely less than proud of, and which may steer our judgment in an unfavorable direction.
We therefore are gifted with a form of tefillah that bypasses the mouth. The Beis HaLevi writes that the shofar is tefillah that arises from the depths of the heart, and it does not use the mouth in the same manner that it had been used to commit the aveiros that involve speech. Its tefillah goes straight from the heart to Hashem. It can be termed a quadruple bypass — bypassing the larynx, tongue, teeth, and lips — and it allows our tefillos to come before Hashem without the downside of being offered through the same vehicle that had been used for sin. It is tefillah without utilizing the faculty of speech. The shofar is the cry from the heart of a Jew.
As we noted above, tekias shofar is the mitzvah of which Bilaam was envious. Why specifically the shofar? We have many mitzvos. We also asked why Moshe Rabbeinu praised the Bnei Yisrael by focusing on a unique ability of Klal Yisrael: the koach ha’tefillah. But nonJews can also pray, so why is this a praise of Klal Yisrael?
The shofar is a unique, special type of tefillah. It is a cry to Hashem m’umka d’liba, from the deepest recesses of the heart. The content of this cry to Hashem depends on what is in the heart of the person who is sounding the shofar. Innately, the heart of a Jew contains the deepest desire to serve Hashem. When a person does not agree to divorce his wife and beis din rules that he should, “kofin oso ad sheyomar rotzah ani, we force him until he says that he wants to give the get.” The Rambam explains that even though he is being forced, this person’s get is still considered as having been given of his own will, because, deep down, every Jew has the same desire: Ritzoneinu la’asos ritzonecha, Our will is to do the will of Hashem.
When the shofar is in the mouth of a Jew, sounding teruos to Hashem, what emanates from his heart is pure desire to serve Hashem and do His will. The tefillah of the shofar is therefore the purest of tefillos.
But the heart of a non-Jew does not have this deep-rooted innate desire to serve Hashem and do His will. When the heart of a non-Jew is tapped and its desires are revealed, it would not prove to be as worthy and meritorious.
The tefillah of the shofar, which comes m’umka d’liba, is the deepest, most intense desire of a Jew: namely, to come closer to Avinu she’baShamayim, to do the will of Hashem. This is what Bilaam envied. He was jealous of the purity of the yearning that lies in the deepest recesses of the heart of a Jew, the desire that emanates from the power of the tefillah of the shofar. This uniqueness of our spiritual character and DNA is what made Bilaam envious.
This, perhaps, is also the special power of tefillah that Moshe Rabbeinu referred to when he said, “For which is a great nation that has a God Who is close to it, as is Hashem, our God, whenever we call to Him?” (Devarim 4:7). The tefillah of the shofar that emanates directly from the neshama of the Jew is the form of tefillah that exemplifies the praise of Klal Yisrael.
When we recite the bracha of Shofaros, we conclude by stating, “Ki atah shomea kol shofar u’maazin teruah.” Where in Tanach does it say that Hashem listens to the sound of the shofar? It is the pasuk that states, “O Heeder of prayer, unto You does all flesh come” (Tehillim 65:3).
May HaKadosh Baruch Hu be attentive to the piercing cry of our shofar, accompanied by all of our tefillos and accept them with mercy and good will, and may we all merit a gut gebentched yahr.
