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New Life on Rosh Hashana by Rabbi Daniel Glatstein
New Life on Rosh Hashana
BY RABBI DANIEL GLATSTEIN
Inthe Mussaf of Rosh Hashana, at the end of the bracha of Shofaros, we state, “Ki atah shomeiah kol shofar
u’ma’azin teruah v’ein domeh Lach. Baruch Atah Hashem shomeah kol
teru’as amo Yisroel.”
The words “v’ein domeh Lach, and there is no one comparable to You,” seem superfluous; they seemingly do not lend anything to the bracha. They are a truism that can be inscribed in any bracha, to any tefillah, yet, it is added only to the bracha of Shofaros. Why?
In addition, there is a concept in halacha that we require “me’ein hachasimah samuch lachasimah, the words near the conclusion of a bracha must be similar to and reflect the subject of the bracha’s closing words.” The words that immediately precede the Baruch Atah at the end of a bracha must address the same subject as the closing words of the bracha. The addition of the words v’ein domeh Lach, however, seem to be in contradiction to this halachic rule, as they are completely unrelated to the conclusion of the bracha. It would seem more logical to omit the words v’ein domeh Lach so that the praise of Hashem — that He is attentive to our shofar blasts — will flow seamlessly into the conclusion of the bracha. These words, v’ein domeh Lach, therefore, must be articulating a central theme fundamental to Rosh Hashanah and the mitzvah of shofar.
The Tefillah of the Shofar
We have learned thatin addition to the fact that tekias shofar is one of the 248 mitzvos asei, positive commandments, there is another dimension of tekias shofar: It is a form of tefillah, of prayer to Hashem.
What type of tefillah is shofar; what is it requesting? Merubim tzarchei amcha, the needs of Hashem’s nation are numerous. We all have many wants and needs to request of Hashem: health, parnassah, children. Everyone has nisyonos, challenges for which they need assistance.
The Ribbono shel Olam recognizes this, and therefore He gives us a gift: the shofar. The sound of the shofar is the unarticulated cry of the Jew. “Ribbono shel Olam, I throw my burden on You! I cannot articulate the many needs I have, but from the sound of the shofar You are able to understand what we need! Ki atah shomeiah kol shofar; You are able to understand the tefillah of the shofar, which includes even needs of which we are unaware. v’ein domeh Lach, and there is no one like You, Who could hear in the sound of the shofar the myriad requests and needs that we have, both those we wish to articulate and those that we cannot articulate. You, Hashem, are able to uncover and discover the true requirements of every Jew. It is the sound of the shofar that encapsulates and encompasses the unarticulated cry for all of man’s needs. There is no one like You, Hashem — for only You can hear all of this in the cry of the shofar.”
There is, however, a deeper explanation for the words v’ein domeh Lach, There is no one like You, as these words have a very specific connotation. These words refer to the ability, specific to Hashem, of divining these unarticulated prayers. Expectations of a Miracle
The Tur cites the following, based on a Midrash: We groom ourselves before Rosh Hashana. We take haircuts and bathe, despite the Yom HaDin that is approaching.
There is no nation like Klal Yisrael, who know the methodology of their G-d, His customs and laws. When one is about to be judged, especially for a capital offense, he wears black clothing as if in mourning, he lets his hair grow wild and unkempt, he does not cut his nails, and he does not bathe. He is so frightened of the upcoming trial, he is so consumed with fear, that he cannot even focus his mind on personal hygiene.
The Bnei Yisrael, however, are different. As the Yom HaDin approaches, we dress in white clothing, we cut our hair, we trim our beards, we cut our nails. We do groom ourselves irrespective of the upcoming judgment. We even go so far as to have festive meals, replete with delicacies. The Tur concludes: we are confident that Hashem will perform a miracle.
What does the Tur mean, we are confident in the performance of a miracle? What miracle occurs on Rosh Hashanah? The Tur should simply write that we are confident that we will be zocheh in the judgment, that we will have a favorable din, and that we conduct ourselves in this fashion because we feel assured that we will be acquitted. What is the miracle to which he is referring?
Rav Moshe Shapiro, cited in the sefer Az Yashir by Rav Moshe Schwerd, teaches that the key to understanding what transpires on Rosh Hashanah is contained in the three words: v’ein domeh Lach. We use this expression in two places in davening. Every day, in every Shemoneh Esrei, in the bracha of Atah gibor, we say,
Who is like You, Master of mighty deeds, and who can be compared to You, King Who causes death and
restores life. The words “u’mi domeh Lach, and who can be compared to You” in this context refer specifically to Techiyas HaMeisim. Hashem has infinite abilities, and He can perform endless wonders.
Here is one example worth mentioning: A fetus in utero does not breathe through its lungs. It receives oxygen from the mother, via the umbilical cord. The lungs are not used for respiration. As the baby’s blood returns to its heart, to the right atrium, there is no need for that blood to proceed to the right ventricle and subsequently to the pulmonary artery — to the lungs — since the baby’s blood does not receive oxygen from its lungs. Rather, the blood from the right atrium proceeds directly to the left atrium via an opening in the heart, the foramen ovale, bypassing the lungs and pulmonary circulation. But a baby couldn’t survive after birth, even briefly, with a hole in its heart. Miraculously, when a baby is born and cries for the first time and starts to breathe, the lungs inflate and the foramen ovale closes. This forces the blood in the right atrium to now go to the right ventricle and then to the lungs in order to receive oxygen.
This incredible miracle enables a child to survive after birth, and yet it is not classified as u’mi domeh Lach. There is only one single miracle, one neis, that we reference by saying,
“Hashem, there is no one like You. No one can do this except You, Hashem.” This is the miracle of Techiyas HaMeisim.
The Gemara states that the day will come when Hashem will knock on a person’s grave and rouse him. Hashem will reconstitute each person. The Gemara tells us, “Hashem mibashan ashiv, Hashem will restore even from the Bashan.” If, chas v’shalom, someone drowned and his body decomposed and his atoms were deposited in all corners of the world, when it comes time for Techiyas HaMeisim, Hashem will reconstitute and re-create the person; He will gather all the tiny particles from all over the world and rebuild the person. This is the greatest miracle in This World. In reference to this miracle of Techiyas HaMeisim we declare: u’mi domeh Lach.
The second place in davening that we use this phrase is in the birchas Krias Shema that we recite on Shabbos morning. Once again, this phrase about the incomparable nature of Hashem refers to Techiyas HaMeisim, as the piyut concludes, “V’ein
domeh Lach moshiainu l’techiyas
ha’meisim!”
Why, then, in the bracha of Shofaros do we utilize the phrase v’ein domeh Lach? What does Shofaros have to do with Techiyas HaMeisim?
A halacha brought in Shulchan Aruchstates that when one sees a friend whom he has not seen during the past thirty days, he recites the bracha Shehecheyanu. We do not observe this custom in our times. As there are many forms of communication nowadays, we are safe to assume that our friend is still alive even though we have not seen him; otherwise, we would have expected to have heard of his demise.
The halacha further states that when one sees a friend whom he has not seen in over twelve months, he recites the bracha Mechayeh HaMeisim. The Mishnah Berurah discusses the basis and rationale for this bracha. He quotes the Maharsha, who explains that since on every Rosh Hashana a person is judged either for life or for the alternative, on every Rosh Hashana each person’s life is on the line. Therefore, if one has not seen his friend in twelve months, that means that his friend has experienced and survived the din of Rosh Hashana. Surviving the din is comparable to Techiyas HaMeisim. Therefore, since his friend has experienced a form of Techiyas HaMeisim, it is appropriate for him to recite the bracha of Mechayei HaMeisim.
Rosh Hashanah is Revivification!
We are learning that we have a fundamental misinterpretation in our understanding of Rosh Hashana. We tend to think that what is occurring on Rosh Hashanah is that we, who are alive and in good health, come before Hashem and ask Him to maintain the
status quo. Hashem, please continue to keep matters just as they are; after all, each of us is a muchzak, is in possession of his resources and success and hamotzi mechaveiro alav hara’ayah, the burden of proof is on You, Hashem, to repossess them. I have health, I have life, and I have money – the onus is on You, Ribbono shel Olam, to come up with a valid reason to change the existing circumstances. Meanwhile, let everything remain the way it’s always been.
But this is not what is happening. We learn from the Maharsha and from the Anshei Knesses HaGedolah’s use of v’ein domeh Lach in our davening on Rosh Hashana that when Rosh Hashana comes and a new year begins, all bets are off. The lease has ended. The eviction notice has arrived in the mail. The status quo enjoyed until now is no longer viable — it has been terminated.
There is no chazakah, established right, there is no status quo, and there are no assumptions. We stand before Hashem, not with life in hand and a request to continue it, but rather with nothing at all, and we ask Hashem to please revivify us.
We come before Hashem on Rosh Hashana like meisim, the dead, but, as the Tur says, we are confident that Hashem will perform a miracle for us. And what is the miracle that we anticipate? It is the miracle of u’mi domeh Lach, the miracle of Techiyas HaMeisim.
Rav Shlomo Heiman, the illustrious Rosh Yeshivah of Yeshivah Torah Vodaas, related with great emotion the moving drasha he heard on Leil Selichos, the first night of Selichos, from the Granat,9 the Gaon Rav Naftali Tropp, before he led the davening in the yeshivah in Radin as the chazan for Selichos.
In Selichos we say, “K’dalim u’krashim dafaknu delasecha, like paupers and poor men do we bang on
Your door.” What does this tefillah mean?
It does not matter how much money a person has in his bank account, or how healthy he may be. On Rosh Hashana we stand before Hashem like paupers. We stand before Hashem with no chazakah, no status quo, no money, no family, and we hope that Hashem will revivify us, for the lease has ended. “Like paupers and poor men, we bang on Your door.”
One Year at a Time
The sefer Az Yashir cites, in the name of Rav Moshe Shapiro, that the Arizal taught that on Rosh Hashana, Hashem does not grant a person years for the duration of his life. He does not give one person a din for a longevity of a hundred years, and another person for eighty-two. Hashem is judging us solely for the upcoming year. Hashem solely for the upcoming year. Hashem takes it one year at a time. Our takes it one year at a time. Our lease on life is only extended for lease on life is only extended for a year; it must be renewed ana year; it must be renewed annually. Nothing decreed on Rosh nually. Nothing decreed on Rosh Hashanah affects more than just Hashanah affects more than just the one year that is starting. the one year that is starting.
At the end of each year, every At the end of each year, every person’s lease on life is up. He person’s lease on life is up. He has to come before Hashhas to come before Hashem in judgem in judgment and be adjudicated. The lease on life may or may not be renewed. When one merits the gift of another additional year, when he is victorious in din, it is truly as if he is experiencing Techiyas HaMeisim.
When we stand before the Ribbono Shel Olam on Rosh Hashana, we are asking Hashem to please perform this miracle for us. Please perform the greatest miracle in Your repertoire, the miracle whose key was never given over even to the malachei hashareis. That is why it is a miracle that is referred to with the phrase v’ein domeh Lach.
Mi kamocha ba’al gevuros u’mi
domeh Lach refers to the power Hashem has to give life and to restore life.
During the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, we insert a sentence into the bracha of Gevuros: Mi kamocha av
ha’rachman zocher yetzurav l’chaim
b’rachamim. It is appropriately added to the bracha of Atah Gibor because that is the bracha whose subject is Techiyas HaMeisim! What better place to mention the fact that Hashem is incomparable because He remembers His creations and mercifully grants them life. This granting of life is precisely the topic of the bracha: Techiyas HaMeisim.
The Gemara states, “Adam nidon b’chol yom, man is judged daily.” Rav Eisele Charif13 poses an incisive question: If we are judged every single day of the year, why is it that only on Rosh Hashana do we take the din so much more seriously? What is different about the din of Rosh Hashana than that of all the other days of the year?
He answers that the daily judgment is subject to the laws of chazakah, to the status quo. Every day when we are judged by the Ribbono shel Olam the judgment takes the chazakah, the person’s current state, into account. The person existed yesterday, and Hashem person existed yesterday, and Hashem allows that to continue because he is a allows that to continue because he is a muchzak in his life. muchzak in his life. Hamotzi Hamotzi
mechaveiro alav hara’ayah mechaveiro alav hara’ayah
is invoked, is invoked,
and the burden of proof is incumbent upon the one who wants to change the status quo.
But on Rosh Hashana, there is no longer a status quo to invoke, there is no longer chazakah. Past existence has no bearing on future outcome. This is the difference between the daily judgment and the annual judgment of Rosh Hashana. Once again, we encounter this principle of the miracle of Techiyas HaMeisim on Rosh Hashana.
The Akeidah on Rosh Hashana
One of the main zechusim that we try to tap into on Rosh Hashana is the extraordinary zechus of Akeidas Yitzchak.
Why do we mention Akeidas Yitzchak on Rosh Hashana? Not all opinions agree that it even took place on Rosh Hashana, so why mention it in the davening on Rosh Hashana? Why is the Akeidah such a central theme on Rosh Hashana to the point that we mention it during Shemoneh Esrei, we blow the horn of a ram to remind Hashem of the Akeidah, and we read about the Akeidah in the krias HaTorah of the second day of Rosh Hashana?
The Rama codifies the custom of performing Tashlich at a river on Rosh Hashana. It is sourced in the Maharil, who says that we go to the river to say Tashlich to remind Hashem of the Akeidah and to invoke the zechus of that event, because the Satan created a river to prevent Avraham from going to the Akeidah. Avraham walked into the water until it reached his nostrils. He cried out, “Save
me, for the water me, for the water has risen to my has risen to my
soul soul.” Thus, .” Thus, the purpose the purpose of of Tashlich Tashlich is is to invoke the to invoke the zechus of zechus of AkeiAkeidas Yitzchak das Yitzchak. . T h e T h e Mishnah Berurah, in fact, cites this Maharil, that the purpose of Tashlich is to recall the momentous event of Akeidas Yitzchak.
The Shulchan Aruch brings the custom of using a head as one of the simanim on Rosh Hashana. This is to symbolize that we would like to be the head, and not the tail — n’hi’yeh l’rosh v’lo l’zanav. Interestingly, the Shulchan Aruch specifically recommends using the head of a ram, in commemoration of the ram that was sacrificed in place of Yitzchak at the time of the Akeidah. Again, we see the centrality of the Akeidah in the customs of Rosh Hashana, but why is it so significant, since it is not unanimously believed to have occurred on Rosh Hashana?
The Akeidah: The First Techiyas HaMeisim
On Rosh Hashana, we are not merely asking Hashem to keep matters the way they were. What we are asking Hashem for is Techiyas HaMeisim, for Him to revivify us in every dimension of our lives. And when was the first time in the history of the world that Hashem was mechayeh meisim? It was at Akeidas Yitzchak!
The Shibbolei HaLeket brings the teaching that the brachos of the weekday Shemoneh Esrei are actually an historical account of the story of the world. When Avraham Avinu was saved from the fires of Ur Kasdim, the malachei hashareis cried out, “Baruch Atah Hashem, magen Avraham.”
When Yitzchak Avinu was bound on the mizbei’ach to be offered as a korban to Hashem at the Akeidah, he became ashes that were then scattered all came ashes that were then scattered all about Har HaMoriah. Although the about Har HaMoriah. Although the familiar and oft-quoted sequence familiar and oft-quoted sequence of events dictate that Yitzchak of events dictate that Yitzchak emerged unscathed from emerged unscathed from the the Akeidah Akeidah, numerous , numerous midrashim midrashim state oth state otherwise. According erwise. According to the to the Midrash cited in cited in Shibbolei HaLeket, bolei HaLeket Yitzchak Yitzchak Avinu, in fact, Avinu, in fact, did die, as did die, as his his neshama left him ma — — parchah nishmaso.nishmaso T h e Ribbono Ribbono Shel Olam Shel Olam then performed Techiyas HaMeisim; He placed dew on Yitzchak and brought him back to life. It is about this event that David HaMelech wrote, “So the dew of Cher-
mon descends upon the mountains of
Tzion” (Tehillim 133: 3). Dew on Har Tzion is a reference to the dew that Hashem sprinkled on Yitzchak Avinu as He brought him back to life.
Immediately upon Yitzchak’s revivification, the malachim said the bracha, “Baruch Atah Hashem, mechayeh hameisim.”
There is another version of the Midrash: Yitzchak’s soul departed, and when his neshama returned to his guf, when he experienced Techiyas HaMeisim, it was he who stated, “Baruch Atah Hashem, mechayeh hameisim.”
Likewise, Pirkei D’Rabbi Eliezer states, in the name of R’ Yehudah: Once the knife was placed upon Yitzchak’s neck, at the time of the Akeidah, his neshama departed from his body. When his neshama heard the voice of Hashem coming from between the two Keruvim, stating, “Do not stretch out your hand against the lad” (Bereishis 22:12), the neshama immediately returned to Yitzchak’s body. He was then untied, and he stood up. Yitzchak realized that Techiyas HaMeisim is min haTorah, and he understood that those who pass away will be revivified in the future. He immediately composed and recited the bracha, Baruch Atah Hash-
em, mechayeh hameisim.
We have a tradition that the first bracha, Magen Avraham, corresponds to Avraham Avinu, and the second bracha, Atah Gibor, which is the bracha of Techiyas HaMeisim, corresponds to Yitzchak. With these midrashim, we can appreciate how the bracha of Gevuros corresponds to Yitzchak, because he was the very first person to experience Techiyas HaMeisim.
Now we understand why the central theme of Rosh Hashana is Akeidas Yitzchak. It is not merely because of timing, as not everyone is in agreement that it took place on Rosh Hashana. The reason to invoke the Akeidah on Rosh Hashana is to point out that this is the maaseh avos siman labanim, all events that occurred to the forefathers are portents for their descendants, a pre-enactment to what takes place annually on Rosh Hashana: Techiyas HaMeisim.
This is a particularly strong connection according to the view that the original Techiyas HaMeisim did in fact take place on Rosh Hashana, at the Akeidah. This action is then forever fused to the day of Rosh Hashana, and Rosh Hashana will always be a day of Techiyas HaMeisim. Hashem revivifies all of us every Rosh Hashana.
We stand before Hashem k’dalim u’krashim, and like meisim mamash, actual corpses. We daven and ask Hashem to please sprinkle upon us the dew of Techiyas HaMeisim. We are confident, as the Tur says, that Hashem will perform this miracle for us. This is why we invoke the remarkable capability of Hashem, Ki atah
shomeiah kol shofar u’ma’azin teruah
v’ein domeh Lach. The powerful and poignant meaning of the final phrase, v’ein domeh Lach, is now understood as a reference to the greatest of all miracles, Techiyas HaMeisim, and explains why on Rosh Hashana we focus on Akeidas Yitzchak — the source of the power of Techiyas HaMeisim in This World.
Another Dimension of Techiyas HaMeisim
Another dimension of Techiyas HaMeisim is worthy of note. There is a Kaf HaChaim that Rav Shneur Kotler would often repeat during this time of the year in the name of his father, Rav Aharon.
There are forty days from Rosh Chodesh Elul until Yom Kippur. These forty days correspond to the forty days of yetziras hav’lad, the forty days of the formation of a baby. Even though the baby is in the mother’s womb for nine months, the primary creation, including the determination of the gender, takes place in the first forty days. The neshama then enters the baby on the fortieth day. In what way do the forty days of Chodesh Elul and the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah correspond to the forty days of yetziras hav’lad?
Rav Yerucham Olshin explains, using the Midrash on the pasuk, Let this be recorded for the final generation,
so that the newborn people will praise
Hashem (Tehillim 102:19). Who is this new nation that is being created? The Yalkut Shimoni explains that this verse refers to us, who come before Hashem like meisim b’maaseihem, lifeless in our actions, davening to Hashem on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. Hashem responds to our tefillos by creating us anew, allowing us to proceed to Sukkos, when we will hold the lulav and esrog as we say Hallel — thereby fulfilling the verse, the newborn people will praise Hashem.
Rav Yerucham understands that
the Midrash is adding an important point to our understanding of our status on Rosh Hashana. When we stand before Hashem on Rosh Hashana, not only do we have nothing to count on, not only is there no chazakah, and we cannot rely on the past. But it is more than that: We are actually considered meisim b’maaseihem, because re-
shaim bechayehem k’ruim meisim,
the wicked are considered dead even as they live.
We stand before Hashem, proclaiming that our actions, our maasim, do not render us worthy of being considered to be spiritually alive before Him. We implore Hashem not just to revive us physically, but to revive our neshamos as well. Allow us to start again, and help us achieve the level where we can be considered alive both physically and spiritually. This is the concept of how the forty days before Yom Kippur correspond to the forty days of yetziras hav’lad. During Elul and during the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, we are striving to re-create ourselves. We are trying to be reborn, to start over. Whatever was, was, and we are now going
through a forty-day process that is reminiscent of the forty-day process we experienced in utero. We go through this process on a yearly basis as we ask Hashem for spiritual revival, spiritual re-creation.
With this understanding, the teshuva process becomes akin to Techiyas HaMeisim. Teshuva is a process by which we try to revive ourselves and come back to life.
In his commentary to Shemoneh Esrei, Rav Yonasan Eibeshutz dis-
cusses the kavanos, intentions, we should have during Shemoneh Esrei. In his commentary to the second bracha, Atah Gibor, Rav Yonasan writes that Hashem’s acceptance of our teshuva is a form of Techiyas HaMeisim. A rasha, even while alive, is considered to be deceased: reshaim bechayehem k’ruim meisim. When he then does teshuva, he is considered to have experienced Techiyas HaMeisim. Therefore, when we say the words
Atah gibor l’olam Hashem mechayeh
meisim atah rav l’hoshea, one of the kavanos to have in mind is that Hashem should revivify us by accepting our teshuva.
Rav Tzadok HaKohen brilliantly points out that the period of Techiyas HaMeisim will be ushered into the world by Eliyahu HaNavi who is also the one who ushers in the era of teshuva. These are not two distinct roles of Eliyahu HaNavi, and these are not two different eras. These are one and the same, since, as we said, reshaim bechayehem k’ruim meisim. Eliyahu inspiring all to do teshuva will be a form of Techiyas HaMeisim. Physical and spiritual revivification are both part of the same function that Eliyahu HaNavi will perform in the End of Days.
Rabbi Glatstein is the Mara D’asra of Kehilas Tiferes Mordechai in Cedarhurst, NY. He will deliver his annual Shabbos Shuva drasha, which is open to the whole community, men and women, at 5:50 pm, on Shabbos Parshas Vayeilech at 539 Oakland Ave, next door to Shaarei Emuna.
This article has been reprinted with permission from The Mystery and The Majesty by Rabbi Daniel Glatstein, published by Artscroll
