This page uses JavaScript for menus. Please enable JavaScript in your browser to use navigation menus.
This page uses JavaScript for menus. Please enable JavaScript in your browser to use navigation menus.
Listen to the audio. (14:09)
Brshut HaRav: In this simon (OC 54), we continue learning about the Kaddish. So far, we've really only been through the first section, that we must Have proper intention, proper kavanah, when entering the Kaddish. Today we're going to look at the next section. (MB 54:2)
On the surface, this section seems to focus on issues of proper pronunciation of the words in the Kaddish; though in fact, as we'll see, there is actually a deeper aspect involved. That deeper aspect has to do with proper understanding of what is going on in the Kaddish. That is to say, the first important issue in having proper kavanah when making any brachah or saying any tefillah is understanding the meaning of the words. This is the most simple kavanah you can have. Unfortunately, we often get caught up in much more complex ideas and thoughts we should have in mind when we do mitzvot, ideas that come in from Kabbalah other sources. But the very simple aspect of kavanah that we're required to have -- the most fundamental and basic aspect is an understanding of the words. In order to have understanding of the words, you certainly have to pronounce them correctly. If you're not pronouncing them correctly, there's no possible way that you're saying them with any understanding.
The Mishnah Brurah discusses the pronunciation of the first two words of Kaddish, "yitgadal v'yitkadash", which he says are properly pronounced "yitgadeil v'yitkadeish." What's the difference between them; what's going on here? The Mishna Brurah explains that these words of the Kaddish are Hebrew and thus they should be pronounced "yitgadeil v'yitkadeish." Why? Because they're based on the words from the prophet Ezekiel 38 regarding the prophecies the War of the End of Days, the War of Gog and Magog. I will just bring a few verses to bring what's happening here, starting from Ezekiel 38:14 and I'm just going to read in English:
Therefore, son of man, prophecy and say to Gog: "Thus says Hashem, the Lord G-d, in that day when my people Israel dwell safely, will you not know it? You will come from your place, out of the uttermost parts of the North. You and many peoples with you among them. All of them riding on horses, a great company, a mighty army. You shall come up against my people Israel, as a crowd to cover the land. It shall be in the End of Days. I will bring thee against My Land that the nations will know Me and I will be sacrificed through thee, O Gog, before their eyes."Skipping to verse 18:
It will come to pass on that day, when Gog shall come against the Land of Israel, says Hashem that My fury ["Mine" meaning obviously Hashem's fury], that My fury will rise up in My nostrils. For in My jealousy and in the fire of My wrath have I spoken. Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the Land of Israel.The prophecy of Ezekiel goes on to describe what we would consider to be an earthquake, flattening mountains, bringing down the steppes and the walls will fall. And finally at the end of it, this great Messianic event, verse 23:
V'higadilti v'hitkadishti -- And I will magnify Myself, and I will sanctify Myself -- and I will make Myself known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am Hashem that I am the Lord, that I rule the world.So these words from this last verse -- "I shall magnify myself and I shall sanctify myself" -- those form the foundation of this first line of Kaddish. So says the Mishnah Brurah; these words come from Hebrew and therefore they should be vocalized with proper Hebrew grammar. And that would be "yitgadeil v'yitkadeish." And in fact that is how the Vilna Gaon says to pronounce the words. That is therefore the custom of Jerusalem. Most, if not practically all, of religious life in Jerusalem is based on the customs of the Vilna Gaon. His students established the communities in the old yishuv which have become the modern day communities in Jerusalem. And you will in fact hear the same in many communities here in the United States as well. They have either taken on the customs of Jerusalem or follow the Vilna Gaon, or perhaps follow the Mishnah Brurah here.
So why does our ArtScroll siddur -- and of course, this being America, as I always point out we decide halacha by ArtScroll -- so why does our ArtScroll siddur say "Yitgadal v'yitkadash?" This is based on discussion that's brought in the Tur and in the Beit Yosef. The Tur writes in the name of the Levush, who says that the Kaddish is recited in Aramaic. Why? Because the language of the Kaddish is so beautiful, that the angels will be jealous of us if we recite the Kaddish in Hebrew. And if the angels become too jealous of us, they will perhaps give us some kind of an ayin hara (a bad omen). And therefore we recite the Kaddish in Aramaic which is a language the angels don't understand and therefore they don't become jealous of us.
The Mishnah Brurah disagrees. He says that because these first two words are based on a verse in Ezekiel (and the Mishnah Brurah is obviously based on the Vilna Gaon), recite them in Hebrew. That's what the disagreement is about. I will say simply that both points of view are certainly legitimate halacha and thus everyone should follow their cutsom. And I will add if you're in a shul that doesn't follow your custom, you should say "Amen" nonetheless.
The Mishnah Brurah goes on and specifies other important aspects of pronunciation here in order to have proper kavanah. I'll skip a little bit. One should emphasize the Gimmel in "yitGadal." Why? So that it doesn't sound like you're saying "yitKadal" because that is the Aramaic translation of "refusal," and we certainly don't want to be talking here about refusal, when we're talking about praise of Hashem.
I will comment that for those of us who say "yitgadAl v'yitkadAsh" this is even more important because there is very much a tendency if you don't enunciate the Gimmel, to have that word come out sounding like "yitKadal." So one has to be careful with this.
The words of the Kaddish continue in Aramaic after "Yehei shmei." One should be careful not to emphasize the Bet too strongly. And in "v'yitHallel," one should make sure that it is a Hey that one is saying, one should cut off the Hey in an appropriate way. Certainly don't want it to sound like a Chet that would be "v'yitCHallal," that Hashem's name should be profaned, G-d forbid.Next, one should pause after the words, "kir'uteih," "according to His Will." Why? Because that is the end of the thought of why Hashem's name should be magnified and sanctified -- that is, Hashem's name should be magnified and sanctified because the world was created according to His Will. One should pause there to emphasize this.
Similarly "v'imru amen." When the chazan saying the Kaddish says "v'imru amen," he should say it in one sentence. Not "v'imru" (pause) "amen." Why? What the chazan is saying to you: "you all say amen." In other words, the sentence is: "Speedily in our days, and everyone answer: 'Amen!'" The sentence is not, "Speedily in our days and everyone answer!" What should you answer? You should answer, "Amen!" The chazan is telling you how to answer here. And so really the way this is supposed to work is a "call and response." The chazan says, "everyone answer 'Amen!'" and so everyone answers "Amen!"
The Mishnah Brurah goes on to say that if the chazan sings an extensive melody there, that you shouldn't wait until he chazan says "amen," you should just answer immediately, as to not have hesitation.
Continues the Mishnah Brurah, when one says "amen, yehei shmei rabba etc.," one should hesitate between the "amen" and the "yehei shmei." Why? It's actually two different ideas. The first idea is you answer "amen;" the second idea is you declare: "Hashem's great name be blessed forever and ever!" These are two separate ideas, so you should pause between them. He then explains that the phrase "yehei shmei" is a translation of "yehei shmo hagadol," "may Hashem's great Name be blessed." We learned that out of the Gamara, back when we learned the Gamara a few days ago. The word "shmei" has no Yud in it. Now our day we don't differentiate the pronunciation with a Yud and without a Yud, at least certainly those of us who are Ashkenazi don't. So there is not a major difference here for us. The Mishnah Brurah brings a discussion as to whether or not one should pronounce the mapik in the Hey. That is should one say "shmei" or should one say "shmeiH" and aspirate the Hey? According to the Taz you should NOT pronounce the Hey according to the Pri Megaddim you should pronounce the Hey. I would tell you to follow your custom.
And similarly the Mishnah Brurah goes on through the rest of the Kaddish discussing various aspects of pronunciation. One more aspect I'll emphasize, just a last point in the section, is that the Mishnah Brurah specifies that the correct words in the Kaddish are "min kol birchata" -- three separate words, but that when we double the "l'eila" and make it "l'eila ul'eila" during the High Holy Days, then it becomes two words. Why? We want to keep the count of the words the same. If you count the words in the Kaddish, you will find that there are 28 words beginning with y'hei shmei going through yishtabach. There are similarly 28 words in the Ashkenazic Kaddish, starting with Yitgadal until the end of yehei shmei, and you can also count 28 letters in yehei shmei itself. Why all of the twenty eights? Twenty eight in Gematria is kaf chet which is "koach" and you'll remember that the Mishnah Brurah says that you have to answer Kaddish with all of your koach, all of your strength, all of your neshomah. And so we find koach throughout the Kaddish itself.
Like what you read? Contact Rav Dovid to bring him to your community for a lecture, class, or shabbaton.