Questions tagged [shemos-sacred-names]
name of God printed in a way that may not be erased
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Are these Sheimos Hashem?
Someone just showed me an "ayin hara necklace" that has the words "אלד" and "סאל" on the charm and asked me to explain what it means. What are those words?
(Some websites ...
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Does using different Divine names in prayer have practical consequences and effects?
It is well known that there are different names for G-d, blessed be He, even shown in the Torah itself, where different references to Him emphasize different relations and attributes.
Having said that,...
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Name of G-d changing
Is there a Source for the statement that when Mashiach comes the Name of G-d will no longer be יהוה but יהיה ?
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Slicing up a cake with a verse written on it
Is it allowed to write a verse on a cake or slice such cake up? In your answer please bring sources!
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What is "the twice-uttered (double-spoken) Name of Names"?
In S. Ansky's 1916 play The Dybbuk — or at least in this English translation (from the Yiddish) by Fernando Peñalosa — there are two mentions in Act I of a "twice-uttered name of God":
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Source for story about a Rabbi being happy to bury Sheimot
I heard a story many years ago about a community that was burying Sheimot. Most of the people were sad/crying, but the rabbi was happy and singing. When they asked him why he was happy, he gave them a ...
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Cursing in G-d’s name
The Gemara (Bava Kamma 93a) says that the reason why Sarah passed away before Avraham was because she told him: “may G-d judge between us”.
The Gemara learns from there that it is forbidden to call ...
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Use of the name Yahu
I recently was shared an article about the new "oldest usage" of the tetragrammaton.
https://biblearchaeology.org/current-events-list/4896-abr-researchers-discover-the-oldest-known-proto-...
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Erasing shiluv of A-donai H-avai
Some sidurrim (prayer books) have the name of G-d "A-donai" and "Havai" mixed together like this:
י א ה ד ו נ ה י
Is one allowed to erase such a sequence? or is it forbidden like A-...
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Is one permitted to change one of Hashem’s names to another in writing?
If someone had in mind to write the name א-ל, would he be allowed to turn it afterwards into א-להים?
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How to lovingly refer to Hashem?
Due to the fact that we cannot say His ineffable name, I would like to know what are considered ways of referring to Hashem that are loving, close and personal, rather than respectful (not to say that ...
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Who, why and when to say the prayer of Rabbi Nechuniyoh ben Hakoneh?
The prayer אָנָּא בְּכֹחַ is ascribed to Rabbi Nechuniyoh ben Hakoneh and appears in the section of the daily sacrifices, before Lecho Dodi in Kabbolas Shabbos and at other points.
According to the ...
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Why are the Niqqud different for the name of God sometimes? [duplicate]
Through my research of the Tanakh, I have observed that the tetragrammaton appears with varying niqqud in different locations. Additionally, I have noted that the niqqud used may differ but produce a ...
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Derivation of 42-Letter Name of G-d
I understand that from the first 42 letters of Breishis, it is possible to derive the 42-letter name of G-d that is indicated within the Ana Bekoach prayer. Where could find out more about the ...
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Spelling "Lord" like "L-rd"?
Is writing "L-rd" with a hyphen, either when reading יהוה or in general, also a Jewish custom? I first saw it it on some messianic website and thought it's rather missing the point and whole ...
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What does loving/trusting in Hashem’s name mean? [closed]
I read in the siddur it says to love Hashem’s name or to trust in Hashem’s name. Why His name and not Hashem himself?
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If you accidentally write the capitalized word "god", ought you delete the `o` and write a `-` in its place? [duplicate]
This question didnt provide a sufficient answer.
If I accidentally write Hashem's name, can I fix it?
If its true, that
he reason you don't write his name is so that nobody can destroy it.
and I ...
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Could the word shem (שם) means anything other as ‘name’?
Shemot 6:3 reads: “And I appeared to Avraham, to Yitzchak,
and to Ya'akov, by the name of God Almighty (El Shaddai), but
by My name, the Lord (the Tetragrammaton/Shem Hameforash) I was not known to ...
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How to use the Tikkun HaKlali?
Not too long ago I bumped onto a video on YouTube by user Shaarei Binah entitled “Tikkun HaKlali General Rectification of the Soul with Kavvanot”.
I was looking at the video itself, in the description ...
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Can One Say Y-A-H Before Doing Netilat Yadayim?
Is one allowed to proclaim the abbreviated form of the name of The Creator “יה” before doing netilat yadayim? Such as saying Hallelu-יה?
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Changes to the name of Hashem in written texts
I have seen an article which cites a text called Massorah and this text supposedly catalogs 134 instances (referenced here) in which the written text "originally" used the 4 letter name of ...
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According to the Halakhah, does stating that HaShem does not exist constitute a curse or a profanation of God's name?
I am an Italian ben Noach.
According to Rambam (Mishneh Torah-Avodat Kokhavim 2: 7;Hilchot Melachim 9:3):
a Jew commits the crime of blasphemy if he curses HaShem using God's unique name or one of ...
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What is the earliest use of Ein Sof as a marker of Hashem?
I was looking at the modern Hebrew word אינסוף (infinite, overwhelming) and wondered about how it was used in earlier times. The gemara has many instances of the words אין סוף but they all seem to be ...
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In what circumstances does the Tetragrammaton occur in non-Biblical literature?
I've tried to ask a very general question in the title, but I'll begin with the specific circumstance that gave rise to my question.
I was looking at the Maxwell House Haggadah and noticed this prayer ...
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Is it acceptable to utter a verbatim quotation that uses the name of G-d?
If two words have the same meaning, then they refer to the same thing.
Linguists (and especially philosophers of language) distinguish between using a word and mentioning a word. If I say 'Fido come ...
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Where is the source of Yeshu (ימח שמו) hearing the Shem Hashem from the Kohen Gadol?
There is a Sefer "תם ומועד" which reportedly says that Yeshu (ימח שמו) was able to perform miracles because he was in the Beis Hamikdash when the Kohen Gadol said the Shem HaMeforash, wrote ...
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What does the introduction of ה' אלהים change in the creation narrative?
The second chapter of Genesis makes consistent use of ה"א, instead of אלהים in the first chapter (see here).
The researchers famously attribute the discrepancy to different sources.
How is this ...
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Why doesn't Kaddish include Hashem's name?
Why doesn't Kaddish, a prayer for the sanctification of God's name, not include Hashem's name?
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Pronunciation of YHVH in the Pesel Micha story
The Minchas Shai on Shoftim 17:3 quotes the Gemara (Shevuos 35a) and Maseches Sofrim (4:6) regarding if the names יהוה and אלהים in the story of Micha's idol are holy or not. The Tanna Kama says that ...
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Did אָכִיש actually use Hashem?
וַיִּקְרָ֨א אָכִ֜ישׁ אֶל־דָּוִ֗ד וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵ֠לָיו חַי־יְהוָ֞ה כִּי־יָשָׁ֣ר אַתָּ֗ה
(שמואל א 29:6)
This has the פְּלִשְׁתִּי swearing by Hashem.
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The earliest source that states the disappearance of the names of God in the Book of Ester
IIRC, Abraham Ibn Ezrah mentions in his interpretation of the Book of Ester that:
"והנה אין במגילה הזאת זכר ה', והיא מספרי הקודש?" (How come that God's name is not mentioned in the Book and ...
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List of all un-erasable names in Tanakh
There are certain words in Tanakh that refer to God (shemot or azkarot) that have special rules: they cannot be erased and they require special sanctification before a sofer writes them. These include ...
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Why is the final Heh in Ha'Shem's name different in K'thav Chabad/Alter-Rebbe?
Now I'm no Sofer by any means, although I do have a strong interest in the different Hebrew calligraphic traditions. All of which I find extremely beautiful in their own way.
While studying the style ...
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Does anyone permit writing Shir HaShirim on klaf from a non-kosher species?
A Torah, tefillin, mezuzah, and Esther scroll must be written on klaf that comes from a kosher species. See Shulchan Aruch OH 32:12 (and OH 691:1 and YD 271:1):
יהיה הקלף מעור בהמה חיה ועוף ידהטהורים
...
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Is there an agreed upon number of names for Hashem or is there no clear answer?
I've read different sources which give different answers for how many names Hashem has.
I have read sources which define the 7 holy names which cannot be erased once written.
I have read sources ...
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Meaning of "You alone are YHWH"
אַתָּה־הוּא יְהוָה לְבַדֶּךָ ...׃ - You alone are YHWH... Nehemiah.9.6
YHWH is God's proper name as God openly testifies:
... וּשְׁמִי יְהוָה לֹא נוֹדַעְתִּי לָהֶם - but I did not make Myself known ...
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Hanukkah Glass Menorah Drip Tray with Brachos on it
Would it be mutar to place the menorah on a Hanukkah Glass Menorah Drip Tray https://www.amazon.com/Rite-Lite-Tempered-Glass-Menorah/dp/B00PBFBUOO even if the drip tray has brachos on it, or would ...
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The four letter name vs. Ado-nai
In hundreds of verses (such as Psalms 51:17 אֲ֭דֹ-נָי שְׂפָתַ֣י תִּפְתָּ֑ח וּ֝פִ֗י יַגִּ֥יד תְּהִלָּתֶֽךָ׃) God is named with the word Ado-nai seemingly referring to the same pronunciation and meaning ...
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Why is the name of mercy YHWH is mentioned exclusively in the story of Sodom?
The name YHWH is associated with mercy whereas the name Elokim is associated with justice (Refer to Rashi on Devarim 3:24 quoting the Sifrei here).
I noticed that the name of YHWH is used exclusively ...
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Did people use the Shem hameforash during the time of the First Temple? [duplicate]
Many people (especially the kings of Judah) seemed to use the suffix 'yahu' in their names, which seems to be related to the actual four-letter name. Are there any sources on this? Did the Neviim of ...
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Burying sheimos is a segula for a pandemic?
Rabbi Moshe Heinemann, rav of the Agudah of Park Heights in Baltimore, gave a eulogy last week for the last two years of sheimos which they were burying, and mentioned that it is a segulah for a ...
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Why are descriptive 'names' of God holy?
Ado-noy and Elokim are regular words in Hebrew that have regular meaning ("lords" and "powers"). Why do we treat them as holy words when used in reference to God? They seem the ...
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Erasing His Name
This is just a hypothetical question, but if someone would write the name of HaShem down in the sand, and the waves of the sea would erase it, would that be considered as erasing His name (because we ...
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Why did Jews stop saying RaḤmana
At the times of the Mishna and Gemara, one of the more commonly used names to refer to God among Jews was RaḤmana, literally the Merciful. It seems like this was widely used as Hashem is today. When ...
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Which of Hashem's name is the name upon whom Israel is called?
We read the following (from Chabad Website) in Divrei Hayamim II 7:14:
וְיִכָּֽנְע֨וּ עַמִּ֜י אֲשֶׁ֧ר נִֽקְרָא־שְׁמִ֣י עֲלֵיהֶ֗ם וְיִֽתְפַּֽלְלוּ֙ וִֽיבַקְשׁ֣וּ פָנַ֔י וְיָשֻׁ֖בוּ מִדַּרְכֵיהֶ֣ם ...
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What was the reason why Jews specifically used the substitute Adonay/Kyrios for the Tetragrammaton?
God has one name. ‘’I am Yhwh and that is my name’’ (אֲנִ֥י יְהוָ֖ה ה֣וּא שְׁמִ֑י Isaiah 42:8).
In the Hebrew Pentateuch the name of God was the Tetragrammaton (the four letter) ‘Yhwh’.
The Jews ...
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Why is the Shem Havaya pronounced as the Shem Adnut? [duplicate]
I was wondering why, after the true pronunciation of the Shem Havaya was lost, was it decided that the name be pronounced like the Shem Adnut - and not like any other one of Hashem's names? Why was ...
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Where is G-d's name in Megillat Esther?
In Megillat Esther, G-d’s Name is never explicitly mentioned, but what about implicitly? I was told that the Arizal (and perhaps the Vilna Gaon?) found many pesukim in which G-d’s Name is concealed. ...
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Must all discarded paper with God's name in Hebrew be buried in a genizah?
Discarded books and documents that contain the name of God in Hebrew must be buried in a genizah, and not burned or thrown in the trash.
But what if the name of God in Hebrew is in a Christian or ...
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Why do most Siddurs vowelize Gd’s name?
I’m noticing that in most siddurs, while you’re not meant to pronounce Gd’s name as it’s written, they vowelize the letters as if it’s meant to be said. Is this for kavannah? Why would we need vowels ...
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