The Shehecheyanu: Thanksgiving Prayer for All Seasons

by Mark Pearlman of JInsider

With Thanksgiving weekend upon us, we wanted to get the dish on the Jewish prayer of gratitude – the shehecheyanu. Like latkes, the hora and Jonah Hill, the shehecheyanu is one of those feel-good things that have obtained an important place in the modern Jewish experience. Notwithstanding its popularity, this ancient prayer has deep roots and fascinating meanings. For the full story, we talked with Rabbi Lawrence A. Hoffman, Professor of Liturgy, Worship and Ritual at HUC and author of Jewish Lights’ definitive series on prayer: “My People’s Prayer Book.” (www.jewishlights.com) Also, visit, www.jinsider.com to view the best
shehecheyanu videos on the web.

Liturgy and
Interpretation

BA-RUCH A-TAH HA-SHEM
ELO-KAI-NU ME-LECH HA-O-LAM
SHE-HECH-E-YA-NU V’KI-MA-NU
V’HI-GI-YA-NU LI-Z’MAN HA-ZEH.
“Blessed

are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who has granted us life, sustained us, and enabled us to reach this occasion.”

People say “she’hecheyanu” which is, “who has given us life.” “V’ki’y’manu” – “and sustained us.” “V’higiyanu” – “and brought us to this time.” Which of those words is the most important one? Well, I think they lead up to a climax.

We thank God for giving us life, for sustaining us, and then our task is to focus on the universe and all of its wonder.

Back-story: The Blessing of Time

Shehecheyanu is one of the earliest rabbinic blessings and was said originally on holidays that occur from time to time. It’s called, in fact, “the blessing of time.” Similarly, it is said whenever new produce comes up, because produce is tied to a particular time.

A secondary use of it has to do with gladdening the heart – just being happy. It celebrates the fact that the world is made in such a way that we can find pleasure in it. Hence, whenever you see a friend you haven’t seen for a long time, you can say shehecheyanu. Whenever you buy something new – a new home, a new car, anything – you can say shehecheyanu. And when good things happen to you, you say shehecheyanu. Similarly, when life cycle events occur, you say shehecheyanu both because you are happy and because it marks a certain time.

Moderation: Warning on Use and Overuse

On the one hand this prayer is said on certain specific occasions Jewish law stipulates. On the other hand, it celebrates happy moments in time. What happens if you overuse it?

I think you need a happy medium. If I see something that falls into the category of it being a recurrent moment in time (let’s say I have a board meeting every spring and want to mark the occasion), then I would say it. Similarly, if there’s a moment that gladdens the heart – it makes me stop and I just want to be grateful for this universe, then I would say it. But I’m not anxious to see people use it every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Shehecheyanu Guide to Holidays

Final Thought: Hidden Meaning
of Blessings & The Shehecheyanu

Most people think we say blessings to make something ordinary into something holy. What’s fascinating is it’s just the other way around. The psalms say, “The Earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.” But elsewhere it says that God has provided the universe for human beings. So the rabbis ask, “How can it be both ways?” The answer is, the universe belongs to God – it’s holy – until we say a blessing over it. And then it’s released to us. The underlying theology of blessings is to make us very aware of our use of what is sacred.

So shehecheyanu is a unique blessing in that it invites us to desacralize time and let us make use of time. But even as we desacralize it, we recognize we are not in charge of it. It comes it with its own feel, it’s own flow of the year, and it invites us to enrich our lives by fitting into the flow of time.

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