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Blessings of Separation: HavdalahPart II
BLESSINGS OF SEPARATION: HAVDALAH PART II
On wine or grape juice: ,םָלוֹעָה ךֶלֶמ וּניֵהֹלֱא הוהי הָּתאַ ךוּרָּב .ןֶפָגַה יִרְּפ אֵרוֹבּ Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, Majesty of the world, who creates the fruit of the vine.
On fragrant spices: ,םָלוֹעָה ךֶלֶמ וּניֵהֹלֱא הוהי הָּתאַ ךוּרָּב .םיִמָׂשְב יֵניִמ אֵרוֹבּ Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, Majesty of the world, who creates many kinds of fragrant spices.
While looking at candlelight reflecting off your fingernails:
With cup and candle raised, recite: ,םָלוֹעָה ךֶלֶמ וּניֵהֹלֱא הוהי הָּתאַ ךוּרָּב ןיֵּב ,ךֶׁשֹחְל רוֹא ןיֵּב ,לֹחְל שֶׁדֹק ןיֵּב ליִּדְבַּמַה תֶׁשֵׁשְל יִעיִבְּׁשַה םוֹי ןיֵּב ,םיִּמַעָל לֵאָרְׂשִי ליִּדְבַּמַה ,הוהי הָּתאַ ךוּרָּב :הֶׂשֲעַּמַה יֵמְי .לֹחְל שֶׁדֹק ןיֵּב Blessed are You, Adonai, our God, who makes a distinction between holy and mundane, between light and darkness, between Israel and the nations of the world, between the seventh day and the six days of work. Blessed are You, Adonai, who makes a distinction between holy and mundane.
Baruch Atah, Adonai, Eloheinu, Melech ha’olam, hamavdil bein kodesh lechol, bein ohr lechoshech, bein Yisrael la’amim, bein yom hashvi’i lesheshet yemei hama’aseh. Baruch Atah, Adonai, hamavdil bein kodesh lechol.
THINK
Every aspect of Havdalah is layered with deep meaning. The spices are there to revive our soul, which is depleted in parting from Shabbat. The candle, which comprises many wicks but manifests one flame, represents Jewish peoplehood; although we are different, we know we are one. As we hold our fingers to the flame and see the shadow and the light, we realize that shadow and light often go together in our world. May we step out of Shabbat refreshed, comforted, and ready to spread and magnify the light in the world of action.
CONNECT
On Friday night, we begin Shabbat with two separate candles. Lighting them is the last act of the week, and their glow illuminates and brings joy to our dinner table. On Saturday night, we end Shabbat with a single candle composed of multiple, intertwined wicks. “We enter Shabbat one way,” says Lori Palatnik, founding director of Momentum, “and we leave another. When it is over, we have learned and grown so that we can now give even more to our daily lives and to others.” Shabbat has the power to bring us close together and embed in our consciousness how interconnected we are.
REFLECT
What about Shabbat can bring people closer together? What scent, taste, or light of Shabbat do you want to bring into your week?
PERSONAL PRAYER
May I absorb this bounty of senses that draw Shabbat to a close. Help me soak up the beauty of Havdalah, so rich in taste, sight, scent, sound, and warmth. The candlelight, sweet wine, blessings we recite, and fragrant spices gently mark the cycle of time and tradition, a reflection of how our lives are intricately connected with one another.
— Marisela Maddox, Austin, Texas
