I've always been struck by the beauty of the following Hebrew prayer for the dead (translated into early modern English):
O Lord and King, who art full of compassion, God of the spirits of all flesh, in whose hand are the souls of the living and the dead, receive, we beseech thee, in thy great loving-kindness the soul of our brother who hath been gathered unto his people. Have mercy upon him; pardon all his transgressions; for there is none righteous upon the earth, who doeth only good, and sinneth not. Remember unto him the righteousness which he wrought, and let his reward be with him, and his recompense before him. Shelter his soul in the shadow of thy wings. Make known to him the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand, bliss for evermore.
O Lord, who healest the broken-hearted and bindest up their wounds, grant thy consolation unto the mourners. Strengthen and support them in the day of their grief and sorrow; and remember them for a long and good life. Put into their hearts the fear and love of thee, that they may serve thee with a perfect heart; and let their latter end be peace. Amen.
However, I've never been able to find out where it comes from. I read somewhere that it was from the Siddur, but I'm pretty sure that it's not the Yahrzheit, or the Yizkor, or part of Kaddish. Does anyone recognize this prayer? I'd be particularly interested if anyone knows where I could find the original Hebrew (preferably with stresses).
The prayer can be found at, for example, http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=34254&st=&pgnum=1116 and http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=34254&st=&pgnum=1118
These pages are from The Authorized Daily Prayer Book by Dr Joseph H. Hertz.
