Lekhah Dodi
Encyclopedia
Lekhah Dodi is a Hebrew-language Jewish liturgical song
recited Friday at dusk
, usually at sundown
, in synagogue
to welcome Shabbat
prior to the Maariv
(evening services
). It is part of the Kabbalat Shabbat ("acceptance of Sabbath
").
Lekhah Dodi means "come my beloved," and is a request of a mysterious "beloved" that could mean either God
or one's friend(s) to join together in welcoming Shabbat that is referred to as the "bride
": likrat kallah ("to greet the [Shabbat] bride"). During the singing of the last verse, the entire congregation rises and turns to the open door, to greet "Queen Shabbat" as she arrives.
It was composed in the 16th century Ottoman Empire
city of Edirne
by Rabbi
Shlomo Halevi Alkabetz
, a Safed
Kabbalist
. As was common at the time, the song is also an acrostic
, with the first letter of the first eight stanza
s spelling the author's name. The author draws much of his phraseology from Isaiah's
prophecy of Israel's
restoration, and six of his verses are full of the thoughts to which his vision of Israel
as the bride on that great Shabbat of Messianic
deliverance gives rise. It is one of the latest of the Hebrew poems regularly accepted into the liturgy, both in the southern use, which the author followed, and in the more distant northern rite.
and choir
-director to seek to devote his sweetest strains to the Shabbat welcomesong. Settings of "Lekhah Dodi," usually of great expressiveness and not infrequently of much tenderness and beauty, are accordingly to be found in every published compilation of synagogal melodies. Among the Sephardic congregations, however, the hymn
is universally chanted to an ancient Moorish melody of great interest, which is known to be much older than the text of "Lekhah Dodi" itself. This is clear not only from internal evidence, but also from the rubric in old prayer-books
directing the hymn "to be sung to the melody of 'Shuvi Nafshi li-Menukhayekhi,'" a composition of Judah ha-Levi, who died nearly five centuries before Alkabetz. In this rendering, carried to Israel by Spanish refugees before the days of Alkabetz, the hymn is chanted congregationally, the refrain being employed as an introduction only. But in Ashkenazic synagogues the verses are ordinarily chanted at elaborate length by the chazzan, and the refrain is used as a congregational response.
weeks between Passover and Shavuot
, which has been variously described, because of certain of its phrases, as an adaptation of the famous political song "Lillibullero
" and of the cavatina in the beginning of Mozart
's "Nozze di Figaro
." But resemblances to German folk-song of the end of the seventeenth century may be found generally throughout the melody.
Less widely utilized in the present day is the special air traditional for the "Three Weeks
" preceding Tisha b'Av
, although this is characterized by much tender charm absent from the melody of Eli Tziyyon, which more often takes its place. But it was once very generally sung in the northern congregations of Europe; and a variant was chosen by Benedetto Marcello
for his rendition of Psalm xix. in his "Estro Poetico-Armonico" or "Parafrasi Sopra li Salmi" (Venice, 1724), where it is quoted as an air of the German Jews. Cantor Eduard Birnbaum ("Der Jüdische Kantor", 1883, p. 349) has discovered the source of this melody in a Polish folk-song, "Wezm ja Kontusz, Wezm", given in Oskar Kolberg
's "Piesni Ludu Polskiego" (Warsaw, 1857). An old melody, of similarly obvious folk-song origin, was favored in the London Jewry a century ago, and was sung in two slightly divergent forms in the old city synagogues. Both of these forms are given by Isaac Nathan
in his setting of Byron's
"Hebrew Melodies" (London, 1815), where they constitute the air selected for "She Walks in Beauty
", the first verses in the series. The melody has since fallen out of use in English congregations and elsewhere.
congregations omit verses 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8 which make reference to Orthodox
conceptions of messianic redemption):
In the Sephardic rite the last section is recited as such:
Religious Jewish music
This article describes the principal types of religious Jewish music from the days of the Temple to modern times.-History of religious Jewish music:...
recited Friday at dusk
Dusk
Dusk is the beginning of darkness in the evening, and occurs after twilight, when the sky generally remains bright and blue. Civil dusk is when the earth has rotated enough that the center of the sun is at 6° below the local horizon...
, usually at sundown
Sunset
Sunset or sundown is the daily disappearance of the Sun below the horizon in the west as a result of Earth's rotation.The time of sunset is defined in astronomy as the moment the trailing edge of the Sun's disk disappears below the horizon in the west...
, in synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
to welcome Shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
prior to the Maariv
Jewish services
Jewish prayer are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
(evening services
Jewish services
Jewish prayer are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
). It is part of the Kabbalat Shabbat ("acceptance of Sabbath
Biblical Sabbath
Sabbath in the Bible is usually a weekly day of rest and time of worship. The Sabbath is first mentioned in the Genesis creation narrative. The seventh day is there set aside as a day of rest—the Sabbath. It is observed differently in Judaism and Christianity and informs a similar occasion in...
").
Lekhah Dodi means "come my beloved," and is a request of a mysterious "beloved" that could mean either God
Names of God in Judaism
In Judaism, the name of God is more than a distinguishing title; it represents the Jewish conception of the divine nature, and of the relationship of God to the Jewish people and to the world. To demonstrate the sacredness of the names of God, and as a means of showing respect and reverence for...
or one's friend(s) to join together in welcoming Shabbat that is referred to as the "bride
Bride
A bride is a woman about to be married or newlywed.The word may come from the Proto-Germanic verb root *brū-, meaning 'to cook, brew, or make a broth' which was the role of the daughter-in-law in primitive families...
": likrat kallah ("to greet the [Shabbat] bride"). During the singing of the last verse, the entire congregation rises and turns to the open door, to greet "Queen Shabbat" as she arrives.
It was composed in the 16th century Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
city of Edirne
Edirne
Edirne is a city in Eastern Thrace, the northwestern part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. Edirne served as the capital city of the Ottoman Empire from 1365 to 1453, before Constantinople became the empire's new capital. At present, Edirne is the capital of the Edirne...
by Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
Shlomo Halevi Alkabetz
Shlomo Halevi Alkabetz
Shlomo ha-Levi Alkabetz, also spelt Alqabitz, Alqabes; was a rabbi, kabbalist and poet perhaps best known for his composition of the song Lecha Dodi; sources differ as to when he wrote it .- Biography :Alkabetz studied Torah under Rabbi Yosef Taitatzak...
, a Safed
Safed
Safed , is a city in the Northern District of Israel. Located at an elevation of , Safed is the highest city in the Galilee and of Israel. Due to its high elevation, Safed experiences warm summers and cold, often snowy, winters...
Kabbalist
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
. As was common at the time, the song is also an acrostic
Acrostic
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...
, with the first letter of the first eight stanza
Stanza
In poetry, a stanza is a unit within a larger poem. In modern poetry, the term is often equivalent with strophe; in popular vocal music, a stanza is typically referred to as a "verse"...
s spelling the author's name. The author draws much of his phraseology from Isaiah's
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
prophecy of Israel's
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
restoration, and six of his verses are full of the thoughts to which his vision of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
as the bride on that great Shabbat of Messianic
Jewish Messiah
Messiah, ; mashiah, moshiah, mashiach, or moshiach, is a term used in the Hebrew Bible to describe priests and kings, who were traditionally anointed with holy anointing oil as described in Exodus 30:22-25...
deliverance gives rise. It is one of the latest of the Hebrew poems regularly accepted into the liturgy, both in the southern use, which the author followed, and in the more distant northern rite.
Ancient Moorish melody
Its importance in the esteem of Jewish worshipers has led every cantorCantor (church)
A cantor is the chief singer employed in a church with responsibilities for the ecclesiastical choir; also called the precentor....
and choir
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
-director to seek to devote his sweetest strains to the Shabbat welcomesong. Settings of "Lekhah Dodi," usually of great expressiveness and not infrequently of much tenderness and beauty, are accordingly to be found in every published compilation of synagogal melodies. Among the Sephardic congregations, however, the hymn
Hymn
A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
is universally chanted to an ancient Moorish melody of great interest, which is known to be much older than the text of "Lekhah Dodi" itself. This is clear not only from internal evidence, but also from the rubric in old prayer-books
Siddur
A siddur is a Jewish prayer book, containing a set order of daily prayers. This article discusses how some of these prayers evolved, and how the siddur, as it is known today has developed...
directing the hymn "to be sung to the melody of 'Shuvi Nafshi li-Menukhayekhi,'" a composition of Judah ha-Levi, who died nearly five centuries before Alkabetz. In this rendering, carried to Israel by Spanish refugees before the days of Alkabetz, the hymn is chanted congregationally, the refrain being employed as an introduction only. But in Ashkenazic synagogues the verses are ordinarily chanted at elaborate length by the chazzan, and the refrain is used as a congregational response.
Old German and Polish melodies
At certain periods of the year many northern congregations discard later compositions in favor of two simple older melodies singularly reminiscent of the folk-song of northern Europe in the century succeeding that in which the verses were written. The better known of these is an air, reserved for the OmerCounting of the Omer
Counting of the Omer is a verbal counting of each of the forty-nine days between the Jewish holidays of Passover and Shavuot...
weeks between Passover and Shavuot
Shavuot
The festival of is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan ....
, which has been variously described, because of certain of its phrases, as an adaptation of the famous political song "Lillibullero
Lillibullero
Lillibullero is a march that sets the words of a satirical ballad generally said to be by Lord Thomas Wharton to music attributed to Henry Purcell. Although Purcell published Lillibullero in his compilation Music's Handmaid of 1689 as "a new Irish tune", it is probable that Purcell hijacked the...
" and of the cavatina in the beginning of Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
's "Nozze di Figaro
The Marriage of Figaro
Le nozze di Figaro, ossia la folle giornata , K. 492, is an opera buffa composed in 1786 in four acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, based on a stage comedy by Pierre Beaumarchais, La folle journée, ou le Mariage de Figaro .Although the play by...
." But resemblances to German folk-song of the end of the seventeenth century may be found generally throughout the melody.
Less widely utilized in the present day is the special air traditional for the "Three Weeks
The Three Weeks
The Three Weeks or Bein ha-Metzarim is a period of mourning commemorating the destruction of the first and second Jewish Temples...
" preceding Tisha b'Av
Tisha B'Av
|Av]],") is an annual fast day in Judaism, named for the ninth day of the month of Av in the Hebrew calendar. The fast commemorates the destruction of both the First Temple and Second Temple in Jerusalem, which occurred about 655 years apart, but on the same Hebrew calendar date...
, although this is characterized by much tender charm absent from the melody of Eli Tziyyon, which more often takes its place. But it was once very generally sung in the northern congregations of Europe; and a variant was chosen by Benedetto Marcello
Benedetto Marcello
Benedetto Marcello was a Venetian composer, writer, advocate, magistrate, and teacher.-Life:...
for his rendition of Psalm xix. in his "Estro Poetico-Armonico" or "Parafrasi Sopra li Salmi" (Venice, 1724), where it is quoted as an air of the German Jews. Cantor Eduard Birnbaum ("Der Jüdische Kantor", 1883, p. 349) has discovered the source of this melody in a Polish folk-song, "Wezm ja Kontusz, Wezm", given in Oskar Kolberg
Oskar Kolberg
Henryk Oskar Kolberg, , was a Polish ethnographer, folklorist, and composer.- Life :He was born in Przysucha, the son of Juliusz Kolberg, a professor at Warsaw University, and Fryderyka Mercoeur...
's "Piesni Ludu Polskiego" (Warsaw, 1857). An old melody, of similarly obvious folk-song origin, was favored in the London Jewry a century ago, and was sung in two slightly divergent forms in the old city synagogues. Both of these forms are given by Isaac Nathan
Isaac Nathan
Isaac Nathan was an Anglo-Australian composer, musicologist, journalist and self-publicist, who ended an eventful career by becoming the "father of Australian music".-Early success:...
in his setting of Byron's
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, later George Gordon Noel, 6th Baron Byron, FRS , commonly known simply as Lord Byron, was a British poet and a leading figure in the Romantic movement...
"Hebrew Melodies" (London, 1815), where they constitute the air selected for "She Walks in Beauty
She Walks in Beauty
"She Walks in Beauty" is a poem written in 1814 by Lord Byron. One of Lord Byron’s most famous, it is a narrative poem that describes a woman of much beauty and elegance. The poem appears to be told from the view point of third person omniscient. There are no hints as to the identity of the...
", the first verses in the series. The melody has since fallen out of use in English congregations and elsewhere.
Text
The full version of the song (note that many 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 omit verses 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8 which make reference to Orthodox
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
conceptions of messianic redemption):
| # | English translation | Transliteration Romanization of Hebrew Hebrew uses the Hebrew alphabet with optional vowel points. The romanization of Hebrew is the use of the Latin alphabet to transliterate Hebrew words.... |
Hebrew |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chorus: | |||
| 1 | Let’s go, my beloved, to meet the bride, | Lekhah dodi liqrat kallah | |
| 2 | and let us welcome the presence of Shabbat. | p'nei Shabbat neqabelah | |
| Verse 1: | |||
| 3 | "Observe" and "recall" in a single utterance, | Shamor v'zakhor b'dibur eḥad | |
| 4 | We were made to hear by the unified God, | hishmiʿanu El hameyuḥad | |
| 5 | God is one and God’s Name is one, | Adonai eḥad ushemo eḥad | |
| 6 | In fame and splendor and praiseful song. | L'Sheim ulitiferet v'lit'hilah | |
| Verse 2: | |||
| 7 | To greet Shabbat let’s go, let’s travel, | Liqrat Shabbat lekhu v'nelekhah | |
| 8 | For she is the wellspring of blessing, | ki hi maqor haberakhah | |
| 9 | From the start, from ancient times she was chosen, | merosh miqedem nesukhah | |
| 10 | Last made, but first planned. | sof maʿaseh b'maḥashavah teḥilah | |
| Verse 3: | |||
| 11 | Sanctuary of the king, royal city, | Miqdash melekh ʿir melukhah | |
| 12 | Arise! Leave from the midst of the turmoil; | Qumi tze'i mitokh ha-hafeikhah | |
| 13 | Long enough have you sat in the valley of tears | Rav lakh shevet b'ʿeimeq habakha | |
| 14 | And He will take great pity upon you compassionately. | v'hu yaḥamol ʿalayikh ḥemlah | |
| Verse 4: | |||
| 15 | Shake yourself free, rise from the dust, | Hitnaʿari me'afar qumi | |
| 16 | Dress in your garments of splendor, my people, | Livshi bigdei tifartekh ʿami | |
| 17 | By the hand of Jesse’s son of Bethlehem, | ʿAl yad ben Yishai beit ha-laḥmi | |
| 18 | Redemption draws near to my soul. | Qorvah el nafshi g'alah | |
| Verse 5: | |||
| 19 | Rouse yourselves! Rouse yourselves! | Hitʿoreri hitʿoreri | |
| 20 | Your light is coming, rise up and shine. | Ki va oreikh qumi ori | |
| 21 | Awaken! Awaken! utter a song, | ʿUri ʿuri shir dabeiri | |
| 22 | The glory of the L-rd is revealed upon you. | K'vod Ado-nai ʿalayikh niglah | |
| Verse 6: | |||
| 23 | Do not be embarrassed! Do not be ashamed! | Lo tivoshi v'lo tikalmi | |
| 24 | Why be downcast? Why groan? | Mah tishtoḥai umah tehemi | |
| 25 | All my afflicted people will find refuge within you | bakh yeḥesu ʿaniyei ʿami | |
| 26 | And the city shall be rebuilt on her hill. | v'nivnetah ʿir ʿal tilah | |
| Verse 7: | |||
| 27 | Your despoilers will become your spoil, | V'hayu limshisah shosayikh | |
| 28 | Far away shall be any who would devour you, | V'raḥaqu kol mevalʿayikh | |
| 29 | Your God will rejoice concerning you, | Yasis ʿalayikh Elohayikh | |
| 30 | As a groom rejoices over a bride. | Kimsos ḥatan ʿal kalah | |
| Verse 8: | |||
| 31 | To your right and your left you will burst forth, | Yamin usmol tifrotzi | |
| 32 | And the L-rd will you revere | V'et Adonai taʿaritzi | |
| 33 | By the hand of a child of Perez, | ʿAl yad ish ben Partzi | |
| 34 | We will rejoice and sing happily. | V'nismeḥah v'nagilah | |
| Verse 9: | |||
| 35 | Come in peace, crown of her husband, | Boi v'shalom ateret baʿalah | |
| 36 | Both in happiness and in jubilation | Gam b'simḥah uvetzahalah | |
| 37 | Amidst the faithful of the treasured nation | Tokh emunei ʿam segulah | |
| 38 | Come O Bride! Come O Bride! | Boi khalah boi khalah | |
In the Sephardic rite the last section is recited as such:
| # | English translation | Transliteration Romanization of Hebrew Hebrew uses the Hebrew alphabet with optional vowel points. The romanization of Hebrew is the use of the Latin alphabet to transliterate Hebrew words.... |
Hebrew |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verse 9: | |||
| 35 | Come in peace, crown of her husband, | Boi v'shalom ateret ba'ʿalah | |
| 36 | Both in happiness, in song and in jubilation | Gam b'simḥah b'rinah uvetzahalah | |
| 37 | Amidst the faithful of the treasured nation | Tokh emunei am segulah | |
| 38 | Come O Bride! Come O Bride! | Boi khalah boi khalah | |
| 39 | Amidst the faithful of the treasured nation | Tokh emunei ʿam segulah | |
| 40 | Come O Bride! Shabbat Queen! | Boi khalah Shabbat malketa | |
External links
- Audio file "Lekhah Dodi" MP3
- Audio file "Lekhah Dodi" MP3
- Lekhah Dodi with music from The Jewish Learning Group from the Chabad-Lubavitch Media Center
- Lekhah Dodi tunes and recordings on the Zemirot Database