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I was recently in Jerusalem for a period of time and while I was there, I would join a minyan at a nearby yeshiva for mincha every day. At the end of mincha, the person davening from the amud would conclude Aleinu by saying

ככתוב בתורתך ה׳ ימלוך לעולם ועד

He would not say the second verse that is included in every siddur I have ever seen:

ונאמר והיה ה׳ למלך על כל הארך ביום ההוא יהיה ה׳ אחד ושמו אחד

Kaddish would begin immediately after he finished (i.e. there was no time for someone to have said the verse quietly before beginning kaddish). The shaliach tzibur was different every day, but they always followed this pattern. The siddur they were using was סדור כלילת יופי - אשכנז which does include the skipped verse. Is this a recognized custom? If so, what is the reason for skipping that part of the text?

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That final verse is an addition to Alenu added by the Arizal and popularized by the Magen Avraham (OC 132 sk 1). It is not present in any Siddur older than that. The Gra, for instance, did not accept the addition (Maaseh Rav 52).

Here is a Siddur from 1525 that ends Alenu the way you describe.

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  • If I recall correctly, the Al Ken paragraph was also a much later addition. I think for numerous years, only the first par. of Aleinu was said. I'll see fi I can locate the version in Siddur Rav Amram.
    – DanF
    May 8, 2018 at 14:21
  • @DanF All of Alenu is a late addition to the daily prayer service. It's quite reasonable that people added in further parts of the Rosh haShana Musaf prayer over time, but this represents the first addition that isn't just reading farther along in the Machzor. (In the Machzor after "LeOlam VaEd" it says "VeNe'emar Lo Hibit Aven...")
    – Double AA ♦
    May 8, 2018 at 14:28
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    @JoelK Here's Shaar Hakavanot where the Ari advocates adding it because it's first and last letters' gematriot add to 10 which represents [something I can't begin to understand]
    – Double AA ♦
    May 8, 2018 at 15:10
  • Interesting. So is following this version without the extra addition common? I've never encountered this in other shuls, even in Jerusalem where the minhagim of the Gra are often practiced.
    – Daniel
    May 8, 2018 at 18:36
  • @daniel it probably happens more than you realize because people don't want to appear different as chazzan, but there's really no way to know.
    – Double AA ♦
    May 8, 2018 at 18:38

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