0
the Yemenite Jews imported
the horns of the kudu from its
native India, Persia or
Ethiopia. From these horns
they fashioned the
remarkable spiral shaped
shofarot often over four feet in
length, which are put to use
even today on ceremonial
occasions.
lbday the shofar retains the
same form it had in antiqui-
ty and has not evolved in time
as musical instruments have.
This is perhaps due to the fact
that the sages were never in-
terested in the musical or
tonal quality of the shofar but
rather with the religious
meaning of the shofar's
sounds. There are three basic
sounds: the tekiah, a long un-
broken sound that symbolizes
hope and strength; the
shevarim, three shorter more
broken sounds, indicative to
some of wailing; and the
teruah, nine staccato sounds
likened to the broken heart of
the penitent.
The largest of the
shofarot are made
in the Yemenite
communities.
On Rosh Hashanah it is
customary to sound the
shofar a minimum of one hun-
dred times. The first sounding
of the shofar is while the
public is seated (tekiah
meyushav), but the principal
sounding of the shofar and
the center of the Rosh
Hashanah service is during
the repetition of the prayer
leader of the Amidah
(Shmonah Esreh) of the
Musaf or afternoon prayer.
The congregation stands
throughout the Musaf ser-
vice, and at the end of the
three major divisions of the
service, Malchuyot (kingship
of God), Zichronot (remem-
brance of the merit of our
ancestors), and Shofarot (hope
for the coming of the
Messiah), a series of thirty
blasts is heard. At the end of
each series there is a long and
memorable blast of the horn,
which is called the tekiah
gedolah (the great blast).
The baal tekiah, or person
who blows the shofar, must be
an especially righteous Jew,
one who will petition for the
whole community. A second
baal tekiah is usually at hand
since the physical act of blow-
ing the shofar is so strenuous
that often one person alone
cannot manage the task.
According to the great
medieval Jewish thinker
Saadia Gaon, the blowing of
the shofar on Rosh Hashanah
proclaims the sovereigty of
God, reminding us of the cove-
nant at Mount Sinai. D
May the New Year Bring
To All Our Friends
and Family — Health,
Joy, Prosperity
and Everything
Good in Life.
EDWARD & SHIRLEY ROSENBERG
May the coming
May the coming
year be filled
year be filled
with health and
with health and
happiness for
happiness for
all our family
all our family
and friends.
and friends.
DR. & MRS. ALEX S.
FRIEDLAENDER & FAMILY
EARL & ADELE FRIEDMAN
1111D11
illt13`2
1111'311
May the New Year Bring
To All Our Friends
and Family — Health,
Joy, Prosperity
and Everything
Good in Life.
JACK & MIRIAM SHENKMAN
& FAMILY
To All Our
Relatives
and Friends,
Our wish for a
year filled with
happiness,
health and prosperity.
FRANKA & ALLEN CHARLUPSKI
tialz 11c13`2
to all
our friends
and relatives.
to all
our friends
and relatives.
HOWARD & JUDI FRIEDMAN,
LESLEE & LORI
Scottsdale, Arizona
THE FRIEDMANS
ERWIN•BERTHA
HAROLD•JANE•AYI & ELANA
limn ran rum'?
1111DTI 111115 illt13`2
to all
our friends
and relatives.
to all
our friends
and relatives.
MAX & DEBORAH &
LAURIE GUTHART
BEN & PEARL GUYER
Margate, Florida
Best wishes for a
happy, healthy
New Year.
Best wishes for a
happy, healthy
New Year.
FERN & HERB BAKER
MICHAEL, BARBARA, ROBIN
& DEBBIE BERGER
Best wishes for a
happy, healthy
New Year.
Best wishes for a
happy, healthy
New Year.
GIZELLA BAKER & FAMILY
ERNIE, GLORIA &
DEBRA BEREN
A Very Happy and Healthy
New Year to All Our Friends
and Family.
ALLAN & LORI BROOKS
GARRETT AND ILANA
A Very Happy and Healthy
New Year to All Our Friends
and Family.
GAIL, ALLAN, HOWARD, MARK
& STACEY COHEN
We wish our family and friends a
very healthy, happy and prosperous
New Year
ABE & CLARA FEINSTEIN
We wish our family and friends a
very healthy, happy and prosperous
New Year
BOB & JEANNETTE FELDMAN
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
85