Geshem
Encyclopedia
Geshem is one of the Hebrew words for "rain
," applied mostly to the heavy rains which occur in Israel
in the fall and winter. This half of the year is called in the Mishnah
"yemot ha-geshamin" (days of rains). In the liturgy of the German-Polish ritual "Geshem" stands for the piyyuṭim which in the Mussaf
or additional service for the Eighth Festival Day (Shemini Aẓeret) are read and sung as an introduction to the first mention of the "powers of rain," i.e., the words "He causeth the wind to blow and the rain to descend."
"Geshem" corresponds to the "Tal" (Dew) occurring in the liturgy for the first day of the Passover
, when the above-quoted passage is omitted as being inapplicable to spring and summer. These piyyuṭim end with an invocation in six stanzas, each of which closes either with "for his sake do not withhold water!" or with "through his merit favor the outflow of water!" the merits of the Patriarchs
, of Moses
, of Aaron
, and of the twelve tribes
crossing the Red Sea
being successively referred to.
Geshem – used as a male first name – was a Nabatean leader who opposed Nehemiah
(6) in the reconstruction of Jerusalem.
congregations, which are sparing in their use of the later piyyuṭim, as well as the Ḥasidim
and those South-Russians who have adopted the ritual of that etc., confine themselves to this sixfold invocation; but the ordinary German-Polish festival prayer-book contains also a number of other compositions. Foremost among these is one which sketches the agricultural work in each of the 12 months, and parallels therewith the influence of each of the 12 signs of the zodiac, setting Aries
against Nisan
, and so on through the year. Old maḥzorim often have the text illustrated with twelve rude woodcuts.
It has become customary for the reader of the Musaf on the days on which "Geshem" or "Ṭal" is inserted, to put on the white shroud and cap, as on the Day of Atonement
, and before the additional prayer to intone the Ḳaddish
in the accents of that solemn day. After the invocation above he proceeds: "For thou, O Lord our God, causest the wind to blow ... For a blessing and not for a curse, For plenty and not for famine, For life and not for death!" And the congregation thrice answers, "Amen!"
When Abudirham wrote his book on the liturgy, the Sephardim were still faithful to the Talmudic rule that "a man must not ask for his worldly necessities" in the first three benedictions; hence Abudirham distinguishes the additional service for the Eighth of the Feast only by having the reader proclaim "He causeth the wind," etc., before the silent prayer. But the modern Sephardic service-books give a poetic prayer after "Shield of Abraham," and another which leads up to the distinctive words of the season; these words being added: "For a blessing, for grace, for joy," etc.
From an early date (comp. Ta'an. 2b; Ber.
33a) it has been customary to introduce the benediction in the Musaf on the eighth day of Feast of Tabernacles, in the fall of the year, and it is recited for the last time on the first day of Passover
, in the spring. On the latter occasion the word טל ("dew") is substituted for the word גשם ("rain"), used on Shemini Aẓeret, and hence the titles "Geshem" and "Ṭal" given to the Musaf of these festivals. The Talmudists had decided that the actual prayer for rain, "Give dew and rain for a blessing upon the face of the earth," in the ninth benediction of the Shemoneh Esreh, should be introduced only at the actual inception of the rainy season.
The announcements in "Geshem" and "Ṭal" were regarded rather as an affirmation of the divine control of the seasons. Indeed, this view led to the rabbinical instruction that no private individual should utter the formula either within or without the synagogue until it had been proclaimed by the officiant, or, according to a later view, by the beadle, before the commencement of the Amidah
(Mordecai
on Ta'an. i.; Shulḥan Aruk, Oraḥ Ḥayyim, 114, 2, 3). For a similar reason the custom arose of displaying in the synagogue on the eighth day of Tabernacles a board inscribed with the formula, and of publicly and formally removing it before the Musaf commenced on the first day of Passover.
, and for the piyyuṭim therein introduced and associated with them. Hence in each European ritual melodies arose of much quaint charm, which are already of some antiquity and are well worthy of perpetuation. The melody thus used by the Ashkenazim is the most Oriental in style, but this is due only to the utilization, for the "Geshem" service originally, of two characteristic phrases reminiscent of services performed on the two important occasions of the Jewish year immediately preceding the Eighth Day of Solemn Assembly, when it is sung.
These phrases are taken, the one from the introduction to the "Ne'ilah" at the close of the Day of Atonement
, the other from the chant sung during the waving of the palm branch (lulav
) during the Hallel
of Tabernacles, and they are developed with new phrases into the effective combination here transcribed. As, according to the system in which so many of the traditional intonations are utilized (see Cantillation
, Synagogue Music), it is the particular occasion and service rather than the particular text which determines the tonality and outline of the officiant's chant, there is no need to present independently the Ḳaddish
, the opening benedictions of the Musaf, or the following medieval verses, with all of which the motive is employed; but it will suffice to summarize the underlying thought for which the chant is generally appropriated. The preceding melody is used by the Ashkenazim as the traditional intonation for both "Geshem" and "Ṭal."
commencing "Leshoni bonanta," which occurs in both services. This melody is of Spanish origin, and bears evidence of having been originally set to words of a different rhythm. It is probably one of those numerous folk-songs which, according to the repeated testimony of contemporaries, were constantly being adapted for synagogal use from the 10th to the 15th century. The close in the major at the end is of course the inspiration of some ḥazzan
after the adaptation of the tune.
appears to be a mutilated fragment of the Sephardic melody. But in place of the other hymns of Gabirol in these services the Turkish Jews preserve a chant of far more Eastern character, the tonality and construction of which brand it as a more recent offshoot of the Perso-Arab musical system. The Levantine tradition attributes to Israel Najara (d. 1581) the selection of the non-Jewish melodies which are utilized in their rendering of the service. Among the 650 which he adapted to Hebrew words this melody may well have found a place, especially as the modes of the Perso-Arab musical system were most favored by him in his selection of tunes.
Rain
Rain is liquid precipitation, as opposed to non-liquid kinds of precipitation such as snow, hail and sleet. Rain requires the presence of a thick layer of the atmosphere to have temperatures above the melting point of water near and above the Earth's surface...
," applied mostly to the heavy rains which occur in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in the fall and winter. This half of the year is called in the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
"yemot ha-geshamin" (days of rains). In the liturgy of the German-Polish ritual "Geshem" stands for the piyyuṭim which in the Mussaf
Mussaf
Mussaf is an additional service that is recited on Shabbat, Yom Tov, Chol Hamoed, and Rosh Chodesh. The service, which is traditionally combined with the Shacharit in synagogues, is considered to be additional to the regular services of Shacharit, Mincha, and Maariv.During the days of the Holy...
or additional service for the Eighth Festival Day (Shemini Aẓeret) are read and sung as an introduction to the first mention of the "powers of rain," i.e., the words "He causeth the wind to blow and the rain to descend."
"Geshem" corresponds to the "Tal" (Dew) occurring in the liturgy for the first day of the Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
, when the above-quoted passage is omitted as being inapplicable to spring and summer. These piyyuṭim end with an invocation in six stanzas, each of which closes either with "for his sake do not withhold water!" or with "through his merit favor the outflow of water!" the merits of the Patriarchs
Patriarchs (Bible)
The Patriarchs of the Bible, when narrowly defined, are Abraham, the ancestor of all the Abrahamic nations; his son Isaac, the ancestor of the nations surrounding Israel/Judah; and Isaac's son Jacob, also named Israel, the ancestor of the Israelites...
, of Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
, of Aaron
Aaron
In the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an, Aaron : Ααρών ), who is often called "'Aaron the Priest"' and once Aaron the Levite , was the older brother of Moses, and a prophet of God. He represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first High Priest of the Israelites...
, and of the twelve tribes
Israelite
According to the Bible the Israelites were a Hebrew-speaking people of the Ancient Near East who inhabited the Land of Canaan during the monarchic period .The word "Israelite" derives from the Biblical Hebrew ישראל...
crossing the Red Sea
The Exodus
The Exodus is the story of the departure of the Israelites from ancient Egypt described in the Hebrew Bible.Narrowly defined, the term refers only to the departure from Egypt described in the Book of Exodus; more widely, it takes in the subsequent law-givings and wanderings in the wilderness...
being successively referred to.
Geshem – used as a male first name – was a Nabatean leader who opposed Nehemiah
Nehemiah
Nehemiah ]]," Standard Hebrew Nəḥemya, Tiberian Hebrew Nəḥemyāh) is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah, which describes his work rebuilding Jerusalem and purifying the Jewish community. He was the son of Hachaliah, Nehemiah ]]," Standard Hebrew Nəḥemya, Tiberian Hebrew Nəḥemyāh) is the...
(6) in the reconstruction of Jerusalem.
Customs related to Geshem
The ReformReform Judaism
Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. In general, it maintains that Judaism and Jewish traditions should be modernized and should be compatible with participation in the...
congregations, which are sparing in their use of the later piyyuṭim, as well as the Ḥasidim
Hasidim
Hasidim/Chasidim is the plural of Hasid , meaning "pious". The honorific "Hasid" was frequently used as a term of exceptional respect in the Talmudic and early medieval periods. In classic Rabbinic literature it differs from "Tzadik"-"righteous", by instead denoting one who goes beyond the legal...
and those South-Russians who have adopted the ritual of that etc., confine themselves to this sixfold invocation; but the ordinary German-Polish festival prayer-book contains also a number of other compositions. Foremost among these is one which sketches the agricultural work in each of the 12 months, and parallels therewith the influence of each of the 12 signs of the zodiac, setting Aries
Aries (astrology)
Aries is the first astrological sign in the Zodiac, which spans the zodiac between the zero degree and the 29th degree of celestial longitude. The Sun enters Aries when it reaches the northern vernal equinox, which is usually on March 21 each year, and remains in this sign until around April 20...
against Nisan
Nisan
Nisan is the first month of the ecclesiastical year and the seventh month of the civil year, on the Hebrew calendar. The name of the month is Babylonian; in the Torah it is called the month of the Aviv, referring to the month in which barley was ripe. It is a spring month of 30 days...
, and so on through the year. Old maḥzorim often have the text illustrated with twelve rude woodcuts.
It has become customary for the reader of the Musaf on the days on which "Geshem" or "Ṭal" is inserted, to put on the white shroud and cap, as on the Day of Atonement
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur , also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest and most solemn day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue...
, and before the additional prayer to intone the Ḳaddish
Kaddish
Kaddish is a prayer found in the Jewish prayer service. The central theme of the Kaddish is the magnification and sanctification of God's name. In the liturgy different versions of the Kaddish are used functionally as separators between sections of the service...
in the accents of that solemn day. After the invocation above he proceeds: "For thou, O Lord our God, causest the wind to blow ... For a blessing and not for a curse, For plenty and not for famine, For life and not for death!" And the congregation thrice answers, "Amen!"
When Abudirham wrote his book on the liturgy, the Sephardim were still faithful to the Talmudic rule that "a man must not ask for his worldly necessities" in the first three benedictions; hence Abudirham distinguishes the additional service for the Eighth of the Feast only by having the reader proclaim "He causeth the wind," etc., before the silent prayer. But the modern Sephardic service-books give a poetic prayer after "Shield of Abraham," and another which leads up to the distinctive words of the season; these words being added: "For a blessing, for grace, for joy," etc.
From an early date (comp. Ta'an. 2b; Ber.
Berakhot (Talmud)
Berachot is the first tractate of Seder Zeraim, a collection of the Mishnah that primarily deals with laws relating to plants and farming...
33a) it has been customary to introduce the benediction in the Musaf on the eighth day of Feast of Tabernacles, in the fall of the year, and it is recited for the last time on the first day of Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
, in the spring. On the latter occasion the word טל ("dew") is substituted for the word גשם ("rain"), used on Shemini Aẓeret, and hence the titles "Geshem" and "Ṭal" given to the Musaf of these festivals. The Talmudists had decided that the actual prayer for rain, "Give dew and rain for a blessing upon the face of the earth," in the ninth benediction of the Shemoneh Esreh, should be introduced only at the actual inception of the rainy season.
The announcements in "Geshem" and "Ṭal" were regarded rather as an affirmation of the divine control of the seasons. Indeed, this view led to the rabbinical instruction that no private individual should utter the formula either within or without the synagogue until it had been proclaimed by the officiant, or, according to a later view, by the beadle, before the commencement of the Amidah
Amidah
The Amidah , also called the Shmoneh Esreh , is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy. This prayer, among others, is found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book...
(Mordecai
Mordecai ben Hillel
Mordechai ben Hillel HaKohen , also known as The Mordechai, was a 13th century German rabbi and posek. His chief legal commentary on the Talmud, referred to as the Mordechai, is one of the sources of the Shulchan Aruch. He died a martyr's death at Nuremberg.-Biography:Little is known of the...
on Ta'an. i.; Shulḥan Aruk, Oraḥ Ḥayyim, 114, 2, 3). For a similar reason the custom arose of displaying in the synagogue on the eighth day of Tabernacles a board inscribed with the formula, and of publicly and formally removing it before the Musaf commenced on the first day of Passover.
Ashkenazic melody
So much being held to depend on the proper proclamation of the "Geshem" and "Ṭal," a special melody was naturally adopted for each, for the sections of the AmidahAmidah
The Amidah , also called the Shmoneh Esreh , is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy. This prayer, among others, is found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book...
, and for the piyyuṭim therein introduced and associated with them. Hence in each European ritual melodies arose of much quaint charm, which are already of some antiquity and are well worthy of perpetuation. The melody thus used by the Ashkenazim is the most Oriental in style, but this is due only to the utilization, for the "Geshem" service originally, of two characteristic phrases reminiscent of services performed on the two important occasions of the Jewish year immediately preceding the Eighth Day of Solemn Assembly, when it is sung.
These phrases are taken, the one from the introduction to the "Ne'ilah" at the close of the Day of Atonement
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur , also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest and most solemn day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue...
, the other from the chant sung during the waving of the palm branch (lulav
Lulav
The Lulav is a closed frond of the date palm tree. It is one of the arba'ah minim used in the morning prayer services during the Jewish holiday of Sukkot...
) during the Hallel
Hallel
Hallel is a Jewish prayer—a verbatim recitation from Psalms 113–118, which is used for praise and thanksgiving that is recited by observant Jews on Jewish holidays.-Holy days:...
of Tabernacles, and they are developed with new phrases into the effective combination here transcribed. As, according to the system in which so many of the traditional intonations are utilized (see Cantillation
Cantillation
Cantillation is the ritual chanting of readings from the Hebrew Bible in synagogue services. The chants are written and notated in accordance with the special signs or marks printed in the Masoretic text of the Hebrew Bible to complement the letters and vowel points...
, Synagogue Music), it is the particular occasion and service rather than the particular text which determines the tonality and outline of the officiant's chant, there is no need to present independently the Ḳaddish
Kaddish
Kaddish is a prayer found in the Jewish prayer service. The central theme of the Kaddish is the magnification and sanctification of God's name. In the liturgy different versions of the Kaddish are used functionally as separators between sections of the service...
, the opening benedictions of the Musaf, or the following medieval verses, with all of which the motive is employed; but it will suffice to summarize the underlying thought for which the chant is generally appropriated. The preceding melody is used by the Ashkenazim as the traditional intonation for both "Geshem" and "Ṭal."
Sephardic Melody
With the Sephardim the most representative melody of the "Geshem" and "Ṭal" is that reserved for the beautiful poem by Solomon ibn GabirolSolomon ibn Gabirol
Solomon ibn Gabirol, also Solomon ben Judah , was an Andalucian Hebrew poet and Jewish philosopher with a Neoplatonic bent. He was born in Málaga about 1021; died about 1058 in Valencia.-Biography:...
commencing "Leshoni bonanta," which occurs in both services. This melody is of Spanish origin, and bears evidence of having been originally set to words of a different rhythm. It is probably one of those numerous folk-songs which, according to the repeated testimony of contemporaries, were constantly being adapted for synagogal use from the 10th to the 15th century. The close in the major at the end is of course the inspiration of some ḥazzan
Hazzan
A hazzan or chazzan is a Jewish cantor, a musician trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer.There are many rules relating to how a cantor should lead services, but the idea of a cantor as a paid professional does not exist in classical rabbinic sources...
after the adaptation of the tune.
Levant Melody
The version preserved in the LevantLevant
The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...
appears to be a mutilated fragment of the Sephardic melody. But in place of the other hymns of Gabirol in these services the Turkish Jews preserve a chant of far more Eastern character, the tonality and construction of which brand it as a more recent offshoot of the Perso-Arab musical system. The Levantine tradition attributes to Israel Najara (d. 1581) the selection of the non-Jewish melodies which are utilized in their rendering of the service. Among the 650 which he adapted to Hebrew words this melody may well have found a place, especially as the modes of the Perso-Arab musical system were most favored by him in his selection of tunes.
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography
- Baer, Ba'al Tefillah, Nos. 834-838 (Ashkenazic airs);
- De Sola and Aguilar, Ancient Melodies, No. 45 (Sephardic);
- Löwit and Bauer, in Shir ha-Kabod, part i., No. 20 (Turkish);
- F. L. Cohen, in Israel, 1899, iii. 178;
- Journal of the Folksong Society, vol. i., No. 2, p. 34.
External links
- Jewish Encyclopedia article on Geshem, by Solomon SchechterSolomon SchechterSolomon Schechter was a Moldavian-born Romanian and English rabbi, academic scholar, and educator, most famous for his roles as founder and President of the United Synagogue of America, President of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and architect of the American Conservative Jewish...
, Lewis N. Dembitz, Joseph JacobsJoseph JacobsJoseph Jacobs was a folklorist, literary critic and historian. His works included contributions to the Jewish Encyclopaedia, translations of European works, and critical editions of early English literature...
, and Francis L. Cohen.