Origins & Secrets of Birkat Levanah
This weekend we welcome the month of Cheshvan and celebrate the first Rosh Chodesh of the new year 5785. In ancient times, the Sanhedrin would officially announce the start of a new month upon sighting of the new moon. Once the Sanhedrin was disbanded, the Sages fixed a set calendar for the millennia ahead. And since then, instead of a formal announcement of a new month upon new moon sighting, we recite a birkat levanah, a “blessing on the moon”. Where exactly did this blessing and practice originate? And what is the meaning behind its enigmatic text?
The earliest source for birkat levanah is thought to be a passage in the tractate Sanhedrin. Amidst a discussion of examining witnesses in a Jewish court, the Talmud asks a side-question: “Until when may one recite the blessing on the new month?” (41b) Two answers are given, one that it should be recited within the first week of the month (seven days) and another that it can be recited until just after the full moon, ie. the sixteenth day of the month, since at that point the moon begins to wane.
On the following page (42a), the Talmud wonders what is the correct text of the blessing? One opinion is to recite the general blessing of hatov v’hametiv (הטוב והמטיב) that is said upon all major good news. The rebuttal is that then we might have to recite the blessing of dayan ha’emet (דיין האמת)—which is said upon tragic news—when the moon starts to wane! The conclusion is that the moon naturally waxes and wanes in cyclical fashion and this is neither good or bad news, so we shouldn’t say these blessings on the moon at all. The Talmud concludes that we are actually not blessing the moon, but the new month, and the proper blessing is barukh… mechadesh chodashim (מחדש חדשים), blessed is God for “renewing the months”. We are then given the full version of the blessing familiar to us from the siddur, which is barukh…
אשר במאמרו ברא שחקים וברוח פיו כל צבאם חוק וזמן נתן להם שלא ישנו את תפקידם ששים ושמחים לעשות רצון קונם פועלי אמת שפעולתן אמת וללבנה אמר שתתחדש עטרת תפארת לעמוסי בטן שהן עתידין להתחדש כמותה ולפאר ליוצרם על שם כבוד מלכותו ברוך אתה ה’ מחדש חדשים
Who by His word created the Heavens, and by the breath of His mouth all their hosts. He set for them a law and a time, that they should not deviate from their task. And they are joyous and glad to perform the will of their Maker; they are workers of truth whose work is truth. And to the moon He said that it should renew itself as a crown of beauty [‘ateret tiferet] for those He carried from the womb [‘amusei baten], as they are destined to be renewed like it, and to praise their Creator for the name of His glorious kingdom. Blessed are You Hashem, Who renews the months.
The Talmud Yerushalmi (Berakhot 9:2) presents a few more possibilities for the text of the blessing, among them that God “sanctifies Israel and renews months” (מְקַדֵּשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל מְחַדֵּשׁ חֳדָשִׁים), while another variant is that God “sanctifies Israel and new months” (מְקַדֵּשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל וְרָאשֵׁי חֳדָשִׁים). Based on this, some have proposed that birkat levanah was originally instituted in place of the sanctification of the new month in the Sanhedrin. And it is likely due to this Yerushalmi that birkat levanah is also referred to as kiddush levanah. That said, the Yerushalmi speaks of this blessing not in the tractate Sanhedrin, but in the tractate Berakhot amidst a list of blessings to recite upon seeing various natural phenomena (for a handy PDF companion of these blessings, see here). The Yerushalmi also presents a number of opinions as to when the blessing should be recited, with the conclusion being any time in the first fourteen days of the month, ie. as long as the moon is waxing, and not waning.
The Rambam and the Arizal
In codifying the law, the Rambam (Mishneh Torah, Hilkhot Berakhot 10:16-17) goes with the Yerushalmi approach in including birkat levanah among the blessings on natural phenomena. As such, one should recite the blessing immediately upon seeing the new moon (as one would with the other natural phenomena blessings), on its very first night. And if one did not bless on the first night, the Rambam goes with the Bavli in saying any time in the first sixteen days is okay. The Rambam adds that this blessing (unlike the other natural phenomena ones) must be said standing, because the same page in Sanhedrin cited above says that reciting this blessing monthly is like greeting “the face of the Shekhinah”, for which one should certainly stand.
Recall that the Shekhinah is God’s Divine Presence as manifest in this physical world, and it is always referred to as the “feminine” aspect of God. The Shekhinah is associated with the final Sefirah of Malkhut, “Kingdom”, also called Nukva, “feminine”. This Sefirah is closely linked to the moon. It is amazing to note how the moon’s lunar cycle of roughly 29 days mimics the female menstrual cycle. So the moon—which has no light of its own but simply reflects the great light of the sun—is seen as the “feminine” aspect that reflects God’s infinite light into this finite lower world.
The birkat levanah blessing refers to the moon as ‘ateret tiferet, a “crown of beauty” or “crown of glory”. The Arizal (Pri Etz Chaim, Sha’ar Rosh Chodesh v’Chanukah v’Purim, Ch. 3) explains that ‘ateret is the crown of the royal Sefirah of Malkhut, which “adorns” the central Sefirah of Tiferet. While Malkhut corresponds to the moon, Tiferet corresponds to the sun. (And the Arizal taught elsewhere that Tiferet has 365 lights emerging from it, like the 365 days of the solar year. See ‘The Kabbalah of Solar’ for more.) Thus, Malkhut which lies below Tiferet is the moon that reflects the light of the sun above. The moon is the “crown” of Tiferet, and it is adorned at its renewal, at the start of the month.
Therefore, according to the Arizal, it is best to recite birkat levanah right on Rosh Chodesh, upon sighting the new moon (as codified by the Rambam, too). This is when the sun and moon metaphorically “reunite”. In other words, God’s manifestation in the upper worlds and His manifestation in the lower words (the Shekhinah) is perfectly in tune and in synch. The channels between all the dimensions are wide open, and spiritual forces flow freely. The Arizal says all four mystical worlds of Asiyah, Yetzirah, Beriah, and Atzilut are synchronized and accessible, which is one reason for symbolically “skipping” or raising our feet three times during birkat levanah, as if ascending through the upper three dimensions. (This is similar to the reason for lifting our heels three times during Kedusha in the repetition of the Amidah.) Another reason is that we skip three times to symbolically represent Malkhut “jumping” over the three Sefirot of Yesod, Hod, and Netzach to get to Tiferet. The Arizal explains that the “reunification” of “sun” (Tiferet) and “moon” (Malkhut) produces the souls of Israel, and that is the secret meaning behind the phrase in the blessing ‘amusei baten, that Israel emerges “from the womb” of that crown of glory. It is as if Tiferet provides the “seed” for Malkhut to “conceive” the souls of Israel. The climax of this is right at Rosh Chodesh, and that’s when birkat levanah should be recited.
Despite this, today we typically hear it said that it is best to wait more than a week into the month before saying birkat levanah. I believe the machloket stems from the issue of how to parallel the lunar cycle to the menstrual cycle: Does the new moon represent the start of menses, or does it represent the mikveh night? The Arizal seems to suggest that the new moon is when the moon is renewed and refreshed, and that is its metaphorical “mikveh night”, at which point the souls of Israel are conceived. Two weeks later, the time of purity is over and menses begins right after the full moon, and that’s why the moon wanes and diminishes. The opposite approach (which may even be derived from a passage earlier on in the same chapter of Pri Etz Chaim!) is to say that the new moon—when the moon is dark and “weak”—is the start of menses. Two weeks later, at the full moon—when the moon is brightest and “strongest”—is the mikveh night. This is when sun and moon are most “intimate”, and that’s when the souls are conceived. According to this latter approach, it would make sense to recite birkat levanah closer to the height of the full moon, in the second week of the month. (Personally, I prefer the former approach which agrees with both the Rambam and the Arizal.)
The Arizal has even more profound secrets to reveal, and to grasp those we need to first examine a fundamental ancient teaching about the sun and moon.
The Diminished Luminary
When we read the account of Creation, we find some strange phrasing on the Fourth Day: “And God made the two great lights [hame’orot hagedolim], the greater light [hama’or hagadol] to dominate the day and the lesser light [hama’or hakaton] to dominate the night, and the stars.” (Genesis 1:16) Why does the Torah first refer to the sun and moon as two equally “great lights” but then switches to say that there is one “great light” (the sun) and one “small light” (the moon)? The Talmud (Chullin 60b) explains:
The moon said to the Holy One, blessed be He: “Master of the Universe! Is it possible for two kings to wear one crown?” He answered: “Then go and make yourself smaller!” The moon said: “Master of the Universe, because I have suggested that which is proper must I then make myself smaller’?” He replied: “Go and you will rule by day and by night.” The moon said: “Of what use is a lamp in broad daylight?” He replied: “Go, and Israel shall reckon by you the days and the years.” The moon said: “But it is impossible to do without the sun for the reckoning of the seasons…” God said: “Go, and the righteous shall be named after you, as we find Jacob the Small, Samuel the Small, David the Small.”
On seeing that it would not be consoled, the Holy One, blessed be He, said: “Bring an atonement for Me for making the moon smaller.” This is what was meant by Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish when he declared: Why is it that the he-goat offered on the new moon is distinguished in that there is written concerning it “unto the Lord”? Because the Holy One, blessed be He, said: Let this he-goat be an atonement for Me for making the moon smaller!
Originally, God intended for the sun and moon to be of equal size and brightness. The moon questioned God on this, saying that there cannot be two kings or two heads of the household. So God made the moon smaller, but the moon then protested that this was unfair. God sought to appease the moon by saying that it will be visible by both day and night, while the sun only by day; and to say that Israel would track their months and years by the moon, and not the solar calendar; and that the righteous (such as Jacob and David who were “small” in stature) would be associated with the small moon. Still the moon was not appeased, so God commanded that Israel would bring an atonement offering on every Rosh Chodesh, for God Himself, as we read in Numbers 28:15 that “there shall be one goat as a sin offering to Hashem…”
This perplexing passage has always been understood metaphorically to refer to the male-female dynamic. Initially, God wished for men and women to be entirely equal, as Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden before consuming the Forbidden Fruit. But then “the moon” was diminished and made subservient to the masculine “sun”. God gave the female many other benefits, but she was not appeased. So, God commanded an atonement offering (for Himself!) for this unfortunate arrangement. Nonetheless, it is prophesied that the “moon” will reclaim its former glory at the End of Days, “And the light of the moon shall become like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall become sevenfold…” (Isaiah 30:26) The status of women will be restored, and they will once more be equal to men, “for God will create something new on Earth: a woman will court a man.” (Jeremiah 31:22) We have seen this very process take place in recent decades and centuries (for lots more on this, see ‘Feminism & the Curses of Eve’, and ‘Reversing the Curses of Eden’ in Volume Two of Garments of Light).
This is not a trivial matter, and the Arizal says it is the central tikkun (rectification) for the world. Recall the Arizal’s explanation that God originally created a perfect world, but it could not contain His infinite light, so the cosmos shattered in an event referred to as Shevirat haKelim, the “Shattering of the Vessels”. The spiritual vessels broke into 288 major pieces, alluded to by the second verse in Genesis which says “the spirit of God hovered [merachefet] over the face of the waters”. The Arizal taught that merachefet (מרחפת) is an anagram of met rapach (מת רפ״ח), “death of the 288”. Adam and Eve then had an opportunity to put all the pieces back together and restore a perfect world. Instead, the consumption of the Forbidden Fruit shattered the vessels once more. We are now in the End of Days, on the cusp of returning to a perfect world, and it will be Mashiach ben David who completes the process—which is where it all comes back to birkat halevanah:
The Arizal explains why we start the prayer by reciting the first six verses of Psalm 148. The pshat reason is that this Psalm speaks of God’s creation of the cosmos and His creation of the moon. But the deeper reason is that we recite the first six verses which end with the word ya’avor (יעבור), which has a numerical value of 288! This is to remind us of the Shattering of the Vessels, and the central tikkun at the heart of Creation. And you know what else is 288? The words we recite afterwards in the prayer that “King David is alive and well!” David melekh [Israel] chai v’kayam (דויד מלך חי וקים)! This is, of course, referring to Mashiach ben David who is alive and well and will soon come to restore the Davidic dynasty in a perfect world.
At the same time, as the blessing clearly states, Israel’s status in the world will be restored then, too. Indeed, the moon is a symbol for the Jewish people, and our mission in reflecting God’s light (symbolized by the sun) to the world. Just as the moon waxes and wanes, the history of the Jewish people is one of waxing and waning, of golden ages and dark ages. Soon, all the darkness, the suffering, and the hatred will end, and “the moon” will be restored to its rightful place, no longer waning but only waxing ever stronger, spreading nothing but constant light to the world, as God intended for Israel to be “a light unto the nations”.
We should remember that the very first mitzvah God commanded the people of Israel, before the Exodus, was to sanctify the new months (Exodus 12:1-2). And one might therefore say that this was the key mitzvah that gave Israel the merit to come out of bondage and usher in their redemption. In fact, I believe this is the real meaning of the phrase in that Sanhedrin 42a passage with which we started that “if Israel merited to greet the Face of their Father in Heaven only one time each and every month, it would suffice!” (אילמלא זכו ישראל אלא להקביל פני אביהן שבשמים כל חדש וחדש דיים) Suffice for what? Perhaps it is this one powerful mitzvah that will suffice to usher in the Final Redemption.
A few final important halakhic points: while praying in a minyan is always preferred, birkat levanah may certainly be recited alone. One might even argue that doing it individually is better so that gentile bystanders will not get the wrong idea and think that Jews are involved in some pagan moon-worshipping ritual! On that note, one should absolutely not bow towards the moon. Most poskim say one shouldn’t look at the moon too much either, or only glance at the moon once and then recite the text. This is likely to further emphasize that we are not worshipping the moon, chas v’shalom, and we are not even sanctifying the moon. We are sanctifying the new month, and a sacred time. The moon is only symbolic of our relationship with God, and the mystical notions discussed above.
Despite being somewhat “time-bound”, the Talmud states that women can recite birkat levanah, too. The Rambam held the same way, listing it among the blessings on natural phenomena that would apply to both men and women. Other poskim, however, insist that the custom is for women not to recite it, and some explain it is because women caused the diminishing of the moon. The counter-argument, of course, is that if women initiated the diminishing of the moon, then they should be first to participate in its tikkun and restoration! So, maybe women really should recite the prayer, as the early sources state. With all of this in mind, let us all welcome the coming month of Cheshvan with a genuine birkat levanah, and maybe it will be just enough to finally usher in the long-awaited geulah.
Shabbat Shalom and Chodesh Tov!
https://www.mayimachronim.com/origins-secrets-of-birkat-levanah/
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