Akdamut
Encyclopedia
Akdamut, or Akdamus or Akdamut Milin, or Akdomus Milin (Aramaic
: אֵקְדָּמוּת מִלִּין, "In Introduction to the Words," i.e. to the Aseret ha-dibrot, the Ten Commandments
), is a prominent Aramaic liturgical poem
recited annually on the Jewish holiday
of Shavuos by Ashkenazi Jews
. It was penned by Rabbi Meir bar Yitzchak ("Nehorai") of Orléans, who was either a cantor or prayer leader in Worms
, Germany
, (died ca. 1095). Akdamut consists of praise for G-d, His Torah
, and His people.
Akdamut is read on the first day of Shavuos during the Torah
service. The original practice was for it to be recited after the reading of the first verse of the lection (Exodus 19:1), but in the past few centuries, the practice has developed in many congregations (mainly Eastern European ones) that the poem is read after the kohen
has been called to the Torah reading
, but before he has made the blessing. The reason for the original practice was that, from Biblical times to well into medieval times, each verse of the Torah reading in Hebrew would be followed by its interpretation into Aramaic, and therefore it would be appropriate, after the first Hebrew verse was read, for another reader to provide an Aramaic gloss including this "introduction". However, when the simultaneous Aramaic interpretation fell into disuse, the recitation of Akdamut remained between the first and second Hebrew verses, where it no longer seemed an appropriate interruption, so it was relocated to before the commencement of the Torah reading. In most synagogues it is read responsively: the ba'al korei singing two verses, and the congregation responding with the next two verses. Although it is considered "Judaism's best-known and most beloved piyut", there are some synagogues where it is not recited.
Its adoption into the regular liturgy took some time; it is not mentioned as part of the Shavuos liturgy until the first decade of the 15th century and the earliest prayerbook to contain it was published in 1557. Apparently it replaced an earlier piyyut, Arkin Moshe, which was a folkloric poem describing the excitement among the angels when God brought Moses up to Heaven to receive the Ten Commandments. The adoption of Akdamut into the liturgy may have been assisted by an absurd folktale that connected its composition with a miraculous event involving the defeat of an evil sorceror monk who was using magic to kill countless Jews.
, two lines for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet, followed by 46 verses with the initial letters spelling out the words, "Meir, son of Rabbi Isaac, may he grow in Torah and in good deeds. Amen. Be strong and have courage."
The language of Akdamut is terse and complicated, and is replete with references to Torah
and Talmud
. Each line has ten syllables and concludes with the syllable "ta" (תא), which is spelled with the last letter (tav
) and first letter (aleph) of the Hebrew alphabet
. The encoded message from the author is that a Jew never stops learning Torah — when one finishes, one must start anew again. This message was appropriately chosen for Shavuot, since this holiday commemorates the Jews accepting the Ten Commandments
on Mount Sinai
.
The language of the poem is Aramaic, -- "terse, difficult Aramaic" -- or even "never intelligible". Some prayerbooks, especially those intended for use in Israel, provide a running translation from the now arcane Aramaic into Hebrew.
In summary, the poem begins with the greatness of God, which exceeds all ability to describe it (verses 1-14), and then the myriads of various kinds of angels created by Him and attending Him (15-26). The various angels praise God according to their categories, some praise Him unceasingly, some at recurring times, some only once (27-42). The nations of the earth seek to acquire Israel to add to their own greatness but Israel replies that its loyalty is only to God, and this is the source of Israel's attributes and strength (43-74). In the future, Leviathan and Behemoth, two enormous creatures mentioned in Scripture, will be brought together, and killed and prepared by God as a banquet for the righteous in opulent furnishings (75-84). May you, who have heard this song, be privileged to be seated at that banquet, if only you will harken to the Torah that He gave us (85-90).
, a melody similar to that used on Simchat Torah
for the honoring of the "Bridegroom of the Torah" (who reads the concluding lines of Deuteronomy) - which, since the holidays share related concepts, seems very plausible, and there is also a melody of more recent vintage adopted from a German folksong.
Aramaic language
Aramaic is a group of languages belonging to the Afroasiatic language phylum. The name of the language is based on the name of Aram, an ancient region in central Syria. Within this family, Aramaic belongs to the Semitic family, and more specifically, is a part of the Northwest Semitic subfamily,...
: אֵקְדָּמוּת מִלִּין, "In Introduction to the Words," i.e. to the Aseret ha-dibrot, the Ten Commandments
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
), is a prominent Aramaic liturgical poem
Piyyut
A piyyut or piyut is a Jewish liturgical poem, usually designated to be sung, chanted, or recited during religious services. Piyyutim have been written since Temple times...
recited annually on the Jewish holiday
Jewish holiday
Jewish holidays are days observed by Jews as holy or secular commemorations of important events in Jewish history. In Hebrew, Jewish holidays and festivals, depending on their nature, may be called yom tov or chag or ta'anit...
of Shavuos by Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim , are the Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities along the Rhine in Germany from Alsace in the south to the Rhineland in the north. Ashkenaz is the medieval Hebrew name for this region and thus for Germany...
. It was penned by Rabbi Meir bar Yitzchak ("Nehorai") of Orléans, who was either a cantor or prayer leader in Worms
Worms, Germany
Worms is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Rhine River. At the end of 2004, it had 85,829 inhabitants.Established by the Celts, who called it Borbetomagus, Worms today remains embattled with the cities Trier and Cologne over the title of "Oldest City in Germany." Worms is the only...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, (died ca. 1095). Akdamut consists of praise for G-d, His Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
, and His people.
Akdamut is read on the first day of Shavuos during the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
service. The original practice was for it to be recited after the reading of the first verse of the lection (Exodus 19:1), but in the past few centuries, the practice has developed in many congregations (mainly Eastern European ones) that the poem is read after the kohen
Kohen
A Kohen is the Hebrew word for priest. Jewish Kohens are traditionally believed and halachically required to be of direct patrilineal descent from the Biblical Aaron....
has been called to the Torah reading
Torah reading
Torah reading is a Jewish religious ritual that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the Torah scroll from the ark, chanting the appropriate excerpt with special cantillation, and returning the scroll to...
, but before he has made the blessing. The reason for the original practice was that, from Biblical times to well into medieval times, each verse of the Torah reading in Hebrew would be followed by its interpretation into Aramaic, and therefore it would be appropriate, after the first Hebrew verse was read, for another reader to provide an Aramaic gloss including this "introduction". However, when the simultaneous Aramaic interpretation fell into disuse, the recitation of Akdamut remained between the first and second Hebrew verses, where it no longer seemed an appropriate interruption, so it was relocated to before the commencement of the Torah reading. In most synagogues it is read responsively: the ba'al korei singing two verses, and the congregation responding with the next two verses. Although it is considered "Judaism's best-known and most beloved piyut", there are some synagogues where it is not recited.
Its adoption into the regular liturgy took some time; it is not mentioned as part of the Shavuos liturgy until the first decade of the 15th century and the earliest prayerbook to contain it was published in 1557. Apparently it replaced an earlier piyyut, Arkin Moshe, which was a folkloric poem describing the excitement among the angels when God brought Moses up to Heaven to receive the Ten Commandments. The adoption of Akdamut into the liturgy may have been assisted by an absurd folktale that connected its composition with a miraculous event involving the defeat of an evil sorceror monk who was using magic to kill countless Jews.
Structure
The entire poem is 90 verses long. The first 44 verses of Akdamut are arranged as a double alphabetic acrosticAcrostic
An acrostic is a poem or other form of writing in which the first letter, syllable or word of each line, paragraph or other recurring feature in the text spells out a word or a message. As a form of constrained writing, an acrostic can be used as a mnemonic device to aid memory retrieval. A famous...
, two lines for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet, followed by 46 verses with the initial letters spelling out the words, "Meir, son of Rabbi Isaac, may he grow in Torah and in good deeds. Amen. Be strong and have courage."
The language of Akdamut is terse and complicated, and is replete with references to Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
and Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
. Each line has ten syllables and concludes with the syllable "ta" (תא), which is spelled with the last letter (tav
Taw (letter)
Taw, Tav or Taf is the twenty-second and last letter in many Semitic abjads, including Phoenician, Aramaic, Hebrew Taw and Arabic alphabet .Its original sound value is ....
) and first letter (aleph) of the Hebrew alphabet
Hebrew alphabet
The Hebrew alphabet , known variously by scholars as the Jewish script, square script, block script, or more historically, the Assyrian script, is used in the writing of the Hebrew language, as well as other Jewish languages, most notably Yiddish, Ladino, and Judeo-Arabic. There have been two...
. The encoded message from the author is that a Jew never stops learning Torah — when one finishes, one must start anew again. This message was appropriately chosen for Shavuot, since this holiday commemorates the Jews accepting the Ten Commandments
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
on Mount Sinai
Biblical Mount Sinai
The Biblical Mount Sinai is the mountain at which the Book of Exodus states that the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God...
.
The language of the poem is Aramaic, -- "terse, difficult Aramaic" -- or even "never intelligible". Some prayerbooks, especially those intended for use in Israel, provide a running translation from the now arcane Aramaic into Hebrew.
In summary, the poem begins with the greatness of God, which exceeds all ability to describe it (verses 1-14), and then the myriads of various kinds of angels created by Him and attending Him (15-26). The various angels praise God according to their categories, some praise Him unceasingly, some at recurring times, some only once (27-42). The nations of the earth seek to acquire Israel to add to their own greatness but Israel replies that its loyalty is only to God, and this is the source of Israel's attributes and strength (43-74). In the future, Leviathan and Behemoth, two enormous creatures mentioned in Scripture, will be brought together, and killed and prepared by God as a banquet for the righteous in opulent furnishings (75-84). May you, who have heard this song, be privileged to be seated at that banquet, if only you will harken to the Torah that He gave us (85-90).
Musical considerations
When Akdamut was first composed and introduced it was not accompanied by a specific melody. It is not chanted according to any system of accents used in Biblical cantillation. A number of different musical treatments have grown around it in various communities. Among these is a mode similar to that used for the Festival KiddushKiddush
Kiddush , literally, "sanctification," is a blessing recited over wine or grape juice to sanctify the Shabbat and Jewish holidays.-Significance:...
, a melody similar to that used on Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah or Simḥath Torah is a celebration marking the conclusion of the annual cycle of public Torah readings, and the beginning of a new cycle...
for the honoring of the "Bridegroom of the Torah" (who reads the concluding lines of Deuteronomy) - which, since the holidays share related concepts, seems very plausible, and there is also a melody of more recent vintage adopted from a German folksong.
Parallels in other works
The reference in Akdamut to all the seas being ink and all the reeds pens is paralleled in the Koran: “Were the sea ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would surely fail before the words of my Lord fail” (Sura 18, verse 109), and “Were the trees that are in the earth pens, were the sea ink with seven more seas to swell its tide, the words of God would not be spent” (Sura 31, verse 27). Medieval Christian sermons use the same imagery.External references
- Rabbi Avrohom Yaakov Salamon, Akdamus Millin: A new translation and commentary anthologized from the traditional Rabbinic literature, ArtScrollArtScrollArtScroll is an imprint of translations, books and commentaries from an Orthodox Jewish perspective published by Mesorah Publications, Ltd., a publishing company based in Brooklyn, New York...
publishers ISBN 0-89906-154-0 (1978, 151 pages) - Rabbi Raymond Apple on Akdamut