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The last sentence of the kaddish - "עושה שלום במרומיו" -refers to Gd making peace on high.

What does that mean? Is peace considered the opposite of chaos? Could someone restate the last sentence of the kaddish in different words?

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  • Clarification - do you want to know the concept of what it means to "make peace in the 'high place'" or what "peace" in general really means here within the context of Kaddish? You might want to edit your focus in this question - they are very different topics. – DanF Apr 30 '19 at 16:54
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    sefaria.org.il/Job.25.2?lang=Bi – Joel K Apr 30 '19 at 17:07
  • @DanF Yes, what it means to "make peace in the 'high place". – Yehuda W Apr 30 '19 at 19:13
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The complete text you are quoting from Kaddish requests that G-d make peace, as in making complementing harmony, completeness and perfection (שלמות) both in the Heavens above and below, upon us.

That part of the revelation of G-d's unity is the complementary harmony between the angelic realms (במרומיו, Shamayim, Heavens) and what it influences below in the physical, material plane of existence.

This lower, material plane is also sometimes referred to as Malchut in kabbalistic literature. This state of complementary harmony is alluded to in the Roshei Teivot of the words Shamayim (שמים) and Malchut (מלכות) which forms the word Name (שם, ש״ם).

This is what is expressed in the Zohar 2:135a:8, which we also say at Kabbalat Shabbat just before reciting Shema for the evening. The text is:

כְּגַוְונָא דְּאִינּוּן מִתְיַיחֲדִין לְעֵילָּא בְּאֶחָד, אוּף הָכִי אִיהִי, אִתְיַחֲדַת לְתַתָּא בְּרָזָא דְּאֶחָד, לְמֶהוֵי עִמְּהוֹן לְעֵילָּא חַד לָקֳבֵל חַד, קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא אֶחָד לְעֵילָּא, לָא יָתִיב עַל כּוּרְסְיָיא דִּיקָרֵיהּ, עַד דְּאִיהִי אִתְעֲבִידַת בְּרָזָא דְּאֶחָד כְּגַוְונָא דִּילֵיהּ, לְמֶהֱוֵי אֶחָד בְּאֶחָד. וְהָא (קל''ד ע''א) אוֹקִימְנָא רָזָא דַּיְיָ' אֶחָד וּשְׁמוֹ אֶחָד.

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    I would appreciate a translation of the quoted passage. Thank you. – Yehuda W Apr 30 '19 at 19:09
  • Exactly where in Kabbalat Shabbat? (Just before the Shema is the 2nd blessing and before the borachu is a kaddish d'rabbanan.) – Yehuda W Apr 30 '19 at 19:11
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    @YehudaW Per your request, a link illustrating has been provided. – Yaacov Deane Apr 30 '19 at 19:38
  • @Yehuda the piece he refers to is not in Kabbalat Shabbat in all rites – Double AA♦ Apr 30 '19 at 19:47
  • Thank you. In one siddur I just checked (Birnbaum), the 93rd Psalm is followed by kaddish yatom, without the material you quote. What siddur did you quote? – Yehuda W Apr 30 '19 at 19:48
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"עושה שלום במרומיו"...

G-d created myriads of good angels and myriads of bad angels, all in Heaven. Those are pro-Semitic and others anti-semitic - can you imagine what's going on there? So G-d makes peace between all His servants in Heaven and everyone behaves.

I wish He did the same on the Earth too.

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