Tag Archives: Hebrew

Focus on culture: The Khamsa amulet (or Hand of Fatima)

Author: Bluewind via Wikipedia Commons
Collection of various Khamsa

Today’s blog post will take us to Israel and the Near East as well as to North Africa and to an ancient symbol of good luck and an amulet to ward off the Evil Eye, namely the Hamsa or Khamsa, which is also known as the Hand of Fatima or the Hand of Miryam. The Hamsa is a symbol of good luck in the Muslim and Jewish, but also Christian culture of the region.

The name hamsa (חַמְסָה ) comes from the Arabic word khamsa خمسة‎‎ and from the Hebrew word hamesh  חמש , both meaning ‘five’. In Berber, the Khamsa is called ⵜⴰⴼⵓⵙⵜ Tafust. In a Jewish context, the five fingers of the talisman refer to the five books of the Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) and the Jewish Hamsa is also called the Hand of Miriam, who was Moses’ sister. In a Muslim context, the hamsa is also called the Hand of Fatima, who was one of the Prophet Mohammed’s daughters, and the five fingers refer to the Five Pillars of Islam (faith, fasting, prayer, tax and pilgrimage). The number five itself is also associated with fighting the Evil Eye. In the Levantine Christian community, the Khamsa is also called Hand of the Virgin Mary (Kef Miryam in Arabic).

The Khamsa usually takes the form of an open hand with three extended middle fingers and a thumb and pinky finger on either side, which are always symmetrical and are either curved outwards or just significantly shorter than the middle fingers. The fingers can be either closed together to bring good luck as a talisman, or alternatively the fingers can be spread apart to act as an amulet to ward off evil. Usually, the image of an eye is embedded in the palm. It represents the all-seeing eye and is said to watch out for the owner and to protect them from the Evil Eye, or ayin hara (עין הרע).  Other symbols that frequently appear on the Khamsa are fish  דָגִים   dagim, which are said to be immune to the evil eye since they live underwater (according to a line in the Torah “the water covers the fish of the sea so the eye has no power over them (Berakhot 55b)”) and which are also symbols of good luck. Also the Star of David מָגֵן דָוִד Magen David, prayers for the traveller, the Shema  שְׁמַע, the blessing over the house, the Hebrew word  mazal or mazel  מַזָל, meaning ‘luck’, and the colours red and blue, which reputedly repel the evil eye, are often featured on the talisman.

The Khamsa is an ancient symbol that probably predates Judaism and Islam, though its precise origin is not known. The symbol of the open hand first appears in Paleolithic cave art in Spain, France, Argentina, Algeria and Australia. Predecessors of the hand symbol can be found in various ancient cultures: The Phoenician goddess Tanit was symbolized by a woman raising her hands, and in Egyptian art, the human spirit ka is depicted by two arms whose two fingers are held in a horseshoe shape and which reach upward. The Etruscans decorated their tombs with paintings of hands with horns and some Jewish Levite graves had images of hands, representing a religious blessing, on their stone markers.

The Khamsa first appeared in Sephardic Jewish culture תרבות ספרדית , which flourished alongside Muslim culture. The symbol of the hand, and in particular of priestly hands, can also be found in kabbalistic manuscripts and amulets, where it doubles as the letter Shin, which is also the first letter of the divine name Shaddai. This association of the hand with the divine name was believed to create a bridge between the believer and G’d. However, amulets or kamiyot קמיעות , from the Hebrew word for ‘to bind’ , are seen as somewhat ambivalent in Judaism, because the Torah prohibits magic and divination, whereas the Talmud mentions them on several occasions and accepts them, and one law approves the wearing of an amulet on the Shabbat (Shabbat 53a, 61a).

In Islamic folklore, the Hand of Fatima as a symbol has its origins in a legend: when Fatima’s husband Ali brought home a new wife one day, Fatima, who had been cooking at that moment, dropped the ladle she was using and, lost in thought, continued stirring with her hand, hardly noticing that she was burning herself.

The Hamsa is intrinsically bound up with the concept of the Evil Eye or Ayin hara ( Hebrew ʿáyin hā-ráʿ (עַיִן הָרַע‎), Arabic ʿayn al-ḥasūd (عين الحسود‎ eye of the envious)), or the belief that a malicious look can bring about evil, which most often manifests itself through jealousy, but receiving the evil eye can also lead to misfortune and injury. To ward off the evil eye, many Jews will say ‘bli ayin hara’ בלי עין הרע (‘without an evil eye’) or ‘keyn eina hara’ קיין עין־הרע (Yiddish: no evil eye) after making a compliment or saying something positive. Muslims will say ‘Masha’Allah’ ” (ما شاء الله‎) (“God has willed it.”) and also “Tabarakallah” (تبارك الله‎) (“Blessings of God”) instead. Some people also use the saying ‘khamsa fi ainek’ خمسة في عينيك (lit. ‘five in your eye’) together with the gesture of their raised right hand with the palm showing and the fingers held slight apart, or  use the phrase ‘khamsa wa khamis’ خمسة والخميس  (lit. ‘five and Thursday’), since Thursday, being the fifth day of the week, was traditionally considered to be a good day for magic rituals and for pilgrimages to the tombs of saints.

The evil eye is also discussed in the Talmud תַּלְמוּד and the Kabbalah קַבָּלָה , though it is not mentioned in the Torah תּוֹרָה.

Other methods to ward off the evil eye in Jewish culture, besides hanging up or wearing a Hamsa, include wearing a Chai (חי) around the neck, symbolizing life ( Hebrew Chaya חַיָה life) or wearing a red thread around the wrist.

Author: Jehoshuapinto via Wikipedia commons
Chai symbol

 

 

 

Hebrew vocabulary: Rosh Hashana

This week’s blog post is taking us to Israel and to the Jewish diaspora again and we are going to look at the vocabulary related to the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana ראש השנה, which was celebrated this week, and the foods that are usually eaten on this holiday (these vary depending on the country of origin).

hebr-roshha-2hebr-roshha-1

Hebrew: Synagogue vocabulary and architecture

Author: Toksave, Wikipedia Commons Synagogue in Florence, Italy

Author: Toksave, Wikipedia Commons
Synagogue in Florence, Italy

Today’s blog post is taking us to the Jewish world and to synagogue architecture and vocabulary. Synagogues are called בית כנסת beth knesset in Hebrew, which means ‘house of assembly’. Other words for synagogue are בית תפילה beth t’fila, meaning ‘house of prayer’ or שול shul , a Yiddish term used by Jews of Ashkenazi descent, or אסנוגה esnoga, the latter one being a term used by Portuguese Jews. The English or western term ‘synagogue’ is derived from Greek συναγωγή synagogē which means ‘assembly’.

Synagogues have a large hall for prayer, and often also have some smaller rooms for Torah study, called בית מדרש beth midrash or ‘house of study’, and for social meetings and the like. Synagogues are consecrated spaces for prayer; however, communal Jewish worship can take place wherever a מִנְיָן minyan, i.e. 10 Jewish adults, assembles.

The architectural style of synagogues varies widely, and historically, synagogues followed the prevailing style of their location and time. An example is the Kaifeng synagogue, which looked like the Chinese temples of the region.

Kaifeng Synagogue, China

Kaifeng Synagogue, China

A central element of all synagogues is the בימה bimah, a table on a raised platform where the Torah scrollתּוֹרָה   is read. The reading of the Torah is called   קריאת התורה Kriat haTorah.

The Torah is called ספר תורה‎‎ sefer Torah.

The Torah scrolls are kept in the ארון קודש Aron Kodesh or Torah Ark, a special cabinet which is often closed with an ornate curtain, the פרוכת parochet, which can be inside or outside the doors of the Ark. The Aron Kodesh is the holiest place in the synagogue and is reminiscent of the Ark of the Covenant אָרוֹן הַבְּרִית Aron haBrit which held the tablets with the Ten Commandments. The Ark is usually positioned in such a way that the congregation facing it faces towards Jerusalem. The seating plans of synagogues in the western world therefore usually face east, while synagogues in locations east of Israel face west. Sanctuaries in Israel usually face Jerusalem.

Another traditional feature of synagogues is a continually lit lamp or lantern, the Eternal Light  נר תמיד ner tamid which is reminiscent of the western lamp of the מְנוֹרָה‎‎  menorah of the Temple in Jerusalem, which miraculously remained lit perpetually. Many synagogues also have a large candelabrum with seven branches, reminiscent of the full menorah. Orthodox synagogues feature a  מחיצה mechitzah, a partition dividing the seating areas of the men and women, or there is a seating area for the women located on a balcony.

Author: Toksook, Wikipedia Commons Mechitzah at the Suburban Torah Center in Livingstone, New Jersey

Author: Toksook, Wikipedia Commons
Mechitzah at the Suburban Torah Center in Livingstone, New Jersey

Author: Joaotg, Wikipedia Commons Esnoga in Amsterdam, Spanish and Portuguese synagogue

Author: Joaotg, Wikipedia Commons
Esnoga in Amsterdam, Spanish and Portuguese synagogue

Author: Jarosław Ratajczyk, Wikipedia Commons Bimah in Łańcut, Poland

Author: Jarosław Ratajczyk, Wikipedia Commons
Bimah in Łańcut, Poland

Author: Pretoria Travel, Wikipedia Commons The parochet covering the Torah Arc of the Beth Jakov synagogue in Skopje, Macedonia

Author: Pretoria Travel, Wikipedia Commons
The parochet covering the Torah Arc of the Beth Jakov synagogue in Skopje, Macedonia

Author: Juda S. Engelmayer Bimah at Bialystoker

Author: Juda S. Engelmayer
Bimah at Bialystoker

Author: Roy Lindman, Wikipedia Commons Abuhav Synagogue, Zefat Israel

Author: Roy Lindman, Wikipedia Commons
Abuhav Synagogue, Zefat Israel

Author: Alaexis, Wikipedia Commons Torah scrolls in Istanbul

Author: Alaexis, Wikipedia Commons
Torah scrolls in Istanbul

Author: Roy Lindman, Wikipedia Commons page pointers for reading the Torah

Author: Roy Lindman, Wikipedia Commons
page pointers for reading the Torah

Author: Willy Horsch, Wikipedia Commons Sefer Torah in Cologne, Germany

Author: Willy Horsch, Wikipedia Commons
Sefer Torah in Cologne, Germany

The handwritten Hebrew alphabet

Today’s blog post is taking us to Israel and to the Hebrew language, and more precisely to the Hebrew alphabet. Since Hebrew courses and textbooks often only teach the printed version of the Hebrew script, but the handwritten alphabet looks markedly different, I thought the handwritten alphabet and how to write it would be a nice topic for a blog post. 🙂 Here is the handwritten alphabet, with little arrows indicating how to write the letters:

hebrew handwritten

The same alphabet is also used for writing Yiddish, with only slight variations of some letters. The alphabet is written from right to left, and there are no capital letters. Five letters take a different form when they are in the final position of a word (last letter of a word); these are the letters khaf, mem, nun, feh and tsadi.

Author: Golasso, Wikipedia Commons The Western Wall in Jerusalem

Author: Golasso, Wikipedia Commons
The Western Wall in Jerusalem