Feel the warmth of the fire. Delight in the scents of Havdalah. Welcome new week.
Shabbat ends 25 hours after it begins, when three stars appear in the sky. Just as the stars bring light to the night sky, through a ritual called “Havdalah,” we aim to bring light into the world as Shabbat ends Havdalah, which means “separation,” marks the transitional moment between Shabbat and the week ahead. The ritual is centered around three objects - a cup of wine or grape juice, a sweet smelling spice, and a braided candle.
During Havdalah, we take a moment to explore the separation between the sacred and the profane elements in our lives, between light and darkness, between the Jewish people and the rest of the nations, and between Shabbat and the weekdays.
Once the light of the braided candle is extinguished, we call upon the mystical figure of Elijah the Prophet, to come and bring us the Messianic Age. In today’s egalitarian world, we also invite Miriam the Prophetess, to come and help us to repair the world through her gift of song.
Havdalah Blessings
Track 22: One of the most well known composer of American Jewish music, Debbie Friedman, z’l, created a melody that is sung by Jewish communities around the world, from orthodox to barely observant.
Blessing over the Wine
Hold the glass of wine high and recite:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּֽפֶן
Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam, borei p'ri hagafen.
Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Ruler of the universe, creator of the fruit of the vine.
Blessing over the spices
Pass the spice box around to everyone to smell the cinnamon and cloves:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא מִינֵי בְשָׂמִים
Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam borei minei v'samim.
Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Ruler of the universe, Creator of all spices.
Blessing over the braided havdallah candle
It is traditional for an adult to hold the candle high, while everyone else stretches their hands towards the fire, with palms turned up and each finger casting a shadow from the candle onto their palm:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא מְאוֹרֵי הָאֵשׁ
Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam, borei m'orei ha-eish.
Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Ruler of the universe, Creator of fire.
After saying the last blessing, it is traditional to take a sip of the wine, then to dip the burning candle into the wine to extinguish the flame:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם הַמַּבְדִיל בֵּין קֹֽדֶשׁ לְחוֹל
Baruch atah Adonai, hamavdil bein kodesh l'chol, ben or l'choshech, ben Israel v'amim.
Ben yom hashvi'i l'sheshet yamei hama'aseh, Baruch atah Adonai, hamavdil ben kodesh l'chol.
Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Ruler of the universe,
You distinguish the commonplace from the holy;
You create light and darkness, Israel and the nations,
the seventh day of rest and the six days of labor.
We praise You, O God:
You call us to distinguish the commonplace from the holy.
Eliyahu ha Navi
Eliyahu hanavi, Eliyahu hatishbi, Eliyahu, Eliyahu, Eliyahu hagiladi
Bimheira v'yameinu, yavo eleinu,
Im mashiach ben David, im mashiach ben David.
Miriam haneviah oz v'zimrah b'yadah
Miriam tirkod itanu l'taken olam
Elijah the prophet
Come speedily to us hailing messianic days
Miriam the prophetess will dance with us to repair the world
Shavuah Tov
Track 23: At the conclusion of Havdalah as we transition from a special world of Shabbat into the regular week of everyday life, with its inevitable trials and tribulations, we wish each other “A Good Week!”, in Hebrew, Yiddish and Russian.
Shavuah tov
A gute vokh
(in Russian):
Недели доброй вам желаем
Пусть счастье, радость и покой
В дом ваш, устали не зная,
Спешат веселой чередой!