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A Poem In Dialogue With Achot Ktana - being a piyut by R. Avraham Hazan Girundi
Sfarad 13th Century
The Little Sister sent her prayer
The Arranger responded to her praises
God, please! Heal please, her mortal illness!
May this year and its troubles soon be over
With pleasant melodious words
You called her to follow You
in a song descending down spiral steps
She was drawn by Your handsomeness
down to the place where You were concealed
Open now the eyes and see
strangers consuming her estate
May this year and its troubles soon be over
When Your flock became rebellious
mountain lions scattered them
You poured out Your pain in front of them
speaking about their evil inclination
You readied Your right hand
to break in upon them and harvest them
and to leave nothing behind
not one of her sucklings
May this year and its troubles soon be over
It is the time of raising up the humiliated one
unto the place of the head of the kingdoms
because into the pit of exile and alienation
her soul was poured and there was moulded
She was an olive grove that the storm left bare
Her heart was like waste, like refuse
Places of abject poverty were her tabernacles
May this year and its troubles soon be over
She goes up out of death
Your daughter is being raised from the pit
From the prison house
she will go up and she will break free
A wonder of wonders it will be
when you escape as a mighty one!
She attains her simplicity and becomes a bride
a dear bride and daughter-in-law
May this year and its troubles soon be over
A cup of chastisement will fortify the nations
every drop of it
The goodness of it will cure and satisfy them
The spoil of all their profits shall go to one man
They tore and ravaged her heart
Yet she never wavered from her lowly posture
because of remorse for her calves
May this year and its troubles soon be over
The Sabbath trimmings
greatly increase her desire
to be intimate and close with her dear one
that he should escort her home
From her heart comes only anguish
Her soul has left her and searches about
She is craving for her love
the loved one of her betrothal
May this year and its troubles soon be over
Be calm and rest comfortably
You are finally at home
She was for so long abandoned
lost in the pain of desire for her dear one
Now she will bloom and flourish
as the eternal rose
She was not yet developed
when she was bereaved
May this year and its troubles soon be over
Her strength has come with her maturation
She has overcome the demonic kingdom
Through her Rock testing her she triumphed
He is keeping His covenanted promise to you
to raise you up to the Land of Love
Go unto Zion and say
Build up the way! Raise high her freeway!
This is the commencement of the year of blessing!
AHOT KETANNAH
AHOT KETANNAH
(Heb "Little Sister"), name of a hymn for Rosh Ha-Shanah. It was composed by Abraham Hazzan Gerondi, a writer of devotional hymns, who flourished about the middle of the 13th century in southern France. The poem consists of eight metrical stanzas of four to five lines, each ending with the refrain Tikhleh shanah ve-kileloteha ("May this year with its curses end"). The last stanza ends Tahel shanah u-virekhoteha ("May the year and its blessings begin"). The acrostic gives the name of the author "Abram Hazzan." The opening words of the hymn are taken from Song of Songs 8:8 "We have a little sister" and refer to the traditional allegorical interpretation of the Song of Songs. The poem evokes Israel’s sufferings in exile and implores God’s mercy "to fortify the song of the daughter and to strengthen her longing to be close to her lover." At first adopted into the Sephardi ritual, where it is recited before the evening prayer of Rosh Ha-Shanah, the poem was subsequently adopted in the Ashkenazi and Yemenite rites, especially in kabbalistic circles.
http://what-when-how.com/jews-and-judaism/ahijah-to-aish-hatorah-jews-and-judaism/
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Max Carl Kirk
Mellow Wolf Publications - - - If you have any questions about reproducing any Mellow Wolf publications feel free to contact me.
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